212 



The Stork. 



There is a theory in North Germany and 

 Swabia that when a nest is manufactured 

 for the stork, which is occasionally done 

 by putting up an old cartwheel with 

 boughs twined round the spokes, he will 

 testify his gratitude to the owner of the 

 house by throwing down a feather the first 

 year, an ^%g the second year, and the third 

 year a young stork. Then he recommences 

 with a feather, and so on. 



The demeanor of the stork on his first 

 appearance is very important. Should he 

 be chattering, the spectator will break a 

 great deal of crockery during the ensuing 

 twelvemonth; if silent, he will be lazy; if 

 flying, he will be diligent. Thus say the 

 peasants of Hanover and Mecklenburg. 

 In the Altmark, a stork on the wing signi- 

 fies to a maiden that she will soon enter 

 the bonds of wedlock; but if stationary, 

 she will be asked to act as sponsor. Who- 

 ever has money in his pocket on first be- 

 holding the stork, will never lack during 

 the year, nor will he suffer from toothache. 



The superstition that the stork brings 

 the children is current over all Germany. 

 In Silesia the flight of a stork over a house 

 denotes the speedy arrival of a baby; while 

 in the island of Riigen they say that, un- 

 less the stork lay eggs, the house will also 

 be childless, and, as the young storks 

 thrive, so will the children. Nobody dare 

 shoot a stork in Riigen, for then he weeps 

 large tears, and each tear portends a great 

 misfortune. The stork is very particular 

 about domestic peace in the dwelling where 

 he takes up his abode, and strife soon 

 drives him away. Swabian peasants say 

 that when the storks assemble for their 

 winter migration, the males and females 

 all pair off, and should there be an odd 

 one, he or she is pecked to death by the 

 rest. The Westphalians declare that the 

 old storks always throw one of their brood 

 out of the nest if the number be uneven. 

 In Oldenburg there is a curious theory 

 that the autumnal gatherings of the storks 



are in reality Freemasons' meetings. The 

 pious monk, Cesarius von Heisterback, re- 

 marks in an ancient chronicle, that the 

 storks are models of conjugal fidelity; and 

 when a female stork attempts flirtation 

 with any other than her lawful husband, 

 she is brought before a jury of storks, and 

 if found guilty, they hack her to pieces 

 with their long bills. 



Many of the country folk in Holland 

 place old cart wheels on the roofs of their 

 houses, so that the storks may build their 

 nests on them. A pair of these birds nest- 

 ing on a house top is considered lucky. 

 The "arrival of the stork" is as gladly 

 hailed in the countries it visits as the com- 

 ing of the cuckoo. The general plumage 

 of the white stork is a dirty white, with the 

 exception of the wing covers, which are 

 black. The bird is about 42 inches long, 

 and 86 inches across the wings. The 

 wing measures 25 and the tail 10 inches. 

 The great stretch of wing shows that the 

 stork is well equipped for migratory flights. 

 The storks migrate to Egypt and other 

 countries in Northern Africa in winter, and 

 in spring they return to Europe, etc., in 

 immense flights, when they separate into 

 pairs and commence to nest. The nests 

 are roughly composed of sticks and twigs. 

 The young are hatched out in a month, 

 and are carefully fed and tended by both 

 parents till they can fly and procure food 

 for themselves. Many interesting stories 

 have been told of the love, even unto death, 

 manifested by parent storks for the safety 

 of their helpless young. Cruel tricks, not 

 unknown to our own schoolboys, have oc- 

 casionally been played on sitting storks, 

 such as substituting hen and goose eggs 

 for the rightful ones. In all these cases 

 tragical results followed the hatching out 

 of the intruded eggs. But we had best let 

 a well known ornithological writer tell a 

 sad story of the same kind. " A pair of 

 storks built a nest on one of the chimneys 

 of a gentleman residing near Berlin, the 



