SOME SUSPICIOUS CHARACTERS 163 
nest early; the Great Horned Owl, of deservedly savage 
reputation, beginning in February, and the round-faced 
Barred Owl in March. I have only seen the young Owls 
on their first coming from the nest — queer, fuzzy little 
balls, awkward in flight and noisy, who perch on a branch 
like a row of clothes-pins all day, and then spend their 
nights being fed, and in awkward attempts at learning to 
fly. Once, in my girlhood, I kept an Owl with a sprained 
Wing in an outdoor cage for a couple of months, and he 
grew quite tame and was very clever and clean apparently, 
from the evidence of spilled water, taking a bath in his 
pan every night and keeping his feathers in good 
condition. 
“Major Bendire tells of the courtship of these songless 
birds in a way that proves that where voice is lacking, 
gesture takes the place of speech, as with Grackles and 
Crows. ‘The female was perched in a dark, leafy tree, 
apparently oblivious of the presence of her mate, who 
made frantic efforts to attract her attention through a 
series of bowings, wing-raisings, and snapping of the beak. 
These antics were continued for some time, varied by 
hops from branch to branch near her, accompanied by 
that forlorn, almost despairing, wink peculiar to this bird. 
Once or twice I thought that I detected sounds of inward 
groanings as he, beside himself at lack of success, sat in 
utter dejection. At last the lady lowered her haughty 
head, looked at and approached him.’ 
“The young Owls when first hatched are blind and 
featherless, and are so ravenous that not only do their 
parents feed them at night but also put away enough 
food in the nest to last through the day as well, so you can 
