IN THE NORTH OF. KENT IOI 
The ends of the wings and the tail are black 
but resplendent with a fine lustrous blue. 
Pilferer is the best name for this restless, 
handsome bird. He steals and cats other 
birds’ eggs as well as devouring their young, 
and has, as probably most people well know, 
a great liking for carrying off and hiding bright 
objects as silver spoons and forks. So he 
shares the fate of the jay and is destroyed 
where game has to be preserved. But like 
the jay he redeems his character by eating 
insects and grubs, snails and slugs. He feeds 
also on beetles, frogs and the like and is a use- 
ful scavenger of carrion. I remember as a 
boy I used always to regard a magpie as a more 
or less loathsome bird, and when I shot one 
I always handled it with care, as he had 
generally been just feeding on some filth or 
other. The nest is attended to in April; 
only one brood is raised yearly, I believe. 
The bird does not migrate. He is found all 
over the country. The food is taken on the 
ground, on which he runs, hops and dashes 
about, often cocking up and expanding his 
