THE ROOK. 



215 



remains safe, even though its owners be far away. 

 Before the eggs are laid the Rooks never remain on the 

 trees all night, that is in the smaller rookeries, for the 

 birds join the larger colonies and roost with them 

 nightly ; and they but seldom work except in the 

 morning, spending the remainder of the day on the 

 pastures. The Rook builds a firm and compact nest of 

 sticks, cemented with mud and lined with the same. 

 Then this shell is lined with turf torn from the grass lands, 

 moss, wool, dry leaves, and feathers. It is far more 

 shallow than that of the Carrion Crow, but otherwise 

 closely resembles it, and so firmly is it built in its 

 elevated crotch, that you may sit in it with perfect safety. 

 Numbers of the nests are built together in large masses, 

 and they are always placed in the topmost branches. 

 Most trees are built in, but probably the oak, elm, and 

 beech are most frequently used. At the old manorial 

 dwelling known as Beauchief Hall, a short distance 

 away from the ancient abbey, the Rooks have in some 

 instances built their nests in some tall holly bushes, 

 many of them being little over eight feet from the 

 ground. These strange sites are not chosen through 

 necessity, for numbers of stately trees throw up their 

 graceful branches close at hand. The eggs of the Rook 

 are subject to much variety both in form and colour. 

 Some are elongated, others almost round ; while the 

 ground colour on many is green, on others it is nearly 

 white, spotted and blotched with greenish -brown of 

 various shades. On many specimens we find but little 

 colouring matter, while in others it is so thickly diffused 

 as to entirely hide the ground colour. In numbers, too, 

 they vary considerably, for sometimes you will find but 

 three, and at others four and five : the latter number I do 

 not think they often exceed. If you remove the eggs 



