254 Crows 
that if some one can tell why crows are sociable birds, 
the question as to why they form roosts will be answered. 
The plumage of the crow is black, and his character 
has been, and still is, painted of a hue equally dark. 
The habits of the crows of a hundred years ago and 
those of the crow of to-day are not the same, but most 
writers seem to think it necessary to inflict upon the 
present crow the bad reputation of past generations. 
Birds considered in relation to man are of two general 
classes, those that are helpful and those that are 
harmful. According to the popular idea, the crow 
belongs decidedly to the latter class. I believe the 
wrongdoings of crows to have been exaggerated, and 
that the real harm done is very much less than is 
supposed. To judge the crow, or any other animal 
in its economic relations to man, from a scientific 
standpoint, we must know what it lives upon. This 
will largely determine whether it is beneficial or 
harmful. However, in one part of the animal’s 
range this may put him in one class, while in another 
part he will appear in the other. 
The crow destroys a considerable number of field- 
mice, and in particular the young of the short-tailed 
variety, which builds its nest upon the surface of 
the ground. Even tame crows are very fond of mice, 
seeming to prefer them to almost any other kind of 
