242 THE REASON WHY : 



" And the raven never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting 



On the pallid bust of Pallas, just above my chamber door; 

 And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon's that is dreaming, 

 And the lamp-light o'er him streaming, throws his shadow -JA 

 the floor." EDGAR POK. 



735. Why are, ravens more social than birds of prey ? 



Because the food upon which they subsist is of a promiscuous 

 nature, and abundant in quantity, which allows a greater number 

 to subsist together without being urged to the storn necessity of 

 solitude or famine a condition to which the true rapacious birds 



are always driven. 



i 



736. Why is it erroneous to suppose that crows destroy grass ? 



This error arises out of the 

 following circumstance : In search- 

 ing for grubs which are concealed 

 in the earth, and which are sup- 

 ported by eating the roots of 

 the grass, the crow pulls at the 

 stem of the grass with its bill, 

 and when the grass comes up, 

 the crow knows that there are 

 under it insects which have de- 

 stroyed its roots, and in this way detects them ; but if the stem of 

 grass is firm, the crow goes to another tuft, and proceeds in the 

 same manner. 



737. Why is the rook the earliest bird stirring in the morning f 



Because its principal food is worms, which feed and crawl 

 upon the humid surface of the ground in the dark, and retire 

 before the light of day ; and, roosting higher than other birds, 

 the first rays of the sun as they dart from the horizon, become 

 visible to the rook. 



738. Why is the flight of rooks popularly supposed to portend 

 rough or fine weather ? 



Because it is proved by observation that when a gale of wind 

 is blowing, or about to blow, they descend into valleys, and just 

 skim over the tops of the intervening hills and trees ; but when 



