PART V. 



MAGPIES. Piece. 



CHAPTER I. 



MAGPIE. Pica melanoleuca. 



THIS bird, familiar as a household word 

 to every inhabitant of England, is, though 

 one of the commonest residents of the 

 western section of this continent, only 

 occasionally met with in the houses of 

 our citizens, and then only when they 

 have been brought from Europe. 



His plumage is a deep velvety-black, 

 with the belly and upper portion of the 

 wings of a glossy snow-white, which gives 

 to the bird a singularly striking appear- 

 ance. 



His musical powers are naturally very 



