200 MAGPIE. 



slight; but he possesses a talent of imita- 

 tion which renders him an immense fa- 

 vourite. This includes nearly every thing 

 which the Pie hears, now following the 

 "moo" of the Cow, then running into the 

 different notes of various song-birds, or 

 uttering the cluck of the chicken, and so 

 on through an almost tedious catalogue 

 of sounds. 



In confinement he is very sociable, 

 running in and out of the house, perching 

 upon the backs of the cattle, and making 

 himself feared and respected by the do- 

 mestic animals, as dogs and cats, with 

 whom he associates himself, playing upon 

 them numerous tricks with a strange kind 

 of familiarity. His power of acquiring 

 language is very great, fully equalling if 

 not surpassing that of the Parrot, for he 

 will store together sentence after sentence 

 which he hears, repeating them from time 

 to time, with the same decision in which 

 they were spoken and with great clear- 

 ness and beauty. 



