1 1 2 FEA T HER ED FRIENDS. 



also calling "Jack, Jack" (the Starling); she could say 

 a number of words, too, very plainly, and frequently 

 picked up new sayings ; but she was not to be trusted. 



On one occasion I was in her house feeding her, 

 and she suddenly pecked me on the back of the hand, 

 so severely as to break the skin and draw blood, which 

 was rather a serious thing from a creature of her kind, 

 but fortunately no harm resulted: another time when 

 I had let her out in the garden, she quietly walked 

 up behind one of my boys who was sitting down 

 reading, and gave him a bite in the leg. 



The above and other similar offences were forgiven 

 in consideration of her many comical ways, but one 

 day when a servant lad was cleaning out the house, 

 which had to be done every morning, she suddenly 

 hopped down off her perch on to his back as he was 

 stooping down below and bit him sharply on the 

 back of his neck, nearly frightening the boy into a fit, 

 so that he could not be induced to go into the summer- 

 house again. But there! if I were to recount all her 

 delinquencies I should never have done. 



I had read somewhere that a Raven when carrying 

 off an egg, is in the habit of "transfixing it with his 

 powerful bill", but I doubted the fact, so I gave one 

 to "Grippa" one day in order to see what she would 

 do. She simply picked it up between her mandibles 

 as she would have done any other morsel, flew up 

 with it to her perch, where she steadied it between her 



