I30 SINGING BIRDS. 



first glance, perceiving with ready sagacity the wily manner of 

 the fowler. So fearful and suspicious are they of human arti- 

 fices that a mere line stretched round a field is often found 

 sufficient to deter these wily birds from a visit to the cornfield. 

 Against poison they are not so guarded, and sometimes corn 

 steeped in hellebore is given them, which creates giddiness 

 and death. 



Another curious method is that of pinning a live Crow to the 

 ground by the wings, stretched out on his back, and retained 

 in this posture by two sharp, forked sticks. In this situation, 

 his loud cries attract other Crows, who come sweeping down 

 to the prostrate prisoner, and are grappled in his claws. In 

 this way each successive prisoner may be made the innocent 

 means of capturing his companion. The reeds in which they 

 roost, when dry enough, are sometimes set on fire also to pro- 

 cure their destruction ; and to add to the fatality produced by 

 the flames, gunners are also stationed round to destroy those 

 that attempt to escape by flight. In severe winters they suffer 

 occasionally from famine and cold, and fall sometimes dead 

 in the fields. According to Wilson, in one of these severe 

 seasons, more than 600 Crows were shot on the carcase of a 

 dead horse, which was placed at a proper shooting distance 

 from a stable. The premiums obtained for these, and the price 

 procured for the quills, produced to the farmer nearly the value 

 of the horse when living, besides aflbrding feathers sufficient to 

 fill a bed. 



The Crow is easily raised and domesticated, and soon learns 

 to distinguish the different members of the family with which 

 he is associated. He screams at the approach of a stranger ; 

 learns to open the door by alighting on the latch; attends 

 regularly at meal times ; is very noisy and loquacious ; imitates 

 the sounds of various words which he hears ; is very thievish, 

 given to hiding curiosities in holes and crevices, and is very 

 fond of carrying off" pieces of metal, corn, bread, and food of 

 all kinds ; he is also particularly attached to the society of his 

 master, and recollects him sometimes after a long absence. 



It is commonly believed and asserted in some parts of this 



