42 WESTERN SERIES OF READERS. 



stovepipe as for a crow of any other color than 

 black. 



Perhaps it is because the crow is black, and he 

 knows it, that he shuns the open country as much 

 as he can. He loves best the dark woods. Here 

 he is not so easily seen. He has learned to be 

 wary. All his forefathers and foremothers have 

 been despised, and the instinct to keep out of 

 reach is born in him. Especially does he keep 

 at long range when a hunter is in sight. 



But whatever may be said against the crows, 

 they have a virtue which should commend them 

 to Western people. It is said that a pair of 

 crows, once mated, never separate as long as they 

 live. They take each other "for better or for 

 worse." And if left undisturbed, they use the 

 same nesting-site year after year. 



To be sure, it is not much of a nest, only a few 

 sticks laid up loosely on the branch of a tree. 

 The eggs are four to six, greenish, dotted with 

 browns. In the low lands the nesting-season is 

 in April and May. 



Though the crows do not nest in our gardens, 

 they are known to visit our farm-yards and fields 

 when they are hungry, like any tramp. They are 

 seen to follow hunters when they are out camp- 

 ing, like the jay, for what crumbs and scraps they 



