THE WINTER BIRDS. 291 



The cawing of the Crow seems to me unlike any other 

 sound in nature. It is not melodious, though less 

 harsh than that of the Jay. It is said that when domes- 

 ticated he is capable of imitating human speech, though he 

 cannot sing. But ^sop mistook the character of this bird 

 when he represented him as the dupe of the fox, who 

 gained the bit of cheese he carried in his mouth by per- 

 suading him to exhibit his musical powers. The Crow 

 could not be fooled by any such appeals to his vanity. 



The Crow is justly regarded as a homely bird ; yet he 

 is not without beauty. His coat of glossy black with 

 violet reflections, his dark eyes and sagacious expression 

 of countenance, his stately and graceful gait, and his 

 steady and equable flight, all give him a proud and dig- 

 nified appearance. The Crow and the Raven have always 

 been celebrated for their gravity, a character that seems 

 to be caused by their black, sacerdotal vesture and by 

 certain peculiar manifestations of intelligence in their 

 ways and general deportment. Indeed, any one who 

 should watch the motions of the Crow for five minutes, 

 when he is stalking alone in the field or when he is ca- 

 reering with his fellows around some tall tree in the for- 

 est, would not fail to see that he deserves to be called a 

 grave bird. 



Setting aside all considerations of the services rendered 

 by the Crow to agriculture, I esteem him for certain qual- 

 ities which are agreeably associated with the charms of 

 nature. It is not the singing-birds alone that contribute 

 by their voices to gladden the husbandman and cheer the 

 solitary traveller. The crowing of the cock at the break 

 of day is as joyful a sound, though unmusical, as the voice 

 of the Robin, who chants his lay at the same early hour. 

 To me the cawing of the Crow is cheering and delightful, 

 and it is heard long before the generality of birds have 

 left their perch. If not one of the melodies of morn, it 



