Animal Intelligence. 873 



took refuge in an obscure place where it had nothing to eat, and would 

 have starved but for a tender-hearted duck who twice every day carried 

 and deposited before the hen as many grains of barley some 20 or 30 

 as her beak would hold. The duck performed this humane office for 

 about three weeks until the hen died. The other story is of five ducks 

 which were constantly bullied and driven away from the common feed- 

 ing place by an arrogant and domineering rooster. At last, on one oc- 

 casion having been driven into a corner, they there held a consultation 

 and entered into a conspiracy ; after which, returning they surrounded 

 the rooster, and making a concerted attack ' ' fairly hustled him clean 

 out of the yard. To see the surprise of the cock as he jumped from 

 side to side to avoid the pressure of the attacking party, was ludicrous 

 in the extreme. The victory was complete ; from that hour the ducks 

 were never again molested." (Popular Science Monthly, Oct., 1884. ) 



Birds are fond of music and color. Some adorn their nests and select 

 their companions, foods, fruit, &c. , with reference to the color sense. 

 The sparrow enjoys the music of other birds. They have been known 

 to gather about a robin when ha was singing. Mr. Fish says : " A 

 friend sends me an account of a Bobolink that, placed in a cage with 

 some canaries, exhibited great delight at their songs. He did not sing 

 himself, but with a peculiar cluck could always set the canaries singing. 

 After a while he began to learn their song, note by note, and in the 

 course of a few weeks mastered the entire song." The goose is also 

 fond of music, an air on a fiddle will set a whole flock wild with delight. 

 He relates a story of a gander that was set to dancing a lively jig by an 

 air played on an accordeon, the gander keeping good time with the music. 

 ' ' For several minutes he kept up the performance, to the great delight 

 of the company. The experiment was tried several times for a week 

 or more, and the tones of the accordeon never failed to set the old gan- 

 der into a lively dance." (Pop. Sci. Mo., Sept. 1884.) 



The f ellowing story of a Dancing Goose is from the Macon Telegraph : 



' For several weeks the employes of the gas works, as well as the 

 electric light works in the same neighborhood, have been seen to stop 

 every evening on quitting work and surround a lot of little colored chil- 

 dren who daily congregate on the square near the railroad embankment. 

 Monday a Telegraph man determined to see the cause of the gathering, 

 and on proceeding to the locality found the little colored children en- 

 gaged in ' patting, ' with all their might, an old gray goose in the center 

 of the circle dancing, first on one foot and then on the other. The gan- 

 der seemed to enjoy the dance, and, though it may read like a ' fake ' 

 WHS keeping most excellent time to the rude music of the children. For 

 an hour or so the goose will dance to the patting, always stopping when 

 the children cease their music and seems always ready to resume." 



The keeper of a Scottish estate, who was one day strolling about the 

 fields with a gun, saw a Kestral, or Hawk, flying towards him against 



