240 



XUKTII AMEIMCAN IJIRDS. 



ness and one "on misfliicr ln-iit,*' and their iiitclliirent watclifulness ren- 

 dvwA it ([iiitc impossible lo aj>i>n»iKli tlieiii openly witli gun in hand. 



" liavcns aiv resident in the region ai»out Fort Whipjde, and their appar- 

 ently diminished nundter in summer is simi)lv due to the tact that thev are 

 then spread over a greater surfaee, are less restless, a)id better ]>rovided for 

 in the matter of food. In winter, and especially when snow covereil the 

 ground, their imndters at the hat were sini]>ly ineahulable. They dotted 

 the «a"ound everywhere during the ilay, and n^jsted in crowds on the nei^h- 

 boring ])ines by night. One patriarchal tree, that stood somewhat isolated, 

 was a favorite resting-])laee for the Havens and lUizzards, and gradually as- 

 sumed a singular appearance, as if it had been whitewashed. This great pine 

 overlooke«l a little open space where our beeves were .sLiughtered, and the 

 hanqueting there was never ended. All night hmg the wolves howled and 

 barked as they tugged at the «»tfal, till daylight sent them rebictant to their 

 rocky fastnesses, when the great dark birds, with a })remonitorv stretching 

 of the wings, tla])i»ed down to renew the feast. The IJavens and Buzzards 

 seemed to u,et ahmcf verv well ttJ^ether, ouarrellinii no more with each other 

 than eadi species did with its own kind ; but in the occasional disjaites the 

 smaller birds seemed to have rather the advantage of the heavier and chnn- 

 sier gluttons. This comparative good-feUowshi}) was in striking contrast to 

 the behavior of Crows towards Turkey Jiuzzards. 



" The JIaven is not, on the whole, so noi.sy a bird as the Crow, though he 

 croaks vigorously on occasion, and his caw may claim to be impressive, if not 

 agreeable. I)Ut the (pieer sounds that the l)ird can utter, if he be so minded, 

 are imlescribable ; even his ordinary cawing is susceptible of considerable 

 modulation. A favorite anni-sement of his, when, his hunger appeased for 

 the time, he feels particularly comfortable, is to settle snugly on the to]) of 

 a pin^-tree, aiA talk to himself. 'i';ie performance generally Hegin's with a 

 loud caw, self-asserting, followed by a comphicent chuckh* ; and then comes 

 a series of comical syllables, so low as to be scarcely au<lil)le from the ground 

 below, as if he were musing aloud, and tickled with his own fancies. Then 

 he will raise his voice again, and tile awav at some ohl saw for a while, finish- 

 ing with the inimitable ' cork-drawin<^ ' for which his tribe is famous. 



" A IJayen that 1 had slightly wounded in the wing and captured soon 

 became <piite tame, and deyeloped a variety of amusing traits. Proving 

 rather obtrusive and inconvenient in my narrow (piarters, I undertook to tie 

 him in a corner with a string round his leg. This he objected to, and it 

 was astonishing to see the perseverance he showed in nntying any nund>er 

 of knots I might make. It was a task that sometimes took him hours, but 

 he never rested until it was done. I had no chain light enough for the pur- 

 pose, but I finally got the better of him by twisting a wire with the cord. 

 His intelligence did not reach in that direction more than six inches from 

 his leg." 



Mr. Dresser observed the Haven common at San Antonio, frequenting the 



