26 BRITISH LAND BIRDS. 



seemed little else than a mass of feathers. By 

 cautious feeding however, he soon regained his 

 flesh and became so tame as to eat from my hand 

 without the least appearance of fear. To reconcile 

 him gradually to confinement he was permitted to 

 fly about my bedroom, and upon rising in the 

 morning, the first thing I did was to give him a 

 small quantity of seed. But three mornings in 

 succession I chanced to lie rather later than usual, 

 and each morning I was aroused by the bird 

 fluttering upon my shoulder and calling for his 

 usual allowance. The third morning I allowed 

 him to flutter about me some time before showing 

 any symptom of being awake. He no sooner per- 

 ceived that his object was effected than he retired 

 to the window and waited patiently till I was 

 dressed." Surely there is more than instinct in 

 such conduct. Have we not in such actions evi- 

 dence of memory, association, and inference ? 



An instance of cautious sagacity in a peewit, is 

 mentioned by Brehm. He had placed some horse- 

 hair snares over its nest, and the bird having 

 alighted, at the distance of thirty paces, ran to it, 

 and seeing them, pushed them aside with her 

 bill. The next day he set them thickly round the 

 nest ; but the bird instead of running, as usual, to 

 it, alighted directly upon it. 



Every one knows that rooks will fly at the ap- 



