RAVENS. 181 



many, who have not only known them to show great indif- 

 ference to any young ones accidentally thrown out of the nest, 

 but have further ascertained that the parents actually devour 

 them. 



It would appear from some passages in the Sacred Scriptures, 

 that the desertion of their young had not escaped the observa- 

 tion of the inspired writers. It was certainly a current belief, 

 in the olden times, that when the Raven saw its young ones 

 newly hatched, and covered with down, it conceived such an 

 aversion, that it forsook them, and did not return to the nest, 

 till a darker plumage had shown itself. And to this belief 

 commentators suppose the Psalmist alludes, when he says, 

 TTfi giveth to the beast his food, and to the young ravens 

 which cry. (Psalm cxlvii. 9.) And again, in Job, Who 

 provideth for the raven his food ? When his young ones 

 cry unto God, they wander for lack of meat. (Job 

 xxxviii. 41.) 



But we do not believe this want of feeling to be peculiar 

 to Ravens; on the contrary, in an aviary where several 

 Canaries build annually, instances repeatedly occur of young 

 birds falling out of the nest, when, if they are of very tender 

 age, the old ones seem to show no uneasiness whatever ; 

 hopping or flying over them with the greatest unconcern, 

 though the poor naked birds may be struggling for life. 



We have yet, indeed, much to learn respecting the real 

 extent and quality of the affection of animals for their young ; 

 for in the case of Canaries we have known, if wet or cold 

 weather chanced to continue for a day or two, not only nests 

 containing eggs, but others, with nearly full-fledged nestlings, 

 requiring all a mother's care, to be at once abandoned, and 

 left to perish by cold or hunger. 



On the 2nd of June, 1833, a Canary bird in an aviary was 

 unexpectedly drenched, having built her nest, during dry 

 weather, in a spot exposed to rain, which fell in a heavy 

 shower on that day. On the following day, she accordingly 

 quitted her nest, and appeared so unwell, that it was deemed 

 expedient to remove her into a small cage, and place her in 

 a warmer situation. But to our great surprise a Goldfinch, 



