THE RAVEN. 



The raven of Selborne. 



acknowledged the undertaking to be too hazard- 

 ous. Thus the ravens continued to build, nest 

 upon nest, in perfect security ; till the fatal day 

 arrived on which the wood was to be levelled. 

 This was in the month of February, when those 

 birds usually sit. The saw was applied to the 

 trunk, the wedges were inserted into the opening, 

 the woods echoed to the heavy blows of the 

 beetle or mallet, the tree nodded to its fall; but 

 still the dam persisted to sit. At last, when it 

 gave way, the bird was flung from her nest; and, 

 though her maternal affection merited a better 

 fate, she was whipped down by the twigs, which 

 brought her lifeless to the ground. 



In a wild state the raven subsists chiefly on 

 small animals ; and is particularly destructive to 

 rabbits, young ducks, chickens, and even lambs, 

 when they happen to be dropped in a weak state. 

 In the northern regions, it preys in concert with 

 the white bear, the Arctic fox, and the eas:le : it 



* * O x 



devours the eggs of other birds, and eats shell- 

 fish; with the latter it soars into the air, and 

 drops them from on high to break the shells and 

 thus get at the contents. In the act of feeding, it 

 shifts its prey from the bill to the feet, and from 

 the feet to the bill, to ease itself. Some writers 

 have asserted, that it may be trained to fowling, 

 like a hawk. Its flesh is eaten by the natives of 

 Greenland ; who also use the skins sewed toge- 

 ther as an inner garment, and form the split 

 quills into fishing lines. 



VOL. in, NO. xvin. N 



