148 BIRDS OF THE PLAINS 



engaged in the attack. Moreover, the kite was not 

 visible and the crows had grown bolder, for whereas 

 previously they had abused the kite from a safe dis- 

 tance, some of them were now quite close to the nest. 

 Being pressed for time, I was not able to stay and await 

 developments. In the afternoon when I again passed 

 the nest I saw no kite, but the tree was alive with crows, 

 and part of the nest appeared to have been pulled down. 

 The nestlings had probably been destroyed. Of this I 

 was not able to make certain, for I was on my way to 

 fulfil a social engagement. I was, I admit, sorely tempted 

 to "cut" this, and nothing but the want of a good 

 excuse prevented my doing so. " Dear Mrs. Burra 

 Mem, I much regret that I was prevented from coming to 

 your tennis party this afternoon by a domestic bereave- 

 ment of a kite," seemed rather unconvincing, so I went 

 to the lawn-tennis party. 



When I saw the nest the following morning it was a 

 total wreck. There were still one or two crows hanging 

 around, and while I was inspecting the ground beneath 

 the scene of the tragedy they amused themselves by 

 dropping sticks on my head. The crow is an ill- 

 conditioned bird. I found, lying about on the ground, 

 the dtbris of the nest, a number of kite's feathers, in- 

 cluding six or seven of the large tail ones, and two 

 crow's wings. These last furnished the clue to the be- 

 haviour of the crows. The kite must have attacked 

 and killed a sickly crow, in order to provide breakfast 

 for her young. This was, of course, an outrage on 

 corvine society an outrage which demanded speedy 

 vengeance. Hence the gathering of the clans which I 



