3 74 Life and Tm mortality. 



the hours of the morning away, after a night's carousal, in a 

 quiet, sunny spot in the backyard. When the dog had 

 become fast wrapped in the arms of the god of slumber, the 

 crow would steal to his side, give his ear a sharp pull, and 

 when the dog would awake and look around the crow would 

 be busy in gleaning, the most unconcerned creature in the 

 whole yard. Again and again would she annoy the poor 

 animal, and always with the same evident sense of delight, 

 which I could always read in the mischievous twinkle that 

 lurked in her eyes, till the dog, bewildered and unable 

 to account for such mysterious actions, would silently 

 skulk away to other parts, where he hoped to be free from 

 all intrusion. Even the mistress of the house was not ex- 

 empt from her annoyance. She would carry off everything 

 she coula lay hold of, and always hid them away in one 

 place, that is, in a large crevice on the top of the house 

 between the peak of the roof and the chimney. One day 

 the mistress's spectacles disappeared. Search was instituted 

 everywhere, but without effect. None knew better than the 

 bird what the trouble was. While the search was going on, 

 she busied herself in looking around, and seemed as desirous 

 of rinding the missing glasses as any member of the house- 

 hold. The look which the bird gave showed that she en- 

 joyed the situation of affairs immensely, and considered it a 

 fine joke that she had played upon her mistress. After a 

 few days the lost spectacles were restored to their accus- 

 tomed place, but no one ever positively knew how they 

 came thither. 



Domestic birds, as a rule, are remarkable for the generosity 

 which the master-bird shows to his inferiors. He will 

 scratch the ground, unearth some food, and then, instead of 

 eating it himself, will call some of his favorites, and give them 

 the delicacy for which he labored. But I have met with a 

 few cases where the cock scratched as usual, called his wives, 

 and, when they had gathered round him, ate the morsel him- 

 self. It was but a practical joke that he had perpetrated 



