OWLS. 179 



whole village up in arms on such an occasion, 

 imagining the church-yard to be full of goblins 

 and spectres. White owls also often scream hor- 

 ribly as they fly along ; from this screaming pra- 

 bably arose the common people's imaginary species 

 of screech-owl, which they superstitiously think 

 attends the windows of dying persons. The plu- 

 mage of the remiges of the wings of every species 

 of owl that I have yet examined is remarkably 

 soft and pliant. Perhaps it may be necessary that 

 the wings of these birds should not make much 

 Resistance or rushing, that they may be enabled to 

 steal through the air unheard upon a nimble and 

 watchful quarry. 



While I am talking of owls, it may not be 

 improper to mention what I was told by a gentle- 

 man of the county of Wilts : As they were 

 grubbing a vast hollow pollard ash that had been 

 the mansion of owls for centuries, he discovered 

 at the bottom a mass of matter that at first he 

 could not account for. After some examination, 

 he found that it was a congeries of the bones of 

 mice (and perhaps of birds and bats) that had been 

 heaping together for ages, being cast up in pellets 

 out of the crops of many generations of inhabit- 

 ants. For owls cast up the bones, fur, and fea- 

 thers, of what they devour, after the manner of 

 hawks. He believes, he told me, that there were 

 bushels of this kind of substance. 



When brown owls hoot, their throats swell as 

 big as a hen's egg. I have known an owl of 

 this species live a full year without any water. 

 Perhaps the case may be the same with all birds 

 of prey 1 . When owls fly, they stretch out their 



1 All birds of prey are capable of sustaining the want of 

 food and water for long periods, particularly the latter, but 

 of which they also seem remarkably fond, drinking frequently 

 N 2 



