CLASS II. AYES: ORDER 2. PASSERES. 199 



" The Carrion-Crow hath a coat of black, 

 Silky and sleek like a priest's, on his back ; 

 Like a lawyer he grubbcth — no matter what way — 

 The fouler the ofi'al the richer his prey. 



Uaw ! caw ! the Carrion- Crow ! 

 Di<j ! di'j ! in the ground below ! 



" The Carriou-Crow hath a dainty maw, 

 With savory pickings he cranimeth his craw ; 

 Kept meat from the gibbet it pleaseth his whim, 

 It never can hnvj too long for him. 



Caw! caw! 



"The Carrion-Crow smellcth powder, 'tis said. 

 Like a soldier escheweth the taste of cold lead; 

 No jester in mime hath more marvelous wit, 

 For wherever he lighteth he maketh a hit. 



Caw ! caw ! the Carrion-Crow ! 

 Dig ! dig ! in the ground lelow !" 



The American Crow, C. Americanus, is somewhat smaller than the preceding; it differs from 

 that species also in having a more sonorons voice, and in being gregarious in its habits. In color, 

 form, and food it is similar. Its length is seventeen inches ; its color a shiny, glossy blue-black ; 

 the color of the fenialc is somewhat duller ; the food consists of grains, insects, carrion, frogs, tad- 

 poles, lizards, small fish and shell-fish. Wilson says: "This is perhaps the most generally 

 known, and least beloved, of all our land birds ; having neither melody of song, nor beauty of 

 plumage, nor excellence of flesh, nor civility of manners to recommend him ; on the contrary, he 

 is branded as a thief and a plunderer — a kind of black-coated vagabond, who hovers over the 

 fields of the industrious, fattening on their labors, and, by his voracity, often blastin-g their ex- 

 pectations. Hated as he is by the farmer, watched and pei'secuted by almost every bearer of a 

 gun, who all triumph in his destruction, had not heaven bestowed on him intelligence and sagac- 

 ity far beyond common, there is reason to believe that the whole tribe would long ago have ceased 

 to exist. It is a constant attendant on agriculture, and a general inhabitant of the cultivated 

 parts of North America. In the interior of the forest he is more rare, unless during the season 

 of breeding. He is particularly attached to low, flat corn countries lying in the neighborhood 

 of the sea or of large rivers; and is more numerous in the Northern than Southern States, where 

 vultures abound, with whom the crows are unable to contend. About the middle of March they 

 pair, and soon begin to build, generally choosing a high tree; their nests are formed externally 

 of sticks, wet moss, thin bark, mixed with mossy earth, and lined with large quantities of horse- 

 hair, to the amount of more than half a pound, some cow-hair, and some wool, forming a very 

 soft and elastic bed. The eggs arc four, of a pale green color, marked Avith numerous specks and 

 blotches of olive. During this interesting season the male is extremely watchful, making frequent 

 excursions of half a mile or so in circuit to recoimoiter ; and the instant he observes a person ap- 

 proaching, he gives the alarm, when both male and female retire to a distance till the intruder 

 has gone past. He also regularly carries food to his mate while she is sitting, occasionally re- 

 lieves hei-, and, when she returns, again resigns up his post. At this time, also, as well as until 

 the young are able to fly, they preserve uncommon silence, that their retreat may not be sus- 

 pected. 



" It is in the month of May, and until the middle of June, that the crow is most destructive to 

 the corn-fields, digging up the newly planted grains of maize, pulling up by the roots those that 

 have begun to vegetate, and thus frequently obliging the farmer to replant, or lose the benefit of 

 the soil ; and this sometimes twice, and even three times, occasioning a considerable additional 

 expense, and inequality of harvest. No mercy is now shown him. The myriads of worms, moles, 

 mice, caterpillars, grubs, and beetles, which he has destroyed, are altogether overlooked on these 

 occasions. Detected in robbing the hens' nest.s, pulling up the corn, and killing the young chick- 

 ens, he is considered as an outlaw, and sentenced to destruction. But the great difficulty is, how 

 to put this sentence in execntion. In vain the gunner skulks along the hedges and fences ; his 

 faithful sentinels, planted on some commanding point, raise the alarm, and disappoint vengeance 



