SCANDINAVIA 315 



Not so the Finn and the magpie. One day, the 

 lady noticed that, when she went out, a magpie 

 placed itself right in her path. The same thing 

 happened day after day, and the first magpie was 

 soon joined by others. Misgivings arose in her 

 mind, and she tried, by various devices, to frighten 

 them away. The more they multiplied, the more 

 she tried to get rid of them ; and the more she 

 tried to get rid of them, the more they multiplied 

 and grew. Wherever she went, she was attended 

 by these strange and importunate retainers. They 

 perched upon her shoulders, they tugged at her 

 dress, they pecked at her ankles. In sheer despera- 

 tion, she shut herself up in the house, but they 

 waited outside, and when the door was opened, in 

 they hopped. At last, she took to her bed in a room 

 with closed shutters, and, even then, the magpies 

 kept tapping, tapping outside. How the story 

 ended we are not told ; probably by a premature 

 death, and a funeral attended in force by the 

 triumphant magpies. In any case, the magpie 

 must have been safe from insult and from injury, in 

 that district at least, for a long time to come. 



But it is the popular belief in England, or rather 

 the British Isles, which interests us most, and which 

 throws most light on the habits of the bird. There 



