304 A Sportsman at Large 



Shortly after our arrival I had a hunch to procure a bunch 

 of hoodie crow nestlings ; since having this time no blood- 

 thirsty Billy to dismember them, as was the case at Harang, 

 I hoped to rear some of these handsome, but mischievous 

 rascals, and to import them to my native land as pets. 



But our surroundings were of the wild, woolly and moun- 

 tainous order, and as the holdings were small, the " hoodies " 

 could not get a decent living, since the farmers were able to 

 fire them out whenever a raid on their stock was attempted. 



So my offered reward went begging. But one day a little 

 lad brought me five young magpies. These being of just the 

 right age for rearing, I took charge of them, after parting 

 with a couple of kroners to their captor, which douceur was 

 gratefully and joyously accepted. 



These fledglings soon waxed strong and hearty. We 

 named them respectively Matthew, Mark, Luke, John and 

 Acts. .It was rather difficult at first to tell t'other from which, 

 but I soon learned to distinguish them by some characteristic 

 not obvious to the uninitiated. 



As a matter of fact, all Nature's children possess individuality, 

 and in some cases distinct " personality." Many people 

 are quite unable to understand how a shepherd can distinguish 

 between his sheep, or how it is that a master of hounds knows 

 every unit of his pack, not only by sight, but by tongue. 



These impertinent " pies " were extraordinarily tame, though 

 hopelessly mischievous. They were allowed to fly about 

 the homestead as their fancy might tickle them. If they 

 saw me coming they would flit to me and perch upon my 

 shoulders, and always in the same positions : Matthew and 

 Acts on my right, Luke and John on my left, whilst Mark, 

 who considered himself boss of the bunch, would occupy a 

 conspicuous post on my head. Then all would begin to squeak 

 vociferously for food, which I would hand up to each in turn. 

 Their appetite was insatiable. 



They were merry and amusing folk, and they thrived apace. 



A harmful and unnecessary tom-cat set sinister eyes upon 

 them, and one day launched an offensive against Matthew, 

 the smallest and weakest of the family ; but grimalkin little 

 reckoned what he was up against, though he soon realized the 



