REVIEWS — NATURAL. HISTORY OF CEYLON. 353 



notes of their croaking, the variety of trees on which they rest, and the numbers 

 in which they are seen to assemble. 



" All day long these birds are engaged in watching either the offal of tha 

 offices, or the preparation for meals in the dining-room : and as doors and win- 

 dows are necessarily opened to relieve the heat, nothing is more common than 

 the passage of a crow across the room, lifting on the wing some ill-guarded 

 morsel from the dinner-table. No article, however unpromising its quality, 

 provided only it be portable, can with safety be left unguarded in any apart- 

 ment accessible to them. The contents of ladies' work-boxes, kid gloves, and 

 pocket handkerchiefs vanish instantly if exposed near a window or open door. 

 They open paper parcels to ascertain the contents ; they will undo the knot on 

 a napkin if it encloses anything eatable, and I have known a crow to extract 

 the peg which fastened the lid of a basket in order to plunder the provender 

 within. 



" On one occasion a nurs6 seated in a garden adjoining a regimental mess- 

 room, was terrified by seeing a bloody clasp-knife drop from the air at her feet ; 

 but the mystery was explained on learning that a crow, which had been watch- 

 ing the cook chopping mince-meat, had seized the moment when his head was 

 turned to carry off the knife. 



" One of these ingenious marauders, after vainly attitudinising in front of a 

 chained watch-dog, that was lazily gnawing a bone, and after fruitlessly endea- 

 vouring to divert his attention by dancing before him, with head awry and eye 

 askance, at length flew away for a moment, and returned bringing a companion 

 which perched itself on a branch a few yards in the rear. The crow's grimaces 

 were now actively renewed, but with no better success, till its confederate, 

 poising itself on its wings, descended with the utmost velocity, striking the dog 

 upon the spine with all the force of its strong beak. The ruse was successful ; 

 the dog started with surprise and pain, but not quickly enough to seize his 

 assailant, whilst the bone he had been gnawing was snatched away by the first 

 crow the instant his head was turned. Two well-authenticated instances of 

 the recurrence of this device came within my knowledge at Colombo, and attest 

 the sagacity and powers of communication and combination possessed by these 

 astute and courageous birds. 



"On the approach of evening the crows near Colombo assemble in noisy 

 groups along the margin of the fresh-water lake which surrounds the fort on 

 the eastern side ; and here for an hour or two they enjoy the luxuries of throw- 

 ing the water over their shining backs, and arranging their plumage decorously, 

 after which they disperse, each taking the direction of his accustomed quarters 

 for the night." 



We must add a sketch oi' a breeding place of water-fowl on a soli- 

 tary spot amidst the remains of a vast ruined tank, the work of the 

 early kings of Ceylon : — 



" In a lonely spot, towards the very centre of the tank, we came unexpectedly 

 upon an extraordinary scene. A sheet of still water, two or three hundred 



