THE ORNITHOLOGIST AND BOTANIST. 



31 



feathers a yard long, standing out around it like 

 an Indian's head. There was a century plant 

 ■with a circumference as large as that of a Cape 

 Cod apple tree, and a cactus reaching to the top 

 of the house. 



In the ravines just outside the city, plants and 

 flowers revel in untrained profusion. Especial- 

 ly abundant is the oxalis, which is like our cul- 

 tivated plant of that name in its clover-like leaf 

 and in the color of the blossom, but the latter 

 is bell shaped, half open, and grows singly on a 

 a short stem. 



The soil seems more congenial to flowering 

 plants than to grass, which is a rare article. I 

 was amused to see that in the hotel garden one 

 bed was devoted to grass alone. 



One of the ravines -which 1 visited was a won- 

 derful sight. We walked along a narrow, flow- 

 ery pathway on one side lookmg up at perpen- 

 dicular or projecting mountain walls of rock, on 

 the other, looking far down to the rocky river 

 bed below, where ' c'allas and blue lillies were 

 blooming wild like our buttercups and daisies. 



There was a species of lily growing in the 

 Consul's garden which was very lovely. It was 

 in all colors; one of an unusual color, a very 

 dark rich red. The blossom was about the size 

 of that of our dog-tooth violet, but not droop- 

 ing. I asked the name but it was not known. 

 I brought some home with me but tho' I have 

 had them two years, they have never blossomed. 

 I took some walks in the fields, but they are not 

 like our fields. They art on sloping lands, no 

 trees, bushes or grass, but crops of lupine and 

 a kind of bean for the cattle, each field fenced 

 by tall, growing canes. 



[ Fayal is one of the Azores and is some two 

 thousand miles east of Boston. It belongs to 

 Portugal. — En.] 



It is one of the capital advantages of the 

 ornithologists condition that he is rarely called 

 upon to spend his time and strength for naught. 

 If he fails of the particular object of his search, 

 he is all but sure to be rewarded with some- 

 thing else. — Torrey. 



On the w hole, it is good to have the curios- 

 ity piqued with here and there a vegetable strang- 

 er, its name and even its family relationship a 

 mystery. — Torrey. 



MORE ABOUT THE OWLS. 



BY DR. W. S. STRODE, BERNADOTTE, ILL. 



One day a friend brought me a crow that had 

 been winged slightly. Not caring much for a 

 pet Corvus, I put him in with the owls who 

 greeted it with a succession of hoots to which 

 the crows replied with caw! caw! at the same 

 time turning its head to one side and looking 

 suspiciously at them as they were perched over- 

 head. It then fell to and dined sumptuous- 

 ly on the remains of fish and rabbit that lay 

 scattered about the floor. 



Supposing that all would be well with them 

 I went about my business. Two hours later 

 when I chanced by the owl house, my ears were 

 saluted with such a pandemonium of sounds 

 that it seemed that all the cats, crows and owls 

 in the neighborhood were having a grand chorus 

 and walk around on the inside. On looking in 

 at the door I discovered the great homed owl 

 and the crow waltzing around the room, the 

 crow in the lead, the owl hopping on one foot 

 while the claws of the other were firmly grasped 

 in the feathers at the tip of the broken wmg. 

 The crow was protesting vigorously and was val- 

 orously trying to peck the owl in the face, which 

 the latter avoided by shutting his eyes, and hold- 

 ing his head far back out of the reach of the 

 crow's beak. The crow was swearing and 

 making all the noise possible and the Bubo was 

 hooting an accompaniment, while overhead the 

 Symium was enjoying the circus hugely; excit- 

 edly running back and forth on his perch, and 

 adding to the general confusion by hooting, 

 laughing, growling and saying as plainly as owl 

 language could, "Go in and I'll hold your hats." 



I soon put a quietus on the proceedings, and 

 peace and quietude again reigned. But alas! 

 on the following morning the crow was no- 

 where to be seen, and a search only served to 

 reveal a few scattering black feathers to tell of 

 his sad fate. 



A like fate bqfell a fine large rough-legged 

 hawk that I shot on the prairie in the winter 

 time. His wmg was only tipped and I brought 

 him home with the intention of making a speci- 

 men of him. Being called away I placed him 

 with the owls to remain until my return, but 



IHIIil 



■Pi 



