350 LIFE HISTORIES OF NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS. 



than during the season of reproduction. They are jolly, noisy scamps, nearly 

 always chattering or scolding, even when alone. When not molested they soon 

 lose their usual shyness, and will allow one frequently to approach them within 

 a few feet; but notwithstanding this seeming confidence they are constantly on 

 their guard against danger, and I know no bird more intelligent, and at the 

 same time more saucy, impudent, and cunning than our'Magpie. They appear 

 to comprehend the difference between a shotgun and a stick from the day they 

 are able to fly. 



I have had many opportunities to observe these birds closely, and was 

 long ago forced to the conclusion that their intelligence and reasoning powers 

 are astonishing. I will only mention one instance of their sagacity, showing 

 how several of these birds seemingly worked in perfect accord to accomplish 

 an object which one bird could not have carried out alone. While stationed 

 at Fort Lapwai, Idaho, on the Nez Perce Indian Reservation, from 1869 to 1871, 

 where Magpies were exceedingly abundant, I possessed a fine setter dog, my 

 constant companion on all excursions, who assisted me in finding many rare 

 nests, and whom I regularly fed, giving him, when the more liquid portion 

 of his meal was finished, a well-boiled soup bone, with more or less meat 

 attached, by way of dessert. I made him carry this to the lawn in front of 

 my quarters, while I sat on the porch watching him. I soon noticed that 

 generally a minute or so after the dog appeared with his bone from four to 

 six Magpies would invariably be close by, though not a single one was in sight 

 before. These birds placed themselves in different positions around the dog, 

 plainly showing a preconcerted arrangement, and were ready for business at 

 once. One stationed itself directly in front of the dog's nose and about 2 feet 

 away, another behind, within easy reach of the tail, and one or two by his side. 

 As soon as the dog became engaged in gnawing his bone, held in place by his 

 forepaws, the bird stationed in the rear made a vicious dash at his tail and 

 pecked it severely; this naturally enraged "Rock," who quickly wheeled around, 

 left the bone, and tried to catch the offender, who in the meantime flew slowly 

 and leisurely away, toling the dog after him as far as possible by fluttering 

 almost within his reach, and while this little ruse was being enacted the 

 remaining birds promptly helped themselves. I saw this performance several 

 times, and soon noticed that the different birds forming this foraging party could 

 be readily distinguished by the variation in size, the length of the tail, or some 

 injury to the tail or wing feathers, etc., and. this led to a still more remarkable 

 discovery in this connection. After the dog returned to resume his interrupted 

 meal, another bird took position at the dog's tail, while the one occupying it 

 previously moved to the best place, that in front of the dog's head, to enable 

 it to get its share of the spoils. I observed this maneuver several times, and it 

 did not take the dog very long to see through it as well, so that unless I forced 

 him to stay on the lawn he would at once carry his bone under the porch, where 

 the birds did not dare to follow him. If this incident does not show an extraor- 

 dinary amount of intelligence and reasoning power, I do not know what would. 



