THE CANADA GOOSE. 27 



jjlaced iu a yard in town for the night, previous to his intended 

 removal to the country on the following morning. Not content, 

 however, with his temporary domicile, he made his escape over 

 the high wall of the yard into the street. Here, being unable to 

 give a good account of himself, like many another wanderer of the 

 night, he was apprehended by "the watch," and borne off, a 

 second time prisoner — but, in this instance, to the police-office, 

 where, with other vagrants, he was confined during the night. 

 How one wishes to have heard Dogberry and Verges descant 

 upon his case ! In the morning, the owner, after some difficulty, 

 traced the Canadian's "whereabouts," and, having duly proved 

 his property in the same, had the prisoner liberated. He was 

 kept for several years afterwards, and permitted to have the free 

 use of his wings all the time ; but to these he was most unwilling 

 to resort, submitting even to be caught rather than do so. If 

 his owner wished to see a flight, the bird had to be laid hold of, 

 taken to a distant field, and then set down, when he would at 

 once rise into the air and return to the pond. He was extremely 

 bold in spring, and attacked every human being who had the 

 temerity to come near his " beat." He once beset a poor woman 

 unexpectedly, and, fl}ang up, alighted between her shoulders, 

 and flapped both sides of her head so violently with his wings, 

 that she fell to the ground in the utmost terror, unaware of the 

 nature of her assailant. I once suffered this bird to strike me 

 with his wing, that I might have some idea what the blow of a 

 swan's wing — said to be so severe — might be, but which difectly 

 I had no desire to feel. The blow pained me very considerably, 

 and the front of my leg, where struck, did not lose its black and 

 yellow complexion for about three weeks.* 



The male bird of a pair kept on a pond in the Belfast 

 Botanic Garden was, from his boldness in spring, the terror of 

 all the youngsters that approached even the vicinity of the water. 



These birds, like many other species, can foretell the coming 



* The latu Ur. Ferrar stated to a friend, tliat when rcsideut-surgeon in one of the 

 Dublin hospitals, a luan who had his leg splintered by the blow of a swan's wing, 

 was brought to him for treatment. Some of the small pieces of bone eame away, 

 and the sutFerer was permanently lamed. 



