THE OWL. 



OF all the inhabitants of the air none move 

 on such noiseless wings as the night-lov- 

 ing, hoarse-voiced Owl. Its downy plumage 

 makes no resistance to the atmosphere, but yield- 

 . ing, like t'he wave, to every breath that blows, 

 enables the bird to glide like a sprite over the 

 star-lit landscape. The Owl's approach is un- 

 heralded, and its victims are snatched up or lifted 

 from the earth without a moment's warning, and 

 borne away in triumph. 



Nearly every portion of the earth can claim 

 the Owl as an inhabitant. Amidst the gloomy 

 recesses of the polar regions, beyond the farthest 

 point that the foot of civilized man has ever 

 trod, robed in a dress of white that rivals in 

 purity the snow around, the great Snowy Owl 

 dwells, a king even amidst the monarchs of the 

 air. 



Feathered to the bill and claws, no freezing 

 blast has any effect on him; and amidst the twi- 

 light of an arctic winter his vision is as clear and 

 far-reaching as is the Eagle's beneath the rays of 

 a tropical sun. Fearless, and confident in his 

 own powers, he roams over the bleak fields of his 

 northern home, or follows the Bears in their 



search for the Walrus and Seal, and shares their 

 banquet with them. 



The great Owls of more southern latitudes 

 are usually provided with a mottled dress, and 

 some have long tufts over the ears, which, when 

 erected beyond the huge staring eyes, give to the 

 bird a very comical aspect. 



Besides the familiar birds of this family, there 

 are also Ground or Burrowing Owls, which live 

 in holes in the earth, and do not shun the light 

 of day. In these strange subterranean dwellings 

 the bird lives in company with the Marmot (com- 

 monly known as the Prairie-dog) and the Rattle- 

 snake. It is doubtful if the latter is a welcome 

 sharer of the abode, and it may be imagined 

 that at times it makes a meal of one or the 

 other of the occupants of the burrow. These 

 little Ground Owls are frequently seen sitting at 

 the mouth of their dwellings, into which, how- 

 ever, they disappear with astonishing rapidity at 

 the first note of alarm. Colonies of the three 

 creatures here named, so unsuitable and antagon- 

 istic to each other, are frequently met with on 

 the prairies of the Western world. 



In Southern lands the echoes of the night are 



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