10 WINTER SUNSHINE 



fox and cry "Thief! " till Reynard hid himself for 

 shame. Do I say the fox flattered the crow when 

 he told him he had a sweet voice ? Yet one of the 

 most musical sounds in nature proceeds from the 

 crow. All the crow tribe, from the blue jay up, are 

 capable of certain low ventriloquial notes that have 

 peculiar cadence and charm. I often hear the crow 

 indulging in his in winter, and am reminded of the 

 sound of the dulcimer. The bird stretches up and 

 exerts himself like a cock in the act of crowing and 

 gives forth a peculiarly clear, vitreous sound that is 

 sure to arrest and reward your attention. This is 

 no doubt the song the fox begged to be favored 

 with, as in delivering it the crow must inevitably 

 let drop the piece of meat. 



The crow in his purity, I believe, is seen and 

 heard only in the North. Before you reach the 

 Potomac there is an infusion of a weaker element, 

 the fish crow, whose helpless feminine call contrasts 

 strongly with the hearty masculine caw of the origi- 

 nal Simon. 



In passing from crows to colored men, I hope I 

 am not guilty of any disrespect toward the latter. 

 In my walks about Washington, both winter and 

 summer, colored men are about the only pedestrians 

 I meet; and I meet them everywhere, in the fields 

 and in the woods and in the public road, swinging 

 along with that peculiar, rambling, elastic gait, tak- 

 ing advantage of the short cuts and threading the 

 country with paths and byways. I doubt if the 

 colored man can compete with his white brother as 



