72 BIRDS AND MAN 



colony may have sprung from a bird hatched 

 and reared in the nest of a carrion crow or 

 magpie. Still, the habit of breeding in holes 

 must be very ancient, and considering that the 

 daw is pretty nearly the most intelligent bird 

 that exists, one cannot but be astonished at the 

 rude, primitive, blundering way in which the 

 nest-building work is generally performed. The 

 most we can see by carefully watching a number 

 of birds at work is that there appears to be some 

 diiFerence with regard to intelligence between 

 bird and bird. Some individuals -blunder less 

 than others ; it is possible that these have learned 

 something from experience ; but if that be so, 

 their better way is theirs only, and their young 

 will not inherit it. 



One morning at Wells as I stood on the 

 cathedral green watching the birds at their work, 

 I witnessed a rare and curious scene — one amaz- 

 ing to an ornithologist. A bird dropped a stick 

 — an incident that occurred a dozen times or 

 oftener any minute at that busy time ; but in 

 this instance the bird had no sooner let the stick 

 fall than he rushed down after it to attempt its 

 recovery, just as one may see a sparrow drop a 



