1858 Jenyns* Natural History. 



to its former place, and resumed its slumbers. One of the most striking peculiarities 

 in this tame owl is said to have been its fondness for music. It would often come in- 

 to the drawing-room of an evening, on the shoulder of one of the children, and, on 

 hearing the tones of the piano, would sit with its eyes gravely fixed on the instrument, 

 and its head on one side in an attitude of attention ; when, suddenly spreading his 

 wings, he would alight on the keys, and making a dart at the performer's fingers with 

 its beak, would continue hopping about, as if pleased with the execution. 



" After a while the flights of this owl into the woods became longer, and he only 

 returned at dusk to receive his usual supper from the person who was in the habit of 

 feeding him, and whom he readily permitted at such times to take him up, and carry 

 him into the house for this purpose. Bye-and-bye it was observed that he did not de- 

 vour his meal in the kitchen as formerly, but fled along the passage, dragging the 

 meat after him, till he reached the garden-door, when he flew with it to a part of the 

 shrubbery : on being followed, it was discovered that he had brought with him a com- 

 panion, who, not having courage to accompany him the whole way, remained at 

 a respectful distance to receive his bounty. After having served his visitor in this 

 manner, he returned to the kitchen, and leisurely devoured his own portion. This 

 practice was continued for some months, till at length one evening he was missed, and 

 nowhere to be found : his companion, it is said, continued to visit the spot alone for 

 several weeks uttering doleful cries, but could never be persuaded to come nearer to be 

 fed. It proved, in the end, that the favourite had been killed ; and its stuffed skin 

 was one day recognized, alas ! in a woodman's hut, by the children who had so as- 

 siduously nurtured it and brought'it up." — p. 122. 



Anecdote of a Redbreast.* — A lady has furnished me with the following striking 

 instance of maternal affection in a redbreast, that had built in some ivy against a wall 

 in a garden at Whitburn, near Sunderland, in April, 1839. The bird was sitting 

 upon four eggs, when the gardener one day trimmed the ivy so close with his shears 

 as almost to destroy the nest ; in consequence of which the eggs were precipitated to 

 the ground. They lay there till observed by the lady shortly afterwards, who was at- 

 tracted to the spot by the plaintive cries of the parent bird. It was at first thought 

 that to restore them to the nest would prove useless. The attempt, however, was 

 made ; the eggs, which were nearly cold, were picked up, and placed back again in 

 the nest, after it had been repaired and put together again as well as was possible. 

 They had not been returned to their former situation five minutes, when the bird came, 

 and again took charge of them, and in two days they were hatched ; the infant brood 

 being from that time, of course, objects of daily interest and observation. Great was 

 the dismay of the lady, some days afterwards, at finding all the little ones upon 

 the ground, stiff and cold, having fallen through a fracture in the patched nest, which 

 was not sufficiently strong to keep together. She took them up, and perceiving a 

 slight movement in one of them, carried them into the house, where, partly by the 

 warmth of the hand, and partly by the influence of a fire to which they were held, they 

 all gradually recovered. They were then again placed in the nest, which was further 

 patched with a piece of drugget, fastened into the fracture through which they had 

 fallen. They were doomed, however, to go through more trials; for it happened, 



* Erithaca rubecula, Swains. 



