CLASS II. AVES: ORDER 7. GRALLATORES 
285 
THE MARABOUT STOEK. (See p. 286.) 
winter-quarters in Asia and Africa. They are very common in Holland and parts of Germany. 
Their services in the countries frequented by them, in the destruction of vermin of all kinds, 
prevent their being the objects of any molestation ; they are, therefore, generally very fearless 
of man, and frequently build their nests on the tops of the houses in the very centers of towns ; 
indeed, in many places, the inhabitants place wooden boxes or frames on the tops of their houses 
to induce tliese birds to build there ; and the man whose house is selected by one of them for 
this purpose, always considers himself particularly fortunate. They return annually to breed in 
the same place, and manifest great delight on again taking possession of their deserted home. 
The nest is formed of a mass of sticks and other coarse materials, in which the bird lays three 
or four eggs, which are hatched in about a month, and the young are then tended with great 
care by both parents, who feed them by inserting their bills into the mouth of the young bird, and 
disgorging some of the half-digested food from their own stomachs. The old birds manifest the 
greatest attachment to their young, which has rendered them objects of admiration in all ages. 
A most remarkable instance of this occurred in the conflagration of Delft, where a female stork 
was observed, after repeated attempts to carry off her young, to prefer remaining with them to 
