128 
OUR HOME BIRDS. 
was on his guard ; he had tasted the sweets of liberty, 
and, although he liked his old master, he liked his 
freedom better ; and, glancing suddenly at his van- 
ishing companions, he seemed frightened at the dis- 
tance between them, and mounted into the air, never 
to return to his old haunts. 
“ Crows are found in a great many different parts 
of the world, and are described as being particularly 
impudent in the island of Ceylon. They grow to a 
large size there, have thick glossy plumage, and are 
very intelligent. 4 They will fly into the breakfast- 
room when the family are assembled at table and 
snatch off a slice of bread ; watch the cook in the 
cook-house, and when his back is turned fly off with 
some of the food. One attacked a piece of cake in 
the hand of a child six years old, and got it away 
from him. Another, called the 44 Old Soldier ” be- 
cause he was so daring and had lost the half of one 
leg when fighting, used actually to take food from a 
dog while he was eating. He would irritate him, 
and then when he barked snatch the prey, and tri- 
umphantly bear it off to a neighboring tree, where 
he ate it at his leisure, while the dog stood looking 
at him and uselessly venting his rage in loud and 
angry barks/ 
44 Extraordinary meetings of crows sometimes take 
place, when they will collect in great numbers at 
