130 
SINGING BIRDS. 
first glance, perceiving with ready sagacity the wily manner of 
the fowler. So fearful and suspicious are they of human arti- 
fices that a mere line stretched round a field is often found 
sufficient to deter these wily birds from a visit to the cornfield. 
Against poison they are not so guarded, and sometimes corn 
steeped in hellebore is given them, which creates giddiness 
and death. 
Another curious method is that of pinning a live Crow to the 
ground by the wings, stretched out on his back, and retained 
in this posture by two sharp, forked sticks. In this situation, 
his loud cries attract other Crows, who come sweeping down 
to the prostrate prisoner, and are grappled in his claws. In 
this way each successive prisoner may be made the innocent 
means of capturing his companion. The reeds in which they 
roost, when dry enough, are sometimes set on fire also to pro- 
cure their destruction ; and to add to the fatality produced by 
the flames, gunners are also stationed round to destroy those 
that attempt to escape by flight. In severe winters they suffer 
occasionally from famine and cold, and fall sometimes dead 
in the fields. According to Wilson, in one of these severe 
seasons, more than 600 Crows were shot on the carcase of a 
dead horse, which was placed at a proper shooting distance 
from a stable. The premiums obtained for these, and the price 
procured for the quills, produced to the farmer nearly the value 
of the horse when living, besides affording feathers sufficient to 
fill a bed. 
The Crow is easily raised and domesticated, and soon learns 
to distinguish the different members of the family with which 
he is associated. He screams at the approach of a stranger ; 
learns to open the door by alighting on the latch ; attends 
regularly at meal times ; is very noisy and loquacious ; imitates 
the sounds of various words which he hears ; is very thievish, 
given to hiding curiosities in holes and crevices, and is very 
fond of carrying off pieces of metal, corn, bread, and food of 
all kinds ; he is also particularly attached to the society of his 
master, and recollects him sometimes after a long absence. 
It is commonly believed and asserted in some parts of this 
