MAGPIE. 
251 
familiarly known. He is particularly pernicious to 
plantations of young oaks, tearing up the acorns ; and 
also to birds, destroying great numbers of their eggs 
and young, even young chickens, partridges, grouse, 
and pheasants. It is perhaps on this last account that 
the whole vengeance of the game laws has lately been 
let loose upon him in some parts of Britain, as appears 
by accounts from that quarter, where premiums, it is 
said, are offered for his head, as an arch poacher ; and 
penalties inflicted on all those who permit him to breed 
on their premises. Under the lash of such rigorous 
persecution, a few years will probably exterminate the 
whole tribe from the island. He is also destructive to 
gardens and orchards ; is noisy and restless, almost 
constantly flying from place to place ; alights on the 
hacks of the cattle, to rid them of the larvae that fester 
in the skin ; is content with carrion when nothing 
better offers ; eats various kinds of vegetables, and 
devours greedily grain, worms, and insects of almost 
every description. When domesticated, he is easily 
taught to imitate the human voice, and to articulate 
words pretty distinctly ; has all the pilfering habits of 
his tribe, filling every chink, nook, and crevice, with 
whatever he can carry off; is subject to the epilepsy, 
or some similar disorder ; and is, on the whole, a crafty, 
restless, and noisy bird. 
He generally selects a tall tree, adjoining the farm 
house, for his nest, which is placed among the highest 
branches ; this is large, composed outwardly of sticks, 
roots, turf, and dry weeds, and well lined with wool, 
cow hair, and feathers ; the whole is surrounded, roofed, 
and barricaded with thorns, leaving only a narrow 
entrance. The eggs are usually five, of a greenish 
colour, marked with numerous black or dusky spots. 
In the northern parts of Europe, he migrates at the 
commencement of winter. 
In this country, the magpie was first taken notice of 
at the factories, or trading houses, on Hudson’s Bay, 
where the Indians used sometimes to bring it in, and 
gave it the name of Heart-bird, — for what reason is 
