12 
THE STORY OF A BROWN OWL. 
near, and again one night when I suddenly looked out of the 
window. If touched, she uttered a curious little chatter, and made 
an ominous snapping noise with her beak. 
When returning to Oxford in October, I intended to take 
“ Tommy ” up with me ; so I caught her the night before I went, 
and shut her up in an outhouse. But she managed to get out 
during the night, and in the morning I found her perched amongst 
some ivy, high up in an elm tree. I could not reach her, so I had 
to leave her there. For several nights after I left she flew round 
the house crying for me, but would not take food from anyone 
else, nor did she take pieces of meat that were put where I used to 
feed her. She was frequently seen perched high up in one of the 
ivied trees, and would answer the call of my little brother, or sister, 
though of no one else. On examining two of her pellets which 
were sent me, I found in them the bones and fur of mice ; so until 
the advent of very severe weather she managed to support herself. 
One day, however, early in December, she was brought to the 
house, more dead than alive, by a boy. He had seen her perched 
on a pole across a stream which adjoins a wood some half a mile off. 
He startled her, and she flew down stream, and as he followed he 
saw a hawk dash out of a wood at her, and both owl and hawk fell 
into the stream. He caught the owl, and thinking she might be 
my owl he brought her to my mother, who soon revived her with 
food in a warm room. For safety she was put into my bed room, 
and took up her position on the bed-tester, whence she at once flew 
down for food, and within a few days would fly straight on to the 
plate in any one’s hand, and help herself. 
On my return, she recognised me immediately, flying down 
to my head, and pulling my hair as she used to do in my rooms at 
Oxford. As she made more noise than was pleasant during the 
night, I let her out, and next morning found her in her old place in 
the ivy. At night, when the gas was burning, and I was in my 
room, she flew straight in, and took some meat from my hand ; 
and, as I slept with my window open, she often came in during the 
night to take any food I had there for her. 
The change in her note surprised me very much, for in the 
January, 1893. 
