266 Birds. 
To and fro, as the night-winds blow, 
The carcass of the assassin swings : 
And there alone, on the raven-stone, 
The Kaven flaps his dusky wings. 
The fetters creak — and his ebon beak 
Creaks to the close of the hollow sound : 
And this is the tune by the light of the moon, 
To which the witches dance their round.'' 
Byron's Manfked. 
The Eaven is about twenty-six inches in length, and his 
weight about three pounds. The bill is strong, black, 
and hooked at the tip. The plumage of the whole body 
of a shining black, glossed with deep blue ; the back of 
the lower part inclining to a dusky colour. He is of a 
strong and hardy disposition, and inhabits all climates of 
the globe. He builds his nest in trees ; and the female 
lays five or six eggs of a palish green colour, spotted with 
brown. It is said that the life of this bird extends to a 
century ; and even beyond that period, if we can believe 
the accounts of several naturalists on the subject. The 
Raven unites the voracious appetite of the crow to the 
dishonesty of the daw and the docility of almost every 
other bird. He feeds chiefly on small animals ; and is 
said to destroy rabbits, young ducks, and chickens, and 
sometimes even lambs, when they happen to be dropped 
in a weak state. In the northern regions, he preys on 
carrion, in concert with the white bear, the arctic fox, and 
the eagle. The faculty of scent in these birds must be 
very acute ; for in the coldest of the winter days, at Hud- 
son's Bay, when every kind of effluvium is almost instan- 
taneously destroyed by the frost, buffaloes and other 
beasts have been killed, where not one of these birds 
was seen ; but in a few hours scores of them have been 
found collected about the spot, to pick up the blood and 
offal. The Kaven possesses many diverting and mis- 
chievous qualities; he is active, curious, sagacious, and 
impudent ; by nature a glutton, by habit a thief, in dispo- 
sition a miser, and in practice a rogue. He is fond of 
picking up any small piece of money, bits of glass or 
any thing that shines, which he carefully conceals under 
the eaves of roofs, or in any other inaccessible place. He 
is easily tamed ; and, like the parrot and starling, can 
