ROOK. 
227 
the laws of the community—all may afford scenes of 
constant amusement. 
The thieving propensity, so curious a characteristic of 
the genus, of which the Rooks inherit their full share, 
leading them to pilfer from each other's nests, is, too, the 
source of many a broil in the rookery. 
That the Rooks have laws amongst themselves, by 
which to regulate the society, the following anecdotes, 
given by Mr. Jesse, will sufficiently point out. Speak¬ 
ing of the Rooks at Hampton Court, he says, “ they are 
very particular that none of the society build away from 
the usual line of trees. A pair did so one spring; and, 
when their nest was finished, at least fifty others came 
and demolished it in a few minutes." 
He mentions another instance of a pair of birds which, 
though only separating themselves so far from the rest 
of the community as to build their nest in the lower 
branches of the same trees, were nevertheless pertina¬ 
ciously persecuted by the others; having their nest de¬ 
stroyed by them no less than twenty-two times before 
they were permitted to complete it. He adds, that he 
has always observed that, if a pair of Rooks attempt to 
make their nest apart from the rest of the fraternity, and 
in a tree not used by them before, the other birds in¬ 
variably pull it in pieces. A similar occurrence took place 
near a cottage which I once occupied on the Hampstead 
road. A pair of Rooks built their nest at the top of a 
tall ash-tree. It was completed, and all seemed to pros¬ 
per with them—but the evil day soon came ; their elope¬ 
ment had been discovered; the place of their retreat 
traced: they were pursued by a large party of their 
comrades, and the nest which they had constructed with 
so much anxiety, was pulled to pieces in a few seconds. 
It is not to the rookery alone that their presence im- 
q 2 
