10 The Barn Owl. 
the Owl. Being a bird of nocturnal habits, all its move- 
ments are not seen so clearly as those of many others 
of our feathered visitors. It has been instilled into 
the heads of past generations, by their ignorant nurses, 
that the Owl is a bird of bad omen; but let us hope 
that superstition has done its worst, as, in these days 
of improvement, things have been more closely noticed, 
and found different from what had been imagined by 
our forefathers; and now, we believe, the Barn Owl, 
instead of being condemned as a thief, will be looked 
upon asafriend. It has been punished by a bad name 
long enough; and now, instead of branding it as a 
robber at our dove-cote, let us believe it to be our friend, 
and the rat our enemy. Heit is that takes the young 
pigeons and eggs in the night unseen; but the plu- 
mage of our friend is discovered through the gloom of 
shade, and therefore all evil deeds have been put down 
to it: the rat makes no noise, while the Owl will let 
every one in the farm-house know its whereabouts by- 
its frequent screams. We feel quite sure, if the deeds- 
of this bird were seen, and generally known, it would 
be received with welcome ; if we could get a true calcu- 
lation of rats and mice devoured by a pair of these 
birds and their offspring during twelve months, we 
