A tame crow should never be kept in a cage.  If the bird is well fed and kindly treated, it will not fly far from its home, but it is a noisy and sometimes a troublesome pet, and it is better to leave it in the woods.

Crows are social and intelligent creatures.  They choose a thick wood for their winter home and gather in flocks which sometimes number thousands of birds.  In the summer they build their nests in neighboring trees, and are ready to lend each other aid if danger arises.

The United States Department of Agriculture says that the crow does more good than harm, and that he is a friend to the farmer instead of the enemy that he is commonly supposed to be.

THE BLUEBIRD.

 I know the song that the bluebird is singing,
 Out in the apple tree where he is swinging;
 Brave little fellow! the skies may be dreary,
 Nothing cares he while his heart is so cheery.

 Hark! how the music leaps out from his throat! 
 Hark! was there ever so merry a note? 
 Listen awhile, and you’ll hear what he’s saying,
 Up in the apple tree, swinging and swaying.

 “Dear little blossoms, down under the snow,
 You must be weary of winter, I know;
 Hark, while I sing you a message of cheer! 
 Summer is coming! and Springtime is here!

“Little white snowdrop!  I pray you, arise;
Bright yellow crocus! come open your eyes;
Sweet little violets, hid from the cold,
Put on your mantles of purple and gold
Daffodils! daffodils! say, do yon hear? 
Summer is coming! and Springtime is here!”
Emily Huntington Miller. 
By permission of the author.

THE FARMER’S FRIEND.

We all know from pictures what owls look like, though we do not often see them.  Their wise faces, with large, solemn eyes, are familiar to every one of us.  Why do we see these birds so seldom?

The owl flies at night, and at all times he is a shy bird.  He likes a quiet home and does not wish to be disturbed.

As for himself, he makes no noise.  He is like a cat, not only in his face and in his taste for mice, but in his quiet ways.  His broad wings are fringed with the softest down, so that they move with as little sound as a feather fan.  The owl is a large bird, but his wings never make the sharp whirr of a pigeon’s flight.

The barn owl builds his nest not far from the farmyard.  He catches the mice arid rats in the barn and feeds on many harmful beetles and moths.  The number of mice he catches for his little ones in a single night is sometimes very large.  He is said to bring to his nest four or five of his hapless victims every hour.

Pennsylvania once offered a premium for killing hawks and owls, not knowing how much good they do.  Before long the state was overrun with little rodents, and many valuable crops were destroyed.

No bird is more devoted to her little ones than the mother owl.  She will take up her tiny owlet in her claws and carry him away, if she fancies that any danger is near; and she will not leave him, even to save her own life.