corporation of
Norwich, who boast this treat at their public dinners, are bound, by
some old regulation, to present the Duke of Norfolk every year with an
immense cygnet pie.

The Wild Swan has a very loud call, and utters a melancholy cry when one
of the flock is killed. The Wild Swans of Hudson's Bay furnish the
finest quills used for writing. Swans and their eggs are still protected
by several statutes, and to steal the latter is felony.

I will copy for you an instance in which a swan once showed that
wonderful instinct with which all animals are gifted by God. "Whilst
sitting on her eggs, she was one day seen to be very busy, collecting
weeds, grasses, and other materials to raise her nest. A farming man was
ordered to take down half a load of haulm, with which she most
industriously elevated her nest and eggs two feet and a half. That very
night there came down a tremendous fall of rain, which flooded all the
malt-kilns, and did great damage. _Man_ made no preparation, the _bird_
did. Her eggs were above, and only just above, the water."

THE KESTREL.

This picture represents the kestrel, one of the smallest and most
beautiful of hawks. The hawk is a bird of prey, feeding on small birds,
chickens and mice. In order to secure his prey the hawk holds himself
suspended, as it were, in the air on his wide spread wings, until he
sees a favourable opportunity, and then suddenly pounces down upon his
victim. Other birds well know the predatory habits of the hawk, and when
one appears in sight they fly with loud screams of fear. Little chickens
throw themselves upon their backs, if one hovers over the poultry yard,
from some instinctive notion of defending themselves with their feet,
whilst all the hens shriek in concert, and prepare for a desperate
defence. But though so great an enemy of young poultry, a singular
instance is recorded of a hawk, which not only sat upon the eggs of a
common fowl, but even attended with great care to the little ones when
they were hatched.

[Illustration: THE KESTREL.]

Many of the different kinds of hawk were used in olden times for a sport
called hawking. That is, they were trained to fly at game and return
with it to their masters. Large gay parties of ladies and gentlemen used
then to go out on horseback with their hawks for a day's sport, just as
now they go for a pic-nic, or a day in the woods. This was before guns
were used. But to this day hawking is practised in Chi