he same
time like a hen calling her brood. We are told also of a parrot that
learned to repeat the Apostles' Creed quite perfectly, and on that
account was bought by a cardinal for 100 crowns.

The bite of a parrot is very violent, so that unless assured they are
good tempered you will do well not to approach a strange bird too
closely. The cause of this power in the beak is that, in order to
enable it to climb about more easily, the upper mandible, or bone,
instead of forming a continuation as it were of the skull bone, as in
other birds, is united by a membrane which enables it to raise or
depress the beak at its pleasure. This gives much greater force to its
power of grasping. Parrots do not build nests nor hatch young in this
country, but they thrive abundantly, and, when well treated, show no
symptoms of pining.

There are some very pretty little birds of the parrot tribe called
love-birds, from their affectionate nature. They are quite worthy of the
name, as they show the utmost tenderness for each other, both in health
and sickness.

THE LAPWING.

This little bird which is often called the Pewit, from its uttering
frequently a cry resembling the sound of this word, builds its nest or
rather lays its eggs, for it builds no regular nest, amongst long grass
or heather on open downs. If any one goes near the nest, the watchful
mother, who knows herself too weak to defend her young, tries by all
manner of artful contrivances to draw away the stranger's attention. She
will hover close to his ear screaming, or else flutter along the ground
as if wounded and unable to fly. And when by this means she has drawn
aside the feet of the passer-by to some distance, she will suddenly rise
in the air and return to her nest. The eggs of this bird are eagerly
sought after as an article of food, so she is naturally driven to try
her utmost to secure her nest from intruders. In Scotland formerly the
Lapwing was very abundant, and there exists a curious old act of the
Scotch parliament passed before England and Scotland were as friendly as
they are now, encouraging the destruction of the Lapwing "as an
ungrateful bird, which came to Scotland to breed, and then returned to
England to feed the enemy." Worms are their favourite food, but being
unable to pierce the ground with their weak, short beaks they are
ingenious enough to have recourse to the expedient of tapping on the
earth with their bills. The earth-worm, who is ve