ve, raven, and swallow are introduced. Of
these, the swallow appears to be the bird whose flight was most
carefully observed. The sign which represents this bird in the cuneiform
syllabary also signifies 'fate.'[670] The mischief wrought by swarms of
insects, as grasshoppers and locusts, the danger lurking in the bites of
scorpions sufficiently explain the importance attached to the actions of
these animals. The mysterious appearance and disappearance of serpents
and their strange twistings added an element in their case that
increased the awe they inspired, while if Ihering be correct,[671] the
omens derived from the flight of birds are a survival of the migratory
period in the history of a nation, when birds served as a natural guide
in choosing the easiest course to pass from one place to another. A
large number of tablets in Ashurbanabal's library treat of the
significance attached to the action of these various animals, and it is
likely that these tablets form part of a large series, of which the
illustrations above adduced regarding the movements of dogs form a part.
In this series, the application of the omens to individuals is more
strongly emphasized than in the series of birth portents. Naturally so,
for it was the individual as a general thing who encountered the signs.
In the case of the appearance of a serpent or snake, for example, the
omen consisted in the fact that a certain person beheld it, and that
person was involved in the consequences. Fine distinctions are again
introduced that illustrate the intricacies of the system of
interpretation perfected in Babylonia. If a snake passes from the right
to the left side of a man, it means one thing; if from the left to the
right, another; if the man who sees a snake does not tread upon it, the
omen is different than in the case when he attempts to crush it. Again
the omen varies according to the occupation of the man who encountered a
snake. If he be a gardener, the appearance of the snake means something
different than in the case of his being a sailor.

The place where the animal appears is also of import, whether in the
street, the house, or the temple, and again, the time of its appearance,
in what month or on what day. In the same way, an endless variety of
omens are derived from the appearance of certain birds, the direction of
their flight, their fluttering around the head of a man or entering a
man's house. So, _e.g._,

If a raven[672] enters a m