urposes--is the tamest and
most affectionate of birds, and I do not believe he ever bit any one in
his life; he will allow himself to be pulled about, turned upside down,
scratched under his wings, all with the greatest indifference, or rather
with the most positive enjoyment. One evening I could not play croquet
for laughing at his antics. He took a sudden dislike to a little rough
terrier, and hunted him fairly off the ground at last, chasing him all
about, barking at him, and digging his beak into the poor dog's paw. But
the "Doctor's" best performance is when he imitates a hawk. He reserves
this fine piece of acting until his mistress is feeding her poultry;
then, when all the hens and chickens, turkeys, and pigeons are in the
quiet enjoyment of their breakfast or supper, the peculiar shrill cry
of a hawk is heard overhead, and the Doctor is seen circling in the air,
uttering a scream occasionally. The fowls never find out that it is a
hoax, but run to shelter, cackling in the greatest alarm--hens clucking
loudly for their chicks, turkeys crouching under the bushes, the pigeons
taking refuge in their house; as soon as the ground is quite clear,
Cocky changes his wild note for peals of laughter from a high tree,
and finally alighting on the top of a hen-coop filled with trembling
chickens, remarks in a suffocated voice, "You'll be the death of me."

I must reverse the proverb about the ridiculous and the sublime, and
finish my letter by telling you of Ilam's chief outdoor charm: from
all parts of the garden and grounds I can feast my eyes on the glorious
chain of mountains which I have before told you of, and my bedroom
window has a perfect panoramic view of them. I watch them under all
their changes of tint, and find each new phase the most beautiful. In
the very early morning I have often stood shivering at my window to see
the noble outline gradually assuming shape, and finally standing out
sharp and clear against a dazzling sky; then, as the sun rises, the
softest rose-coloured and golden tints touch the highest peaks, the
shadows deepening by the contrast. Before a "nor'-wester" the colours
over these mountains and in the sky are quite indescribable; no one but
Turner could venture upon such a mixture of pale sea-green with deep
turquoise blue, purple with crimson and orange. One morning an arch-like
appearance in the clouds over the furthest ranges was pointed out to me
as the sure forerunner of a violent gale f