Puts the wretch, that lies in woe,
In remembrance of a shroud.”
Midsummer Night’s Dream, Act v. Sc. 2.
When Richard III. is irritated by the ill-news showered thick upon him, he interrupts the third messenger with—
“Out on ye, owls! nothing but songs of death?”
Richard III. Act iv. Sc. 4.
It is curious how wide-spread is the superstition regarding certain birds, and particularly the owl. Even amongst the Land Dayaks of Borneo, the owl is considered a bird of ill omen. Mr. Spenser St. John, in his “Life in the Forests of the Far East,” observes with regard to omens (vol. i. p. 202):—
“If a man be going on a war expedition, and has a slip during his first day’s journey, he must return to his village, especially if by the accident blood be drawn, for then, should he proceed, he has no prospect but wounds or death. If the accident occur during a long expedition, he must return to his last night’s resting place. In some tribes, if a deer cry near a party who are setting out on a journey, they will return. When going out at night to the jungle, if the scream of a hawk, or an owl, or of a small kind of frog be heard, it is a sign that sickness will follow if the design be pursued; and again, if the screech of the two former be heard in front of a party on the warpath, it is an evil sign, and they must return. Omens derived from the cry of birds are always sought previously to setting out on a journey, and before fixing on a spot to build new houses, or to prepare their farms.”
ITS UTILITY TO THE FARMER.
Far from bringing any ill-luck to our dwellings, owls are really of the greatest service to us in destroying great numbers of vermin. A Swiss naturalist, speaking of the quantity of field-voles which are annually destroyed by owls and buzzards, says:[56]—