And again:
If a bird throws a bit of meat or anything into a man's house, that man will secure a large fortune.
The omens from the appearance of flocks of birds in a town bore, as appears natural, upon public affairs rather than upon the fate of individuals, and similarly the appearance of birds in a temple was an omen for the whole country.
The public or private character of the omens was thus dependent in large measure upon the question whether the phenomena appeared to an individual directly or to the population of a place in general. Meeting a snake or scorpion in the course of a walk through the fields was an individual omen, and similarly the actions of sheep in a man's stall, whereas, a mad bull rushing through the city was a general omen. So we are told that
If sheep in the stalls do not bleat (?), that stall will be destroyed.
Whereas[673]
A bull crouching at the gate of a city is an omen that the enemy will capture that gate.
A bull goring an ox in the city is an unfavorable omen for the city, but if the bull enters the precincts of an individual, it is favorable for the individual.
A series of omens derived from the appearance of locusts again illustrates this principle. When the insects enter private precincts, the individual and his immediate surroundings are affected.[674]
If black and speckled locusts appear in a man's house, the master of the house will die.