Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 11.djvu/176

* JAVA SPARROW. 156 JAY. hue, as also are the feet. A narrow edging of red surrounds the eye. The body is shilecolured, rump, tail, and crown black, and there is usually a white patch on the cheek; but these white patches may change to black, regardless of se or age. The lower parts are purplish-gray, be- coming wliite toward the vent. The females are rather lighter and the young somewhat mottled. A snow-white breed has been develuped in con- finement. These birds are sold everywhere aa cage-birds, their attr.action being mainly their beauty, for ihe song is brief and of little account. See Plate of Cage-Birds. JAVELIN (OF. javelin, javeliiie, Fr. jave- line, from Bret, yavlin, (javlod. javelin, gavl, gaol, fork of a tree, Welsh yafl. fork of the (highs, li". (jnhul, gabcl, gable; eonneeled with OH(J. ga- bula, Oer. Oabel, AS. gcafiil, Eng. gahle, Skt. yubhnsli, gable). A long heavy spear, used by ancients for hurling or thrusting. In the Roman legion, the first and second lines (the hastati and the principes) were both armed with two javelins to each man. Each javelin (l.at. piliitn) was in all about 6% feet in length; the shaft 4V2 feet long, of tough wood, an inch in diam- eter; and the remainder given to the barbed pyramidal head. In action, the legionary hurled one javelin on the enemy at the first onset ; the second he retained as a defense against cavalry. The Goths and other barbarians used a javelin. JAVELLE (zha-vel') WATER. See Hypo- ciiLOKois Acid. JAWOROW, ya-vr/r6v. A town in the Aus- trian (.'rnwnhmd of Galicia, 29 miles northwest of Lemberg (ilap: Austria, II 2). Its principal industries are pottery-making, brewing, and dis- tilling. The main point of interest is the castle with its famous Italian gardens, the favorite re- sort of the Polish King John Sobieski, and the spot where Peter the Great and Catliarine were married. Population, in 1900, 10,090, mostly Ruthenians, Poles, and .Jews, JAXARTES, jak-sar'tez. The ancient name of the Syr Darya (q.v. ). JAY (OF. jai, gui. gaii, Fr, geai, from OF. gai, gay, from OHG. guhi. Ger. giihe, jiihc. quick). A popular English name for a considerable number of birds of the family C'on'idie. They are some- times .separated from the crows as a special sub- family, the Garrulinie, but it is difficult to define the group satisfactorily. The jays have the wings shorter than the tail, which is long, and rounded, or even graduated, and they are gener- ally, but not always, brightly colored, some shade of blue being very characteristic. But these characters will not serve to distinguish them from the magpies, which are very near allies, the so-called 'hhie magpies' of the Old World form- ing an evident connecting link. .Tays are smaller than crows and arc more distinctly arboreal; ■when on the ground, they hop. The jays of the Old World belong to distinct genera from those of -Vmerica. with the single exception of Peri- soreus, which is cireumpolar. The bird to which the name 'jay' was origi- nally given is the common jay of Etirope (Gnrru- hi.t glniidariuf). which is somewhat over a foot in length, and beantifnlly colored, being vina- ceous gray varied with black and white, with ex- quisite black, white, and blue markings on the ■wings; the head is provided with a conspicuous black-marked crest. It is a common British bird, although its numbers have diminished under the IJersistent attacks of gamekeepers. Blue Jay. The best-known American bird of this subfamily is the blue jay {Cyaiiucitta ciis- tata), which is somewhat smaller than its Euro- pean cousin, and is provided with equally beauti- ful plumage. The general color above is pur- plish-blue, and beneath dusky-white; forehead, and a yoke-shaited band on the sides of the neck and across llie upper breast, black; wings and tail lilue, beautifully vari<'gale(l with black and white. The blue jay is found tliroughout Eastern North America, from Newfoundland and Hudson Bay, soutli to Florida and the Gulf, and west to the Plains. It breeds throughout its range, and is only partially migratory. .As spring approaches the blue jay becomes a quieter, more domestic and retiring bird, and prepares for the breeding season. The nest is well built of twigs and roots, lined with rootlets, and isually placed in a tree in the woods m- an old orcliard, at some distance from a house. The eggs are four or five in number, brownish-olive or ashy-green, thickly marked with rather indistinct spots of a darker shade. It is during and after the breeding season that the blue jay's worst traits come to light, for then he becomes an inveterate robber of birds' nescs, and devours both eggs and yining with avidity. At such times he is (piict. sly. and cowardly. Later in the summer insects, mits, fruits, and seeds form the staples of his diet, and in the winter he will eat almost anything. The notes of the blue jay are numerous and ariable; he is a mimic and somewhat of .a ventriloquist, but he is not a singer, and most of his cries are harsh and discordant. The blue jay delights in attacking owls and squirrels. While not truly gregarious, blue jays often travel about in small companies, especially during the winter. Other American Jays. Several other species of jay occur in North America, variously sub- divided by ornithologists into a dozen or more subspecies. One of the most distinct and easily recognized species is the Canada jay, 'whisky- jack,' or 'moose-bird' {Perisoreiis Cfinadensis) , one of the best-known birds of Canada and the North. Utterly unlike the blue jay in appear- ance (it lacks a crest), its nuumers and habits are very similar. The plumage is ashy-gray, and only the forehead and throat are white. It iH'comes very tame about the camps of loggers and trappers in the northern woods, and is fa- mous for the great variety of its notes. It breeds very eai-ly in the spring, while there is still much snow on the ground and the weather is very cold. The nest is not unlike that of the blue jay. but the eggs are white, spotted with olive-hrouTi. This species, in one form or another, ranges throughout North America from Labrador to Alaska, south to the northern tier of States, in the Rocky Mountains to New Mexico and Ari- zona, anci on the Pacific Coast to Oregon. The Florida jay (Aphelocoma Floridana) is another crestless jay, but the general color is bine, with more or less white and ashy. It is abundant in Florida, but is wholly confined to that State, although closely allied species occur in the Rocky Mountain region and in California. . well- known and widely distributed Western jay is .Steller's jay (Cyntwritta fttclferi), varieties of which are known as the 'black-headed jay,' 'blue-