288 Wild Birds and their Haunts 



catch diseased and sickly grouse, and thus go far to 

 stamp out the grouse disease. Their chief food is un- 

 doubtedly blue hares. By destroying the eagles, there- 

 fore, one might venture to say that the Scotch proprietors 

 are acting unwisely, for surely the loss of a few grouse 

 and hares is not too great a payment to the eagle for the 

 good he otherwise brings about by his gratuitous exertions. 



With the deer-foresting of much of the Highlands 

 (whereby grouse become a nuisance) eagles are now 

 largely preserved and, according to latest accounts, 

 have increased. 



The following story will bear out my remarks on the 

 depredations of the eagle — ' ' In the Grampians, not 

 many miles from an eagle's eyrie, there lived a hard- 

 working man and his wife and family. They had often 

 found it difficult to make both ends meet and feed their 

 large family. 



One day while the woman was out in the vicinity of 

 the eagle's nest, in which were two eaglets, she saw the 

 remains of grouse, rabbits, and other game. A happy 

 idea struck her, and, returning to the eyrie next day, 

 when the parent birds were away, she adjusted two pieces 

 of wood tied like bits, on the mouths of the young birds. 

 Daily, at opportune moments, after the parent birds had 

 scoured the country and brought game home to the 

 eyrie, the ingenious woman would steal up to the nest, 

 feed the young eaglets, and then, having replaced the 

 wooden bits, pick up the game, or whatever it might be, 

 and bring the spoil to her humble dwellingt or eplenish 

 her scanty larder. 



This mode of freebooting was carried on for at least 

 two months, until the youngsters began to grow too big. 



Last month a large eagle was seen near Scarborough. 

 For several days it remained in the neighbourhood of 

 Bickley, near Hackness, and while there it attacked a 

 sheep. The bird, which has since been shot, is now 

 being stuffed in Scarborough. It is a very fine specimen 

 of the white-tailed species, and appears to have been 

 about three years old. It weighed nib., and its expanse 

 of wings measured over 6ft. 



