TlIK EMPIKK OF TUH A IK. 4()1 



How useless to seek to deseiibe this spectacle I When tliese enor- 

 mous birds rush by so close to you. an astouishin<;' rustling' may be 

 heard; the great prinuiry leathers \ibrate like tongues of steel, and 

 tlex upward to a (juarter circle und<'rtlie fitteen pounds of bird tliey 

 bear. 



There the great vultures gather in hundreds; the •*l'jgy]>tian vul 

 tures'' are uo longer to be reckoned, they are but a garnishing, while 

 the kites creep in among the lot and make themselves small, and the 

 great raven {CorcKS eorax) incessantly croaks against the invasion ot 

 his domain. Beak blows are numerous; each smaller l)ird nnist keep 

 his distance, for if he passes within neck length, a savage ])eek he 

 gets from the vulture. The larger birds are scarcely more annable to 

 their own species; if interference threatens in alighting, a shrill warn- 

 ing cry is heard, a blow impends, and the weaker must dive away, to 

 l>egin all over again the comi»licated eNolutions required to clu^ck the 

 motion, and to alight upon the ]»erch in safety. 



One of the maneuvres which always asbmishes the observer is the 

 alighting. The great vultures arise above the ])erch at the average 

 height which they generally kee]) above the ground — that is to say, 

 some 500 or (>00 yards above it. Having leached the terminus, they 

 sweep artuind for a few minutes to inspect the toi»ogiaphy, and then 

 they determine to descend. Tlu^ eagle comes down like a nu'teor; he 

 is so powerful that he can control his movements at KM) miles an 

 hour; but the great vulture has no such strength of pectoral muscle. 

 He drops perpendicularly like the eagle, but Ik^ seldom folds his wings 

 to gain speed. He wouhl come down too fast, and the descent is s<uue- 

 times very great; for [ have seen birds which were already in full 

 descent when first they api>eared at the zenith, say at a height of 

 nearly 2 miles. If they had then folded their wings, and allowed ac- 

 celeration to occur, they could no longer liave controlled their velocity; 

 they would have l)een disabled, for their power would then have been 

 inadequate to a change of direction. 



Next to close and accurate observati(»n a^ proi»cr uiulerstanding nnist 

 be attained. This second stage is more dillicult to leach than the lirst; 

 and this results because wennistdiscard many jire-conceivcd idea«^ which 

 obscure the eyes of the mind. - - Then the observations must also 

 be accompanied by accurate data. 



We can no longer accept the immense dimensions and the monstrous 

 weights of guess-work. We must ha\e exact measurements and ac- 

 curate live weight of birds in full health and in normal condition. 

 Above all, it is indispensable that the observer shall be enough of 

 an ornithologist to determine at once the speci<'s and p<'culiarities of 

 the bird he is looking at; not merely on the dissecting table, but also 

 afar off, on a perch, and especially in full (light. 



This knowledge is to be acquired neither from books nor iVom 

 nmseums; it must be obtaine<l by much conning of the great volume 

 H. Mis. 114 L»f> 



