446 THE EMPIRE OF THE AIR. 



family is perfectly well brought up, and above all abundantly sup- 

 plied with uourishment. Duriug the education of their young, fam- 

 ilies of eagles consume enormous quantities of game; the eaglets dur- 

 iug this period require much food in order to furnish material for the 

 growtli of their great feathers. Nature then inspires the parents with 

 an activity, which, happily for neighboring hares and rabbits, has 

 nothing in common with their usual indolence. During this time, this 

 period of activity, lasting a month, there is no respite; the vicinity of 

 the eyrie is generally encumbered with putrefying carcasses ; but luckily 

 the crows have an eye out for everything which is spoiling, and possess 

 the audacity to go for it even in the eagle's nest. All things con- 

 sidered, the crows run little risk; they are so adroit that even in a very 

 confined space they manage to escape. 



The great golden eagle, which I possessed for years, had always a 

 magpie with him. There is no sort of malicious trick that this mis- 

 cliievous little creature did not play upon his terrible and taciturn 

 companion, but he received no more attention than the tomtits, which 

 may be seen with the telescope ro^ang among the branches among 

 which the nest of the eagle is built. 



The eaglets, after a month and a half, are as big as papa and mam- 

 ma. Tlieir first flights are timid enough and the parents then follow 

 rliem with peculiar solicitude; then little by little, as skill in flight and 

 hunting increases, the family attection wanes, the eyrie is abandoned, 

 and each by degrees becomes a hunter upon his own account. - - - 



Two eagles are rarely seen together when they have no young ones. 

 Those shut up together in cages, all perish in the same manner, from 

 a stroke of the talon, xienetrating the brain. 



Vultures. — Let us rest long in our studies of this type of flight, for 

 it is full of useful instruction: this is the type which will lead man to 

 navigate the immensity of space. 



This great family of birds solves the problem of remaining in the air 

 with the least expenditure of force; we may even say, in other words, 

 that it is that Avhich flies, or rather soars, with the utmost science. 

 The life needs of the creature, here as everywhere, determine its kind 

 of talent. The vulture, to make a living, must rise to a great height 

 thence to gain a large field of observation, and he must there long 

 remain without fatigue. 



I*^ow consider the construction of this bird. His weight is very 

 great, his wings are immense, both in length and breadth; his large 

 proportional surface sustains him, and his great mass stores u^) mo- 

 mentum. So we see him after a few beats of wing, at once begin to 

 soar, climbing up in the air and floating there with no expenditure 

 of force, save for the start and for guidance. Certain sj)ecies of vul 

 tures, particularly the larger, absolutely can, upon a windy day, leave 

 their perch in the morning, travel many leagues, si)end the whole day 



