12 HILL BIRDS OF SCOTLAND 



times the eagle will not hesitate to bear off a young fox 

 cub to his eyrie, and I have before now seen the remains 

 of a desperate encounter on the hill, with the fox's fur 

 scattered abroad in every direction. A certain interest- 

 ing fight between a fox and an eagle may be set down 

 here. The eagle was devouring the carcase of a blue hare 

 when a fox sprang from the surrounding heather and 

 seized the great bird by the wing. A well-contested 

 struggle ensued in which the eagle made a desperate at- 

 tempt to defend itself with its claws and succeeded in 

 extricating itself from its enemy's grasp, but before it 

 had time to escape Reynard seized it by the breast and 

 seemed more determined than ever. The eagle made 

 another attempt to overpower its antagonist by striking 

 with its wings, but that would not compel the aggressor 

 to quit its hold. At last the eagle succeeded in raising 

 the fox from the ground, and for a few minutes Reynard 

 was suspended by his own jaws between heaven and earth. 

 Although now placed in an unfavourable position for 

 fighting his courage did not forsake him, as he firmly kept 

 his hold and seemed to make several attempts to bring 

 the eagle down, but he soon found the strong wings of 

 the eagle were capable of raising him, and that there was 

 no way of escape unless the bird should alight somewhere. 

 The eagle made a straight ascent and rose to a considerable 

 height in the air. After struggling for a time Reynard 

 was obliged to quit his grasp, and descended much quicker 

 than he had gone up. He was dashed to the earth, where 

 he lay struggling in the agonies of death. The eagle 

 made his escape, but appeared weak from exhaustion and 

 loss of blood. 



A stalker of my acquaintance was " spying " a certain 

 hillside when his glass rested upon a fox curled up comfort- 

 ably asleep on a bare patch surrounded by heather. An 

 eagle, being apparently attracted by the bare hillside, 



