Sparrow Hawk. 275 



^owl appear in its bill-of-fare in their season. Swans, 

 geese, and ducks are taken on the wing with astonishing 

 ease by the eagle, which mounts above them and strikes 

 them with its powerful talons. The victims fall to earth, 

 whence they are picked up and eaten when hunger Impels 

 the successful forayer. The agriculturist should recognize 

 its services in the destruction of harmful rodents, though 

 he is often called to mourn the loss of unprotected lambs, 

 pigs, and poultry. Satisfactory investigation has proved 

 that the harmful and beneficial habits of the bald eagle ' 

 balance each other. It is both friend and foe to human 

 interests, judged by the standard of utility. From the 

 bird-lover's point of view, however, its value is not com- 

 parable to mere pigs and poultry. Has not some oue 

 suggested that one genius is worth a generation of mediocre 

 minds? 



SPAEEOW HAWK. 



There are incidents in the lives of all persons which 

 are of such interest that they are not easily forgotten. 

 Such an incident was the capture of the first and only 

 sparrow hawk I ever killed. I had lately obtained pos- 

 session of a small gun, and with it I became a regular 

 rambler over the accessible territory near my home, acquir- 

 ing some of my best lessons in ornithology. One bright 

 morning, while I was walking along a railroad through 

 the woods, a handsome, strange bird, which I mentally 

 classed as a species of hawk, alighted on the telegraph 

 wire near me. It had scarcely snapped its wings into 

 position, however, before it noticed my proximity and 

 arose from its perch, only to fall at the report of my gun. 

 Comparing it with the descriptions in the books, I easily 

 identified it as the sparrow hawk. I have never killed 

 another, for the handsome markings, trim form, and char- 

 acteristic manners of this little falcon enable its friends 

 to know it on sight without sacrifice of its life. It has 

 the distinction of being the smallest and handsomest of 

 the American fjilcons. Unlike the other falcon hawks, its 

 reputation is comparatirely clear, and lack of persecution 

 for fancied depredations allows it to remain quite common 



