THE CONDOR. 28 



length falls prostrate to the earth and slowly expires. The 

 Condor then gorges himself, and rests in stupidity, and 

 ftlmost gluttonous inehriation, perched upon the highest 

 neighhouring rocks. The formidable hunter, now loaded with 

 his meal, may be driven about without his attempting to 

 fly; and in this state the Indians sometimes pursue them 

 with the lasso or noose, and easily take them captive. Thus 

 restrained, the Condor makes extraordinary efforts to rise 

 mto the air; but fatigued by the attempt, he begins to 

 iisgorge himself freely, an effort he appears to assist by 

 lengthening and shortening the neck, and bringing forward 

 khe sheath of his beak. They will approach dwellings when 

 illured by the scent of food ; and a dead animal will draw 

 down a crowd of these gluttons, where none at the time are 

 »t all visible ; they tear and eat with the greatest voracity, 

 pushing sometimes with their feet, and flapping their 

 wings. 



They make no nest, but deposit their eggs upon the naked 

 rock ; these are two, wholly white, and three or four inches 

 in length. It is said that the female remains with her 

 young for the space of ft year. The young Condor has no 

 feathers. His body, for several months, is covered only 

 with a very fine down or whitish frizzled hair, which 

 resembles that of young owls. This down disfigures the 

 young bird so much, that in this state it appears almost as 

 large as an adult. 



The size of the Condor has been greatly exaggerated. It 



