At the Water’s Edge 
viz., that he often displays both a lazy and 
a tyrannical disposition ; inasmuch as he will 
quietly sit upon a tree, and watch the osprey 
capture its fish, whereupon the eagle dashes 
down upon him, and compels him to relinquish 
his booty, which is then seized and borne off 
by our glorious emblem. For this ignoble 
trick there is no adequate apology to offer. It 
is a clear case of unpardonable despotism. If 
we wait, however, for some creature to arise 
that shall be beyond all criticism as a mere 
animal type of our country, we shall have to 
get along without any symbol. Unquestiona- 
bly, as between the bald and the golden eagles, 
the former is the worthier on the score of 
beauty ; and his adoption, to be emblazoned 
on our national escutcheon, was probably a 
compromise, such as the world often makes, 
between character and good looks. 
We must notice one more attack upon the 
worthiness of this emblematic bird. His brav- 
ery has been impugned, on the ground that he 
is sometimes put to flight by the contemptible 
little king-bird (Tyrannus tyrannus), which is 
a good deal smaller than a robin. This argu- 
ment looks very plausible, but in reality it is the 
weakest of all. The enormous galleons which 
20I 
