THE VULTURES 105 



had just caught in the act of killing a new-born pig. In 

 fact he presently showed me the mutilated body of the little 

 grunter. 



The black vulture is rarely seen except in numbers. In fly- 

 ing the bird usually goes in a straight line, moving by alter- 

 nately sailing and flapping the wings. The flight is so 

 direct and businesslike that it impresses one as being that 

 of a bird bent on meeting some important engagement far 

 away over the fields. Again, the vulture will drop like a 

 bombshell from the sky, hundreds of feet to the earth 

 beneath, while the wind rushing between its body and the 

 half closed wings produces a loud roaring sound. 



In the South when a farmer's cow or horse dies, it is 

 customary to drag the body out into a distant field or woods 

 and leave it for the buzzards to dispose of. A red-headed 

 one soon discovers the repast which fortune has spread in 

 his way, and begins circling about the spot. Soon another 

 appears and then others. They are usually in sight of 

 each other and during the course of a day there is scarcely 

 an acre upon which the shadow of one of their bodies does 

 not fall. 



The black vultures do not patrol the country in this 

 fashion and how they so quickly discover the dead body 

 has often seemed to me just cause for wonder. Possibly 

 some black-head from his lookout in the sky sees the 



