* 
—- >. * 
_ off victorious. 
NATURAL 
jt soon abused ; for it took wing, 
and flew as far as the forest of Be- 
lesme. I gave it up for lost; but 
four hours after, I saw it rush into 
my hall, which was open, pursued 
by five other buzzards, who had 
constrained it to seck again its asy- 
lum. 
<< After this adventure, it ever 
preserved its fidelity to me, coming, 
every night, to sleep on my window; 
‘it grew so familiar, as to seem to 
take singular pleasure in my com- 
pany. It attended constantly at 
dinner, sat on a corner of the table, 
and very often caressed me with its 
head and bill, emitting a weak sharp 
cry, which, however, it sometimes 
softened. It is true, that 1 alone 
had this privilege. It one day fol- 
lowed me when I was on horseback, 
more than two leagues, sailing above 
my head. 
9*¢ Ithad an aversion both to dogs 
and cats, nor was it, in the least, 
afraid of them; it had often tough 
battles with them, but always came 
I had four very 
strong cats, which f collected into 
my garden to my buzzard. | threw 
to them a bit of raw flesh ; the nim- 
_ blest cat seized it, the rest pursued ; 
but the bird darted upon her body, 
bit her ears with his bill, and squeez- 
ed her sides with his talons, with 
_ such force, that the cat was obliged 
to relinguish her prize. 
Often ano- 
ther cat snatched it, the instant it 
dropped, but she suffered the same 
treatment, till the buzzard got en- 
tire possession ef the plunder. He 
was so dextrous im his defence, that 
when he perceived himself assailed, 
at once, by the four cats, he took 
wing, and uttered a cry of exulta- 
tion. At last, the cats, chagrined 
- with their repeated disappointment, 
‘would no Jonger contend, 
HMIsil.OrRryY, 813 
“¢ This buzzard had a singular 
antipathy ; he would not suffer a 
red. cap on the head of any of the 
peasants, and so alert was he in 
whipping it off, that they found their 
heads bare without knowing what 
was become of their caps. He also 
snatched wigs without doing any in- 
jury, and he carried these caps and 
wigs to the tallest tree in a neigh- 
bouring park, which was the ordi- 
nary deposit of his beoty. 
‘¢ He would not suffer any other 
bird of prey to enter his domain ; 
he attacked them very boldly, and 
put them to flight. He did no mis- 
chief in my court-yard; and the 
poultry which, at first, dreaded him, 
grew insensibly reconciled to him. 
The chickens and ducklings receiv. 
ed not the least harsh usage, and yet 
he bathed among the latter. But, 
what is singular, he was not gentle 
to my neighbour’s poultry: and I 
was often obliged to publish that I 
would pay for the damages that he 
might occasion. Jlowever, he was 
often fired at, and he, at different 
times, received fifteen shots without 
sufiermg any fra¢ture. But once, 
early in the morning, hovering over 
the skirts of a forest, he dared to 
attack a fox; and the keeper, see- 
ing him on the shoulders of the fox, 
fired two shots at him ; the fox was 
killed, and the buzzard had his wing 
breken; yet, notwithstanding this 
fracture, heescaped from the keeper, 
and was lost seven days. a 
“ This man, having discovered, 
from the noise of the bell, that he 
was my bird, came next morning to 
inform me. [sent to make search 
near the spot, but the bird could not 
be found, nor did it return till seven 
days after. I had been used to catt 
him every evening with a whistle, 
which he did pot answer for. six 
days ; 
