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shrill musical whistle may often be heard far up in the heavens 
even when the bird itself is lost to sight. It breeds at about 
5,500 feet of elevation, constructing a thick basket-like nest of 
twigs and small branches, placed on a lofty tree often growing 
out of the fissure of a rock overhanging a precipice, which is apt 
to turn the head of any but a mountaineer, and to look into 
which reminds one of the bottomless pit! Nevertheless we have 
on more than one occasion contrived to rob the nest. One of 
these was found on the 5th of March and contained one egg, 
which was left for the purpose of ascertaining whether the bird 
would lay another. A few days afterwards, on finding no addi- 
tion, a man ascended the tree which was of tolerably easy access 
and the old bird making no warlike demonstration, the prize was 
secured. On attempting to clean it, however, it was found to 
contain a fully formed young bird. On another occasion we 
did not rob a nest so easily. It was found on the 18th March, 
and contained two eggs, which were left to hatch. On the Ist of 
April, the nest was again visited and found to contain two youug 
ones covered with a rufous coloured down; on the 16th April, 
finding that one young one had fallen from the nest, prepara- 
tions were made for lowering a man down the precipice to the 
root of the tree, which leaned ominously out of a cleft in the 
rock obliquely overhanging an awful chasm. On reaching the 
tree, the man began to ascend, but before he had reached the 
nest, one of the old birds made a dash at him, and struck him 
sharply on the shoulder, causing the blood to flow. Nothing 
daunted, the man proceeded on his perilous course, under cover 
of one or two shots from above to scare the old birds away ; but 
without the desired effect, for on the man’s arrival at the nest, 
another charge was made by the female who struck the poor 
fellow on the head and again caused blood to flow, but luckily 
the man’s greasy linen skull-cap became firmly fixed upon the 
talons of the bird, which scared her to such a degree, that utter- 
ing a loud scream of alarm she sailed away, rapidly followed by 
her mate, and the young one was then brought in safety from 
the nest. It was nearly half fledged with small slaty coloured 
feathers, and grew to maturity in a large roomy cage, when it 
was set at liberty, and after hanging about the place to be fed 
for several days, finally took unto itself the wings of the morning 
and disappeared. These birds sometimes breed in the same nest 
for two or three years, and apparently only abandon it when it 
becomes old and rotten, when they select another tree whereon 
to construct a new habitation at no great distance from the 
other.” 
Mr. Kt. Thompson says “I have always found two young with 
