112 BIRD STORIES FROM BURROUGHS 



The two older ones showed some signs of fear 

 on our approach, and one of them threw himself 

 upon his back, and put up his impotent legs, and 

 glared at us with open beak. The two smaller 

 ones regarded us not at all. Neither of the par- 

 ent birds appeared during our stay. 



When I visited the nest again, eight or ten 

 days later, the birds were much grown, but of as 

 marked a difference in size as before, and with 

 the same look of extreme old age, old age in 

 men of the aquiline type, nose and chin coming 

 together, and eyes large and sunken. They now 

 glared upon us with a wild, savage look, and 

 opened their beaks threateningly. 



The next week, when my friend visited the 

 nest, the larger of the hawks fought him sav- 

 agely. But one of the brood, probably the last 

 to hatch, had made but little growth. It appeared 

 to be on the point of starvation. The mother 

 hawk (for the male seemed to have disappeared) 

 had perhaps found her family too large for her, 

 and was deliberately allowing one of the number 

 to perish ; or did the larger and stronger young 

 devour all the food before the weaker member 

 could obtain any? Probably this was the case. 



Arthur brought the feeble nestling away, and 

 the same day my little boy got it and brought it 

 home, wrapped in a woolen rag. It was clearly a 



