186 Birds. 



about three feet ; the breadth, when the wings are ex- 

 tended, is seven or eight feet. The beak is horny, 

 crooked, and very strong. The feathers of the neck are 

 of a rusty colour, and the rest dark brown. The feet 

 are feathered down to the claws, which have a wonder- 

 ful grasp ; the toes are yellow, and the four talons are 

 crooked and strong. As in all birds of prey, the female 

 is the larger, and more powerful. 



Eagles are remarkable for their longevity, and their 

 faculty of sustaining a long abstinence from food. Of 

 all birds the Eagle flies highest ; and from thence the 

 ancients have given it the epithet of the Bird of Heaven : 



"Bird of the broad and sweeping wing, 



Thy home is high in heaven, 

 Where wide the storms their banners fling, 



And the tempest's clouds are driven. 

 Thy throne is on the mountain top, 



Thy fields the boundless air ; 

 And hoary peaks, that proudly prop 



The skies, thy dwellings are." 



This formidable bird may be considered among its own 

 species what the lion is among quadrupeds ; and in many 

 respects they have a strong similitude to each other. 

 Solitary, like the lion, he keeps the wilds to himself 

 alone ; it is as extraordinary to see two pairs of Eagles 

 in the same mountain, as two lions in the same plain. 



The Eagle is found in Great Britain and Ireland, in 

 Germany, and nearly all parts of Europe. It is carni- 

 vorous, and, when unable to obtain the flesh of larger 

 animals, feeds on serpents and lizards. The story of 

 the Eagle, brought to the ground after a severe conflict 

 with a cat, which it had seized and taken up into the air 

 with its talons, is very remarkable ; Mr. Barlow, who 

 was an eye-witness of the fact, made a drawing of it, 

 which he afterwards engraved. Two instances are said 

 to have occurred in Scotland of the Eagle having flown 

 away with infants to its nest ; but in both cases it is 

 added that the children were recovered, without being 

 materially injured. This bird has been often tamed, but 

 in this situation it still preserves an innate love of 

 liberty. The nest of the Eagle is composed of strong 



