274 LETTER XLIII. 



birds and sucking their eggs; and the indolence of 

 liis disposition causes him, in general, to prefer ac- 

 quisitions that are easily made, before what must be 

 carried by laborious pursuit. 



Of the buzzard, kite, and hawk kind, above seventy 

 species, more or less diffused in different countries, 

 have been enumerated by naturalists; but their gene- 

 ral propensities being nearly the same, preclude the 

 necessity of a particular delineation; and I have men- 

 tioned the great number of varieties, merely as an 

 additional instance of the endless diversity of Nature's 

 works. 



I shall now lead you to a view of a different kind 

 of rapacious birds, which, although of propensities si- 

 milar to those of the last described class, have differ- 

 ent habits and a different mode of living. These are 

 the owl kind, a sort of nocturnal robbers that are 

 scarcely ever seen in the day, but prowl about in the 

 night, and take their prey by surprise during the 

 hours of rest and seeming security. 



All birds of the owl kind have one common mark 

 by which they are distinguished from all others. 

 Their eyes like those of tygers, cats, and the rest of 

 that kind of quadrupeds, are formed for nocturnal vi- 

 sion. Their sight is dazzled by the glare of day ; but 

 they do not see best when it is totally dark, as some 

 have imagined. The dusk of the evening, or the 

 mild glimmering of moon-shine, afford them the 

 greatest facility of distinguishing their prey, and such 

 are the seasons when they make the most successful 

 depredations. 



Naturalists commonly distinguish birds of the owl 

 kind, by disposing them into two grand divisions, 

 those with horns, and those without. These horns are 

 nothing more than a few feathers standing upright on 

 ach side of the head : among these, the great horned 

 owl is entitled to the pre-eminence. It appears at 

 first view scarcely inferior to the eagle in size, but 

 on a closer inspection is found to be much less. In- 

 deed, all sorts of owls are enveloped in so great a 

 mass of feathers, as to appear much larger than they 



