266 the albatross. 



as firm as that which can be formed by the sincerest 

 of friends : their nests are constructed with great 

 uniformity, near to each other, on some uninhabited isle ; 

 those of the albatross placed in the centre, and those 

 of the penguins curiously ranged around. 



OF THE CORMORANT. 



The cormorant is about the size of a large Muscovy 

 duck ; and though the toes are united by a membrane, 

 the middle one is notched like a saw, to assist it in 

 holding its fishy prey. The head and neck of this bird 

 are of a sooty blackness, and the body thick and heavy, 

 not much unlike that of the goose : the bill is straight 

 till near the end, where the upper chap bends into a 

 hook. 



As soon as winter approaches, these birds are seen 

 dispersed all along the sea-shore, and ascending up to- 

 wards the mouths of rivers, dealing destruction to all 

 of the fishy tribe, for their digestion is as sudden as 

 their appetite is voracious, which may in some mea- 

 sure be accounted for by their intestines being filled 

 with a large quantity of small worms. 



From the body of the cormorant there issues a most 

 foetid smell, and from its voice proceeds both hoarse 

 and croaking notes ; its appetites are gross, its habits 

 unclean, and in the whole feathered race there is not a 

 more unpleasing bird. Yet, as the most disgusting 

 animals may possess some valuable qualities, the cor- 

 morant hag been held in esteem for the facility with 

 which it catches fish ; and Willoughby assures us it 

 was once valued in England, and rendered domestic 

 for that peculiar use. 



These birds, previous to being taken to the river, 

 are hood-winked, to prevent them from receiving any 



