A YOUNG MAKSII HAWK 141 



my little boy against all the vermin and small 

 game in the neighborhood to keep the hawk 

 supplied. He trapped and he hunted, he en- 

 listed his mates in his service, he even robbed 

 the cats to feed the hawk. His usefulness as 

 a boy of all work was seriously impaired. 



"Where is J ?" "Gone after a scpiirrel 



for his hawk." And often the day would l^e 

 half gone before his hunt was successfuh The 

 premises were very soon cleared of mice, and 

 the vicinity of chipmunks and squirrels. 

 Farther and farther he was compelled to hunt 

 the surrounding farms and woods to keep up 

 with the demands of the hawk. By the time 

 the hawk was ready to fly he had consumed 

 twenty-one chipmunks, fourteen red squirrels, 

 sixteen mice, and twelve English sparrows, be- 

 sides a lot of butcher's meat. 



His plumage very soon began to show itself, 

 crowding off tufts of the down. The quills on 

 his great wings sprouted and grew apace. 



\Vhat a ragged, uncanny appearance he pre- 

 sented! but his look of extreme age gradually 

 became modified. What a lover of the sun- 

 light he was! We would put him out upon 

 the grass in the full blaze of the morning sun, 

 and he would spread his wings and bask in it 

 with the most intense enjoyment. In the nest 

 the young must be exposed to the full power of 

 the midday sun during our first heated terms in 

 June and July, the thermometer often going up 

 to 93 or 95 degrees, so that sunshine seemed to 

 be a need of his nature. He liked tlie rain 



