THE EAGLE. 105 



taught them to kill and tear them to pieces, as a cat hrings 

 live mice to her kittens, and teaches them to kill them. 

 Sometimes, it seems, hares, rabbits, rats, &c., not being suffi- 

 ciently weakened by wounds, got off from the young ones 

 while they were amusing themselves with them ; and one 

 day a rabbit escaped into a hole, where the old eagle could 

 not find it. The parent bird another day brought to her 

 young ones the cub of a fox, which, after it had fought well, 

 and desperately bitten the young ones, attempted to .make 

 its escape up the hill, and would, in all probability, have 

 accomplished it, had not the shepherd, who was watching the 

 motion of the Eagles with a view to shoot them, which they 

 do with bullets (Swan-shot not being able to penetrate their 

 feathers), prevented it. 



As the Eagles kept what might be called such an excellent 

 storehouse, whenever visitors came unexpectedly, the owner 

 said he was in the frequent habit of sending his servants to 

 see what his neighbours the birds had to spare ; and that 

 they scarcely ever returned without some dainty dishes for 

 his table, game of all kinds being rather the better than the 

 worse for being kept a certain time. When the gentleman 

 or his servants carried off things from the shelf or table near 

 the nest, (for it was a work of great hazard to approach the 

 nest itself,) the Eagles lost no time in bringing another 

 supply ; but when they did not take them away, the old ones 

 loitered about, and were very inactive, amusing themselves 

 with their young, till the stock of food had nearly come to 

 an end. 



While the hen Eagle was hatching, the table or shelf on 

 the rock was generally kept well furnished for her use : and 

 when she was in that state, or the Eaglets very young, the 

 male-bird generally tore a wing from the fowls for her, or a 

 leg from the animals captured. These Eagles, as is generally 

 the case with birds that are not gregarious, that is, which do 

 not live together, or assemble in flocks, were faithful to 

 each other, and would not permit even their young, after 

 they had grown up, to build a nest, or live near them, but 

 drove them off to a considerable distance. This gentleman 



