162 WILD SPAIN. 



yards from my shelter, his feathers all fluffed out, and a 

 great yellow talon protruding, as it seemed, from the very 

 centre of his chest. Then a faint sun-ray played on his 

 tawny plumage ; he shook himself together, and launched 

 out in air to renew his hunt, sweeping downwards close 

 past me — luckily without disturbing the ibex, though I 

 saw them take note of the circumstance. 



To our other misfortunes was now superadded the dis- 

 comfort of bad weather. Here is an extract from diary : — 

 March 31st. — Glass fell last night four-tenths to 25' 85", 

 and the morning broke with a whole gale from W.. 

 bitterly cold, with driving masses of cloud, gradually 

 changing to rain and sleet — a bad prospect. 



SOARING VULTURE. 



The rain, fog, and gale continuing, sporting operations 

 were interrupted, and a fine male ibex, shot the night 

 before, was lost, it being no longer possible to follow the 

 trail. We endured a pretty bad time of it, under canvas, 

 in our mountain-perch ; but for our poor beaters it was 

 ten- fold worse — sleeping on the bare ground beneath 

 torrential rains, or under such scant shelter of i^ine- 

 branches as they could rig up. 



We had about a score of these mountaineers in our 



