THE STEPPES OF INNER AFRICA. 189 



able bird of prey, we may hear from his lips this significant and 

 suggestive story. " To him," he says, " the goodness of the All- 

 merciful has given rich gifts, and, above all, high wisdom. For he is 

 a physician among the birds of heaven, familiar with the diseases 

 which visit the children of the Creator, and knowing all the herbs 

 and roots with which to heal them. From far-off lands thou mayest 

 see him bear the roots, but in vain dost thou seek to discover whither 

 he is summoned to heal the sick. The working of his remedies is 

 unfailing; to partake of them brings life, to reject them is to invite 

 death; they are as the Hedijah written by the hand of God's 

 messenger, a precept of Mohammed, whom we reverence in humility. 

 To the poor in the eyes of the Lord, to the sons of Adam, it is not 

 forbidden to make use of them. Take note of where the physician- 

 eagle has his dwelling, refrain from injuring his eggs, wait till the 

 feathers of his young no longer draw any blood, and then go to his 

 home and wound the body of one of his children. Thereupon shalt 

 thou perceive the father fly towards morning in the direction in 

 which thou turnest to pray. Be not discouraged in waiting for his 

 return, have patience! He will appear bearing with him a root; 

 frighten him so that he may leave it to thee, take it without fear; 

 for it comes from the Lord, in whose hand are the issues of life, and 

 it is free from all witchcraft. Then hasten to heal thy sick; they shall 

 all recover, for so it is appointed to them by the Father of Mercies." 

 The bird which forms the subject of this poetic legend is the 

 bateleur or short-tailed African eagle the " Heaven's ape " of the 

 Abyssinians. The roots which, according to the legend, it carries, 

 are snakes, which it picks up. Seldom does one see the bird rest; 

 usually it flies, as has been described, until the sight of a snake 

 induces it to hurl itself downwards and to engage in battle. Like 

 all the snake-eating birds of prey, it is well protected against the 

 venomous fangs by the thick horny plates on its talons and by its 

 dense plumage; it is therefore unafraid of the most deadly snake, 

 and is a true benefactor of the steppe-land. It is not this beneficence, 

 however, but its marvellous flight that has won renown for the 

 African eagle in the eyes of all the peoples among whom it has its 

 home. 



