160 THE CORMORANT. 



but for one moment, how many innocent birds their 

 shot destroys ; how many fall disabled on the wave, 

 there to linger for hours, perhaps for days, in torture 

 and in anguish ; did they but consider how many 

 helpless young ones will never see again their parents 

 coming to the rock with food ; they would, methinks, 

 adopt some other plan to try their skill, or cheat 

 the lingering hour. 



NOTES OF A VISIT TO THE HAUNTS OF THE 

 CORMORANT, AND FACTS ON ITS HABITS. 



THE fabulous story concerning the cormorant made 

 a great impression upon me in early youth ; and I 

 well remember with what avidity I first read his true 

 history in the pages of Buffon. 



The old fable tells us that the cormorant was once 

 a wool-merchant. He entered into partnership 

 with the bramble and the bat, and they freighted a 

 large vessel with wool. She struck on some rocks, 

 and went to the bottom. This loss caused the firm 

 to become bankrupt. Since that disaster, the bat 

 sculks in his hiding-hole until twilight, in order that 

 he may avoid his creditors : the bramble seizes hold 

 of every passing sheep, to make up his loss by 

 retaining part of its wool ; while the cormorant is 

 for ever diving into the waters of the deep, in hopes 

 of discovering whereabouts his foundered vessel 

 lies. So far for the fable, which will always bring 



