THE WASHINGTON EAGLE. 185 



It was not till some years afterwards that he had an 

 opportunity of seeing this noble bird again. On the face 

 of a precipice was the nest of what the country-people 

 called the " brown eagle," and some peculiarities in the 

 situation induced the ornithologist to hope that it might 

 be the species of which he was in quest. He determined 

 to see for himself. " In high expectation," he continues, 

 " I seated myself about a hundred yards from the foot of 

 the rock.^ Never did time pass more slowly. I could not 

 help betraying the most impatient curiosity, for my hopes 

 whispered it was the great eagle's nest. Two long hours 

 had elapsed before the old bird made his appearance, 

 which was annoimced to us by the loud hissings of the 

 two young ones, who crawled to the extremity of the hole 

 to receive a fine fish. I had a perfect view of this noble 

 bird, as he held himself to the edirinor rock ; his tail 

 spread, and his wings partly so, and hanging something 

 like a bank swallow. I trembled lest a word should 

 escape from my companions — the slightest murmur had 

 been treason from them ; they entered into my feelings, 

 and, although little interested, gazed with me. In a few 

 minutes the other parent joined her mate, which, from the 

 difierence in size, (the female being much larger,) we 

 knew to be the mother-bird. She also had brought a 

 fish ; but, more cautious than her mate, ere she alighted, 

 she glanced her quick and piercing eye around, and in- 

 stantly perceiving her procreant bed had been discovered, 

 she dropped her prey, with a loud shriek communicated 

 the alarm to the male, and, hovering with him over our 



