THE MEMORABLE. 



winter's evening, " he observes, "in the month of 

 February, 1841, that, for the first time in my life, 

 I had an opportunity of seeing this rare and 

 noble bird, and never shall I forget the delight it 

 gave me. Not even Herechel, when he discovered 

 the famous planet which bears his name, could 

 have experienced more happy feelings ; for to have 

 something new to relate, to become yourself a 

 contributor to science, must excite the proudest 

 emotion of the human heart. We were on a trad- 

 ing voyage, ascending the upper Mississippi; the 

 keen winter blasts whistled over our heads, and 

 the cold from which I suffered had, in a great 

 degree, extinguished the deep interest which, at 

 other seasons, this river has been wont to awake 

 in me. I lay stretched beside our patroon; the 

 safety of the cargo was forgotten ; and the only 

 thing that called forth my attention was the 

 multitude of ducks, of different species, accom- 

 panied by vast flocks of swans, which from time 

 to time would pass us. My patroon, a Canadian, 

 had been engaged many years in the fur-trade : he 

 was a man of much intelligence, who, perceiving 

 that these birds had engaged my curiosity, seemed 

 only anxious to find some new object to divert 

 me. The eagle flew over us. 'How fortunate I' he 

 exclaimed ; 'this is what I could have wished. 

 Look, sir I the great eagle; and the only one I 

 have seen since 1 left the lakes." I was instantly 

 on my feet; and having observed it attentively, 

 concluded, as I lost it in the distance, that it was 

 a species quite new to me."' 



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 

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