THE VULTURE. 143 



Condor. The man declared he never had had such a 

 trial of strength in his life, that he put his knee upon 

 the bird's breast, and tried with all his might to twist 

 its neck, but that the Condor, objecting to this, 

 struggled most violently, and he fully expected that 

 several others, which were flying over his head, would 

 take part against him, and assist their companion. 

 At length, however, he succeeded, as he supposed, 

 and carrying off the pinion-quills in triumph, left the 

 bird for dead ; but so tenacious are they of life, and 

 so difficult to kill, that another horseman who 

 passed the spot some time after, found it still living 

 and struggling. 



Feeding, as Vultures do, on carrion, plunging 

 their beaks into putrid masses of decayed flesh, were 

 they covered with feathers like Eagles and Hawks, 

 about their heads and necks, they would soon be- 

 come clotted with gore, and be an incumbrance to 

 the bird; accordingly the head and lower part of the 

 neck, in all the tribe, are more or less covered either 

 with down or wattles, or the skin is left almost 

 naked, as in the annexed figure 2. 



Figure 1. Figure 2, 



