Concerning Eyes. 193 



the ground. The black horns stood erect, while in 

 the centre of the wheel-shaped head the beak 

 snapped incessantly, producing a sound resembling 

 the clicking of a sewing-machine. This was a 

 suitable setting for the pair of magnificent furious 

 eyes, on which I gazed with a kind of fascination, 

 not unmixed with fear when I remembered the 

 agony of pain suffered on former occasions from 

 sharp, crooked talons driven into me to the bone. 

 The irides were of a bright orange colour, but 

 every time I attempted to approach the bird they 

 kindled into great globes of quivering yellow flame, 

 the black pupils being surrounded by a scintillating 

 crimson light which threw out minute yellow sparks 

 into the air. When I retired from the bird this 

 preternatural fiery aspect would instantly vanish. 



The dragon eyes of that Magellanic owl haunt 

 me still, and when I remember them, the bird's 

 death still weighs on my conscience, albeit by 

 killing it I bestowed on it that dusty immortality 

 which is the portion of stuffed specimens in a 

 museum. 



The question as to the cause of this fiery 

 appearance is one hard to answer. We know that 

 the source of the luminosity in owls' and cats' 

 eyes is the tapedum lucidum the light-reflecting 

 membrane between the retina and the sclarotic 

 coat of the eyeball ; but the mystery remains. 

 When with the bird, I particularly noticed that 

 every time I retired the nictitating membrane would 

 immediately cover the eyes and obscure them for 



o 



