EAGLES. 203 



not expect to kill the old ones ; but year after year 

 the eggs or the young were taken. If he brought 

 the young away alive he had the birds for his pains j 

 if the eggs, every shepherd gave five shillings for 

 every egg. It is said that no more than two eggs 

 were found at one time. The nest was made of 

 twigs, and lined with a sort of grass from the clefts 

 of the rock. When the fowler failed, and the 

 eaglets were reared, they were led away as soon as 

 strong enough by the parent birds, — no doubt to 

 settle in some other spot ; and the parents returned 

 without them. One of this pair was shot at by 

 the master of a sheept-dog which had been actually 

 carried some distance into the air by it, escaping 

 only by its flesh giving way. The shot took effect, 

 but the eagle vanished. About a week after, it 

 was found lying on the grass on the uplands at 

 Seatoller, nearly starved. Its bill had been split 

 by the shot, and its tongue was set fast in the 

 cleft : it could not make much resistance, and was 

 carried home captive. But, when relieved and 

 restored, it became so violent that it was necessarily 

 killed. Its mate brought a successor from a dis- 

 tance, a much smaller bird, and of a different 

 species. They built however, for fourteen more 

 years in Borrowdale, before they flew over to Esk- 

 dale. They were not long left in peace there ; and, 

 when the larger bird was at length shot, his mate 

 disappeared entirely. Such devastation as was 

 caused by these birds is not heard of now; biit 

 while there are crags aloft, and lambs in the vales, 

 there will be more or fewer, nobler or meaner birds 

 of prey. We are unable to ascertain positively, 

 amidst conflicting testimony, whether any eagles 



