206 WILD SPORTS Of THE HIGHLANDS. [cmap. xxvz, 
the hiding-place, which gave me hardly room to stand, sit, or lie. 
My position was not very comfortable, and the air was nipping 
cold just before the break of day. It was still scarcely grey 
dawn when a bird, with a slow, flapping flight, passed the open- 
ing of my hut, and lighted out of sight, but near, for I heard 
him strike the ground; and my heart beat faster. What was 
my disappointment when his low crowing croak announced the 
raven! and presently he came in sight, hopping and walking 
suspiciously round the sheep; till, supposing the coast clear, 
and little wotting of the double-barrel, he hopped upon the car- 
cass, and began with his square cut-and-thrust beak to dig at 
the meat. Another raven soon joined him, and then two more ; 
who, after a kind of parley, quite intelligible, though in an un- 
known tongue, were admitted to their share of the banquet. I 
was watching their voracious meal with some interest, when 
suddenly they set up a croak of alarm, stopped feeding, and all 
turned their knowing-looking eyes in one direction. At that 
moment I heard a sharp scream, but very distant. The black 
party heard it too; and instantly darted off, alighting again at a 
little distance. Next moment a rushing noise, and a large body 
passed close to me; and the monarch of the clouds lighted at 
once on the sheep, with his broad breast not fifteen yards from 
me. He quietly folded up his wings; and, throwing back his 
magnificent head, looked round at the ravens, as if wondering at 
their impudence in approaching his breakfast-table. They kept 
a respectful silence, and hopped a little farther off. The royal 
bird then turned his head in my direction, attracted by the alte- 
ration in the appearance of the ground which he had just no- 
ticed in the dim morning light. His bright eye that instant 
caught mine as it glanced along the barrel. He rose; as he 
did so I drew the trigger, and he fell quite dead half a dozen 
yards from the sheep. I followed Malcolm’s directions, who had 
predicted that one eagle would be followed by a second, and re- 
mained quiet, in hopes that his mate was not within hearing of 
my shot. ‘The morning was brightening, and I had not waited 
many minutes when I saw the other eagle skimming low over 
the brow of the hill towards me. She did not alight at once. 
Her eye caught the change in the ground or the dead body of 
her mate, and she wheeled up into the air. I thought her lost 
