NATURAL HISTORY. 



When a bird or a wild animal i i kiae 1, th it is the end of it. Ii ph >tographed, it may still live and its educational 



and scientific valiu id multiplied indefinitely. 



MR. HORNADAY IS RIGHT. 

 Your correspondent, Air. W. T. Horna- 

 day, made an error in judgment in trying 

 to portray the good qualities of eagles, in 

 reply to my former article. As emblems 

 of various sorts these mischievous birds 

 have been idolized by superstitious and 

 sentimental classes for thousands of years. 

 Eight hundred vears B. C, emperors be- 

 lieved eagles could carry their souls from 

 earth to heaven.. When used as standards 

 eagles have b:en represented as holding 

 thunderbolts in their talons, were among 

 the gods worshipped by the ancient Ro- 

 mans, and are represented with Jupiter in 

 mythology. Like the bear for Russia, the 

 lion for Britain, etc., the likeness of an 

 eagle on coins or arms of Uncle Sam is 

 appropriate and unobjectionable, but only 

 a taxidermist can make either creature a 

 comfortable pet or a safe neighbor ; there- 

 fore why make unnecessary efforts to per- 

 petuate them? The only perfect emblem of 

 liberty and independence extant, pride and 

 boast of 75,000,000 freemen, who will al- 

 ways uphold and defend it, is the flag of 

 our country, the glorious old stars and 

 stripes. Your eagle professors can never 

 lead me in love, respect, and admiration 

 for that matchless emblem, the red. white, 

 and blue symbol of the American Union ; 

 and Mr. Hornaday's letter sharing the 

 glory of that flag with a live eagle, thus 

 dimming the splendor of the banner, was 

 like an attempt to amalgamate pure gold 

 with alloy. The men who "hoe corn or 

 drive team," to use the professor's words, 

 and men of their class, are the mainstay 

 of the country, patriotic and sensible, and 

 will not sanction his ideas. Because a few 

 sentimentalists, with an axe to grind, 

 glib tongues, and trenchant pens can bam- 

 boozle a Legislature into passing a law 

 protecting eagles, it does not follow that an 

 appreciable number of residents of the State 

 approve it. Because a professional biolo- 

 gist places a deadly enemy of game and do- 

 mestic animals, a wholly wicked and dan- 

 gerous bird, on an equality of adoration 

 with the American flag, is no indication 

 that others, of whatever talents, but with 

 plenty of good Yankee sense, will be hood- 

 winked or swerved from a practical and 

 proper idea of the fitness of such things. 

 I await a sensible reason w T hy a raptorial 

 bird should be protected by statute. While 

 I never advocated extermination of eagles, 

 I object to penalties for shooting them. 

 They are often an unmitigated curse near 

 civilization, and when detected raiding 



pasture or farmyard, should be dealt with 

 like anv other chicken thief, whether on 

 wings or legs. Besides, eagles are amply 

 able to care for themselves and are neither 

 in present nor remote danger of extermin- 

 ation. Payson. 



ANSWER. 



If you knew Professor Hornaday as well 

 as I do, and as well as thousands of other 

 men know him, you would get on your 

 knees and apologize to him for having re- 

 ferred to him as a sentimentalist, with an 

 axe to grind, a professional theorist, etc. 

 There never was and never will be a more 

 earnest, practical, conscientious working 

 naturalist than W. T. Hornaday. He never 

 makes a statement at random, nor without 

 careful consideration. He never makes a 

 statement he can not prove by abundant 

 and unquestionable evidence. His judg- 

 ment as to wild animals and birds is ac- 

 cepted without question by every well in- 

 formed nature student in this country and 

 in Europe ; and for you to assume to criti- 

 cise his defense of the American eagle is a 

 piece of presumption that will receive the 

 hearty condemnation of thousands of such 

 men. 



There is perhaps no bird or animal na- 

 tive to this country that has been belied 

 more persistently than has the eagle. 

 Thousands of stories of his raids on fields 

 or barnyards, and even on children playing 

 in dooryards, have been manufactured out 

 of whole cloth. I grew up on a farm in 

 the West, and for many years since leaving 

 the farm (more years than I like to re- 

 count) I have hunted, fished and studied 

 nature in the various States of the Union 

 where eagles live ; yet I have never known 

 an eagle to kill a domestic fowl, a lamb, a 

 pig, or to destroy any other kind of pri- 

 vate property. Neither have I ever talked 

 with a man who has seen an eagle do any 

 of these things. This does not prove that 

 eagles do not raid farms or poultry yards 

 at rare intervals, but it does disprove in a 

 great measure many of the serious charges 

 made against the national bird. 



Mr. Hornaday has devoted his whole 

 life to the study of our native birds and 

 animals. He, like myself, was graduated 

 from a Western farm. He has traveled 

 nearly all over the world, and when he says 

 that the eagle is a practically harmless bird ; 

 that he should be protected by law, and his 

 species perpetuated, I believe it. So does 

 every other man who knows Professor 

 H o r na day . — Editor. 



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