THE BALD-EAGLE 
423 
yet few among us know much about him. He is frequently sup- 
posed to be peculiar to this continent : according to ornithologists, 
such is not the case ; he is found in the northern parts of the 
Old Hemisphere also. He is much more rare, however, in Eu- 
rope than in the Western World, and what is singular, he is chiefly 
confined there to extreme northern regions, while it is rather the 
temperate and warmer climates of this continent which he affects. 
Only two instances are known where this eagle has visited Central 
Europe ; in America, they are found from Labrador to the Gulf 
of Mexico, but they are most common within the milder latitudes 
of that space. 
The Bald Eagles are more numerous along our coast than in 
the interior ; their fondness for fish draws them to the sea-shore. 
Tlieir singular habit of exacting tribute from the Osprey is well 
known, and is a spectacle very frequently seen along the coast, 
where the Fish-Hawks are most common. The Eagle sits watch- 
ing upon a naked limb of some tall tree near the water, while the 
Fish-Hawk is soaring at the height of a hundred feet or more 
above the waves in quest of prey ; as soon as the Hawk has dived 
and arisen with a fish in its talons, then the Eagle leaves his perch 
and pursues the luckless Osprey, with threats so well understood, 
that the fish is dropped, the Eagle sinks, and seizing it as it falls, 
carries it off to his haunts in the woods, where he makes his meal. 
In New York, the Bald Eagle is most common along the Sound, 
on Long Island, and also about Niagara ; but he is no stranger 
to any part of the country. They are frequently seen soaring 
over the Hisrhlands near West Point. Now and then one is ob- 
served hovering over our own little lake. Their fisherman, the 
Osprey, also visits the interior, following our larger rivers to their 
