i 
BIRDS. 119 
!| 
i! “king of beasts,” so the Eagle is allowed to be the 
| “ king of birds.” “ Magnanimity,” says Buffon, “ is 
| equally conspicuous in both ; they despise the small 
i animals, and disregard their insults.” 
15. The Golden Eagle measures three feet in 
length from the beak to the tail, and seven and a 
half between the extremities of the wings. The 
i body is dark-brown, the beak of a deep-blue, and 
! the eyes of a hazel colour. The legs are yellow, 
strong, and feathered to the very feet, which are 
| armed with formidable claws. 
16. “ An instance is recorded, in Scotland, of two 
children having been carried aXvay by two Eagles, 
who were pursued, and had only time to lodge them 
in their nest, before they were overtaken ; and the 
little innocents by that jneans were restored to their 
affrighted parents without injury.” 
17. The Eagle’s nest is usually built on inacces- 
sible cliffs or rocks. Its nest is flat, the basis con- 
sisting of sticks five or six feet long, and covered 
with layers of rushes and heath. 
18. The Eagle is a long-lived bird ; it is certain 
that one of them has been confined for a hundred 
years. It is able to sustain the want of food for 
three weeks, an abstinence of which few animals 
are capable. 
19. There are numerous species of the Eagle 
found in various parts of the world ; the Black Eagle, 
which is so powerful as to kill a dog much larger 
than itself ; the Ospray, or Fishing Eagle, and the 
Bald Eagle. 
What rank does the Golden Eagle hold among birds ? Describe 
its size and appearance. What anecdote is related to show its 
strength ? Describe its nest. What is said of its longevity ? of its 
power of abstaining from food ? Mention some of the Eagle spe- 
cies 
