THE GREAT AUK. 
This bird is of the size of a goose ; its bill 
is black, and covered at the base with short 
velvet-like feathers. The upper parts of the 
plumage are black, and the lower parts white, 
with a spot of white between the bill and the 
eyes, and an oblong stripe of the same on the 
wings, which are too short for flight. It is a 
very bad walker, but swims and dives well. It 
is, however, observed by seamen, that it is 
never Seen out of soundings, so that its ap- 
pearance serves as an infallible direction to 
land. It is frequently seen on the coasts of 
Norway, Greenland, Newfoundland, &c. 
There is another bird of this description, 
called the Penguin, of which there are several 
varieties, which seems to hold the same place 
in the southern parts of the world, that the 
Auks do in the northern ; being only found in 
the temperate and frigid zones of the southern 
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