26 
FALCO LEUCOCEPHALUS. 
nished to see its innocent offspring borne off into the 
air by a bird. 
“ I was lately told,” continues Mr Gardiner, “ by a 
man of truth, that he saw an eagle rob a hawk of its 
fish, and the hawk seemed so enraged as to fly down 
at the eagle, while the eagle very deliberately, in the air, 
threw himself partly over on his back, and, while he 
grasped with one foot the fish, extended the other to 
threaten or seize the hawk. I have known several 
hawks unite to attack the eagle ; but never knew a 
single one to do it. The eagle seems to regard the 
hawks as the hawks do the king-birds, only as teasing, 
troublesome fellows.” 
From the same intelligent and obliging friend, I lately 
received a well preserved skin of the bald eagle, which, 
from its appearance, and the note that accompanied it, 
seems to have belonged to a very formidable indivi- 
dual. “ It was shot,” says Mr Gardiner, “ last winter, 
on this island, and weighed thirteen pounds, measured 
three feet in length, and seven from tip to tip of the 
expanded wings ; was extremely fierce looking ; though 
wounded, would turn his back to no one ; fastened his 
daws into the head of a dog, and was with difficulty 
disengaged. I have rode on horseback within five or 
six rods of one, who, by his bold demeanour, raising his 
feathers, &c. seemed willing to dispute the ground with 
its owner. The crop of the present was full of mutton, 
from my part blood Merinos ; and his intestines con- 
tained feathers, which he probably devoured with a 
duck, or winter gull, as I observed an entire foot and 
leg of some water fowl. I had two killed previous to this, 
which weighed ten pounds avoirdupois each.” 
The intrepidity of character, mentioned above, may be 
farther illustrated by the following fact, which occurred 
a few years ago, near Great Egg Harbour, New Jersey. A 
woman, who happened to be weeding in the garden, had 
set her child down near, to amuse itself while she was at 
work ; when a sudden and extraordinary rushing sound, 
and a scream from her child, alarmed her, and, starting 
up, she beheld the infant thrown down, and dragged 
