THE BIRD OF WASHINGTON. 263 
e£ In high expectation, I seated myself about a hundred 
yards from the foot of the rock. Never did time pass 
more slowly. I could not help betraying the most 
impatient curiosity, for my hopes whispered it was a 
sea eagle’s nest. Two long hours had elapsed before 
the old bird made his appearance, which was announced 
to us by the loud hissings of the two young ones, 
which crawled to the extremity of the hole to receive 
a fine fish. I had a perfect view of this noble bird as 
he held himself to the edging rock, hanging like the 
barn, bank, or social swallow, his tail spread, and his 
wings partly so. I trembled lest a word should escape 
from my companions. The slightest murmur had been 
treason from them. They entered into my feelings, 
and, although little interested, gazed with me. In a 
few minutes the other parent joined her mate, and, 
from the difference in size, (the female of rapacious 
birds being much larger,) we knew this to be the 
mother bird. She also had brought a fish ; but, more 
cautious than her mate, she glanced her quick and 
piercing eye around, and instantly perceived that her 
abode had been discovered. She dropped her prey, 
with a loud shriek communicated the alarm to the 
male, and, hovering with him over our heads, kept up 
a growling cry, to intimidate us from our suspected 
design. This watchful solicitude I have ever found 
peculiar to the female — must I be understood to 
speak only of birds ? 
“ The young having concealed themselves, we went 
and picked up the fish which the mother had let fall. 
It was a white perch, weighing about 5J lb. The 
upper part of the head was broken in, and the back 
torn by the talons of the eagle. We had plainly seen 
her bearing it in the manner of the fish-hawk. 
“ This day’s sport being at an end, as we journeyed 
homewards, we agreed to return the next morning, 
with the view of obtaining both the old and young 
birds ; but rainy and tempestuous weather setting in, 
it became necessary to defer the expedition till the 
third day following, when, with guns and men all in 
