232 
THE BEAUTIFUL LADDER. 
laugh not only at plodding man, but exult amid 
storm and tempest in a freedom which perhaps 
no other animal can emulate. All visitors to 
the seashore have observed with pleasure the 
easy and beautiful motions of the osprey, or 
fish-hawk ; but to know its power of wing it 
must be seen facing a tempest or shooting with 
the directness and speed of an arrow upon its 
finny prey, and seldom missing the mark. The 
erratic yet graceful movements of the chimney- 
swallows have attracted every observer. High 
in the evening air they sweep through circle 
after circle, with only an occasional flutter of 
the wings; and then, pausing for a moment 
over some chimney-top, they drop into it with 
the directness of a plummet. Not less beauti¬ 
ful are the flights of the bank- and brook-swal¬ 
lows. How gracefully they skim along the 
surface of the water, now and then barely 
touching it, and then, with a twinkle of the 
wings and a joyous twitter, are again shoot¬ 
ing along as though exulting in their skill! 
“ When we examine the wonderful mechan¬ 
ism of the bird, we cannot fail to trace out the 
special lines of superior design. The thick 
muscles of the breast, extending up the forearm 
