considerably forwards, not standing parallel with the cheeks, the iris
is of a bright straw colour, pupil black.

The male is generally two or three inches shorter than the female; the
white on the head, neck, and tail being more tinged with yellowish,
and its whole appearance less formidable; the brown plumage is also
lighter, and the bird itself less daring than the female, a
circumstance common to almost all birds of prey.

The eagle is said to live to a great age--sixty, eighty, and, as some
assert, one hundred years. This circumstance is remarkable, when we
consider the seeming intemperate habits of the bird. Sometimes
fasting, through necessity, for several days, and at other times
gorging itself with animal food till its craw swells out the plumage
of that part, forming a large protuberance on the breast. This,
however, is its natural food, and for these habits its whole
organization is particularly adapted. It has not, like men, invented
rich wines, ardent spirits, and a thousand artificial poisons, in the
form of soups, sauces, and sweetmeats. Its food is simple, it indulges
freely, uses great exercise, breathes the purest air, is healthy,
vigorous, and long lived. The lords of the creation themselves might
derive some useful hints from these facts, were they not already, in
general, too wise, or too proud, to learn from their _inferiors,_ the
fowls of the air and beasts of the field.

* * * * *



NOTES OF A READER.