Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1855-08-09

the branches of the oak Ascending the fallen
tree, | soon reached the oak, and catchin" the
huge limbs above me, | swung up on one after
another until stood on one a few feet beneath
the trio of branches on which the nest lay.
During my ascent, one of the eagles, with
vocifcrouS cries, often wheeled within dozen
feet ofly head but, like the youngsters, as
had at the time quite as much courage as con.
duct, stood in little fear of an attack While
posted on a strong limb, with near branch ia
hold on by, | looked into the nest. 1t was
built Of strong, heavy sticks, laid crosswiSe
perhaps two feet in thickness from bottom to
top, and four or five feet wide on the surface
covered with long, dry grass, and leaves
about midway on the nest lay two young ca.
gles, one somewhat larger than the other about
the size of half-grown goslings, covered with
the same sort of down, in color and appearance
Close by them lay two or three dead fish, halt
| covered with blue-bottle flies and giving off an
lnt0lerablc stencil. With stick which drew
out of the lower part of the nest, tried to
poke one of the young towards me; but they
turned up their claws in defiance, with Il sort
of hiss, and edged further away.
During this time, one Of the old eagles had
left the premises altogether, while the other
still kept wheeling and diving around, but ap-
preached no nearer than within few feet of
me, as before. After awhile, my continued
poklng at the young ones so exasperated one
of them, that he seized my stick so firmly with
his claws that drew him within reach De-
termined to hold divided empire with the old
eagles in the possession Of their young, the
next process was to get the bird to the ground
without damage, as had no sack or basket in
which to deposit and let him safely down but
like other youngsters, who are seldom at a loss
for expedients in mischief, a plan was soon in
vented Taking of'my hat, coat and vest, and
laying them on the adjacent limb, my shirt
was rapidly drawn over my head, rhe sleeves
tied together at the wristbands, and thrown
over my neck, and skirts bounds into a knot,
thus making a sack. and the open collar and
bosom forming its mouth. Into this '"" untor~
receptacle our bellicose ..Young America was
rapidly thrust, my outer garments replaced,
and, flushed with victory, made a rapid de-
scent down the tree. No triumphant plunder-
er ever felt prouder of his trophy than I, and.
like the killed Highlander in :: Rob Roy" |
could sing:
" The eagle. he was lord above.
And Rat was lord Of all below
| took the eagle down TO The hsherman's ; hut
and after Spending an hour or two, beam TO
consider what to do with the young rufian |
had So wantonly caught, for | had neither 4
suitable place nor provisions on which to keep
him, and wisely concluding that the scro"d, if
not the better part of valor was discretion, [
gave him TO the owner of the hut for his own
pastime.
saw no more of the eagle for some weeks,
when again visited the fisherman, and found
the young, tawny-looking thing an enormous
bird, lounging about the door, and grown stout
and saucy from generous treatment and the
fish garbage on which he had been profu<ely
fed
The next report heard from the young say
age, few weeks after, was near being a tragic
one The wife of the fisherman having occa-
sion one day to 90 to the shore, a few rods dis
tant, after bucket of water, while there she
heard scream from her child, which in her
caution she had placed upon the bed when she
left the room Rushing back, she found the
child PROSTATE on the floor, screaming in ter
ror and agony, the eagle on its breast, with
one claw trans6xed into its face, and the other
as she approached, turned up, with open beak,
'e at the mothers approach. With
the quick energy of woman in extremity, she
struck the eagle off with her foot, and caught
up the child, its face badly cut and bleeding,
and deposited it at once in place of safety.
This done, an axe lay at the door; and that
eagle died. probably as sudden death as ever
malefactor did on execution of any sort what
ever The little sufferer, after a few weeks
careful attention, recovered of its wound, but
with lasting scar on its temple.
That was the first and the last of the race
that we ever attempted to tame, and long will
the bald eagle " tower" over our homestead,
in his "pride of place." ere we shall seek to
disturb his authority.
The quill of the bald eagle is peculiarly hard
and elastic, and to those who prefer quill to
a metal pen, like ourselves, We commend their
use, when they can be obtained. We have
long used them.-Americon Ayricultm'ia