The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-11-02
ENCOUNTER WITH AN EAGLE.
Caught in a Fox-Trap-Fighting with Won
derful Energy,

STOCKPORT, Pa, Nov Lewis Williams
who lives in an isolated spot in the Preston
mountains few miles from this place, having
set n trap to catch fox which he had reason to
believe was carrying away his chickens, went
out yesterday morning to look at it and found it
gone, The trap had been chained to q small
stake in the ground. and this had been pulled up
and was missing with the trap and chain. On
his way home from search for the animal, Mr..
Williams q flock of crows in piece Of
woods quarter of mile or so from his house.
They were cawing furousiy and circling around
above the tree tops in one particular spot Mr.
Williams proceeded thither, and had just en-
tered the edge of the woods when he heard
the rafting of a chain, and simultaneously an
enormous bird strutted out from behind a tree,
dragging the missing traD chain and stake. The
Jaws of the trap were fastened to one leg of the
bird, which was a bald eagle of the largest size.
The eagle flew from the ground and was rising
with difficulty toward the top of tall dead tree.
Williams fred at it, manning one of it's wings,
and 1t fell to the ground Thinking to capture
the bird alive, Williams approached it, but in
spite of its crippled wing and the burden of the
trap on its leg the bird flew at him and attacked
him with such fury that he turned and fed from
the woods.
Hurrying back home, Williams, without saying
anything to others, procured stout rope and
large feed bag On his way back to the woods
he noticed that the crows, which had attracted
his attention to the spot in the first place. were
lowering over the place where he had left the
eagle, and from their peculiar cries and frantic
actions he inferred that something unusual had
occurred during his absence The crows, know
ing by the wonderful instinct they possess that
the eagle was wounded, and hating as they do all
large birds, had swooped down on the eagle and
attacked it in its crippled condition. This
attack had been disastrous to the crows, for
when Williams again reached the spot three lay
dead near the enraged eagle, and several others
were dragging themselves away out Of its reach,
utterinS the sharp. cultural cry which they only
utter when wounded or in trouble.
The eagle no sooner saw Williams approaching
again than itrushed at him Williams had made
a moose in one end of the rope ne carried, and
when the eagle flew at him he waited until it
was almost upon him, and then quickly threw
the moose over the birds head and it Slipped
down around the wings. He then threw the bag
over the bird. As Williams STOOD with his arms
around the great body of the bird, endeaEorlng
to secure the mouth of the bag aro1yd its legs,
the eagle suddenly sprang against him, and
striking him in the stomach with its one Tree
talon, with one fierce downward stroke, ripped
the clothing from him, and tore the skin from
the flesh in long strip clear to the waist
Williams quickly released the bird and made
haste to reach his house, supposing that he was
terribly injured Two men, who were threshing
buckwheaJ for him. were then informed of the
presence of the eagle in the woods, and they
went to the spot and succeeded in oVerpowering
it. The eagle will measure at least eight feet
from tip to tip of its wings, and stands nearly
four feet high. These birds still nest in the
wild and rocky elevations in this region