52

THE FALCON'S REWARD.

A golden goblet from his saddle-bow

IIe loosed, and from his steed alighted down,
To wait until that fountain, trickling slow,

Shall in the end his golden goblet crown.
When set beside the promise of that draught,
How poor had seemed to him the costliest wine
That ever with its beaded bubbles laughed --
When set beside that nectar more divine.
The brimming vessel to his lips at last

He raised, when lo! the Falcon on his hand,
With beak's and pinions' sudden impulse, cast
That cup's rare treasure all upon the sand.
Long was it ere that fountain, pulsing slow,
Caused once again that chalice to run o'er;
When, thinking no like hindrance now to know,
He raised it to his parched lips once more:
Once more, as if to cross his purpose bent,

The watchful bird- as if on this one thing,
That drink he should not of that stream, intent
Struck from his hand the cup with eager wing.
But when this new defeat his purpose found,
Swift penalty this time the bird must pay;
Hurled down with angry force upon the ground,
Before her master's feet in death she lay:
And he, twice baffled, did meanwhile again
From that scant rill to slake his thirst prepare;
When, down the crags descending, of his train
One cried, 'O monarch, for thy life forbear!

'Coiled in these waters, at their fountain-head,
And causing them so feebly to distil,

A poisonous snake of hugest growth lies dead,
And doth with venom all the streamlet fill.'

Dropped from his hand the cup; one look he cast
Upon the faithful bird before his feet,
Whose dying struggles now were almost past,

For whom a better guerdon had been meet;

Then homeward rode in silence many a mile:

But if such thoughts did in his bosom grow, As did in mine the painfulness beguile

Of that his Falcon's end, what man can know?

I said, 'Such chalices the world fills up

For us, and bright and without bale they seem, A sparkling potion in a jewelled cup,

Nor know we drawn from what infected stream.

BUZZARDS, HAWKS, KITES, AND HARRIERS: COMMON, ROUGHLEGGED, AND HONEY BUZZARDS-RED AND SWALLOW-TAILED

THE

HE BROWN BUZZARD (Buteo fuscus, or Falco buteo), sometimes called the Glead or Glade, Kite or Puttock. The Buzzards are among the least active birds of the Falcon family. Their flight is strong and buoyant, as that of the Eagles, like which they sail in circles, mounting to a great height; but they fly low over the earth in search of prey, which consists mostly of the smaller birds and quadrupeds, insects and worms, all of which they pounce upon on the ground. But two species of Buzzards are met with in Britain-the one above named, and THE ROUGHLEGGED BUZZARD (Buteo or Falco lagopus), which is a native of the colder regions of both continents, and`

54

THE ROUGH-LEGGED BUZZARD.

comes into this country only as a straggler.

The common Buzzard is generally distributed over Britain, on the south inhabiting the woody tracts, and on the north keeping mostly to the hilly and wilder country. This bird. is rather larger than the Peregrine Falcon, being about twenty-two inches long, with an extent of wings about fifty inches. The general colour of the plumage of the upper parts is umber brown, glossed with a purple tinge;

the breast and under parts are yellowish white; the larger wing and tail feathers are edged with grey, and barred with brown and white; the feet are bright yellow, and the claws black, like the bill. So much variation, however, exists in the colours, that two individuals at all similar in this respect have scarcely been found. In the wooded districts of England the Buzzard nestles in trees; but in Scotland it generally chooses the shelf of a rock, or a deep scaur, or bed of a hill torrent. The nest is of sticks,

THE HONEY BUZZARD.

55

twigs, and heath, with a rude lining of wool and grass. The eggs, broadly elliptical in shape, are three or four in number, and of a dull white colour, spotted and patched with yellowish brown; length, about two inches and a quarter; breadth, nearly two inches. This bird's method of flying in circles so closely resembles that of the Eagle, that an observer not much used to calculating distances might easily mistake it for the king of the feathered creation, from which, however, it may be easily distinguished

by a large white patch on the lower surface of the wing. 'No one can help noticing,' says Mr. Hepburn, its sluggish habits, compared with those of the other raptores. It hunts the fields in a wavering direction, often turning and twisting, about a dozen or sixteen feet from the ground, dropping down on the unsuspecting mouse, and seizing the unwary bird perched on the hedge. It does not appear to come near the dwellings of man in search of its food. Besides devouring mice, it is of great service to the farmer

by effectually driving off the Ringdoves from the corn. It is accused of killing game, and suffers accordingly; but the gleanings of the field are shared by the small birds and mice, and the poor Buzzard is shot when endeavouring to fulfill one of the great ends for which he was created, by setting bounds to their increase.'

THE HONEY BUZZARD, or BROWN BEE-HAWK, is of rare occurrence in Britain. Its mode of flight appears to be very similar to that of the Kites. It feeds on the smaller birds and animals, reptiles and insects, including wasps and bees. White, of Selborne, records the building of a pair of these birds near the middle of Selborne Hanger, in the summer of 1780. Another instance of the kind is mentioned as occurring in Aberdeenshire. The eggs were three in number, whitish, spotted with various shades of brown.

THE RED KITE (Milvus regalis, or Falco milvus), variously called the Common, Salmon-tailed, or Fork-tailed Kite; Gled, or Glead; Crotchet-tailed Puttock; Gaelic, Clamhan Godhlach. This bird is distinguished from others of the British Falconida by its slender form, elongated wings, and deeply-indented tail. Its mode of flight is extremely buoyant and elegant; its length, from twenty-five to twenty-seven inches; extent of wings, about sixty inches. The general colour of the head and neck is light brownish yellow, with longitudinal streaks of blackish brown, streaks of which also appear on the greyish-white throat; the breast and sides are light yellowish red, with a middle dusky streak in each feather; the tail is brownish red, with faint dusky bars across it; there is a purplish tinge on the wing coverts; the feet are orange-coloured, with brownish black claws, like the bill.

In the southern parts of England this bird is seldom met with; and it has now become scarce in the north, owing to the war of extermination carried on against it by preservers of game. Its nest is formed of sticks, and lined with any soft