yet few among us know much about him. He is frequently supposed to be peculiar to this continent: according to ornithologists, such is not the case; he is found in the northern parts of the Old Hemisphere also. He is much more rare, however, in Europe than in the Western World, and what is singular, he is chiefly confined there to extreme northern regions, while it is rather the temperate and warmer climates of this continent which he affects. Only two instances are known where this eagle has visited Central Europe; in America, they are found from Labrador to the Gulf of Mexico, but they are most common within the milder latitudes of that space.
The Bald Eagles are more numerous along our coast than in the interior; their fondness for fish draws them to the sea-shore. Their singular habit of exacting tribute from the Osprey is well known, and is a spectacle very frequently seen along the coast, where the Fish-Hawks are most common. The Eagle sits watching upon a naked limb of some tall tree near the water, while the Fish-Hawk is soaring at the height of a hundred feet or more above the waves in quest of prey; as soon as the Hawk has dived and arisen with a fish in its talons, then the Eagle leaves his perch and pursues the luckless Osprey, with threats so well understood, that the fish is dropped, the Eagle sinks, and seizing it as it falls, carries it off to his haunts in the woods, where he makes his meal. In New York, the Bald Eagle is most common along the Sound, on Long Island, and also about Niagara; but he is no stranger to any part of the country. They are frequently seen soaring over the Highlands near West Point. Now and then one is observed hovering over our own little lake. Their fisherman, the Osprey, also visits the interior, following our larger rivers to their
