THE PEREGRINE FALCON.
(Falco Peregrinus.)

"Bird of the broad and sweeping wing,

Thy home is high in heaven;

Where wide the storms their banners fling,

And the tempest clouds are driven :

Thy throne is on the mountain top;

Thy fields the boundless air;

And hoary peaks that proudly prop

The skies, thy dwelling are."-Percival.

IT has been an invariable rule, since the world began, both among men and animals, that the attributes of strength and courage shall ever bear the sway; and the bolder and more powerful the individual, whether man or beast, with so much the greater fear and awe is he regarded by his fellows. Thus the king of beasts and the king of birds both claim that distinction on account of the boldness and fierceness of their dispositions, and ably do they both sustain that character, and proudly do they lord it over their weaker brethren.

The group of British birds therefore that stands highest on the list, are the birds of prey, or the raptores, and we may subdivide this order into several divisions, the most powerful of which is the genus Falco, which comprehends the subject of our present sketch.

The general characteristics of this race are strictly developed in every species. The deep sunken piercing eye; the overhanging brow; the sharp-hooked bill; the strong talons; all mark the character of the birds and while swiftness and strength are happily combined in the external conformation, bold courage and wild ferocity mark their character. Like the Ishmaelites of old, whose hand was against every man, and every man's hand against them; the hawk is dreaded and shunned by all the feathered race, and being a common enemy, no opportunity is lost by the smaller birds of testifying their hatred. Yet there is not a more interesting group. Their habits; the varied beauty of their plumage; the localities which they frequent; all give them an interest in the eye of the naturalist: and although their deeds are marked by rapine and bloodshed, we cannot but admire the courage and sagacity which are so peculiar to the whole tribe.

The true falcons are the Ler falcon, the peregrine, the hobby, the merlin, and the kestrel. The peculiarities of the genus are that they gain their mature plumage in the first moult-their carriage is elegant and light-but the chief distinction between the noble and ignoble hawks is, that in the former the second quill feather is invariably the longest, whilst in the latter the wings are gradually rounded off. This

gives the noble hawks a much sharper appearance in flying; and whilst the short-winged hawks sail above the head in steady gyrations, the sharp-winged birds dash through the air and bear down upon their victim with an irresistible flight.

The peregrine, as its name imports, is a wanderer, and alike frequents the snow-capp d mountains of the north, and the vine-clad regions of the south. It is met with in most parts of the continent,-both in the old and new world. It is rare in England-more abundant in Scotland -but most plentiful in the wild districts of the Emerald Isle. This bird is the true falcon. Before modern improvements changed the character of our national field sports, the peregrine was held in the highest estimation among the falconers of yore; and according to Blome, "from this bird the faulconer is said to derive his name, as well as the art itself." The plumage of the peregrine is beautifully variegated, like the rest of the genus. The head, neck, and upper parts are blueish grey the wing and tail coverts barred with black; the throat white; the breast white spotted with black and the sides, and under feathers white barred with black. There is a black streak under each eye. The length of the male is fifteen inches,-of the female seventeen; the extent of the wings from tip to tip is about two and a half feet. It is still eagerly sought after by the few men who, in these degenerate days follow this "sport of kings;" and a cast of peregrines is highly valued even at the present day. According to Sir John Sebright, the oracle of the modern falconer, the village of F Iconsward in Holland has for many years furnished both falconers and hawks for the rest of Europe; and the inhabitants, a hardy iudustrious race of men, support themselves by rearing and training these birds.

If we would study the habits of the peregrine, we must quit the lowland dwellings of man, and seek the wild mountainous regions of the north; and here, amid the dread solitude of mountain and moor, we shall meet with it in its congenial native home. The cliff that overhangs the ocean is its eyrie, and here, many hundred feet above the level of the sea, does this bold yet shy bird rear its young, undisturbed by the ceaseless din that rages below. Truly may they then be called, "the nurselings of the storm." At times but this is seldom-the nest is built on a lone tree in the wildest part of the barren moor; at others, a pair will fix upon a niche in the crag which forms the front of the tall mountain that rises proudly on the edge of the moor, and projects in bold relief from the blue horizon beyond. Occasionally, the old border castle, whose crumbling walls are all that now remain to remind us of the bloody wraith and border foray of bye-gone ages, furnishes it with a secure and not inappropriate nesting place; but whether it be placed on cliff, crag, or tree, the nest of the peregrine is generally inaccessible, and bold must be the heart and steady the hand and foot of

him who attempts to reach the eyrie. The female lays four eggs, red and brown mottled, like those of the merlin, but about one-third bigger. It may be a matter of surprise to the common observer, that a bird whose habits are as wild as the scenes which it frequents, and whose manners are of the shyest, should ever be rendered subservient to man, and under his fostering care become as gentle as the caged linnet. But so it is. The courageous disposition of the hawk-the swift flightthe piercing eye and powerful talons, were not overlooked by the fowler of earlier ages. This bird was soon taught obedience to his will, and the peregrine has ever proved the falconor's truest friend. This circumstance, however, creates no astonishment in the mind of the man who reads nature aright, and to whom all her operations are familiar. He regards with equal delight the unaccountable instinct of the carrier pigeon. The regularity which attends the movements of the migratory birds also claims his attention; and

“ Who can view without admiring awe,

The nice design of nature's kindly law?
Whose equal hand on Lapland's race bestows
The all useful partner of a world of snows,
Gives to the tenant of an Indian sky
The faithful dog to bear him company,

And bids thine aid half-reasoning camel bless

The lonely pilgrim of the wilderness."

He is thus taught to "look up from nature unto nature's God," and although lost in admiration his wonder ceases, when the meanest flower that grows the veriest reptile that creeps—each and all bear testimony of that invisible hand which guides and directs the whole. ToHo.

SNIPES came with November. Their yearly migration to this country mostly takes place during the first or second week, and it is a remarkable fact connected with their interesting history, that whenever they reach these shores early in the month, they arrive in much greater numbers than when their flight is delayed to a later period. We had