It was true I had been told by my mother that if I wanted wild
birds' eggs I was never to take more than one from a nest, unless it
was of some injurious species. And injurious the _carancho_ certainly
was, in spite of his good behaviour when at home. On one of my early
rides on my pony I had seen a pair of them, and I think they were our
own birds, furiously attacking a weak and sickly ewe; she had refused
to lie down to be killed, and they were on her neck, beating and
tearing at her face and trying to pull her down. Also I had seen a
litter of little pigs a sow had brought forth on the plain attacked by
six or seven _caranchos_, and found on approaching the spot that they
had killed half of them (about six, I think), and were devouring them
at some distance from the old pig and the survivors of the litter. But
how could I climb the tree and get over the rim of the huge nest? And
I was afraid of the birds, they looked so unspeakably savage and
formidable whenever I went near them. But my desire to get the eggs
was over-mastering, and when it was spring and I had reason to think
that eggs were being laid, I went oftener than ever to watch and wait
for an opportunity. And one evening just after sunset I could not see
the birds anywhere about and thought my chance had now come.
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