"When aware of an enemy they defend themselves desperately, using their powerful legs as weapons, always kicking forward, and inflicting dreadful injuries on dogs, and even on men, if attacked without due precaution. But let us take up our positions, and keep perfectly still, for the ostriches are at hand!" We held the dogs concealed as much as possible; the stately birds suddenly perceiving us, paused, hesitated, and appeared uneasy. Yet as no movement was made, they drew a few steps nearer, with outstretched necks, examining curiously the unwonted spectacle before them. The dogs became impatient, struggled from our grasp, and furiously rushed toward our astonished visitors. In an instant they turned and fled with the speed of the wind; their feet seemed not to touch the ground, their wings aiding the marvelously rapid progress. In a few moments they would have been beyond our reach, but as they turned to fly the eagle was unhooded. Singling out the male bird the falcon made his fatal swoop, and piercing the skull, the magnificent creature was laid low. Before we could reach the spot the dogs had joined the bird of prey, and were fiercely tearing the flesh and bedabbling the splendid plumes with gore. This sight grieved us. "What a pity we could not capture this glorious bird alive!" exclaimed Fritz, as we took its beautiful feathers; "it must, I am sure, have stood more than six feet high, and two of us might have mounted him at once!" "In the vast sandy deserts where nothing grows, what can flocks of these birds find to live upon?" inquired Ernest. "That would indeed be hard to say, if the deserts were utterly barren and unfruitful," returned I; "but over these sandy wastes a beneficent Providence scatters plants of wild melons, which absorb and retain every drop of moisture, and which quench the thirst as well as satisfy the hunger of the ostriches and other inhabitants of the wilds. These melons, however, do not constitute his entire diet; he feeds freely on grasses, dates, and hard grain, when he can obtain them." "Does the ostrich utter any cry?" "The voice of the ostrich is a deep, hollow, rumbling sound, so much resembling the roar of the lion as occasionally to be mistaken for it. But what does Jack mean by waving his cap and beckoning in that excited fashion? What has the boy found, I wonder!" He ran a little way toward us, shouting: "Eggs, father! Ostriches' eggs! a huge nest full--do come quick!" We all hastened to the spot, and in a slight hollow of the ground beheld more than twenty eggs, as large as an infant's head. The idea of carrying more than two away with us was preposterous, although the boys, forgetting what the weight would be, seriously contemplated clearing the nest. They were satisfied when a kind of landmark had been set up, so that if we returned we might easily find the nest.