scaled it. I thort at fust that the cyprus wa'n't
climable no how; but jest then I seed a big fox grape-vine, that, arter
sprawlin' up another tree clost by, left it an' sloped off to the one
whar the baldies had thar nest. This war the very thing I wanted,--a
sort o' Jaykup's ladder; an', 'ithout wastin' a minit, I shinned up the
grape-vine. The shaky thing wobbled about, till I war well-nigh pitched
back to the groun'; an' thar war a time when I thort seriously o'
slippin' down agin.

"But then kim the thort o' the ole 'ooman, an' the empty larder, along
wi' the Englishman an' his full purse; an' bein' freshly narved by these
recollections, I swarmed up the vine like a squir'l. Once upon the
cyprus, thar warn't no differculty in reachin' the neest. Thar war
plenty o' footing among the top branches whar the birds had made thar
eyeray. But it warn't so easy to get into the neest. Thar kedn't 'a'
been less than a wagon-load o' sticks in it, to say nothin' o' Spanish
moss, an' all sorts o' bones o' fish and four-footed animals. It tuk me
nigh a hour to make a hole, so that I ked git my head above the edge,
an' see what the neest contained. As I expected, thur war young 'uns in
it,--two o' them about half feathered.

"All this time the old birds were abroad lookin' up a breakfast, I
suppose, for thar chicks. 'How disappointed they'll be!' sez I to
myself, 'when they come back an' find that the young 'uns have fled the
neest, without feathers!'

"I war too sure o' my game, an' too curious about the young baldies,
watching them, as they cowered clos't thegither, hissin' an' threatenin'
me, to take notice o' anythin' besides. But I war roused by feelin' the
hat suddintly snatched from my head, an' at the same time gettin' a
scratch acrost the cheek, that sent the blood spurtin' out all over my
face. It was from the talon o' the she-eagle, while the ole cock war
makin' a confusion o' noises as if he hed jest come all a-strut from the
towers o' Babylon. I had grupped one o' the young baldies, but I war
only too glad to lot it go an' duck my head under the nest, till the
critters were tired threatenin' me, an' guv up the attack. By this time
I guv up all thought o' takin' the young eagles. Arter my scratch, I war
contented to leave 'em alone, an' no Englishman's gold ked hev bought
that brace o' birds. I only waited a bit to rekiver myself, an' then I
commenced makin' back-tracks down the tree.

"I hed got 'bout half-way to