“An eagle, madam,
Hath not so green, so quick, so fair an eye,
As Paris hath.”
Romeo and Juliet, Act iii. Sc. 5.
The supposition that the eye of the eagle is green must be regarded as a poetic license. In all the species of this genus with which we are acquainted, the colour of the iris is either hazel or yellow. But it would be absurd to look for exactness in trifles such as these.
POWER OF FLIGHT.
The power of flight in the eagle is no less surprising than his power of vision. Birds of this kind have been killed which measured seven or eight feet from tip to tip of wing, and were strong enough to carry off hares, lambs,
and even young children. This strength of wing is not unnoticed by Shakespeare:—
“This was but as a fly by an eagle.”
Antony and Cleopatra, Act ii. Sc. 2.