Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1878-11-07
Carrier Pigeoas.

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lessor said about flying machines;
how hard people are trying to dis
cover some way OF OF making practi-
cal use of balloons for carrying pass
engers aud mails? But they haven't
succeeded yet, you know, and / want
to tell you about q wonderful little
bird that has succeeded pot In car
rying passengers, but in being mar
velous postman. Think of 1T A
postman with wings. flying at the
rate (sometimes) OF one hundred
miles an hour twice as rapidly as
the fastest express train.
Way back, ever 80 far, In the histo-
~ Of the world, We run across &C.
counts OF the carrier pigeon.
Some weeks ago, the professor
told you OF the crusaders, who FORM
ed great armies and marched against
the Turks In the Holy Land. Now
these Turks used to have carrier pig
cons to take Information from one
city to another. or to fly between diff.
ferent divisions OF their armies; but
the crusaders kept falcons which
would chase and capture the pigeons
In the air. Go further back than this,
even, to the time when Anacreop, a
famous Greek poet, lived 500 b. c.,
and you will ind mention Of the car
rier pigeon.
Let US see what kind OF birds they
are. and how their training is accom-
plished. They are variety OF the
domestic pigeon, and have a wonder
fui instinct which eau ses them to fly
to their homes when carried hun
dreds OF miles away from it. They
have been taken far out OF sight OF
the land, upon the ocean, and yet.
have found their way back to their
own eotes again. II you have ever
been TO sea, with no land within
sight, you must have noticed that the
water all arounl you seemed TO be
enclosed by a circle OF horiz IN, and
that your ship was always precisely
In the center OF this eircle. One d.
rection looked just tbs same as an
other to y,u. and yet these birds.
when let loose. will Fly up into the air
from the deck to a great height. sail
ing round and round as they Co. anl
will Their. without hesitation-if the
day be a clear one-set OF On their
journey home. 1t IL sail that these
birds select the direction by some in
stinct 50 wonderful that the people
cannot find out what the theory ID
The pigeons are taken when quite
young and trained to fly short dis
tances at first. These Lengths OF
flight are gradually increased, and
the birds have beea koowa to fy
over a thousand miles at a time.
The letters or messengers sent by
the birds are often enclosed In a q1.il
and fastened to their legs, neck or
wings Before the inventicn Of tele-
graphy, pigeons we're often used By
capitalists to carry the changes do the
prices Of stock and bonds.
During the winter OF 1901. when
the city Of Paris was besieged, the
balloons which we're sent up always
carried . number OF birds. The
Prussians could follow the balloons
and often capture them; but when
the navigators escaped the birds
could be carried almost any distance
and be sent back to Paris with val
liable dispatches. flying far over the
heads OF the enemy lying at the
gates. and out OF reach OF the most
skilfully sent bullet. Daring the war
very long dispatches were micro pho
tosrsphed and forwarded safely fas-
tened beneath the pigeons wing Ia
foggy weather or when snow IL on
the ground. they have considerable
difficulty In finding their way.
There used to be a regular line Of
these birds nown from Halifax. n. g.,
to Boston. Mass. and from Sandy
Hook to New York with the news
brought from Europe to vessels.
But fast as these little creaturs fly,
the tiny spark OF the electric rele-
graph dies faster get. and as a post
man and news agent the birds are
nearly useless in our civilized eoun-
tries, get there will always be a ten.
der spot In every heart warm with
love Cor the gentle eyed. soft breast.
Cd msssengers-the carrier pigeons
LII Iy..l-