The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1879-05-09
An OWLS REVENGE.

In a village In the canton of Fsud,
the inhabitants of q comfortable dwell
inQ-house discovered that a family Of
owls had taken up their abode under the
same roof with them. There was a
hole in the gable end, about twenty feet
from the ground, and in il these birds
had made their nest. 1t was the first
year that they had built in that place. -
a young farmer and three or four of his
friends, who had frequently observed the
owls entering and flying out of the cav
ity. resolved to examine the nest. On
Sunday they placed a ladder against the
wall and inspected the family Of owls
They found several young ones Of extra
ordinary ugliness, and, according to their
own account, after examining them they
carefully replaced them III the nest
The parent birds did not that evening
appear to be angered at the proceeding.
The next night, however, between
nine and ten O'Clock, as the young far
mer was returning home, followed by
his servant man some six or seven PAGES
in the rear, on passing by the wall IN
question he heard a sound of wings ana
a violent exclamation at the same time
from the servant The latter, in evident
pain and alarm, held his hands clasped
over his right eye He stated that the
owl had flown suddenly down upon him,
had driven her talons into his chin. and
then struck him in the eye with her
beak. The blow, fortunately, did not
fall on the eyeball, and was not followed
bv any mutilatiOn. Upon examination
there were to be seen, besides n violent
bruise below the eve and two bleeding
wounds on the chin, the unmistakable
imprint of the talons Of the bird Of night.
/ -,
the little drama. The owl was speedily
tried, condemned, and the suppression
of the entire brood included in the sen
tence. Execution followed in the after
noon. The owls were absent or had fled
At the raising of the ladder but the
nest was destroyed and the young ones
killed. The death of the old birds was
also decreed. and for an hour or more
the Young man and his friends made
vain attempts to shoot them. They
were provided with an excellent gun.
but the movement of the birds was 80
rapid that all their efforts were unayail-
ing. Twilinght came on, and still the
owls peTtinaCiouSly hOvtred in the neigh
bOrhOOd Of their ruined home. The
friends, becoming impatient, went away,
and the increased darkness at length
compelled the young man to give up his
pun ppSt- - uol lDtil lut ltllldlt- ON titN
into the dense foliage OF a tree Into
this the sportsman was about to fire at
hazard, when he suddenly heard viO-
lent rustling Of wings and leaves the
bird shot like an arrow across the thirty
or forty feet Of interval. NJ. +. receiv-
ed a fierce blow full on the left eye, and
at the same time was conscious Of the
rapid appaTitiOn of two round. flaming
eyes close to his face. The shock and
the pain were so violent that NJ. f. fell
backward on the ground. The owls
flew away, and only reappeared at long
intervals during the ensuing days. The
next morning, after night Of suffering
the two wounded men arrived at Lau
same, the master in i car. with a band
age over his left eye, and the servant
driving. with a bandage over his right
NJ. F, ON the other hand, was seriously
injured.