Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1883-10-05
A Troy Parrot.

Four years ago a bird was brought
rom the coast of Africa by q sea Capt
ain. who gave him to his sister in this
.ity. He need not be definitely located,
but we can put our finger on him any
day, only it isn't safe thing to do, un-
less the careful approach of the finger
is accompanied by the warning: Don't
you bite" which the parrot will repeat
IS distinctly as you say it, and will re-
train from biting-if he knows you. 1t
is not known whether he is. five or fifty
years old. That is one of the very few
, things he keeps to himself. On all
other subjects he is wonderfully oSm-
municative, and his information, like his
vocabulary, is vast and various. He is
not green parrot-no, indeed, not
much-but a gray parrot. described in
the american Cyclopedia" as, of all
parrots, 1.-THE most remarkable for its
docility and power of articulation" If
the book means our bird, he is, indeed,
most remarkable for these very quail
tiles. Since his arrival in this city
Linn9us, by the by, classes the gray
parrot as PStttdcuS erythQcus, and how
ever il may be with our bird about the
eT-yttdcttS, there is no doubt whatever
that he has become quite a pSittdcuS-
he has depended for his education
almost wholly upon his own efforts.
Till quite lately he has lived almost
entirely in the kitchen of a restaurant,
where, with a colorcd cook who loves
him and colored walters who adore him,
he has picked up more food than ac-
complishments. But with good ear,
retentive memory, fairly good reason
ing power, and. certainly, the power of
an apt association of words with things.
| with Evolutionary gifts that are really
remarkable, he has acquired quite adj
vanced education, that makes his friends
wonder what year or two in the Hart
ford High School might not do for him.
With no teaching he can, and does, dis
tinctly repeat every one of the orders
called down to the kitchen-such as
"coffee breakfast for one" (or two,
three, or four, as the case and call may
De); beefsteak rare (or well done)
for one, and so on. through the entire
list of usual calls. 1t is fact, duly at
tested by credible witnesses, that, the
other evening, when the order was "tea
supper for one" the parrot instantly
said: "Make il ham aud eggs with q
cup of coffee!" We shall not soon for
get the larIe-eyed look of utter incre-
dullty with which young lady received
this story from the Times reporter
With heretofore implicit confidence in
everything he said, she never will be-
iieve word he says again. But the
story is true nevertheless
Within year past we have consid-.
erably changed our ideas about the
actual powers of parrots. What they re-
peat is not altogether mechanical and
merely by rote. 1t is not pretended
that they know the meaning of all the
words they say. But they associate GER
tain words with certain things. No one
disputes that they have memory. and if
they have that they think, and, to some
degree, they reason. Thus this bird, a
few days ago, as was duly chronicled in
the Times, flew away from home. An adj
vertisemcnt in the Times restored him
to his owner. The boy who brought
him back said: Your bird only knows
one word " lin point of fact he knows
nearly as many as the boy does), and
that is 'Kehoe.'' Now "Kehoe,"
which is almost bird note, and would
be easily uttered by a less accomplished
parrot, is the name of the cook who fed
the bird, and to whom the bird is much
attached. And during the three days
of his exile among the strangers who
caught him, he called constantly for
"Kehoe." He wanted his friend; he
wanted to 90 home he knew what he
was talking about.
Since his return he has been removed
to a higher sphere than the kitchen
from which he escaped, and he has a
larger field in which to display his ac-
complishments. And without special
instruction he daily adds to his vocabu-
larry. He says: Good morning." and
SAYS it in the morning, not afternoon;
"How do you do?'' "How's your
wife?" "How's your folks?' II see
you there" What are you doing
there" Peek-a-boo," in various tones
of voice; and he whistles and
laughs inimitably, after fashion of
his own. This very brief catalogue
covers but a few of his accomplish
mentS. And he has a quality rare with
good talkers-he is an equally good
listener, and a most attentive and ap-
preciative one. If you talk to him for
an hour at once. he will not open his
mouth, but will keep his eyes on you,
bend his head TO listen, apparently
anxious not to lose n word, and an hour
after, or the next day, he will have
something to say on the same subject.
He is remarkable among very remark
able birds.-Troy. IN " Times.