The Red Cloud chief., 1885-06-12
Ine CUCKOO.


The swallow and the nighsinS gale have
been the themes for . proiigious
smoun; Of indifferent; verse. Bu, 1; mas
be doabscd whether either OF these birds
has been the moving cause for as much
poetry as the cuckoo has prose- Vol
umcs have been written on ito hahS,s
| aud as distribution Discussions. which
come and 20 with less regularity than
the biri owe which they are expended.
are again and again raised regarding
it, habit a: laying is riggs in the ncsi
II other birds Yet so comparatively
little = known for certain r~rgariing this
migrant tina, there IS. perhaps. no single
Tact IN IL history which - accepted
without cayii by the hundreds cf orni-
tnoiogisi, who busy themselves with its
private iifc. A. for the country folk,
they seem Interested N The SUPER
natural powers which the suy~rstinons
OF ages have woven around IL than in
solving the many moot problems in It's
career. In Switzerland. for instance. ,h.
cuckoo IL considered . he a trans
iormcsi bakers boy. and the Shepherd
cri. when sae hrs, hears the soles of
the bird. counts the number % tines IL
Is repeated. under the belief that an
equal number If years will elsps. D.
fore b i msrricu- In Germany q
similar augury ), drawn ~ tn the num-
her 1T wears h listener has To live: and
IN his country IL Is = current belief tia,
they who hear the first notes of III.
cuckoo with an empty pocket are dc.-
tined "a remain 6 Mess u.iil b. 4 sap
pears The Danes drcai To hear the
cuckoo on an empty stomach. for ia
such 'ase the hapless wight so plac,i l.
doomed some day - come to s.tnal
starvation. There il an old aday- in
Scrvia - the effect that when th. cucko,
sings in \ wood without, l-av-s 10 i the
harblngcr Of distress, whereas. il he
Wal, Till the period when the trees are
clothed. all will 20 well with. we pre-
sume. the person who has not been i.ep
premature in detecting the sons of H.
omen. III. French peasant ina. mes
that ia the autumn the cuckoo change.
Itself into = hawk. jus, a. the Vancouver
Island Indians believe that th. grou>,
BECOME gulls during the winter In
short. there - n mythology of ,hi. bird.
just as there y y zoology and even the
phi lobbyists nave contributed son. very
learned pages tn is ,oluminous history.
The nnmc which the bird hrars Is.
c%uriously enough. nearly the sam, IN all
countries. IL u. for example. tn.
kukuka Of the Sanscrt. the kucsuk Of
Germany. the cncco III l;aly. the kokkuk
Of Greece. the gok 4! sweden. the !
koekkock 81 Holland. and the coucou
o! France. whik the eldest English
spelling gives us cuccu fox a bird which /
evidently derives those names from it,
familiar noi.-this fact giving the stu
dents Il onomasoppia n weapon of
which they have no, failed a. avail
themselves.
However. interesting though the
cuckoo NAV hr from . linguistic. folk
JOre or geographical aspect. The one
point which gives !: so prominent a
place in archaeological literature is oss-
which rebounds least tn IL. credit II
during the new few DAYS IN. keen OBJ
server choose, 3" keep a watch N tho
hannts 81 the bird h. may see IL skim
ming along the hedgc-rows. oft,n pur-
sued IN i!ocks ii the smaller species.
who either mistake il for u hawk ar are
conscious hat its figh, betok.ns To
good Ia their still Unmatched offspring
The cuckoo IL on the outlook for .
nc,:- The chances are that II In. IL.
egg in its bin. ready to BE- deposited
in he kelic.t one; for II IL now very
generally accepted ~ m article of ,hc
creed that the BIRD iir.i LAYS
on the ground. and then carries the
egg 10 the place wher. il - Ia be- hatch
I'd by the foster parent II IL. indeed.
apart from the Tact that the process
has been observed more !
than once. all bu, impossible that IL
st on the nest In which IL egg j.
II 10 also u mistake tn suppos.
tn. sparrow II the species usually /,
for this imposition. The g.risn
warbltr. the b!ackcap. thu w~hitelhroats. +,
rcdsfart.. the robins. Warbler. 4
willow wr.n. wh nchat wag'ails. yspits.
.kylarAs. yellow hammer. red backed
nightingale. chif-chsf. buntings. +,
,reeniinch.s. lunes. ~wh.ai.ar. black
D.ni. bulIfinch. turtle dove. wori /,
jaw. spotted ~f'ycs,chcr. and /
other species arr each III them /,
VI times chosen la he the victim 80 /,
an orniibolog.si a. the late Mr. ,
;ould was nj one time Inclined tn dis f..
rust the old tale a! the Young cssekoss /,
nrning out at he nest the ngbifui ten 1,
'nts. apparently unconscious tina; one 4
II the earliest contribution. To- science Il
he famous J.nnsr vas an aecosln, Of :.
UGH n .crnr. Whether q st.p zion
yer crosse. the fos;er-par.nis' brain +,
there is something wrong. q - !.
ard Ia say. ~ all events. they ars .
4.sidnous IN feed ng their unyrs,e.si :
'aotiings. sometimes even sitting on !.
heir hseks in order to rrsch the months :,
4 the overxruwn aedg.l ngs Shakes !.
care viii have IL nss the youss !,
deyours no. only iss foster broth !.
~ and sisters. bat ultimately ro<s !.
!. discrepancies also. Happily tina. Az :.
al charge % Do< confirmed by morc 49, j..
observation Vet shs rrssfy 10 !.
nd enouysa. without the sdd:fion at :
calumay. OF late years cscuise
has bcen increased By spm.
1T debates over "a. sh~pry whieS
hes that the cuckoo seierts = nest :.
" The Opposition Of its eggs In spcosd- y
nee with th~ coIor u f5o-e lad by the
,s.er-parrpt Th1sse seems little
.ncsful II NAV be that now aud then /.
sr cuckoo ehoo>~sa n~ss ~hseh aircsfy
onfsi M eggs similar To hes ovn hat
se egg IN question h go ats~n fSsni
rnong others different totally fr,fn 10 !"
coloc that. apart from thu disseulfy :,
I surprising that the eHrkos frs i.
rouad. egx IN moufh. ~eking fur -
N e,sor. o. has ans poser os ia- :.
ss1eing the ksse 81 Is rgzs. Il 10 see -
maIn,ain . neutral p-sf>on s"ssrd .
ingansous ,nsory with whsrh sAr -
syp~ IL Herr Bsidsn0 c1anert<d =