Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1885-05-08
Tak csxses.
New York Tfnsal

sho arrived here from S01Eh Americz
recentlF, 'szz 4 that i 4 war Of exser
nt1sziea against the gigantic valsure
Of the Andes, the condor. Ihs Gov
srnmenx isszsd 4 proclamation tasf
rear deeiagfu0 the bird 30 be sn enemy
Of the RspUhlss. Gondors have IN
creased 90 rapiaIy within the EIsss few
Years all slong the whole western ssope
Of The great rnoEntsin chain which b
their habitat, teat they have bstsoEDe By
their fOai kabsts q se9urEe that las IN
sreased the already Sufficiently IN
xhoie&Sne character Of she eoGnsrF.
Win tbs hope OF ExtirninA:iEg then,
or st iessst greatly decreasing tbesF num-
bsKz, the Government IN ia prGelzEns.-
ton offered bounty Df - for every
condor killed. A friend Of mine who
lives IN Chill wrote 10 me that be be-
iieved there vas chance to make q
great deal of money BY engaging IN
condor bunting, aad - / has several
years experisuce 10 mountain eiim5lnR
and haunting all sorts Of Wild beasts sbd
birds, both in tkis and other oouDiries,
/ went down there last fall to seq what
there might be Ia this condor hunting.
Well, was there five months, and after
a persistent campai0n against the coT1-
dor With guns and traps. made UP my
mind that q man has 90. 20 be . han
dred per cent. smarter than | sm If he
ever gets rich on condor bORnties, and
that il the Cnilian Government expects
70 nd itself of its winged outlsw il
will hsys 20 detail every man, woman
and child in the country to take mp arms
against it.
''fhe hunting of aond0Fs has keen a
regular business IN the Andes lHsan-
tAins for many years, and the natives
have made some money ct il, but. ike
all the vultare family, the condor grows
Suspicious and wary frem contact With
mankind. and IL has grown to
KNOW AND KEAR GUN.
50 that IL IL next 10 impossible 10 get
within g1ushot Of one. Shares 8Ee
may be taken with any certainty, and
they have learned to be on the lookout
for thena. These birds have the most
wonderful powers of vision and flight
of any living creatures of the air.
Percaed on mountain peaks above the
clouds, they watch the trails which
mules and llaInas follow with their bur
dens Thousand of feet below thenL and
II an animal dies and is left on the
plain these monster v1ltures see il, and
although no huIHan sight san diiicoyer
the presence of a single bird, 10 few
seconds time they will be ssen drop
ping down from the clouds like thun-
derboita. Formerly the hunter took ad
vantage Of this swooping down upon
the oarcases of dead animals by hiding
within gunshot and picking of one or
two condors before they could rise out
of range. Traps were also set be
side dead bodies Of mnles and
other animals But this can
rarely be done successfully nov,
SO wary has the eOnder be-
come. The same wonderful eyes tn 4
keep the trailing caravan in view or dis
cover the CARCASS left lying for its use,
notes also the hunter hiding with bis
gun, or the trapper arranging his snare
by the carcass. aud the bird remains in
safety on its perch. 10 shoot it on the
wing, unless you are fortunate enough
TO lie secretsd near some ioftg peak
When the bird comes sailing tlarongh
the clouds to seek it for perch, is en-
tirely out of the question, for II flies at al
titudes such as no other bird attaiRs.
This lying in wait, however, far above
the Snow line for a chance to put bali
throagh q condor is something that re
quires more grit and nerve than the
average huuter can boast, and eonse-
Quently there are not many Ooniors
killed on the wing. These birds hatch
their Young among the snow capped
erags of the Andes, sometimes 12.000
feet above the sea, and the bird has
been seen at attitudes of 20,0D fest.
Once in q great while yo1 may hear of
some hunter bold ensugh to clam ser to
the nesting places among these crags
in search of condor nests, as the capture
Of the young or the eggs is as profitable
as killing grown bird, but such ex-
PLOTS are few aud far between. There
are always two eggs 10 nest and as
there Is nothing thai ventures TO make
the condor lis prey except the hunter,
wHEE CONDOR MAKES Irs NEST
1t docs 50 with more certainty that there
viii be mora OF its kind added 10 the
family in the course of time than does
any other bird or beast. Traps are set
as high among these nesting places a.
the hunter can dare to venture, and
many Of the birds are captured in that
way.
IS There is no more startling sight
than from some snowy rock BID high in
the mountains that the clouds hide the
world from your view 10 see one of
these immense birds break Suddenly
the dense vapOr below you and
sail upward with the broad sweep Of lie
ponderoas wings into the haarlts where
i dvslls alone IN the solitude. II seems
like iiome winged demoa daring to seek
he realms of the aky. The bird can |
stand range Of temperature beyond |
which human existence IL impossible, |
and is at homo among the saowy peaks /
u Chill and Peru IS well as upon the |
burning sands OF Patagonia. With |
sweep of wing twelve feet in extent the /
witness of a oond0f's flight Is snah l
hat Il will sail out OF sight, notvith- |
standing ita great size, within the space |
u very few minutes. u may with /
sase eat lis breakfast IN tho Northern /
Andes and twelve hours later so T. roost
Among the peaks Of the southern sea-
10asf.
ssif Il were possible 10 get AZ the nests
u she condor 50 that is eggs might be
destroyed, there might be sepse chance 1
hat the outlawed bird would Ia time be /
sxtsfminAted, but the systenaatics scaling /
"a Ivy ENA&N ~ tHE AtkAt % nay W4SAG
from I3,Cc1 20 i6,000 feet above the
sce,an fur tue purpose'of bird nesting,
svcla Al Is a nest, is not likely 10 ever
nome 10 pass. Poisoning of the birds
might be made Hffactusl. bat unless
souIs poison can b. made 30 deadly that 4
il will kill this bird ~ Is stands over the
sareass il is devcIuring. that means Of l
eaEinot be made practi-
al. fhe hunter must prodaue the evil
ieI,ce thai be has killed condor before
10 ear secure tho bounty. has evi /
lence IL the birds head. A. poisoned
bird would carry Off that evhieaee with
aipa. and die With il anlaag inaccessible /
pes.ks. The poisoning Of eslndors has
1esn tried. and WIS nos satisfactory 10
Ihs kunteFs. | am Of the opinion that
his bird has the quality Of ibelf-pressr-
ration developed hoo largely 10 make It's
eysn rvmnteiV probable.
When the lRst South Amsrican dies
here viii be plenty Of eondors ready 20
ieroar hts bsoy u they have the 0ppos-
Iuaity."
RarS. The Ione locked md needed
min came yesterday. The early morn