The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1885-10-02
Guinea Hens as Sonpsters.

" nH"A AiSne aionS regularly, SAID
a resident of the First Ward to a visit
or whose sleep had been disturbed by
the footing of the fog-horn during the
thaw in December, did you ever hear
guinea towels tune up for any consid-
cradle length of timep"
The visitor confessed he had not,
and the resident continues: "Well
you wouldn't think, to hear them at
hrst, thai a constant repetition of the
noise would become positively UNI
bearable and hideous. but it is. |
lived in Rogers Park, near Chicago, a
lew years ago, and n spring a family
moved into a house back of mine, an
alley separating the lots. l kept hens
and had a small yard in the e a Of
my lot to keep them confined during
the summer.
"Ihis new conner brought along a
few towels, and among them a trio of
'guineas.' There was no hen-yard on
his lot. and the very day he unloaded
his goods and chattels his towels made
themselves at home in my garden,
which was coming on finely. We
'shooed' them away repeatedly. until
after a few days the common hens and
ROSTERS failed to visit us; but the
guinea towels wouldn't stay .shooed'
and within five or ten minutes after
being driven away would return and
race around my hen-yard, trying to
lind an entrance. They wore a path
around it as smooth as the top of u
deacon's head, and every few minutes
lifted up their voices in songs of plaise
and thanksgiving.
I-,StAt fpQt n uav a pruo1t, Il ,..l
to make us all laugh, ana the children
spent hours watching the restless
birds; out in a few days the constant
cackling, or whatever you may call it
-'bukwit,' 'bokweet, ''buckwheat,'-
began to grow tiresome, and finally
became intolerable. l didn't like to
complain to the new neighbor so soon,
but didn't hesitate to pelt the birds
Cor try to pelt them) with chunks of
dirt and small pebbles. My wife also
threw at them several times. ana came
near breaking a window in the church,
and dislocating hor shoulder, when
she quit. ! should have said that my
house was only about twenty feet from
the village church, and in warm
weather, when win 'ows were opened,
we could sit in our bedroom and hear
h services very well.
Right under the droppings of the
sanctuary, so to speak," said the Wis
itor, II should think that it would
have been unpleasant"
1t was a sultry morning, and the
guinea towels were more than usually
vociferous. Foreseeing that they would
disturb the minister and congregation,
l considered it my duty to drive them
away, and did so several times before
church time, getting SO warm and
mad that | concluded l wouldn't 60
to chnrch. About a quarter past ten
the torments appeared again, and an
inspiration seized me l had been
practicing archery considerably--this
was during the popular craze over
that splendid pastime-and had a good
bow and about a dozen arrows, and
could shoot quite well. l got some
empty rihe-cartridge shells Which fit
ted tightly over the steel points of the
arrows, and put them on, as l did not
wish to kill the fowls or have any of
my seventy-five-cents-apiece arrows
stick in them and be carried off to nv
neighbours and then have to go and
explain matters
"Just before services commenced,
the guinea towels appeared and open
ed up in good voice, running around
the garden and even up near the
church. My wife and children had
already gone, and l slipped out of the
back basement door just out of sight
from the rear window of the church,
and prepared to do the William Tell
act. l waved my hat and started the
nuisances, toward the hen ward, and
when they were about three rods away
opened fire.
''The first shot struck short, plow-
ing up the dirt in front of one of them,
causing her to jump about three feet
IN h air and scream louder than
Two other efforts were unsuc-
cessful, but the fourth struck the male
bird amidships, and he sailed right up
in the air like q prairie chicken, ex-
pressing in loud tones his indignation
and alarm. The two other ones fol-
lowed suit. You know the old couplet,
One flew East, and one flew West,
And one flew over the cuckoo's nest
Well, that was the way they went,
only there was no cuckco's nest be-
tween the church and my house, and
all three kept up their peculiar calls.
Just as the pastor said, Let us pray
Presently Bro. Kean came out of
church to see what the matter was,
but l had put the bow and remaining
arrows back in the kitchen, and was
busy at the pump.
"'What's the row out herep' said
he.
"'Something scared Mr.. -'s
guinea hens replied l; don't believe
they will come around again. and he
went back to take his regular snooze.
81 felt sure they would, however.
and afterhunting up my arrows, laid
for, them again. In about twenty
minutes, sure enough, they came run
ming around the orne of my hen
house, and just as the pastor had got
to that part of the parable of the three
grangers who sowed seed on different
kinds of soil, and was saying--.brought
forth an hundred fold one Of the
guinea hens Clipped in the remark:
'6uckOheat, buckmheat, 6~uckacheat!!n
| was told afterwards that everybody
laughed. including the minister. and
the small boys and girls had a regular
presently the BIRDS quoted down /
and commenced walking around
the young potato vines. [
brought out my artillery, and it was
not long before had a splendid shot
at the cock standing still. The arrow
went a little high, and instead of
him in the body. as / intended,
struck square on the neck close to his
head. The '!dull thud' brought the
bird to the ground, and a few convul-
sive kicks showed apparently that he
never chase the festive potato
bug again. The others seeing that
something was wrong with their