The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1886-07-17
MIGHT HAWKS IN THE CITY.

It is surprising how many things pass
before our eyes every day which we
never see, how many sounds fall on our
ears almost constantly which we never
hear. 1 thought of this the other even
ing when I was watching couple of
night hawks in the heart of the city. On
many days, and during almost every hour
of the night, from May to the latter part
of August, they may be seen and heard.
They scarcely ever alight. They resemble
the whip-poor will SO much that the two
birds are often COMPOUNDED by careless
observers.
The night hawk spends most of his
time in the air describing all sorts of cir
cles and gyrations, accompanied by
wild, shrill screech. 1t is almost the
only wild bird that remains in our cities
now that the English sparrow has taken
full possession. The female lays her
eggs on the top of hat-roofed buildings,
leaving them to be Matched by the sum-
mer heat, supplemented by the occasion
al application of her own body. During
this time her mate is never far away, and
he flies about as much at night as in the
day time. This fight is peculiar. After
O few turns and darts, in which he at
tains height, he drops, head downward,
about 200 feet, with mouth wide open,
and as he makes a turn to sweep mp
again, emits booming sound somewhat
such as one would make blowing into the
mouth of shot gun. 1t is still mys-
terry how this sound is produced. When
boy, used to watch him for hours try
ing to find out whether it was made with
his mouth or his wings. / think that
to this day naturalists are undecided.
Like the whip poor-will, whenever he
does alight on a limb he lies down length
wise, not able to sit across and hold on as
any other bird would. If you find the
nest of the young the mother will pre-
tend to be wounded, to be almost dying,
now dropping one leg. now holding out
wing as if it we're broken. All this to get
you to follow her to a safe distance from
her nest, and many poor dog has been
fooled in that way. Some one calls it
"pious fraud"
Sitting in Jefferson Park the other
day, was admiring the beauty of the
season which is now so full. Nature is
the same everywhere. The trees we're
talking overhead, and even the pugna-
cious, noisy English sparrows we're
amusing in the antics they cut. All at
once large, fine purple marten came
sweeping by. 1t is surprise to me that
bird so strong of wing and SO swift of
motion should be SO easily conquered by
the blue bird, or the ugly little English
sparrow. The marten is not afraid OF
the hawk, the eagle, or even of the king
bird, but he flies from the blue bird and
sparrow as from pestilence. The one
which 1 noticed the other day came
swinging along, and then plunged down
into the surface of the lake in the park.
He kept up his speed of about thirty
miles an hour, and opening his bill, took
in full drink of water without stopping.
When some railroad men in the East in
vented a scoop, by which flying express
train could take up water without paus-
ing, they thought they had made great
discovery. They had, for men, but the
marten had been praeticing it for cent
uries.
Whenever you can get boy or girl to |
watch nature closely, to study the habits
and movements of the animals about
them, they will never be lonesome. The
whole world is poem. Carlyle said
rightly, " See deep enough, and you see