The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-04-11

There is a mounted skin of the aux in the
American Museum of Natural History in
this city that was purchased in London in
1869 for S625, 1t is one of the eighty skins
known to be in existence in the world.
There are also ten complete skeletons, be-
sides numerous parts of skeletons and sew
eral mummies
The form of the aux is familiar to all who
have read illustrated accounts of early voy-
ages to Greenland. 1t was the penguin of
the North Atlantic 1t had a squatty,
goose-shaped body, and was from IS to 80
inches long on the average 1t had wings
however, that were only between and Is
inches long, and it was therefore incapable
of flight. 1t is pictured in the old sea sto-
ries as sitting up solemn and dignified in
ranks along the sand and on the bleakest
and most barren coasts as the sailors APP
preached the land in boats. 1t was not
easily frightened by the approach of man,
who was apparently its sole enemy. When
disturbed it waddled away about as fast as
man could walk, taking very short steps
but taking them rapidly. On account of
its gait it was called the wobble in some of
the early books, such as the work of John
Josselyn. Gent, on New England Bari
ties" printad in 1872 Not that the bird
was rarity then; on the contrary, it was
seen in great numbers as far south on the
New England coast as the yachting center
of the United States-Boston
AT that time and for a hundred years
later it was the custom of many Of the
fishermen frequsnting the Banks of New
foundland, particularly the French, to vic
tual their~essels with the flesh of the aux,
killing and sailing down as many as would
last for the entire cruise. Their method OF
taking the birds was the simplest possible.
The ships boats were rowed into some quiet
fro, tod hut he n
few feet from the land Then planks were
laid from the beach or the rocks to the gun
wales of the boats, and the auks were
driven on board in single file until the
boats were loaded. A man with a club
knocked them on the head as they reached
the boat, and dumped them under the
thwarts. The aux Sc dom offered any re-
sstance, but occasionally it would snap at
a man with its stout bill, and would infiict
very painful wounds. In such cases, the
old accounts say, the sailors skinned the
bird alive out of revenge.
When driving the birds on the boats it
was necessary to station man with a club
Oh each side of the gangplank to keep them
from dropping off into the water. Once
ahoat the awkward waddle became the
swiftest and most graceful of motions No
other water fowl could approach the won
derful speed of the aux on the water; in
deed, it could swim as rapidly as some of
the more numbering birds can fly.
Although on account of its fishy food it
was SOMEWHAT oily when in good condition,
il was nevertheless so much esteemed by the
sailors that its numbers diminished contin-
uously from the time the Banks of New
foundland began to be much frequented, so
that by the beginning of the nineteenth
century it was no longer hunted for food.
So few were to be had that they were not
worth the time required to take them.
However, in the year 1907 British priva-
teer varied its occupations of pursuing
French merchant vessels and impressing
Yankee sailors by going to the islands off
Iceland for supply of fresh aux meat.
Great numbers of the birds were killed,
many being left dead that could not be re-
moved because the ship had all she could
use. Three years later the people of the
Farce Islands, being threatened by starva-
ton on account of failure in the fisheries,
visited Iceland and about completed the de-
Struction begun by the privateer.
That the aux never recovered from these
blows even on the coasts best fitted for its
maintenance was due to the fact that the
aux laid but one egg year. 1t made no
nest but deposited the egg on the bare rock.
1t was an astonishingly large egg, aver
aging nearly five by three inches in length
and diameter. 1t was shaped much like
big California pear, being very small at one
end, popularity of all birds eggs that are
laid in exposed places as this was. Being
small at one end it would, when the wind
moved it, simply roll around in the arc of
very small circle 1t was of a creamy white
color, irregularly marked with brown and
black patches. The egg that brought such
a fabulous price at the recent sale in London
was transferred by dealer in such things
in, FOR 600 IN tho fathar. of tho ladNy no
has just sold it.
Although the aux is supposed to be ex-
tinct, there is possibility that another,
perhaps several, may yet be discovered.
Fishermen visit every year about every foot
of the territory it once inhabited, and yet
those coasts are so bleak and inhospitable
that one can easily suppose that the fisher
men might overlook bird for which they
were not searching. When the fishermen
ceased to prosecute the auk-that is, when
it became rare-the naturalists stepped in
to completely exterminate it, The last auks
seen about which there is no dispute were
two killed on the coast of Iceland in 1874,
but a young one is reported to have been
picked up dead on the coast of Labrador in
1870. The body of anjauk in good condition
would make very handsome addition to
the fare of any fisherman, particularly if
accompanied by an egg.
There IS one other sea bird supposed to be
extinct that may possibly be found along
the northern coast of America by some
lucky fisherman almost any day in cold
weather. 1t is the pied or Labrador duck,
a description of which was published by r.
w. Shufeldt last August. A pair of skins
of these ducks brought 5000 at the last trans
fer made in London, and it is altogether
likely that single, well-preserved speci-
men would bring as much as that now at
auction. 1t is reasonably certain that spe-
cimens of this duck have been killed within
ten years, but the last recorded specimen
was shot in Halifax harbor in 1852 The
specimens from which Audubon made his
paintings were given to him by Daniel
Webster who, as Audubon says, "killed
them himself on the Vineyard Islands, ON
the coast of Massachusetts"
The duck was an unusually large one. 1t
was 20 inches long to the end of its tail and
weighed nearly two pounds. The duck
could be easily recognized by its head which,
with the upper half Of the neck was white,
except long dasn of black directly on top
of the head. Below the white part of the
neck was black collar running clear around
the neck, and below that a broad white ring
again which reached almost around the neck,
but not quite, the black feathers extending
down the ducks back from the black ring
around the neck. The primaries were black
but the upper wing coverts were white.
BARRELS.