Mountain Home bulletin. (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1888-1889, 1888-06-09
GEESE As PROPHETS,



signal Service Department
MAY be you have often noticed"
said dealer in feathers, ''that some
farmers keep geese year in and year
out. let them have the run of the farm.
and seem to show them all kinds Of
consideration, yet are always swearing
that they are the biggest nuisance that
it could be possible to have around. II
you have noticed that peculiarly in
the daily rounds of the husbandman,
you have doubtless also wondered why
in blazes the farmer kept such nuis-
ances around his premises. used to
wonder why it was myself, but ! never
found out the reason until one day last
summer. Twas out on Jersey farm
spending my vacation. The farmer had
big flock Of geese, and he was eter-
nally throwing the most hefty kind Of
Jersey cuss words at them. One day I
sat on the farmers piazza talking with
him. The geese were placidly crop
ping grass down along the road,
great big gander leading them on.
Peace. tranquility and contentment
spoke in every movement the lawn-de-
stroying bipeds made.
There wasn't cloud in the sky.
The farmers men were working With
out much apparent vim at raking and
loading hay down in meadow not far
away. Suddenly the old gander poked
up his head. gave voice to a peculiar
squawk. lifted his wings and started of
on run as fast as his big web feet
would let him 60. All the geese poked
up their necks at the sound of the
gander's voice. lifted their wings and
with chorus of noises that only q
flock Of geese can produce, started
after the gander as tight as they could
waddle. The gander ran twenty yards.
perhaps and then, with wild shrek,
he took wing and hew in the direction
Of pond a short distance from the
road. The geese raised and few after
him, filing the air with their discordant
cries. Gander and geese alighted in
the pond, where they all gathered in a
bunch, held consultation or congratu-
latory confab in q subdued chorus oil
cackles and went through all sorts Of
maneuvers on the pond for time,
when they separated and swan about
as placidly as they had been feeding q
few minutes before.
Eat the first movement Of the gander
when he broke the tranquility Of the
feeding flock, my friend, the farmer
arose quickly to his feet, and as h.
| %,,ro al <<,,y,,, III The ,,,oaIc.r s.,:J.
"'There's them dinged hayin' hands
workin' as if they had all the rest o
the year to get that hay in, an her,
we're goin' to be ketched in a tearin
old shower in less'n an hour, or els,
their hain't no use in keepin' geese
1.-The farmer hurried down to thu
meadow, spurred up the men, and len
hearty hand himself at the hay. Be
fore many minutes had passed I saw
clouds banking themselves in the hor
lion. and presently the mutter Of dis
tant thunder was heard among them
The farmer was right In an hour
time one of the hardest thunderstorm
ever saw was raging over that part O
New Jersey, and it caught the last loa'
of the old mans hay in transit. Ate
,, supper that night questioned my hos
on the geese. and found that the reaso
! he kept them was to keep him poste
on the weather.
".They hain't never failed me yet
: he said. When git up in the mornir
an see them geese out on the pom
! a-diyin' an a-dressin' down their featl
!" ers as if they was gettin' ready to 60
some party or other. know that wei
!, !, sure of clear. warm. dry weather, an
! make my calculations 'cordin'ly. 1.-THE
7, hain't a-dressin' of themselves mucl
: but act kinder as If it wasn't to- niue
account a-sprucing up, then keep NJ
:. eye on 'em. That's a warnin' that wei
= in danger Of spell O weather. II tt
:, geese quits the pond an don't go bao
:, much through the day. I know that tt
= danger holds. an git ready for s
: rain Of day or so. If they feed alon
!. awhile and waddle back to the pon
=. kinder clipper like, and go to dressi
:. themselves and divin' then I'm poo1
!. :. sartin' that they won't be no set raj
y commencin' that day. II the geese 81
: up all of student an tears aroun
= like you see 'em this afternoon, the
there's shower comm. an it
a-comin' fast, yekin bet. IN T. Su,