The Washington critic., 1889-05-03
WINGED soAvENeBRs.


force of thousands of scavengers who
draw no pay, report to no official, but
are protected by law from molestation.
They are the crows who flock in town
as regularly as cold weather comes, stay
during the winter and vanish In the
spring.
Each evening rs the shadows fall
legions of crows wing their way in a
seemingly endless flight to the willow
copses and clumps of small cottonwood
trees on the banks OF the Missouri, where
they roost for the night.
A favorite haunt is at the bend of the
river, between Cut-O1f and Florence
Lakes, where the banks shelter the
northwest wind, says the Omaha World.
The Dir Is thick with sable wings and
resonant with hoarse caws there after
sunset each night, as the scavengers
settle down among the branches to
dream of back-area lunches and car
rion spreads, 5,
With the break Of day the sable flock
bestirs itself. Each member hops about
to warm its chilled legs, stretches It's
shiny wings and heads back toward the
city.
The vast flock breaks into small
groups and they alight here and there
on the tree-tops and survey the back
yards and alleys until they can pick
out foraging places. Then they de-
scend and in short order the remains OF
the breakfasts, the scraps Of meat from
markets and the rats killed by the
household dogs and cats are gobbled up.
Some crows do scavcnger work about
the residences. Others alight eau.
tiously in the alleys and others are at
tracted to the stock.yards and packing
houses at South Omaha. They fight
shy of the business blocks.
The crow who inhabits the Missouri
is of the same breed with the crow who
pulls up the farmers corn in Vermont.
In the East he Is nuisance. The
granger shoots him on sight, tries to
frighten him with scarecrows and dips
the corn into coal tar before he plants
it, in the hope that it will spoil the
pretty ravens appetite
Two healthy New England crows can
devastate twenty-acrc corn field II
unmolested. But the crow who mi.
CRATES to the West becomes respected
resident, and nobody asks What was
your name back EastY' or asks how he
stood with the farmers. He mates with
n clipper Dinah crow in n clump of
willows on the bottoms, and in due
time they hatch out nest of hungry
crowlets.
The father rustles for grasshoppers,
bugs and toads, while the youngsters
are growing their pin-feathers. As
soon as they can fly their mother leads
them away from the communicating in.
fluences of the city, into the pure,
green country, and the whole family
| t,rrnes loose upon the vermin and in
| sccts,
None of them ever trouble the corn
| fields, and none of the farmers ever
trouble them. During the fall they
| pick up the loose grain, and now and
then play free lunch fiend on the corn
| fields.
| In the West much of the corn is left
standing in the fields during the winter,
while in the East it Is stored In the
barn before snow falls, Perhaps this
apparent generosity on the part of the
| farmer in Nebraska has something to
do with the improved conduct of the
| bird.
Missouri Valley does not rely upon the
co.n-heiu' summer VI win.cr' lor suo-
slstence. NeDraska, iowa ana MIS-
souIi iI,,e cr0ws S rendezvous largely a' feru'
IN this STATE.
IL Is FAMOUS roos. lor them anu mas
I,Iracteu Ile altention 9l haiurailsts;
rrqiessor iaylor Oh tne Normai ochooi
at Ieru nus mutt close study OF the
naolts oi .nese crows ana Is wliting a
series OF papers 10 be puolished IN an
E Easterh magazine on lhat subject.
aneali'ilnc . IN. .le sapie crow contlnues 70
spehu MS summers IN the country ana
ms winters IN the city, Following the
lasnloh wnich MS wealtniest pipeo
patrons SCI ior 'heihseiVes'-l Exchange
Rut He Knew u,s Gait
IN, -,
J., ine ;,i, hau - c9nic mere y s,rlhger anu go,
~ anS Mn ILL .no poys, e ,pohed ilihooeu'
an S .n"ro mas Du.o,,h i,;i. IN u LIS ulea.i,
a. any I punpn,pio na =. n,s sa'h, iic secn,cu
] w n"s' p,en.y W niYney, anu eoli
Pouho % Nus prepareu lor nun 70 swal,
,u ,oM, ihe o'nei uaY ne was lnVl.su s "
M.a Mhc uiIVc. ~ was 50 arranged alteI
certain things and he had to feel Obliged
to ask: