The Dickinson press., 1889-03-30

their attention was attracted by White
objects apparently dropping from the
sky over Lake Alice. The sun was shining
brightly and its rays partially reflected by
tho moving objects in mid air, and they
snow dropping carthward Young Wagner
understood the situation at glance, know
ins that the objects were animate Ones and
that the crclms. settling tlight downward.
unlike the sweeping flight of geese or swan,
showed them to I've pclicans, and the season
for the Southern flight of geese and swan was
little early Pelicans breed somewhere up
in Manitoba, and their fall flight to the south
occasionally takes in eastern Dakota, where
they generally drop of for n day or SO on the
lakes in the territory.
1t appeared to Eshehnan and his companion
as though the blue Sky over the lake was
alive with the white objects. and from rise
Of ground they watched the down pour OF
pclicans, and gradually saw Il long line of
white stretching across the surface of the
lake While feeding pelieans swim single file,
tho rear ones continually flying over the ones
ahead, leap frog fashion, as the head ones
sobble up nearly all the food ohtainable so
that the rear ones Yould find poor picking
w
with pelicans on Lake Alice, and knew that
when through feeding they would congre-
gate On Il sand bar known as The Point" on
The south side of the lake Such was the
case, and an hour or SO later tho bar, from
shore to terminus, about 100 feet out of the
water, was covered with the bi, birds.
Then the two hunters, having reached homo
and having anxiously waited for the pelicans
II Il o.,
The bar was difficult of access, the country
yards Eshelmun and Wagner cruwlcd snake
fashion through the grass. Wagner had an
old double harrclcd muzzle loader, and Esllel-
man had Il twelve gauge brcecl loader lluv-
ing discarded their hunting coats and vests to
make crawling easier. Wagner had only two
loads in his gun and Eshelnan had two shots
flannel shirt all loads being BIB shot. When
rosc up. The pclicans wcro sitting motion
less and in mopish attitudes. Fully 300 were
together on the bar, and four loads of BB's
fifth shot ns tho pclicans attempted To raise
and turned over five, having lost one of tho
shells from his shirt pucket while "worming"
4
gcthcr that it is with difficulty that they can
raise when suddenly surprised, and they were
Slow i'll getting away, their long wings, with
spread of eight feet or more, striking each
other.
Just twcnty-onc of the flock stayed in the
bar, two cripplcs attempting to swim OF,
ono succeeding The other was caught by
tho wing and pulled back by young Wagner,
who rushed into the water waist deep to haul
him back, making twenty-five pelicnns
brought to bag by livo shots. The birds
weighed from fifteen to thirty pounds, their
combined weight being about IL quarter OF Il
ton. 1t required II wagon to haul them TO
tho house Among the lot were several old
males, with 'horns' On their bills. Tho old
ones are easily distinguished from young
Ones The latter have palo grccl,ish feet, and
tho skin around the eyes bears Il similar color
Legs of old ones arc moro OF an orange or
pin!;isil hue, also tho skin about the eyes
Tho largo skin sacks on tho lower mandible
wcro empty, except marked here and there
with live lccchcs.
AS pelican meat is not considered lalatablc,
tho feathers were taken for bedding, and
several of tho finest birds wcro preserved for
mounting Cincinnati Enquirer