The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1889-02-25
If birds in the autumn grow tame,
The winter will be too cold for game


Bats flying late ia the evening indicate
fair weather, but if they speak flying it
will rain on the following day. A solitary
buZZard at great altitude indicates rain,
but if buzzards fly high together it will be
fair weather If chickens crow before sun
down it will rain next day. If they go out
in the rain it will rain all day. If they run
to shelter it will not rain long. If they
come off the roost at night rain will soon
follow. The Zuni Indian hunters say when
chimney swallows circle and call they
speak OF rain, and Indians predict a deep
fall Of snow when grouse drum at night.
Hunters and fishermen have saying that
there will be no rain the day the crane flies
down the creek" One crow flying alone is
a sign Of foul weather, but if crows fly in
pairs the weather will be fine. If crows
make much noise and fly in circle rain is
expected. If the cuckoo hallooes in low
will be fair. Domestic fowls look
toward the sky before rain and
go to roost in day time. If
they stand on one leg the weather will be-
cold. If birds are fat and sleek in Febru-
airy it is a sign of more cold weather If
geese walk east and fly west it will be cold
An old proverb says: ''When tine hen
crows, expect storm within and without"
and hunters say that the direction the loon
AIAOo - OtAC VIII 10 III oCOlO11 VI
the wind the next day. Owls moot
ing in day time indicate rain, but
If at night the weather will be fair.
When the peacock loudly bawls
Soon Wen have both rain and squalls
Pigeons return to their dovecotes unu-
sually early before a rain. The habits of
wild geese are watched, and furnish many
prognostics. The following is a popular
verse:
Wild geese, wild geese going to the sea,
Good weather it will be-;
Wild geese, wild geese going to the hill
The weather it will spill.
In Kansas, when the wild geese fly to the
southeast in the fall the people expect a
blizzard.
There are many prognostics of the sea-
sons which have their origin III the migra-
tions Of birds, and in the peculiar forma-
ton and a pearance of the goose bone,
which is to-day looked upon by thousands
OF people as sure prognostic of what the
coming winter will be, aud in Kentucky if
he issue should be raised whether
the signal service bureau or the goose bone
should go, the kentuckian would cling to
The goose bone: in fact, Henri Watterson
if he had to choose between the star-eyed
goddess of reform and the goose bone,
would not dare to offend Kentuckians by
discarding the prophetic bone. The people
goose is red, or has many red spots, expect
cold and stormy winter; but if only lew
spots are visible, the winter will be mild
and they furnish the following recipe so
that it may be read intelligently, which in
structions are as follows:
ITO read the winter of any year take the
breastbone of goose patched during the
preceding spring. The bone is translucent
and it will be found to be colored and
spotted. Tne dark color and heavy spots
indicate cold. II the spots are of light
shade and transparent, wet weather. rain
or snow may be looked for"
When wild geese and wild ducks move
south the weather will be cold, if north the
weather viii be warm, and birds migrate
south much earlier if the winter will be
early. A severe winter follows if crows fiy
south, but if they fly north it will be an open
winter. No killing frost comes when the
martins return to their old haunts, and the
first song of the robin is the voice of spring
The swan is said to build its nest
high during seasons when freshets visit
the localities where the swan broods. and
those who cultivate low lands note how the
swans nest is built. If it is built low there
will be no unusual rains. There are many
other prognostlcs derived from Observing
the habits of birds, of interest to the seaman
and the andlubber, and in concluding the
popular prognostic Of the farmer, drawn
from watching the nest Of the swallow, is
given:
- When the swallows nest is high
The summer is very dry:
When the swallow buideth low
Nan oaf all hull o.,A