The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1889-07-26
TRICKS lfa HUNTING.
Curious Methods of Deceivine Game Used
i'm the Chase.

Curious Methods of Deceiving Game Used
in the Chase.
The hunter in every land has long
used deception and ruse to enable him
| to get within reasonable distance OF
his game. Hunting by initiating the
animal to be caught is very common
among the natives of many tribes. In
Africa we find the curious dwarfs,
the Akkas, discovered by DR.. Schwein-
furth, hunting ostriches in this man
ner. An ostrich skin is taken and
| drawn over one of the hunters, who
supports the neck either with stick
or one arm. bow and arrow being
held ready for use. Fitted in this way
| the human ostrich moves over the
| plain, pretending to feed, and imitat-
| ing the motions of the live birds SC
well that in many cases they approach
closely enough to bring them down
with well-aimed arrow.
A famil.y of these little people, who
are not over four or five feetin height,
was recently brought to Europe, and
in Be rlin gave representation before
some scientific men of their method o.
taking ostriches, which was considered
very ingenious.
The ostrich, though stupid. is not
! always deceived. and an instance is
related where one of the birds becOm-
ing enraged. either at the supposed
bird or the hunter, rushed at it and al
a single kick knocked over the un-
fortunate Aka and tore his ostrich
skin in shreds while trampling him
under foot, and it was with consider
able difficulty that the bird was driven
off and the bogus ostrich rescued.
Some curious tactics have to be
adopted in hunting the crocodile in
eastern countries One method among
the native tribes is to fasten native
baby-a fat, plump One--tO a stake
near the shore. and when the huge
reptiles. attracted by its screams, cone
other places the hunters attach
branches to their heads and crawl
along until they are within reaching
distance This is often attempted
with birds, and the so-called floating
binds are often merely boats covered
with branches; the wind taking the
latter carries it down among the un.
suspecting birds.
Very few animals are caught
mapping. unless the hunter displays re
markable talents in deception. When
a herd of elephants is feeding it invari
ably is protected by guard If watch.
full sentinels. So with Monkeys
When they are devastating a corn.
field the sentinels are stationed about
to give warning at the slightest noise.
when the whole band will 60 pell-mell
over the fields in the direction of the
forest.
| have often noticed this among
birds. especially the California quail;
the moment | approached the sentinel
bird would pipe up and tell all the
rest that danger was nigh. The most
striking example of this guardian
ship / observed on the Pacific coast,
about four mics south of the town of
Santa Monica. A mile away | saw a
flock of pure white cranes, and wish
ing to secure one | rode up the beach
upon theseeast, side. there left my
horse. and began Bywalk over the
sand dunes The uSjnrity of the flock
were in i secluded portion of little
bay, presenting the appearance from a
distance of white sheet upon the
dark shore
When within an eighth of mile of
them | found that there were half a
dozen sentinels posted at various
places. Every slight elevation near
the flock bore a very 'wide-awake
bird, and my only cl ance to ap,
proacb them was by hiding behind
the sand hills and crawling from one
to another. This / did for at least
half an hour, making perhaps two
hundred feet, and then / ventured to
look up. fairly held my breath. as
not ten feet away was a beautiful
white sentinel. He saw me immedi-
ately, gave note of warning, and at
the moment the air was filed with
waving wings and the long white
necks of the birds.
1t is very evident that the biyds have
a language understood by themselves.
This system of placing sentinels is
one of the best evidences of it. and
shows that our feathered friends are
far more intelligent than we gene al
ly suppose. -Philadelphia Times.