Waterbury evening Democrat., 1889-08-16
WEATHER PROVERBS.
What tho Little Birds Toll While Nostinl
 and on the Wing.

and on the Wing.
 That birds have long been guides to sail DTS and agriculturists every one who knows any thing about popular weather prognos- tics is well aware. Not only have the flight and general action of birds been noted by all civilized nations, says the Savannah (Ga) News, but among barbarous tribes in of the feathered tribe have discounted prog nostics of Government signal bureaus. Wind, rain ana other atmospheric changes are predicted by those who narrowly watch the migration of birds, and sailors in par ticular, who are close observers of the heavens above, the atmosphere around them and the waters beneath them, base their prognostics on all the peculiar phases of land, water and sky and the elements of life which people them.
 Among the birds which serve to guide the sailors to look out for squalls, the sailor ex- poets wind when the cormorants fly land ward. If the gull scars to lofty heights and, circlng round, utters shrill cries, 8 storm is approaching. If the parrots whis- tie on shipboard it will rain. If they dress their feathers and are wakeful it will | storm the next day. If the petrels gather under the stern of ship bad weather will | follow. The stormy petrel surely betokens l stormy weather, and no sooner do they 1 gather in numbers under the wake of ship l than sailors prepare to meet an impending l tempest. l
 Hunters are close observers of the habits l of birds, and many prognostics are learned l from the vocabulary of an experienced hunter, who will stay in doors in the morn l ing when an amateur hunter will be tempted out by clear sky, to come back in the rain, or will find that a moderate temperature in the morning is no sure precursor of a warm day. Among the proguostics the hunter draws from birds few will suffice:
 If birds in the autumn grow tame,
 The winter will be too cold for game.
 Bats flying late in the evening indicate fair weather, but if they squeak flying it will rain on the following day. A solitary buz- gard at great altitude indicates rain, but if buzzards fly high together it will be fair weather. If chickens crow before sundown it will rain the next 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 that when chimney swallows circle and call they speak of rain, and Indians predict deep fall of snow when grouse drum at night. Hunters and fishermen have a saying that 'there will be no rain the day the crane flies down the creek.' One crow flying along 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 cApcCJcU. | the CUCKOO nalOOS III LOW land 1t will rain, if on high land it will be fair. Domestic fowl look toward the sky before ram and go to roost in the daytime. If they stand on one leg the weather will be cold. If birds arc fat and sleek in Feb ruary it is sign of moro cold weather. If geese walk east and fly west 1t will be cold. An old proverb says: "When the hen ! crows, expect storm within and without" | and hunters say that the direction the loon 1iao int {ho riro hn fho of | the wind the next day. Owls hootlng in the | daytime indicates rain, but if at night the | weather will be fair.
 When the peacock loudly bawls Soon we'll have both rain and squalls. Pigeons return to their dovecotes unusu- ally early before rain. The habits of wild | geese are watched and furnish many prog ! nosttcs. The following is popular verse: Wild geese, wild geese, going to the sea, Good weather 1t will be-;
 Wild geese, wild geese going to the hill, The weather 1t will spill.
 In Kansas, when wild geese fly to the
 southeast in the fall, the people expect a
 blizzard.
 There are many prognostics of the season which have their origin in the migrations of | birds, and in the peculiar formation and ap- | pearance of the goose bone, which is today l looked upon by thousands of people as @
 sure prognostic of what the coming winter will be, and in Kentucky, If the issue should
 be raised whether the Signal Service Bu-
 reau or the goose bone should go, the Ken | tuckian would cling to the goose bone; in
 fact Henry Watterson, if he had to choose
 between the star eyed goddess of reform
 and the goose bone, would not dare to of- ] fend Kentuckians by discarding the pro- l phetic bone. The people of Kentucky say
 If the breast bone of goose is red. or has
 many red spots, expect cold and stormy | winter, but if only few spots are visible,
 the winter will be mild, and they furnish
 the following recipe so that it may be read
 ptelligently, which instructions are as fol- | lows:
 "To read the winter of any year take the
 breast bone of a goose matched during the | preceding spring. Tho bone is translu-
 ceAt, and 1t will be found to be colored and
 spotted. The dark color and heavy spots
 indicate cold. If the spots are of light shade | and transparent, wet weather, rain or snow
 may be looked for.'
 south the weather will be cold, if north,
 the weather will be warm, and the birds l migrate south much earlier If the winter
 will be early. A severe winter follows if
 crows fly south but If they fly north it will
 be an open winter. No killing frost comes
 when the martins turn to their old haunts,
 and the first song of the robin Is tho voice ' OA SpTluS. u0 SWau IS Sd1O to DullQ 1GS 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 prognostics derived from observing
 the habits of birds, of interest to the sea
 man and land lubber, and in concluding the
 popular prognostic of the farmer, drawn
 from watching the nest of the swallow, is
 given:
 l When the swallows nest is high | The summer is very dry;
 | When the swallow buildeth low | You can safely build and SOW. ! Slips of tho Tongue.
 A friend of mine was attending services
 at certain Baptist church in Washington, l says letter in the Salem Gazette. The
 minister was a very deliberate speaker, | with a broad mouth. The sermon was about
 the death of Moses. In the course of it the
 preacher began sentence "Biddy diddy'