The Portland daily press., 1889-10-11
Can Swallows Act as Carriers,

The question as to whether swallows can
be made to supplement the services of car
rier pigeons has recently been raised in Ger
many, and the fact that the swallow is in
many ways superior to the pigeon has drawn
much attention to the bird, though nobody
seems as yet to have remembered that the
swallow is a migratory bird, and that its
services would. therefore, only be available
Kolnische Zeitung, which is an advocate of
the carrier pigeon system, particularly for
purposes OF war. publishes an interesting
paper, entitled 1.-THE Intelligence of Swal-
lows, In which some good stories are told.
of which the following are specimens A
swallow had caught its foot in sling which
was hanging from the water-pipe on a roof.
1t futtered and pulled and tried to extricate
itself, but got tired out and hung helplessly
down by its leg Presently all the swallows
of the neighborhood assembled round it and
gave the alarm. After good deal of twtter-
Ing and parleying one of the birds struck the
sling with its beak; the other followed suit,
and after half an hours work the thread was
cut ana the prisoner freed.-Two swallows
had built their nest under the ceiling inside
a carriage house, the door of which was
always open. One day the owner, in order
TO prevent the fowls from entering, closed
the gates in the absence of the parent swal-
lows, who were busily flying about for food
ieaalng to garner above, the window of
which was always wide open, had been left
open on purpose to secure an entrance for
the Dlrds, who presently returned, examined
the cracks In the doors and windows of the
carriage-house, but did not find the new en-
trance The door was then opened and shut
after them as soon as they were inside AZ
ter very short time they found their way
out through the trap-door and the garner
window, but when they came back again
tnnV did mot tq 10 tho mn ftar lualv
For long time they futtered about before
they ventured to fly into the windows and
down through the open trap-door FAT the
end Of several hours, however, they saw
tnat II was the only way to get to their brood
ana TOOK to 1t without any more hesitation
The fact that they hestated, adds the writer
is slgnlhcant: 1t shows that they were 10th to
trust to the new way before they were sure
tnat IL was safe.-As swallows often fly
t y long distances at very great height
1t remains yet to be found out how thew SET
out for their autumnal journey to the south.
as they start at night, but it is supposed that
the young birds are taught by the parents
the direction rect IN which to fly, It has, how
single bird is able to find its way back from
very long distance. In the dancing-room
OF the reStaurateur, in village not far from
Dusseldorf, number of swallows have their
nests on rafter which runs across the room
under the ceiling; In September last three
OF the parent birds were taken from their
nests. and gentleman travelling to Berlin
took them by train and gave them their
liberty at different stations. Each bird had
narrow. red ribbon tied round one leg, but
al three had by some means torn this of.
medately after their return After two days
however. all the nests were examined, and
" was found that the wandersrs had re-
turned to them.