Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1889-10-02
NO. 19.

IL Duzzards ny high together it will be fair
weather. If chickens crow before sundown
1t will rain the next day. If they run to
shelter it viii not rain long. If they come
on 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 q saying that s'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. II crows
make much noise and fly in circle rain is
expected. If the cuckoo halloos in low
land it 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
Ii they stand On one leg the weather will
be cold. If birds are fat and sleek in Feb
ruary it Is sign Of more 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
flies IN the morning will be the direction of
the wind the next day. Owls hooting in the
daytime indicates rain, but If at night the
weather will be fair.
When the peacock loudly bawls
Soon we'n have both rain and squa:.s.
Pigeons return to their doveco:cs unusu-
ally early before rain. The habits of wild
geese are watched, and furnish many prog
nostics. The following is popular verse:
Wild geese, W I'd geese going to the sea
Good weather it will be;
w Id geese wild geese going to the hill,
The weather it will spill.
In Kansas, when wild geese fiy to the
southeast in the fall, the people expect a
blizzard.
There are many prognostics of the season
which have their origin in the migratious of
BIRDS, and in the peculiar formation and ap-
pearance OF the goose bone, which is today
looked upon by thousands of people as a
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-
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
intelligently, which instructions are as fol-
lows
''To read the winter of any year take the
bredst bone of a goose Matched during the
preceding spring. The bone is translu-
cent, and it 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"
When wild geese and wild ducks move
south the weather will be cold, il north.
the weather will be warm, and the birds
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 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 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:
When the swallows nest is high A.
The summer is very dry;
When the swallow buildeth low
You can safely build and SOW