The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1890-10-16
STORIES OF BIRDS.
~ Hawk That Undertook Too Big
~ a Contract.
Biddy was Too Heavy for Him, and Mr..
Hawk Paid Dearly for His sport-A
Rat-Destroy NJ Owl Driven from Its
Perch by Scolding Swallows.

Rat-Destroy H.: Owl Driven rom It's
Perch by scolding Swallows.
One day this summer, writes the New
York Suns Scranton (Pa.) correspond
ent, big hawk darted down into
Ethe,bert w. Pearce's barn-yard, up In
Herrick township, seized a tough old
hen, flew across the road with her, and
settled down behind rail fence. Biddy
was too heavy for the hawk to sail away
with, and she squawl1ed to the full ex-
tent of her lung power while her broad
winged captor was pinning her to the
ground. The hawk appeared to know
that its actions were being watched, for
every few seconds it raised its head and
peeped between the rails toward the
house, where Mr.. Pearce, who had got
his rifle the moment the hen thief
dropped behind the fence, was waiting
to get good shot at it. The old hen
squawked right along, nuttered for all
she was worth to free herself from the
hawks big claws, and struggled in the
grass, while the hawk held her down
with apparent ease, glanced through
the fence and seemed to be afraid to
begin to devour her so near the farm
effort to rise with it's noisy prey, but the
old hens weight was evidently several
ounces more than it had been used to
handling, and again it was forced
ito settle down. Mr.. Pearce had
drawn bead on the spot in the fence
where the hawk was and the
next time it stuck up its head
and peeped between the rails, he pulled
the trigger. For moment there was q
lively fluttering behind the fence, and
pretty soon the hen dashed into the
road, with her wings spread out, and
went llmping and squawking toward the
barnyard as though she was scared half
ito death. The hawk wasn't visible from
where Mr.. Pearce had banged away at
1t, and he ran to the fence and looked
over. The big bird lay sprawled out as
dead as o stone, and when Mr.. Pearce
examined it he found that his bullet
had cut the hawks brain out as nicely
as a knife could have done the work.
Early in the spring Farmer Lewis L.
Hanley's boys trapped q large male
horned owl on their fathers place in
Pocono township. The bird was q fierce
fighter whenever any one went near
him, and the boys wanted to conflne him
in q cage. Mr.. Hanlcy wouldn't let
them, and he turned the owl loose in
one of his barns where there we're lots
of rats and mice. The owl soon became
used to the barn, caught and ate enough
rats to keep him fat, and acted as If he
enjoyed his new abode very much.
From his perch on beam the owl
watched for game, and whenever q raj
- ,x<I A<~~r =. "a 49, -
NOW he dropped down as light and ai
loiseless as q feather and never missed
catching 1t In his claws. He cleaned
out the rodents at such q rapid rate tina,
within month the remainder of then
took fright at his murderous habits and
hed to another barn on the oppositeside
of the yard. Mr.. Hanley then trans
ferred the owl to the other barn, where
he slew the rats in the same way. Aftel
awhile the farmer left the barn doors
open good deal o6 the time, but the
owl never tried to fly away to his old
home In the woods, seeming to be en-
tirely contented with the living he wal
getting without an effort.
At about this time the swallows ar
rived from the South and started to FL
up their old nests to the peak Of the
barn, where the rafters came together
The owl was moping on one OF the lower
beams when the swallows began to gel
ready to raise families, but during the
day he few to higher perch and tool
nap. In a short time the swallows
caught sight.of the big bird as he sal
only few feet below one of theil
nests, and no sooner had they spied hin
than they began to give vent to noisy
protests against his remaining there
Presently the whole colony was IL
an aproar over the silent and mo
.tionless owl. Every swallow in it few
back and forth from one end ct the barr
to the other, 'darted past the owl at clos,
as they could without touching him, ant
made the barn ring with their squalls o.
anger.
The owl didn' seem to know what al
the fuss and furry was about, but tn,
pugnaoious swallows kept up such ,
racket and hammered him 30 hard tina
he finally came to the conclusion tina
they didn't want him there, and 10 h,
dropped to q lower beam and clung t,
it. That pacifed few of the swallows
but the majority continued to sail pas
his head and to tell him that he hai
better clear out Of the barn entirely
until the owl sought still lower perch
where he sat and bllnked at his loud
mouthed assailants.
This one-sided warfare was kept VI
for three days. Mr.. Hanley saw tina
there would be no peace for the swal
lows SO long as the obnoxious owl re-
manned in the barn, and so he caugh
the big bird and put him in cage. A.
soon as the owl was out OF sight the
swallows quieted down, resumed theil
nest fixing, and were as happy as could
be. Mr.. Hanley has kept the owl Gagged