The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1890-06-05

BY Herman Graves, Spring Brook
woodsman, is tamo crow named 81,
writes a scranton (Pa.) correspondent
of the New York Tribune. Mr.. Graves
boys captured 81 from q nest before he
was old enough to fly, and for twenty
months tho crow hos boon perfectly at
homo and made lots OF fun around tho
premises. Wild crows have tried time
and again to entico 81 from his com.
Portable Surroundings, but ho has stuck
to his captors through thick and thin,
for they have always treated and fed
him we'll. Once hc sailed away and re.
mained absent three days, but just as
tho children wero beginning to mourn
for. him as q dead pot, he flew back
again, and such cawing and fluttering
as he went through to express his JOY
ut being homo once moro Mr.. Graves
declared he had never seen. The chill
dren like the cunning black bird be-
cause he Is tricky and mischiovous,
and, although no often cuts up capers
around the house and vcxes Mrs. Graves
by hooking spools Of thread and stick
ing his bill into pans Of milk, the
youngsters laugh at every funny and
provoking thing he docs.
Any stranger can win Sis affection
by feeding him with something that he
is fond Of. Last summer an amateur
trout fisherman from Trenton stayed at
Mr.. Graves house for fow days. He had
never seen tame crow before, and ho
took great notion to 81 from the start.
He fed the bird generously tho first
night he was there, but no was sorry for
it before he left, for 81 followed him
wherever he went. If ho took walk
before breakfast, 81 tagged after him.
II ho won't 10 tho spring for a pail Of
water, 81 wn5 at his heels. When no
sat at tho table, 81 camo and perched on
the back Of his chair. When he started
for the trout stream, 81 flow after him,
alightcd on fence stakes, trees and
stumps, and kept right along with him.
While tho fisherman WAS whipping tho
stream 81 amused himself by flying
from one trco top to another, keeping an
eye on tho angler oil tho time. He
licked wild crow during the day, and
toward evcn-down he followed the fish
erman back to tho house. After awhile
tho man declared that ST was nuisance
to him, and after that Mr.. Graves put
tho crow in coop and kept him there
until tho fisherman had had time to
reach the stream.
Mrs. Graves mas o pair of full-grown
yet unusually small bantams, Il rooster
and hen. She calls the hen Nell and
the rooster Ned, and she has tanned and
trained them SO we'll that they do what
ever sho tells them to do. Whenever
tho little hen wants to lay, she trots
right into tho house, IL the door is
open; and If it isn't, sho flutters up,
alights on tho window-sill and flaps
her wings against the panes until some
one lets her in. Mrs. Graves has
taught Nell to lay in little wire nest,
lined with wool; and tho moment the
hon enters tho room, Mrs. Graves places
tho nest in corner and Ncll steps into
it very carefully and ncstles down until
she looks as cosy as possible. With her
head aad tail sticking over the rim of
tho nest, Nell makes such comical APP
peaianco that the children fairly yell
with laughter. But Ncll doesn't mind
their noise, and after she has sat there
for fow minutes, Shc steps out, walks
slowly toward tho door and ccclslcs
with as much apparent satisfaction as
u hen five times hcr size. In the
nest sho has dropped an egg not quite
as large as that of robin. Ned has
been strutting around near by whilo Nell
was on the nest, and as soon as she be.
gins to cacklS, no marches up to the
most, peeps into it and then straightcns
up and crows as though ho was as proud
and big bird as ever lived. Then he
joins his faithful little wife and says
pleasant things to her,and presently Mrs.
Graves calls him back, scratches his head
moment, ard thcn holds her fore.
finger extended on q level about two
feet above tho floor. At this, Ned flies
up, alights on tho finger, flaps his
wings, crows Justify, for little rooster,
and then jumps down and scampers
after Nell again, and tho two cunning
chickens march over to the barnyard
and mingle with the larger fowls.
A Scranton boy has lot OF tame white
rats that afford him and tho family q
good deal OF amusement. The dog and
cats have been taught not to harm the
rats, and often, when the dog is lying
on the floor, tho rats run out Of theii
cage and crawl all over him. Some
times they ride around on his back, and
when he doesn't care to carry them any
further, he kicks mp his heels, shakes
them off and and canters away. The
house cats appear to like tho white
creatures, and whenever rat gets hur,
in any way, the cats lick it and seem tc
feel sorry for it. Once, the dog acci
dentally madc one Of tho rats squea
whilo playing with it, and the cats
pitched on him and drove him out o.