The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1890-07-31
A WHO GOOSE PATROL.
Herders Defending Wheat Fields from
Flocks of Geese and Ducks.

Flocks of Geese and Ducks.
"It may sound funny to people in the
east to be told that to protect the grain
crops in some of the California counties
from wild ducks and geese the farmers
have to employ large force of what are
known as herders to patrol the fields and
shoot, club and destroy and brighten
away by vario means the enormous
fiocks of these ravenous fowl that sweep
Down on the Young and growing grain
and devour it, but such is the fact" said
James E. Palen, large grower of wheat
in the Sacramento valley. "The ravag-
ing swarms of ducks and geese begin
their work of destruction early in the
fall, as soon as the wheat begins to sprout.
The fowl invade the country along the
rivers, but they do not larry there an
hour after the rains have made the
wheat plains habitable for them.
81 have seen a tract of seventy-five
acres in Colusa county absolutely Gov
cred with wild geese, so densely packed
as to resemble pictures l have seen of
seabird rookeIies on some ocean rock.
When they first come they wax fat on
the wheat stubble, and are juicy and
sweet favored for the table, but when
the young winter wheat appears they
work on the green sprouts. This has
the effect Of making their flesh rank,
and no one in any of the wild goose
ridden districts will eat of these fowls
then. They are shipped by the thou.
sand, all the same, to San Francisco and
other markets all winter long, where the
people seem to think the green wheat
fed birds arc delicacy. But if the
markets could take ten times as many as
they do the number would be small
compared with the thousands and thou
sands of the destructive fowls that are
killed and left lying on the ground.
'"Tolo county, where live, especially
in its northern part, l once thought
could beat all creation as a feeding place
for wild geese, for l have seen these
focks so thick in the air, going to and
from their favorite pasture, that only
Observation-Disclosures glimpses of the sky
could be obtained for an hour at a time
But when | went into Colusa county
made up my mind that l had never seer
wild geese enough before to speak Of
There is q large expanse of barren plain
in that county which affords an un
rivaled place of rendezvous for botl
geese and ducks, and l have seen those
barrens when l thought that all the wilt
geese that went forth to all parts of the
land, near and remote, must surely have
their starting place ON the Colusa county
barrens. They may be seen rising VI
from the plains in swarms like the locustl
of Egypt, and going forth in all direc
lions to prey on the farmers. They re
main all winter long, and the wheat tn,
farmers cut in the harvest they have hat
to fight the geese and ducks for months
to retain.
"There are many large wheat ranches
in these two counties, such as the Glenn
ranch, the Bogg and others. From
twelve to twenty-five herders are EN-
ployed by each of the big ranches tt
patrol the wheat fields and wage contin
ual warfare against the geese and ducks
These ,herders live in cabins scattered
about the ranches, and tramp about tn
fields from daylight until dark, ant
long after night, too, if the mooni is shin
ing, for both geese and ducks feed on thu
wheat fields at night if it is moonlight
Ducks are more troublesome than geese
at night, and it was discovered accident
ally few years ago that light in ;
field would brighten them away. Ian
terms were placed in large number
among the wheat, and for long tim,
the fowl were SO shy of the bright light
that the farmers were benefited. At last
however, the ducks became used to tn,
lanterns, and grew SO bold as to feed by
their light.
"The small farmers in the wheat dis
trict, being unable to individually employ
berders, have combined in sort of mu
tual herding association, and pay fol-
patrol protection out of common fund
many of the farmers doing herding duty
themselves. New York Sun.