The Dalles daily chronicle. [volume] (The Dalles, Or.) 1890-1948, 1891-11-09
i'HE SWOOP OF A HAWK.
EXPERIENCE OF A SUMMER VISITOR
IN A NEW YORK SUBURB.

He Had Heard About a Hawk Chasing q
Man, but Didn't Believe 1t Until He En-
ly Evening walk-How He Tells of 1t.
Mr.. Rogers was late for tea. The red
twilight of August had faded, and IL sea
breeze was rattling at the shutters before
he came in, looking warm and agitated.
Seeing him reused out of his usual calm
excited our curiosity, but we asked no
questions till he had eaten and refreshed
himself. Then we gathered around him.
~ have had most unpleasant adven-
ture," he said in his solemn way. II have
been chased by Il hawk" Now, if a
child of six had made that remark it
would have been touching, but for a
broad shouldered person of any number
of feet to announce that he was afraid
of hawks was too much for our sense of
humor-we laughed. "What did you
do?' asked the inquisitive member of our
shouted said Mr.. Rogers. 'but the
hawk didn't mind at all; it kept circling
round my head and swooping down.
was physically impossible for hawk to
fly away with him. We told him the
next time hawk chased him to fall fiat
upon his face and call for help. We
suggested that Il plump mosquito had
caused his alarm. All in vain. He lis
tened without emotion, and fixing his
eye on me as the most obtrusively merry
person present, said, ''Wait till hawk
is after you; you. won't like it."
AN EVENING WALK.
The meaning in his words came to me
few days later We had been bathing
in Peconic bay. We staid there, splash
ing and swimming, till the blue water
turned gray and the sun went down in a
red smudge. Then suddenly we all felt
an overpowering desire to get out of our
clammy bathing suits and home to tea
as fast as possible. decided to walk. /
was cold; besides rather wanted to get
away from the noisy crowd.
So the house party packed itself into
the wagonette and quickly disappeared
down the winding road, leaving me to
cut across the hills alone. (Funny with
what alacrity people who are really fond
of you leave you behind.) l felt very
much alone somehow, and | almost
wished | had gone with them. Our
house is only mile from the Peconic
beach on level line, but as the Shinne-
cock hills are like so many green dump
hngs ones progress is very up and downy,
and mile may be twisted into astonish-
ing lengths.
struck across the fern scented hills at
rapid pace, one moment on top of
mountain range, with a view of the two
bays, the next down in a hollow with
only bay bushes for u horizon. Istopped
in sort of cup to watch the coming
night. The earth sent up warm, sweet
smell; little stars began to twinkle as
though pr:cked into the sky. Some
thing dark started up under my feet
my shadow, for the moon had risen. ''It
is nice to be alone sometimes, " thought
"One can't be intimate with nature
when crowds of people are about. 1 feel
now that am lying on her bosom"-
Whirr-rl from the sky. Then two short
sounds like the Tapping of n wet towel.
DISCRETION AND vALoR.
l looked up. Right over my head,
poised as neatly as the sword of Damo-
cles, was hawk. 1t looked quite sta
tionary, but remembered Mr.. Rogers
words, and l felt bold. The thing
doesn't seem inclined to swoop," l
thought Then l started up IL hill, with
my nose pointed at the hawk. Just as
Ireached the top it gave two flaps and
swooped. clapped my hands. Where
upon the bird circled and dropped few
feet
Il won't encourage it by looking at
it," and walked into the next hollow
in dgnified manner. Then I looked.
That brute of bird was lowering in an
expectant attitude. AS it caught my
glance it began to circle; it circled till
grew dizzy: then it gave a cry of triumph
and swooptsj, That action demoralized
me; it turn, I. .i,. hawk into a roc and
me into a 'l.y
With one ,ool'' of despair, l threw
manhood and self respect to the winds,
ran. ran as hard as could. up hill
and down. Brambles caught at me;
blackberry vines clasped my ankles; but
once mounted on terror nothing could
stop me. My white fanneled figure
shone out in the moonlight, adding zest
to the hawks attacks. On we raced,
swooping, running, lodging, but never
stopping till the friendly lights from the
house streaned out to meet us. Then
the hawk, with a long cry of scorn,
sailed away to the pine woods in the
west.
The house party was on the piazza as
l came up. GLORIOUS walk" 1 cried.
Ran half the way. Finest sport in the
world after bathingr' Mr.. Rogers fol-
lowed me into the house. .''Its awful
when it swoops, isn't it?' he said, with
a cruel look in his brown eyes.-New
York Post
A Mischievous Schoolgirl.
Commodore P. vedder, while young
man, teaching school, had occasion to