Audubon County Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Audubon Co., Iowa) 1885-1894, 1891-01-01
BOY WIT AND CROW WIT.
How the Glossy Marauders We're Routed
from Farmer Holbrook's Farm.

Elijah Holbrook's boys have had lot
of fun with crows this summer on tn,
Pocono plateau. In the woods aroune
the upper waters of the Tobyhann;
creek crows have numerous resting
places, and the winters have been sc
mild since 1888 that they haven't beer
killed by cold. Consequently, the
farmers say, the crows have got to be
a greater pest than ever. The scat
tered cornhills in the fields on Farmer
Holbrook's place and the neighboring
farms show that the crows were there
IN hordes early in the season. Efligies
of men stuck up in different parts oil
a corniield failed to frighten the crows
away this year, even though each efligy
stood up as straight as soldier and
had stick stuck in its chest of straw
to represent q gun. Strips of bright
new tin dangling from tops of poles
and glittering in the sunlight didn't
Keep the crows away worth cent,
Farmer Holbrook declares, while Irvine
strung across the lot here and there, "A
device that used to make crows afraid
to enter field, had no terrors for the
bold Pocono crows this summer.
Farmer Holbrook declares that the
cunning creatures just laughed at
everything he put up to scare them.
took possession of his cornfeld and
scratched up the seed as fast as he and
the boys could plant it. Then the boys
went to work to get even with the
winged corn thieves.
just north of Farmer Uolbrook's
cleared land there is a tamarack swamp
of many acres, over which scores of
crows passed in their flight to and from
their roosting place and the corniields
along the Tobyhanna. The open
spaces in the swamp were filled with
grass-coyered boys few feet apart.
and the boys made mp their minds that
the boggy spots among the thick tama~
rack clumps were just the place for
them to euchre at least few of the
noisy black birds. The lads had two
dozen steel mink traps, which they
oiled upa and logged over to the swamp.
They also carried hatful of hens
eggs along. On one of the bogs they
fixed no a nice nest and placed two or
three eggs in it, leaving the eggs in
plain sight. On each of four or live
other boys close by they set one of the
traps, fastened it to stick in the soil,
and covered it with grass. From one
bog9y spot to another the industrious
lads went until they had built half
dozen nests and set all the traps. Then
they concealed themselves in a dense
clump of tamaracks and waited for the
crows to sail over the swamp.
1t was three or four hours, the BOYS
said, before the first flock came along.
The ringleaders spied the eggs in the
nest, gave a yell, and alighted on the
top of tree. The rest of the crows
followed suit, and for several minutes
all the birds stretched out their necks,
eyed the eggs, stayed on their perches,
and kept still. Then one of the crows
uttered u yell and sailed toward the
bog where the nest was. He flew
right over it and alighted on bog
where there wasn't any trap, and for
minute or so he gave sidelong glarces
at the hens eggs and looked wistful.
AT this the other crows arose in body
and settled down around the nest.
-Four of them got caught by the feet.
and in an instant they began to squall
and tlutter and yank SO hard that the
other ones became panic-strickeu, took
to their wings and sailed out of sight
in hurry. Then the sportive lads
crept from their hiding place, wrung
the crows necks and reset the traps.
Crows got caught around the other
nests in the swamp. but not one Of the
eggs was disturbed in any Of the nests.
The black rascals We're too cute to
NEEDLE with the eggs before they had
surveyed the surroundings and that
was where the boys got the BEST of
them. Inside of a week they trapped
thirty-two crows. and after that they
didn't get single one. The cunning
birds had caught on to the trick and
since then they have steered clear of
the swamp entirely.
On one part of Farmer Holbrook's
place there is a colony of bank swal-
lows. One day this summer the lads
scattered lot of corn on the opposite
bank from where the swallows were
nesting, and in an hour or two a flock
of crows swooped down and began to
gObble it mp. AS though their crops
were empty. Some Of the swallows
spicd them at once and gave the alarm,
and in less than minute the whole
colony daicd from their holes in the
bank and pitched into the hungry
crows. 1t was complete surprise TO
the big black fellows, and with angry
squalls the swallows drove them from
the ridge pitched and dived and
struck ut them from above, following
up the fierce attack until the badly
scared crows sought shelter in place
of dense woodland a quarter of a mile
away. Then the triumphant swallows
turned about and sailed homeward,
giving vent to twitters of satisfaction
on the way. They had given the
crows such a mcrcilcss thrashing that
the cOwardly scamps never returned
to pick up the rest of the corn, and
that was just what the lads supposed
the swallows would do when they scat
tered the grain so near to the habita-
ton OF the peaceable birds.