Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-03-22
The Affectionate and Faithful Little
Fellow Soon to Be Here.
A MODEL HUSBAND AND FATHER
Principle Of the Pneumatic Tube in the
Rapid Transit Problem.
SOLAR HEAT FOR MANUFACTURING
WRITTEN FOR THE DIsPATcH.I

| platoons, regiments and orlgades. There Is
| nothing alarming, however, in the invasion.
On the contrary we shall all be delighted to
see and glad to welcome the bold invaders.
Among the first of the scouts will be the
little friend of every boy and girl, and the
subject of sweet memory in every adult,
Master Robin Redbreast, with his brisk and
blithsome ways and his short but melodious
| song. Then will come such teathered ac-
quaintances as the bluebird, the woodpecke er,
the lark, the thrush, the chippy and plaint-
I've "pee-wee." Meantime we shall see
passing proudly over our heads (if we have
the good fortune to be in the line of march }
the grand army corps of pigeons, ducks and
geese. These large birds DO not often stop
TO visit us now. Their old tarrying grounds
have been cut up into farms and the awful
shotgun awaits them on every hand. They
go far to the Northward now, the pigeons
chiefly TO the great forests in Canada, and
the ducks and geese to the lakes away up in
the neighborhood of the Arctic circle.
The Popular Robin Redbreast.
Our little friends whom we shall now see
fitting among the trees near our homes,
fricking about our lawns, perching on
garden fences and housetops, are of far more
interest to the lover of nature than are. the
armies of large birds which are chiefly sug-
gestive of something good to eat. Undoubt-
edly the robin, as we call him in America,
or redbreast. as they call him in England,
is the prime favorite among all so-called
wild birds. He is not so handsome as the
oriole, or the bluebird, or the tiny yellow
bird, or even some varieties of black bird;
but he is so affectionate, so gentle, and 30
wonderfully devoted to his family that he
seems little dearer to us than any.other of
the feathered friends that delight us with
their presence and charm us with their song.
The robin seems more trustful in the good
intentions of mankind than any other bird.
In selecting places for their nests they ap-
parently have but little tear of molestation
from human hands. In fact, there is rea-
son to believe that their usually kind treat.
ment leads them to rely, to some extent, on
humanity to protect them from natural enc
mics. Anyway pair will often build
their nests within hand reach Of the window
of house, and they have been known to
nest and bring forth their brood in room
that was purposely kept accessible to them.
Models of Matrimopial Felicity.
There is one peculiar trait in the robin.
When all the rest of our song birds and
chirpers dissolve their marriage ties at the
end of the season. and then form new matri-
monial alliances next year, Robin Red
breast and his mate cling together until
death separates them. You never see robins
in focks. The pairs live solely for each
other and their little ones, and their devo-
tion to one another is hardly paralleled in
natures creatures. The distress of one of
the pair when the other has been killed, or
of the two when mishap has befallen their
-, ti,hl
will restlessly fly about from one tree to
another, constantly emitting piteous wall.
refusing to eat or sleep, and often finally
falling dead from exhaustion.
The writer personally witnessed the follow
Ing in his bovhood days in the Susquehanna
Valley: A pair of robins had made their
nest in an orchard tree near the house. The
young brood had just emerged from the
shells, and the parents, one at a time,
were joyousIy skirmishing about for choice
titbits for their little ones, meantime e1-
pressing their happiness in constant songs
and chirps. Near evening, one day, it was
noticed that the female was flying about
restlessly near the nest, emitting the quick,
sharp cry indicative of trouble. The male
could not be seen, and the heads of the
young ones were visible at the top of the
nest with expansive mouths, eager for their
supper,
A Broken-Hearted Robin.
The distress of the female constantly In
creased. She would not remain still a sec
ond but wildly flew about near the nest,
uttering that wild wall of anguish. 1t was
evident that something had happened to
her mate. He would not remain away from
his little family so long if he weIs able to
get home. Next morning poor little Robin
Redbreast was found dead under tree at the
further eud of the orchard. While indus
triously gathering food for those little
mouths in the nest he had been cruelty
killed by some gunner who had passed along
the adjacent wood.
The weird wall of the bereaved mate had
been heard at daylight, and she was flying
about lnore wildly than before. The young
ones were clamoring for their breakfast.
Occasionally the old one would hastily cap
ture worm and take it to them, but the
food was evidently insufficient. On the
morning OF the secoud day the poor mother
was found dead under the tree, and two of
the poor little ones were dead in the nest.
The other two died the same day. 1t was
clear case o: death from exhaustion, caused
by grief as to the mother, and the resultant
want Of parental care as to the young ones.
Only little broken-hearted Robin
Speed on the Rails.
1t begins to look as if the nineteenth CEN
tury, even in its last decade, might outdo
all the famous ''seven wonders OF the world'
that astonished the ancients. In the first
place there is likelihood that we shall see
before the century closes. a means of transit
that will whisk US from New York to Phila-
delhia in less than an hour, and from Phila-
delphia to Chicago between breakfast and
supper time. Experiments have lately been
made near Baltimore which give promise
that such results will be obtained in the not
distant future. Electric power on an ordi-
nary railway, with motors and cars of pc
culiar construction, are the means with
which We may hope to travel at speed of
more than 100 miles an hour.
In fact it is confidently believed by some |
witnesses of the experiments that
it will be possible to reach a speed of 250 |
miles an hour. However 1t may be as 10
maximum velocity, we have the endorse
ment of experts as to the feasibility of run
ming trains more than hundred miles an
greater risk of derailment than is now ex-
While experiments in this line are approach
ing fruitinn we hear some astonishing re-
ports OF experiments for adapting the prIn-
ciple of the pneumatic tube to passenger
transit. This principle is utilized in nearly |
all our large cities Tor the transmission of |
small packets, such MS news messages,
money, small parcels in the shopping marts,
and so on. and it would seem possible, from |
such results to reach the acme OF passenger
transit. In fact, it is rather strange that !
this consummation has been SO long delayed.
Pneumatic Cars Aren't New. a