The Durham daily globe., 1891-11-11
t'HE SWOOP OF A HAWK.
EXPERIENCE OF A SUMNER VISITOR
IN A NEW YORK SUBURB.

Man, but Didn't Believe 1t Until He En-
countered One of the Animals in a Lone
ly Evening walk-How He Tells of 1t.
Mr.. Rogers was late for tea. The red
twilight Of August had faded, and sea
breeze was rafting at the shutters before
he came in, looking warm and agitated.
5 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.
81 have had most unpleasant adven-
ture," he said in his solemn way. "Ihave
been chased by hawk" Now, if
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
house party. 81 clapped my hands and
shouted" said Mr.. Rogers, "but the
hawk didn't mind at all; it kept circling
round my head and swooping down.
We reasoned with him. We said it
was physically impossible for a 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 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
iG after Won 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 l almost
wished l 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
ings ones progress is very up and downy,
and a mile may be twisted into astonish-
ing lengths.
| struck across the fern scented hills at
a rapid pace one moment on top of
mountain range, with a view Of the two
bays, the next down in q hollow with
only bay bushes for horizon. Istopped
in a sort of cup to watch the coming
night The earth sent up warm, sweet
smell; little stars began to twinkle as
though pricked 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" l thought.
zone can't be intimate with nature
when crowds of people are about. feel
now that am lying on her bosom
Whirr-r! from the sky. Then two short
sounds like the tapping of a 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,"
thought. Then l started up hill, with
nay nose pointed at the hawk. Just as
l reached the top it gave two flaps and
swooped. Islapped my hands. Where
upon the bird circled and dropped a few
feet.
Il won't encourage it by looking at
it." and l walked into the next hollow
in digniied 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 cry of triumph
and swooped. That action demoralized
me; it turned the hawk into roc and
me into pygmy.
With one "Shoo" of despair, l threw
manhood and self respect to the winds,
l ran. l 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. Ny white fanneled figure
shone out in the moonlight, adding zest
to the hawks attacks. On we raced,
swooping, running, dodging, but never
stopping till the friendly lights from the
house streamed out to meet us. Then
the hawk, with long cry of scorn,
sailed away to the pine woods in the |
west.
The house party was on the piazza as
1 came up. GLORIOUS walk" l cried. |
Ran half the way. Finest sport in the |
world after bathihg!" 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.
Mischievous SchooIcirl.
n