The morning news., 1892-03-28
az wouLpNr KILL a oaow.
Not After Knowing the Life History OF
One He Had Raised.

One He Had Raised.
from the Neto York sun.
"I wouldn't kill a crow, not for any
money" said man from the northern part
Of Passaic county, where crows like to roost
for the reason that they get so much health
ful exercise in the long flights they have 10
take to find something TO eat "a crow
may be thief, but sofs the man who steals
your chickens. You know the man well,
but you couldn't find it in your
heart 60 kill him. That would be muir
der. From what ! know about crows /
would feel Just as much a murderer II
killed one as would If I shot man / knew
was thinning out my hen coop. Whyl Be-
cause q crow comes about as near being
human as anything that is classed in the
brute department of creation can como, and
/ want to tell you that that is good deal
nearer than most folks have an idea OF.
You laugh, of course; but you never knew
my tame crow. Othello.
"You've heard all about crows iu gem
eral-how they can distinguish a mile away
the difference between a man with a wooden
gun and a man with a real gun, loaded how
they post sentinels to warn them of ap-
preaching danger while they are looting
your cornfsld. and how they do thousand
aud one other things that only reasonable
beings could do; but you evidently never
saw a crow who had developed under the
improving influences Of civilized society.
Such a one was Otbello. One OF my boys
found this crow in the woods when he was
still too young to fly, having been tumbled
out OF his nest by q high wind,
My boy brought him home, cared
for him tenderly, and succeeded in
we got to effectionately calling him old fell
low, but that soon became corrupted into
Othello. a name which certain trait Of
character he subsequently developed made
very appropriate. The genius Of this crow
early asserted itself in the facility with
which he learned the English language.
Any crow, taken young and treated prop
erly, can be taught to speak many words,
but this crow acquired an amazing vocabu-
larry. Still, he was never very talkative,
his favorite expressions being, 'Hullo,
George How's Peggyr 'G'lang, g'lang!
g-e-e-e-d app and a startiingly realistic imi-
tation Of the clicking sound person makes
to start horse with or hurry it up.
1.-The George referred to was myself.
Peggy was the young wife of a man who
worked for me and lived in the house,
Peggy being a servant in the family.
Othelio wasn't on speaking terms with
Peggy's husband, and that was why be al
ways inquired of me as TO the state OF Peg
gy's health il he didn't see Peggy around
anywhere. And what do you suppose was
the reason Othello wasn't on speaking
terms with Peggy's husbands Because
he was dead in love with Peggy and
insanely jealous of the husbandl It's
as true as tell you. Lordt What
crow that was2 Dead in love with
Peggyl / should say sol We discovered
that before the crow was six months old.
He showed IL in hundred ways, but most
hxrh 40 t1r FRO Hal Ia Ions xpb
husband came around where she was. He'd
strut and fume, and often fly savagely at
the young farmer; and. 10 tease him, Peggy
would often lay her head on her husbands
shoulder, and perhaps kiss him or pretend
to. and then Othello would almost 60 wild.
Zone day Peggy and her husband were
going to town. he had horse that
was safe enough ordinarily, but needed but
little provocation to start him going, and
then he was hard to stop. Oth9llo had been
broodlng over Peggy In a disconsolate way
for two or three days. When she got in the
wagon that morning the love sick crow sat
on the gate post near by, gazing at her
Her husband had gone to the barn after
something. The reips hung loose on the
dashboard. / was at the gate and / saw a
look Of desperation come over Othello's face.
Suddenly he made a dash for the wagon
and pumped down by Peggy's side.
and followed the cry by the impelling click
all horses know. m su.l
1.-THE horse started, with VOtbello yelling
and clicking at him like mad, and before
any one had time to do or say word away
the horse was going on a dead galiop down
the road, and in jiffy had disappeared In
a cloud of dust around the bend. There
was only one explanation. Othello, grown
desperate. had simply stolen Peggy, and
-t&I,
band mounted another horse and started
after them. Three miles down the road he
came up with them-at least with the horse
and wagon and Peggy. The runaway had
been stopped by a team coming in the Other
direction. Nobody was hurt, but OthellC
was missing. The bad crow evidently kne "
what the result of his folly would be and
had disappeared Six months passed. and
in the meantime Peggy had died of fever.
One afternoon l was on my way home from
town and was driving by the place where
Othello had been fuiled in the attempt to
steal Peggy. when was startled to hear a
horse and quavering voice exclaim:
"Hullo, Gsorgew
al looked up, and there sat Othello. thin
and disheveled, on a fence stake.
stopped and called him, and he got into the
wagon by my side. He didn't say a wore
until we got pretty near home, and then ht
said:
"Hullo, Georgel How's Peggyg'
''In spite of his foolish indiscretion every
body was glad to see Othello back again
But he wasn't the same crow. He soor
found out what had become of Peggy. One
day saw him busy at something in one oi
the flower beds. l watched him He
plucked a lot of flowers. and. taking them
in his mouth by the stems, he started over
toward the little graveyard on the hill.
followed him. He went straight to poor
Pegg's grave, laid the flowers on 1t, stood
there in .mournful contemplation for a
while, and then went back home. The next
day Othello lay on the bottom of his box,
dead as a stone.
"Would kill crow2 Well, IL / should
| would go and give myself up as muir
derer."
SQUEEZED IN A SNOWDRIFT.