The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1892-09-22
BURIAL OF A PARROT
WHOLESALE MOURNING OVER A
MUCH LOVED HOUSEHOLD PET.

soon tire talking of it. To most Of those
who took part in it the occasion was
fraught with more Of curiosity than of |
deeper interest, but it was not so with |
all. In little front parlor at 1414ls |
Castro street stands a big empty bird
cage. Rising from the top of the cage
a staff on which flag, hoisted half mast |
high, tells the visitor that the one time
occupant is dead. All around the littlo
doorway where she fiuttered in and out
bits of black and white still further |
emphasize the fatal fact, and bouquets
of flowers fitted into feeding and drink
ing cups and hanging from the swinging
perch where Polly used to swing are
tokens to her memory. .
1t was only parrot, this recent
dweller within those walls of wire, but
seldom has bird left more sincere
mourners behind it, and many man or
woman would be proud to think that
such an elaborate funeral was in store
for him or her. Less than two years
ago this poor parrot was Matched out in
the wilderness of Panama. John Stran-
Afghan, an honest sailor lad, came into
possession of the bird ON one of his coast
wise trips and brought it to his uncle's
home in Moo Valley. just one year ago
it was presented to Mr.. and Mrs. Au-
gustus Tache, and in their pretty little
home on Castro street the bird really
| began to live the life that has now SO
suddenly ended. The parrots name was
Loretta, but owing to the difficulty par
rots find in pronouncing the letter T she
called herself Lora, and those who
knew her and loved her learned to ac-
cept the abbreviation. Lora was the
pet of the entire neighborhood, but she
was the apple of Mrs. Tache's eye.
i There were tears in both of Mrs.
; Tache's eyes last evening as she related
stories illustrating the genius and ac-
complishments of poor Lora. In ap-
!, pearance the bird had been quite like
, any other green parrot with gold trim
/, mings Her size was roughly but kindly
; stated by Mr. Tache, who is a carpenter.
! "She just fitted into box IL by 3
5 inches" said he. And there stood the
! box on pedestal just in front of the
= empty cottage" 1t was dainty box,
+. more like young ladys glove box than
I n coffin, covered with blue silk and lined
! with the same in quilted squares. YeS
in it poor Lora had been laid out. By
the silken handles on either side the
pallbearers had carried it to the grave
y side, and there in the darkened parlor
!, it now stands with the other evidences
y of woman's strange devotion to the
!. memory of dead bird.
I 4 L
y home on Castro street seem all TO have
i been good ones. She could not only talk
/ and whistle like other parrots, but as q
e singer she had an enviable record. Her
e singing of the chorus of "Auld Lang
+ Syne" is said to have made many of tile
! residents of Noe Valley weep copiously
Q and Mrs. Tache herself was very much
overcome last evening in endeavoring to
give the reporter an idea of Lora's rem
g dition of "Amid the Raging of Sea
# "She had sweet and lovely voice." said
I this fond mistress of pretty pet, but
d Mr.. Tache did not seem to agree with
u her. There was also slight difference
of opinion as to the cause of Lora's de.
:, mise. Both agreed that the parrot died
a of cholera morbus, but Mrs. Tache de-
4 clared that the disease was due TO Mr..
5 Tache feeding the bird on watermelon,
y while the latter commended that death
had been due to too freqent bathing al
the hands of Mrs. Tache.
+. Whatever the cause, poor Lora wai
lie taken i'll on Monday last. She was "of
y her feed as Mr. Tache puts it, all til,
afternoon, and when night came shr
could muster up no words from her vo
10 luminous vocabulary save "Poor Lora
Poor poor Lora," 1t should be men
III toned here that she never referred t,
herself as Polly, and never made tn
stereotyped suggestion regarding tn
d, proycrbial cracker. Just as Monda,
N was turning into Tuesday Mr.. and Mrs
in, Tache, snugly slowed away in the nd
=, joining bedroom, hear,la terrible scream
IN They knew at once that Lora WAS on he
". last legs Mrs, Tache promptly got GU
We Of bed and went to the rescue. She ais
y, did what u mother would have done fl
~. a dying child. She took the bird To h
bosom and sat with it on her own be-
Poor Lora lived but II short hour Longer
After the one shrill scream there cam
'k. but these words, "By by, Lora, b
"s byi' They were the last words indeed
Inn Written by the afflicted mistress thes
i'm words are still pinned TO the wires {
ny the empty birdcage, The writer an
, her husband are as subdued i'll the
grief as if child had been taken ava,
The funeral took place at 4 p. IN. o
lie, Thursday. The neighbors turned out
~ goodly numbers. The house ut 14l4l
M M Castro street was crowded, and thel
Ing were more flowers than city ofricia
her have sometimes been honered with. Bl
the most unique feature of the oecasic
was the hearse. The son Of neighbo
osi. ing groceryman Offered the services
I'M, his goat wagon. Certainly nothii
could have been better suited to such
~ service. The goat was n we'll ttnint
animal and did not run away. Two Ii
z tie girls, Gay Spencer and Maggie d.
more, carried the casket out of Il
house and placed it in the little wage
Then taking their places, one on ca,
side, and the other children waikiki
two by two behind them, they led 4
r way up Castro street to Clipper, whe
=, in tho garden of Mr.. Stranaghan,
494, grave had been dug to receive
that remained of Lora. The older pc
'eSt pie stood by when tho blue casket "
exchanged for a coarser one, and VIII
~ the earth was filled in above the lower
~. coffin there was more than one genui
soc s'' ''''''''9.,- ,,'l,'1l2 'i'0''''''
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