The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1892-07-05
THE EoWL LANGUAGE.


Registering tho Rolnarks of tho Rooster
by His Harom.
YomAF Companion
After the language of COWS. quails and
monkeys, the language OF hens has come
forward as a subject for scientific study
with the photograph. A scientific
Fronchman, M. Prevot du Haudray, has
become convinced that BARNARD fowl
have real language, and that the cur
ious sounds which they are continually
uttering are perfectly understood by
one another.
de has for some time kept phono-
graph hung up in coop in which SOW
erals cocks, hens and chickens are con-
fined. He has caused, as it were, the
fowls to talk about all sorts of things by
agitating them in one way and another,
by letting them become hungry and
then feeding certain OF them while the
others complain" and in many ways
has induced them TO utter all the sounds
Of which they seem to be capable.
These sounds the monograph has
faithfully recorded, aud n. Prevot du
Haudray declares himself able to de-
monstrate from them that the chickens
have q means OF communication which
may properly be called language.
Persons who have observed the habits
of poultry will not find it difficult to
believe that they converse great deal
together, while the old hens arc I'M
doubleday very much given TO talking
to themselves. 1t will be interesting to
observe, for instance, when the French
student Of the subject has completed
his report, exactly what hen means
whom she goes around the yard exclaim-
ing, at the top Of her voice, "Kra-s-a-
Observation-Disclosures" The signi-
fcanoe of this speech has puzzled many
observers.
NJ. Prevot du Haudray's photograph
may also settle the voxed question OF
what are the syllables actually pro-
nounced by rooster when he crows. It
is traditional among English-speaking
people that the cock says "Cock-a-doo-
dle.do" But Frenchman represents
the sound-which, by the way. he calls
the cocks "singing"-with the sYllables
Cocorico.
To the German the rooster seems to
say kikiriki-the is in the word having
the sound OF the English go. The 1tal-
ians represent the sound by still anoth-
er and different combination OF sylla-
bles. Every nation, no doubt, has its
own idea of the way to represent this
familiar remark OF chanticieer.
But it is hard to see how there can be
any variance in the representation OF
the cackling OF hen after she has laid
an egg. She arLiculates, with great
plainness and positiveness, tho sylla-
bles Observation-Disclosures
Recently there was very interesting
growing contest between ROSTERS in
Belgium. The poultry raisers of the
vicinity Of Liege are such admirers OF
the music which their roosters furnish
that they decided to hold a competition
at Liege to prove definitely whose roos-
ter was the champion grower.
All the birds entered in the competi-
tion-and there was great number
were placed in cages, one in each cage,
with a trustworthy man in front OF
each to record the crowings. The con-
test lasted one hour, and the cock
which crowed the greatest number OF
times in that period received valua-
BILE prize.
The winner of the prize crowed one
hundred and thirty-four times, or more
than twice minute. Any one who has
seen young rooster mount barnyard
fence and crow until the housewife
comes out and throws a milk pan at
him will not be inclined to impeach
the accuracy OF this count, unless he
thinks it is an understatement 1t is
possible that the Liege cocks were en-
barrassed by the strange surroundings,
and did not do themselves Justice.