The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1892-04-23

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huge lake craft with hundreds of tons
OF ballast reel and stagger almost to
capsizing by reason of the hurricane
that is sweeping the lake. AS an ex-
ample of how exceeding far the cum
ming of nature surpasses the alleged
wisdom of man, the motionless poise OF
these gulls of the lake, mid~air in a
raging storm, gives evidence most strils-
ing.
If the storm brings the human mariner
distress, and often death, it is the kind
lest friend the lake gull knows. For
the storm does the lake CULTS market
ing for him; it is his greatest provider Of
food. Therefore, when tempest is howl
ing and angrily hurting the pillows in
land from off the great, rocking plateau
of water is the time to see these gulls
busiest in their quest for food. A storm
on the lake means the casting towards
shore Of quantities Of dead fish which.
were it not for the gulls, would add to
the city's pestilential possibilities With
keen eyes scanning the surging flood
these great birds, riding mid-air, and
usually but short league from shore,
wait as if at perfect ease for the APP
pearance of their food. Sighting fin
ny carcass, they take a position imme-
diately above it, then drop like shot
upon their prize, and seemingly with
out touching the water they seize the
fish and soar gracefully away. The alb
solute nicely with which they gauge
their drop-which is usually distance
of not less than fifty feet-involving an
accurate calculation as to the distance
the fierce wind may carry them be
tween the moment of their folding their
wings and the instant they will reach
the water, together with the calcula-
ton of the shift of position accustomed
to the fish by the surging waters upon
which it floats, is something past all
finding out. OF course no one presumes
for moment that the gull does any
mental figuring on these points; not
one~thousandth part the calculating
that man would do when about to
swim narrow, swiftly-howing stream
and make certain point on the oppo-
site side. And yet the feat performed
by the gull is probably thousand
times more wonderful than that of the
man who swims a swift current accord
ing to his calculations.
The curious may wonder why the
pulls do not wait until their favorite
food has been thrown up on the beach,
and then take it with seemingly less
danger to themselves. Well, the reason
is that unlike many people the lake
gull never loses any time waiting for "a
ship that may never land It's knowl-
edge of wind and water tells it it's food
may be washed to within a rod of shore,
then the storm which brought it may go
down, leave it there, and another storm
spring up from the island and wash IL
away again. When dead fish are not
plentiful the menu Of the gull is made
Up Of refuse matter generally, which is
flung up by the waves, as well as OF
various marine creatures left upon the
sands when the storm has abated. When
the elements have proven negligent in
its behalf, this bird resorts to incurslons
inland. At such times the more distin-
gushing traits of its honorable and
fearless ancestry assert themselves. 1t
is bold and independent, even to insist
ing that fishermen along the piers ara
bound to share their bats with it. 1t
seems to prefer that they do so willing
". II they don't it will suddenly drop
down beside them, take mouthful of
the grubs or minnows, which have pre-
viously been located from a great dis
lance above, and then soar away, leav-
Ing the startled fisherman to wonder
what happened.
Seen at distance the lake gull seems
Of but one color, muddy brown. A
close view. however, shows the neck
and head to be of white and the remain
der Of the body, including the wing,
gray, variegated with white edges and
tips. The tail and whole undersurface
are pure, white, and the legs and feet
IRE ashen green.