The herald., 1893-01-22
A PIGEON MAIL SERVICE LINE
10 Be Established Between San
Pedro and Catalina.
Palmer t. Reed, a Noted Fancier,
Tells About the Birds Power.
Their Unconquerable Instinct to Return
TO Their Home Cote-How to Start
Flock-Feats the Birds
Have accomplished.

The HERALD soma days ago exclusive
ly announced the intention of the
Banning Brothers to establish a mail
service between Catalina island and
San Pedro, by means of carrier pigeons.
This novel enterprise has attracted
considerable interest and Mr.. Palmer 7.
Reed, the noted breeder of these USE
full birds, who has in hie cote at Sierra
Madre some wonderful birds, gave q
HERALD reporter the following interest
ing information about them:
Comparatively few people have any
idea of the powers of flight or intelli-
gsnce Of homing pigeons.
81 have been asked how long it would
take pigeon to fly from New York to
San Francisco and others are surprised
that birds can find their way from the
coast so miles distant to my home loft
in Sierra Madre. Many pigeons have
flown home, covering 500 miles, between
sunrise and sunset; butI L know of only
four birds doing 1000 miles, and it was
many days before they reached home.
They cannot fly after dark, and in long
flights SUNSET sometimes catches them
in an exhausted condition, far from food
and water, and they perish or become
an easy prey to hawks and gunners.
II have sent birds A or 5 months old,
who have never been one mile from
home, to parties rs miles away, and on
being released, back they come. OF
course they wandered great deal, and
often said: Where are we at?' but they
| got there. The homiug instinct can be
trained and developed, and it ia best to
give young bird his first toss-up two
miles from home the next, five miles.
and the next. 10 miles. After this you
can make skips OF 20 miles, and may be,
4 finally, you will get bird to cover the
distance between San Francisco and
Los Angeles in the light of one day.
'And yet the blue rock or common
domestic pigeon, which resembles the
Antwerp or Belgium homer, can be
made to adopt new quarters three
miles from his old home and either
don't know enough or care enough to 60
back.
$50 much for blood and generations
OF training. Pigeons pair and once
paired they are mated for life. They
don't know what Chicago divorce is.
Fanciers take advantage OF this and by
separating young pair when they have
reached housekeeping age mate the
best flyers and avoid inbreeding Every
pigeon intended for breeding should be
I Vested and if he don't come up to GER
tain requirements should go to pot.
On short fys and knowing the
course, they will maze one mile min
ute and often better. There are various
ways {. establishing new flock in new
quarters. Old birds can be made to
adopt new home, but I would not ad-
wise any beginner to try. 1t is tedious
operation and o pigeon must have his
wing feathers clipped or pulled for
long time. Even then he may return
and it will never be safe to fly him. The
only cure method is to take fully fiedged
birds, just ready to fly and
capable OF feeding themselves.
hut which have never been
pigeon is thing OF the past, and very
seldom bred. The Antwerp homer is
the carrier OF today, and is thought by
some to be cross of the carrier Belgium
smerle and owl pigeons. He is the bird
used in all races, and played promi-
Dent part carrying messages in the siege
of Paris during the Franco Russian war,
and is now to be put in service by the
Bannings between Catalina island and
San Pedro. 1t is proposed to establish
double line-keeping flock at each
place. They will be feature at Avalon.
and | have no doubt will attract crowds
to zee them come in.
ut is q pretty sight. The Antwerp
does not linger and circle down like the
common pigeon, but comes straight and
ewift as. an arrow, flying high, and
pitches into the dove cote like hawk
-
utilized to carry messages on days when
no steamer is plying, and during the
summer are to be principally runners or
flyers for the hotel, telling how many of
us maiD-landers are coming over to be
fed and catch( p yellow tails.
"The pigeons can cross the water in
half an hour, and beat the steamer q
long ways. Some think they will not
cross water. That is a mistake-they
will and have done so. In search of
home they fly over water, but never 90
out 0f sight of land unless they know
their course.
"Mr. Hancock Banning will have the
birds carefully trained, and they will
never hesitate to go to sea. Homers
have be flown between London and
Per s, and were used successfully in New
York during the outside yacht races.
Ane ufSL Dlru 10 De trained, when prOh-
cient, is 10 be used as pilot or help in
training the balance. He comes OF
tried fanily-no ocean will ever bar his
gong home from San Pedro. His
mother has flown from the desert, Crosse
ing two mountain ranges, and carried
many letter home for me when | have
been hunting and fishing in the noun
tains far from any postoffice, and this
without any training
Many governments keep hocks of
homers and subsidize them. The
United States has dove cote at Key
West Fla.
In Paris every keeper of over 20
homers fs allowed something for their
support, and in case Of war they are at
the disposal of the government. Mes
ssges are attached generally to the tail
feathers, as there they are less liable to
impede the flight. One way is to write
the message on tissu paper and wrap
around the base of a feather from which
the web has been cut to fit the paper.
The Most Pleasant Way
Otpreventing the grippe, colds, headaches
and fPVers ia "a lep the ltuuld lax alive