The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1893-08-04
NAT LASK'S PARROT.
Story Of Remarkable Man and a
Remarkable Bird


asked jim Gordon, of Little Rock
"Never was such a remarl1a BILE parrot
l don't think. But then, Nat Lasl1 was
somewhat of a remarkable man. lie
was an old Arkansas and Mississippi
river boatsman. He used to run be-
tween Little Rock and New Orleans in
the good old times before the war. Ht
owned twenty niggers once, and they
all got their freedom just because Nat
was such remarkable man. There
was good many niggers running away
about that time, and making their run
for good. Nat gave it out that he'd
like TO see any Of his get away. For
every one that got away, he said, he'd
set another free. Less than week
after that one of Mats best niggers
turned up missing, and he couldn't be
found. Over the border, sure The
ruraway's wife belonged to Nat
'Suse,' said Nat, dye know whar
Joe is?'
"'Yes, massa.'
"'Wall then, you jes' go long an Jine
him.'
80 he kept his word and set one
slave free because another had sue
ceeded in running away, and he showed
what remarkable man he was by set
( ting free the wife Of the fugitive. And
Nat wouldn't take back his offer either,
and his niggers kept running away,
and he kept setting others free to
match 'em, until he hadn't one left.
Don't make no diff'nce.' Nat used
to say. Nobody didn' 'bleege me to
set my niggers free.
just about the time the war broke
out Nat was in New Orleans taking on
cargo. On the levee one day he was
passing an old woman who was selling
parrots, when one of the birds yelled
out:
damn fool!"
''That fetched Nat up standing, and
he ASKED the woman which parrot had
addressed him in such familiar tones.
'"He knows me- said Nat, but L swar
l never knowed him!''
Nat didn't have to wait for the old
woman to tell him which parrot it was,
for the bird yelled out its compliments
to him again on the spot, and Nat was
so tickled with the parrot that he
bought It. He was so taken up with
his new companion that he paid no at
tention to anything else all the way
back on the trip to Little Rock. When
he arrived there he gave up his boat
'''Goin' to quit boatin', he said. Ttll
take all my time now on to tend to this
parrot
And if he didn't quit, right there
and then, l hope to holler. He tied
himself up to that parrot and had no
time for anything or anybody. Then
the war began to stir things up, and
one day Nat said:
''Thar's goIn' ter be the deuce ter pay
round hyah fore long, an 1 take 10 the
woods!'
''He was good as his word lie took
his gun and his parrot, went way back
into the wilderness along Big Nam
melee creek and put up snug log
cabin. And it was there that the par
rot came out strong. The woods were
full of game-wiid turkey. deer, bear,
panther. The creek held plenty OF wild
ducks and geese. Nat trained the par
rot to hunt The bird got so he could
give all the calls and cries of the wild
turkey better than the wild turkey
could itself, and fs, never missed get
ting the right call or cry in at just the
right time. He found ont that q lost
fawn, or fawn hidden by its mother,
could summon its mother or some other
deer quickly to whore it was by q
plalntive bleating. and the parrot got
on to that bleat only too quick. lie i'm
ltated the une2rthly screech OF the
panther 50 ably that Nat used TO say it
was nothing out Of the common for
Bobby-that was the parrots name
to call as many as a dozen big fellows
around the cabin Of an evening and set
them all tc fighting at once Bobby
couldn't only Go the quacls Of duck or
the gabble OF a goose to perfection. bat
be could manipulate those cries so that
you would think be was whole flock
cf ducks or geese. 50, if there were
ducks or geese flying over. it was no
trick at all for Bobby 70 Let hir1szlf
loose just as Il i was q dozen or so
fowl Jabberi3g fogethcr. and q flying
flock hearing him going or. would say
10 themselves: These ducks I1ust haze
struck good luck down there n TIE
creek Let's drop down ana get a piece
Of it And when they had dropped
down near enough Nat, hid in the
bushes, would tumble a half dorm OF
50 before they could get on % the way
tEer wore fooled.
Bobby hA.ed 10 hunt Mild turkeys
best II there vas = turkey withia
hearing of him, 1t couldn't resist that
seductive call of his. and when i cane
Fvis'.i7 gr16hot aFd zzt PIT 3 ball "a i.
BoofF bec@ne 3 very Eezd IL Ats ricat-
ing over is deatn strzrrAes fIe s.ouid
f. around the poor blrd aa1 g1rga ard
yel Ike q demon Bat !. N@t hay
7e7ed 20 miss the turszev asscr BOBBY
had called : Up. taen Eaayfe fe yFould
get Its TIE parrot ysou.d 81 sz.s
sTo'csf.s sTlsa. iazsguare kast Mt usod .
say made Elz-l Fl. .soeyr azd s~ais for ttse
shower Of Err ard trsrz1torc tsat he
.elt szre -rs- be see. down o. ;fe-a
Tor tsaat BIRDS wsriee5aess- Ard he'8
aT a. Nat a.sa iss4 his hair cut n
bunches. ard Eaz5er rzeIosss ~rafs =; his
cEes AID 1Acz - tsaeze us4fo-saz@te
times. Eh-el., l.sezSF. see-s ga-n. MT
gssed to lse dova 40 his faae aad lss
Eo.oy Pe- asTay 1es. -gsll u TN za.l