Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1894-01-11
THE PIGEON BOOSTS.
THEY USED TO BE so CROWDED
TREES WERE BROKEN DOWN.

The Pretty Bird, Like the buffalo. Was
Euthlessly Slaughtered = There Is Not
Now a Roost In the Country-A Hunter,
Not Yet Old. Has Seen the Change.
A party of hunters-gentlemenw who shoot
for the sport and recreation there are in it
were talking the other day about The
disappearance of game, four legged and
winged, when they were suddenly inter
rupted by Mr.. w. r. Donaldson. one of the
most enthusiastic of their number, with
the question:
"Did you ever see anything so complete
ly disappear as the wild pigeon? There
isn't 'roost' in the United States today
and from what can understand there is
none ON the North American continent,
except it may be one or two small ones in
Canada
Mention the pigeon "roost" to a young
hunter today, and he will ask you what
you mean. He has heard of it, and
that is about all. And yet Mr.. Donald
son and those who hunted with him are
but in the prime of life, and they saw the
roosts in all their glory. In a few words,
the roosts are, or rather were, places where
the pigeons congregated in almost innu-
merable numbers and Matched their young.
They were formerly found in all parts of
the United States. They are referred to
by James Fenimore Cooper, particularly In
1.-THE Pioneers" In the early days they
were found in the east, just as the early
settlers found the buffalo at the mouth of
the St. Lawrence, even in the frigid zone.
And they have disappeared just as the buff
falo has disappeared.
For their roosts, or Matching places, the
pigeons always selected Il dense forest or
grove in the most inaccessible plsace to be
found. There they would build their nest
and lay their eggs, and there they would
remain eight Or nine weeks, by which
time the eggs woald have Matched and the
young birds have been able to fly. They
would come in aocks of hundreds and thou
sandstone old timers say millions-but
all the testimony gees to show that they
never did any harm that Il war of extermi-
nation should have been waged against
them.
The only harm worked by them WIS in
the breaking down of trees. They roasted
in such numbers that limbs of trees even
of considerable size were broken. A grove
after their departure looked as if n cyclone
had struck it. But the groves they select
ed were always wild ground. They never
selected one on n farmers property. As
for food, they were never like other birds.
They did not disturb the newly planted
or growing crops of grain. Leaving their
roosts in the morning, they would fly long
distances-some say hundreds of miles
in search of such food as they desired.
Returning at night their whirring would
sound like the roll of thunder. In flight
they were so dense as to seem like IL cloud
obscurEg the sight. They were also er-
ratio in flight, swooping down landward
and circling around frequently. In this
locality their flight was always over the
outskirts of the city. Many men who are
not yet very far advanced in years can tell
of having shot into these fiocks from the
vicinity of jefferson avenue, bringing
down n dozen or two dozen birds at a time
These men were then schoolboys. MIR.
Donaldson tells of many times he went out
before breakfast, returning for his morn
ing meal in time TO go to school. There
was sport in this for the boys, of course,
but very little for the older hunters. who
enjoyed shot according as it was difficult.
There never was any sport about the
pigeon roost-that is, sport as it is defined
by the gentleman hunter. This sports
man, when he took a shot, wanted bird
on the wing SO it would have n chance
for it's life. There wasn't really any ne
cessity of firing a gun into a roost. When
they were fired into, the only sport was in
seeing how many birds could be killed at
once. Ten to fifteen was nothing unusual,
while often Il couple of dozen might be
brought down. But as to securing the
birds the use of shot and powder was a
waste A good heavy club and strong arm
suffced. The club thrown into a tree
would bring down the pigeons like nuts
from hickory tree. a few well directed
clubs thrown, and the ground would be
covered with the dead and MANNED birds,
though, no matter what their number
might be, they could not be missed from
the limbs of the trees. The roosts were
visited by hunting parties, to be sure, but
not for sport. The hunter who heard of
n roost in the vicinity of where he might
happen to be would always visit it, but
his visit was wholly out of curiosity. He
always found the country folk there from
miles around, but they also came from Gu
riosity. They didn't care for the birds.
but they entered into the work of slaugh-
ter. just as if the pigeons, like the flies,
were without end rs to being and increase.
They never had the least idea that the
day would come when II pigeon pie would
be a thing of the past, as it practically is
now. They could not imagine the time
when pigeon or SQUAD would be luxury.
In those days the pigeon had no market.
They might be worth 25 cents a dozen.
but to be worth that II purchaser had 20
be found. Thus the bulk of the siaugh-
tered birds were fed to the hogs or left to
rot on the ground. There is something or
lesson in this rs to game birds still in
existence. The flesh of the wild pigeon is
very sweet. and there is about ms much Of
it as on the quail. Just compare the pi-
geon ut % cents a dozen, and no buyers, to
the quail at So and $3.50 dozen and more
buyers than can be satisfied. The quail
in the early days was marketed at about
so cents dozen. It, TOO, was slaughtered
until it became so scarce that laws had to
be passed to prevent it's extinction. All
of the surrounding states have laws now
which run for five years and which, it is
hoped, will give the bird new life. This
law is being reasonably enforced in Mis-
souri, but enough birds to partially sup
ply the market are being brought in from
Kansas and Illinois and the Indian Terri
tory. The law permits of the sale il they are