The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1894-08-09


passed on the sulphur bouquet grew to
such an extent that I sent man down
the we'll to see what gave the water
this peculiar favor. After pulling out
% barrels of water we came to small
duck in the cold embrace of death.
own a white drake, called Sir Fran
els, named for Sir Francis Drake. This
beast discovered that the cistern at the
barn could be entered safely, and so he
had for the past year been in the habit
Of taking plunge there and enjoying
himself, Eusting to the hired man to
come and bail him out when the horses
were watered at eventide. In June a
new brood of little yellow ducklings
came forth under the management of a
plain and comparatively unknown hen
These ducklings seemed to inherit
some Of the pecnliarities of Sir Francis,
for one of them, seeing glimmer of
water 1O3 feet below him one day while
strolling around the we'll, took notion
to cool his little red feet in the dark
tide. He found large knothole in the
well curb and descended deity to the
bottom.
As he went down his whole life doubt
less, covering period of three weeks, was
unrolled before him like panorama,
and when he reached the water his soul
had quilted its little tenement Of clay.
When we took him out, his still feath-
ers showed no signs of pain, but he lay
peacefully in the old oaken bucket, for.
ever at rest.
It was almost pathetic to know how
even in death he had called our atten-
ton to the fact that he was down there
all by himself. Instinct perhaps, you
will say, but does it not almost approach
actual intelligence?
The hen turkey is doubtless for her
size the most successful pathological
ass known to science. She is poorly fit
ted for parent, as every one knows who
has studied her. She becomes thought
full and preoccupied in the month of
May, and you may see her strolling off
by herself at times as if studying ma
ture. She soon after becomes nonres-
ident, and just as you decide that she
has been yielded up as sacrifice to the
colored revival near by she suddenly ap-
pears on the scene with nine small edi-
tions of herself, each with little Wa
terbury tick of its own.
She exhibits these specimens of her
handiwork about twice and then dis
appears. She takes offense at any at
tention, though sometimes she prefers
to go up tree for the night, leaving
her little ones in wide eyed wonderment
to put in the night in the grass
At early dawn she comes down and
starts off through the wet, icy weeds in
search of food. The little chaps, broken
of their rest and heavy eyed with loss
of sleep, are dragged Is or 20 miles
through the tall wet grass till they are
soaked and chilled to the heart. Then
they are given each hard, indigestible
grasshopper or hunting case beetle for
breakfast. Then the hot sun comes pour
ing down upon them, and when you
meet the old idiot two weeks later she
has one little bobtail, moth eaten tur
klet for whom Thanksgiving could have
no horrors
The hen turkeys morbid desire to in
cubate is peculiar and powerful. She pre-
fers for this purpose the primeval forest.
There she selects the dead tree top Of q
prime giant oak and deposits hatful
Of freckled eggs To see her on her nest
at such q time one would think she was
preparing an article on the tariff, but
as one approaches her dangerous light
seems to come into the gentle eyes, and
one passes by ON the other side
A hen turkey Is no more fitted for q
mother, however, than the soubrette Of
road company. She 10 . great pedes-
trian, and Of course after her long sed-
entary spell naturally wants to exercise,
20 she starts OF the day after her fami-
" has broken tho shell, and stepping
about two fest at time expects her lit
tie folks to keep up with her. When
they tail TO DO Va. ahe curses them hit.
tsEH and shows 10 yatisnos whassvsr.