The St. Johns herald., 1895-06-20
BIRD CATCHING.
How the Trick Is Done h Tn.
 by Professionals.
4 Deaeripsion of the Methods T.: in Sharing the Ckaflnch :-' Suburbs of Lond n E.;o-.
 the Bre0a Of s..y.

h OSOC1 was nd 1uy. any Gi1SSS the materials for sl arin9 Sr i'd out and made ready, says 4 corre- spondent Of the St. Louis GIoYe-Demo- crat. They were few and simple. Each man had stuffed male chafinch il full pLunage mounted on short length Of stick, i1 one end of which was sharp spike. Besides this the only tools of the craft were half u dozen pieces Of whalcbone of about the thickness of an umbrella rib and nine inches long, and these, like the stuffed birds mounting, were provided at one end with spike. A little stone jar containing bird lime com plcted the outfit.
 These preliEineries completed, we made g start for the forest, which was close at hand, Bob the Butcher (who had won the toss for first try) keeping we'll i'll advance of the rest of the porty. It could Tot, however, be said that chaGinches were plentiful, though all round about us there was an abun- dance of bird music of almost every other kind. It was not the fault of the valiant peggers. Their cages all the time enveloped in the handkerchiefs, was required of them, and fired of their challenge loud and Erging, It the rate of at least thsce within the minute. utpresently Bob the Butcher. who was some twenty yards ahead. held up his hand in token that he had at last found something" On that the sailor boy was placed for the time bs- ing under c furze bush. snA we all hur- ried up to see the fun.
 A cruel sport is chsmneh begging. Not thatany actual pain is inflicted on the poor birds in the aet ofzcapture. though no doubt they gre most terri ply frightened. The villsiny of the business lies in the unfortunate finch being made the victim of his jealous regard for the welfare of his nest mate the wife of his bosom. So nics ere his ideas of dom estic felicity thst though his house is no larger than the hollow of ones hand, he insists on having tree all to himself for accom- modation. No other pair of ehsf6nches may build there, nor must any male of the tribe come lcafing round. Sure a he does fight ensues and the inter. lopcr is driven away. It is on the ohafinch's known objection to visitors of his own species that the rascally bird catcher founds his hopes of auc- cess, as was speedily made manifest Dy Bob the Butchers naneuvering Ut the trunk of the poplar tree, among the boughs Of which wild finch was all the time angrily responding to the hidden caged birds challenge. T.''i;i' - Producing his slips of whalebone the butcher smeared them. plsntifuily with the. bird lime, and by; means of the spiked ends stuck them hEre md there ia, the tree trunk, sndssimmedi- ately beneath he fixed the stuffed bird, It was not till then that he placed the decoy hnch-it3 cage still tied up in the handkerchief-at the foot of the tree, and covered it over with hand ful or two of grass. This was the pitch" and on the instant . watch was produced and the exact time noted, and we all withdrewg to the screening of hedge close at hand, Peeping through the openingsof of which we could sec what was taking place in the poplar tree. The hidden bird con- tinuing his challenge" the wild bird. always answering, and each. Succeed ing time moro fercely-was presently seen eagerly 1uttering this. way in search of the intruder. At last, green eyed-and on that account purblind probably-it caught sight of the harm less dummy down below, and,, with a shriek of rage, was down on it, swift seemingly as stone from 0 sling. But the trcacherous lined twigs inter cepted the savage bounce, and the next moment, with it's outstrctched wings held by the detached smeared sticks, it fell helpless to the ground.