The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-03-30
THE RATs KNOW RILEY.
He Shares His Luncheon with Them.
and They Have Confidence In Him.
From the Indianapolis Journal.


From the indianapolis Journal.
Addison Riley, a blacksmith in Indian
apolis, has a small company Of rats that
come at his call each noon hour. As with
the celebrated Pied Piper of Mamelin.
ding; but in the case of Mr. Riley ii is
food and not music that attracts them.
BY careful treatment however, he has
taught them TO know him, and they are
no more afraid of him than of a bushel of
corn. Each noon, as Mr.. Riley sits down
to his lunch, the rats begin to come, and
so great is their confidence in him that
they will climb on his lap, eat from his
hand and allow him to stroke them. After
the meal they will scramper back under
the worn floor of the shop.
The process by which Riley has sue
ceeded in training rats has been a tedi-
Gus one. He commenced by getting them
TO come little way from their holes for
crumbs. He then Increased the distance
between the food and the rats retreat
They finally learned that he meant them
no harm, and now he is regarded by them
as a great friend. The novelty of rats
coming from their places of safety to eat
IRON the hands of a man has attracted
many people TO the blacksmith shop dur
ing noon hours. The rats will not venture
Iar out when any strangers are near at
hand. A stranger may stand a few feet
away, but it is observed that all the while
the rats are running about Riley they have
an eye on the stranger and at the slight
BILE.
Riley has seven or eight animals trained
not to fear him. He knows one from the
other. There are three or four old rats
with white whiskers, but the hot-blooded
sionally a visiting rat to Mr.. Riley's col
ony will come out as far as the hole, but
VIII fly back with idismayI sAH
Riley has fixed place for eating his
lunch. He has small STOOL on which he
sits, placing his dinner basket I'm a win
dow easement. At his feet he places some
IuVFaae md Il fnnA.m III
and while he eats the rats gather around
the box. They crowd and jostle one an
other, and while they are eating Riley
could kin all of them if he wished TO.
There is nothing about the shop which
can be damaged by rats, so the colony
is not a nuisance.
The rats seem to know when it is time
10 zine. Riley will take his lunch basket
ana commence on his meal throwing a
rev crumbs near the rat holes He is
teaching them to come out by a call, bur
at they usually seem ready to come out
when work in the shop ceases, it is hare
70 tell just how much they are learning
about the call. After they have CON
sumed their daily meal in the box they
viii run up MIR. Riley's legs and across
his lap, bits of food being the rewards.
Inc other workmen have tried to exert
the same influence over them but all
attempts have been in vain. The rats
only come out for Riley, and the other
workmen can only stand off and look at
the interesting exhibition. They do nor
OBJECT If he strokes them or picks them
up, but the raising of a hand by some
one else is the signal for a scatterment
During the last week the rats have been
shy, Monday they would not come out,
Tuesday, two rash fellows ventured a
short distance from their holes Wednes-
day the colony would come out for food
placed very near the holes. Thursday,
they ventured again to the feet of Riley
and yesterday they showed their old-time
confidence. Riley was at afloss to explain
the timidity of his friends, but only a
possible explanation could be found. Last
Sunday the employees Of a livery stable but
a Few yards away made a raid on the
rats about the place. Traps We're set
and several dozen caught. The rats were
brought to the street and turned loose
at the mercy of a number of dogs It was
a slaughter for rats. Riley thinks that
perhaps his colony received news of the
slaughter and became alarmed lest the
same fate awaited thems The suggestion
was made that perhaps some relatives of
Riley's colony were killed in the slaugh-
ter and his friends were In mourning.
Anyway, the pets remained under the
shop floor and out of sight for two or three
days. Riley has been unable to train them
any more than to have no fear of him.
He says they are friendly simply for the
food there is in 1t.