Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1896-01-11

Trained Pigeons.
1t is more than likely that the next
great European war will be signalized
by some altogether remarkable innova-
| tons in the way of carrying military
| dispatches. The carrier pigeons of a
quarter of century back are certain to
| be superseded, perhaps by storks. per-
haps by sparrows. Experiments have
| already been tried with both these birds,
| and with fair degree of success.
The stork, however, despite his swift
ness of flight and his strength, is too
easy mark tor the Lebel bullet, and it
is questioned whether the sparrow is
| sufficiently strong. In this uncertainty
an English apiculturist offers bees as
| messengers of war. He has tested their
| packet-carrying abilities, and can vouch
for their speedy return, upon liberation.
| to the place whence they came.
While at first sight the turning Of bees
into couriers may seem something of
| joke, it is nevertheless regarded seri-
ously throughout England. The man
who suggested it took few bees from
| his own house to that of friend four
miles away He waited several days, so
! that the bees might become familiar
with their surroundings. He then let a
| few of them loose in a room, in which
was plate of honey. The bees settled
upon this, and while they were busy
| eating mock dispatches were fastened
I on them by the apiculturist's trained
| hand.
The thinnest of all thread bound the
little packets, which were of the ilmiest
| of paper. to the bees backs. Great care
! was taken to leave the head and wings
| absolutely free. The windows were
| then opened and the bees thrown out
into the air. With the certainty of car
rier pigeons, they started off at once
for home, arriving there in an incred-
IDLY short time, with the packets secure
! upon their backs.
Naturally this project would only be
possible in summer and in warm eli
mates, for the reason that the bees
! would be unable to endure severe
weather. Bees would have the advan-
tage over pigeons or birds because of
their invisibility. Nor would there be
any difficulty in going through the
enemy's lines. The apiculturist says
that they could travel 90 miles quite as
easily as they could four.
Though this is the first time that bees
have been suggested as army messen-
gers, there have been many cases when
they have proved invaluable as defend
ing forces. At one time, several CEN
turtles ago, the city of Tamly, in the
Spanish territory of Xiatine, was be-
sieged by the Portuguese. The invaders
were winning bastion after bastion,
when the, beleaguered citizens were
| struck with brilliant project. They
brought all the hives that they could
| find in the place and set them upon the
city wall, building great fires under
! meath them. The smoke and the flames
| so incensed the bees that they rushed
out in swarms and flew down upon the
enemy, making panic instanter and
causing them to flee.
4 Very much the same plan was tried,
| and with equal success, by a statesman
of Thuringia, whose house was sur
rounded one day by furious mob. He
marched his servants out with all his
beehives and threw them one by one in
/ the midst of the crowd. A cannon ball
would not have been half as effective
as were these strange and unexpected
weapons. 1t took but few moments to
clear the space around the statesman's
dwelling.-N. Y. World.