The free press., 1896-07-09
A MOST AMUSING BIRD.


There is, in the geological gardens
in London,a bird whose aviary is con-
stantly surrounded by groups of chill
dren, shouting with laughter and Wig
orously applauding, as if they were
Witnessing the performance OF some
favorite play-actor, comedian or
pantomimist, instead of the antics OF
rather comm on place looking fowl,
neither as remarkable for shape or
plumnge as many another about him,
writes j. Carter Beard.
If, however, you were to join one OF
these groups of spectators and watch
his actions, l feel sure you would
acknowledge him to be as funny as
any human being, or monkey you
ever saw.
He has such an old fashioned, high
shouldered, learned look when you
first see him that you cannot help
respecting him, much as if he were
really and truly the wise old profess
sor he looks to be; German pro-
fessor, perhaps, such as you have seen
pitcures Of, professor in gray
dressing gown, with his hands behind
him and his head and long red nose
thrust forward and nodding at every
step, as he stalks solemnly about,
wrapped in silent meditation.
The dignity and seriousness of his
gait and expression, indeed. is some
thing that must be seen to be appre
ciated, as must also the suddenness
with which all his stately, formal and
decorous department disappears.
All at once his sleepy companions,
DOING on their perches or meditative-
| ly dressing their feathers and pluming
themselves, awake to the fact that they
have feathered terror amongst them,
and that the hitherto unobtruslve
kagu, whom they had found no par
ticular occasion to notice before, has,
apparently, gone mad. With wide
open beak and outspread wings, with
a sudden development of an ominous
and most preposterous crest, where
none was to be seen before, and a
harsh rattling noise he rushes at the
frightened inmates of the aviary, he
drives them frantically, squalling,
shrieking and Tapping in every
direction; he chases anl up
sets them, and is not satisfied
until, master of the field, he alone re-
mains on the ground and every one of
his companions is clinging in mortal
terror to the topmost wires of the
great cage.
His satisfaction at this achievement
is evident, his enjoyment of it un-
bounded. He runs prances and skips
about in the most dignified fashion,
and, finally, taking the tip end of a
wing or tail feather in the tip end of
his beak, he indulges in high step
ping, light, fantastic waltz that is alb
surd and preposterous beyond descrip-
ton. His performance generally
winds up with picking up stray
feather there are sure to be plenty
lost in the hurly burly he has
caused) tossing it up in the air
chasing, catching it and tossing
it up in the air again,
until he is tired or has worked off his
flow of spirits. Occasionally, how
ever, he varies this performance by
sticking his bill deep in the ground,
standing on his head, tapping hie
wings, and tiourishing his long red
legs wildly in the faces of the specta-
tors, who never fail to greet the per.
formance with shrieks of laughter.
Certainly such another amusing
| bird does not exist, unless it is sort
of second cousin of tho kagu, the
shadow bird or Scopus umbrella OF
Africa. that plays in pretty much the
same way. Atlanta Constitution. :,