The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1896-06-17
KILLED BY BLUE CRANES,
A Fierce Attack of Birds Upon Two Men
Lost in a Forest in Minnesota,


Minneapolis, June 14-In the heart of
the country just opened by the settle
ment of the Red Lake reservation in
northern Minnesota there are intermina-
BILE swamps and muskes, as the Indians
call them, which are masses Of tangled
forest and low swanps of cedar and
tamarao woods. almost impenetrable. In
these forests are the haunts of myriads of
wild creatures. Moose and caribou roam
the woods, and their paths, often worn
to the depth Of foot or more along the
the lakes, are frequently met with. The
red deer is to be seen at any time.
Wolves are naturally numerous where the
deer are to be found, and the back bear
can be seen in every blackberry patch or
plum thicket The smaller game ami
there are no finer places in America for
the fisherman than the lakes and
streams that abound in all the region
The few men who stumble into that
wilderness come out with queer tales OF
their experiences and of tie scenes they
have witnessed there. Not the least
strange Of these WAS the experience of q
Black Duck settler, Harry James by
name, who attempted to cross the wilder
ness last week on his way from his home
to the settlements on the west of. the
timber country in the Red River Valley.
T., inyN ND HOW
were attacked by blue cranes. One of
the two men was killed and the other
barely escaped with his life, and will
probably be blind in at least one eye for
the rest of his life.
A lew miles south of Black Duck Lake
eral square miles. 1t is said to be the
largest of its kind in America. The
birds congregate in this rookery every
year in vast mum bers. and are just at this
time Matching their eggs and rearing
their young. The rookery is in spruce
count of the lakes and painless woods
that surround it. A more dismal place
would be hard to find.
The two men were not acquainted with
the woods, and, though old hunters and
pioneers, they were soon tangled in the
edge of the rookery about nightfall.
Making their way by the compass they
were attracted by the yelping of their
dog, fine hound, that was ranging q
few rods ahead of them. The dog was
evidently attacked by some creature that
was making it exceedingly disagreeable
and serious tor him, and they. fastened to
his relief. At once the air seemed to be
alive with cranes, and the dog came
bowling and STUN bling TO them, covered
with blood and half blind. and followed
by the birds When the birds spied the
men they turned their attention from the
dog and attacked them. Both were
struck by the beaks of the birds, and
James was knocked down, with several
wounds in his head, face. and neok. The
other man was rendered insensihle by a
wound in the temple, and the BIRDS
their onslaught ON both so fercely that
James was unable to help his comrade
The latter received wounds which caused
his death
Shielding himself as best he could I'M
der log beside which he had fallen,
James opened fire on the birds with his
Winchester, and kept it up as long as he
had cartridges but it appeared to do no
good, although several of them were
killed. Darkness coming on, he orep5
off into the dense brush, but not until
one Of the binds HAD given him blow
wit b it's beak that runined one eye.
The next morning he reached one OF
the surveying camps of the Farmers
Railway, and with William Hines, a
brother Of the now famous Farmer Hines
returned tic the rookery. They shot sew
eral of the cranes and retired, carrying
home with them one bird which stood
seven feet four inches in height and
measured eight feet across its extended
wings. Two others nearly as large were
shot. The intrusion of the two men ex-
cited the cranes very much, but as it
was daylight and both men were shoot
ing they kept at distance,