The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-06-26
MARVELs OF SPEED.
Animals That Match or SurpaSs Arti-
fetal Methods of LOcOmOtfOn.

in the east, but slopes so gradually in the
southwest that a carriage could be driven
over the open prairie from Cerro Gordo to
the valley of the Rio Verde.
The Mexican Central railroad crosses the
crest of that plateau in deep glen, and
on approaching a point where the track
makes a sharp turn the engineer of a
southbound passenger train few weeks
ago caught sight of three wolves gnawing
the skeleton of horse in roadside ditch
They had probably seen loco
motives before, and seemed half
inclined to let the train pass,
but a revolver shot from the bag
gage car made them start, and the next
moment they were bounding down the
track at greyhound speed looking back
every now and then, as if trying to dodge
o second shot, or to ascertain the racing
capacity of the snorting monster at their
heels
GO it, wolvesw Pull her wide open,
Joe!' came chorus of cheers from the
passenger cars. Don't shoot any morev'
Say, give them a fair chance'
The present chance hardly deserved that
name, for in widening the glen the banks
had been cut through a rough blue clay,
slippery with dripping springs, and rising
almost perpendicular from the wayside
bitches.
One of the wolves did try to bolt the
track by making a spring at a steep Gre
vice. but tumbled back in shower of slid
ing shale, and, gathering himself up, made
desperate effort to overtake his compan-
ions till the engine was almost upon him.
Then. realizing the significance of his
peril he leaped into a ditch and there
rolled over on his back. raising his paws
exactly like dog begging for mercy
Luck favored the suppliant. The train
Numbered by before the man with the re-
bod unit bt1f
the VOLTS relatives somehow seemed to
conclude that their friend in the ditch
must have come to grief, and fairly flew
down the glen For a few hundred yards
they actually appeared to improve their
start.
Hurry up! Don't let them beat you,
Joer' shouted the passengers, but the en-
gineer had reached the long down grade
toward the river valley and could not turn
on more steam without risking to lose con-
troll of his train.
At last the home stretch of the strange
race track hove in view. The steep banks
subsidized, sank to mere entertainments, and
about mile ahead descended to the level
of the roadbed. In sight of that point Joe
ventured to mend his speed for few min
utes but the wolves, too, rallied their
remnants of energy for last life-or-death
effort, and the locomotive was still
stones throw behind when the fugitives
reached the gap leaped the ditch and bolt
ed down a side hill amidst cheers that
drowned the clatter of the train. me
wolves had run the last half mile IN
little less than Q minute.
Wolves and their near relatives, the
long-legged hyena hounds of Southern At
rica. run down the fleetest antelopes by
hunting in packs, and changing their lead
ers at intervals Of ten or twelve minutes
These leaders, while their turn lasts'
have to do double work; besides setting
he Of tl9X nave
watch their chance for short cut, dodge
obstacles and utilize every advantage OF
the ground. If a troop of hyena-dogs
should be disappointed by the interVen-
ton of larger carnivora, they wheel of
sidewalks and hunt in what drill sergeants
would call an open skirmish line, scatter
ing wider and wider, till they start an
other quarry, and then at once form into
ranks again and resume their yelplng
bowls that resemble the first note of
cuel0oos call, and seem intended to rally
stragglefs or bewilder their victims with
omens of approaching ruin. fusthat man
ner they can keep up their swinging gal
lop for an amazing long time, watching
every advantage and changing their lead
ers at regular intervals.
But, without the benefit of these CO.
operative tactics, no beast of prey, per-
haps, could overtake the Koodoo buck of
the Abyssinian highlands, a deer-like an
telope that rivals the chamois in clearing
DEOdQ cndSfnS ana eXcelS aus SpGeu On
level ground. Sir Samuel Baker saw
troop of these creatures cross a rocky pla-
teau like a flock of strong-winged birds,
clearing cliffs and bushes with prodigious
bounds and darting across stony slopes at
a rate that would have dismayed a stee-
ple-chase rider. And no matter how much
faster than all other four-footers they
seem to go, they always have a maximum
in reserve; whenever Sir Samuel banged
off a pistol or ordered Kaffir teamster
20 crack his long bull whip the fleeing
Koodoos put on a squirt and would proba-
bly, have surpassed that apparent ne plus
ultra If a new enemy should have sud-
denly started up from the cliffs at their
side.
1t would be interesting to watch race
between these prodigies and the grey
hounds that have been trained to capture
the bustards of the South Russian Steps.
The bustard (otis tarda) is about one-third
heavier than a turkey, and its long legs
are stout enough to distance any ordin-
airy pursuer But with swift hound at
his heels, Master Longlegs contriyes to
take wing now and then, sail along for a
couple of hundred yards and then flop
down again, striking the ground running.
He thus enjoys the advantage of ex-
pert swimmers who can tread water
for a while, when they feel the need OF
resting their arms. but the Caucasian
greyhound beats him for all that He
continues his steady rush, which some-
times enables him to catch his bird in the
act of alighting, or-as happens to heavy
old cocks--in swooping down too violently
and losing seconds time in regaining his
feet.
Greyhounds also run down the long-ear-
ed rabbits of the Texas prairies. though
the doubling tricks of the rodent "a
true hare, with the WEAKNESS of a concyO
sometimes cause them to overshoot their
mark and dash a hundred yards ahead,
while poor puss gets that much of a start
I'm new direction. The prong-horn ante
lope now and then effects her escape by
her superior talent for clearing obstacles
with flying leaps. but has no chance on
open ground, and a frst-class greyhound
would probably overtake the Mexican
bush turkeys that get so fat nj certain
times OF the year that they can fly only
for a few hundred yards. unless favored
BY the direction OF a strong breeze.
But neither greyhounds nor lightning
express trains could long keep IN sight of
such champion flyers as the pigeon hawk
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