Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1897-09-16
A STOUT LITTLE FIGHTER.
whose Combative Disposition Often Gets
Him Into Trouble.

Him Into Trouble.
The redbird. when it has gotten down
hard TO home making. develops a re-
msrka5le tendency to fight. At all
other times of the year he is as docile
and gentle as any in the woods-indeed,
rather inclined to take a great deal from
other birds, but as soon as the nest is
completed and Mrs. Redbird is installed
queen thereof he gets on his war paint
and will fight anything that comes
nlong. II is by taking advantage of the
bravery of the redbird in defending the
home that the hunter is enabled to
snare it, The trap used is a wire cage.
Within this cage is a tame bird, one
which has been in captivity for year
or two, and sings freely. The hunter
wanders into the woods and slowly
makes his way through the swamps
until he reaches a dense portion, when
he halts. Pretty soon the bird in the
cage, delighted, doubtless, at being
again in its native woods, even If bars
stand between it and liberty, begins
singing with all its might. If there is
redbird within sound of the callers
voice IL hastens to investigate. One of
the peculiar habits of the redbird, hunt
ers say, is that there seems, by common
consent, to be a division of the woods
among them, each bird having appro-
priated to his especial jurisdiction
certain allotment of woods. Sometimes
other birds, either by mistake or for the
purpose of acquiring more territory,
invade the domain of another, where
upon there is a fierce fight, which is
called of only when one or the other
of the birds conquers, in which case the
victor becomes the possessor of the
territory OF the two, together with the
defeated birds mate, who, 1t seems, is
no longer willing TO share fortunes with
her former lord after he has proven
himself poor fighter.
The hunter has on one side of his
cage light net. bound about by light
frame. and to the center OF light iron
rod. stretched perpendicularly across
this frame is attached in swinging po-
sition short rounded stick, about six
inches in length. This gate of netting
IS opened and kept in that position by
the wooden trigger, which is braced
against another similar trigger attached
TO the sides of the cage wherein is the
call bird. This connection of the two
triggers is very delicate, and the slight
est touch will suffice TO throw it, where
upon the frame netting door is quick
ly closed by a spring against the sides
of the cage. This is what holds the
redbird captive.
AS soon as the hunter has set the trig-
ger of his cage, he hangs it to limb
somewhere or places it on the ground
and goes away some distance to await
results. The imprisoned redbird soon be-
gins to sing, and presently if there is
redbird anywhere within hearing dis
lance, there is a flutter of wings, series
ofsharpcries, and before the hunter can
say: SCAT" the wild redbird flies head
long at his supposed enemy in the cage,
throws the trigger and is captured. 1t
takes very little longer to capture a
redbird at this time of the year than it
does TO catch a fish. If once the Gagged
bird is placed in the right spot within
the territory of the other redbirds and
he hears its singing, the rest is very
easy, for, regardless of all personal
safety and everything else, he rushes
madly to the Observation-Disclosures Tele-
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