Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1899-10-21
HOW CHICKENS TALK.
A Language You Can Understand II
You VIII Observe Closely.

Chlckens Talk IN language tnat
human ears learn readily to compre.
bend. For the most part It Is instinc.
tive. A fuzzy fodder six hours out
Of the shell has Eve distinct calls. The
first and loudest Of them is the lost
note, uttered when he loses sight Of
his mother or finds himself out In the
cold. 1t is loud and very shrill: pee
ee-op! Pee-ee-ee-op! Pee-eee-opw The
second, the hungry notes, is as shrill,
but more plaintive, running somewhat
thus: "Yeap! Yeeap! Yee-eeap! As
soon as eating begins 1t changes to a
sort of satisfied chittering: "wit-wit'
wit-wit! wit-wit-weetv'
After eating they grow sleepy and
cry to be lowered. The note Is some.
what like that of hunger, with pc
culiar tremolo breaking it in the mid
die. "Yee-pl-lee-pl! Yee-pl-lee-pl!' does
not fully represent 1t, but comes as
near as the limitations of vowels and
consonants admit. Very rarely do the
mothers disregard 1t, though they may
be eager to go foraglng over grass
plots or down hcdgCrows. Sometimes.
If they themselves are still hungry,
they run about at great rate, cluck-
ing strenuously. In that case the sleepy
chicks huidle and tumble about thci"
feet, and the most agile among them
fly upon the mothers back while she
IL still IN motion. That generally
fetches her to terms, though occasion.
ally she shakes down the saucy fellow
and pccks him roundly for his i'm.
pcrtlncnce.
The fifth note, chir-r-r of fright or as.
constituent, is the quaintest of all. The
chicks themselves appear to find some.
thing In 1t distinctly humorous. When
they are few days old. II big wrlg.
Cling worm or fat juicy bug bo
thrown to them with their usual food,
they will first draw away from 1t.
chr-r-ing In concert; then, after eying
1t a minute, seize upon 1t and toss 1t
about with faint, immature chuckling
cackles. This cllir.r develops at last
In the grating call of warning. at the
sound Of which from their mothers
even the youngest scatter and scutter
to cover.
Anything, a bird, a kite, even very
small passing cloud sailing In the sky
overhead. will evoke this warning cry.
Let one hen sound II, every other will
take II up. Often, oftencr than not.
indeed. the alarm Is a false one. but
centuries of hawks have Impressed
upon each feathered mind that dan.
ger cometh out Of the air" and they
govern themselves accordingly.
Everybody knows how hens cluck to
their broods. but It may b. news TO
many that, though hundred hens may
be clucklng In the same Enclosure.
the voice of each will be individual
and unmlstakable to her Immediate
family. A chick just out Of the nest
may not be able to discriminate, but
let him follow for a day and he Is pas,
making mistakes. Even more wonder.
full Is the hens ability to differentlatc
her brood from all the rest. With
sp.tcful. III tempered fowls this often
leads to ptiful barnyard' tragedies. An
Intruder, feeding peacefully among
chicks of his own size, shape and color.
has often been slain with one single
blow of a sharp,and angry beak.
Upon finding food hen calls her
chicks somewhat thus: "Co-cu-co-cu
cu-cu-ee"' The cock calls his wives
GbcCt HIN to share In some dainty
with nearly the same notes, but deep
or and more resonant In the beginning
and running at the end into high
pitched treble. There Is something
clownish In his cackle. He cacklcs
only to express panied establishment
or else by way of chorusing the hens,
with whom cackling Is favorite di-
version, quite independent of the mat
ter of egg laying.
A cock, especially gamecock or
one of Spanish breed, has wonderful
variety of crows. by means of them
indeed he runs the whole gamut OF
representations, fear, defiance, love,
hate, rage, vanity and fine inefrable
concet. he has besides sort of
wheeling scowl for Use against such
of his wives as are especially trying.
He sidles up to the culprit or calls her
to him with make believe worm, and
when she is close at hand gives her q
sharp peck, at the same time raising
the upper feathers Of his crest and ut
tering tile wheeling scowl. The
make believe worm Is very common
trick. Young cocks often resort to II
In the effort to draw 10 themselves the
mates of the cock of the walk"
1t is the hens without families though
who are the true barnyard gossips
Any fine day, outside melting time
| you may see them standing in groups
their heads close together, chuckllng
md chatterlrg like so many blackbirds
| II 4