The daily morning journal and courier., 1899-12-04
NEW BUSINESS FOR PIGEONS.
Their Training as Military Messeng ers
 in Various Countries of Europe.

Their Training as Military Messeng era
 in Various Countries of Europe.
 The official despatch received by pig
 con post at Durban, which was tele-
 graphed to Sir Redvers Butler and re-
 telegraphed to the. War Office, serves te draw attention to subject of pigeons as war messengers. As has been already mentioned Col. Hassard of the Royal
 Engineers, one of the staff officers at l the Cape, has specially devoted himself
 to pigeon culture, with a view to the
 employment of the birds in time of war,
 and it is owing to the untiring efforts 1 of this Royal Engineer officer that we were able to read Sir George White l message sent off from Ladysmith by
 pigeon post on Friday in the Monday
 morning paper.
 It is only quite recently that our Gov-
 ernment decided to establish service
 of homing pigeons for the use of the
 army and this effort to remedy very
 serious defect in our Intelligence De-
 partment did not come a moment too soon. For years past Italy, Germany,
 Austria, France, and Russia have recog-
 
 senger in time of war, and large sums
 of money are voted for the systematic
 training of the birds. In Germany, for
 instance a sum amounting to about
 G2,5O0 is annually set aside in the war budget for the training and support of war pigeons. Every fortress and camp on the frontier-so we learn form re- cent accoupt-has its columbary sup piled with trained birds, housed for emergencies. The pigeons belonging to the German War Department number about 10000 but, in addition, all train- ed birds in the country are numbered and registered, and can be claimed by the authorities in time of need. These pigeons may not be sold or taken out of the country without leave from the military authorities, and their registra- ton is compulsory under severe penal ties. The German military pigeon sys- tenn is by far the most extensive and complete in Europe
 Since 1870 the French have devoted considerable attention to war pigeons. It will be remembered that it was sole- ly due to the existence of two private societies in Paris that the news from the provinces reached the capital during the siege The work done by the birds all through this critical l period, when all other means of reach 1 ing the capital had failed, led to the or ganization of q regular service of mes- seger pigeons for use in war generally, | and particularly as q means of com over the heads of the ene- my, with a besieged fortress. The pig cons is prohibited. The shooting of pig loons and were dispatched from towns. | The messages were limited to 20 words each, and they were photographed ! down on to films of collodion, which held 2,500 messages. A bird would carry twelve films, or 30, 900 messages, and one bird even arrived with 40,000. On the arrival of the birds the films were en- arged by photographs and then copied.
 In 1891 it was estimated that there were 250,000 birds in France available 'or collecting intelligence, and the num- per has doubtless since then consider ably increased. The shooting of pig ,nos is prohibited, and a strict cens- Us is kept of the birds in the country The principal pigeon n-training station in Trance is at Chalons, but there are de- JUS III dll lue ITOHlleF lOWUS ana IOr- resses. .tc From recent article in a French pa- ,er we gather that between these out ying points regular pigeon post is maintained. Three times week lumber of birds are taken by train to ertain points on the frontier, where hey are liberated, a careful record be- ng kept of the performance of each ird. The French military authorities laim that even if all the railways and elegraphs were destroyed they could eep themselves well informed of events ( n the frontier by means of tlfe system pigeon post. The regulations as to l raining, registration, and sale of priv : te breeding birds are stringent, and | he State reserves to itself the right l taking all trained birds if the pub e service should demand it. The first Austrian military pigeon -ation was established in 1875; since a len others have been erected. The overnment relies to a large extent on C 'ivate societies and individuals for the I lpply of pigeons in time of emerg- T