The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1900-03-18
Out Of Sight In a Few Seconds.

altitude an air stratum best suited 10 their
purposes
Out Of Sight IN a Few Seconds.
The watcher. standing In some wide
brown field saw suddenly appear upon
the far horizon a small dun cloud in no
way different I'm appearance from any
other cloud 1t grew in size with strange
rapidty. Almost as he drew his third
breath II had resolved itself into mass
Of birds, and then. as he gaxed and said 20
himself. vivid pigeons" Il passed above
his head and melted away In the distance.
There came down on him a faint SHIN
merinr murmur. a sort ~ keen tremor Of
sound made by the tens OF thousands OF
pdlsating pinions a shadow fell upon him.
passed and was gone. n was a miracle
OF speed. The steadiness. the persistence
of its fight was not less remarkable than
It's velocity As certain forms Of wan
dering terni;es are not 10 be turned back,
or TO one side. by any obstacle, going
over. under or straight through any house
which bars their path, SO the passenger
pigeons struck bee line when they start
ed TO the south. and stopped not nor turn
ed for anything animate or inauimate. lr
one OF the vast armies had suddenly en-
countercd a mile high clim appearing in
the path thousands Of them would have
dashed themselves to death. The number
which turned back. or to one side, would
have been small,
This obstinacy OF direction was one OF
the strangest things in nature, and no
man could ask for a more absorbing
sight than n pigeon flight harried by
dozen hawks and falcons. The birds OF
prey met the oncoming horde, They
never presumed TO chase Il, lowering
high they waited until the vanguard had
passed under them, then struck down
at the practically solid mass beneath.
soaring upward Immediately with dead
victims In their talons often, In SEEM
ing wantonness, they would strike again
and again with heak and claw, and dead
birds would come sitting lamely down out
OF the mass In dozens. Bronze and gray
feathers floated upon the wind. The man
below could know what was happening
only by the falling bodies and feathers
However severe the attack the hurtlins
mass OF birds did no, vary It's formation
or check its speed. IL seemed uneon-
scious OF the murder being done In
that tremendous throug individuals were
OF no moment nor was any account taken
OF them In only a little while the
hawks would be left far behind. each
with Its talons gorged They were able
to do much execution when n killing At
was on them because they are them
selves speedy birds and moreover a band
OF passing pigeons was sometimes more
than a mile long
The ability OF this bird to die, It's APP
parent willingness 20 die and the lack OF
caution or interest Il showed when as
sailed were not less strange than It's abii-
Hy 10 devour space. Often when roost-
Ing the swarms which loaded the trees
would be attacked by owls. They made
no EFFORT 10 ny out In the dark. They
simply chung 10 the branches while the
owls lowered near and struck their bills
into them. nor did any amount Of such
punishment ever cause them 10 change
their roosting places. Many Of them
fell during the night borne down and dis
ahled by the weight Of the comrades
above them. and underneath them all
ways were foxes. wolves, minks, Wild
cats raecoons and such things ready for
the succulent feast The ground under
"a pigeon roost was always half ankle
deep In a mixture OF guano. blood and
feathers