The Afro-American advance. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1899-19??, 1900-08-04
Sol TOmlinSOn' S FalCOnry
by Edwin ]. Webster.
ffcvoL ToMLISsoN says It was

y Sunday school book that caused
him 10 be nursing an injured spirit and
mourning the loss of the finest eollec'
tion OF fancy breeds Of chickens ever
seen In Pike county" observed Deacon
TodRerA 10 the crowd OF the corner
grocery. slut tell him IL was bis ow a
fooiishness In trying middle age notions
In this closing year of the nineteenth
century, aud also in trusting too far TO
the loving kindness and forgivlng ma
ture Of hawks.
.One Sunday afternoon Sol went out
20 the woodshed and found his boy Tom
reading a book he had drawn from
the Sunday school library. Sol cracked
the boy over the bend for reading
novels on Sunday, gave him some
chores 10 do, and then sat down to
read the book himself. II was al about
knights and how they rode about the
country fighting for the color Of their
ladies' eyebrows and how they went
hawking and all such foolIshucss. But
1t seemed to impress Sol NIGHTLY
"sAnd are you, with your blue jeans
and bald pate and white whiskers, go
Ing to ride around pike county on a
.prancing palfrey." and fight for the
honor Of your lady, also?' asked him,
or what particular kind Of foolishness
has that book inspired you TOP
'sol locked hurt,
"'Fudge. deacon. he said to me. I'm
q respectable married man without any
''lady loves" rs you call them, and ms
rheumatism wouldn't allow me 20 ride
"prancng palfreys" any way. The plan
am thinking Of IL a practical one, and
one that will bring money to n worthy
old man without his working for IL, Did
you read what thai book said about fall
eonry. and how all those old coves used
TO catch heron and ducks and other
kinds OF birds by the use Of falcons
Well, that's what TN going 60 do he
says. earnestly.
"'Iiui you haven't any falcons ! oh.
iseted
Flush. deacon. Sol retorted. sort Of
Impnticntly. OF course, aln't got any
falcons. but what's a falcon except a
hawk. anyway. and u will be easy
enough for me 10 get few young
hawks and train them 20 catch ducks
and other birds which sell well. hut are
good deal OF trouble for tired old
man 20 shoot
swell, the hrst thing Sol dld was 20
get his boys TO work gathering In young
hawks. That was considerable ot
contract for the boys, as neither the
young hawks nor the old birds took
kindly 10 having their nests robbed hut
che boys gathered In about a dozen
yaung blFds,
"soi had lot Of chickens Of hlA own.
and every time he killed one he would
feed the young hawks bit OF liver.
Then he would huy mp the livers when
ever any ot the neighbors killed chick.
ems. and feed them 10 the hawks. OF
course he fed the hawks other things.
but pretty soon those birds had as we'll
developed taste for liver as some men
have for patty de foy grass, or what
ever IL IL called.
"fhen Sol began the second part OF
The training. He would put q dead duck
on the ground. and carry one Of his
hawks over 10 II. 60 of ways. and
sort 81 indicate to the bird that he
wanted the dead duck brought 10 hlm
Hawks are pretty intelligent birds. and
II wasn't long before they appreciated
the fact that every time one Of them
brought Sol a duck there WAS a big
piece OF liver coming.
"iiy the time the duck season opened
all but six OF Sors hawks bad died.
but he certainly did have that half
duxtn trained down TO tlne paint.
Their appetite for liver had gotten to
he like that of mans for drink. and
they understood that ducks and only
ducks were what SOL wanted. So they
never inierfered with his chickens by
and by the ducks began flyina south.
Then Sol started out 20 gather Ia his
harvest
For months he said TO me these
hawks OF mine have enjoyed fatheriy
care and lived on the fat OF the land
and the hsrrs of several hundeed
chickens. Now Is the time for them 70
repay ny devotion. And. by gum. they
will do Il or get in trouble
@1hat afternoon Sol got a couple al
long sticks. and carrying them over his
shoulders with three hawks psrehesi On
them. started after ducks. Pretty
soon along came a tlock OF ducks. hy-
.ng pretty low. Sol ansied his hawks
and polated NJ the ducks. II ~asn'i
haff 4 minute before those trained
ha9ks undrFslood what WAS wanted 81
then. ard on they went Al full ELI
after the ducks. Zach hawk grabbed
duck, started back with IL toward Sol
an8 dropped II 81 his feea.
Thea came the nrss OF soi's acslona