The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-03-14

out better my idea of what a bird should
| be But he has his points of usefulness
| and in two cases In which | was CON
cerned he was unden3ab;y the means of
| saving human life. One good thing about
| him is his hatred Of raMlesnakes. IL may
| be because of the fondness snakes display
| for eggs and young birds, but he never
| misses a chance to destroy a Cattler lie
| has his own way of doing it--ah-h!
| There's the work of a road-runner, now. &"
| BY the side of the trail was the remains
of rattlesneke which an army of black
| ants was fast reducing TO skeleton. The
| snakes body was not in coil as it is
| usually found, but was contorted as If
! the reptile had died painfully. There was
no cactus plant growing near, but a ring
of dried cactus limbs surrounded the
| snake except where a passing wagon wheel
| had scattered the branches ON the side
near the trail
You can read what happened there,
perhaps" the miner said. The road
| runner caught Mr.. Snake asleep and feuc-
| ed him in with cactus before he woke
| A snake would go through fire sooner than
| try to crawl over cactus thorns No
he didn't starve to death. Six months
| starvation wouldn't kill a rattlesnake.
| When he found he couldn't get out, and
| had been pricked by the thorns till he
| was fighting mad he turned his fangs on
| himself. That snake is dead from his own
| poison, and it's dollars to marbles the
| road-runner was kicking A war dance
| round the ring while he was dying. I've
| seen EN- doing it more than once.
| About the road runner saving human
| life l allow that wasn't what he was aim
| ing for in what he did for me and others.
| He was doing business for himself. But
ii amounted to the same thing in service
| rendered. 1t was twenty years ago when
| Victoria
the warpath. that l was one of four pas
! seugers on the mail blackboard between
| Mesilla and Silver City. The schedule
| time had been broken I'm on by the In
r! dian troubles and we got to Cooks canon
! about the middle of the afternoon There
| was company of soldiers at Fort Cum
| mings, at the easterly mouth of the can
| on, and Victoria's band had been last
| located down In Chihuahua hundreds Of
| miles away, so we looked to pass through
| the canon without trouble, by daylight
| There is a long climb of four miles up the
| canon before you round the summit and
| get on the down grade to the west While
| the rest of us were all feeling clipper /
| observed that PecoS Bill, the driver an
| old overland man, with scars of arrow
| wounds on his body wasn't talking ex-
| cept to the mules, went up the pass
nut Kept his eyes on the team and the
| rocks and bushes by the wayside ahead
Half a mile from the summit a roa.s
| runner started into the trail and ran ahead
| or us. | was sitting on the seat with Bin
| and noticed that he kept his eye on the
bird, and that the mules ears were all
! pointing straight ahead. The bird paus-
| ed, then started again as we came near
There was straight stretch of trail
| ahead. so we could keep him in sight
| and this time. instead of staying in che
| tran, the road runner when ne got about
hundred yards the lead of us, turned
off sharp into the bushes. 1t was only
| for about two seconds that he was out
OF sight. Then he came back into the
trail and ran straight toward us
Nobody in the party Was looking for
| any more trouble and least of an from
| the gang we had scattered. II was rea-
sonable TO suppose that they had got
enough of us, seeing that they had left
one dead man on The fiegd, whom we
| buried before turning back the sheriff
fulfilling his official duty as coroner in the
case Still, no Western officer of the Gaw
| is ever wholly off his guard. and as we
worked up the trail we all frightened our
bride reins as road-runner came spin
ming round a bend in the trail as If com
| ing to meet us. He turned off the trail
when he saw us, instead of going back,
| and the sheriff called halt
+ We must see what set that bird to
running before we go any further he
| SAID. We halted in the shelter of cllIrnp
| of pines, and, while some of ms made a
| show of rounding up the loose stock as
| pretense for stopping in case we were
| being watched by an enemy, two picked
merit, sent by the sheriff, worked round
| by the mountain side, so as to find out
| what lay on the trail ahead. The first
| note that came TO us from them was the
reports of their Winchesters, and they
| kept right on emptydng their magazines
| They were firing upon five of the horse
| thieves lying in wait by the side of the
| TRAD, among the rocks and bushes. 1t
| was a perfect ambuscade, and, had IL not
| been for the warming brought by the bird
| few minutes more would have seen half
| our saddles emptied before we fairly had
| time to know that we were attacked. AS
| II was, the two men took them in the rear
and had three of them laid out before the
| others could get TO cover One of these
we captured and brought 10 SILVER City,
| with the leader, Antonio Silvela, who was
! badly wounded and died in Jail
| Now, bird That kills raftlesnakes, and
| has twice saved my life, is a good enough
| bird for me. Even il he isn't much on
flying. his legs have done good service for
| me and others, and any man who in my
| presence makes a crack at road-runners,
| is bound 10 understand that ne does so
| with my distinct disapproval"
/