Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1902-07-03
SPARRoWS DEFEATED MAN.
Minneapolis Mans Discontinue at All
Points.

Points.
Minneapolis Journal-Michael Bre >
lauer has a new story about the
English sparrow. Since Mr.. Breslauer
purchased a handsome residence at
Douglas and Irving avenues, he has
been one of the best householders in
all Green's additions. Last season tht
sparrows built nests in every available
nook about the caves, they sputtered
and scolded on his piazza roof and 10
make matters worse they came tor
CLOCKS around about a. N. every day
tc whet their little bills on the crook
OF a conductor pipe just over Mr.
Breslauer's bedroom window. A
sparrow whetting his bill en- a Goa.
ouctor pipe sounds as if he wera
shaking pint of dry beans in a ten
gallon milk can.
Mr.. Breslauer first tried air guns.
He recruited and equipped an anti
sparrow league, but the boy marks
men found it lots easier to hit
window lights than sparrows and the
corps disbanded. Wheat boiled with
strychnine proved destructive for a
day but was abandoned because it
seemed really pitiful to see the birds
fluttering helpless to the ground. so
the sparrOws were tolerated throu yh
the season and Michael put in the
winter figuring.
By spring he had the problem most
happily solved. Last week an army CT
painters with long ladders descended
upon the place and put on brand
new coat O. paint. At every angle
of the caves where the conductor
spouts turned they erected bar
rlcade of wire netting and Mr.. Bres-
lauer chuckled as he thought about the
sparrOws' discontinue. Early next
morning, however, he had an evil
dream and awoke to the horrid reality
that it had come true. There was he
same, old familiar rat-a-tat-tat on the
conductor spout. Hurriedly dressing
he fastened to his lawn and found
that a Sma44 acknowledgements
sparrow had push his way through tbs
meshes of the wire and was working
his bill down to a needle point with
the dexterity of a barber stroppins
a razor he telephone wires over Tie
lawn were black with chatterin2
birds applauding the operation.
However, Michael consoled himself
with the thought that the bird was a
little one and probably couldn't fno
his way out through the netting again
oi1,QS inc
time and all day the sparrows held
their council of war on the telepho le
wires. Finally they seemed to evoi re
plan and the smaller birds began to
squeeze in and out of the wire
screened nook while the bigger ones
stood on the side-lines and coached.
. Gradually the mesh began to expand
under the pressure and bigger AMI
bigger sparrows began to take a hand
in the game. They worked all day.
That night, when Mr.. Breslauec
came home be thought he saw a sus
picion of straw behind the crook in
the conductor spout. Sure enough, the
next day revealed behind the wire a
nest as large as a bushel basket. 1t
had been made ridiculously large t.
emphasize the sparrows' victory and
the birds hau then gone to work on
every screened angle about the caves.
AS the matter now stands, the
screened angles are most in demand
! for nests, for .44e netting was SO well
put up that it deies clothes pole.
and garden rakes and the nests are
perfectly safe from destruction. The
joke on Mr.. Breslauer is SO palpable
that the sparrows can all see it even
i they are English, and they revile
! him on sight in shockingly bad
sparrow talk.