The Savannah morning news., 1903-05-03

self, could that chained fox have got
that feather?
Bright and early next morning I
got up to investigate. I found the
foxes in their den, and 1 was about to
turn back to the house, when l dis
covered the trail of a dragged rope or
chain leading across the yard in the
direction of a neig'hbor's chicken coop.
| followed it; it led to the chickery. 1
followed it back; it led to the fox
house.
After I had hastily obliterated the
trail, l went to the den, and what do
you think I found besides several of
my neighbors' missing hens buried in
the earth? Why, those foxes had
I worked tne chain from the peg and, IN
order TO be free to rob hen roots, thew
had deliberately put up the trick of
coming out of their house when 1 was
around only so far as the chain. when
fastened, would let them.
Yes, sir; that's what they did" and
Mr.. Beard chuckled over the cunning
of his foxes.
The Pet Crows Antics.
Then there was my pet crow" he
continued, after another chuckle. "He
! was always up to some sort of mis-
chief.
Il made a pond out of two old
iile1OAiliiCS, placed size DY side.
and in it 1 put 300 or 400 red
eyes, or black bass. A red eve
is fiat like sun fish, and mine, when
| they got scared, would throw their
bodies on their sides between the
crevices of the rocks in the pond.
The aquarium was the favorite
bathing place of the crow. Of course,
whenever he started to take his bath
! the fish would get between the
rocks. He would pay no attention to
them until he was through with his
rreeninS, when he would pull several
fish out from their hiding places and
fly with them to the rabbit house
where he would secrete them. Be-
fore 1 got on to this trick, he had
nearly depopulated the pond.
He did another mean thing, did
that CROW Flo bounced down on a
n st of new born "a bbits, skinned
them, and deliberately put then,
mong my f;:thar's Cnoicest books. In
q day or - he Louise got in a pretty
Lad condition, but it was a good deal
7Forse before the crows work was
discovered. And teen there was a
lively tire alt around.
A Vicious Owl.
MY Virginia owl, as fierce a speci-
men as I've ever seen, also kept me
IN not water. AS an illustration, he
SCI AOOoC Wy hIOChlHS my aunt down,
ana, when man tried to catch him.
sent talon clear through the fellows
foot. L finally chased him down. and
much to the surprise of the lockers
on, who expected to see me wounded.
the owl did not even try to injure me.
l just picked him up and held him as
game cock is held, and that keeps
a bird from using beak and talons.
But l got pretty badly bitten by
turkey buzzard, and still carry the
scar on my wrist, for a vein was COM
pletely severed. The bird got at me
while a man was trying to sell him to
me for an eagle.
ooh, yes, everybody for miles
around, when he caught anything in
the bird or animal line, hunted me
up and tried to sell it to me- But
L caught most of my pets myself with
my own hands, and not with traps.
That sounds rather strange, but it's
true, and I'll tell you how 1 did it.
Catching Animals With His Hands.
zone day 1 saw a cat creep upon
bird. l noticed that she would creep
only so long as she was not noticed
approaching by her intended prey.
The second she was observed she
would stand motionlesS, as if in an
endeavor to give the impression that
she were inanimate. Then when the
bird was not looking, she would creep
little closer. and again stop when
the birds attention was attracted.
She kept this up until at last she
was near enough to spring, when she
pounced down upon her prey.
If a cat can do that why can't I
initiate her and do the same thing?'
l asked myself.
Il first tried the scheme on bull
frogs. / was successful almost from
the start, and / soon had the depres-
sion by the cellar door well stocked
with frogs caught by my hand swiftly
shot around them.
Then l got more ambitious. and
the result was that caught a gray
squirrel and chipmunk, and even a
coon.
Catching that coon was hard
work. trailed him into a. hollow
log and then I lay down on my ston.
ach on that log with my hand poised
above the hole out OF which he had
to come. ! lay there. quiet as a
mouse, for over two hours waiting.