Hattiesburg daily progress. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 18??-1909, 1903-11-17
Depredators on Farms.

TINS country, ana yet IL Is pOSSiole
that the farmer himself IS at fault to
a certain extent by assisting in the
| destruction of animals and birds that
would perform for him valuable ser
vice If permitted. Beasts and birds
| of prey are sufficient TO prevent any
alarming increase of the birds that
are capable of doing harm, but near
| ly all birds are carnivorouS to some
extent, as they can subsist on animal
food. Birds prey upon worms, and
| the natural increase of all kinds OF
insects would soon render the earth
uninhabitable by man but for the as
sistance given him by the creatures
which he so ruthlessly destroys with
out regard to future consequences
The carnivOrOuS animal and birds do
not increase as rapidly as the kinds
upon which they prey, and single
lion or tiger may serve TO prevent
district from being Oyer-run with
graminiyOrous animals. If such cOndl-
ton did not exist the result would be
famine AS the forests are cleared
the destructive animals and birds are
driven away or restricted in their ca
pacity to do harm, but man seems to
become himself q beast of prey and
wantonly destroys fer the pleasure OF
SO doing. He considers certain an
imals, such as the fox, hare, raccoon,
OPOssum and mink, as game. the
hawk and owl being always regarded
as his foes He adopts the dog and
cat, the latter being more destructive
to birds than any other animal, as 1t
is not only active and somewhat noe
turnal in habit. but also climbs trees.
The fox. opOssum and raccCOn are
among the most useful animals known,
as they seek their food where ttelu
mice and ground insects abound. The
little damage done by them is not
worthy of consideration compared with
the service performed. The only apol-
Ogy for their destruction is the occa-
siOnal loss of poultry, but no careful
farmer will leave his poultry unpro-
tected from danger at night.
The farmer has not yet discovered
a method for preventing the dcstruc
ton of his crops by field mice and in
sects, but he devotes more time to
seeking the lives Of his friends, the
owl and hawk, than he gives TO the in
seCts which he cannot control. The
damage to q portion OF the corn ana
fruit by animals and birds is insiS-
nificant compared with the almost COM
plete destruction Of crops by insects.
The mole, which ridges the earth,
simply does so while destroying grubs,
as mOles consume them in large mum
bers. The quail, which is harmless,
is forced by necessity in the fall and
winter to search for food under every
leaf and in every spot where an in
sect and worm can be found. during
which time so spent they destroy
thOusandy of insects, but in some To-
calities the quail has been almost cX-
terminated simply for sport, which
IS one of the most expensive luXurieS
enjoyed by man If he only knew it.
The birds that remain over winter, or
which do not leave until late In the
fall, to appear early In winter, feed not
only on insects, but on the seeds OF
many plants which the farmer does
net desire in his field. and the reduc-
ton in the number of these birds is
largely increased by cats, which feast
upon the young in the nests in spring
and which also destroy the eggs.
This Is q disturbance of the order or
creation. and reduces the profits of
the farmer while destroying the guard
ians of his crops The English spar
row In the country could be easily
kept in check by the sparrow hawk
and the well-knOwn screech owl, the
latter preying upon them at night ana
the former during the day, especially
in winter, if the farmer would allow
them: but on the approach Of his nat
uraI friends he seizeS a shotgun and
puts an end to their usefulness, yet
deploring the damage to his grain in
the growing season, which he protects
and allows to multiply without hind
rance.
The subject most % be considered
by farmers at their meetings is not
so much the destruction OF insects and
field mice IS the protection Of the
birds that destroy the pests, and this
protection should be extended to the
owl and hawk, as well as to those an
imals which keep rabbits in check.
The loss of poultry cannot happen il
such birds are given the same care
and attention as other stock. and if
the farmer will consider the matter
carefully he will notice that he loses
hut few chicks by the hawk compared
with those appropriated by cats, yet
he destroys the one and pets the other.
A single dog in a community will do
more damage to sheep in one night
than all the wild animals in year,
but the losses to farmers from de
predations of foxes are SO small as to
he hardly noticeable. The song
birds that are said to be driven away
nv the English sparrow would return
| If the hawk and owl were unmoleSted
| from the fact that the large majority
| of birds migrate, the sparrow remain
ing as food for the carnivorous birds,
hut the widest sparrow is sufficiently
! wise to remain close to the haunts
of men, where he is safe from his en-
| emies. In winter no crops are grew
ing. and there are but few. il any,
| small chicks. But little damage can
he done the farmer by hawks, crows
| and owls at that season, while in sum-