Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-08-20
A { AP TIVE FAWN
How He Was Brought Up on,
the Bottle.
TASTES AND FRANKS
RAN AWAY TO BE LURED HoMH
BY MILK BAIT.
Nature Protects Him by His White
Coat-Likes Raw
Beef

Written for The Evening Star.
one morning last May. guide, looking
from the window of his cottage upon Q
broad green slope of the Blue Mountain
forest, saw a white-tailed doe with heI
little spotted fawn. But the fawn was
limping and, as he could not keep up with
his mother. he bleated plaintively. and back
she came to him. looking him over with her
large mild eyes, as though to find out why
he Jagged behind. Then the guide saw
that one of the slim hind legs was broken
just above the ankle, and, fearing that
the helpless youngster might fall victim
TO fox or wild cat. he captured 1t and
brought 1t in. 1t took readily to a baby6
bottle. and for many days he kept 1t In 3
box where 1t could neither run nor jump,
II was a sensible little creature, and kept
Its injured limb well or tho ground. and
as the leg hung straight down, the ends OF
the broken bone soon knit. and the fawu
was able TO touch his little black hoof to
the floor. Then 1t was that his benefactof.
holding him tight In his arms: drove FIVE
miles across the mountains. and turned tho
baby over to me. The little thing limped
badly when he was set down on the barn
floor. but we gave him soft bed Of hay
in one of the stalls, and he soon lay down
to rest. When he got up again. he seemed
better, and he was hungry. he let VI
know it by bleating very gently and By
looking toward eagerly with his big.
soft brown eyes. When l held the bottle
out to him, he knew at once that his
food was there. but as he took the nipple In
his mouth ne ln6tlnCllNely punched m0
with his hard little head. Just as he would
have punched his mother had he been tax.
ing his dinner with her After drinking q
pint of milk he nibbled few bits OF grass,
and lay down to rest again.
A Comely Creature.
He was a wonderfully beautiful creature
His glossy coat was reddish-brown I'm color,
with striking white spots on the neck, back
and sides His legs. which were lighter
in color were slender. sinewy and graceful,
one of them only being marred by a bunch
of hard tissue around the point of fracture,
But his head was his most beautiful feas
ture, after all His great gentle eyes were
full of expression, and, In combination with
the large shapely ears. which moved back
and forth in response to every SOUND
showed pleasure, excitement. fear ana
other emotions, almost plainly as a hu-
man face could show them. His disposition
was affectonate, and he never tired of licks
ing ones face and hands when he got the
chance, making them feel as though they
had received coat of glue.
OF course, / was prepared to believe thay
the white spots on his otherwise browr
coat were there for some good purpose, bpf
they looked so conspicuous, as he stood 70
the barn. that could scarcely believe thaS
they were part of scheme of protective
celebration. But one day, after his leg wag
well enough to permit him to run about
bit. took him out into the fields one d
these fields was abloom with oxeye dalslee
and as the fawn stood among them thet
at once suggested a reason for the spoQ
upon his coat / half closed my eyes, ana
there was fawn at all; he was patch
of white flowers, like hundreds of stmila{
patches In the same field. Since myrAds OF
daisies and other white flowers are bloomS
ing at time when a fawn Is young ana
helpless, 1t seems that nature seeks TO
protect II from its enemies by making ID
resemble a patch of these flowers. l took 4
photograph of my fawn In the daisy held
legs and body of the little creature melt
away into the grass, while the white spotd
stand out conspicuously. like the daisied
which surround them.
All Right Again.
In front of the stall in which kept thA
fawn. / placed barrier four feet high. and,
t. my establishment. few days after hie
leg was well. he leaped right over II from
a standstill and alighted on the floor Of the
barn. And yet perhaps this Is not to %
wondered at when we consider that hia
father or mother hard pressed, could clear
a height of from eight to nine feet and pos
sibly more.
Every evening we take the deer out for .
run over the hills, using bottle of milk
to coax him back to the barn, after he nag
had his exercise Sometimes II looks 81
though we had seen the last of him. as ne
disappears going at full speed over tho
brow of a hill perhaps half mile way:
Then some one shouts. Here he comesr'
and we see him coming. like brown
streak, white tail up and ears laid PACK.
o. his path checking his speed as he ap-
nroaches us and breaking into brisk
al pia site trot, which nothing but a deer can
initiate. D., III,
r,orn,ng. but one day. after drinking all the
,ailk he cared for, he dashed off into the
goods and stayed there until nightfall
wben he trotted home hungry that he
tried to swallow the bottle well as the
milk. II the dogs had scented him, his
protective celebration might not have been
sufficient to save his life.
week or two ago / noticed him dis
play a very curious taste. / was cutting
up raw beef for my wolves. and the fawn,
which was loose. sauntered up and. seizinG
O piece weighing a pound or more. carried
1t of and began TO eat it Thinking that
this was too much meat for a baby. took
It away from him. but l offered him q
few small pieces which he ate with every
indication of enjoyment.
ERNEsT HAROLD BAYNEs.