The Birmingham age-herald., 1904-04-26
From the New York Evening Post.

nK1N oNK" EASTMAN, the East
 ENVl Side gang leader, who was
 convicted of assault, gave his occupation as a pigeon fancier. As such he Is type of the tenement youth known as pigeon chasers"-boys or young men who help make a living steal ing or catching pigeons. A vlew' from almost any tall building on the East Side reveals dozens, sometimes hundreds, of small structures built on roofs or hanging just over their edges. These are the "coops" of the "chasers." Some are little more than big boxes others are seven or eight feet square and accommo- date thirty or forty birds
 The desire to own pigeons appears to be inborn In the tenement boy. Even those who rob their fellows coops prize the birds themselves and sell only the commoner kind to dealers. While the fancier is known as chaser" his own flock are called "coaxers," the lat ter being used as decoys to lure the other pigeons. For example. the chaser buys -or gets. somehow-one or two pairs. These he installs in their roof house. and keeps locked up until they feel at home. Then he releases them and drives them away In search of strange pigeons. Us ually, the "coaxers' are sent away hun gry, partly In order that they may feed at some one elses cost, but chiefly that in case they return accompanied by 9 stranger, the chaser" can draw them quickly to his own roof by showing some grain.
 Once the stranger allghts, the Chaser" sets his wits at work to catch him. Sometimes a box, upheld by a stick, is used. while again the trap will be in the top of the coop itself, so that when the visitor settles to feed, the opening can be closed. Tn some cases a contri- vance like an enormous butterfly net is used this Is handy when the stranger will not enter the trap. Once caught the bird Is examined; if of good breed he is kept; if rat" common pigeons are known, he is sold for anywhere from 10 to 25 cents. The flights most pop ular now. are worth as much as 80 a pair. This is the East Side style, how ever: most of the real fanciers probably would regard them with scorn.
 A favorite pastime of the true chaser" is to take his flight" preferably red flight" two or three miles from home (carying the bird in his pockeD. and re- lease 1t. taking the time. and having a friend at the coop to time the return. Sometimes matches are made up, two or three "chasers' releasing their favorite birds for race home. Another sport in dulged In Is in the nature of three or four cornered contest. where each boy releases several birds, and the "chasers'' unite in endeavoring to separate the diff ferent focks. Some of the boys vary the fun of trying to convert "rats' into fantails by confning them while young in a short nest, causing the tail feathers to take on an upward slant, but these limitations are seldom successful enough to deceive the dealer.
 Honor permits one Chaser to rob an- other of his "coaxers.' but the unpar- donable sin Is to take the old birds and leave their half-grown progeny in the nests Only the meanest kind of mean boy will do this. Competition, too, enters into the trade. Frequently there are GOODS on duJoiliifiS rools, anu, "HeH oHe flock of "coaxers' bring home a stranger the neighbors release their "coaxers" ir turn, and try to get the visitor first.
 Often a boy succeeds in trapping thirty or forty pigeons in one week, which is quite profitable, though at times week passes without success The cost of feeding a flock varies with the chaser's" ingenuity; sometimes grain or other food is bought. but often the source is some dock where grain boats are unloaded. Tribute is also taken from horses at their noon meal in the streets.
 In order to attract strange birds the