The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1905-02-07
WONDERS PERFORMED BY
THE POSTMEN OF THE AIR
Carrier Pigeons Enabled BeIea cred People
of Port Arthur to Keep in Touch
With Outside World.
(London Tid-Bits.)

twenty-eigth G an ounce, and that
they were contained within a goose
quill one and three-Quarter inches long
which was attached by a silk thread
TO one Of the birds tail feathers The
puzzle, however, remains how it was
possible to get over-three-quarters of
a million words within this tiny CON-
pass.
How It is Done.
The secret of this seemingly impos-
sible feat was microscopic photography
The messages were first printed in
ordinary type, and then reduced by
photography several hundred times
The photographs were taken On thin
films or pellicles of collodion, each of
which, though it was less than two
inches square, could thus contain 50,-
600 words. OF these pellicles a pigeon
could easily carry dozen without in
terfering with its comfort or speed,
and, as we have seen, one bird alone
conveyed 10000 messages.
But a pigeon has carried as much
as three-quarterS of an ounce for O
short distance. The weight would rep
resent something like 100000 mes
sages, or l6,090.000 words; so that,
under these conditions, it would be
quite possible for a pigeon to carry
a small library of 120 volumes on its
tail.
So impressed were army men gen.
orally with the usefulness of the pig
con as demonstrated in the Franco
German war that il was not long be-
fore practically every nation in
Europe had its trained military pig
cons, and today there are more tnan
sixty military pigeon stations in
Europe.
Adopted by England.
We are among the last to adopt this
simple and efficient method of carry
ing messages in time of war, but now
We have excellent lofts at Portsmouth.
Dartmouth and elsewhere, where birds
are kept and trained in a most scienti-
flc manner.
In the Portsmouth lofts, which are
in the Royal Clarence Victualing Yard
at Gosport, is an Office where the Of
fetal log books are kept with the ut
most detail and precision. There are
stud registers and report books in
which the doings of every pigeon are
chronicled; one volume is devoted TO
a record of times of liberation, an
other to pigeons hOming at the loft,
and in another volume the various
messages carried by the birds are
pasted. Among these il is interesting
to notice many that have been sent to
the lofts by members of our royal
family when crossing the channel.
The moment a bird enters the loft it
is automatically shut into box by the
dropping of a noiseless slide, and an
electric bell summons an attendant
to take the message it has brought.
Speed and Endurance.
The speed and endurance of these
birds are amazing. Not long ago q
21a year-old bird few 1900 miles in
America. through several storms of
hail, rain and wind, while distances
of 500 miles and over are thought COM
paratively little of. Every year 1000
or 5000 pigeons compete in a 50O.,
mile flight, which is usally accomplish
ed in a single day.. for prizes given
by the king and the Comte de Elan
dres.
What a pigeon really can do was
demonstrated as long ago as 1850.
When Sir John Ross started in the
Felix in search of Franklin's last ex-
pedition he took with him four hon.
ing pigeons belonging to a woman in
Ayrshire, intending to release two of
them when he laid up his vessels for
the winter and the remaining pair
when, if ever, he found Franklin.
The first pair pigeons he liberated
in Melville Bay on October z, and six
days later one of the birds reached its
cote in Ayrshire, though unfortunate
~ its message had been lost during
the journey The distance between
Melville Island and Ayrshire is a direct
line Of 2400 miles, and that is the as
tonishing journey the pigeon had
made in half dozen days.
For weak digestion, belehing or sour
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