Kingsbury County independent. (DeSmet, Kingsbury County, S.D.) 1894-1929, 1905-01-06
SEA GULLS EASILY
CROSS THE PACIFIC
Follow i'm the Wake OF Steamers
to Get Crumbs Thrown
Overheard.
LIKE TRANSPORTS BEST
As These Ships Carry Many Men on
Whose Hands Time Hangs Heavily,
They Take to Feeding the
Birds as a Pastime.

San Francisco Chronicle: We are
proud OF our great ocean liners and the
speed that they make, a speed which
has made foreign countries ridiculously
near and has brought the nations close
together. To the people of a hundred
years the story hat a vessel could
cross broad Pacific ocean within a
month would seem like the sheerest
fancy OF a romancer. Yet at that time
sea gulls existed as they do at the
present day. and they made their long
trips without provoking n especial
comment. Today ii is look ed upon as
nothing very marvellous thar birds are
able TO fly from America 40 Asia and
back again. But If we pause TO
consider 1t the feat is really something
after all.
These birds are especially fond of the
United States army transports. for
these ships carry many men, who,
denied the taste for books which rem
ders an ocean journey less tedious n
having limited facilities for deck sport.
take TO feeding the gulls as q pastime.
When one of the big vessels leaves
the Golden Gate and passes the Faral-
lone islands a hundred or more brown
bodies. with long, sweeping wings,
leave their resting place and take up
the flight in the wake of the transport.
Then some soldier who has made the
trip before say Here come the sea
gulls. We'd better feed them If we
want q quick passage this trip" and
many soldiers invade the stewards
premises and gather up the waste bread
and v~ictuals.
The birds seem to know when they
are TO be fed, for they come flying IN
ever narrowing circles until they are
within a short distance OF the ship.
Then the food begins to fall on the
waters, and the brown-winged forms
swoop eagerly down upon the waves
and seize what has been thrown forth.
This is continued until the food is ex-
hausted, and then the soldier go below.
leaving the gulls to get away with their
food is they fly. Then never seem to
they follow the ship. cleaving the air
with swift wings. flying easily and
without apparent effort. Indeed, 1t
seems as If they were not made TO
rest.
On the last trip of the transport
Logan one of the gulls had its flying
muscles injured in some way and
dropped fiutteYing upon the deck, it's
wide. goose-like bill open and strange
sqaawks coming from its throat. A
soldier spied IL and took ii to his bunk,
where he fed il daily until it became
strong again. Then he allowed 1t to fly
away. But the bird had moi forgotten
his benefactor. Every day IL would
alight on the deck. and allow none save
this particular man TO feed It.. 1t fol-
lowed the boat to Honolulu, to Guam
and finally TO Manila. Where il rested
during the two weeks the Logan lay
in Manila is not known. but when the
vessel turned on It's homeward course.
bound for Nagasaki, the first day out
found the gull, easily distinguishable
by a heck of white ON it's neck. resting
On the stern. As it's favorite soldier did
not appear. the gull graciously allowed
other TO feed it and continued it's trip
with the ship until the Logan passed
the Farallone islands.
A peculiar Incident was one that oc-
Cured on the r. M. S. Athenian on her
last trip from Yokohama to Vancouver.
Five days out, 1000 miles from land
in m direction, a little owlet alighted
on the deck and was captured by the
second steward. 1t was q baby owl. a
little bundle of brown and white feath-
ers, and it blinked its eyes in the day
light az ii rested c~ontentedly in the
cage which the steward provided.