Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1906-10-10
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES;
The : WIDOW. =
a story Of tho Love
Of Q Bird For
lts Mate.
By HOMER DAVENPORT.
cARrooN1sr.
By HOMER DAVENPORT,
CARTOONIsT.

" Homer Davenport, Cartoonist.
~ farm has gotten SO big that
looked upon by all Of my near
4 dear relatives as an object Of
ty. They think 200 acres devoted
the breeding Of wild game birds
little heavy. We try to console
rselves sometimes by the stories
get OF from the farm, and think IN
way TINT some Of them may pay
the hss w loads Of bird seed that
I've in the gate 49,,
The wild wood duck, the mJsl beau.
tiful OF all ducks that fy the North
American continent, migrate in Win.
ter into Central and South America.
They are trapped there in large num-
bers and shipped to Europe, and it
10 easier for you to purchase them in
Any numbers in Europe than 1t is in
america. We.haye rule at the farm,
snA shipments of water fowl arrive.
the foreman takes and counts of the
seven fight feathers at the point of
one wing; then with stout pair Of
shears he clips OF that joint known
as the flight Joint. It doesn't disiigure
the bird and they never make an at
tempt after that to ny. and can there
fore be kept In open top fields or
ponds, or aviaries as the case may be.
In pinioning shipment of wood
. ducks that arrived one day, he neg
lected to hit the bone Of one of the
males wings, Just clipping of the
feathers instead, 90 that when it shed
out those stubs during the summer
and new feathers grew in the fall,
he was once more full winged. At
that time Prof. Woods, of the Smith
sonian Institute, Washington, was our
guest; he had been there for several
days studying the habits of the birds
and animals; hurrying home one fall
evening, the professor asked me If I
knew that there was wood duck
there with full wings, male. told
him that did, and we walked down
to the edge Of the pond, few feet
from. the house, to watch him as he
sFwas flying over the pond, evidently
exercising hineelf. training for the
migratory season.
/ said, Professor, l have been
Sswatching him for some days, and It
shas given me new line of thought,
am wondering If the migratory habit
or season is stronger than true love,
because he is very happily mated with
. little duck with a pinioned wing"
Prof. Woods said, That's strange, /
have been thinking on the very same
thing today, and believe he will
leave her in the fall little later"
asked the professor il he thought
1t would ever come back, and he said
he might, but II he did, he would like.
ss,,y come with some other fellows
tRife.
e When Prof. Woods left for Wash
Sngton a few days later, he asked me
ito note carefully what did happen,
and let him know. am sorry that
I don't know the exact day he left,
although was keeping close watch,
put on the 18th Of November noticed
his very beautiful little widow float
around over the pond, melancholy
alone. Her plumage had actually
IN on darker cast, giving her the
IT of widows weeds. There
e many other varieties of ducks
the pond. and among them many
cd ducks. and among the wood
.cks were four males with pinioned
wings without wives, whose. only show
in life lay If some fellow was kind
enough or thoughtful enough to die
Tor desert. This was their opportuni.
,ty, and they swan up by her and
showed off their finest plumage, to,
(which she returned not a glance.
4 All winter long this went on. She
wouldn't eat with the common herd.
and had to be fed alone. She was
waiting, waiting like Madam Butter
fly, for one to return. had forgotten
about her, almost, when spring came.
On the tenth of April, peacocks and
many of the varieties of pheasants
gave the cry of hawks. Looking up
d saw a speck in the sky, and as
~ came closer, the wild ducks on the
Ind and the cranes made loud
Uses, calling, circling closer and
Ter, and finally skating out on to
3 water surface, We saw, just as
faised his crest and whistled, that
las large, wild wood duck. Hur-
0iacross the pond, about six
Oh of mile away, came, as fast
lie could scramble over the sur
Of thA wster, th,s beautiful Ut