The San Francisco call., 1908-08-09
The San Francisco Sunday Call

fell back again. The brown gum tree
creaked over me in the dry wind: the
sun peeped through the leaves like a
devil with a shakin' eye.
heard the sea again an the sound Of
the port watch at cutlass driu.
dreamt that was drinkin' water out Of
great white cup-pure, clear water
that never satisfied my thirst. But
when I opened my eye-the king crow
had the other-there was always the
Ca. car overhead. the shinin' beaks and
the black dry furnace in my throat.
"Cal car says they. stoopin' an bal
ancin' on the boughs to get look at
me. Ca! car
Cock-a-d -doodle-dor says Kitcho.
struttin' underneath Come an have
some more he says. hittln' the air with
both wings
The crows seemed to have made up
their minds that 1 was theirs, an they
waited till Kitcho had strutted round
the far side Of the tree. Five of EN-
swooped at my head. strikin' at my eve.
don't know how a sheep protects it's
peppers, unless it sticks its head In a
hole. These five hit me In a bunch.
three from the rear. two from the front.
Their long bills dug an scooped
through my fingers till the blood ran
over my face.
FLAP! bangi clink! That's how 1t
sounded Clinkl clinki clink! Kitcho-
h0 70
hit and clapped his blades about their
heads like guardsman among a pack
OF niggers. Up and down he struck.
under an over. hittin' like Hghtnin'.
slicin his spurs through their tough
black skins.
"A crow knows what to do when he's1
hit in the air by hawk. but when he's
stabbed an crippled on the ground he
flaps about maxim a blamed dust with
his head an wings.
But Kitcho overreached himself
Clapping his heels at the head of an old
bird. the steels pinned in the tough
skin an held him. He rolled an lay
with the crow fiappin' under him.
They've got you now. Kitcho'
thought. They'll make raspberry stuff
nm Of him when they've cleaned me up
1 stretched out my hand to jerk him
loose. an my head seemed to swim
through the hot sand until 1t floated
out to sea. Then felt myself workin'
in the stokehole, tearin' out white fire.
bars with my hands when Something
turned me over and Something wiped
the blood from my face.
"Hullo. old chap! Yer feelin' bet
teri said the voice
"A couple OF Australian bush LADS
were standin over me. One of 'em.
with spoonful OF brandy. was kneelin'
by my head. A fire was burnin' about a
yard from their camp; big billy was
hangin' over it
II felt the brandy movin' through
my body; IL seemed to kill the dry
devils OF thirst in my throat. An the
cool. wet bandages on my face stopped
the burnin' in my eyes.
You'll be all right after a SPELL
says one OF the lads. slippin' a pillow
under my head Wen get you into a
hospital as soon as it's safe to move
you. Have drop Of this BROTH he says.
bringin' cup from the fire. TIN put,
life into you
Il looked at him pretty hard. an
then I noticed one or two red feathers
lyin' on the ground near the fire.
pushed away the cup OF broth.
" Where's the little red bird that was
here? I said. The one with his spurs
locked in the crows neckT
1.-The little gamecocky says he.
smilin.' ~
rs that him in the potT I says.
tryin to sit up. 'Gawd's truth. chaps.
If you'd known you wouldn't have done
itr An broke down like four year
old baby.
What's he talkin' about? said the
lad by the fire. Hold hard, mate, he
says. comm over to me. you've got the
wrong end Of 1t. Dye think we didn't
see some of the fight? Look here
He slipped into the tent an brought
out the parrot cage, with Kitcho inside
lookin at me through the wires and
clickin' his steels.
Give me some OF that soup I says.
an allow me to ask your pardon, mates.
1t would have been unsportsmanIiKe,
wouldn't itT
BY Gawd. 1t wouldr they says.
i pulled through all right And
Kitcho2 Well. I sold him to a station
owner at Mulga Downs. who was rearin'
prize birds He gave me Job. too.
lookin' after horses an cleanin' up the
yard
"Kitcho got to know me better after
a while. especially when used to pop
around with a pocketful Of corn. But
he never heard ca. car overhead
without lool<in' up at me-"