The St. Mary banner. (Franklin, Parish of St. Mary, La.) 1889-1931, 1909-09-11
The
Boy and
the Bird.

WIlteT III Appleton MaSaZllt
gives an experience which a boy had
after wounding a grouse. We give tho
article in part:
THE bird at which the boy had
nred thrust down its legs and wab
bled as If about to fall: then recov.
cred itself and flew on, it's legs dang.
ling. A chance shot had apparently
broken Its back, paralyzing it's legs,
but leaving it still strength enough to
fly certain distance Trained hun
ter as he was, the boy watched the
wounded bird, and marked the exact
spot where it finally dropped, Just at
the edge of the cornfield, half a mile
away.
81 think III go after It, said the
youth.
Nonsense said Luther, its a
half mile away. and you have all YOU
want without it,
But the bird is wounded. / hate
to have it lie out there and suffer-
On, it's probably dead: or if it
isn't, some skunk or weasel Will kill
1t tonight. Come along
1T was nearly sunset, and the vou-b
was tired after the long tramp OF the
day. 1t would be a long trip ove-
70 the cornfield for weary legs-and
then perhaps to find the bird dead
Already 1T was supper-time at home
and he had a hunters annette sn
ne allowed himsef to be over-persuad-
ca, and the two tramped homeward
But the grouse that had fallen
over in the cornfeld was not dead.
NOR, as it CHANGED, was it's wound of
Kind to produce speedy death. The
injury did, however. render the bir,,
utterly he 'pless. Once it had dron-
ped to the earth it could not risa
again. Nor could it move about IN
the ground, for its legs were nara.
l'zed completely. 1t lay on the bare
earth. sheltered by the cornstalks from
the eyes OF hawks, and where
tnere was not much danger that mar.
audlng beast would find it. Rut tbero
was no food at hand 1t was doubtfu,
even whether the bird would be abla
70 sip few drop of dew from a
cornstalk to quench the thirst that |
It's wound must develop.
quite obviously fate had marke1
.ne grouse for a lingering death of
torture. Its wound. already painful
must become more SO with the lapse
Oh time. Insects would come in nh.
lanxes to poster it. Hunger and thirst
would add their modicum Of aeonv
Inc greatest mercy it could hone for
you'd be the coming of soms skunk
u weasel, as the hunter had $40
sested, to put it out of misery pr,
40 SUCH messenger of speedy death
'nanced to come that way."
Inc following Sunday morning tho
BOY went to church. The writer
says: "'''ei
Inc youths soul was undergo;no
development in that half hour ne
vas making one of those short cnts
rom point Of view to point OF yiev
1e was passing little as he realized
y from the barbarian hunter st.oa
o a plane OF broader sympatbies
All through the lesson bo 90.
'rooding the same thoughts. and 40
'e IeH the church the idea Of tho
wounded bird had taken full NOSES.
ION or his mind. Instead of going
lome. ne set out for the field whore
e had shot the grouse. He believed
e might find the bird even vet At
east be would try.
"A good memory and keen eve
napied him to go to about the point
the field from which the grouse
al nushed; and over by the corn
eid he noted the exact point (mark-
q ny peculiar fence post where
0e wounded bird had gone down. He