Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1915-09-28
A TWILIGHT VISITOR
Interesting Facts About tho Familiar
Leather Wing.


Most birds and small animals seem
to enjoy life. They find a whole lot
of happiness sandwiched along with
their little worries, and the dread OF
their natural enemies. Birds just bub-
BILE over with gladness. Anyone who
has ever heard a wren suddenly burst
into song, cannot doubt the ecstacy OF
his feelings. A squirrel can't sing,
but he expresses his happiness in the
graceful waves that culver down the
length of his beautiful tail. But there
is one small animal that we all know
in an indefinite sort Of way, whose
life seems to be one, great big sob!
If he gets any special pleasure out
of life. it must be in a negative kind
| of way, while he is asleep and does
not know he is alive at all.
Everything about a bat partakes
of gloom. He lives in the darkest
the dreariest, the most uncanny
| places he can find. Old fallen down
ruins, damp chinks in church yard
walls, musty hollows and underground
| caves are the homes he selects. All
day long. he sleeps away the hours In
his dismal abode, and only ventures
out after sunset, when the shadows OF
dusk are plotting out the landscape
Then it Is that he comes out, and In
his awkward, zigzag way, goes Hopping
about, hunting for gnats, moths, and
| other insects that fly by night. He
| ~frequents the edge Of woods, open
| glades in the forest and garden walks,
and is often seen skimming low over
the darkening surface Of ponds-like
some being Of Ill omen.
The weather has to be good to in
duce a bat to wake up and go abroad,
| You will never see them out in damp
or rainy weather-as he is always
| glad for some excuse to stop in his
hole and sleep.
Provided, as he is, with rubber-like
water proof wings, and no feathers to
get wet, it looks as II he could brave
any kind Of weather, but he seems to
have a horror Of dampness. He has
but few enemies, the owl being about
the worst. He being about the only
one that is out and hunting at the
hours the bat takes his outing. SO
bats do not figure to any large ex-
tent, on the menus of many Of the
wood folk.
This Is not very strange, for when
you come to think Of it, eating a bat
would be very much like dining on q
baby's shoe.
They are incapable Of long continu-
ed flights, and an hours hunt usually
tires them out, and they are glad to
return to their retreat, where they
hang themselves up by hooks on their
heels, head down, and take up their
dreamless sleep, right where they left
off only a short time before.
Hanging by the heels would seem to
be a most delightful and comfortable
position for taking ones rest. 1t must
be almost as pleasant as the way the
Chinese sleep, with the neck resting on
a block Of wood. When the mother bat
has to go out in the evening, she just
takes the one, or two babies as the
case may be and hangs them up on
the wall, much as we would hang UP
our SO cent umbrella or our Sunday
hat, and goes on about her business
quite sure, when she returns, she will
find them right where she hung them,
After sleeping away most Of the sum
mer, except an hour or so each even
ing, by the time cool weather comes
he is actually so crazy for sleep thai
he tells all his folk goodnight, and
proceeds to choose some place where
he will be safe from interruption rath-
err than where he would be warm and
comfortable.
He generally retires to some cave
which, of course, must be cold, damp
and dark-there he laboriously fastens
his heels to the roof, folds his wings
over his head, as il to shut out the
gloomy surroundings. and drops into
a state Of lifeless inactivity.
Here, swinging and swinging in ev-
cry cold draft that sucks in and out
| Of his delightful retreat, he manages
to pass the winter months, without
even knowing that there has been any
winter. When the days grow longer
| again and, when all nature has awak-
ened from her long sleep and when the
warm summer twilight calls out the
army Of gnats after days Of yawning
turning over, for just one more little
nap, he finally shakes the slumber from
his eye lids and once more, ventures
abroad. where things are awake.
Though not beautiful, as most peo-
pie count beauty, he is a very interest
ing, perfectly harmless, and inoffen-
sive small person. If he inadventur-
ously enters your brightly lighted home
some evening, he is only after the in
sects. It's true he gets excited and
forgets the door or window through
which he entered and circles round and
round, in his frantic efforts to escape.
It's true he causes CONSERVATION
among the lady members of the
household, who have heard" that bats
will tangle themselves up in ones hanr
and bite awfully.
There is no record Of a bat ever hav-
ing bitten anything larger than a
%candlefy.
"As blind as a bat" is a mistaken
simile-as bats have eyes and see as
well as the average nocturnal animal
They seem to have a strangely develop
ed, extremely delicate sense of touch
Their ears are large and are evidently
Of more use than simply to catch the
waves Of sound; they are in some
way related to the sense Of touch, as
strange as this may sound.
This was proven by experiments
made by an italian naturalist in ITS
He blinded a number Of bats with
varnish and turned them loose in a
room, across which was stretched
wires in every direction. They flew
among these distractions, turned
corners and found holes for escape
and acted just as If eyesight was moi