Belington progressive. [volume] (Belington, W. Va.) 1912-1927, 1915-02-18
PARROT
& co. y
copyrich, By The Bobb.-Merrill Company

| the tang OF the smoke on his tongue
was not to be denied
Under his arm he carried small
iron cage, patterned something like
a rat trap. 1t contained Rajputana
parrakeet, not much larger than a
| robin. but possessor of soul as fierce
as that Of Palladin, minus, however,
the smoothing influence of chiyalry
| He had been born under the caves of
| the scarlet palace in Jaipur ESQ his
history RAM; but the proximity OF In
dian princes had left him untouched;
he had neither chivalry, politeness,
nor diplomacy. He was, in fact, thor
oughly and consistently bad. Round
and round he went, over and over,
top side, down side, restlessly. For
| at this moment he was hearing those
familiar evening sounds which no hu-
man ear can discern-the mutterings
of the day birds about to seek cover
for the night In the field at the right
of the road stood lonely tree. 1t
was covered with brilliant scarlet
leaves and blossoms, and justly the
natives call it the Flame OF the
Jungle A flock of small birds were
gyrating above it.
"Jah, jah. jah! Jah-jah-ja-a-a-h!"
cried the parrot. initiating the Bur
mese bell gong that calls to prayer.
Instantly he followed the call with a
shrek so piercing as to sting the ear
Of the man who was carrying him.
You little son Of a gun!" he
laughed; where do you pack away all
that noise?"
There was a strange bond between
the big yellow man and this little
green bird The bird did not suspect
it, but the man knew The pluck, the
pugnacity and the individuality of the
feathered comrade had been an object
lesson to the man, at time when he
had been on the point of throwing up
the fight
"Jah jah. jail Jah-j ah- ja-a-a-h!"
The bird began its intermineble SOM
ersaults. pausing only to reach for the
tantalizing finger of the man, who
laughed again as he withdrew the
digit in time.
For six years he had carried the
bird with him, through India and Bur-
ma and Malacca, and not yet had he
won sign of surrender. There were
/ many scars on his forefingers 1t was
amazing With one pressure of his
hand he could have crushed out the
life of the bird. but over its brave, un-
conquerable spirit he had no power.
And that is why he loved it.
Far away in the past they had met.
He remembered the day distinctly
and bitterly. He had been ON the
bflck of self-destruction. Fever and
poverty and terrible loneliness had
battered and beaten him fiat into the
dust, from which this time he had no
wish to rise. He had walked out to
the railway station at Jaipur to wit
ness the arrival Of the tourist train
from Ahmadabad. The natives surged
about the train, with brassware, an
tique articles of warfare, tiger hunt
ing knives accompanied by perennial
fairy tales), skins and silks There
were beggars, holy men. guides and
fakirs.
Squatted in the dust before the door
of first-class carriage was solemn,
brown man, in turban and clout, exhib-
iting performing parrots. 1t was Ra-
jah's turn. He fired cannon, turned
somersaults through a little steel
hoop, opened tiny chest, took out a
four-anna piece, carried it to his mas
seed Thereupon he waddled resent
fully back to the iron cage, opened
the door, closed it behind him, and
began to mutter belligerently. War
rington haggled for two straight hours.
When he returned to his sordid, evil
smelling lodgings that night he pos
sessed the parrot and four rupees, and
sat up the greater part of the night
trying to make the bird perform his
tricks. The idea of suicide no longer
bothered him; trifiing though it was,
he had found an interest in life. And
on the morrow came the Eurasian,
who trustfully loaned Warrington ev-
cry coin that he could scrape together.
Often, in the dreary heart-achy days
that followed, when weeks passed ere
he saw the face of a white man, when
he had to combat opium and bhang
and laziness in the natives under him,
the bird and his funny tricks had
saved him from whisky, or worse. In
camp he gave Rajah much freedom,
its wings being clipped; and nothing
pleased the little rebel so much as
to claw his way up to his masters
shoulder, sit there and watch the
progress of the razor, with intermit-
tent 'jawing" at his own reflection in
the cracked hand mirror
Up and down the lrrawaddy, at the
resthouses, on the boats, to those OF
jocular turn of mind the three were
known as Parrot e CO.. Warning
toms amiability often misled the vari-
Gus scoundrels with whom he was at
times forced to associate. A man
who smiled most of the time and