The silver state. [volume] (Winnemucca, Nev.) 1909-1925, 1918-12-03

Can you imagine a mans life being
saved by a pigeon?
Or, can you imagine the lives of
hundreds of men being saved, and the
course of a battle being changed by a
pigeon?
Such things are happening daily on
the great front where the German
army is slowly, but surely, being
beaten back.
Thousands of pigeons are fighting in
their dumb way as v~aliantly as the
men in the line, their battle for the al
lied cause. Hundreds are giving up
their lives. They fly through shell fire,
through the smoke and din of battle,
carrying messages that may mean sue
cess or failure in an operation. Tele-
phone lines may be broken, or COM
munication by this means interrupted
by other causes. But communication
by ~pigeon-war's most reliable messen-
ger-can be broken by death only.
Fly Mile a Minute.
A pigeon may be wounded. 1t may
be famished for water. but it will fly,
despite its own enemies in the air, I'M
til its last ounce of strength is ex-
hausted. Heading for its cote from
the front line, it will fly with the speed
Of the wind. Fast pigeons can make
better than a mile a minute. Attached
to its leg is a little aluminium message
box about an inch long.
Arriving at the cote, the pigeon is
trapped" the message box quickly
opened and rushed to headquarters.
The message is deciphered. And while
the pigeon is Strengthening it's ruffied
feathers, or cooling in anticipation of
a meal of barley or canary seed, it is
likely that orders are going out mean
ing life or death, success or failure, to
a company, a regiment, a brigade or
even a division.
As you pass along the roads in the
rear of the battle front you win see
queer little houses standing on top
On the very peak-of prominent knobs.
Then you will notice the odd little
houses are ON wheels. They are al
ways standing in the most open place
IN the vicinity.
There is not a tree within rods Of
the little house. The sun boils down
pitilessly, or the rains pour upon the
place. There doesn't seem to be any
one about, but somewhere-in the
shade of the little house or the shelter
Of a dugOut-you will find the only
human inhabitants of the knoll.
The queer little house is a pigeon
cote. Three men are attached to each
cote. They train the pigeons, see that
the fighting unit to which they are at
tached is kept supplied with birds,
watch for their charges when they re-
turn from the front, and then see that
the message brought in by the pigeon
Is promptly delivered.
Incidentally, it should not be as
sumed that of this queer little settle
ment atop the knoll. only the pigeons
face the dangers of the front. The
pigeon men" will not trust the deliv-
cry of their birds to the front line to
anyone else. They put the pigeons in
a wicker basket and dash over the
HAtAi"oNtHl tONhS III d niOtuiCNEl6 sue
car to the post command of their unit,
where the birds are turned over to the
men in the line.
Work Period Begins.
Then begins the pigeons period of
work. II lives in the basket in which
1t is carried to the front, known as
the rest basket" This basket is OF
open wicker, and is some eight inches
leep. 1t is about a foot and a half wide
md two feet long. Little water pans
are fixed in the basket, and food
turned over to the man who is TO care
for the pigeons while they are in the
front line.
When a patrol is ordered, or an at
tack is being made, the pigeons are
taken from the rest basket and put
into a smaller wicker basket. This
rests on a mans back, just between
the shoulders.
= Pigeons are furnished not only the
infantry, but to balloon observers and
cavalrymen. In the case of the bal
lOOn& observers only the rest basket is
used. The pigeons are carried up in
the balloon, and should the Observers
telephone connection with the ground
become broken, one of his pigeons is
liberated and bears the message back
TO its cote.
When with cavalry. the pigeons ride
in a tiny net Hammock" 1t rests in
the hammock in a normal sitting posi-
tion, ana though the motion of the
horse may cause the hammock to
swing, the pigeon is in no danger OF
being thrown against the side of the
basket, but is gently "rocked" on its
journey into battle.