The San Francisco call. [volume], July 17, 1909, Page 1, Image 1

About The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913

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JUNIOR SECTION
THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL
Issued Every Saturday J^or^
HAVE YOU SEE ALONZO? HE DIGS FOR A WATCH AND FINDS A BIG SNAKE
HAWK LIFE IN AMERICA
THERE are a number of hawks com- .
mon to America, some of local
and others of general dlstribu
'ion, the largest, the osprey or fish
hawk, having the proud distinction
of being purveyor to the eagle. The
next in size, and most beautiful, are
the red tailed and the red shouldered —
commonly known as hen hawks,
though it has been proven that the ;
number of young chickens they de- |
stroy is unworthy of notice when com
pared with the vast number of mice
and other small animals which they '
retire "from circulation. To every '
chicken captured as many as 100 of
the latter are taken. The real menaces
to the poultry yard are the sharp
skinned Coopers and the marsh hawk,
all of these being able to dart down,
secure their booty and be off before
they are noticed.
The rough legged or black hawk is
the most nocturnal of the family,
choosing the late evening, when small
animals are abroad, as his season of
greatest activity. The sparrow hawk,
the emallest and, next to the rough
'^gged. the most graceful member of
the family, is the tnest proficient
mouser and an enemy of the brown
grasshopper, . known .as -the "tobacco .
epitter."' One bird alone will destroy
200 or more of these in a single day.
Some varieties are watch tower
hunters who perch on stumps,'- leaf
less trees or haystacks, or hang bus
p<*nded in the air waiting for their
victims to pass under them. Others
are brush and grass beaters, while
some employ both methods, but all are
more or less cannibalistic, and all are
valuable as destroyei-s of harmful ani- '
mal and insect life.
With keen eyes exploring the grasses
and low. herbaceous growths for the
tiny, helpless creatures either crouch-
Ing there in fear or peacefully nibbling
the succulent roots, back and forth
beats the hawk with alternate- wing
tips brushing the tops of the vegetation
to flush his prey, sending the little
refugees scurrying in every direction,
or causing them to crouch close to the
ground; frightened meadow mice hide
in iheir covered runways or seek shel
ter in their domed dwellings; wriggling
snakes betake themselves to their"
holes and warty toads close their
bright eyes and trust their earthy
color to protect them.
" Often the vigilanv hunter snatches
up his victim -with no pause in his
flight, then sweeps on to some perch
where he can enjoy his feast at leisure.
Even his I ominous shadow ' passing
over them as the hawk swims above
the heavens is enough to strike terror
lo the creatures who know him as an
pnemr, for any moment he is likely to
drop down upon them as though shot
from the sky. On descending thus to
earth he clasps his victim in his
crooked and almost invariably fatal
talons. Even though his clutch should
accidentally prove Insecure his wings
and tail enclose his quarry In a prison
from which there is no avenue of es
cape save that beneath his armed beak.
-Yet this bird, hated by the unthink
ing partly because of his rapacity.-but
more because of reputed visits to; the
poultry yard, is, not without his merits.
The same wings that in. the meadows
surround and Imprison his prey are
used In his home life to form a vaulted
STILL SEARCHING FOR GENE JUNIORVILLE PEOPLE SEE THE SIGHTS AT RENO
cover to protect from the heat of the
sun and also from storms and rain his
helpless young," for whom he cares most
tenderly. However cruel he may be to
his enemies, to his own he is as gentle
as any bird in the wood- . Proudly he as
sists his constant mate In pluming her
beautiful '" feathers, and lovingly he
strokes both her and the little ones
with the beak that Is looked upon as
cruel by those who have with him only
a belligerent acquaintance.
While these birds are attached to
their home locality they are known to
take long flights. Nuttall relates an
Instance of one of this family, a Can
ary falcon, that was sent to the duke
of Lerraa and that returned in 16 hours
from Andalusia to the island of Tene
riffe, a distance of 750 miles. It is said
that were it not for the power ,of in
flation, not of the lungs alone, but; of
their whole bodies, the swiftness with
which . thjese, as ; -well as some other
birds, move through' the air would
cause suffocation.
- Though through their fondness for
flesh many a downy chick fails to reach
maturity, many a tuneful warbler is
called to his reward, and the billowy
trail of song ' of < many a goldfinch be
comes only; a memory echo, were It not
for their - assistance our farms 'would
soon be overrun by. pests. lmpossible: to
hold In check, by artificial means, and
when even the worst of hawks are
weighed iiv the balance the greatest
weight will be found upon the side -of
beneficent service. '•
Animals in Yellowstone
Within the Yellowstone national park
there is no open season for pame. Uncle
Sam stands between the wild creatures
and harm all the year round- Beauti
fully do they respond to his protection,
showing, within the park's precincts,
remarkable confidence in the friendli
ness of man. • There are, buffalo, ante
lope, deer, elk, bears and small game of
many kinds. But these dumb wards of
the government are not fooled into car
rying their confidence beyond the park
limits. Once across the line, even the
"closed season" doesn't always Insure
safety,' and- park .animals: assume all
their old time shyness and caution.
Hunters in -the country around the
.Yellowstone tell, wonderful stories of
the keen sense- shown by. the game
•wandering . beyond the shield of park
law. The park's herd of elk 'Is sup
posed to number. many thousand. Dur
ing the "closed - season" In Wyoming,
Idaho and Montana, park elk wander
far away through the wild lands and
dense forests of these three states. But
no sooner does the cracking of rifles
proclaim "open season" than these elk
strike back for. their "house of refuge."
. Hunters tell of following herd of fine
elk long distances, but the wary creat
ures would keep, just beyond rifle range,
moving steadily toward the Yellow
stone. Crossing the line, which they
locate with the accuracy of a^govern
ment "surveyor, and once more under
park protection, they seen also to
throw caution aside* and await the
hunters with an air of assurance that
no harm can befall. Said an old huntf-r
to the writer: "I'd follow an elkmore'n
20 mile, and not a shot could I get. I
knew just the minute he hit the- park
line,* for 'he' threw up his head with a
snort that said plain's : English:' 'Young
feller, what you "going to do about It?' "
—Contributed. .
>SAN;FRANOiSCO,vCAL., SATTLTRDAYgJTOY 17, 1909
\u25a0 \u25a0 7... " • \u25a0 \u25a0 " I \u0084; S . . 4;. -
Bear That Eats Pudding
IN the New York zoological gardens
there is a young Canadian black
bear that ha's become very haughty
of late. - Part of his biography has just
been published. It appears that 'when
bear was a cub he was, a. farm pet,
wa^ as domesticated as a dog "and wan
dered untethered. about the yard. and
all over the farm. The. sort of Hfe.be
led and some of the stunts he did'are
entertainingly written. in "The Frolics
of My Black Bear Cub," by Mrs. E.
H. Baynes in the March- St. Nicholas.
The article is illustrated by photo
graphs which show also a tame prairie
wolf and a deer, playfellows and do
mesticated companions of tho cub Jlm
mle.. We quote one of tho "frolics":
'Jimmy's favorite chum arid playfel
.low. was Romolus, a young prairie
wolf.' The fact "that they were such
.good, friends was due largely, to Jim
my^s good nature, for certainly Romu
lus* teased him in every -possible way.
Even in the matter of food,. Jimmy was
disposed 1 to be generous," and he seldom
resented, the attempts of Romulus,, or
of Actaeon, the deer;' to' take : from him
his bread, and apples.: There, was,;how
ever, one particular kind of food, which
he Insisted on .having, his . full [share of,
and that was plum pudding./ He would
eat it- at any time of the day or night,
whether/he was hungry^ or^not, and -if
there ;w'm any limit to the; a,mount"_he
would eat, no 'one', ever, discovered "it.
No matter: how much vas given to him
he never seemed to 'considerrthe quan
tity, sufficient to warrant his sharing
it with his playfellows, "and If ' either
of these' attempted 'to forcehim to* di
vide, with him the result was . a .fight-
Not that Jimmy was really vicious, but
he gave his companions, to understand
that on the subject of plum pudding
his opinion, •was law. j . One day, after
romping in the snow" all the morning,
JiTnmy presented himself at the kitchen
window, and several slices of bread
were passed out to.hlm. The cub" took
them In his mouth, let them fall to the
ground and continued to peer into the
room.
To a Honey Bee
"Busy-body, busy-body,
Always on the wing.
Wait a bit where you have lit, / i
And tell me why you sing." ;
Up, and in the air again.
Flap, flap, flap!.»
And now she stops, and now she drops
\u25a0 Into .the rose's lap.
"Come, just a moment, come',
\u25a0 From your rose so red," .
Hum, hum, hum. hum-
That was all she said. \u25a0-'\u25a0'
}V; \u25a0 - - - - - • . • ' ~ . \u25a0' :
Busy-body, busy-body,, .
Always light and , gay, .
It seems to, me, for all , l see,.
Your work is only. play. \u25a0
And now. the -day, is sinking to
The goldenest of eves,
And she doth creep for quiet' sjeep
Among the lily leaves.! -
"Come, just a moment, -come, V . «
•From your snowy bed.""
Hum, 'hum,; hum," bum — r; • —
That was all she said.
But, the while I mused, I learned ;
\u25a0 ...The secret of. her ..way; .
Do my part .with -cheerful heart.
And turn my work'to^play.
GOOD STORIES FEW WORDS AND BRIEF, POINTED POEMS
Why Is the/Sea Salt?
Sea water contains/about 3% per cent
of sodium chloride andother'salts. The
evaporation of all the' oceans would
leave a mass of salt:sufiicient to coVer
the, entire, globe to : the. depth of 200
feet, and equal to the bulk, , above sea
level, of one-fourth that of the whole
earth.. • '-'' , . :
The theory that this enormous quan
tity., of ; salt has .'been- dissolved from
continental" rocks-; and carried .down 'to
the sea by streams is not tenable,-be
cause the salts 'found.; in., solution .-in
river water contain .^o per cent of ;car
bonate of lime and only; 7 ; per cent of
chlorides, while common salt; or sodium
chloride constitutes 89 ; per cent of the
salts ' of sea water.' -Then the evapora
tion of Inland „ seas, .which / has taken
place In Central Asia .has left, saline
deposits very different in ' composition
from the salts^ of- the ocean:
It appears therefore . that salinity
must' be regarded ] as: an original j prop
erty ofj the ocean. • Suess has "advanced
the theory that' the ' salts /now/^f ound j In
the sea have been"' ejected by -volcanoes
In early, stages of thejearth's;f ormatioh;
Even* now :e very Increases 'the
quantity ,'of .water; vapor,. carbonic; acid,
and compouclJfaPdr chlorine and; Rjilphiir
In the atmosphere. Jand these substances
ultimately find thelr/.way ; to the ocean.
After, every .eruption » of yesuvlus 4 the
crater Is covered with^a •gleaming* white
layer »of , common/ salt, .and .the vol
canoes of South/ "America Reject 'enor
mous .quantities -of hydrochloric "acid.
The Blackbird .
O, Blackbird! sing; me something well;
While all the neighbors shoot: thee
] round, .. J
I keep; smooth plats of fruitful
ground, \u25a0
Where thou may'st warble,/; eat, and
, • dwell.
The espaliers and' the standards all
Are thine: the range of lawn and
.:: ..park, - ... \u0084-'.-:\u25a0•\u25a0 ; .-' ' v/./:--v,v /./:--v, .; -
The.iinnetted blackhearts ripen dark,
All thine," against the garden wall.
•Yet,' tho' I 'spared ye all the spring,
Thy sole delight ;!»,/ sitting 5ti11, ..-; - :
' With that gold dagger, of thy bill .,
To fret, the summer jenneting.
A goldencbill! the; sliver' tongue,
Cold February loved,/ is dry; •
Plenty corrupts the /melody ' .
That made thee, famous .once, when
, young.
And In, the sultry, garden /squares, :-'.
. Now .thy flute notes, are changed' to
- coarse,'; ,/-•' ;/•-,;/-•/•''"\u25a0" / ; ... /'
Ihear thee not at all;or hokrse ,. .
As when a hawker. hawks, his wares.
Take warning! He that will, not sing
• While y'onVsun' prospers in the-blue"
Shall 'sing for want ere leaves . are
V / new, • />':"-\u25a0: : - < - [\u25a0[\u25a0
Caught .in the frozen palms 'of Spring.
/. —Lord;; Tennyson. .'
The Rule of Three
Multiplication t is j vexation, _ .^
r DivisionHsas bad;
The Rule -.' of } Three / perplexes .-me
And' Practice, drives -meimad. ',<'/•
My Doves
My little doves have left a nest :
Upon an Indian 'tree, '".-\u25a0\u25a0:\u25a0\u25a0
Whose leaves -fantastic take their rest t
Or motion from the. sea;
For, ever there the sea winds, go :
With sunlit: paces to and fro.
. v -; :/\u25a0 • -;/ •\u25a0-\u0084' ,- -\u25a0 ... \u25a0
The tropic .flowers looked up to it, -
The tropic . stars looked down.
And** there my little doves did sit '\u25a0'.'\u25a0
'. With feathers softly brown. 5; ./;-•.,\u25a0
And .'glittering ; eyes that showed their
right -: ;, '.\u25a0-\u25a0" .
To general -Nature's deepdellght.
My little doves .were ta'en away ,'/ f
From that glad - nest of theirs, ;
Across an ocean .rolling = gray, " -
And- tempest clouded , airs. ", - :
My little doves. /who i lately- knew
The sky and wave by. warmth and blue.
And now, within the city, prison
- In/mist and ;chillness pent. :,
With, sudden upward look they, listen,
Forjssounds of ipast content, .-
For/ l^p of .water, s'tnell-of breeze
Or nutfrult .falling from .the; trees. . ;
S—fillzabeth; Barrett Browning. * •*•
A Great Industry
/O^es* 1 than.: sQ> -years ago other straw
berries' than' those, growing wild, were
almost unknown in this country. There
'were' a : . few of the ; cultivated . varieties
to , be - found .' in the markets of -.the
larger/ cities as' a -luxury -within 'reach
of ~ the ; only, \u25a0: and here and
there some gardener or; farmer," more
progressive/ than' his neighbors.' had a
small patch for private use." Today
the; growing of 'the best varieties -of
the- luscious fruit. has reached propor
tions undreamed- of 'a few "years", ago.
Strawberries are grown for the- market
with fahv success In almost ,all parts
of the country,' but the earlier supply
comes, :of j course, . from ;the ! states to
the, southward. . It Is reported from the
strawberry/ section- of North Carolina
that the largest crop in years. will soon
be moving" toward the northern mar
ketß,. and. how great the industry has
grown; to be. In 'that section is indi
cated by the estimate, that 6,000 Vcars
will be_; required to move ; the 'berries
over the Atlantic, coast; line. And, this
is only, a beginning, for 'as the; season
advances 'strawberries will be / finding
their. • way; to .'market ' from -every \u25a0 stato
on 'the Atlantic '\u25a0\u25a0 coast at, least, as/ far
north as New 'Hampshire.— Manchester
Union. * / . " :
-\u25a0 ..-'• ;—; — . . ,
Ah ! Bleak and Barren Was the
&\u25a0; /^ Moor
Ah! bleak and s barren .was'., the ..moor,
\u0084 Ah! loud and 'piercing was the storm; |
The I cottage | roof : . was '/sheltered . sur,e,
*The cottage hearth; was bright and
>-v- •• warm.* *• •"--*-':\u25a0• * \u25a0\u25a0•• \u25a0>\u25a0 \u25a0" -~ \u25a0 ••-*-*-•- ••
An orphan boy the' lattice pass'd,
. And.as'he marked "its cheerful glow, .
Felt^'drfubly; keen the- midnight 'blast, ; ,
;. And -doubly i cold the 'fallen-' snow* '/'i i
They marked 1 him-as< he onward Tpress'd' -
\u25a0 With ; fainting j heart ; and weary jlimb ; g
Kind vvoices^bade?hlin' > turn -and '"rest; -
And.gentle : \facesf welcomed J him: 1 ; :
The dawnils up-^the' guestiis'gone.'
-.-; The f; cottage*; hearth 1 ; Is /.blazing • still, X
Heaven I pity.; all t} poor J wanderers \ lone !
Hark, to the wlnd^upohthei-hlll.-. V
—William', Makepeace '\u25a0 Thackeray. .
Nurses on Horseback
In picturesque uniforms, in which
scarlet and blue and gold predominated,
a troop of ' women on horseback pa
raded the west end r of London a few
weeks ago. The parade, says an Eng
lish paper, is eloquent testimony to the
excellent progress that is being" made
by the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry
corps, which has been formed to ren
der, whenever the- need for their.serv
ices arises, first aid on the battlefield.
*A voluntary and as yet an unofficial
organization, it Is composed of women
who. are ..rapidly making themseU**3
proficient not \u25a0_ only in first aid and
riding, hut also in veterinary 'work, and
in other services in which they may
be/ called upon' to act.
There are' lieutenants of the. corps
and sergeants, corporals and troopers,
among the ."officers being Lady Ernes
tine Hunt, eldest 'daughter of the mar
quis of Ailesbury. /\u25a0.
The. riding lessons are given by cav
alry experts at the riding school of the
"Blues." .There : . the nurses- Jump; the
bush hurdles singly and in pairs and
perform' with ho" little ; dash : all the
evolutions, of the cavalry drill.
The Nightingale and Glowworm
A nlghtingarerthat all day long
Had-cheered; the village with, his song.
Nor yet *at evehis. note suspended.
Nor. yet when eventide was ended.
Began to feel, as well he might,
The, keen demands "of. appetite.
When. Iboking-eagerly around.
He spied far off, upon. the.ground,
A something shining 'in the dark.
And knew the; glowworm by his spark.
So, : stooping down from. hawthorn top, \u25a0.
He thought to put him in his crop.
The worm, aware of his intent.
Harangued him thus, right eloquent —
"Did you admire -my lamp," quoth he,
"As much as I your minstrelsy?
You would abhor to do- me wrong.
As much as I to spoil your song:
For 'twas the selfsame power divine
Taught you to sing and me.to shine;
That you with music," I with light.
Might beautify and cheer the night."
The songster heard his short oration. :
And warbling out his approbation.
Released him, as my story tells.
And found a supper somewhere else.
-William Cowper. '
What He Had Read
/ Tile rector; of ;a church in Aberdeen
shire" was greatly "pleased by I the
knowledge of his- catechism displayed
by a* bright urchin. After a series of
questions .about -religious knowledge,
all. of •which were answered satisfac
torily.' the clergyman next. asked. "And
now, my; little .friend,*, have you ever
read the Thirty-nine- Articles?" "No,
sir,".' rejoined r the youngster, - anxious
to.. display.. .his..* knowledge ;., "but . I've
read the .'Forty Thieves'."
c ••.\u25a0\u25a0-. ;».. — « — ;
'The Year's *at the Spring
The yearns fc at t the spring; .. i .
The day's at the morn;
Mornlng'_s ..at seven; ,.„ ,
The- hillside's dew/pearled;
The : lark'sfon the, wing;
The snail's on; the; thorn;
God's In his' heaven —
All's right with the world!
—Robert Browning.
Tears, Idle Tears
Tears, idle tears. I knowinot what they
, . mean, 1
Tears from the depths of some divine
despair
Rise in the, heart. «nd gather to the
\u25a0 eyes.
In' looking on the happy autumn fields.
And thinking of the days that are no
more. \u25a0
Fresh as the first beam glittering on a
sail,
That brings our friends up from the
underworld.
Sad as the last which reddens over, on*
That sinks with all we love below
• the verge;
So sad. so fresh, the days that ars no
~s more.
Ah, sad and strange as in dark summer
dawns
The earliest pipe of \u25a0 half awaken'd
- 'birds
To dying ears, when unto dying eyea
The \u25a0 casement slowly grows j a j glim
mering square;
So sad, so .strange, - the days that ar*
. no more.
Dear as remembered kisses after death.
And sweet as those by hopeless fancy
feign'd .
On lips that are for others;; deep as
; love, , . *
'\u25a0"\u25a0•Dwept as- first" lore>~»u<i~'wU<l .witly.aH
, regret/.
O death In life, the days that are-n o
, more: >
— Lord Tennyson.
His Favorite Bird
Some diners - wera discussing ; , the
merits \u25a0of different kinds of gameblrds.
One preferred wild duck, another wood
cock, and still another thought a quail
the most delicious article of food. The
discussion and the dinner ended at
about. the same time. "Now," said on«
of the company to the colored waiter,
"what kind of game Co you like best?"
"Well, suh, io tell the truf." replied
the negro, "almost any 'kind of bird
suits me. but what I like bes* Is an
American eagle served on a illbir
dollar!" *
Fable
Shorvlnc Hott the Cavern Followed tke
Hut*.« Advice'
. This. fable la a very short one;'
The cave resolved to make his fortune;
He got a door and In a year
Enriched himself with, wine and beer.
Mamma will ask you, can you tell her.
What -did the cave become? — A cellar.
—John Hookham Frere.
No, Dog!
Reared in the strict school' of "Yes,
sir!" and "No. ma'am!" addressed with
oiTt thought of servility to all elders
and 'better?. I find this is* a season of
rare courtesy and scant civility. Well
dp I remember that- awesome scene at
my father's stable when a stout and re
bellious little, sister, seething with dis
appointment-over some denied dainty,
answered "No!" to a well meant proffer
of a less desirable dl3h. "No, dog? or
No. cat?" my father Inquired with omi
nous calm.' "No. -dag!" the sturdy, lass
recklessly replied. I quake e^«n now
at. the thought of the breathless pain*
which, followed, and draw" a veil over
the painful aftermath. — Appleton's.