Evening Republican, Volume 18, Number 231, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 30 September 1914 — HATCHED CHICKS ON TRAIN [ARTICLE]

HATCHED CHICKS ON TRAIN

Bantam Hen That Was a Pet of All the Men—Not So the Belgian Hare. “On one of our work trains in southeastern Missouri a few years ago we had a bantam hen for several weeks that became the pet of all the men,’’ remarked a railroader. “On one of the cars that we used was an Iron box, uncovered, that the hen discovered. She picked this out for herself. She laid a nestful of eggs, then went to setting, and finally hatched out a brood of chicks, and every day we pulled down the track, without disturbing her in the least. When we would stop for a while she would jump from the train, scratch and wallow in the dust, hunt something ~tb eat, and always be back in her box when the train would pull out. It got so that the men would look to see if the bantam was on her nest before they would start the train. “The smallest camp hanger-on that I ever encountered was a big Belgian hare that belonged to the foreman. Nor was the rabbit particularly a favorite with the men, for be would fight anyone at any time, and even the foreman had to watch him closely. The rabbit would jump at man or beast with the greatest ferocity and would leave the imprint of his teeth every time. He would tackle a dog or cat, and they would be glad to get away after the first round.’’