Richmond Palladium (Daily), Volume 44, Number 273, 30 August 1919 — Page 16

tPAGK TWO

'A Message IFrom The "Bird Man" Although as 'far as we Icnow, no tone really iput ibis ihead into Mr. iGorst's month -and looked around, !aa ihe told the ipeople at Chautauinua, they might, "we really believe Uhat the '"bird man" who could ilrill and sing .and whistle Just like jfjt ibird, had no artificial whistle in fills mouth. 'Through the most careItul study -of 'the ibirds themselves, I find through Hong practise in imitating them, Delias come to the point (where 'he can so clearly imitate libera that 'he igets tho birds all jimiied up tthinking that he is one !ofithem. ! JFrom 'the -very 'beginning of his j"'talk" when ihe whistled Mendel(finnhn'a "Snrlne' .Sone" in Mockine jlbird style to the very end when Jhe described ithe evening hymn or tthe Hermit Thrusn as he has neara Jit sing in 'the woods of New Hamp shire at sunset, he was altogether enjoyable and different from almost everv other inerson most of us lhave ever (heard. Imitated 'Birds Perfectly And when Ihe started to show us Ihnw ithfi (rlHTfirpnt .birds talk, he IfBtartled ros Iby ibis ability fto make Hhem .sound "ipersactiy like the oira MitseUV lit we !had mot .seen him there (on the .stage, when ihe sung the teanarv's isone. we would lhave kthought -we were Shearing :the can!&rv that Hives mext 'door ito ms, bsinging his llittle throat out with (the Joy of illfe, !but at was .really tthe '"Uird jMan" mp on the stage. 'Then. ;ns iho sane the bluebird's 'fsong. lit sounded Just Hike the song of that 'beautiful Hittis ifriend who comes out of hiding .place so early iln ithe spring, twith his blithe me3fBage 'of 'hapiness tfor which lie Is jmow so widely (known. Mr. Gorst (told 'us Just exactly now ne sung !lthi8 song, what letters he used and kWhat tones Ihe sounded, and how Hong ilt took tto sing it (Just a seckond .and :a (half) iand Just what key jithe (bluebird .-sang iit in (the Tcey Vof ID Major), iand yet try as hard as "we 'can, wo icannot even make rone single mote "that sounds like iit. In tfact Ihe (explained the chart lihe (had made which describes the (different ikinds iof whistles and sounds and ithe Betters which stand iif or those sounds, (but, though many Juniors were (trying to make those sounds .as tthey icame out of the lblg itent ;a week ;ago Triday might, (somehow or 'other they did mot isound as Mr.Gorst's whistles soundied. IHe said ithe principal letters Ihe msed were o, 1, c, m. e. w, h, k, iand t, and 8aid that he could get islx octaves :above c, or so high that Ihe sounded exactly (like :Baueaky (Hhnpa Which iit did! (One -of sthe most interesting Ithings he .did was to whistle two iltones together, .and :som.etimes, even three. This is a very wonderifnl ithinc ifnr ft Ihnman to do. If you're not :Bure Just how wonderful !iit :is, try it yourself. 'lEnglish Sparrow Can Learn to Sing Although we think that each bird Jhas one ssong that it sings most of tithe time, ihe showed us xnai ne l.AmlA innwa .tint imnnv 'hlrdfl lhave Several songB, iand often sing the usamo isongs with imany variations. tlFor instance, many or us tninK mat (the llittle oven (bird says "teacner, ltAftrtinr" all ithe time. Mr. Goret 'ithinks iit does too. hut he says he lhftH .counted mine different .ways rthntiWhaji Iheard It say that same kword, as ihe sang ;(or whistled) all !nf them to illfl. I Another thing lie taught ms who ((thought that most birds' songs were "just "Ihappensos" was that the isongs of most "birds are all planned out or organized that there Is a cer(tain rythm, a certain number of (sounds and beats, a clearly marked (beginning ana a definite end. Just as Igood poetry always has. , 'The robin's song was so natural Ithat .most people in the tent smiled Ho one another, recognizing the wolco of their tame little red breastted friend. Hut when Tie told us the isong of the beautiul scarlet tanager was Just like the robin would sing Ihis song if he had a bad cold, wo icould scarcely believe him, but afIter'he whistled it for us, we were (convinced that it sounded as much Hike that as anything, j tile said that birds can be taught ,(to sing and that isome 'have been taught to sing tunes. One canary, Ihe told us was put 1n a church in Ibis cage as part of the Easter decoratlons, and all at once he started ho sing, "Yankee Doodle:" ( )But ithe thing (that surprised -us (the most was that (even an English isparrow was mot hopeless as a slngier. We have always liked his cheer-1

ful chirp, but we never oelived this bird could reafiy . sing, nut Mr. Gorst says it can be taught to sing, and without a very great deal of trouble. He knows of scientists, and he says that after a while that little bird learned to sing the canary's song. Boys Never Yet Caught a Bird "Don't try to make nature too human," said Mr. Gorst, "it is beautiful and wonderful enought Just a3 it is." Two ways the Bird Man suggest

ed for attracting birds to our homes are: building bird boxes, and ikeeping a close watch on all , cats. He also suggested a simple nook, small enough to go easily into a coat pocket, with which, and a pair of bird glasses, one can learn a great deal about birds as ne goes on long walks or even as he sits on his own forch in the summer time. The name of the book is "Reed's Bird Guide," and it is published by the Doubleday Page company, in Garden City, New York. Mr. Gorst, said, that probably we have thought that boys 'caught birds afier they had gone out with their shotguns and had shot the bird and then 'brought it home, but he says they never have brought home a bird that way and they never would. And thi3 is the way he explained this statement which at first sounds very queer. He said that a bird was four things. It was a beautiful song, beautiful feathers, useful ways, and interesting ways. When a boy shoots a bird, he cannot really ibring home the bird, though he bring its body, l for the beautiful song is silent, the feathers soon loose their color, alter the happy little heart stops beating, there are no more interesting ways to watch and no longer any habits that will prove useful to mankind such as eating insect pests and weed seeds. He says that he can get birds, though, and this is 'the way he does it. He starts out on long walks, and sits for a long time watching them through his bird glasses, and their song, and finds out all he can about their .habits. i That he says is the only way to Gorst '8 Pictures Artistic Most of the pictures of birds that thn "Bird Man" used in his story were drawn himself and were very i clear In their colorings and exact as to Bize. Besides all this they were artistically drawn, and showed an appreciation of color combinations. CFor instance, wherever the bird was a full colored bird, he was shown against a background that had a great deal of color in it, as the brilliant orange trumpet flowers which were in the background of the picture of the catbird. But when the bird was one which wore a coat of very gay color, the background was toned down, so that the brightness of the bird's feathers shone out clearly. The background of the bluebird for instance was a very natural suggestion of an early spring morning, and instead of signing his name, Just plain "Gorst," do you know what 'he did? He made his first two initials and the letters of his name, "C. C. Gorst." look like a very delicions looking insect and bo it fitted right into the picture. In fact it looked as if It were Just i meant ifor the bird's next meal. And perhaps it was. SOCIETY NEWS Miss TJertha Farmer, of Economy, entertained a number of her friends, last Saturday afternoon at her tent, 55 Osage avenue, on the Chautauqua grounds. Miss Dorothy Balllnger, of New Castle, who is camping at Chautauqua, spent the day Wednesday as the guest of Miriam and Marguerite Burbanck, at their home in Reeveston. Misses Miriam ;and Marguerite and Master William Burbanck will go to Indianapolis with their parents, Sunday, and will attend the State Fair there next week. A HEN WORTH HAVING, EH? Pauke" "What makes that hen in your 'back yard cackle so loud?" Jake "Oh, they've Just 'laid a cornerstone across the street, and she's trying to make the neighbors think Bhe laid it!" Lone Scout

THE RICHMOND PALLADIUM, SATURDAY. AUGUST 30, 1919

Where the Rooster Wenllo Roost BY JULIA R. BURR j It was about time for the chlckns to go to roost. In one corner of the chicken yard the old rooster md hen were having quite a fuss. The old rooster seemed to be getting the worst of it and ibefore I could ind out the trouble, the old hen jhased the rooster out of the chicksn yard and would not let him come Dack. The old roqjtcr then hegan to look around for another place to roost. He strutted around for auite a while and finally spied a small bush tree and decided that he would have to go there. He (lew up into the tree and settled down. (Below him was a creek and above him tie could see the sky. Then a quiet little breeze swung the tree to and fro, while the crick ets sang. With the crickets singing and the tree swinging he went to sleep. When early morning came he was not with the other roosters crowing while hefore he was al ways the first one to crow. It seemed that he never would awake, Ibut who could, when being rocked all night long and in the morning still? Jut finally he did awaltc. He Jumped down from his .beloved jerch r a

to find tthe old hen looking for him. She told him she was sorry she made him stay out all night and was afraid he had caught cold. The rooster who still liked to be petted told her it was all right and tried to make the old hen believe the fuss was all his fault. That night the old hen and rooster both went to roost on the rooster's new roost. The End

Banff lor Junior Navy in Chicago A boys' band, the greatest organization of ,its kind in the country, will he a feature of the United States Junior Naval Reserve, of Chicago, mow recruiting juvenile sailors. One hundred boys musically inclined will be given training in reserve on Lake ship. W. J. Bossert, a Spanish-American war veteran of Camp Luzon will be in charge of the band. This reserve which alms to train boys In the United States Marine Dr in the United States Navy has head-quarters in all the states of Ihe union. Miss Betty and Master Josiah Test, of Akron, Ohio, arc visiting their marents in Richmond.

m&iSdmol

School Begins Today As Mother Sees it

I'm glad vacations' over, and school is called again! For thirteen weeks my romping boys have crazed their mother's brain; For thirteen weeks I've counted the sultry days away I'm glad vacation's over and school begins today. There's John, and Joe, and Jimmy their clothes were nearly new When they came home from school that day and said the term was through; Now John, and Joe, and Jimmy, with sun brown hands and feet, Come in at night about the plight of beggars on the street. There is no order in the house; I cannot find a thing; The drawers are tumbled upside down with six hands hunting string; The chairs are always in a row; the whole house fairly jars With Jimmy Jumping off and on, to run his train of cars. My brand new carving knife.I found out in the grass, where Joe v Had used It making arrows for Jimmy's little bow; And John came home from fishing came whistling through the gate With father's best tobacco box filled up with worms for bait. The hens have had a frightful time the whole vacation through; They could not hide a nest away, the best that they could do; I heard a rooster crow this morn; to me it eemed to say "I'm glad vacation's over and school begins today!" Selected.

Soon all the schools will begin again! When the sun comes up on the second of 'September (and we hope the sun will shine that day, because it is so dreary to ,go hack to school on a rainy day) It will isee all the children who live in the country districts starting away from home more or less ager to bo baclf at school. It will also see the children starting hack to St. Andrew's School, and to St. John's iflchool, while the Test of the children of Richmond are still playing and enjoying flracatlon. But their vacation will soon bo -ended, for on the next Monday morning, (they (too, will he walking though some will Ibe running back to school

THE FIGHT

resents a boy who has read a Wild West etory and is dreaming of it j

in chool. Author). " ' I

It was evening in the mountains.

I was ridine down the iran.

On my saddle hung the bag

That carried the U. S. man.

As I nearea the little timber,

That was lying to my right, I put some shells in my gun, For I knew I'd have to fight. All at once a dozen Redskins Jumped out right in the rear, I started to shoot the pesky critters. When some one pulled my ear. I looked up, It was my teacher, She looked bo cross and mean, . That the Indians and the mall Simply faded to a dream. Lone Scout, Ralph Ware, f "You're the finest looking maa I've ever seen, Dick." "I wish I could return the compliment." "You could if you'd lie as much as I did."

Teacher "Tom, why were you late for school this morning?" Tom "The bell rang before I got hero."