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THE GUIDE TO NATURE 



of the country, and that the calls of the 

 bird which they saw and heard were 

 totally different from those of either of 

 the above species and exactly coincided 

 with the calls attributed to the passenger 

 pigeon, are convincing facts which point 

 almost to a positive identity. Dr. Palmer 

 also states that they were familiar with 

 a stuffed specimen of the wild pigeon in 

 their school collection, and its comparison 

 only served to strengthen their belief in 

 the identification of the bird which they 

 saw. 



Regarding recent previous records, he 

 writes as follows : "A retired lumberman 

 thinks he saw one a year ago when riding 

 in his automobile in the vicinity. Dr. E. 

 S. Boleyn, a trained observer, four years 

 ago saw a pair of great wild pigeons 

 which he was sure were passenger 

 pigeons." 



It is difficult to comprehend the extent 

 of the flocks of these beautiful birds, as 

 recorded by the early observers. Even a 

 comparatively few years ago they were 

 r^ot deemed especially valuable and not- 

 withstanding their former abundance 

 many of the museums have but a few 

 specimens to represent this vanished mul- 

 titude. Even those familiar with their 

 habits did not seem to realize their danger 

 of extinction. I well remember a market- 

 man friend tellin:g of their receiving the 

 pigeons minus their wings, that they 

 might get more of them packed into a 

 barrel, and of his being ridiculed by his 

 fellows when he ventured to prophesy 

 that they would see the day when there 

 would be no more wild pigeons in the 

 market. 



My own observation of these birds was 

 limited to a flock of about fifteen kept in 

 a large enclosure at the Webster Public 

 Museum at Hyde Park, Mass. The ac- 

 companying photograph, taken through 

 the cage, while not very distinct, is inter- 

 esting to show the characteristic attitudes 

 of these birds and their constantly alert, 

 half-wild appearance which they always 

 seemed to preserve. For the use of this 

 picture we are indebted to the Frank 

 Blake Webster Co., proprietors of the 

 museum. These pigeons, which were 

 brought from Indian Territory, were acci- 

 dentally liberated by some workmen in the 

 spring of 1894, and for about two years 

 thereafter occasional reports of wild 

 pigeons being seen in this vicinity were 

 brought to the attention of the ^luseum. 



about the last report coming from Sharon, 

 some fifteen miles southward. 



The following paragraph from "The 

 Story of my Boyhood and Youth" gives 

 us a delightful bit of insight into the 

 habits of these noble birds, as observed by 

 the master mind of John Muir, during the 

 early days of his life on the Wisconsin 

 farm. 



'Tt was a great memorable day when 

 the first flock of passenger pigeons came 

 to our farm, calling to mind the story we 

 had read about them when we were at 

 school in Scotland. Of all God's feathered 

 people that sailed the Wisconsin sky, no 

 other bird seemed to us so wonderful. The 

 beautiful wanderers flew like the winds in 

 flocks of millions from climate to climate 

 in accord with the weather, finding their 

 food — acorns, beechnttts, pine-nuts, cran- 

 berries, strawberries, huckleberries, jtini- 

 per berries, hackberries, buckwheat, rice, 

 Avheat, oats, corn — in fields and forests 

 thousands of miles apart. I have seen 

 flocks streaming south in the fall so large 

 that they were flying over from horizon 

 to horizon in an almost continuous stream 

 all day long, at the rate of forty or fifty 

 miles an hour, like a mighty river in the 

 sky, widening, contracting, descending like 

 falls and cataracts, and rising suddenly 

 here and there in huge ragged masses like 

 high-plashing spray. How wonderful the 

 distances they flew in a day — in a year — 

 in a lifetime ! They arrived in Wisconsin 

 in the spring just after the sun had 

 cleared away the snow, and alighted in 

 the woods to feed on the fallen acorns that 

 they had missed the previous autumn. A 

 comparatively small flock swept thousands 

 of acres perfectly clean of acorns in a few 

 mintites, by moving straight ahead with 

 a broad front. All got their share, for the 

 rear constantly became the van by flying 

 over the flock and alighting in front, the 

 entire flock constantly changing from rear 

 to front, revolving something like a wheel 

 with a low buzzing wing roar that could 

 be heard a long way off. In summer they 

 feasted on wheat and oats and were easilv 

 anoroached as they rested on the trees 

 ?ilong the sides of the field after a good 

 full meal, displaying beautiftfl iridescent 

 colors as they moved their necks back- 

 ward and forward when we went verv 

 near them. Every shotgtm was aimed at 

 tliem and everybody feasted on pigeon 

 pies, and not a few of the settlers feasted 

 also on the beautv of the wonderful 

 birds." 



