BIRD NEWS 



tary condition of the cage was proof 

 positive that avaian housekeeping, 

 amongst the cotter-folk was not by 

 any means up to the municipal stand- 

 ard of healthy homes. Next came a 

 little Italian boy, with a stump-tailed 

 Parakeet hanging by beak and claws 

 to his coat-collar, while he trailed 

 along a demi-john of "foot-wine." 



Later we met with a "union" man, 

 not yet fully forgetful of his home 

 instincts, probably the hereditary re- 

 tiex of many generations, for in a 

 paper-protected red-stained wooden 

 cage, carried beneath his right arm — 

 both hands being fully burdened with 

 bundles — we saw — crouching- in ab- 

 ject terror — a British "lintie"- — the 

 poor, little foreigner probably even 

 then homesick for the banks and 

 braes — of the land of the gorse and 

 heather. By noon the flames had al- 

 ready devastated an area one mile 

 long by one and half miles in width, 

 and in the seething blast-furnace 

 conflagration — many of the refugees 

 had been overtaken, and in the ur- 

 gent and relentless retreat — had sur- 

 rendered to a fiery-death many of the 

 belongings and "pets" they had so 

 bravely striven in the earlier morn 

 to secure and rescue. On the opposite 

 side of the leading thoroughfare 

 stood the famous "Call" building, a 

 magnificent stone structure "capped" 

 by a restaurant, the loftiest in the 

 Avorld and the resort of all tourists, 

 who enjoyed from its windows an un- 

 rivalled panorama of the city, bay 

 and distant foothills. Along side this 

 building were a number of smaller 

 ones, one of which was the famous 

 "Old Crow Whiskey" saloon. The 

 window of this saloon had been 

 idaced at the entire disposal of two 

 crows-Corvus Americans — two fated 

 "trademark" specimens which al- 

 ways had a large audience — outside 

 as they disported themselves on a 

 ten-foot tree stump, ate raw beef. 



and drank "Old Crow" whiskey. One 

 was especially a bad character, 

 known to the police — he could talk, 

 whistle and when "well-edged" 

 would outrival in loquacity and ges- 

 ture a star comedian. This specimen 

 had a crippled wing. The fire was 

 very intense, the big building was 

 smouldering "inside" while furtive 

 tongues of flame told only too surely 

 that it was being eaten through and 

 through. At this time I was in my 

 office diagonally across the street, 

 and was astonished in the midst of 

 the disaster by the appearance of a 

 large bird, which at first I took for 

 a pigeon flying out of the fire-zone 

 and lighting upon the window sill 

 scarce on arm's length from where 

 I was standing. On closer inspection 

 I recognized the sound specimen of 

 the two crows from the saloon oppo- 

 site. The poor thing was terror- 

 stricken and hung to the heated 

 window for only a moment, and then 

 flew over the corner of the build- 

 ing to an adjacent house, simply to 

 experience, I am afraid, but a tem- 

 porary respite from the fiery fate 

 which befell its notorious compan- 

 ion. The bird had evidently escaped 

 when the heated air had broken the 

 plate-glass window of the saloon. One 

 of the most extraordinary bird es- 

 capes which came under my personal 

 observation was that of a canary. Its 

 cage had been crushed by the falling- 

 in of a building. It was absolutely 

 flattened f)ut, except at one corner, 

 in which the bird was imprisoned. 

 The bird still lives — like the solitary 

 escai)ed prisoner of Pelee — a sole 

 survivor, and sings, perhaps a Te 

 Deum of gratitude to the great na- 

 ture — god — which saved it, a verita- 

 ble-brand from the burning. Many 

 more instances might be recorded — 

 but space forbids. 



It is pleasant to record that the 

 great western spirit of determination. 



