THE 00L0GI8T 



187 



of that, birdlime can be secured by 

 boiling linseed oil for a long period 

 of time. 



"When ready the cones smeared 

 with birdlime, are set in the ground. 

 As a bait, meat, grain or nuts are 

 employed. The unsuspecting crow in 

 attempting to get the food pushes 

 its head into the cone and, thus 

 caught, immediately rises — imprison- 

 ed and blindfolded by the cone — in 

 the air, almost straight upward, to 

 a great height. It soon exhausts it- 

 self, however, and falls to the earth, 

 where it may be captured or killed 

 with ease. 



"Other varieties of traps are also 

 used. The crow does not seem to be 

 a wise bird in all matters, for in the 

 nesting season the female may be 

 induced to alight upon a nest full of 

 eggs that are not her own. Taking 

 advantage of this fact, the farmer 

 makes use of a spring trap. The trap 

 may be baited with a dead rabbit or 

 bird. It is declared that if the human 

 .^cent is detected the trap will prove 

 a failure. Strongly scented herbs 

 should therefore be drawn across the 

 trap and a pair of tongs used to set 

 it and place it in position. To thor- 

 oughly complete the deception the 

 French camouflage the traps by cov- 

 ering them with a coat of green 

 paint." — San Francisco Chronicle. 

 W. A. Strong, 

 San Jose, Cal. 



Birds Like Old Homes 

 Birds have in common with man 

 the "housing instinct," albtough of 

 course in man the instinct is not so 

 highly developed. Just how Mr. and 

 Mrs. Bird, on their return to the 

 North from their winter in the South 

 find their old nests each spring is 

 not known. Their ability to locate 

 the "old home" is simply a part of 

 their homing instinct. Without chart 



or compass to point the way, the 

 birds fly unerringly to their old 

 haunts each spring. — Local Democrat. 

 Geo. W. H. vos Burgh. 



The following I read In the Prairie 

 Farmer, and consider it so good that 

 I am copying it in part. 

 The Piasa Bird, an Indian Legend 

 M. S. Rowe 

 Now you may know all about the 

 Piasa bird, or it may not mean much 

 to you, or even be interesting, but I 

 am sure that each one of you has at 

 some time or other, had a strange 

 word suddenly grip you — possess you 

 day and night until you must know 

 all about it. That is what the Piasa 

 did to me! If it could exert such a 

 spell now, I vividly belieA'e that it 

 would have carried me off, had I been 

 so foolhardy as to have lived his day. 

 About 20 miles above Alton, on the 

 the Alton Way, which most of you 

 automobile people know, is the 

 dreamy town of Piasa, set down 

 among the rich surrounding fields of 

 Macoupin County. Here it rests on 

 Piasa Creek, which ambles on and 

 flows into the Mississippi. Going 

 along the Alton way at this place we 

 can look to the Wes't and see the 

 forest — a blue streak — on the Mis- 

 souri side, but cannot discern the 

 river. Now, near this little dot of 

 a town, is a huge advertising sign 

 board representing a book, and as we 

 dashed by I saw, "Piasa Bird," and 

 "page of history." When I was a 

 mile beyond I wished that we had 

 .stopped and read it. Probably that 

 would have saved me this burning de- 

 sire to know all about it. That the 

 word was of Indian origin, I felt as- 

 sured, but could find no one that 

 seemed to know anything about it. 

 One ventured to remark that he "be- 

 lieved that he had read something in 

 history about it — 'but did not know 

 what it "W'las any more." 



