78 



THE O0l.()(iIS!-. 



over the edge. Soon came the answer 

 from below, -'It's all right." Well, I 

 came down out of that tree in less time 

 than I went up. Everything went 

 "lovely" until I reached the last crotch 

 which was so shaped that I could not 

 get below it. At this crisis, while try- 

 ing to get my legs and arms both below 

 that swell, one of those poor irons, I 

 spoke of, gave out entirely and, — well, 

 there was a sensation of motion and 

 darkness followed by a feeling that my 

 feet had been driven through me. and 

 then oblivion. 



The next winter this tree was up- 

 rooted in a great wind. I found by 

 actual measurement, that it was 70 feet 

 fi'om the stump to the nest, and 35 feet 

 to the crotch from which I fell. Very 

 few nests are placed as high as that in 

 my vicinity. The nest was 3 feet wide 

 and nearly as high, made entirely of 

 dead sticks, some of them large enough 

 to remind one of the description of those 

 used by the Osprey. It was not hollow- 

 ed out much and had no lining what- 

 ever. If it was ever used by any Hawk 

 the Owls had certainly altered it beyond 

 recognition. 



It is my advice to all who contem- 

 plate any climbing to send to "Lattiu" 

 and get a pair of his climbers which 

 don't 'give out.' I didn't get home un- 

 til four that afternoon and to this day 

 I feel the effects of that fall. 



But to come back to my subject, I 

 cannot tell exactly how we came to 

 fasten that name on him, but- Rhoder- 

 ick Dhu he was christened and called 

 Khoderick for short. He grew rapidly, 

 eating all the fresh meat that came his 

 way. Even when quite small (a ball of 

 down about 6 inches high with two Hufiy 

 eai-- tufts) he would swallow mice and 

 small birds whole and at two months he 

 would swallow a rat. leaving the tail 

 outside until he could stow it a'^ay. 

 He always swallowed his food head 

 firs-t, if any head was to be found. We 

 had many oi)portunilies to watch him 



eject the liliJH Ixills of fur and bones. 

 He would select a broad, flat perch, 

 a beam in the barn (we often carriad 

 him therti before he could fly) suited 

 him best, stretch his neck and lean for- 

 ward until tho tip of his beak touched 

 the beam or (ithei perch, and then 

 would follow the most comical con- 

 tortions yon ciiiild imagine and the 

 ball would roll to the floor. Rhoderick 

 would then iiliiik his eyes several times 

 as he settled in !<hape on his perch and 

 look around in a knowing way that 

 was ]au<iliabie. 



Soon the wilier ijnills came out and 

 he found that they assisted him in 

 hopping so ;it once he began to use 

 them. Before this his manner of loco- 

 motion was iiio>t laughable. It con- 

 sisted of a ijunil)er of long hops, a 

 resting spell and then another series 

 of hops. As lu^ experienced much dif- 

 ficulty in keeping his balance when hop- 

 IMng, he made a most ludicrous figure. 

 He would hop all the way from the 

 barn to the house, a distance of loO 

 feet, get over tlie >\\{ into the kitchen 

 wh're the women were at work, and 

 with th" lielp f)f his wings, at first very 

 laboii'>i:siy but Liter on with the great- 

 est of c-is.'. phice. hin)self in a chair 

 where he won id sit contentedly for two 

 hours. 



No jok(> intended, for in spite of 

 their solitary reputation this Owl cer- 

 tainly liked (Mimpany. 



One morninj/ when we went to feed 

 r.hodeiick i.e was not to be found. 

 Finally my father spied him perched 

 ctn the ridge of the house. Then the 

 truth Hashed over us, Rhoderick could 

 lly! My brother « ent up on the roof 

 but Mr. Owl gave a flap of his wings 

 as if to say "No you don't," and flew 

 across the garden, but his flight was 

 weak and he soon came to the ground 

 where he was found and taken back, 

 never to take another long fly, for as 

 we did not wish to clip his wings we 

 shut him up in a room titled for his. 

 accommodatiim 



