VOL. IX. 



The Oologist. 



ALBION, N. Y., OCT., 1892. 



NO. 10 



The History and Mystery of Jacob Potter, Jr. 



"Jake" was a young Barred Owl who 

 lived a short but eventful life at the 

 nome of Win. C. Coomles, in Clement 

 Co., Ohio. 



On the 9th of May, a gentleman, Mr. 

 Jacob Potter, while hunting in a piece 

 of wet woodland described in "Notes 

 from Southwestern Ohio" in the March, 

 '92 Oologist, flushed an owl from a 

 hollow beech, near which a small 

 Barred Owl had been killed, two days 

 before. He fired at it, as it left the hole 

 but secured nothing but feathers. 



The writer was visiting at that time, 

 at the home of the above mentioned W, 

 C Coomles, and being informed of the 

 occurrence by Mr. Potter, went with 

 him and Mr. Coomles's two sons to the 

 tree. It Was a large beech, with a long 

 slit in the south side, about fifteen feet 

 from the ground. The writer immedi- 

 ately ascended, and found tucked in a 

 corner of the hole, a curious ball, or 

 rather mass of grey and brown down, 

 and brown eyes and blue pupils. He 

 was lifted out, and as it was a ratkei 

 long drop, his feet were tied to the end 

 of a long neck-tie, and thus, snapping 

 and hissing, he was lowered to the hands 

 of the persons below. 



After sitting in a hat at the base of a 

 tree while other holes were investigated 

 for the old bird, he was taken home, 

 and placed in an artificial nest on a bar- 

 rel top, with two young Red-tails, taken 

 two days before. 



Here his baby eyes and steady gaze, 

 his downy covering and fuzzy feet soon 

 won the affection of all who saw him; 

 and he was more petted than were the 

 Hawks. 



He soon began, when hungry, to utter 

 a long, strained-out "squec," strongly 

 emphasised at the end. Afterward 



when hungry, this was repeated so con- 

 tinually as to be quite annoying. 



His primaries, when he was taken, 

 were half an inch long. After eating 

 about his weight daily of all manner of 

 flesh till the 13th of May, he began to 

 be conscious of their size, and would 

 often stand on the edge of the barrel 

 and flap his wings vigorously. I have 

 neglected to mention the fact, that from 

 the day he was placed in the barrel until 

 our acquaintance with him ceased, he 

 had a way of twisting his head, or rath- 

 er turning an invisible crank with it, 

 now one way and now the other, in a 

 most ludicrous manner, when looking 

 at objects, and this was kept up until 

 his history closed. 



A few days after the 13th, he was 

 placed on the floor a few times daily, 

 where he would drink and wade in a 

 pan, and run and jump around, flapping 

 his wings, in an edeavor to fly; and 

 soon grew courageous enough to jump 

 and sail from the barrel. Then he 

 climbed upon an old hammock, and go- 

 ing to the highest part, stared and 

 "squeed" for hours. 



It was at this time that I closed my 

 visit; but full accounts were sent me of 

 his doings. 



A day or two after I left, he was found 

 sitting on top of the stove-pipe, where 

 it entered the wall, and then he ven- 

 tured out-doors, and was immediately 

 surrounded by a noisy crowd of martins 

 robins, cat-birds, etc., who made him 

 twist and stare, but did not hurt him, 

 and he took up his abode in a large ma- 

 ple near the house. 



Here he stayed for several clays and re- 

 fused to comedown, and my cousin was 

 compelled to carry his food up to him : 

 but growing tired of this, and quit, and 

 at length Jake, very hungry, appeared 



