DOMESTIC PIGEONS 105 



The pigeon corps of the American army was 

 modeled more or less after the French and Eng- 

 lish. Permanent lofts were constructed behind 

 the lines not far from the front, and, in addition, 

 there was a corps of mobile lofts capable of fol- 

 lowing close at the heels of the army. Approxi- 

 mately 200 birds were apportioned to each loft, 

 and after a short period of training they were 

 ready for work. Each loft was in charge of a 

 non-commissioned officer who saw to it that the 

 birds were sent forward to the men in line and 

 whose duty it was to transmit despatches taken 

 from homing birds to headquarters. 



Each day a man was sent forward from the loft 

 to the front line. His conveyance was a motor- 

 cycle to which was secured a large basket, suffi- 

 cient to hold as many as seventy or eighty birds. 

 His journey to the front was made in somewhat 

 the following manner: first to an aviation field 

 to leave a dozen birds; then to brigade head- 

 quarters of the artillery of that sector, or the 

 various battalion headquarters; and finally to 

 regimental or battalion headquarters of the in- 

 fantry where the remainder of his cargo was dis- 

 posed of. At this last place the pigeons were 

 distributed to the different companies, two birds 

 to each; and the courier returned to the loft to 

 await developments. 



It was a hard service for both pigeons and 

 men, but war is severe on everything and every 



