A CURIOUS OWL. 



C. E. HUTCHINSON. 



Me an' Jim Oliver was goin' 'long, one 

 time, when we seen one of these 'ere bur- 

 rowin' owls. I hadn't never seen none be- 

 fore but Jim he knowed what it was an', 

 soon as he seen it, he sez to me, "See that 

 'ere bird settin' on the ground?" and I sez, 

 "Yes." 



"Well, that ere's the curiousest kind of 

 bird there is. You kin walk clear 'round 

 'im in a circle and he'll foller yer with his 

 eyes jest like his head was on a pivit, an' 

 it'll jest go clean around.'' 



Well, I laughed, but Jim sez, "jest yoii 

 try it wonst." So I started out an' went 

 clean 'round the thing, far enough 'way 

 from 'im so he wouldn't scare an' fly, an' 

 I'll be jiggerd if he didn't do jest as Jim 

 said. Jim, he's the jokiest kind of a feller 

 an' when I got 'round he sez, "keep on 

 goin' 'round an' after a while his neck'll 

 git wrung and he'll jist fall over dead, 

 sure 'nough." 



So I started out an' went 'round 9 times 

 in the hot sun while Jim set under a gum 

 tree, in the shade, and laughed. After I'd 

 went 'round more times, putty nigh fallin' 

 down all the time through keepin' my eyes 

 on the blamed owl, so's to see if his head 



kept goin' the right way, I got plumb mad 

 and I sez to Jim, "I'm jist goin' to stay 

 with 'im if it takes all summer." 



After I'd went 'round a lot of times, Jim 

 says, "Them owls is got the rubberest neck 

 you ever seen," and I sez, "That's no lie, 

 Jim ; but I'll wind his durn neck so tight 

 that he'll strangle 'fore I get done." 



I kep' on walking 'round, settin' down 

 as of'en as I got dizzy. Bimeby the corral 

 boss come along an' sez he, "Hi ! the old 

 man's onto you fellers foolin' away time 

 over here, an' he's goin' to fire you." 



So we got out of there plenty swift and 

 then Jim says, "You dumb fool, that there 

 owl's head don't go clean' round, nohow ; 

 it only goes part way an' then he turns it 

 back again, so quick you can't see it go." 



Mebby I wasn't mad when Jim told me 

 that, 'til I seen it was only a joke he played 

 on me. 



They say them owls is all over out 

 West, but this here one I'm tellin' on, was 

 on a ranch close to Los Angeles, when we 

 wasted good time over it. 



I guess we was goin' to get fired, sure 

 'nough, but Jim told the old man the joke 

 an' he laughed an' didn't say nothin'. 



AMATEUR PHOTO BY MRS. W H MEYER. 



SCENTING AN ENEMY. 

 Made with Korona Camera. 

 270 



