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Entered accordins to Act of Congress, in June, 1869, by J. W. Burke k Cos., in the Clerk’s Office of the District Court of the United States for the So. District of Georgia
Vol. Ill — No. 48.
THE CRANE AND THE DRAKE.
f)ME years ago a gentleman pos
sessed a pair of slate-colored
cranes. One of them, r The fe
male, died, and the survivor seemed in
consolable. According to all appear
ance, he would soon follow his compan
ion, when the’tnaster thought’of bring
ing a large looking-glass into the aviary.
The bird no sooner beheld his own im
age reflected than he placed himself be
fore the glass, made his toilet by smooth
ing his feathers, and exhibited evident
signs of contentment.l The plan was
quite successful. The male recovered
his health, regained his spirits, and liv
ed for several years. Did this bird im
gine that the image reflected in the glass
was the shadow of her he mourned? or
was it only a diversion from solitude?
There exists in India a gigantic crane
(Ardea argila ) which shares with the
jackals the office of scavenger of the
public roads.
Even the drake, whose nasal and dis
cordant voice denotes but little intelli
gence, has 0.1 some occasions shown
great sagacity. The following has been
related by one of our most eminent na
turalists, who heard it from a person
worthy of credit:
“ A young lady was sitting in a room
adjoining a poultry-yard, where chick
ens, ducks, and geese were disporting
themselves. A drake came in, ap
proached the lady, seized the bottom of
her dress with his beak, and pulled it
vigorously. Feeling startled, she re
pulsed him with her hand. The bird
still persisted. Somewhat astonished,
she paid some attention to this unac
countable pantomime, and discovered
that the drake wished to drag her out of
doors. She got up, he waddled out
quickly before her. More and more
surprised, she followed him, and he
conducted her to the side of a pond
where she perceived a duck with its
head caught in the opening of a sluice.
She hastened to release the poor crea
ture, and restored it to the drake, who,
by loud quackings and beatings of his
MACON, GEORGIA, MAY 28, 1870.
wings, testified his joy at the deliver
ance of his companion.”
Illustrated Library of Wonders.
Written for Burke’s Weekly.
SPRING.
t( Come gentle Springy ethereal mildness come.
vi§i pRiNG is n ° w - fuiiy with us >
scattering around all her beau
rQ ties. This has always been
considered the most beautiful season.
In the great change that occurs, in the
going out of Winter and the coming in
of Spring, there is something grand.
First, instead of the partridge whistling
“ whowe, wkowe, it is so co d/’ he has
TUB drake fading the lady to THE rescue.
changed his note to a song suited to the
season, and is heard in every direction,
all day long, whistling to his mate.
Grandpapa tells me that, many years
ago, there was a very cold winter, which
killed nearly all the partridges. In
some places nearly every one was kill
ed, either by freezing, starvation, or the
cruel hawks, which caught them on the
snow, as they had nowhere to hide.
Early in the Spring one male partridge
Whole No. 152.
came along, and for days, seated on a
tree or fence rail, he called for a com
panion ; but there was no answer, and
he disappeared.
But the past winter was very mild,
and now there are plenty of partridges.
The little snow-birds are now leaving,
or have left, as not one can be seen.
Their dress of black and white is too
warm for our climate. They go to the
tops of our highest mountains, where it
is always cool, and there build their
nests on the small trees which grow
there, and many nests may be found on
one small bush, not very far above the
ground.
Bet other birds have come to take their
place. There comes the robin red-breast.
The yard is now full of them, hopping
about on the green grass. We see them
standing, “with head awry and eye
askant,” and wonder wffiat they are do
ing, when suddenly they draw from the
earth a worm and swallow it. When
they have enough they perch themselves
on the nearest tree and sing their plea
sant song, which w-e all love to hear.
Now comes the blue bird, and the
wren, and the pewee, but above all the
mockingbird. Wonderful bird 1 With
no beauty of plumage, and very harsh
when he screams his own song, he brings
us the songs of all the birds he has
heard thousands of miles away, on the
banks of the Amazon, or in the green
forests of Mexico, or in our own dear
sunny South.
Then comes the whip-poor-will, whist
ling his monotonous song all the long
night. Most of the birds do their
courting in the day time, but the owl
and whip-poor-will prefer the night, and
really, Irom the unmusical notes they
use, their sweethearts must be easy to
please.
How gradually the trees are clothed
in cheerful green, and the flowers come
smiling out on the dogwood and all the
fruit trees. I admire most the sweet
flowers of the apple, especially the wild
crabs.
The spring fruit will soon be abun
dant everywhere, hirst, the bright red
strawberry; who does not love stia.v-