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r-J# .'saw t, kw. !" ' "1 »'% **"•«,* <v ^ J|s * ! ? '/%%* „ > * v " • ' v 4 ,;•'•« ̂.' \$y ̂ «.;"' ' - *>'•• ? , <?•*•* m ^«L *Eir r1 #> • />, _ * MB Edward B. CLARK 4 jP^,." v N >s M HJOtt, h a this lM>-! all fuj feath- ve sought ? the gulf, remain with snow wastes fare silent amid Jim. studies is that Swledge of how the ^selves during a time ;h heavily clothed, at question if many peo- iglish sparrow, whom ges to pull through a offering himself up as a t is a matter of current but Kg those who have noticed the lich the sparrows have built in That these bunches of straw, dried ?rs focai the abiding places of the '"He coldwinter nights. As a mat- Sparrow sel- "3 i -"1 iMmm tsri//>/£3 aFbtzz<j i •§k- u:iM a tree nest if be has found his summer srnlce pf a aay go there the long. But the tree had from the Jast brood Is • # s to know ds of the fep in winter se cold night ub and rap ght iipcm an-'^ c lights-pole that is with an overhanging There is a little atform In some of these hoods directly over the lass fclofes. Upon this as many sparrows as can nveniefctly crowd together rost throughout the old weather nights. A club rapping experiment n an electric light pole at a Chicago avenue cor- er near the North Side water works lot during howling blizzard one winter night resulted la diskxigir.ent of twelve frightened sparrowB. y fluttered about in the storm and hung like many fascinated moths.* When the pounding d they made their way back to their resting te and .doubtless remained undisturbed until Their flat was certainly modern in its Pi>oinmn?nts, for It was heated and lighted by electricity. Take a trip through a thistle field in July and there will be seen scores of goldfinches feeding on the seeds of the prickly plants. These little creatures have the appearance of the birds of the tropics. It would seem that barely a breath of the north wind would send them scurrying south­ ward. In truth, however, these birds, frill though they appear, stay with us all winter, yet not one person in fifty outside of the ranks of the bird students knows the fact. In late August the goldfinch drops his gold and lack livery anH puts on a sober sparrowlike arb. This is the reason why people think that he little thistle seed lover has left them and that another bird has taken its place. In the Chicago Academy of Sciences there is pathetic evidence of how the goldfinch keeps warm during tiie winter nights. The curator has there an oriole's nest from the outside of which hangs the body of a goldfinch caught by the neck and liter­ ally hanged by one of the cords with which the oriole has fashioned Its home. The goldfinch has sought refuge in the neBt from the weather jmd leaving it in the morning has thrust his head through the fatal noose. These birds utilize the deserted bofoes of all their brethren who ' build deep nests. The goldfinches return night After night to a nest Which an oriole had swung from the tips of an elm in Western Springs, 111. The chickadee of which something has been I laid, builds its nest somewhat after the manner . «f the woodpecker, but If observation goes for much, the bird does not use this absolutely safe and warm retreat for its winter night lodging. They have been startled time after time Just after •unset on cold nights from the vacated nests of many species of birds, the chickadee simply bury- , tng itself in the warm linings in which the sum- P, |ner before the young of Its friends had been icradled. By mid-September the swallows one and all | had disappeared. It may be that If the appear­ ance of one swallow does not make a summer, ,the%bsence of the entire tribe may not make an but it is certain that the birds must feel $ that bids them begone, for they go in Ht they go in the twinkling of an ey live upon insects, and there is i food is concerned, they «* -Jfwqt two week/ longer, for In sheltered noQ*®- The hum- its delicacy, stays longer than plains not. ght of a saucy little wood- in a tree on his lawn at may hope to have an e entire winter. All ain in the north the red heads stay too, pre of miles to the remain pass their the time of thj| locating proper ugh Interest ih :x s^rf 1 the woodpecker is felt to keep him as a companion throughout the winter a piece of suet bound firmly to the limb of a tree and occasionally renewed will Insure his presence as a guest as long as the snow 4 flies, and with him, tempt­ ed by the suet, will be a goodly company of Jays, chickadees, and golden crowned kinglets. The kinglet, smaller than any of our birds, save the ruby throated humming bird alone, manages to live through all the cold Northern winter and be all the while as cheerful as a robin in April. The kinglet, as far as the experience of one per­ son is concerned at least, prefers to get his sunv mer food in the thick bushes, and seemingly has a preference fpr those which Are near clambering vines. The kinglets cast about for likely places In which to pass the winter. As far as can be ascertained they simply get into the heart of some thickly twigged bush through which run vine branches and there all night long they defy both cold and snow. The great northern shrike, which is due in the northern states from its summer home in the British possessions about October 1. spends his nights close to the bole of an evergreen tree. There is a little clump of evergreens well within the limits of the city of Chicago where a half dozen of these birds roost nightly from October to March. Inasmuch as they live on a diet of English sparrows and spend all the daylight hours In the laudable vocation of killing the imported feathered pest, the exact location of their roosting place, will not be given for fear some champion of the sparrow might disturb the rest of these feathered friends, whotri|aiany are unkind enough to call butcher birds. need feel little anxiety birds that stay with us in of "What will the robin ' is tear-compelling, but the the "JayT^and the chickadee ist Ives and will feel no envy tated flat. of winter while peo- places are scattering As a matter of for the welfare of winter. The nurser do then, poor th robin, the b will all care of man in DttH pie wit crumb feathe mi u li^ir doorsteps for the little la ad tisitors, the great city of Chicago 5jk is doing Its best to feed the storm- rue of Lake Michigan. Not all the sew- the city, notwithstanding the completion drainage canal, is sent towards the Missis- Some little of it still finds it way into the with its burden of garbage, and there the ull scavengers, by eating much of the output that from their point of appetite is edible, do their best to aid in purifying the water supply. In the dead of winter when the cold Is so in­ tense that it seems that no exposed creature can live, the waste of water between Chicago and St. Joe, Mich., is peopled with strange feathered visitors, who shun the same water stretches when the wind blows soft out of the south. A storm which once rose and preceded a "spell" of zero weather brought with it from the north scores of strange, beautiful arctic visitors known as long-tailed ducks. They may be seen all througb the winter well out into the open water of Lake Michigan- Tbey-v fairly revel in • cold weathe? and In cold water. It is highly probable that they would never come to the great lakes at all were tt not for the fact that everything north­ ward is frcsen solid. The male "long-tail" is a beauty, with bis strongly contrasted black and White plumage and the two great sweeping tall feathers that give him his name. With his wife be does not lack other names, and they are known In various places as "old Injun," "old wife," "old molly," "old granny." "old squaw," and "01d south southerly." Because of the oily nature of their flesh these ducks are unfit for food, and yet the gunners on the Chicago break­ waters and on the government pier used to kill dozens of them in the pure wantonness of spojjt. When the slopfig stone abutment that pro­ tects the outer Lincoln Park driveway, Chicago, from the wares is piled high with ice during the winter the venturesome person who will scale the side of the pile may Bee in the dark water only a few yards beyond one of the most beauti­ ful ducks known to the bird kingdom. The golden eye, or whistle wing, frequents the cold waters of Lake Michigan all through the winter, and comes close to the shore. It is seldom that more than four or five are seen together, and oftener a single pair will be found. If the pro­ tection which the male apparently tries to ex­ tend to the female during all times of the year be a basis for judgment, these birds remain mated for life. The golden eye almost invariably places him­ self between his gentler companion and danger, and when they are swimming or flying to new foraging places he invariably leads the way. The movement of their wings is so rapid that it produces a xnuaical whistling audible at a great distance. Because of the rapidity of their flight the Indians call them spirit ducks, believ­ ing that some supernatural aid Is given them to add to the swiftness of their journeylngs. The best of the bird scavengers acting as the allies of the Chicago health department in win­ ter axe the herring, the ring billed gulls. The herring gull Ib a big grayish creature, almost pure white if he is three years old, with black tips to his wings. The young of the first year are mottled gray, entirely different In appearance from their parents. The result of this difference is that people looking at a winter flock of the gulls think that It contains several species. The lagoons in Jackson and Lincoln Parks are often fairly covered with these birds, provided a heavy storm is coming in from the eastward. A delicate-looking bird Is the kittewake gull. It does not look as if it could stand the rigors of lake winter weather for a day, and yet neither storm nor cold succeeds in chilling its optimism or in abating its Industry The klttewakes have been in the lake ofT Chicago in winter, and here they doubtless occasionally have remained until March. A bird lover considers it an ornithological epoch when he sees a great black-backed gull. The persistent and careful observer who cares nothing for weather conditions may find this rare creature, perhaps the largest of our gulls, If he will but keep a constant watch along the lake front. The bird has been seen here on several occasions in winter. Its name gives a good de­ scription of it. It Is sometimes, known tf'ew- somely as the "coffin carrier.' lent of War was laid aside to be examined by daylight, which was done in the pres- of a number of us officers. •iflg the breech open It was base of the copper shell thai ha There was a very pronounced dent on the muzzle of the piece. "What had happened was that while the man had the gun extended In the firing position a bullet had gone down the muzzle. This weapon is now in the Army Ordnance museum in Wash­ ington." OutsJ i&d&m, 1 am ""*e yfwn It fie su igeous. try sorry that 1 can- While be was pel led to kep him in custody until lhe coroner's verdict Is rendered, fat least" "Do you mean to tetl me that J on are going to lock my boy In a erf to­ night?" ' "I am sorry, but that's what we shall have to do." \ "Good heavens! Why, 'he maythave to be right next to some perstw who has been arrested for stealing^ a loaf of bmd' This is an Otttrnrrp" bavc no right ("6 be holding a j u ^pu ibiic INSTRUCTORS TP TEST BIBLE R COMMITTEE OF FIVE TO flfe AP­ POINTED TO TAKE CA3E >TO THE SUPREME COURT. FAVOR SIMPLIFIED SPELLING Fifty-eighth Annual Convention of Illinois Association Opens at 8pringfield With a Large At­ tendance. Springfield.--The fifty-eighth annual convention of the Illinois State Teach­ ers' asosciation opened at' Springfield. The state instructors discussed child education. The first general session was held in the state armory, though two sec­ tional meeting in the afternoon pre­ ceded this session. The business of the meeting was taken up. It is rumored an attempt will be made by Peoria teachers to take the fifty-ninth convention to that city, which may provoke a contro­ versy. Speakers for the various sessions Include \Governor Deneen, H. W. Shryock, Carbondale; Francis Q. Blair, Earl Barnes, Philadelphia; Miss Myra C. Billings, Chicago; Edwin G. Cooley, Chicago, and others. By a vote of 207 to 84 the teachers adopted the minority report of the committee of religious affairs, which recommended the appointment of a committee of five to take a test case to the supreme court for another de­ cision from that body on the legality of reading the Bible in the schools of Illinois. The principals' section elected the following officers: ' president--C. E. Joiner, Monmouth. Vice-president--L. A. Mahoney, Ro- ehelle. Secretary--O. P. Lyle, Shelbyville. The villages principals elected of­ ficers as follows: President--J. W. Morgan, Clayton. Vice-president--C. H. Brittin, Kirk- wood. Secretary -- C. S. Stewart, Des Plaines. The county superintendents' section elected: Financial secretary--Miss Elizabeth B. Harvey, Boone county. The high school section elected: President--J. F. Wiley, Mattoon. Vice-president--W. R. Spurrier, Centralia. Secretary--Miss Mary English, De­ catur. The primary section elected: President--Miss Esther White, Highland Park. Vice-president--Mrs. Price, Bloom- tngton. Secretary--Mss Harkins, Decatur. Some time ago the supreme court handed doftn an opinion holding that the reading of the Bible in the public schools was illegal. The minority re­ port of the committee on religious af­ fairs declares that the opinion of the minority of the supreme court in this chse was rational, constitutional and legal and that the majority opinion was the contrary. The majority re­ port of the committee, presented by Francis G. Blair, state superintendent of public Instruction, for which the association substituted the minority report, was in favor of acoepting the decision of the court as final. The association adopted a resolution indorsing the plan of having sent to each county from the state agricul­ tural college a trained farm demon­ strator to Bhow farmers how the soil can be preserved and production in­ creased through application of scien­ tific methods. This is intended to Bolve, in a measure, the cost of liv­ ing problem. By a vote of 107 to 68 the associa­ tion went on record as adopting the report of the committee on simplified spelling, which was in favor of simpli­ fication. The report waB made by O. A. Vail of Chicago. State 8harpshooters Tournament. The cloGing shoot of the year of the Centrai Illinois Trapshooters league, was held at the Illinois Gun club grounds, in Harvard Park. The business meeting of the league was also held at the St. Nicho- las hotel, at which time the dates for next year's tournaments were selected, and other business matters discussed. The tournament was largely attend­ ed and some excellent scores were made. The program consisted of a 150 bird Jack rabbit event, and a 50 bird handi­ cap. There was also a team shoot by Jacksonville, Peoria, Bloomlngton, Farmer City and Springfield, the five members of the league. New Illinois Corporations. Secretary of State Rose issued cer­ tificates of incorporation to the follow­ ing: Cardinal Catering company, Chica­ go; capital, $5,000. Incorporators-- Sylvanus George Levy, Isaac B. Lip- son and Thomas W. Wbltsan. Calumet Shirt company, Chicago; capital stock decreased from $125,000 to $5,000. Automatic Printing Press company, Chicago; capital stock Increased from $5,000 to $100,000 and number of di­ rectors from three to five. Chicago Copper and Chemical com­ pany, Chicago; capital, $150,000. In­ corporators -- Winthrop Coolidge, Charles R. Foster and Frank A. Sim­ mons. The Buckley Telephone 'company, Buckley; capital, $20,000. Incorpora­ tors--William 9. Hale, Harry S. Bos- sort, Elwln Hull, Frank E. Singleton and William Krutnwlsdle. Warner Randolph company, Chica­ go; capital stock Increased from $40,- 000 to $50,000. Newman Lecture company, Chica­ go; directors decreased from seven to I--' *t'• Many Accidents Due to Treepaaslng. In an effort to reduce the number of deaths and accidents due to tres­ passing, railroads throughout Illinois are posting notices in stations and other places calling the attention of the public to the law prohibiting the practice. Emphasis is being placed on a sec tion of the Illinois statutes forbidding minors from "attaching themselves to any locomotive, engine or car, either stationary or In motion, upon any part of the track of any rail­ road, unless in sov doing they shall be acting in compliance with law or by permission under the lawful rules and regulations of the corporation then owning or managing such railroad." Many Entries for Poultry Show. In point of entries, the Illinois state poultry show, which will be held at the state arsenal, January 1 to 6, will be the largest In t^he history of the association. Fifty-three varieties of birds will be exhibited. The entries for the show have been pouring in for several days, and S*»cr tary McCoy has had a large force lng in the task of getting out shipping tags and planning for the record- breaking show. More breeding pens consisting of four females and one male will be ex­ hibited at this show than ever before. Last year there were, 92 pens but this year there will he 119. The yard displays of six females and one male have been dispensed with and display exhibits for breeders have been Installed in their place. The Maple farm of Tinley Park will have a special exhibit of 26 birds in the White Rock class. Dr. A. Gossow of St Charles, Mo., will have a display exhibit consisting of 25 Buff Cochins. He also exhibits In the single classes and the display of Buffs in this show will be something unusual. Dr. E. C. White of Springfield will have a fine display of Single Comb White Orping- tlons and J. A. Leland of Springfield, will also have a large display of dif­ ferent varieties he breeds. Entries have been received from Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Indiana, Tennessee, Wisconsin and Illinois. While a large number of the older patrons of the show will exhibit this y«ar a large number of breeders who have been successful will be exhibit­ ors at the Illinois state show. The premier honor of the show will be the grand champion male bird of the show. The prize for this honor will be a solid silver cup presented by Governor Charles S. Deneen, who has shown great Interest in the poul­ try Industry of the state. ( The display of turkeys, geese and ducks will be the largest ever held by the association and the association will be put to the test in providing room for all the entries in this class. Special interest has been taken In the live market class for live cock­ erels of the different breeds and the slaughter test for the best carcass for the several classes of this exhibit. A number of prominent breeders have entered this class and the winning of this prize will prove that pure bred poultry produces the highest charac­ ter of dressed market poultry. The egg exhibit will Also be of interest Parent-Teachers' Assn. Luncheon. One of the features of the annual convention of the Illinois Teachers' association held in Springfield, was the luncheon and sectionals, meeting held by the Parent-Teachers associa­ tion. Luncheon was given at the First Presbyterian church, which was at­ tended especially by the visiting teachers. However, others were in­ vited to attend: The luncheon was followed by the sectional meeting held at the First M. E. church. This meeting was the most Interesting one. The main sessions of the associa­ tion held in the state armory, accord­ ing to those in charge, were the best that have ever been held. "Education a Part of the Child's Life and a Prep­ aration for Life" was the main theme for discussion at the sessions. The principal business meeting was held when officers' reports and mahy mat­ ters of a legislative nature were dis­ cussed. Music was also a feature of the program. The parent-teacher elected the fol­ lowing officers: President--Mrs. Orville T. Wright, Chicago. Secretary--Mrs. O. L. Frazee, Springfield. Program chairman--Mrs. George Eggers, Chicago. The child study section elected: President--Mtb. Eva A. Smedley, Evanston. Secretary--Sarah Mark Imboden, Decatur. The college section elected: President--T. C. Burgess, Bradley Polytechnic Institute. First vice-president--H. E. Griffith, Knox college. Second vice-president--U. S. Grant Northwestern university. Secretary--Frank H. Fowler, Lom­ bard college. Safeguards for Firefighters. A new law passed at the last ses­ sion of the Illinois general assembly ^nd effective January 1, will provide safeguards for Springfield firefighters If enforced. The new statute demands an automatic gas stop be placed on all public buildings, stores, theaters and other structures where gas is used for lighting or heating purposes and ar­ ranged so that it can be closed and the gas fhut off in case of fire. Resi­ dences are excepted from the provi­ sions of the act. Ki ente; days inmel here the d supei opened] a tvo Christ nil traction! by Mrs, Chris? serv Rev. sera them ' byterfanj solot thur On €H wy#' .fftHnj-saiJ visin and at w Fr ty-fo time He learn J hood day<1 as he grej to use hi si of useful (1 to be an his knlttin enjoys a j corner grc. j but while t| and he tu{ thumb whi In awe. Kewane* visor of just adder his farm, ; by the pt and a pal deer. He deer in blr mals Just from Cy s Lincoln pav Quincy.- Quincy ae> leave early the Orient De«« ur. j. n, * Deci No. was derr Knights atari west of I r^- the track jr turned up os press me8sei> his head ten off. Several hurt. Either pering witb suggested ny accident. Peorlia.-- u tectives of i oldest oflU dead fror had enterl suit a wc Shortly aj ed from the officer Gale cms slon, tiit will cas­ ing <iis the cut t»n' erty and im estate urge- iff he n.imil; Ce nine y blown i nltro i\j Cen trull loadlrigl occumf the h dent. Bit > ness again whoisi ago. kill i "Blat J that Ea ciale, chief! reta| depa enfc hav* O stall sevcj yeaij PeriJ ther | fo, is tlj Rose's Employes' Will Get Pay. Messrs. James W. Gullett, H. B. i | Williams and J. B. Peak, employes In I the office of Secretary of State Rose,., j who are said to be under civil Berv-- ice will receive their salaries for the months of September, November and ' December as the result of the action S taken yesterday, when all points in* volved in the civil service suit were waived by agreement. Rose, after a , conference with the Illinois Civil Serv­ ice commission, agreed that In case the suit was decided adversely by the svprame court If* ' «s' " on- • ana ! I the; I I