MY OWN STORY

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXI, 3 December 1927, Page 10

MY OWN STORY

.. : (By .anVowl) ,"• '•".,; I don't'inind telling you. that I am rather proud of my origin. It is said that I was created by -the goddess Minerva, and used by her as a symbol of wisdom. You know that "Minerva, was the goddess of wisdom, and you know that I am always called the wist* owl, so that must be the reason. My eyes arc wpudorfuj. 1 /They ; arc very large aija' : -round, v and they-arc placed .right in froift .of ruyi liea.d';" thcr.offire, : I ■ cftn! see better in 'twilight/ than by day. In fact the sunlight blinds me, .because my ,eyes .'are too big and they" c'pe'n too; wide;to stand it. A pert robin'may even peck me by daylight because he knows I can't see him clearly, but-by night he takes care to keep out. of niy way. I have daws that grip like a yw%

and wings that make no sound when I fly. Nothing escapes my ears. I can hear a mouse crack a'grain of wheat in a --field, or. a little bird change from one leg to another on a tree. I'm a hunter, but I play fair. I always call before I start hunting. - r utter a weird scream so that all the little birds, mice, and beetles may know I'm coming; and if they can't get out of my way, it's their own fault. I can see everything at night, and I'm -swift,, silent 'and merciful, for I kill my,victim with one strong peck and ; swallow him whole.. You see I haven't ■time to sort .out bones,, feathers, .and : fur, because I have to eat a lot, and I have to catch my supper first. My tli« gcst'iou does the Eorting for me. At daybreak. I go to sleep, and my digestion .works. It rolls the bones and claws up in feathers and fur, and then '-—please don't be shocked!—l feel a .trifle sick, and up they come.