Tweeters,

I'm curious about a bird reference. I'm reading J. Anthony Lukas' new book
"Big Trouble" about labor and politics in Idaho at the turn of the century
(the last one). Frank Steunenberg, the ex-governor, was just killed by a
bomb at his front gate.

Lukas: "On a nearby lawn, Sheriff Angus Sutherland of Shoshone County
found a dead yellowhammer, a bird with brilliant yellow and blue feathers,
perfect in every particular but blown from the skies by the blast. The
sheriff took the bird home to mount it on his mantelpiece. Considering its
beauty and the circumstances of its death, he wouldn't take fifty dollars
for it." Lukas, of course references this: Idaho Daily Statesman January
1, 1906, page1.

So, what's a yellowhammer? I wondered about a flicker, but the blue
feathers don't sound right, and would anyone really mount a flicker on
their mantelpiece?

Tom Besser
besser at turbonet.com
Moscow, Idaho