Owl Listening To Political Speech (Defiance Crescent News 10 March 1926)

    "Taking a bird off a bush," the supreme test of oratory, was accomplished for the first time on record in Defiance county by Judge C.W. Palmer.

    Judge Palmer was stumping the county in the interest of the Democrat party when this famous first occurred. He was candidate for probate judge in the campaign of 1920 and with two other Jeffersonian orators was in Milford Center for a rally.

    It was a warm night and the township house was well filled. The door was open for ventilation when Judge Palmer began his address. He stood close to the railing which surrounded the polling booths in the township house.

    Shortly after he was well launched into his speech a screech owl flew into the room circled around several times and perched on the railing within six inches of the buttons on judge's vest. There the screech owl elected to stay and cocking its head deliberately blinked up at the Judge, then in full cry after the G.O.P.

    It was many minutes before the laughter died down sufficiently for Judge Palmer to proceed with his talk. To this day folks in Milford township accused him of having that screech owl trained for the performance. At any rate the scheme worked, for the judge was one of the few Democrats elected in Defiance county that fall.