Mith N^uis 



Devoted to -the Interests of the Bird Fancier 



Volume 1. 



m^HCH-^PRm 190 



O^umber 



REARING WILD FOWL ON A 



SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA 



RANCH 



(H. L. He f ton.) 



In the Jamacha (pronounced Ham- 

 a-shaw) Valley, about twenty miles 

 east of San Diego, California, is the 

 Monta Vista Ranch, of nearly 1,000 

 acres, a most beautiful spot with its 

 miles of fine drives, some bordered 

 svith the stately Palm, others cool in 

 the shade of acacias, grevilleas, or 

 the more graceful pepper tree with 

 its bright red berries. The valley, 

 not a large one, is entirely sur- 

 rounded with mountains, some mere 

 foothills, others towering skyward, 

 one above another. The river, out- 

 lined with willows, separates valley 

 from mountain on the south. All 

 about are great fields, some of grain, 

 others where horses and cattle graze, 

 and still others green with alfalfa, 

 over which the bloom throws a pur- 

 ple hue. The sun shines bright, the 

 sky is blue and the air full of the 

 sound of singing birds, and the sweet 

 odor from hundreds of orange and 

 lemon trees — a typical Southern 

 California ranch, w^here one can hear 

 the soft-voiced dove calling to. its 

 mate, the whi-r-r of coveys of quail, 

 there are many, as no shooting is al- 

 lowed on the place, the yelp of the 

 old hound as he runs a jack rabbit 

 across a field, see the descendants of 

 Mollie Cottontail scurrying across 

 one's path, or a flight of buck seek- 

 ing fresh water on their journey 

 overland, or if one cares for more 

 adventure, all one needs to do is to 



climb up among the rocks, on the 

 side of some hill or mountain, and 

 the whir-r has a metallic, never-to-be- 

 forgotten sound, and it were well 

 with you if your gun is handy and 

 your aim true, for the rattlers are 

 big in this neighborhood. Then too, 

 there are wild cats, not seeking you, 

 but mean when they are cornered. 

 We killed an old grandfather a few 

 weeks ago that weighed 5 6 pounds — 

 he made a nasty fight. Further up 

 among the mountains are deer, and 

 just around the base of old San Mi- 

 guel lies the Sweetwater Lake, where 

 one can pass an enjoyable hour with 

 the bass and perch. 



The owner of this ranch, Mr. .1. 

 W. Sefton, loved birds, at his town 

 house he has an aviary of over six 

 hundred live birds from all parts of 

 the world — some day I shall tell the 

 readers of Bird News all about that 

 wonderful collection, but now 1 am 

 only going to tell you of the birds of 

 Monta Vista, the wild duck, the 

 quail, the pheasants and the little 

 buff cochin bantams that plays so im- 

 portant a part in their drama of life. 



There are several acres enclosed 

 and covered with wire and divided 

 into three sections with every con- 

 venience and appliance for the rear- 

 ing of these birds. Growing in this 

 enclosure are a large number of 

 dwarf olive trees, wild buckwheat 

 bushes and other shrubs, tTiere is a 

 lakelet of spring water 2 0x4 feet, 

 built of cement and so arranged that 

 its overflow waters beds of alfalfa — 

 there are besides other pools of 

 •R'ater, so that the ducks thrive as well 



