The climatic conditions of California are such as to enable the sports- 

 man to be afield in pursuit of his favorite pastime on most every day in 

 the year, and the glow of his camp-fire may be seen twinkling through the 

 shades of the great forests at all seasons. At any time of the year the 

 sportsman may leave any of the large cities within the State and in a few 

 hours' ride be buried as deep in the wilderness with his gun and dog as he 

 would if he were in the wilds of Alaska, or find himself among the blooming 

 orange groves and singing mocking-birds, as suits his fancy and choice. 



Within the past few years great interest has been manifested by the 

 people of California in protecting and perpetuating these great and valuable 

 natural resources. Hundreds of thousands of acres of land have been set 

 aside by the Government as "Forest Reserves" and "Came Refuges," and 

 wise and comprehensive laws have been passed by the State legislature for 

 their protection and preservation. Game wardens and forest rangers have 

 been placed afield to enforce these laws, and the sportsman's interests, as 

 well as those of the general public, are being fostered and preserved. 



While California cannot boast of possessing such large game as the 

 moose and caribou, in some sections of the State are to be found elk, ante- 

 lope, and mountain sheep. In the counties of Modoc, Lassen, and Siskiyou, 

 and along the eastern slopes of the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range, are to 

 be found the mule-tail deer, and in every county of the State are to be 

 found the black-tail deer. 



In the mountain districts of the State are to be found the plumed moun- 

 tain quail, grouse, and sage-hen. In all the valleys and foothills of the State 

 are to be found in great numbers that gamest of all California game birds, 

 the "California valley quail," whose speed and cunning will sharply test the 

 nerve and eye of the sportsmen and prove the good qualities of his dog. 

 These birds are found in large bevies in all the foothills, ravines, and valleys, 

 along the edges of the hay- and grain-fields, in the stock pastures, orchards, 

 and vineyards — in fact, most anywhere they find proper cover, water, and 

 feed, and are not too indiscriminately shot at or hunted. 



Few birds more kindly respond to protection than do these valley quail of 

 ours. Unlike the "bob-white," they roost in trees, and are consequently bet- 

 ter protected from their natural enemies. When the warm sunshine of early 

 spring awakens life to renewed activities, and the buckeye and wild lilac are 

 bursting forth into bloom, then it is that the California valley quail turns his 

 fhoughts to love. Well he knows, as with pardonable pride he loudly pro- 

 claims that fact to all passersby, that he will not be molested during this 

 felicitous season. Standing erect, majestic, proud, haughty and defiant, he 

 calls from the top of some old stump or dead bush: "Here! Here! Here! We 

 camp here!" in a loud clear voice, and the country-folk all know that the 

 quail are nesting. 



On the bevies being flushed and followed, they scatter, and lie well and 

 close, and afford great sport in shooting over a well-trained dog. They will 

 lie until almost stepped upon, and when they do flush will rise with a great 

 whirr of wings that will startle almost any one, and are off like a streak of 

 greased lightning, presenting a mark that will test the nerve and eye of the 

 best marksman. The sportsman who thinks he is "in it" with the best of 

 them at blue-rocks, jack-snipe, or bob-whites, will find that something is 

 wrong when he first goes up against the California valley quail and he will 

 burn some powder before he gets on to the knack of stopping the little blue 

 streaks. He will lose no opportunity to be afield fully determined to learn 

 how to drop some of these "little blue devils," and the better he becomes 

 acquainted with their gameness and cunning the better he likes his com- 

 pany, not caring so much for the great bag he may be able to take as for 

 the opportunity offered by this game little bird to test his every good quality 

 of marksmanship and to try out the metal of his dog. 



On the great Klamath Lakes, in all the great valleys, all along the coast, 

 and on all the bays and rivers are to be found countless thousands of wild 

 ducks, geese, and cranes, English and other snipe, curlew, ibis, and plover, 

 as well as other shore birds in great numbers and variety. Many of these 



