BIRDS OF MINNESOTA. 1638 
Enjoying a prolonged acquaintance with him, I availed my- 
self of his observations in those early times, to learn the habits 
of the more common species especially. He stated that the 
prairie hens were seldom seen at the first, but after the country 
began to become settled considerably, they increased in num- 
bers perceptibly from year to year. The Blackfoot Grouse, 
(Fediocetes phasianellus (Linn. ), were the dominant grouse-kind 
of the territory, and very well represented in the openings, and 
wherever there was much brush-lands, but were never found 
on the open, uncultivated prairies. This corresponds with my 
own observations of the habits of the Pinnated Grouse in flli- 
nois, as far back as in 1836, the first summer of my residence 
there. ‘ 
I shall never forget the first boomings of the males at day- 
break. My duties called me out at that early hour, and far on 
to the prairies, six days every week, when I had ample oppor- 
tunities to become familiar with the weird notes of the amorous 
males. At that time I never could make out more than three 
sources, rarely more than two, from which these boomings 
seemed to come, but from year to year the numbers increased 
until Iam sure there were not less than as many dozens, and 
whereas at the first, a bag of ten or twelve birds was a good 
showing for an expert ‘‘on the wing,” for one day, it was a 
commen affair afterwards for ‘‘a common shot’ to bring in 50 
to 60 birds after a very short day, and experts many times 
boasted their one hundred. 
The grain fields afforded both food and protection for them 
until the farmers complained of them bitterly, but not half so 
bitterly as they did afterwards of the bird-destroyers who ran 
over their broad acres of wheat, oats and corn in the order of 
their ripening. The farmers are proverbially hard—for sports- 
men—to please. Just here I may best introduce some portion 
of Mr. Washburn’s report of his experiences when in the Red 
river valley, and with special reference to this species. He 
Says: 
‘‘Kxtremely common in the prairie lands throughout the 
valley, particularly near farming lands in the vicinity of wheat 
fields. Replaced in a great measure by the preceding species 
in the northern part of the State. Perhaps for the benefit of 
the uninitiated, it would not be out of place to here give an 
account of the modus operandi of hunting a bird which is an 
object of such universal pursuit among sportsmen, and has be- 
come an article of commercial importance; and this may pos- 
