Mahoh 3, 1881.] 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



89 



He nearly jumps out of the boat, and levels his gun. 

 " Don't shoot .' Don't shoot ! That's nothing but a beaver," 

 whispers the guide. Slowly he lowers his gun, tries in vain 

 to draw a long breath, and wonders how in the devil a beaver 

 ean kick up such a commotion as that. He is just begin- 

 ning to breathe regularly again, and his heart doesn't jump 

 oftener than every sixth beat, when all of a sudden - " Slop. 

 quork-quork," and he just gets a glimpse of something he is 

 sure is a moose. Up goes the guu again. "Hold on, that's 

 nothing but a crane," comes from the guide. The gun is 

 again lowered, and a little more hard breathing follows. 



Time and canoe pass along and for a time he sees and hears 

 nothing. He is beginning to ache a little, in his cramped po- 

 sition, is not sitting just right and carefully lays his gun 

 across the gunwale "of the canoe just ahead of him, places his 

 elbows on the same and shifts his position a little : after wait- 

 ing a minute or two, that does not feel just right and he 

 changes back again. Soon he draws up' one leg, then he 

 straightens it out again. The guide whispers: "You've got 

 to quit that if you want to got anything." He then sits still 

 for a few minutes, which seems like hours to him. Occa- 

 sionally he finds his eyes closed, try hard as he will to keep 

 them open. He tips his head back, looks at the sky and 

 makes up his mind that it is going to rain and that there 

 Won't be any deer in to-night. He drops his head and makes 

 a few more nods, then turning half round toward the stern, 

 places his hand edgeways up to the corner of his mouth and 

 whispers loudly : " I think its going to rain ; hadn't we bet- 

 ter go to camp ?" The guide whispers back; " ?\ T o 'tain'l, 

 neither. Let's hold on a little, while longer; I'll bet there 

 will be one in inside of an hour " The hunter straightens 

 himself round again, squirms down into the bottom of the 

 boat a little, snugger and Bays to himself that "he will bet 

 there won't be oue in m the next six years. He is soon nod- 

 ding again, and at length his head tips forward again and 

 does not came back again— he is sound asleep. 



After a while the guide hears a deer and gently shakes the 

 canoe, the signal agreed upon to let the hunter know that, 

 that's a deer and not a muskrat ; but his- man feels it not. 

 Again he shakes ; but with the same result. He then draws 

 his paddle silently from the water, leans forward and gives 

 the hunter two or three good pokes m the hack with it. This 

 brings him hack to earth again aud the guide softly whispers : 

 " Be ready ; I hear a deer." After some hesitation the hunt- 

 er picks up his gun and makes ready. 



The guide begins to work the canoe slowly toward the head 

 of a little cove. Soon the nipping of a lilypod is heard, aud 

 the splash, splash, splash of some heavy animal walking in 

 the water. The hunter hears it, and he cannot draw a long 

 steady breath to save his life. He finds that the canoe as 

 well as himself is shaknig. He ain't scared, but he is awful 

 cold. The animal stops walking, but the canoe glides slowly 

 along toward the place whence the sound proceeded, and 

 after a little slops The hunter strains his eyes but can sec 

 nothing. At length the guide whispers, " Can't you see that 

 deer right straight ahead, not two rod-! off? He won't, stand 

 there more than a year longer." Still the hunter does not 

 see him. He changes his guu a little and accidentally hits 

 the breech against the side of the canoe, then something 

 which he had seen all the time, but had no idea it was a deer, 

 gives a jump and a snort. He sees him now and he looks 

 bigger than a meeting-house. The hunter blazes away with- 

 out getting the butt of his gun near his shoulder and shoots a 

 limb off a tree above ten feet above the deer. The deer 

 bounds away into the bushes and the hunter lets drive "with 

 his second barrel, if anything a little straightcr into the air 

 than at first. 



Up the side of themounta'm goes the deer snorting at every 

 bound. The guide now suggests that they might as well go 

 to camp, while the hunter, as he is paddled back to camp, 

 would give his best breech-loader for a chance to try that 

 over again. He has had his first night's experience in float- 

 ing, seen a deer, and it did not look a bit as he expected it 

 was going to, and he has also had a very fair touch of the 

 "buck fever." 



The above I have given as nearly as possible in the exact 

 language used by the lecturer, that you might gain some idea 

 of the value of these lectures, as he was very careful to give 

 a clear and detailed account of each separate topic taken' up 

 during the course. 



By the way, my friend and former guide of the Coburn 

 House, Eustis, Me., Mr. O. A. Hutchins, is to have a cook 

 at his . large camp at King and Bartlett Pond, and is to fur- 

 nish sportsmen with board, lodgings aud the nsa of boats, all 

 for $1.35 per day, which is wonderfully cheap, considering 

 that he has to transport his provisions sixteen miles through 

 the woods on a sled, over the new road opened by himself 

 and fellow-guides last fall, a description of which I sent you 

 last September and which appeared in your issue of Septem- 

 ber 9, 1880. Trusting that this may be found worthy a place 

 in your columns, I remain, E. D. 



JTi/dr Park, Mass. 



Our markets are filled with jack rabbits, many of them 

 with hair or fur while as snow. 



The depth of snow prevents the bringing in of deer aud 

 antelope. Usually at this time our markets are glutted. 



Preservalion of deer, antelope, jack rabbits, etc., will soon 

 bec'ime a necessity with our people. In US70 Dakota had 

 less thau 15,000 people ; by tin- census of last Spring she had 

 over 135,1100, increased |o, by this time, probably lSQ.OOO. 

 Naturally the destruction of game has been, and will in the 

 future be, correspondingly larger as the population in- 

 creases. I. E. W. 

 Pira/fctoft, DuMa, Feb. 14. 



[Dakota, in common with (lie other Western States and 

 Territories, must before long adopt stringent laws lo limit 

 the market exportation of game. The Territorial Game Pro- 

 tective Association will find that they must take the lead aud 

 be prepared for persistent and determined effort. 



DAKOTA GAME. 



I VERY much fear that the quail in Dakota aud some of 

 the adjacent States and Territories will he completely 

 exterminated by the extreme cold and snow that covers our 

 prairies from afoot to eighteen inches deep on a level. 



Reports come from all directions that whole coveys of 

 quail are beiug found frozen to death. Prairie chickens are 

 also found dead, but I do not anticipate that any large num- 

 ber of chickens will perish from either cold or starvation, be- 

 cause, in the first place, they are a hardy bird and can endure 

 an extreme degree of cold aud, secondly, because large fields 

 of corn remain ungalhercd in this territory and the prairie 

 chickens need no invitation to help themselves. If, however, 

 Yennor's prophecy of eleven feet of snow should be fulfilled 

 (and at this writing it looks that way, judging from the man- 

 ner the snow is falling) pinnated grouse will be scarce in Da- 

 kota next year. 



We have had a severe fight in our Legislative Assembly to 

 kill a bill presented by a granger allowing hunting, trapping, 

 snaring, etc., of prairie chickens, quail, etc., for shipment 

 and market purposes. I am happy to he able to record the 

 fact that half an hour ago that bill was defeated by a decisive 

 vote. 



I am not ashamed to say that. I lobbied against this infa- 

 mous measure with all my ability. 



Our Territorial Game Protective Assocaition requested me 

 to draft a more stringent act than the present law, which, al- 

 though admirable, sol'ar as it goes, does not cover the whole 

 grouud. I have done so, but the average legislator is scarcely 

 educated up to the point of perfect game aud fish protection, 

 as understood by the. most advanced associations, and I fear 

 the bill will not be adopted, If not, we shall try again at the 

 next session. 



HOW TO AIM TllE HUNTING RIFLE WITH OPEN 



SIGHTS. 



IN order to more clearly explain this mysterious subjec', let 

 us take fourshols with an average hunting ride and par- 

 tially point out the course pursued by the ball along the 

 range, that we may note the standing' errors of the rifle as 

 they appear in a drawing of iho trajectory. The same eleva- 

 tion and charge will be used. I select for my illustrations 

 the 100 yards range, because, by common consent, this is the 

 most important of ad for general purposes; and I will here 

 add that to this range the open sights of the hunt'mg rifle 

 Should.be accurately" trained and firmly fastened to the bar- 

 rel. When ouce well adjusted they should not be altered, but 

 remain as standard sight?. 



100 Yahos, At this point blank range let the rifle be aimed 

 with a fine sight at the centre of the bullseye and fired, aud 

 let the centre be struck. By this shot the exact conditions of 

 the best aimed rifle and the best shooting are attained. The 

 aim here beiog on the centre, aud the centre struck, this con- 

 stitutes a true point blank thot. The novice with the rifle, 

 in making this shot, would exclaim : " My rifle holds up right 

 on the centre and shoots as straight as a line:" This excla- 

 mation is not surprising, for from this shot alone it would 

 apptar l hit the rifle does shoot straight. This calls fcr an- 

 other shot. 



8 Yards Now let ihe positioi of the target he changed 

 to about 8 yards from the piece and let the centre of the 

 bullseye be fired at, with the same fine sight as al 100 yards. 

 'the ball will strike the centre at this short distance the same 

 as at 100 yai els, because at 8 yards is the near point blank; 

 it is here that the ball, in ascending from Ihe muzzle of the 

 piece, first cuts the lice of sight. But this point blank is not 

 die one rec ignized iu science. The recognized one is at the 

 end Of the range, where the bull, in its descent, cuts the line 

 of sight the second time. The 100-yard shot affords an ex- 

 ample of this. The novice, in making this 8-yarde shot, will 

 exclaim; " Jfou see that my rille carries straight to the cen- 

 tre again !" From these two shots, made with the same fine 

 sight, it would appear as if the rifle did shoot straight. But 

 this is a common delusion which I wish to expose by a clear 

 analysis of ihe subject. These two shots present the follow- 

 ing important truths, which should be recognized by every 

 one who professes to shoot the rifle underslanditigly, for they 

 are strictly in accordance with the Jaws which govern all rifle 

 shooting : 



First. That the rifle which makes a cent re shot (or " holds 

 up ") at the end or the range will also make another centre 

 shot (or " hold up '') near the piece. The principle is general. 

 The near points blank will all occur within the exlreme 

 limit of about 30 yards. This limit has regard to ritlessighted 

 high with peep and globe sights. For huDling rjtles with, low 

 sights the limit is about 20 yards. It is a quantity which va- 

 nes with different guns and charges. Near points blank vary 

 in distance from ihe piece with the elevation ; the greater tbc 

 elevation the closer lo the piece is the near point blank, as, 

 for instance, it is about 1 yard distant utider an elevation for 

 1,000 yards, while under a low elevation it vanishes at 30 

 yards. 



S:cond. That Ihe fame uniform sight, whether it be fine 

 or coarse, is required fur both distances, 8 and 100 yards, iu 

 order to strike, iho centre. The principle is general. 



This fundamental truth shows why the rifle, wilh the fame 

 aim, will kill a htlle sparrow when near by as well as at 100 

 yards away. Al both distances the bullet culs tne line of 

 sight, hecctt the two centre shots. Thus fur in our experi- 

 ments the rifle appears to carry straight, therefore anolher 

 shot becomes necessary. 



56 Varus. Now let the target be removed to 55 yards 

 from the stand. This distance is selected because at about 

 55-100 of the range the greatest error in the flight of 

 Ihe ball occurs. TJ-rt the rifle be aimed and fired as before, 

 wilh the same fine sight on the centre of the bullseye ; the 

 bullet will not strike the centre as before at 8 and 100 yards. 

 It will strike about two inches above it, measuring always 

 from the centre of the bullet-hole: and mark, these two 

 inches arc a standing error of Ihe rifle at this particular point 

 of the range. 



By this shot the novice wilh the rifle will learn that (he rifh 

 does not shoot straight ; no, not for one yard. The slandlug 

 error of the rifle is practically the same for 50 and 60 yard3, 

 for ihe path of the ball a'.ong mid range very closely approxi- 

 mates to a straight line. At 30 aud '80 yards the standing 

 error is about one and a half inches, and from lliese points l he- 

 errors dimiuish to zero, both al the near point blank 8 yards, 

 and at the true point blank 100 yards. To correct these er- 

 rors of shooting too high a finer sight (than ihe standard) is 

 required along mid ranae than for the first SO autl the last CO 

 yards of the range. We thus see lhat the aiming requires to 

 be varied in order lo meet the standing errors of the rifle. 

 The trajectory chnuges iu curvature at every point, and strict- 

 ly speaking, the aiming should change with it, but in prac- 

 tice this is impossible, nor is it always necessary. Between 

 Ihe two points blank, a distance of 93 yards, the" rifle shoots 

 too high, aud this futidauienUil truth explains why. in our 

 misses of game, we shoot over inslMd of under four l lines out 

 of five. The prevalent belief and common rule for aiming is 

 to take a "coarser sight ihe farther off the game is off ;" ihe 

 cenjequence is over shooting and that millions of game have 

 escaped with their lives. The very essence of this article is 

 to point out a remedy for Lhis great evil of shooting over. 



We have cow shown how the rifle shoots when the' ball cuts 

 the line of sight, also when it is above it. It now remains to 

 be shown how it shoots when the ball is below the line of 

 sight. It is below it until, nuclei' the elevation of the piece, 

 it rises anil makes the near point blank. ff the shooter 

 could sec the bullet at this instant its centre would exactly 

 cover the Centre of the bullseye a hundred yards away ; it 



would eclipse it. After this it would be seen to rite a little 

 abovefthe line of sight, then to fall aud approach it, and 

 lastly to merge with it in lhe|| centre of the bullseye. Thus 

 we have a true point blank shot, while the barrel points 

 nearlv M inches above the centre of the target. 



1 Yard.— If the rifle be aimed and shot as before at the 

 target placed at but 1 yard from Ihe piece, the ball will strike 

 below the centre of the bullseye, varying in distance accord- 

 ing to the construction of the rifle, whether it have high or 

 low sights, or a thick or thin barrel. No practical aim, how- 

 ever coarse, will enable oue to make a centre shot so near the 

 piece. If such a centre were made, the elevation of the piece 

 would have to be so great (as in Crcedmoor shooting) that it 

 would produce a point blauk nearly 1,000 yards off, for every 

 near point blank, be it remembered, has always its counter- 

 part, the true point blank. From this shot the novice will 

 again see that the rifle does not "shoot straight." We see 

 that it shoots too low near the piece, hence a coarse sight 

 must be taken here in order to get the best shooting possible. 

 We all aspire to this, therefore we should know exactly how 

 it is to be reached. 



Bkvosd the Rangk— Beyond the range the ball is found 

 below the line of sight, and lower andloweras the distance in- 

 creases. To correct these increasing errors of shooting too 

 low, we must sight coarser and coarser or aim higher and 

 highir, the farther the object is off. All sportsmen will read- 

 ily acrce in this respect. 



Having now quite fully shown the path of the ball along 

 the line of sight, which I make the prominent line in this ar- 

 ticle, as it truly should be, I will next embody some primary 

 rules, which if followed in practice will give the very best 

 results. 



First To avoid shooting over a finer sight than the stand- 

 ard is always required at about 55-100 of the range than at 

 any other point in if. 



This same sight may safely be used also between 40 and 70 

 yards, since the trajectory is very flat. 



Brtond, The same uniform sight used at all distances up to 

 100 yards will give no greater error at any point than the 

 greatest error of'lhe rifle ftwo inches in this case). Ergo — 



Third. If the greatest error of the rifle is known, the same 

 uniform sight may be used throughout the range, unless a 

 finer sight is necessary to obtain the desired result. 



On large objects such as deer and turkey a finer sight is 

 not necessary', but on smaller ones, as Ihe squirrel, robin, 

 crow and hawk, it will bo if they are at mid range. 



Fourth. In hunting the same uniformly fine sight may gen- 

 erally 1 e used within the first 30 vards, and also at a distance 

 of from 80 to 100 yards. 



This is because the slanding errors (1.50 and 1.40) of the 

 rifle at these distances vary from only about fl inch to 

 zero, and hence may he entirely disregarded unless the game 

 is very small. 



Scmmaey. The sight should be coarse very near the piece 

 (within 8 yards), changing to fine at 8 yards, which is the near 

 point, blank ; then to very floe at 65 yards, which is the point 

 greatest error ; from this to fine at 100 yards, the true point 

 blank, and beyond the range, coarser and coarser, the further 

 the old eel is off. r „ , 



Diffeient Titles produce different errors, but I find these 

 differences lo be very small at this short range. They will 

 all fall between H and 2i inches, which is the greatest error 

 at 55 yards. This includes Ihe military, long range, mid 

 range, express and all good hunting rifles,,which I suppose 

 to be well loaded. 



There are -two methods of aiming the rifle among sports- 

 men: One by changing Ihe sight laken from flue to coarse 

 and Vice ten a and the other by not changing the sights, but 

 by aiming higher or lower on ihe object. Which of these 

 modes islhehest I will not pretend to decide: each has its 

 advocates. For myself, I never vary the sight, but aim high- 

 er or lower as Ihe case may require. 



I have ornilted to slate that 52-100 yards approximately 

 shows the point in the range where Ihe trajectory is the high- 

 est and 55-100 the point of greatest error. 



The distances I have given above are approximately cor- 

 rect, but will vary slightly under different conditions. 



A,tr Rochdle, if. Y.\ r,b. 14. Maj. II. W. Mkbbiu.. 



CoiiKKOTinx— The words "blank range" in the second 

 line of my definition for " point blank range," iu Forest asd 

 Stream of Feb. 3, are superfluous and should be omitted, 



Hints on Bract Siiootjno— Chicago, ni.— I have a well- 

 trained French poodle dog that retrieves very nicely from 

 the water. Do you think it will be worth my while to take 

 him to North Carolina with me this spring, where I intend 

 going for brant and duck shooting? How many decoys arc 

 used for brant shootinj? Is the shooting done from the 

 shore or afloat ? By answering the above questions you 

 will oblige an old subscriber. Fowler. 



Many years ago in England, France and Holland the 

 French poodle was used by amateur sportsmen, but the pro- 

 fessional fowl shooters of the coast used Newfoundlands. 

 For inland ponds, marsh and narrow stream shooting the 

 poodle could, of course, be used: but an Irish water spaniel 

 is preferable. The poodle is useless for inlet and deep chan- 

 nel shooting, as he is apt to become cold and seasick. The 

 best dogs for this work are Chesapeake Bay dogs and New- 

 foundlands. From seventy to one hundred and twenty de- 

 coys or "stools" tire used for one "rig," according to the 

 we'ather and making of the tides. In rough, windy weather 

 the smallest number should be used, as they are difficult to 

 handle— that is, to set out and take up. To set slool in 

 broad waters, bays and channel edges, have all the stools 

 stowed iu the boat tails lo the bow, 'with the anchor lines 

 wonnd loosely around the body of the decoys. As stools are 

 always set to' windward of the blind in sea shooting, row up 

 to the point to windward where the head of the flock should 

 ride and plant a long pole firmly in the mud : arouud this 

 pass a small line, one end of which is fastened securely to 

 the bow of ihe boat, and the rest coiled in the bottom. 

 With one hand toss the stools from the boat, between it and 

 the pole, and wilh the other play out the line. You will 

 thus be enabled to control the boat ami set your stools at regu- 

 lar distances apart, and if properly managed a large number- 

 cm! be sel out in this way in a very short time, without fear 

 of fouling them and tangling the lines, ami moreover they 

 will ride In the proper position. When all the stools have 

 been anchored, draw the line in the boat and take up 

 the pole. The stools can he picked up in the same way. 

 The shooting is done almost entirely from blinds made of 

 cedar trees planted on the feeding flals, in an oblong shape, 

 that the gunning skill will fit very tightly inside. 



Deer Kk.t.ed With No. Shot— Toms River, N. J., 

 Feb. "33.— There appeared iu your issue of Feb, 17 an article 



