5(1 FOREST AND STREAM. 
A WEEKLY JOURNAL,, 
Dhvotbd to Pikld anb Aqdatio Sports, Pi’ACTiCii, Natural History, 
I't-u ‘•mnrur'.K, tbe Protection op Game, Preservation op Forests, 
Aim the Inculcation in Men and Women op a healtht interest 
in Odt-door Recreation and Study : 
PUBLISHED BT 
Rarest and §tnanf ^abliahitig <$ompatfj}, 
17 CHATHAM STREET, (CITY HALL SQUARE) NEW YORK, 
I Post Office Box 9882.1 
123 SOUTH THIRD STREET. PHILADELPHIA. 
Torxaa, t*lv« Dolton* a Year, Strictly In Advance. 
A diacouut o f twenty-five percent, allowed for five copies and upwards. 
Advertising Kates. 
In ro 2 iilar advertising columns, nonpareil type, 12 lines to the inch, 25 
cents per line. Advertisements on outside page, 40 cents per line. Reading 
notices, 50 cents per line. Advertisements in double column 26 per cent, 
extra. Where advertisements are inserted over 1 month, a discount of 
10 per cent, will he made; over three months, 20 per cent; over six 
months, 30 per cent. 
NEW FORK, THURSDAY, MARCH 2, 1870. 
To Correspondents. 
AU communications whatever, whether relating to business or literary 
Correspondence, must be addressed to The Forest and Stream Pub- 
LI 3 EHNO Company. Personal or private letters of course excepted. 
AU communications Intended for pnbUcatlonmnst be accompanied with 
real name, as a guaranty of good faith. Names will not be published if 
objection be made. No anonymous contributions will be regarded. 
Articles relating to any topic within the scope of this paper are solicited. 
We cannot promise to re trim rejected manuscripts. 
Secretaries of Clubs and Associations are urged to favor ns with brief 
noi.es of their movements and transactions, as it is the aim of this paper 
to become a medium of useful and reliable information between gentle¬ 
men sportsmen from oue end of the country to the other; and they will 
Bud our columns a desirable medium for advertising announcements. 
The Publishers of Forest and Stream aim to merit and secure the 
patronage and countenance of that portion of the community whose rc- 
Bned intelligence enables them to properly appreciate and enjoy all that 
is beantifufin Nature. It Will pander to no depraved tastes, nor pervert 
the legit imate sports of land and water to those base uses which always 
tend to make them unpopular with the virtnons and good. No advertise¬ 
ment or business notice of an immoral character will be received on any 
terms; and nothing will be admitted to any department of the paper that 
may not, he read with propriety in the home circle. 
We cannot be responsible for the dereUction of the mail service, if 
money remitted to us 1 b lost. 
Advertisements should be sent in by Saturday of each week, if possible. 
GHARLE8 IIALLOCK, Editor. 
WILLIAM C. HARRIS, Business Manager. 
OUR CALL TO NATURALISTS. 
T HAT llic naturalists and thoughtful observers ofrtlie 
United Stales are beginning to appreciate their 
splendid opportunities, is evident from the readiness and 
even eagerness with which our “invitation” to put on 
record the chronicles of animal life has been accepted. 
The responses which we printed last week, the letters 
•which tbe reader will find iu onr Natural History columns 
to day, and others which await their turn, prove that we 
have struck a sympathetic chord in the hearts or our read¬ 
ers. We are encouraged to expect bounteous returns of 
information. 
The idea has also attracted much attention among the 
scientific journals of the country. Even the New York 
Daily Tribune steps aside Rom politics to lake up the sub 
ject in a complimentary and encouraging manner. Its ex 
tended and graceful allusion (Feb, 26th) to the good work 
of Forest and Stream as a journal of field natural his 
tory, and iu particular of the present attempt to collect iu 
formation upon the movements and social life of animals, 
and the causes and motives which influence them, ends 
•with the following sentence; “The importance of collect¬ 
ing such dates is evident; when a sufiicient amount of 
them is accumulated, students will have the material for 
new advances in biology." 
Forest and Stream at the Oentennial.— Contributors 
to tlie “Sportsman's Outfit” Department at the Centennial 
■will please ship sucli articles as are now ready for exhibi¬ 
tion to this office. Packages should be legibly marked 
“Centennial Exhibition,” care Forest and Stream Pub - 
lisbing Co., 17 Chatham street, New Y'ork. We urge upon 
contributors the necessity of immediate shipment, as the 
time is limited, and the labor of properly adjusting the de¬ 
tails of the department under our charge very great. 
Obituary. —A paragraph iu the Fancier's Gazette an¬ 
nounces the death of the Prince de Vismes, better known 
as “Old Calabar," a famous writer on sporting topics, a 
breeder of fine dogs, and a great authority on canine mat¬ 
ters. _ _ _ 
Thompson & Son, 838 Broadway, nse no sugar of lead in waterproof¬ 
ing their suit*, Sugar of lead wilt not stand washing, and amongst old 
eportsmeD is considered detrimental to healih, making them liable to 
rheumatic attacks. Thompson's suits are guaranteed to be thoroughly 
waterproof, even after being washed, sad are as good and cheaper than 
any other suits in the market.— Adwrdsantnt. 
POLO. 
M ANY of our readers may not understand the game 
of polo, or be familiar with the mode of playing it. 
Polo may be briefly described as “hockey on horseback." 
The players, mounted of course, are provided with sticks 
having curved ends, and being divided into two sides, en¬ 
deavor, the one to force a ball through the enemy’s ranks 
over a line or goal, and the other to defend their line and 
drive the ball through that of their adversary. Thanks to 
Mr. James Goidon Bennett and other gentlemen, who are 
doing so much to introduce into this country a taste for 
refined pastimes, there is some prospect that polo may find 
a foothold on American soil. The requisites on the part of 
the player are nerve, a quick eye, the most perfect horse¬ 
manship, and an indifference to bruises aud hard kuocks. 
But it is upon the horse, or rather pony, that much of the 
success of the game depends. In India, where the game 
originated, and from whence it was transplanted to Eng¬ 
land by the cavalry, the Arab ponies, which seldom exceed 
fourteen hands in height, are employed. But we should 
imagine that they were almost too light for the work, and 
that they would soon become knocked up. Our own 
mustangs would answer capitally, and the manner in which 
they are broken by the mqueros of California aud Texas, 
adapt them especially for the requirements of polo. Trained 
to obey tbe slightest pressure of the rein upon the neck, 
or that of the knee upon the side; accustomed to stop sud¬ 
denly at the least movement of the bit, and to wheel in 
tlieir tracks to avoid the charge of an infuriated cow or 
steer, they possess the very qualifications which are brought 
into play in the game of polo. A modification of the 
Spanisli bit we should think might also be adopted—some¬ 
thing which, while not as severe as the instrument of tor¬ 
ture used by the vaqtiero, would yet be sufficient to sud¬ 
denly cheek the horse without either choking him, or re¬ 
quiring too much muscular pressure. 
There is a breed of ponies, however, which, if they 
could be brought into this country, and given the same 
training as that received by the mustangs, would he even 
superior to the latter for polo. We allude to the Tartar 
ponies that are bred on the wild steppes and brought iu 
droves to mount the Tartar cavalry scattered throughout 
the Chinese Empire. And, indeed, with tho exception of 
such as are purchased by foreigners for racing purposes, 
or for driving before basket wagons, this is about the only 
service they are ever called upon to perform after leaving 
their nomad masters. Small in statue, seldom exceeding 
thirteen bands, but very muscular, they show in their uni¬ 
formity of colors, in the fine head and sharp, small ear, 
the traces of their Arab origin, which have not been ex¬ 
tinguished even after centuries of breeding in a cold cli¬ 
mate. The transplanting seems, while it has somewhat 
stunted them, to have made them hardier. And yet, when 
in racing condiiion, they show all the gracefulness of limb 
of the Arab. The Tartars have a peculiar way of slitting 
the nostrils of some of tlieir ponies, particularly those 
used by the couriers in winter, when the frozen streams 
prevent communication in any other way, the object ap¬ 
parently being to enable the pony to inhale the greatest 
amount of air his lungs are capable of receiving. 
There is a breed of ponies still smaller found on (he 
islands in the Straits of Malacca, seme of which make 
good saddle animals, but are much less sturdy than the 
Tartar's. It is a little singular that the horses found in the 
Phillipine Islands, and known usually as Manilla ponies, 
should be so totally different from those of the neighbor¬ 
ing continent. They are, if any tiling, taller, but much 
lighter, and without either the stamina or speed of the 
others. They somewhat resembla weedy mustangs, and 
probably were introduced from Mexico or South America 
by the Spaniards. The Japanese horses resemble them 
very much, and probably originated from the same stock, 
Although fiery and nimble, there is no trace of resemblance 
between them and the Chinese, to whom they are so infe¬ 
rior that they receive weight in races open to both. 
So much for the ponies adapted for use in playing the 
game of polo. Mustangs will probably come into use here, 
and we hope soon to be called upon to record the first 
game at this healthful and exciting sport. 
—A fine opportune y for out door study is afforded by 
the Summer School of Science and Physical Culture, 
which will spend six weeks next summer between, the 
Mammoth Cave and Lookout Mountain. The instruction 
will be given by tbe following naturalists: Prof. D. S. 
Jordan—birds, reptiles, and fishes; Prof. II. E. Copeland— 
botany; Mr. Ernest Copeland—insects and taxidermy. The 
aim of the School is to give that instruction in field work 
which cannot, be had in connection with laboratories, com¬ 
bined with the active work of collecting and preserving 
specimens. The cost to each pupil will he §200, which in¬ 
cludes everything. Further information can be had by ad¬ 
dressing Herbert E. Copeland, M. S., 320 Arch street, 
Indianapolis, Ind._ __ 
—Mr. Fred Mather, the popular pisciculturist, will have 
charge of the Aquarium at the Centennial Exhibition at 
Philadelphia. The only thing now wanted to complete 
the display is a collection of curiosities in the shape of 
fish, reptiles, or Crustacea from tbe more southern limits 
of the country. Cannot some of our Florida friends for¬ 
ward us a few alligators, lizzards, or anything that will live 
in water? We will forward them to Philadelphia with 
pleasure. __ t[> __ 
—Bound copies of Volume V of Forest and Stream 
are now ready. We can also supply the series complete, 
THE TROTTING TURF. 
A DISINTERESTED observer who might have wan¬ 
dered into the Everett House during the recent con¬ 
vention of the National Association for Promoting the In¬ 
terests of the American Trotting Turf, would scarcely i 
have imagined himself in the society of horsemen—that is, 
if he was something of a fossil himself, and still clung to 
ancient traditions, in which, to trot a horse on a track, 
was an act of abomination, placing tile culprit beyond, 
the pale of “our best society." Instead, he would have 
found himself in company with gentlemen, many of whom 
are lights in the learned professions, whose arguments and 
discussions on the matter in hand, and which were intend¬ 
ed to still further purge the trotting turf from obloquy, 
were conducted witli as strict a sense of decorum as would 
be met with in the deliberations 'of any legislative body. 
Racing has always been what we might call a “polite" 
amusement, imported into the country from abroad and 
patronized, more particularly at the South, by all classes of 
the people, from Presidents of the Republic, down; but 
trotting is peculiarly a National sport—almost the only 
one we have, in fact, and in competition with the 
more aristocratic amusement, it was for a long 
time pushed to the wall. Of late years, how¬ 
ever, an entirely different class of men have 
become identified with trotting interests, and the result 
has been to raise the sport to its present position, and to- 
place it upon an equality for “respectability" with racing. 
Something of an idea of the present magnitude of the in¬ 
terests involved in trotting can be obtained from the oped- 
ing address of lion. Chas. W. Hutchinson, Mayor of 
Utica, and First Vice President of the Association, who, 
in the absence of President Sprague, presided over the 
convention. From this it appears that 163 members of the 
National Association were represented in the convention 
that daring the year 1875 there were 3,304 trotting and pa 
cing racers upon the tracks of this country; 5,400 horses 
have contested for purses amounting to the immense sum oi 
§1,418,971, and that the wholeamount of capital represent 
ed'by the trotting interests is not over-es'i mated at the sum 
of §50,000,000. This amount, large as it is, however, doer 
not embrace any of the collateral interests, such as breed, 
ing studs, etc. It is safe to say that no national spoil ii 
the world has such an amount as this invested iu its main 
tenance; and the lime has arrived when we should no 
only take a national pride in the success of our trottiaj 
turf, bnt by encouragement and countenance aid tkos* 
who are, and have been, working so strenuously for its re 
form and elevation, 
WESTON IN ENGLAND. 
I T is pleasant to record the graceful man’ner in whir 
English sporting journals have withdrawn and apole 
gizedfor tlieir very outspoken expressions of disbelief i 
the truth of American records of long distance pcdesiriai 
ism, and we trust that the result of the lesson will be raur 
faith hereafter in the possibility of some feats being a- 
eomplished outside of the “right little, tight little island, 
that have not yet been performed within it. A brief sum 
mary of the recent match at Agricultural nail, Londoi 
shows that Edward Payson Weston, and William Perkin 
the English champion walker, agreed to walk for twent; 
four hours, for a cup or specie of the value of fifty guinea 
Perkins walked 65 miles in 14 hours, 5 mit ules and £ 
seconds, and then gave out. Weston walked the sair 
distance in 13 hours, 3 minutes aud 41 seconds, and coi 
tinuing his journey walked 109 miles and 832 yards 
24 hours. He had fixed his distance at 115 miles, an 
would have accomplished it had he not been compelle 
to leave the track for three quarters of an hour < 
account of sickness. This is admitted by the Englii 
journals to be tbe greatest pedestrian feat ever performi 
in that country. It settles the question as to Westor 
record here, which has been so strenuously disputed, ai 
also as to his style of walkiug, which we have heard » 
serted by leading lights in the athletic world, would not 1 
permitted in England. On the contrary, the Englishmen 
while saying that his mode is ungraceful and contrary 
all their ideas of style, is yet perfectly fair walking. 
The announcement of the match was almost as good 
the event itself, and must have been tbe joint production 
Weston aud a lineal descendant of the great Gear; 
Robbins “of auction renown." We recognize the hai 
of the former in his old dodge of inviting members of l 
medical profession to be present, while the rest is or 
equalled by the grandiloquent advertisements of “re 
dential estates,” which are sometimes to be found in t 
Field. “Both men will he dressed in chaste and genu 
apparel," it reads; "no drinks will be sold at the I 
stronger than coffee, smoking is positively forbidden 
the building, and hundreds of ladies belonging to Ei 
land’s proudest nobility have promised to be present 
We can fancy Weston waving bis hand to “ Euglan 
proudest nobility ’’ in his old Hippodrome stylo. Ho 
ever, he has done credit to his country. We recognize 1 
fact, aud'trust that upon bis return he will be present 
with some fitting testimonial. 
—Dr. N. Rowe, the “Mohawk” of the Turf, Field a 
Farm, and more recently of the Rod and Gun, has 
sumed editorial management of the Chicago Field. 
ha3 our best wishes for his success in his new Westi 
home, and his great experience with dog and gun can i 
fail to be of value to the constituents of his paper. 
