FOREST AND STREAM 
107 
it weighed 10 ll)R.» with barrels 34 ins. long. This gun appeared heavy 
at first; bntihe feeling noon went off, and 1 found it really very handy, 
and I have carried and shot with it the whole day, walking sometimes 
twenty miles, I have never tried its penetration at paper, but at game 
and wildfowl it la all that could be desired, having killed over twenty 
hares, some of them as far off as 80 yards, and frequently killed going 
away at 60 yards. I shot a heron at 72 yardH, and a wild duck at 80 
yards, besides making long shots At green plover in docks, having re¬ 
peatedly killed four or five at from 80 to 100 yards, both when sitting and 
flying. T have likewise shot rabbits, pheasants, pari ridges, snipe, jaclt- 
Bnipe, teal, pochards, golden plover, knot, wood-pigeons, water hens and 
lots <fr other birds. I have tried it at gulls und cro ws, and have made some 
very long BhotB; bnfc never killed a single hird at 100 yards, although I 
have killed at that distance when 1 have shot into a dock. The different 
kinds of shot make no difference in the shouting, as I have tried it at a 
30-in. iron target, and it puts in 280 No. 6 with a charge of 1$ oz, and 
4 drs. No. 6 powder. When I increased the charge of shot to 2 ozs. and 
4 drs. of powder the pattern was as high as 360, and when reduced to 1 
oz. an average of 200 pellets. For long shots 1 used 5 drs. No. 6 powder 
and U 02. No. 5 shot (sometimes the chilled, and at others the ordinary 
kind). It shootB equally well wlth small or large shot, and I have always 
found the spread of email and large shot to be the same up to 60 yards. 
At longer distances the large shot has the advantage, as the wind docs 
not act so much upon it. For shooting at 30 yards | oz. ie quite suf¬ 
ficient; but R requires finer Bhooring than with an ordinary gun, as the 
spread is not near go great, and there are no sprinklings of outside pel¬ 
lets, which very often only maim a bird.; so that with a gun bored on 
tho new system you either kill or miss, and, with a had shot, very often 
the latter. Mr. Greener's gnu leads only a little at the muzzle; but it 
does not intefere with the shooting, as T have fireef 100 shots without 
cleaning. T. Mjstcalfe. 
Kingston Villa , Ntw Parks, Scarborough, Airrll 
—P'i'O/n the London Meld. 
-- 
Rouceverte, w. Ta., March tlth, 1876. 
Editor Forest and Stream:— 
Oue of your correspondents asks about a compass set in a gnn stock. 
I have been using for several years a Winchester, model of .66, 20 inch 
barrel, which has a compass inserted in the stock. The gun was given 
to me by a friend, Mr. L. J. Peck, of Lockport, N. Y., as a memento of 
a certain bear hunt we took together, and had been used by him several 
years with the compass put in for his convenience. He had a Maynard 
with a compass in its stock, and would, no doubt, tell your correspond¬ 
ent what Is necessary to make the needle act properly. The one In my 
gun acts all right, although I seldom nse a compass, while I am a good 
deal in the woods. A. man may get confused by a multiplicity of roads 
or streets, not knowing which one lo taka, but he should never be at a 
loss in the woods. As to the bear hunt 1 spoke of above, I bet Mr, 
Sartori, of Philadelphia, unlimited good things that we would kill a bear, 
agreeing afterwards to do it by 5 o’clock P. M , Mr. Pick supplementing 
by a bet of “two New' York shillings” iu toy favor. We did not leave 
camp autil 8 A. M., a dreadfully cold morning in mid-Novomber; snow 
tep inches deep. We struck a fresh track at 3:20 P. M.; killed the bear 
at 3:40; laid out ail night, and came back next day to enjoy venison, the 
rest of the party having killed two deer while we were gone. C. (J. 
^nchting and Routing. 
All communications from Secretaries and friends should he mulled no 
later than Monday in each week. 
HIGH WATER. FOR THE WEEK. 
Male. 
Boston. 
New York. 
Charleston. 
Mar. 
23. 
84 
4 
5 
34 
M:»r. 
24. 
10 
IS 
42 
6 
18 
MUr 
25. 
10 
c.9 
8 
19 
6 
59 
Mur. 
56. 
11 
37 
0 
12 
V 
Mar. 
16 
9 
45 
8 
16 
Mur. 
23... ‘...’.'.’.1.!!!! 
0 
59 
10 
28 
8 
59 
Mar. 
2!). 
1 
4t 
11 
17 
9 
44 
MR. BISHOP’S VOYAGE IN A BARNEGAT 
DUCK. BOAT—FLORIDA REACHED IN 
THE “CENTENNIAL REPUBLIC.” 
W E give below another letter just received from Mr. 
N. H. Bishop, describing his adveuturons trip 
along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. Our last letter, it 
■will he remembered, was written from Biloxi, Miss. Mr. 
B. haB now reached St. Marks, Florida, en-route for Cedar 
Keys, which point helms probably reached ere this. The 
paper canoe in which Mr. Bishop's first voyage was made, 
will he exhibited at the Centennial by the Massachusetts 
Commission, and his present craft which he has christened 
(and well christened) the Centennial Republic, will be exhi¬ 
bited in the government collection of boats. The Southern 
Boat Club of New Orleans has presented Mr. Bishop with 
a flag iu commemoration of his visit to that city. 
Apalachicola, Fla., March 7th, 187Q. 
Editor Forest and Stream:— 
I have Just emerged from the interior salt-water passages 
of the coast, by crossiug the beach above Cape St, Bias, 
from St. Joseph’s Sound to the waters of the Gulf of 
Mexico; thence by St. Vincents' Sound to this port. While 
waiting for the strong easterly winds to subside I will give 
you a description of the route to be followed by a small 
boat from New Orleans to Cedar Keys. 
From Lake Pontchartrain (where a young friend Joined 
me with his skiff, after my lonely row of two thousand 
miles down the Ohio and Mississippi rivers, from Pittsburg) 
the shores were followed to Biloxi, from v\ hich watering- 
place I last addressed you. Leaving Biloxi we rowed 
easterly, crossing the mouths of hays and bayous, past 
Pascagoula to the entrance of Mobile Bay, and camped 
outside of Fort Gaines, until the water became smooth 
enough to allow us to cross the inlet, three and a half miles 
to Fort Morgan. Tlie Bon Secour hay was followed inside 
the beach to its head; and we became landlocked in Oyster 
Bay, a tributary of the Bon Secour River. Only one man 
in that part of the pines owned a yoke of oxen; he hauled 
us seven miles through a level country to Portage Creek, 
which we discended to the wide Perdido River. The 
Perdido was followed for a few miles to its last great 
eastern bend, five or six miles from where it empties its 
water into the Gulf of Mexico. At this point a strip of 
low land, only three-fourths of a mile in width, separates 
the river from Big Lagoon. _ Here we dragged our boats 
across into the shallowed lagoon, and rowed through it to 
the town of Warrington and the Pensacola Navy Yard. It 
was a long pull across the hay tQ Santa Rosa Island with a 
head-wind. The distance between the Fort Picken’s end 
of the island aDd East Pass inlet at, its eastern extremity is 
about forty-eight miles. All through these regions the 
cabins of the settlers are few indeed. 
In thiB unsettled region deer, wild cats and coons arc 
abundant; and heavy pine forests give a dreary aspect to 
the shores of the sounds. 
One family of negroes live upon Santa Rosa Island, and 
are the only settlers to be found along the sound, excepting, 
the four or five families at the narrows on the main shore 
of Santa Rosa Bay. 
At East Pass, on the eastern side of the inlet, resides Capl. 
L. Destin, aNewLondon, Conn., fisherman. From East Pass 
it is about thirty miles easterly to the head Of Choctaw- 
hatchee Bay ; and from that end We had our boats hauled 
through a wild forest, sixteen miles, to West Bay Creek, a 
tributary of St. Andrew’s Bound. V r e continued our 
Journey through West Bay, across the mouth of North 
Bay to St. Andrew’s East Bay, the entrance of which we 
crossed as we rowed down to the sea At this point was 
first seen the palmetto or cabbage palm, the feathery lops 
of which gave a tropical cast, to the forests. The waters 
of tho Mexican Gulf were now before us, or rather were 
seen through the great openings in the beach on our right 
as we rowed inside the sttudy islauds, which act as a 
harrier to keep out the rough waves of the great Southern 
sea. We camped inside of Crooked Island; and the fol¬ 
lowed day, having rowed a3 far eastward as the gradually 
closing interior water course would allow, wo hauled our 
boats across the beach, and launched out upon the waters 
of the Gulf. A few miles of hard pulling brought us lo 
St. Joseph’s Bay, which wc followed to Its eastern cud 
where wc became land locked four miles above Capo St. 
Bla3. It was necessary to make another portage of about 
a quarter of a mile across the beech into tlie Gulf again. 
We slept in our boats for two nights awaiting the subsi¬ 
dence of the sea—then launched our little craft once more 
upon the restless w aves. As we pulled up the beach great 
black-fish came in schools, and dividing into four com 
panics, one on each side, and a party in' front and one 
astern of the boats, in the most dignified manner convoyed 
us three miles to where we parted company; we to go 
through the surf to make a lauding on the strand; they to 
follow the bent of their inclinations. These great fellows, 
weighing from five hundred to one thousand pounds each, 
seemed loath to leave us, iof they swam slowly seaward 
(s)pouting as they rolled their dark’bodies above the waves. 
The lanuing was accomplished without shipping much 
water; and wc immediately hauled over the beach three or 
four hundred feet into the 1-igoon or western btauch of St. 
Vincent’s Sound. Two miles eastward of where we made 
our landing is Indian Pass, an inlet through which we 
could have entered the sound, hut heavy seas were break¬ 
ing upon the bar, and any attempt to have entered tlie 
inlet at Unit time would have proved disastrous to us. 
Emergiug from tlie lagoon we camped in a palmclto 
grove, arid were detained in that wild retreat for two nights 
and a day by heavy head-winds. When the gale was over 
we rowed by moonlight thirteen miles up the sound to the 
port of Apalachicola, where the kind attentions of C'upt. 
Daniel Fry', U. S. Gov. Inspector of steamboats, and the 
comforts enjoyed iu his “ collage by the sea ” made us 
forget the hardships of our loucly journey along the Gulf 
coast. In a day or two we expect to continue the journey 
to Cedar Keys tan St. Marks. We have only erne hundred 
and sixty live miles to row when our long journey from the 
head of the Ohio will end. As the colored post muster at 
St. -Marks, Fla., oannot feud he has ueelected to forward 
the letters sent to us, for weeks past, through his office, 
though lie received written orders to do so; consequently 
we have not hoard from the North for eight weeks. The 
route from Apalachicola to Cedar Keys follows Hie north 
shore of St. George’s Sound lo Crooked River; thence 
through that river, the Ockloekony Bay and open gulf 
waters to St. Marks. From St. Mark’s the shoal waters of 
tlie open gulf, protected by Oyster reefs and shoals, may he 
safely followed as you coast along the great marshes, dotted 
with little shell-mound hammocks of llit; cabbage palm. 
During last April I emerged in my paper cauoe from these 
marshes at the mouth of the wiki S> wanee river, and 
ended a canoe journey of about t-u,, the uui.-.rcil 
miles, from the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The five thousand 
miles of rowing through the connecting water-courses of 
the Continent, during two seasons, has impressed me with 
the great value and wonderful characteristics of the im¬ 
mense rivers, bays, sounds and harbors which are the 
heritage of the American people. Capital, combined with 
intelligence, will, sometime in tlie future, develope these, 
great gifts to great and important uses. I have not had 
time or space to tell how these waters tcom with fish and 
animal life, and what they contain to feed generations of 
peoples yet unborn. Camp-life is not conducive to literary 
effort. There is too much to be Studied to leave time for 
one to impart the harvest to other's. Truly yours. 
N. H. B. 
Wire Rope kor Caulks,—W e find in the last issue of 
tlie Aquatic Monthly a letter from Commodore R. B. Forbes, 
of the Eastern Yacht Club, on the subject of stec-I wire 
rope as a substitute for chain cables, The idea is an ex¬ 
cellent one, and we are ohly surprised that it lius not been 
already adopted. For yachts particularly, a wire cable would 
be very convenient, as one of sufficient size could be 
handled and coiled as easily as a rope, Qr a drum could 
he substituted for the old tashioned windlass, and the cable 
reeled in on that. Mr. Forbes says that those who have 
merely seen and used common wire rope can have no idea 
of the pliability of the rope now making at the Charles¬ 
town yard out of English steel wire. He describes a cable 
now in process of manufacture which is four and three- 
quarter inches, and comprises six strands laid up around 
a hempen core or heart, each strand also with a similar 
core, which gives great pliability. Oue of these strands 
would make a cable for a scliooner rf 100 tons. The 
old hempen cables used before chains became common 
had many advantages, particularly in the ease with which 
they were handled: the chief objection to them being 
their liability to Chafe and part when in contact with the 
bottom. When overlaid with this pliable steel wire this 
objection would be entirely removed. 
Atlantic, Yacht Club.— At tlie regular annual meeting 
of this club, held ou Saturday last, the following gentlemen 
were elected as officers lor the ensuing year -.—Commodore, 
George A. Thayer, yacht Triton; Vice-Commodore, Latham 
A. Fish, yacht Agnes; Rear Commodore, William Cooper, 
yacht Orion; Recording Secretary, JolmB. Morgan; Trea¬ 
surer, S. W- Knowles; Measurer, Chris. T. Lippi it. Tues¬ 
day, June G, was fixed as the day for the annual regatta, 
which was placed under the management of the following 
committee : Edward Arnold, C.' T. Lippitt and W. W> 
Richards. 
—The Beverly Yacht Club held tlicir annual meeting on 
the 11th inat., and elected the following officers.-—Commo¬ 
dore, H. H, Buck, of Die Tlieela; Viee-Commodoie, Arthur 
Burgess, of the Fanehon; Secretary and Treasurer, W. 
Lloyd Jeffries, of the Bluebell; Measurer, E. B. Russell. 
Regatta committee—Waller Burgess, of the Tulip; Faik- 
in.an Dexter, of tho Mariquita; P. Grant, Jr., of lire Water 
Lily; E. B. Russell und W. Lloyd Jeffries. 
—A new schooner yacht is being built at Oohotirg, 
Canada, for the purpose of competing iu the centennial 
match for the Queen’s Clip. The appearance of a Canadian 
yacht racing iu our waters will be hailed as a welcome, 
although unusual event, 
—Poillou Brothers are building for Mr. Peabody Bussell, 
a large steam yacht, 80 feet long, 18 feet beam and 0 feet 
hold. She will ho fitted with sufficient canvas to reach 
England under sail, and upon her arrival over there the 
ongitias will he put in. She is now in frame and will be 
completed by May 1. 
—The following gentlemen have been elecled as officers 
of the South Boston Yacht Club: Commodore, J. B 
Moody; Vico Commodore,• S. J. Capen; Fleet Captain, 
John Gliannoek; Recording Secretary, John Mortis; Finan¬ 
cial Secretary, E. 11. Mulouy; Treasurer, Thomas Christian; 
Measurer, John Wimiiatt; Trustees, J. G. Chambers, F. S. 
Wright and G. G. Morris. 3, J. Capon declined tlie nomin¬ 
ation and the matter was referred to the committee. 
—The Rookaway Yacht Club which was organized in 
1871, and Incorporated in 187li, held its annual meeting on 
Thursday, March Dili. The following gentlemen were 
elected officers: Commodore, Daniel Lord, Jr ; President, 
Nalh’l Jarvis, Jr.; Vice-President, A. 11. Stevens; Trea¬ 
surer, Alfred Neilson; Secretary, Henry H, Man; Measurer, 
N. T, Laurence. Regatta Committc—Dauiel Lord, Jr.; 
Win. Lumtnis, Charles A, Chcever. Tho club-house is 
situated at Far Rookaway, L. I. This club has some of 
the fastest open yachts in the country enrolled in its fleet, 
and expect to be well represented at the comiug Centennial 
regatta. 
—Al the annual meeting of the Knickerbocker Yacht 
Club, of this city, the foliowing officers were elected lor 
the ensuing year:—Commodore, Edgar Williams (third 
term); Vice Commodore, Win. Ruddiman; Secretary, E. 
M. Bauson ; Measurer, John Potter; Treasurer, G. O. Baker; 
Board of Directors—John Poller, Wm. Ruddiman, Dr. 
McElroy, E. M. Sansou, and Guo. A. Henshuw. 
The Harvard—Yale It a or;.—Tile following is Ihe 
agreement between the boat clubs of Harvard and Yale 
Universities with reference to the eight-oared four mile 
siraight-away race, to he rowed at Springfield, Mass., on 
lire fiOth June. This agreement is dated March 13, and 
was completed only very recently. 
Article 1. Alt members of llio University who are candidates for.lhe 
degree uf A. Jr. ur Pll. H.. who have been pui-sning their SUidTos 
Tor nine months previous to Hu; liny or tho race, or cafiflldalOB for the 
degree of Lh.fi. ,£- D., Jl. I)., Ph. It., or A. 51., who have hern pur¬ 
suing lheir Btudit'6 for one term previous 10 the day of (tie raeu, t-linfi he 
eligible lo low ou the Uuiveraliy crew. Provided, llowover, itiul all e.an- 
dld.-uea for the Iasi live, degrees above nunieil -to-ivit, LL.ff., M. I)., Ph. 
D., A. M., or fi.1).—e-hull have previoualy taken the degreu of A. it., 
B..S., or I’ll. B. fruui Ike college ou wliusu crew ihey are to row. No 
gradnatc shall be euiieitiured a candidate for u degree unless liiti name ie 
nuliecatalogue or unless he- shall present, ir desired, a cuitllicale of 
membership in one of the depatuneiits above named, signed by the euc- 
relary of the college or other propot authority. 
Art. 3, The lace shall be rowed on J one gotli, 1S7S, 
Art. 3, The race shall be rowed at. Springlleld, Mass. 
Art. 4. The race shall be rowed on suitable waters as defined by Ihe 
umpire and in accordance with the laws of Oxford and Cambridge an¬ 
nexed below. 
Art. 5. A gentleman of reputation shall bn chosen aa umpire. The 
fact that he is agiadu&te.of cither collect: shall not r.obur him from ser¬ 
ving io that capacity. JSach college shall make a nomination for that 
position, und tt the nomination be accepted oy the otber college, the a- 
nal choice shall be derided by lot. 
The articles of agreement arc sighed on the part of 
Harvard by VV. J. Weld, Jr., President of the University 
Boat Olub, and by ihe Yale Commillee ou the part of Yale. 
The rules arc those governing the Oxford autl Ctimbride 
matches. 
—The Fisherman's Rowing Association of Halifax, N. S., 
send word that llmir crew will go into training about the 
1st of April, and that they expect to contest the four-oared, 
pair-oared and single scull races in the international re¬ 
gattas on the Schuylkill during the Ceniemiial Exhibition. 
V. H. Daily, champion oarsman of California, is organiz¬ 
ing a crew of four, and hopes to have single scull entries 
also in tlie international regattas. 
—De Witt’s Base Ball Guide for 187G, edited by Mr. 
Chadwick, will he the most complete edition of that stand¬ 
ard base ball book yet published. Besides containing 
complete .statistics of the play of the professionals mid 
amateurs during the past season, batting and pitching av¬ 
erages, etc., and special eh up lens giving insl ructions in tho 
new points of play, it will be illustrated with culs show¬ 
ing the legal and illegal attitudes in delivering the ball, 
and the best style of handling tho bat. Also the scores iu 
full of the noted games in Canada, by.amateurs as well as 
professionals; the whole containing over a hundred pages, 
including* the now codes of rules of the professional arid 
amateur clubs. 
—Among the League playing rules are to be found the 
appended amendments, suggested by Mr. Chadwick in his 
articles on tlie subject last winter:-- 
‘‘A player running on a foul taken on tlie Hy is liable to 
the same penalties as one running ou a fair fly. But, on 
the other hand, a player standing ou his base when tlie ball 
is caught, or touching his bag afler the lly is takeii, can 
run tor his bases just astf that foul were a fair fly. Again, 
if the hit he a foul grounder, the player who has started 
to run can regain his base without any danger of being- 
put out. No ball shall contain more than one ounce of 
rubber, but tlie hall may be all yarn. The effort was made 
to establish tlie all-yarn ball as the only ball to be used by 
the League; but this failed, and the following compromise 
was come to: The home club should have the option of 
using either tho all-yarn of the rubber-core ball, as they 
felt Inclined, and any change in the ball during tlie game 
was to niade In accordance with the origiual ball sclented. 
—The match at foot-ball between Harvard ami McGill 
(Montreal) Universities wilt be played at Cambridge, Mass., 
probtibly on the 18th of May. 
—By next Saturday the probability is that the Brooklyn 
Club professionals will he in the field playing against picked 
nines at the Capitoline grounds every fine afternoon. 
