Mmsck UB, 



Forest and stream. 



147 



dropped .her twig I was a- much surprised as theywere, 

 and ai first tliou-.h1 tbey were playing a joke: tln.-y declared 

 thev were not. However, I quiet I v marked tbe spot, and i 

 em -■■■ all doubt 1 blindfolded both and led them all arouu 

 'In- \ ;n- 1 : wheneverweoame to where the stream of wad 

 ran undi -i-ground (lie twigs would point down in both thei 

 : land w One point, cm one side, and ueatlj ai 

 Hie bach end <■! llir loi. the t \\ i ir~ worked so 

 Strongly that on- of tl>r branches would gener- 

 ally Wist SO mm-h that it would be broken half in two 

 when a Iresh one would lie required, fn Fading Mien' 

 toward this one central point i In- twigs .seemed to feel the 



id \ 



ling to tu 



i Pro 



of til 



and 



When the 



Feci 



Ich by \ 

 e crotch 

 ; it, thei 



r. until the eroteh 



pint designated in 

 (now going from 

 ard them, coming 

 in Other words, 

 KeepingOn straight 

 v, r-e to ;m upright 

 ■ traveled Bay two 

 il lie- ualer." We 

 alking toward Ihe 

 will commence to 

 • hack at the lime. 

 thai way the twig 

 lb at the 

 ackward, 

 illy come 



nfluence of the wat 

 toward the uudergn 

 Dearer, down, down, fni-ll 

 or butt pointed directly pli 

 former trials. Passingon straight ahe 

 the water) the twig would bend' back t 

 lip iii nearly a horizontal position, 

 making deafly Elifee-qvJartersoi a eircle 

 ■ ■!„■:„! the single ends will go back, the 



position a~;|i the 111 



or throe Kids) is be. 



men' n-\- r.-,-.l the nnlei 



jprjini backward In if 



lean toward the person 



being toward tie 1 water, 



keeps bending in and down, until il strikes plii 



time they arrive over the Stream. So keeping on ' 



now receding trom tllfl Stream, thl twig will grad 



up to nearly a level in Iron! of the person, The tendency 



the twig i> always to point to the water, whether approael 



iugor receding from the stream or spring, whichever] 

 may he. After this thorough test I had full faith todig 

 weil around the point indicated, and 1 found abundance of 

 water. Even in times of drouth, while my neighbors' wells 

 i;;im' "tit, mine had plenty; so much so thai inv well for* 

 hlSli'cd mil' family and neighbor* and their domestic animals 

 during such periods. 



l'o\i - oi'TUii East. — We receive freqiienl Inquiries from 

 tnir lot-hunting readers of the Eastern states giviagdescrip 

 lion- of ftfcses of unusual colors which lliev have seen, and re- 

 tjuestlug Iheir idenmieMtiitn. fiasl of the Mississippi there 

 are found Inn two species of fox. flu ( uinnioi! red { Vulpes 

 frtilgaris pmiistflmnicus), and tlteaftyrfds (Uroiyon ciner/xl- 

 .,,-,.. ntatna). The former is distributed Over; the whole 

 couutiv. from the Mississippi 10 the Atlantic coast, and 

 Ironi flic British Hue south to the northern tier of the 

 Southern Slates. ;uid even further SdUtiitf aid. The gray fox 

 is niosi abtuidant in the South, and is less ad than ttS larger 

 relative north of Virginia, Kentucky and Missouri, QJ 

 bourse it must be understood that there js w , (feed ii, u . i, . 

 vond which neither species intrudes. The ranges of the 

 bwo iverlae. each oilier, and the red fox is of ten killed in 

 \ irghiia and North Carolina, while the gray has been killed 

 iii NV« Kugland and isahui.dani in Ohio, bid is nol cm 



moo bo far north. While fiie common pelage of the red tax 

 is. as ii- name implies, red, ii varies considerably in color, 

 running inm so-called -.aridies. such as I he cross and the 

 blHek or silver gray fox, The best authorities regard these 

 , oio is a- esampli s more or less perfecl of the not very unus 

 ual phenomenon of melanism. A red fox maj give birth to a 

 litter of puppies, in which there will be red cross and black 

 individuals, and the converse of this is true. An essential 

 difference by which the red fox, whatever his color, may 

 be distinguished from Che gray is to be found in He tails of 

 me i wo species. In Vulpea the tall is covered with soft fur 



CMC 



il has 



soft, fur intermixed with them The so-called Samson fox 

 is a red fox with a peculiar crisp, woolly condition of the 

 fur. Professor Allen i- inclined to attribute this peculiarity 

 of pelage to some disease, 



Si-Ul.v. NfjTES.— Stanley, Morris Co.. N. J.. March 11. 

 1883.— The birds arc here with the very first indication of 

 spring. On the morning of the 12th the air resounded with 

 the songs of robins, bluebirds, sparrows and blackbirds. As 

 1 looked from my window at sunrise ihis morning, a Hng- 

 apple tree near the house was fairly reddened again by the 

 score of robins, whose bright brea'sis reflected the earliest 

 lays of Ihe sun. The snowbirds, which have been closely 

 occupied all wind r in securing food, were chasing each 

 otiier joyfully on eager -wing in tboir love making. Qreat 

 flights of blackbirds wereseen passing norih. One (lock lit 

 in a tall aCacia tree, arraying h in fluttering funereal garb. 

 An immense chicken hawk has been making game of our 

 Ixmlln. Two hens quite as lame as tin.' assailant were 

 killed "and partly eaten. This evening I saw the first wood- 

 cock, within a stone's throw of the .New Providence depot 

 of the Delaware. Lackawanna & Western Railroad, a iavor- 

 ite place every spring. As I gat in my earlfage expectantly 

 Waiting, one lit in the muddy road biit twenty feet aWaj 1 

 heard several others in the adjoining fields. Thjeyare a 

 week later than last year. — Gbokgh Shefabd Page. 



Tbe first robin arrived February!), the earliest on record 

 here. Bluebirds February 27; killdcer March 4; crows, 

 kingli-liers , U1I ( meadow larks have been here nil the winter. 

 -J. Oti- FKi.iowsdloinellsville. N. V.. March. 15). 



The Great Cmmu.ina W«bne) Connecticut.— While 

 out collecting on Friday, March 3, 1883, a warm pleasant 

 spring-like day. in pacing by an old abandoned granite 

 quarry, 1 heard a bird's song quite new to inc. I found the 

 bird pei died on a low bush, among a pile of rocks, singing 

 almosl incessantly. 1 shot it. and. on examination it was 

 found to be a great Carolina wren. Ii. now niakesa valua- 

 ble addition to my cabinet of skins. A note in (J. H. Met- 

 dam's "Review of the Birds of Connecticut." says it, doubt- 

 less occurs as a rare summer resident from the South in the 

 Connecticut Valley. 1 find no record of its being taken in 

 this State previous to mine. — 0. H. Neff (Portland, Conn., 

 March 10, 1883). 



Those Mioiiatohy Quaii,.— New Market, X. 11., March 

 1?.— JQfrtor Fvrett ami Stovcm: 1 have read with interest 

 two notes in Fouest and Stream, Feb. 82 and March 8, 

 both from Dover. N 11 . and referring to migratory nuall 

 1 think that "G. A. W."i correel in making his slafcincnl. 

 1 was in Dover the 10th of February, and while passing along 

 Ghapd street, about SJOO yds. above tin 

 what is now known as a nugratory quail. I do noit plain) 

 to be an ornithologist, bin tan tell a quail from u pine gros 

 t>i ik 1 think ii probable that they were seen the 1st iu-i 



111- Dl'OI t. l.iNNK-f. in CONFINEMENT.— Seeing in FOBE8T 

 AND Stbeam of March 8, Mr, Cahoon's account of a linnet 

 he has caged, reminds me- to give him my experience with 

 thorn Early in February 1 was fortunate enough to capture 



ii pairof Ihe ItttlC fellows, male .and female, and I have had 



them caged since that time, They show signs of mating 

 now. and I am in hopes io be able to repor! the fact before 

 the present month, Tln-v cat freely of all kinds 

 of seeds, but seem to prefer canary seed to anything else. 

 They eat sparingly of cracker, and not at all of bread crumbs. 

 They drink a great deal of water, and arc very uneasy jf [ 

 dfl not give them a dish of freshwater every morning, I 

 have never seen them offer to wash Or bathe as canaries do, 



bat 1 think they may do sr> in the summer time. Have not 



observed the h.tbil of hangiag downward from lop of the 

 cage, bm my birds use the little Swing hung in the cage, and 

 will sometime tight tierce battles for possession of it, Faerj 



arc very chaiiv and sociable, and il gude wile" says arc a 



deal of company. — 1. E. M. (Peering, Maine, March to. 

 1883). ' 



Spring i.\ Montana.— Helena, March 11, 1883.— EdUvr 

 l')n<*< inn! Strniiu: Spring has fairlv opened wit Ii us 

 yesterday, the loth. 1 had the pleasure of hearing, for the 

 first linio this spring, the song of the bluebird, but un- 

 forliinately 1 was unable tO see Ii. To-day I Was more for- 

 fttriate, as a pair, mule and female, took possession of mv 

 bird house, seeming to make themselves perfectly at home. 

 1 would slafc l!iai this is ihe rallies! anh.,1 noted for the 

 past, three years. Last year and ihe two preceding veers 

 the first arrivals were on the 30th of March. I ihink all of 

 our migratory birds will arrive earlier this year than usual, 

 as our spring has been exceptionally mild and clear. Some 

 few mallards have been sho! in Ihe'open ponds and creeks, 

 bill lhe\ are very Wild, making for the river as soon as shot 

 at, l recently had the largest sage cock brought in to me 

 to be stuffed that I ever saw. It measured thiriv-iluve 

 inches. The party bringing il in staled thai he saw at 

 leas! fifty in one" dock ten miles north of Helena.— 11. 

 W, D. 



A cw'TiiiKD GobhaWj*.— Charleston, Me,, March 12.— 

 1 have ii goshawk which was captured one day last month 

 under peculiar circumstances. He wus observed living 

 round (he house, each time bringing him nearer and nearer, 

 until he suddciilv dashed through a closed window, on Ihe 

 inside of Hiieh being ii cage of canaries. The lore, with 

 which he struck the window Btnnned him and bl 



• several lie. 

 id deer in 

 almost extii 

 game laws 

 era! dfeciph 



' llv 



aak Walton. Not- 

 withstanding the severity of our weather the common crow 



has once more appeared OH ihe field of action, and his 

 melodious notes warn us that spring is ncaral hand.— Bi ; i-: 

 ■\\\ 



Kl.l.U .\.,MSSI I 



la. 1888.— An occun 

 note, being very stri 

 day, and lasl night 

 ten weeks. This mo 

 here found;, dead < 



H.-U BE.— Hockville. Conn., March 



;c happi ne.l here today worthy of 



re yesterday was our first warm 



e that Ice has not made For 



ng Ihe janitor of the school building 

 >ek In the side of the building. 



Ills bead was somewhat crushed, ha 

 the brick wall. The bird was large and in vary line condi- 

 tion. — S. K., Jr. [We have occasionally known of lulled 

 grouse living againsl houses, as well as quail and the Vir- 

 ginia rallll 



Food o!- rill-. ( iiu'Mtm;.— Is il known lobe a common 

 thine lor the chipmunk, or ground squirrel, to feed on ani- 

 mal life? 1 once shot one which had jtisl killed a small 

 greca snake, ii then had two oribree small sections of the 

 snake ill i,s cheek pouches. The chipmunk might be added 

 d. the list of •eiiemic- oi reptiles/'" brought forward some- 

 time ago in your columns. — ('. B. n. (Attleboro, Mass.. 

 March 12; 1883). [The ground squirrel's fondness for ani- 

 mal food is well known ] 



Lahgk White Owii.— Fori Covington, X. "V.. March 8. 

 — I have just stuffed a female while owl, shot in January, 

 ISs?::. near Huntingdon. P, Q,, whioh measured from tip to 

 tip plump live feet, five inches. The spots on il are un- 

 usually dark, almosl. jcl black, and head very large and 

 broad. Pine grosbeaks have been abundant this wiuier. but 

 are about all gone now.— Gyhfau on. 



f<ut\$ §nq Htfd §m\. 



GAME ltf> 

 Ueation such , 



' formb- 

 beofhelp 



NEW YORK GAME LAW. 



(Special dispatch 10 Forest and Streiiiff.] 



Ai.rwv. V \ . March 21. 

 npilE To'.vusend Bill came up today in Oomniitto of Ihe 

 ■*- Whole in (he As-cmblv. The clause prohibiting the 

 hounding of deer in Si. [.awrencc county was so amended 

 thai ihe clause applies Io llle whole Stale. Mr. lloynlon, 

 of Esses county, ai tempted to have, this amendment. 

 stricken out, claiming thai it was unjust to New 

 York city sportsmen. He also put in a plea for 

 the Adirondack holelkeepers, and said that while 

 the city sportsmen would not undergo the fatigue of 

 still -hunting, they would be on hand in the autumn, when 

 the guides would drive the deer to the-in. Tin -ir stay in 

 the autumn would pm money into Ihe landlords' pockets. 

 But it was the decided sentiment of the Assembly, however, 

 that hounding oughl to be prohibited : and ihe amendment 

 stood. 



An attempt was made by Mr. Kogei- of >, ., ea 1 , 

 have a part of Cayuga Lake cvcinpicd from the provision 

 forbidding fbe catching of fish through the ice. The 

 proposition wis defeated When the clause ottering a 

 hnuiiiy of 5u cents on hawk.- and owls came up there was 



a debate by MeSSrg, irvin. JohnSon and Roosevelt. Mr. 

 ROOSeyell Sturdily defended the owl as a friend ol MlC 

 farmer mid useful because it caughl mice and oilier 10 

 ilcnl-. lie ilioiighl lhal a lino otlghl to '"• imposed for 

 killing owls. The AssembU vOlOd to protect owls and 



fish-hawks, 



The attempt 10 open the month of July for woodcock 

 shooting failed. Mr. Roosevelt contended thai no true 

 sportsman would take pleasure to shooting half-grown 

 woodcock in mid -uinmer. 



The bill was ordered to il lliiid reading. 



SUMMER SHOOTING. 



"And tcj smr.te iheni hi;, and ihicli wirh agreatrSlttUghtOr.'' 

 EdUw F'iK.-tt utii/ S/n.nn: 



Hi ••• ■>•"■< it a law passed, or in aclivc force. Uai: ,1 ,i\- 

 for rc])enl comes from some . j 1 1 . t : . 1 . and it is as true of the 

 game laws asoi any other code. There are instances Where 

 this is proven necessary, and il seems to be the case with 

 that which legalized summer shooting. 



For one 1 cannot understand how any humane sportsman 

 can advocate or practice the destruction of game in mid- 

 Minimcr. A shooter of this sort ab\av, calls lo mind the 

 raid of 8nmson on the Philistines, and although be may 

 make no "great slaughter." he is ... butcher in will if not in 

 deed. 



The killing of game (even In a sportsman-like Way) out of 

 season is sheer butchery. "Tis a cruelty to animals, in thai 

 ii Interferes with the breeding and the 1 earing of the young- 

 'tis a thoroughly selfish and ignoble pleasure or pursuit, iu 

 thai it diminishes the chance of a legitimate spprtsman to 

 .secure bis quota of game in the ••open'' season, and 'tis lastly 

 a violation of a wise and iust enactment of the "power's 

 that he." 



Xow. tflG making Of laws to protect game is, first, in (lie 



Interest of the natural procreation .and sustentation of the 

 game Itself, and, second, for the benefit of sportsmen who 

 have respect for "the limes and the seasons." 



Should summer shooting he made legal (which God forbid 

 il ever be), what a death-dealing gauntlet would bird and 

 beast have 10 run! Not only those who appreciate and 

 enjoy the use of a gun would be "to the fore" (some Of this 

 Class, il aii\ rale), bin the vast army of Codeines whose 

 rank and lile go forlh into tin- sweet conn! ry. side when Ihe 

 reign of the star girius approaches. To be sure, these 

 shooters might nol make a ••great slaughter," nor h.av, 

 plethoric bags to bear to quarters, but the peace of ihe game 

 would be gone, and the peace and quiet also of wood and 

 field. Game has been treated like the Philistines Were in 

 far loo many ways and places, ami the time has fully come 

 when oTery sportsman 3hould protest againsl its "slaughter," 

 and rise, nuust to ]«■■ ted both game and himself. 



And lo ihe m:ikiug Of laws— of Wise and just ones— let 



the enforcement of the name be supplemented, I- ii not 

 comrai.v to law lhal the sale Of venison is now made! Itis 

 killed, ii is ihippcd. it is sold! These three asserlions are 

 short, but they are suggestive and cannot be denied. Who 

 tsatfault? Each answers "who?" but, like many other-, 

 ii does not prove satisfactory 



Where, when .and what to shool aieUie three W's lhal arc 

 most significant to legislative bodied and to protective 



We cannol change-, without dire result, Ihe laws ol 

 nature, and the safes! guide for lawmakers to follow is 

 ihescsanic laws, especially as regards the protection and 

 preservation of game. Given reasonably wise Jaws and a 

 proper enlightenment of the people as to their need and 

 worth together with an impartial execution of them, anil 

 the whole body of nonorable.and intelligent sportsmen will 

 be satisfied. These laws u ill do! include summer shooling. 

 however' For the sake of humane principles do 1,1 uaglve 

 fur, tin and feather time to be born .and to be hatched; time 

 to be nourished and reared and in proper estate, both for 

 field purposes; and, moreover, let.iis all bu thankful, "in 

 season and out. of season," for the pleasures and privileges 

 of moor and mere, of rod and of gun. (). W. R. 



Editor Fbrest and, Stream 



In your issue of March 8 I understand you 10 open tin- 



columns of ihe FOBESI and SteEAM for a free dis( iis.-i f 



"Clericus's" chums for summer shooting. 1 (here fore dike 

 the liberty of giving my ideas of it. 



The shooting of game birds, ewcpl for the purposes of 

 game, is a wanion aci of murder, Therefore to shool a 

 game bird when it is not tit for game is murder. Now, is a 

 woodcock fit for eating in July or August? 1 say no, and 

 my reasons are that the young birds in Julyaretioi fullv 

 grown, have no fat about them, and are weak, immature 

 things, while the old birds, having just raised their youug, 

 an; poor and scrawny — precisely i" the condition of a inn 

 which has jusl hatched her chickens, .and which no one 



would ihink of eating Sow then can it be that a wood- 

 cock in the same condition can be good lo eat? \m\ as 

 woodcock raise biit two or three young, one is just as liable 

 to shoot an old as young bird, neither of which is fit 10 eat. 



In August the birds, both old and young, mould are 

 Weak, feeble. -ick and feverish, from which thev do not 

 recover and become f.u and toothsome at the earliest till late 

 in September. "No one will attempt to claim that .a domes- 

 tic fowl is lit. to eal when moulting. How, then, can a 

 woodcock be? 1 say it cannot, according to mv taste. 

 Green quills and feathers no doubl help lo thicken broth and 

 give- it ii rich dark color, and '•Clcricus' may consider them 

 ;i most savory addition, but 1 do not. 



"Cleric'is" seems to think lhal the poor farmers arc re- 

 ceiving too much consideration, etc. The fact is. the 

 farmers own ihe land, they own il for their own profit, for 

 the purpose of cultivation and grazing, and nol simply to 

 raise birds E r "Clericus ' to shook And ihey know il ; thoj 

 know thai every time be comes on their laud without leave 

 he is a trespasser, and they know from experience thi 

 trouble and loss ii is t,, hive pot-hunters, as most of the 

 summer shooters are. tramping over their fields, sending 

 their dogs through their cultivated and growing crops", 

 kicking rails oil' their fi necs. leaving bars clown and gates 

 open — for the pot-hunter acts on ihe theory "dial farmers 

 have no rights which he is in liie leas! di gr.ee bound lo re- 

 spect." What is il lo tin poi-hnnlei if the farmer's cows 

 follow him into ihe corn or potatoes? What can a he if an 

 acre of corn is ruined? Nothing, Neither does h< care 

 iiow many pellc-is Of shot the farmer fiuds in the side of a 

 choice cow simply because She was in range when le- 

 w-aided to pull the trigger. Bui the fnrmerdoi s, and no 

 ran blarne him when, as it frequently happens, that, ihedtiui 



