FOREST AND STREAM. 



as much by a knowledge of the map beneath as the mariner does by the 

 little one he carries. When lost, they fly in circles, gradualy enlarging, un- 

 til they recognize some old outline with which they had previouslly been 

 familiarized. Their only guide being intelligence and an unswerving love 

 of home (or what the phrenologists term Locality.' 1 '' 



V Our fishermen at Fulton market frequently receive fish 

 which they are unacquainted with. Such specimens, if of 

 small size, generally are classed by them under the compre- 

 hensive title of offal. Three peculiar specimens were pre- 

 sented to our notice lately, and were on exhibition at a 

 noted restaurant in New York. 



The first was a thin, flat sea-fish, about six and a quarter 

 inches long by five inches breadth, and less than one inch 

 in thickness. It is rather a rare species in these waters, and 

 perhaps a dozen are caught during the year. It is of the 

 Scamhridoe family, genus Vomer, and this individual rejoices 

 in the name of the Vomer Brovnm, and may be considered 

 as a poor relation of the mackeral tribe. The fish is remark- 

 able for its bizarre and lustrous tints, and is not uncommon 

 on our coast. A native of the tropical seas, its geographi- 

 cal range is so great as almost entitle it to be considered a 

 cosmopolitan. It is found on the Atlantic and Pacific 

 coasts. New York is probably its northern limit, and it is 

 occasionally caught during the months of July and August. 

 Sometimes it has been found a foot in length. It feeds on 

 sea-weed, from whence the peculiarity of its form. (See 

 DeKay, pi- 25, fig. 78.) J. Carson Brevoort, Esq., in his 

 contributions to Ichthyology, gives a full description of the 

 Selen-e Argenta, another variety of this same family. 



The second specimen was described quite accurately as 

 " having a belly like a frog, with spikes on his back and belly, 

 a corrugated concern, and fixed in his shell, and swimming- 

 like a jack in a box." This fish proved to be one of the As- 

 tracionidae family, genus Laetophrys, and was the dromedary 

 trunk fish, Lactoplirys Camdinus. It has been occasionally 

 taken on the shores of Long Island, but is rarely found 

 further north. Some of the same family are known in the 

 West Indies as the Trunk fish. 



The third specimen bears a strong resemblance to the 

 weakfish. Prof. Agassiz's assistant designates it as the sil- 

 ver corvina (corwia arggrolanea) of De Kay, or silvery perch 

 {bodianus argyroleuces) of Mitchell. It is a native, of the Ca- 

 ribbean Sea, and extends its northern range to the coast of 

 New York. In Curvier's natural history of fishes it is called 

 /.c eorb olam d. argent. 



. 4 _ 



A letter from Turkistau to the Berlin Geographical Society 

 describes a species of grouse upon the arid steppes which is 

 a great adept in the art of flying. Many a time it must have 

 miles and miles to travel before it can 'expect to find a spilt 

 drop of water at the well-side. When in the air its move- 

 ments are so quick and alert as frequently to baffle all the 

 fierceness and strategy of the hawk. The only other ani- 

 mals living in that dreary waste are eagles, hawks, falcons 

 and turtles. The birds prey voraciously upon the reptile, 

 yet are unable sensibly to diminish its numbers. 

 *- — - 



The editor of the Macon (Georgia,) Telegraph tries to make 

 folks believe that toads eat buckshot, He says, with un- 

 changing countenance : "The writer has seen one seize and 

 swallow buckshot after buckshot as it was rolled towards 

 it, until weighed down with the load it bore, further motion 

 became impossible." 



4. 



FORESTS— THEIR CULTIVATION. 



♦ 



THE Country Gentleman says : Thousands of persons 

 have more land then they care to cultivate to ordinary 

 crops, and some of it often which is not good for such 

 crops, but would do well for timber. Then why not do some- 

 thing for posterity — and perhaps for themselves, too, by 

 planting it to forest trees ? It is easy now to do this ; the 

 information gained and imparted by such men as Andrew S. 

 Fuller, Arthur Bryant, Sr., and others, has made forest 

 planting comparatively an easy matter. Many farmers say 

 they are working merely for their children ; they desire to 

 leave the latter something in the shape of property which 

 will be good for a start. In such a case, why not plant a 

 forest ? By a judicious selection of varieties and careful 

 culture through the balance of a farmer's life of about mid- 

 dle age, a forest may be established which will be worth 

 many thousands of dollars, twenty, thirty, or forty years 

 hence. There is, too, in planting a forest, this marked ad- 

 vantage over a natural forest— you can select the best varie- 

 ties, such as are reasonably certain to be always in demand. 

 You can choose maples, tulips, pines, the hemlock, black 

 walnuts, hickory, the ash, chestuut, locust, &c, Ac, sep- 

 arately or together, the matter to be determined largely by 

 the character of the soil. How to start in such an enter- 

 prise can easily be learned from the authors mentioned 

 above, and from other sources, and a little attempt at tree- 

 growing from seed or seedlings on a small scale, in advance 

 of starting plantations by the acre, would result in an 

 amount of practical experience which would be of great 

 benefit. Cultivation of artificial forests would not be nec- 

 essary more than a few years, as the shading of the earth 

 by the trees would soon keep down the growth of weeds 

 and grass, while the leaves would constitute a mulch, as in 

 natural forests. The growing scarcity of timber for the 

 thousand purposes to which it is applied, with little prob- 

 abilty of any substitute for it which can serious! esson the 

 demand, renders it well nigh certain that forests >i nted now 

 and well started, will be a rich legacy to future g nerations, 

 and in many cases even to the planters themselves. 

 . <*-»+» 



Attempts to keep mackerel in aquariums, seem to have 

 been so far unsuccessful. The fish are so impatient of confine- 

 ment, that they dash against the glass or rock work, and 

 speedily kill themselves. 



♦ 



The lake Como affords but poor fishing. The chub is 

 occasionally caught there. The presence of trout is quite 

 possible, though none have been caught for the last two 

 or three years. 



♦— — 



In Japan there ie a journal devoted exclusively to rabbit 

 oulture. 



mmt 



RITE about dogs, their instinct, their peculiarities, 

 their thousand lovable traits ? Why, there is 

 not more than one man in a thousand who can do it. It is 

 a gift, a peculiar one, and is as rare a talent as to write 

 children's stories. There are but few who are so gifted. 

 The power of making a dog analysis of character we are 

 not all blessed with. It is only but yesterday that we com- 

 menced to study their expressions, with Darwin as our 

 teacher. If dog literature proper, and most charming read- 

 ing it is, has a particular country where it flourishes, and 

 therefore must be appreciated, that country is Scotland 

 All good dogs and good dog stories come from there. How 

 pleasant are the stories of Sir Walter Scott and his dogs, and 

 of the Ettrick Shepherd. Nowhere can be found subjects 

 so genial, or more close to our sjmipathies, than the stories 

 of our dogs. In a late number of Chamber's Journal there 

 is an article simply entitled " About Dogs," which is so 

 charming in style that we only regret that want of space 

 prevents our taking it bodily into bur columns. Let the ex- 

 tract, however given, suffice; though treating principally of 

 the "Collie," still the intelligent sportsman can make his 

 own deductions, for the same underlying traits of character 

 are found in all breeds of dogs. We quote : 



' ' Without training, a pointer would point at- any kind of 

 vermin as readily as at the game of which the sportsman is 

 in quest, but a well trained pointer will make no such mistake. 

 Without training he would only stand pointing for a few 

 seconds, and then run in upon the game, and put it up ; but 

 a well trained pointer waits till he receives the word of com- 

 mand, when his master has come near enough to use his 

 gun. It may be in part through instinct that a shepherd's 

 dog performs many of the important services which he 

 renders to his master in the driving and tending of sheep; 

 but it cannot be altogether through instinct, for the best 

 shepherd's dogs are always those who have been carefully 

 trained. Even that which the shepherd's dog does without 

 training, and which seems natural to him from his puppy- 

 hood, is probably very much ascribed to what is called 

 hereditary instinct, the training of many successive gener- 

 ations. But all cannot be ascribed to instinct, Avhether na- 

 tural to the race, or acquired and become hereditary. How 

 can any one think so, who lias observed a shepherd's dog at 

 his work, and marked his prompt obedience to the command 

 of his master; how readily he understands each word or 

 sign, and at once hastens to do what he is bidden? Perhaps 

 to bring in a number of sheep from a distance, which he 

 accomplishes Yovy quickly, and yet without hurrying them 

 too much, for he is very careful not to do them any harm, 

 and his barking, although sharp, is not angry, nor do the 

 sheep seem to think so, or to be in the least degree alarmed, 

 for they also have profited by experience, and they know 

 him and Ins ways. Let the object of the shepherd be to get 

 sheep through a gate ; the dog evidently perceives it at once 

 and knows what to do, to bark behind the sheep, to run 

 before them and bark, to drive them to the gate, and pre- 

 vent their passing it. More remarkable still, and decidedly 

 an evidence of the possession of reason, is the fact that a 

 good shepherd's dog will assist a sheep to rise when it has 

 fallen, rolled over on its back, and cannot get up again, 

 because, in consequence of its thick fleece, it cannot get a 

 foot on the ground. This often happens, especially on hill 

 pastures, in the latter part of spring and beginning of sum- 

 mer, before the sheep-shearing time, and the shepherd must 

 visit his flock several times a day, lest the sheep that have 

 rolled over on their back should die. But his dog saves him 

 much walking and fatigue, scouring over the hill for him, 

 and as soon as he finds a sheep on its back, proceeding to 

 turn it over with his muzzle, till he gets its feet to the 

 ground, so that it is able to rise. 



No wonder that the sheep-dog is a favorite of his master, 

 and is treated as a kind of humble friend. He is not turned 

 into a kennel nor into an outhouse when he comes home 

 from his work; his place is at the fireside, where he often 

 wags his tail and puts on a very intelligent look, as if he 

 understood some part of the conversation that takes place. 

 Certainly " Collie" knows well enough when he is spoken 

 of, and dogs of some other kinds evidently do so too. They 

 know when they are alluded to in terms of praise, and when 

 with blame; in the former case, giving unmistakable sings 

 of delight; and in the latter, hanging their heads and look- 

 ing ashamed. Sir Walter Scott mentions this concerning a 

 favorite dog that he had, a, noble hound, of a very different 

 race from the shepherd's dog. But it is very observable in the 

 shepherd's dog. The shepherd's dog, or at all events, the 

 collie of the south of Scotland, which I take to be the most re- 

 fined and cultivated breed of shepherd's dog, shews himself 

 very sensible of the affront, and vexed by it. He has a 

 ready appetite for oat-cakes; oatmeal in one form or other, 

 but mostly in that of porridge, being a chief part of his 

 fqpd, as it is of his master's; he will at any time gladly re- 

 ceive a little bit of oat-cake, ; but let any one hold out to 

 him a very large piece, and he evidently thinks it a cruel 

 jest, feels himself insulted, turns away his head, and will not 

 look at the cake, much less accept it, We know of no other 

 kind of dog that so generally shows his fastidiousness. We 

 have tried tin 1 experiment with collies, and always with one 

 result; they would have nothing to do with a very large 

 piece of bread. We have tried it also with other dogs of 

 various kinds, but almost -always with the opposite result. 

 No piece that was offered seemed too large for any one that 

 we ever tried — Newfoundland, pointer, terrier—except in 

 one case, that of a Sky% terrier, which turned away, as if 

 aware of being mocked, if a whole side of bread was held 

 out to it, and woidd not approach the sugar-bowl even if it 

 was set on the floor, although very fond of sugar, and ready 

 to beg long for a little bit of it. 



It is worthy to be observed concerning the shepherd's dog, 

 that no severity is ever used in his training. The shepherd 

 has no dog-whip. A single punishment, such as a game- 

 keeper often finds or thinks it necessary to inflict on a 

 pointer, would spoil a collie altogether, and make him 

 worthless for life. 'He Avould not resent it by turning 

 savagely on his master, but lie would at once become broken- 

 spirited and inert. Words of commendation or of censure 

 are all that he needs, all that suit his nature. The same 

 thing may be observed in animals of some other kinds — as 

 in the elephant and the finest breeds of horses. The fine 

 feelings of the Scottish shepherd's dog, and his capabil- 

 ity of having' his feelings deeply wounded, are sometimes 



very strikingly illustrated. The grandfather of the area™ 

 writer had an excellent collie, by name Wat tie, which w' 



a great favorite, and greatly attached to him and aU-Tl? 

 family. When the dog grew old and feeble it was thouSt 

 necessary to get another one; but on the new do ' 

 poor old Wattie left his place at the fireside and 

 to a green bank beside a pond, where he lay down anrl' 

 persuasion could induce him to return to the house 

 wagged his tail a little when kindly spoken to, but he con 



poor old Wattie left his place at the fireside and" went r 

 to a green bank beside a pond, where he lay down and r?' 

 persuasion could induce him to return to the house w° 

 wagged his tail a little when kindly spoken to, but he con 

 tinued to lie in the same spot and would not rise H 

 refused food, and in two days was dead. He seems to hav 

 felt that his day was over, that his services were no lono-ev 

 valued, and his old place no longer his, and took it all to to 

 signify that his time was come to die. His death, however 

 seems not to have been the result of mere old age but u 

 have been hastened by his wounded feelings." .' 



The following dog story of an ugly retriever is worth pre- 

 serving: 



" I had been shooting at Marshfield, and had taken 

 the dog with me, and having some time to wait at 

 Blankborough Station for the train, I thought I would have 

 a glass of sherry, so I went into the refreshment-room and 

 the dog followed me. Standing at the bar were two men 

 one of whom was discussing cold chicken. Haven taken a 

 mouthful or two from a leg which he held in his fragerg 

 once or twice he stupidly held it down almost close to the 

 dog's nose, evidently on purpose to tantalize him. The 

 animal, of course, thought the bone was meant for him; and 

 at last, when the man's attention was for a moment attracted 

 by something else, he snapped it out of his hand without 

 more ado. The fellow instantly turned round, and kicked 

 at the dog savagely. The consequence was the animal 

 sprang upon him, and before I could interfere had him 

 down, and had fastened his teeth within a couple of inches 

 of his throat. Of course I pulled him off as quickly as pos- 

 sible, when no sooner had the man got on his legs than lie 

 began to abuse me in most unparliamentary language for 

 keeping such an animal. I stood this for some time, hut at 

 last it became too strong, so I said to him: ' If you take 

 my advice, sir, when you are again picking a bone of chicken 

 between your finger and thumb you will do well not to tan- 

 talize a hungry dog by holding it close to his nose. And I 

 have only further to remark that this quarrel is not mine, 

 but simply rests between you and the dog, so that unless you 

 keep a civil tongue in your head I Shall let him loose, and 

 you may settle it between you.' I need hardly say the dis- 

 cussion was dropped, and a few mutterings in a scarcely 

 audible tone of voice being the only reply I received." 



GREAT CHANGES IN CLIMATE. 



THERE can be no doubt that the climate of this Northern 

 hemisphere has changed enormously more than once. 

 There can be no doubt that the distribution of land and 

 water, the shape and size of its continents and seas, have 

 changed again and again. There can be no doubt that, for 

 instance, long before the age of ice, -the whole North of 

 Europe was much warmer than it is now. Take Greenland, 

 for instance. Disco Island lies in Baffin's Bay, off the west 

 coast of Greenland, in latitude 70°, far within the Arctic 

 circle. Now there certain strata of rock older than the ice, 

 have not been destroyed by the grinding of the ice-cap ; 

 and they are full of fossil plants. But of what kind of 

 plants ? Of the same families as now grow in the warmer 

 parts of the United States. Even a tulip-tree has been 

 found among them. Now how is this to be explained 1 

 Either we must say that the climate of Greenland was then 

 so much warmer than now that it had Summers probably 

 as hot as those of New- York ; or we must say that these 

 leaves and stems were floated thither from the United States 

 into Baffin's Bay. The polar current sets out of Baffin's 

 Bay southward, bringing icebergs down, not leaves up, 

 through Davis' Straits. And in any case we must allow 

 that the hills of Disco Island were then the bottom of a sea : 

 or how would the leaves have been deposited in them at all ? 

 So much for the change of climate and land which can be 

 proved to have gone on in Greenland. It has become colder. 

 Why should it not some day become warmer again ? Now 

 for England. It can be proved, as far as common sense can 

 prove anything, that England was, before the age of ice, ( 

 much warmer than it is now, and grew gradually cooler and 

 cooler, just as, while the age of ice was dying out, it grew 

 warmer again. Now what proof is there of that ? This : 

 Underneath London — as, I dare say, many of you know- 

 there lies four or five hundred feet of clay. But not 

 ice-clay. Anything but that, as you will see. It belongs 

 to a formation late (geologically speaking,) but some- 

 what older than those Disco Island beds. And what sort 

 of fossils do we find in it ? In the first place, the shells, 

 which are abundant, are fropical — Nautilii, Cones, and 

 such like. And more, fruits and seeds are found in it, 

 especially at the Isle of Sheppey. And what are they ? 

 Fruits of Nipa palms, a form only found now at river- 

 mouths in Eastern India and the Indian islands ; Anona 

 seed, Gourd seeds, Acacia fruits, all tropical again, and Pro- 

 taceous plants, too, of an Australian type. Surely your 

 common sense would hint to you that' this London clay 

 must be mud laid down off the mouth of a tropical river. 

 But your common sense would be all but certain of that, 

 when you found, as you would find, the teeth and bones of 

 crocodiles and turtles, who come to land, remember, to lay 

 their eggs ; the bones, too, of large mammals, allied to the 

 tapir of India and South America, and the water-hog of 

 the Cape. If all this does not mean that there was once a 

 tropic climate and a tropic river running into some sea or 

 other where London now stands, I must give up common 

 sense and reason as deceitful and useless faculties, and be- 

 lieve nothing, not even the evidence of my own senses.— 

 From Town Geology, by Rev. Canon Kingsiey. 



The following paragraph does not fall strictly within the 

 line of sport, but we print it. It is the copy of a bill 

 for hanging and boiling a Friar at Canterbury, England, m 

 1539 : 



" Paid for half a ton of timber to make a pair of gallows 

 for to hang Friar Stone, 2s. 6d. ; to a carpenter for making 

 the same gallows, and the dray, Is. 4d. ; to a labourer that 

 digged the holes, 3d. ; other expenses for setting up the 

 same, and carriage of the timber from Stablegate to the 

 Dungeon, Is. ; for a hurdle, 6d. ; for a load of wood ana tor 

 a horse to draw him to the dudgeon 2s. 3d. ; paid to two 

 men that sat at the kettle and parboiled him, Is. ; to three 

 men that carried his quarters to the gates and sat them up. 

 Is.; for halters to hang him, and Sandwich cord, and tor 

 screws, Is. ; for a woman that scowered the kettle, 3s.; to 

 him that did execution, 3s. 8d. ; total, 14s. 8d." 



