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FOREST AND STREAM. 



A WEEKLY JOURNAL, 



Devoted to Field and Aquatic Sports, Practical Natural Histoky, 

 Fish Culture, the Protection op Game, Presrvation op Forests, 

 and the Inculcation in Men and Women op a healthy interest 

 in Our-i dor Kecreation and Study : 



PUBLISHED BY 



4$ortBt mid Streztq jgubBsftmg (^om$m{% t 



103 FULTON STREET, NEW YORK. 



Terms, Five Dollars a Year, Strictly in Advance. 



A discount ( 



__t of twenty per cent, for five copies and upwards. Any person 

 sending us two subscriptions and Ten Dollars will receive a copy of 

 Hallock's "Fishing Tourist," postage free. 



4 



Advertising Kates. 



In regular advertising columns, nonpareil type, 121ines 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 25 per cent, 

 extra. Where advertisements are inserted over 1 month, a discount of 

 10 per cent, will be made; over three months, 20 per cent ; over six 

 months, 30 per cent. 



NEW YORK, THURSDAY, OCT. 2, 1873. 



To Correspondents. 



» 



All communications whatever, whether relating to business or literary 

 correspondence, must be addressed to The Forest and Stream Pub- 

 lishing Company. Personal letters only, to the Manager. 



All communications intended for publication must 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 Names will not be published if 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 return rejected manuscripts. 



Ladies a^e especially invited to use our columns, which will be pre- 

 pared will' areful reference to their perusal and instruction. 



Secretaries of Clubs and Associations are urged to favor us with brief 

 notes 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 one end of the country to the other ; and they will 

 find 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 re- 

 fined intelligence enables them to properly appreciate and enjoy all that 

 is beautiful in Nature. It will pander to no depraved tastes, nor pervert 

 the legitimate sports of land and water to those base uses which always 

 4 end to make them unpopular with the virtuous 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 be read with propriety in the home circle. 



We cannot be responsible for the dereliction of the mail service, if 

 money remitted to us is lost. 



This paper sent gratuitously to all contributors. 



Advertisements should be sent in by Saturday of each week, if possible. 



CHARLES HALLOCR, 



Managing Editor, 



Calendar of Events for the Current Week. 



■ 1 



Friday, October 3.— Single Scull Race, Dendee Lake, Paterson, New 

 Jersey.... Dexter Park Club, Chicago, Illinois.... Deerfoot Park, Park- 

 ville, LSI. New York Yacht Squadron's fall Regatta. . . . Southern Pu- 

 eblo Fair, Colorado. 



Saturday, October 4.— New York Yacht Squadron's races.... Fall 

 games Athletic Club, foot of 130th street, Harlem. . . Boat Clubs, foot of 

 134th street, Harlem. . . .Jerome Park races. 



Monday, October 6.— Missouri Fair, St. Louis, Missouri .... Oregon 

 Fair, Salem. . . . New York Yacht Squadron's match. , 



Tuesday, October 7.— Eastern Duchess Association, Armenia, New 

 York.... Pittsburg Driving Park, Penn....St. Louis Fair Association, 

 Missouri . . . National Amateur Regatta, Philadelphia. . . . Watertown River 

 Association, Watertown, New York.... New York Yacht Squadron's 

 match.... Norr'- Carolina Central Fair, Henderson, N. C... North Caro- 

 lina Western lair, Salisbury, N. C... Eastern Tennessee Fair, Knox- 

 ville, Tenn. . . .Virginia and North Carolina Fair, Norfolk, Va. 



Wednesday, October 8.— Brooklyn Yacht Club regatta. . . .Yates Coun- 

 ty Fair, Dundee Union, N. Y. . . .Eastern Duchess Association, Armenia, 

 N. Y.... Pittsburg Driving Park... Jerome Park races. . ..Watertown 

 River Association. Watertown, N. Y. 



Thursday, October 9.— New York Yacht Squadron's races.... Chilli- 

 cothe Horse Fair, Ohio.... Pittsburg Driving Park, Penn. ...St. Louis 

 State Fair, Missouri. . . .Watertown River Association, Watertown, New 

 York Eastern Duchess Association, Armenia, N. Y. 



ACKNOWLEDGEMENT. 



4 



WE can make no more becoming use of our columns than 

 to express through them our keenest appreciation of 

 the encouragement and assurances of success which we daily 

 receive by "every mail, and especially of the valuable con- 

 tributions that have been furnished for publication by many 

 eminent sportsmen and naturalists, and by other gentlemen 

 r' Hi<rh culture and position, who aver that they have never 

 b b iore written for papers that might be classified with 

 sporting journals. This voluntary and earnest support is 

 the bw' guaranty that the Forest and Stream muH pre- 

 sently attain that high standard of excellence and character 

 which it aspires to, and which the respectability and critical 

 •judgment of the country demand. This paper is not simply 

 an er- -nation from the office at which it is published, but it 

 is in reality a compendium of information and thought 

 contributed by the three score of intelligent writers whose 

 services and sympathy it has already enlisted. There need 

 be no apprehension, therefore, of its ultimate ability to 

 secure recognition among the leading literary journals and 

 a permanent foothold in educated and respectable circles. 



Whether it is to be a pecuniary success, is another and 

 serious question. From the circumstances of the case it 

 must be apparent to all its readers that the class of people 

 among whom it must necessarily circulate is comparatively 



limited. Our mail subscribers, with few exceptions, are 

 m^n of wealth and high social standing. What the charac- 

 ter of its support from the news stands is, can only be in- 

 erred; but we feel that it is not from the masses. 



Now, it v. within the ability of the manager of this paper 

 to " run" il indefinitely as a pastime upon his own private 

 resources; but this is not generally the motive among jour- 

 nalists, and we submit to our numerous friends, that the 

 "laborer is worthy of his hire," and that to depend upon 

 mere approval as a reward of constant and wearing effort is 

 not altogether encouraging. Good words make indifferent 

 butter f -vr parsnips. So those say who ought to know; and 

 while w e are grateful, as we have already said, for words 

 of encouragement, we feel that we are not presumptuous in 

 asking our friends for something more substantial. If each 

 present subscriber will merely jog his neighbor's elbow, 

 our circulation will double in a week ; and if gentlemen 

 who are in the habit of comfortably reading the Club's paper 

 free of expense at their sumptuous dinners at the refectory, 

 will think it worth while to remit the price of a suhscrip 

 tion, we assure them that the bound volume at the end f 

 the year will more than repay the investment as a work of 

 reference. 



We are aware that these remarks involve a tacit admission 

 of weakness; yet this weakness is only relative, for our 

 success thus far exceeds the most sanguine expectations 

 and the ordinary experience of journalists. Our expenses 

 are necessarily large at the outset, and our receipts are na. 

 turally curtailed by the existing monetary troubles. Never, 

 theless, we "mean business," and as an earnest of our 

 intention and effort to make the Forest and Stream 

 worthy of the patronage it seeks, we herewith announce 

 with pleasure that we have this week added Prof. Elliott 

 Coues, M. D. , of the Smithsonian Institute, to our corps of 

 paid associates, with a proprietary interest in the concern, 

 and that the effect of this valuable acquisition will soon be 

 felt; and if we cannot make an acceptable paper with our 

 present force, we will solicit still more distinguished and 

 valuable aid. 



We cannot too strongly express our thanks to the news- 

 paper press throughout the country for their kind and dis- 

 interested notices of this journal, and feel happy to have 

 merited such general and unqualified approval. 



METAPHYSICS OF DEER HUNTING. 



WHEN the financial panic was at its height last week, 

 we visited a wealthy friend whose up-town mansion 

 is palatial, his income from safe and judicious investments 

 always ample and assured, and his bank account invariably 

 showing a balance to his credit of many thousands — a gentle- 

 man who dabbles little in speculative risks; and whom cares 

 of State and fluctuations of the market of late do not perplex ; 

 one of those rare exceptions among men, content with suf- 

 ficient and not ambitious for more. Surely, his was a case 

 not, within the range of human probability, to be affected 

 by any financial crash or monetary crisis. And yet, so in- 

 tricate and searching are the ramifications of disorder in 

 times like these, when even the most provident and conser- 

 tive find themselves suddenly cramped for means, that he 

 was unable to command a dollar from ordinary or extraordi- 

 nary resources. Said he: "I have a balance in bank of 

 $20,000, but all the cash I can raise is a paltry two hundred 

 dollars. It is just enough to take me to the Adirondacks. I am 

 getting my guns and traps together, and to-morrow I start for 

 Paul Smith's, to bury myself in the woods and seek oblivion 

 until the storm is over!" Happy the man who can thus drive 

 dull care away at will, and turn aside the impending wave 

 of trouble ! The bank to which he has confided his trusts 

 may break in his absence and swallow all his surplus; the 

 business, hitherto lucrative, in which he is a silent partner, 

 may suspend and cut off his monthly income; dividend 

 paying stocks may depreciate until they are quoted at half 

 their value; bonds and mortgages may cease to be negoti- 

 ble; still, like the ostrich with his head in the bush he may 

 roam the forest in blissful ignorance of his misfortunes, 

 and follow his quest for game with a blithsome heart and 

 bounding step ! Who would not be an ardent sportsman ? 

 Such a man as this never allows business to interfere with 

 his shooting. We wish the same were true of the herd of 

 speculators who squeeze values, upset the market, and set the 

 mercantile world at their wits end. Would that some good 

 genius would inspire them to goof? for "a day's shoot- 

 ing," and stay— until the panic subsides ! 



Ah ! there is some soothing influence in this going apart 

 to commune with nature in her solitudes, that makes us for- 

 get the struggles of life and our worldly troubles. It ban- 

 ishes all inordinate desires, simplifies our tastes, and makes 

 us contented with mere food, raiment and shelter, which, 

 after all, constitute the sole necessaries of life. This free 

 existence among the woods, with heaven's canopy over us, 

 the crisp and fallen leaves beneath our feet, and the pure 

 untainted air to breathe: it gives us elasticity of step and 

 expands the lungs; it enlarges the generous impulses of 

 man; it dignifies his own self respect; it makes him noble! 

 In this quiet unconcerned existence, he finds himself mov- 

 ing in a new world ;, :>pulous with strange creatures, with 

 whom in time he learns to hold familiar converse. The 

 little denizens of the stumps and hollow logs become accus- 

 tomed to his presence at last. When the first sound of his 

 coming footfall was heard, they all hid away. The first warn- 

 ing twig that snapped admonished them to be wary and 

 lie^perdu. All was silent as the grave, except when a rust- 

 ling leaf dropped down, or a walnut slipped from its opening 

 shell aloft. But presently the head of a little gopher popped 

 from under a dry leaf, then his body crept stealthily out, and 



in a minute with a sharp squeak to show the coast was 

 clear, he rustled away. Then a woodpecker peered cau- 

 tiously from behind the trunk of a tree, and com- 

 menced to hammer, and from a neighboring limb a red 

 squirrel sprung his sharp, shrill rattle. A garter snake 

 glided noiselessly from under a stump and slid into a bog 

 hole, from which an autumn frog already intoned his sol- 

 emn staccato bass. 



As we have said, one learns to comprehend the language 

 of these little creatures, and understanding them thoroughly 

 wonders how any man can be so unkind and thoughtless as 

 to blow out their little lives with powder and shot. Even 

 the deer begin to understand him at last, and if he is harm- 

 less and uses no gun, will repose such confidence in his 

 honor that they will actually bring the rising generation 

 of agile fawns to drink from the very spring that supplies 

 his camp. Then when both have become better acquainted 

 by closer contact, the sportsman will learn to look into 

 their lustrous eyes as lovingly as did Don Juan into Donna 

 Julia's ; and all his conscience will rise up against him in 

 reproof for his cruel slaughter in bygone years. His re- 

 sentment will follow the hunter who dares to lay violent 

 hands upon these innocent creatures whom he has learned 

 to regard as his companions. 



If his larder becomes empty, he will have to select an- 

 other locality where the deer are wild. It is only when 

 the3 r are running, that he can make up his mind to shoot. 

 If bucks and does would only walk gently up to the mag- 

 nanimous hunter when they see him stalking in the dis- 

 tance, they would never get shot. Even the tiger sel- 

 dom springs upon a creature that is not in motion. This 

 is nature. We are a creation of pursuers and pursued, hut 

 not insatiable for that reason, by any means. If one will 

 not run, there can be no pursuit. It is only human beings 

 like the Neros, Herods, and Caligulas that butcher in cold 

 blood. These are the metaphysics of deer hunting. He 

 who has studied the subject thoroughly, will find his 

 thoughts jdelding a responsive assent to their truthfulness. 



Now is the time for enjoying the full fruition of the de- 

 lights which a ramble in the forests affords. Whether it 

 be in the eager pursuit of the chase, or in the simpler study 

 of the gorgeous tints of autumn, in breathing the sharp, in- 

 vigorating frosty air, or in seeking merely a temporary 

 relaxation from business cares, the glorious month of Octo- 

 ber yields an appreciable reward which no other month 

 affords. 



THE PRIZES AT CREEDMOOR. 



* . 



IN examining the very handsome prize list offered hy the 

 National Rifle Association, on the occasion of the com- 

 ing contest in October at Creedmoor, we are pleased to no- 

 tice, in one most important way, quite a divergence from 

 the English precedent. 



In the last number of Forest and Stream we published 

 an account of the various prizes — one hundred and twenty- 

 five in all — of an aggregate value of $8,298. The prizes 

 consist of silver plate, cups, badges, medals of gold and sil- 

 ver and bronze, rifles, a Gatlin gun, life membership, &c, 

 and to these are supplemented three money prizes of $80, 

 of $25, and of $20, making $75 cash in all; an insignifi- 

 cant amount, when compared with the total value of the 

 other prizes. 



It is by exactly reducing the money prizes to a minimum 

 that we think that the Rifle Association have shown their 

 good judgment. It is their particular aim, and one in 

 which the Rifle Association will doubtless be sustained by 

 the American public, to give these : national rifle matches 

 the least possible app arance of a gambling contest. If 

 men are not satisfied with that honorable distinction which 

 a medal confers, and will only exercise their skill when 

 sharpened by the amount of money they can make, then 

 the true character of such contests, the proper rivalry 

 which should exist, will be most materially damaged. The 

 money question once introduced, must inevitably lower it 

 in tone. 



Neither the State, the military organizations, nor the 

 press, which all now unite in welcoming this effort to make 

 rifle shooting a national pastime, would countenance what, 

 if carried to any extreme, w®uld undoubtedly rather give 

 Creedmoor the appearance of a race-course than of a rifle- 

 range. It is most desirable that Creedmoor should never 

 enter into the category of "a sporting place in the worst 

 sense." If at Wimbledon contests have a certain amount 

 of pounds, shillings and pence attached to them, it is no 

 reason why in this country we should blindly follow a bad 

 example. Rut that this is the universal practice in En- 

 gland is by no means the case; witness the Lord Elcho 

 prize, and the cup given this month in Ireland to riflemen. 

 There may be nothing objectionable in the fact of men 

 making a handicap for some trifling sum among themselves. 

 Should it, however, become an established custom for the 

 Rifle Association to offer certain amounts of money, no 

 matter how large or small they may be, as the leading prizes 

 for American rifle shooting, we believe that this money 



taint would materiall}*- injure Creedmoor. 



-+++ , — 



We learn that Dr. Elliott Coues, U. S. A., Naturalist of 

 the Northern Boundary Survey, has been very successful 

 during the summer's operations in the field, having col- 

 lected several thousand specimens, dry and alcoholic, in 

 various departments of natural history. Some of the speci- 

 mens are of great interest, representing rare and little known 

 species, while others, it is believed, will prove entirely new 

 to science. His observations, likewise, appear to have been 

 minute and extended. Dr. Coues is at present at Long 

 Coteau River, just north of the line, 270 miles west of Pem- 

 bina. He will probably return in October. 



