166 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



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THE EIDER DUCK. 



THE reputation of this bird is world-wide. And it is 

 not from any peculiarity that it possesses, but because 

 it ministers (unwillingly, to be sure) to the comfort of man. 

 There are four species of this genus in the United States, 

 but two of which are found upon the Atlantic coast. The 

 king eider is the rarer of the two, and the most northern. 

 Plain eider duck is the one most common, and the one re- 

 ferred to here. We naturally associate them with icebergs 

 and Icelanders, as they form such prominent features in 

 tales of Arctic adventure. 'Tis true vast;' numbers have 

 their summer dwelling-place in the Polar regions, but even 

 those who seek a breeding place in Greenland, Iceland or 

 Labrador, seek a less rigorous climate as winter approaches. 

 The range of the eider duck is from the coast of New Eng- 

 land to the Arctic regions. It is only in winter, however, 

 that we are favored with their presence, and then they keep 

 well aloof from the shore. By the 1st of May they leave 

 us, and- seek a place to make their nest and rear their 

 young along the shores of the Bay of Fundy, Newfound- 

 land, and Labrador, though the first eggs are not laid till 

 the last of that month. It was my good fortune to visit 

 the southermost place of their breeding last summer, in the 

 Bay of Fundy. 



Upon one of the outlying islands of the Grand Manan 

 group, called the "White Horse," from a fancied resem- 

 blance to that beast, I found my first "sea duck's" nest. 

 As my guide and I approached the island we could see the 

 female eiders leave the grassy part of it and fly from the 

 rocks to the malls, collected in a body near. This was in 

 July, too late for eggs, had, the first laying not been robbed. 

 Landing, I ran eagerly forward, hoping to see the treasures 

 I had so long ago read about. 



It required some searching before my friend gave the 

 joyful intelligence that he had found a nest. Before I 

 reached him he had covered it with grass, as when found, 

 and I should have stepped upon it, had he not warned me, 

 so carefully was it hidden. We found half a dozen nests 

 in various parts of the island, all in the tall grass that grew 

 near the rocks. From the rocks many tortuous, narrow 

 paths led to the grassy thickets, and these paths invariably 

 led to a nest, sometimes two, though some had been rob- 

 bed. Upon the ground they place a few pieces of grass 

 stalks, with other fine material, in a slight depression of 

 which the eggs are laid, from three to five, though form- 

 erly, before much hunted, as high as ten. These eggs are 

 about three inches long by two wide, of a beautiful olive 

 green, and very smooth. Sometimes we found these cov- 

 ered with a mat of dry grass, and, in two instances, with 

 the highly prized eider down, so elastic that a whole nest 

 full could be squeezed in the fist and then regain its orig- 

 inal bulk. This down was dark slate in color, having been 

 ' plucked by the female from her breast. The young had 

 not yet made their appearance, but would had the first eggs 

 been allowed to hatch. They are beautiful little creatures, 

 can swim like a fish, and tame easily. My friend said he 

 had caught a whole nest full and sent them to a friend of 

 his in the States. 



Towards the last of this month (October) the eiders begin 

 to appear along the Massachusetts coast, forming in large 

 bodies off the rocky capes. Good sport is had by gunners 

 from Cape Ann in the winter months. A good boat, with 

 a man to sail it, can be hired at Rockport or Gloucester, 

 and if the day is pleasant, with wind to westward, and a 

 a trifle rough, the sportsman may expect shooting, F. B. 



^THE MANATEE AT CENTRAL PARK. 



Editor Forest and Stream : — 



One of the most interesting animals lately received at the 

 Central Park Menagerie, is a Manatee, believed to be the 

 first of the species ever kept for any length of time in cap- 

 tivity. These creatures are now retreating before the tide 

 of population, and as animals generally are valued in pro- 

 portion to their scarcity, a brief description of the manatee 

 may pr@ve interesting to your readers.. There are found 

 but three species, M. laMrostris, inhabiting Florida, the 

 Gulf of Mexico, and the Carribean sea coast; M. austrcdis, 

 from Carribean sea down the coast of Brazil ; and Jf. xene- 

 gtilemk, on the west eoast of Africa. The more northern 

 species, strange to say, is more closely aided to the African 

 species, M. senegalemis, than to its near neighbor, M. mistra. 

 lis. Harlan, in his description of the Florida Manatee, 

 when he wrote in 1825, says, "that they were found in con- 

 siderable numbers, so that an Indian was able to capture 

 ten or twelve with the harpoon in one season." 



The manatee is generally to be found at the mouths of 

 large rivers, such as the Orinoco and the Amazon, and they 

 ascend the South American rivers several hundred miles, 

 and even into the inland fresh water lakes. They are usu. 

 ally seen in small troupes' associating for mutual protec- 

 tion and for defense of their young. When , the cubs are 

 captured the mother becomes careless of her own preserva- 

 tion; and should, the mother be the victim, the young will 

 follow her to the shore. Being found in shallow waters 

 they are easily captured by the natives, who kill them with 

 harpoons, lances and arrows. The manatees grow to the 

 length of ten or twelve feet, and generally inhabit tropical 

 countries, and are represented in the Pacific or Indian 

 oceans by the allied species, the dugong. The manatee 

 »,., t>»«w»w>*n.t.ftri. fi«h-1ike body or the whaled head conical 



without distinct line- of separation from the body. The 

 fleshy nose resembles somewhat that of a cow, semi-circular 

 at its upper part where are the nostrils, which are closed 

 with valves when the animal is under water. The upper 

 lips are full and cleft in the middle. Bows of stiff bristles 

 are placed on each side of the cleft. The lower lip is much 

 shorter than the upper one, but the mouth is not very large. 

 In the young animal there are two sharp incisor teeth in the 

 upper jaw whieh afterwards fall out; canines none; molars 

 thirty two; eyes very small; anterior limbs flattened into 

 fins, upon which are four rudimentary nails; posterior 

 limbs wanting. The limbs are more free in their motions 

 than those of cetaceans, and can be used for dragging the 

 body about in shallow water. Mammae two, situated on 

 the breast. The tail oval about one quarter the length of 

 the body, ending in a horizontal rounded expansion. The 

 skin is a grayish dark olive color, becoming black on dry- 

 ing, and has a few scattered bristles on the back. The skin 

 is in great demand by the natives of South America for 

 making harness, whips and leathern articles for which 

 great strength is required, and is noted for its great dura- 

 bility. The oil which is extracted from the fat is of excel- 

 lent quality. The flesh of this aquatic animal is said to be 

 well flavored, being considered a fish by the Roman Catho- 

 lic chnrch, consequently is eaten on fast days. When 

 properly salted and dried in the sun, the flesh will remain 

 sweet a whole year. Orton in his "Andes and the Ama- 

 zon," says the flesh resembles fresh pork. Capt. Hender- 

 son, in his account of Honduras, speaks thus enthusiasti- 

 cally of the tail as a tit-bit: "The tail, which forms the most 

 valuable part of the manatee, after lying some days in 

 pickle prepared for it, with spices, &c, and eaten cold, is a 

 discovery of which Apicius might have been proud, and 

 which the discriminating palate of Elagabulus would have 

 thought justly entitled to the most distinguished reward." 



The manatee now on exhibition in the Central Park was 

 received from Mr. P. T. Barnum in the latter part of May last. 

 The following are its absolute dimensions: length, 6 feet 

 91; inches; circumference around body, 4 fee* 9 inches; 

 length, of flipper, 1 foot; width of same, 4f inches; width 

 of tail joining body, 1 foot 6f inches; greatest width 

 of tail, 1 foot Si inches; weight, 450 pounds. It has 

 grown two inches since its arrival. After being received it 

 was placed in a tank of fresh water, and remained without 

 tasting food for five days, refusing everything offered to it. 

 A variety of aquatic plants were placed before its mouth, 

 and each in turn rejected. At length some carina, carina irr 

 ilim, was procured, which it devoured greedily, and which 

 it continues to use alternately with sea weed, Fuscus vest- 

 miosis, obtained in the East river. The process of eating 

 takes place under water, which seems strange in view of 

 the fact that it cannot breathe during that time. It mani- 

 fests at times extreme playfulness, and will answer the call 

 of the keeper by a peculiar noise somewhat resembling the 

 squeak of a mouse. Sometime ago the epidermis on the 

 back peeled off in small pieces, leaving a bright new skin 

 similar to that of a snake just after shedding. It was kept 

 out in the open air until the thermometer fell to 53deg., 

 when it was removed to a building. 



It appears to be very sensitive to the cold, curling up its 

 back if the water is in the least chilly. It has been ob- 

 served to remain under water five or six minutes at a time 

 without coming to the surface to breathe. 



W. A. Conklln, 

 Director C. P. Menagerie. 

 -^»*» 



JMORE SNAKES. 



Jacksonville, 111., October 11, 1873. 

 Editor Forest and Stream:— 



I notice in yonr issue of October 2d an article, "Do Snakes Swallow 

 Their Young? 1 ' I answer in the affirmative. While living in Wisconsin 

 some years ago, I saw a common garter snake with a quantity of young 

 ones about 2 or 2$ inches long and about as large as a common ground 

 worm . As soon as the snakes saw me the old one opened its mouth and the 

 young ones ran down its throat. I afterwards killed a large copperhead 

 which looked as though it had just swallowed something. I cut it open 

 and found it was amass ef small snakes. How did they get there, unless 

 the old one swallowed them* 



I have killed snakes with eggs in them, but never found any snakes in 

 the eggs. This was in the township of Yorkville, Kacine county, be- 

 tween the j'ears of 1840 and 1850. Rattle and copperhead snakes were 

 abundant in this township, but I never saw a blow snake until I moved 

 to Eagle township, Waukesha county, about twenty miles distant. Blow 

 snakes were plentiful. It was a common saying in this township that 

 neither rattle nor copperhead snakes had ever been seen in it. Is it com- 

 mon for different species of snakes to inhabit separate districts ? 



Yours truly, George Hayden. 



§ ; mtwl. 



Editor Forest ast> Stream:— 



What becomes of the younsr snakes when swallowed by their parents ? 

 I should like to make inquires of those who have seen the young snakes sro 

 into the mouths of their mothers, as to whether they were ever seen to 

 come out again. Now I do not mean to say that they do not come out 

 the way they went in, but has any one ever seen them do this ? Will 

 those who can give any information on this subject please answer ? 



C. J. Matnard. 



Good Advice to Missionaries. — Mr. Win wood Reade 

 in his African sketch book, gives the following good advice 

 in regard to missions in Africa, recommending in all cases 

 native clergymen. He says:— 



"An ordained negro is a "walking sermon, a theological 

 advertisement. The savages regard an Oxford Master of 

 Arte as a being fearfully and wonderfully "made, belonging 

 to a different species from himself. His argument invaria- 

 bly is, 'white man's God, he good for white man ; black 

 man's God, he good for black man.' But when he be- 

 holds a man as "black as himself with a shiny hat, a white 

 cravat, glossy garments, and shoes a yard long, wearing a 

 gold watch is his fob, blowing his nose in a cloth, and 

 ""making leaves speak:' and when he is informed that these 

 are the results of being baptised, he also aspires to becdme 

 a, white man, and allows himself to be converted." 



Special Retrievers for Duck Shooting.— These dogs 

 — so called on account of their value in recovering or 

 "retrieving" game that has fallen out of the reach of the 

 sportsman, or on which he does not choose to expend the 

 labor of fetching for himself are of various kinds, and in 

 every case are obtained by a crossing of two breeds. There 

 are two principal breeds of retrievers, the one being ob- 

 tained by the mixture of a Newfoundland dog and a setter 

 and the other by a cross between the water spaniel and the 

 terrier. The former of these breeds is the most generallv 

 known, and the characteristics of each are plainly percep- 

 tible in its form. To train a retriever properly is rather a 

 difficult task, requiring great patience and perseverance. 

 It is easy enough to teach a dog to fetch and carry, hut to 

 teach him to retrieve in water is quite a different matter. 

 On land the dog can see the object from some distance, but 

 in the water his nose is so nearly on a level with the object 

 for which he is searching that he can only see a very little 

 distance ahead, and must learn to guide his way by the 

 voice and gesture of the shooter. Another obstacle in the 

 tuition is the natural propensity of the dog to bark when 

 he is excited, and generally tries the teacher's patience be- 

 fore he learns to be silent and not disturb the game even by 

 a low whine. The natural instinct of the dog teaches him 

 to eat the bird or animal which he has found, and in order 

 to keep the dog from closing his teeth too firmly on the 

 bird he should be made to lay it down at the shooter's feet, 

 or to loosen bis hold as soon as the shooter touches the ob- 

 ject which he is carrying. One great point to gain is, to 

 make the dog understand that the birds are killed by the 

 gun and not by himself. Until he fully understands this 

 lesson he is apt to dart off after a bird as soon as he per- 

 ceives it, or perceives its scent, and to chase it until it is 

 out of sight, The smaller retriever is produced by a cross 

 of the terrier and beagle, and in many points is superior to 

 the large retriever. They are very quiet dogs, and when 

 on their quest do not make so much noise as the large re- 

 trievers, so that they are especially useful when the game 

 is wild. Being small dogs, they can be kept in the house, 

 and become very companionable, so that when they go to 

 their regular work they feel more love and respect for their 

 master than would have been the case if they had been kept 

 in a kennel. 



— We gave in the Forest and Stream of October 9th 

 several recipes for destroying parasites and fleas in dogs, 

 among them one known as the "Persian Insect Powder," 

 and now we give the very best method to perform the ope- 

 ration without injury to the animal. Dust the dog well 

 with the substance until every portion of him has received 

 a few particles of the powder, and then put him into a 

 strong canvas bag, in which a small handful has been 

 placed, and shake about well, so as to distribute it equally 

 over the interior of the bag. Leave his head protruding 

 from the bag, and put on his head and neck a, linen cap, 

 in which are holes for his nose and eyes, and let the inte- 

 rior of the cap be well treated with the powder. Lay him 

 on the ground and let him tumble as much as he chooses, 

 the more the better. In an hour or so let him out of the 

 bag, and scrub his coat well the wrong way with a stiff 

 brush. In a week or so this operation should be repeated, 

 in order to destroy the creatures that have been produced 

 from the unhatched eggs that always resist the powers of 

 the destructive powder. 



GREAT FIELD TRIAL OF POINTERS. 



Many of our subscribers are continually writing to us, 

 asking about the management and directions for pointer 

 and setter field trials. We subjoin the following account 

 from Zand and Water of the late field trials at Ipswich, 

 England, which will tend to give our readers an insight as 

 to the marks of accuracy denoted in the different animals: 



1. The Suffolk Stakes, for all aged pointers, limited 

 twenty. Entries, £6 6s. First prize, £70, and a cup valued 

 £10, presented by R. J. L. Price, Esq.; second ditto, £80; 

 third ditto, £15. 



2. The Orwell Park Stakes, for pointer puppies, 

 pupped since 1st January, 1872, limited to ten. Entries, 

 £5 5s. First prize, £30, and a £5 cup, presented by the 

 manager; second ditto, £15. 



3. The East of England Stakes, for all-aged setters, 

 limited to twenty. Entries, £6 6s. First prize^O, and a 

 cup presented by the Kennel Club, value £10; second ditto, 

 £30; third ditto,' £15. 



4. The Ipswich Stakes, for setter puppies, pupped 

 since January 1st, 1772, limited to ten. Entries, £5 os. 

 First prize, £30, and a cup value £5, presented by the man- 

 ager; second ditto, £15. 



5. The Trimley Stakes, for retrievers, limited to twelve. 

 Entries, £5 5s. First prize, £80, and a cup valued £10, pre- 

 sented by the Kennel Club; second ditto, £20; third ditto, 

 £5. 



6. The Consolation Stakes, for beaten pointers or 

 setters. Entries, £2 2s. Two thirds of the entrance money 

 given as first prize, and one third as second prize. The 

 Judges to fix the time Of trials in this class. 



On Wednesday, about nine a. in., a start was made for 

 Trimley Hall, a farm belonging to Col. Tomline, which 

 was the first day's rendezvous, a dusty drive of some eight 

 miles having been accomplished, operations conmieneed 

 about ten o'clock. Mr. Salter's elegant lemon-and-wlnte 

 pointer-bitch Venus, second at the late Crystal Palace Show, 

 attracting during the brief interval of Availing at the farm, 

 considerable attention. 



A fair number of spectators were present on the ground, 

 including Col. Tomline, M. P., Lord Cork, the Master ol 

 the Buckhounds, the Duke of Sutherland, and LordDwydr. 

 The commencement of the Orwell Park Stakes took plaee 

 in a 2,-ood sized turnip field. Mr. . Pri ee's Grecian Bend, and 

 Mr. ^airhead's Belie., being the first brace put down, botft 



