FOREST AND STREAM. 



REMINISCENCES OF AN ECCENTRIC 

 SPORTSMAN. 



THE recurrence of another 'Second October' recalls the 

 remote days when the Cesarewitch and Cambridgeshire 

 were unknown names, and when even the Two Thousand 

 and One Thousand Guineas Stakes did not exist. Few will 

 remember that it is little more than a century since the dis- 

 tinctive names of the various Newmarket meetings were 

 invented by the Jockey Club when in its feeble infancy. Stu- 

 dents of Bailey's Racing Register will discover that the First 

 and second Spring, or the First and Second October, were 

 unknown titles to" the sportsmen of the first two Georges, 

 and that 'the Houghton' appears lor the first, time in the 

 calendar of 1777. Unconsciously our modern frequenters 

 of Newmarket are celebrating the memory of a Lord of 

 Houghton who was one of the most eccentric characters 

 that the Heath ever saw. No man, said the Sportsmen's 

 Cabinet, in an article that appeared shortly after his death, 

 ever sacrificed so much time or so much property to prac- 

 tical and speculative sporting as the late Earl of Orford. 

 incessantly engaged in the pursuit of sport, and of new in- 

 ventions, he introduced more whimsicalities, more experi- 

 mental genius and enthusiastic zeal than any man before 

 him, or than any will ever employ again. It is indeed hard 

 to disguise that George, the third Earl of Orford, although 

 grandson to the great. Sir Robert Walpole, was little better 

 than a madman. His chief mania was for greyhounds, of 

 which he had often 100 couples in training, and which he 

 crossed with every variety of dog. But the freak with 

 which his memory was identified long after he had passed 

 away was his habit of driving a four-in-hand team of red 

 deer-stags, which he reduced to such perfect discipline in 

 his own park that he was at last tempted to make an excur- 

 sion with them to Newmarket. The incident that_ befell 

 him is well known to sporting antiquarians, and excited no 

 slight degree of amusement among the then Prince of 

 Wales's set, of which Lord Orford was an habitue. 

 As the 'phaeton, with its strange team, approached New- 

 market, the cry of a pack of stag-hounds was suddenly 

 heard in the rear. The huntsman of the pack had been 

 exercising his hounds in the neighborhood of the heath, 

 and was astonished, on crossing the road, to see his dogs 

 put their noses to the ground and give tongue in full chorus 

 as they set off in pursuit. The scent left by four stags was 

 naturally breast, high: nor was it long before the deep-voiced 

 music of the eager pack smote upon the sensitive ears of 

 Lord Orford's team. Fear prevailed over discipline, and, 

 in spite of all the efforts of the noble charioteer, the stags 

 dashed off at lightning speed, and whirled the light phaeton 

 after them with the celerity of a whirlwind. In vain did 

 the trained grooms on horseback take part in the head-long 

 race. The stags rushed along the main street of the little 

 town, and never stopped until they turned at full speed into 

 the open portals of the Ram Inn. The doors were slammed 

 just in time to exclude the foremost hounds, and this singu- 

 lar circumstance, adds a contemporary writer, although 

 attended with no accident, effectually cured his lordship's 

 passion for deer driving." — London Telegraph. 



A Highland Fox. — A. tremendous traveller, and always 

 in prime wind and condition, with a ravenous appetite 

 that never tails, he will cover almost any distances of a 

 night with that long, easy, slinring canter of his. As you 

 catch a glimpse of him as he goes by in the gloaming you 

 might easily enough mistake him for a wolf. He preys on 

 everything," and delights in variety just as much as you 

 yourself do. He snaps up the little blue leverets while 

 looking out for a more serious feeding on their full grown 

 relatives, scatters death wholesale through a brood of 

 young grouse or ducklings after he has sprung upon the 

 seaingniother and made her ready for plucking. When 

 you have been out for a long day with your gun he will 

 take note of your beat, and then make a cast" round the 

 ground in the evening, picking- up the wounded game that 

 may have escaped your retriever. He thins down the 

 young roe-deer too; and roe are not very plentiful in your 

 birch woods* No wonder the sportsman regards 1dm as 

 his natural enemy; yet the feelings of the sportsman are 

 mild compared to those of the shepherd. For with the ex- 

 ception of the eagle, who will occasionally swoop on the 

 new-dropped lambs, the fox is the only animal that takes 

 serious liberties with the flocks. Everyone's hand is against 

 the fox; but when he is full grown and fairly launched on 

 his career of crime he is as hard to corner as a Greek bri- 

 gand. The best chance is to follow the vixens to their 

 strongholds, where they have their litters of cubs early in 

 the season; and then you often have grand Highland field- 

 days that remind one of the immortal fox-hunt in Guy 

 Mannering. 



A Sporting Echo. — Jean Paul, of the Tribune, is at 

 Cauandaigua Lake, and tells the story of an echo there : 

 "There are famous echoes on the lake. Last evening 

 Thompson piloted us to one ; resting on our oars in mid- 

 channel, he drew his horn from its case and sounded the 

 various bugle calls. No response from the rocks. Another 

 round. The fills were voiceless. Yet again. Not a 

 sound from the shores. ' Surely this is just where the 

 echo should be," remarked Thompson, and he blew a tre- 

 mendous flourish. Never a note came back. " W-h-y 

 d-o-n-t y-o-u a-n-s-w-e-r ?" he shouted, putting his hands 

 to his lips like a speaking trumpet and hailing the banks. 

 '"Cause I'm a laying here for black ducks, and if you 

 don't clear out with that cussed tin horn of yours, I'll slip 

 a pint of shot into you !" was the return off the shore, and 

 the rushes began to move as though a boat w T ere shoving 

 out. We returned to Pine Bank ; but Thompson still in- 

 sists that there's an echo there where he blew, if one can 

 only hit the angles right." 



-%♦•■ 



— How many a boy has burned to shoot a bear! How 

 many boys have, after a proper preparatory course of read- 

 ing, shot'bears in the abstract! How many will envy the 

 great good fortune of young Ole Jacobsen of Pelican 

 Rapids, Minn. This noble youth discovered a larcenous 

 bear in his father's corn and destroyed him by sending a 

 rifle ball into his spinal column. The beast weighed 298 

 pounds, dressed, and by the generosity of this thoughtful 

 child everybody in the neighborhood has had bear's meat 

 for dinner. — Tribune. 



lt\l$tw L §%$timt8. 



j^~ Secretaries of University and College Athletic Clubs will please mail 

 their reports not later than Monday in each week. 



— The Base Ball season has terminated, and the result is 

 the success of the honorable nine of the Boston Club as the 

 champions, the Philadelphia nine being second on the list 

 and the Baltimores third. But for the action of Cummings, 

 the pitcher of the Baltimore nine, in leaving his Club in 

 August, the Baltimores would probably have been near 

 enough to the goal to have from the Bostons a tussle for 

 the lead. At any rate they would have come in second. 

 Our local club, too, but for the lack of earnest efforts to 

 win on. the part of one or two of their nine would have been 

 close to the winning post. Instead, however, they are fifth 

 in the race. The following table shows the number of 

 games actually played, won and lost in the championship 

 arena during; 1873: — 

















a 





F3 



jq 



g 



Name of Club . 



6 



2 



6 

 .2 



o 



a 



■3 



1 



a 



"3 



ft 

 '3 



OS 



2 







1 



> 



2 



en 





<j 



< 



M 



A 



?? 



H 



& 



2 

 3 



6 

 3 



28 



17 



N 



Athletic 



4 



5 



4 



5 

 1 





 



5 



i 



2 



4 



Atlantic 







Baltimore 



3 

 4 

 



8 



i 

 



2 







3 







6 

 6 

 



3 



5 

 



3 

 4 

 



6 

 9 

 G 



33 



43 







3 



Boston 



5 



Maryland 







Mil trial 



1 

 4 



8 



7 



7 



3 



6 



3 



4 





 



4 



4 



4 

 4 



4 

 3 



28 

 36 



1 



Philadelphia 



3 



Resolute 







1 







1 





















2 







Washington 







2 











2 



1 



2 



1 





8 











Games lost 



23 

 1 



37 

 5 



22 



16 



1 



5 

 



24 

 3 



.17 



1 



21 

 



31 

 3 



196 



16 



Best five lost 



16 



The record which wil count in the series of legal games 



won and lost is as follows: — 



Games 

 Clubs. played. 



Boston 54 



Philadelphia 49 



Baltimore 49 



Athletic 49 



Mutual 49 



Atlantic 50 



Washington 36 



Won. 

 39 

 32 

 27 

 26 

 25 

 14 

 5 



168 



Lost. 

 15 

 17 

 22 

 23 

 24 

 86 

 31 



168 



Won by 



forfeit. 

 

 4 

 5 

 5 

 3 

 • 4 

 



25 



Total 



won 



39 



36 



32 



31 



28 



18 



189 



-Riflemen—pickpockets. 



Total 336 



— The last championship game of the season was played 

 on Saturday last, the contestants being the Atlantic and 

 Philadelphia Clubs. The Atlantic won the first game of 

 the series in May last, and the last on this occasion when 

 they defeated the Philadelphias by a score of 12 to 1, the 

 latter barely escaping being " Chicagoed." The Alantics 

 played a fine fielding game, Boyd's play being especially 

 noteworthy. 



— On Thursday next the new game of Base Bad — ten men 

 and ten innings — is to be practically illustrated on the 

 Union Grounds, Brooklyn, in an exhibition game between 

 the Atlantic and Mutual tens. The following is the record 

 of the champion club with opponents during 1873: — 



Boston vs. Washington 141 to 5 



Boston vs. Baltimore 134 to 9? 



Boston vs. Atlantic 121 to 4 



Boston vs. Philadelphia 104 to 9° 



Boston vs. Mutual 94 to 7-< 



Boston vs. Athletic 71 to 65 



Boston vs. Resolute 71 to 21 



Total 726 4^3 



The Bostons defeated the Philadelphias at Boston on 

 October 29th by the appended score: — 



Boston 2 2 5 3 1 2 1—16 



Philadelphia 3 2—5 



On the 30th, at Worcester, the "Reds" again defeated 

 the "Whites," the score being as follows: — 



Boston 3 6 2 1 5—15 



Philadelphia 4 2 1 2—9 



—The officers of H. M. S. Practice Ship "Royal Alfred," 

 now at Halifax, Nova Scotia, have frequent foot ball 

 matches with picked men of the garrison and of the 

 citizens. 



— Maurice Daty plays G-. F. Slosson, at Chicago, on Nov- 

 ember 8th, a match game of French three ball caroms, 600 

 points up, giving his opponent 100 odds. 



—On December 2d Cyrille Dion and Albert Gamier play 

 a match of French caroms at Chicago for the championship 

 of the world. 



Harvard College, Nov. 1st. 

 Editor Forest and Stream : — 



The Base Ball field is still frequented with unflagging- 

 interest, On October 18th the Sophomore nine were beaten 

 by the Freshmen with a score of 16 to 4. This is the sec- 

 ond defeat from the same source and shows a demoraliza- 

 tion of the nine since its victorious contests with Yale last 

 year. 



In looking over the just published records of the Univer- 

 sity nine of last year I find that they were defeated thrice 

 by the Bostons, once by the Princetons and were twice vic- 

 torious over the Yale University. 



The accidents on the ball field have been numerous, and 

 Captain Perry, of '76, is about to leave college in con- 

 sequence of serious injury to his eye, from a swift-flying 

 ball at Springfield. 



Cricket and Foot Ball are popular and supported by or- 

 ganized clubs, but space forbids any further mention of 

 them here. Holden. 



—Wild pigeons have made their appearance in Canada 

 West. A large flock, flying from the eastward, passed over 

 London, within easy gunshot, last week, 



— ♦ 



[We shall endeavor in this department to impart and hope to receive 

 such information as may be of service to amateur and professional sports- 

 men We ivill cheerfully answer all reason able questions that fall within 

 the scope of this paper, designating loccliti.es for good hunting, fish- 

 ing, and trapping, and giving advice and instructions as to outfits, im 

 plemeats, route,?, distances, seasons, expenses, remedies, traits species* 

 governing rules, etc. All branches of the sportsman's craft 'Will receive 

 attention, Anonymous communications not noticed.} 



. ♦ 



X., Fulton, N. Y.—Fur, Fin and Feather, 61 "Warren street, New 

 York. 



E. P., Baltimore.— Much obliged for fish; name undecided; came in 

 good order. Write more fully. 



Dok. Forster., 154 Bolton street, Baltimore.— Communicate with Lor- 

 ing. Brook & Sons, 438 Broadway, New York. 



X. X., Poughkeepsie.— It is cruel, and we have no faith in your prac- 

 tice of plunging birds in cold water in order to tame them. 



N. H., Buffalo.— Some years ago we think we read of a sturgeon caught 

 in the Tees in England nine and a half feet long. 



Dubious, Brooklyn.— 1. Address R, A. Fitzgerald, Esq., Secretary 

 Marylebone Club, London. 2. Would be glad to give it publicity. 3. 

 See the Field of August 10th. 



Ham, Patchogue.— We have heard of brandy used for curing rabbits 

 of the rot. A tablespoonful was a dose. 2. Address American Agri- 

 culturist. 



Dale.— Would not advise your attempting to have your muzzle loader 

 converted to a breech loader; cost you more than it is worth, and possi- 

 bly be, when finished, unserviceable. 



Amstbr O.. Watertown.— We must adhere to our rule. We cannot 

 decide on the quality of your gun. No maker, however, stands higher. 

 We never heard of his having made rifles. 2. It will cost you $125. 



Andrew G., Princeton.— We do not know of any instance of ring 

 doves associating with pigeons. We had a pair; they were quite tame. 

 One day the cage was opened and they flew away, never to return. Do 

 not trust them. 



Miss H.— Your chinchilla suit yon say you are preparing for winter, and 

 want to know where the fur comes from. From an animal, a rodent, a bur- 

 rowing animal, living in South America. It digs subterranean homes and 

 lives on vegetables. 



John Y., Trenton.— Canvas backs are very uncertain. Go down to 

 Havre de Grace, and you can ascertain the best point there more reliably 

 than we could give you. Be careful not to place too much confidence in 

 the market gunners. 



Bobs' Boy. — 1. Boil carefully your little animal, and then get out 

 bones. Do not bleach with chlorate of lime; it eats off the enamel. 

 Have found sulphur fumes better, though bleaching under glass alone is 

 the best plan. 2. Too late in the season. 



K, Brooklyn.— Difficult to reply to in our limited space. On making 

 any hot or cold impression of vegetable or animal substance, covering it 

 all you can to exclude outside spores, animalcuke will be formed in time. 

 Best authorities- -Pouchet, Ebleman, Bennett, Jolly. 



Ford, Norristown. Pa,— These are the principal English gunpowders 

 yon should experiment on: Pigou & Wilks, Charles Lawrence£,<fc Son, 

 John Hall & Son, Curtis & Herrey. Think all of them can be procured 

 here. Inform us about the matter. The idea is quite novel. 



L. H. for Club.— Makes all the difference in the world on gun trial a* 

 to the character of the paper targets to be shot at. Best way would be to 

 send to Mr. W. W. Greener and get the same paper as was used at the 

 English gun trials and keep it as a standard. See last number. 



"Just a Trytno," Brooklyn.— To make arsenical soap take half pound 

 white soap and melt it over a slow tire, having cut in slices; take quarter 

 pound white arsenic and one and a quarter ounces of white chalk in 

 powder. Melt all together. When cool add a little camphor, keep it 

 securely closed, and label POISON. 



Daddy, Brooklyn.— Dr. Boate is the authority for the size of the horns 

 of the ancient Irish Elk. "From the tip of the right horn to the tip of 

 the left, 10 feet 10 inches. From tip to root of horn, 5 feet 2incheB." 

 The head, from such fossil remains as have been found, was not an - 

 larger than that of the present elk. 



Setter and Pointer, Fall Kiver, Mass.— A brace of setters, thor- 

 oughly broken, and about four years old, will cost from $100 up; a 

 pointer dog from $75. We will import them for you at a much less rate 

 from reliable kennels, or put you in the way of securing them here. 



T. S. S., Hartford, Conn.— Certainly not. The only fair way to kill 

 wild geese is over stools and call them; stalk them if you can. Another 

 plan is to send a man out on the lake or bay in a small coffin-shaped boat, 

 the gunwales covered with brush, and so drive them in on the stools, 

 this method requiring great practice and patience. One and a quarter 

 ounce of shot. The charge of powder is right. 



H. M.. Eve. Mail.— While the varieties of game found in Eastern 

 Florida during winter are excessively numerous; the list for spring is 

 very meagre. The season really closes at the end of February. The 

 only game really in season during March and April are several varieties 

 of plover, namely:— Black belly plover, squarfarola helvetica; golden 

 plover, charadrius Virginicus; Wilson plover, JEgialitis Wilsonius; and 

 piping plover, do. melodius. 



G. T. U., Andover.— We copy from Holden's Book on Birds, Reiche & 

 Brothers, which is the best practical authority. "Bird's claws grow very 

 long, and require cutting. This is a particular operation, and care should 

 be taken not to cut up into the blood vessels, which can be easily seen by 

 holding the bird's claws in front of a strong light, and then not cutting 

 within a sixteenth of an inch of the red vein." 



W. L. P., Brooklyn, N. Y.— Four drains and a half of powder, and 

 one ounce and a half of No. 1, or B shot. All kinds of duck and snipe. 

 Take railroad to Tom's River, tken stage. It will cost about $6 a day, 

 including gunner. Latter end of March, according to weather and tem- 

 perature. You can try Bay View House. Good ground. Long Island 

 now. 



M. W. D.--If the water of the Bronx is good trout water, and your 

 land is so situated that you ran tap it, and, after letting it flow through 

 your ponds, turn it back into the river again, then yon have a fine place 

 for trout breeding. As to your other question, "How trout may be 

 raised," that cannot be answered within the limits of a letter. In the 

 course of a week or two we will commence a series of articles on prac- 

 tical trout culture in Forest and Stream. 



S. R. B., Baltimore.— The story of all that remains of the Dodo in the 

 Ashmollan Museum at Oxford, is worth recording. Almost the whole 

 skeleton was there in 1755, but because it was in bad order, it was de- 

 stroyed, all of it except the foot and the skull. The former is 9£ inches 

 long 2, inches across the joint, and 2f- inches at the spread of the toes. The 

 skull is 8} inches long by 4£ inches wide. There is another skull at Co- 

 penhagen . Other remains of the Dodo, though imperfect ones, have 

 been found by Clark at Mauritius. 



Kalbpu, Wsashington.— Certainly the "American brook trout" (salmo 

 fontinalis) have scales, and you can see them without "specs." After a 

 day's fishing, when you have been handling trout, examine your fingers 

 when dry, and before you wash them, and see the minute scales adher- 

 ing to them; look into your basket when dry and observe them there 

 On large specimens they are of considerable size. We have just exam- 

 ined a specimen in the glass case of G. Shepard Page. President of the 

 "American Fish Culturists' Association." It weighed ten and a half 

 pounds when caught. Its scales areas large as those on a black bass 

 We have known persons who would not cook a large trout unless it was 

 scaled . On fmgerlings, when wet, the scales are not perceptible, but they 

 are wiped off with the slime. Scrape a fresh trout with a knife let the 

 slime dry, and then with a microscope see what you will see. 



