FOREST AND STilEAM. 



355 



WHERE TO HIT A GRIZZLY. 



Editor Fqhest and Stream: — 



Several hunters are annually killed by grizzly bears in 

 the United States. The precise location of the most vulner- 

 able spot of Ursus Horribilis, is therefore a matter of givat 

 importance. The small powder charges used in American 

 sporting rifles render a front shot extremely critical. One 

 of these tough customers has been known to swim half a 

 mile with two bullets in his heart. 



If a side shot can be obtained, most hunters aim at the 

 spinal cord, just behind the ear. 



Mr. J. II. Batty, Taxidermist to the Hayden Exploring 

 Expedition, informs me that the skull of the grizzly, refer- 

 red to in the Forest and Stream of Dec. 11, page 283, 

 was not fractured, but that the first ''cervical vertebra" was 

 .shattered by the first shot. 



Lieutenant Carpenter sends the following interesting ae- 

 C3unt of the affair, showing that even an explosive bullet 

 must, be judiciously placed to be effective: — 



S. H. Mead, Jn. 

 "Washington, Dec. 23, 1873. 



Mr. Me-vd, Bear Sir. — I cheerfully answer the enquir- 

 ies contaiued in your letter of the 22d instant. I claim 

 that I killed the bear with the first shot fired, an explosive 

 one. This shot completely paralyzed the animal, and it 

 was not really necessary to lire another one. I fired four 

 shots, the two first explosive, the two last, solid. The 

 first shot was fired at forty yards, the second shot at eight 

 yards, the third shot at thirty yards, the fourth shot at 

 about fifteen yards. The first shot, explosive, struck the 

 animal behind the ear, badly shattering, but not disconnect- 

 ing the first "cervical vertebra;" at the crack of the ritle, 

 the bear instantly dropped and remained perfectly quiet for 

 two minutes. He then raised himself in a sitting posture, 

 but could not stand up, the blood was streaming down his 

 head and neck, and the ground where he fell Avas covered 

 with it. AVhile in this position I fired the second shot at 

 the head. This shot, explosive, struck the bony arch over 

 the eye and flattened out just under the skin, without doing 

 the slightest damage. It tore the skin and flesh some, and. 

 knocked him clear over, but I regard it as of no effect. (If 

 this had been my first shot, I would have been in a bad fix.) 

 The skull was not penetrated or fractured. The animal 

 was on a very steep mountain side, and when the second 

 shot knocked him down, he rolled over and over for sixty 

 wards, until he brought up against a large log. I then 

 went close to him and saw that he was perfectly helpless, 

 but as he was still breathing, and by no means presented a 

 tame appearance, I finished him with two solid balls in the 

 neck. I think that the resistance offered by two inches of 

 solid bone, backed by about five inches of hard muscle and 

 followed by the skull, which is 21 inches thick on the side, 

 proved too great for the penetrative power of the explosive 

 ballet, and while I regard their effect when fired into the 

 body, shoulder, "vertebrae," and in fact any part of an 

 animal, except its head, as terribly destructive, yet, I beg- 

 to be excused from trying them again on grizzlies, un- 

 less I can get another chance at the neck. * * * * * lam 

 going to try your bullets on deer, elk and antelope. I think 

 the charge of powder for the calibre 50 bullet rather light. 

 Yours truly, 

 Lieutenant W. L. Carpenter, 



U. S. Geological Survey." 



t§Miatml jffngtimts. 



St. George's Cricket Club.— The annual meeting of 

 the St. George's Cricket Club was held on the 5th instant, 

 when the following officers and committee were elected for 

 the enduing season:— President, John G. Dale; Vice Presi- 

 dent, George T. Green; Treasurer, Charles Vinten; Secre- 

 tary, W. R. Bowman. Committee— Messrs. Mostyn, Mum- 

 ford, Talbot, Moeran, and Satterthwaite. Reports from 

 the Secretary and Treasurer were read, showing the club 

 to be in a highly prosperous condition, with a large increase 

 in the number of its members, and a considerable balance 

 in the hands of the Treasurer. 



the rules of cricket. 



No unprejudiced person can read the existing rules gov- 

 erning the game of cricket without being impressed with 

 the fact that they are not only incomplete in not covering 

 all the important points of the game, but also that they are 

 generally so crudely worded as to admit of several interpre- 

 tations; and, moreover, they are not arranged either in 

 proper order or under appropriate heads. In our series cf 

 articles on the rules of the game, while giving explanations 

 of each rule, we shall point out such errors as exist, and 

 give the definition of each rule as it is understood by the 

 Secretary of the Maryleborne Club of London, with whom, 

 while he was in this country, we conversed on the topic of 

 the rules and their authorized interpretation. 

 the ball. 



1. The ball must weigh not less than five ounces and a 

 half, nor more than five ounces and three-quarters. > It 

 must measure not less than nine inches, nor more than nme 

 inches and one-quarter in circumference. At the begin- 

 ning of each innings, either party may call for a new ball. 



It is not customary now to use more than two balls in a 

 match, in fact oue suffices in one-day matches except the 

 ground be wet and the ball becomes soggy. The rule, how- 

 ever, if strictly inforced would require the use of four balls 

 to a full match of four innings. In buying balls for club 

 use it is always the cheapest to get the best, as the low 

 priced balls give way in the seams very quickly. The best 

 balls made are those"' which have their seams sewn with cat- 

 gut. 



TIIE BAT. 



2. The bat must not exceed four inches and one quarter 

 in the widest part; it must not be more than thirty-eight 

 inches in length. 



This rule is too indefinite in its wording to have full 

 effect, inasmuch as it docs not state what the material shall 

 be of which the bat is to be made, and neither does it de- 

 fine the length of the bat itself, but simply states that the 

 bat— including the bat proper as well as the handle— shall 

 not exceed three feet in length. A short man does not re- 

 quire so long a handle to his bat as a tall man, but both re- 

 quire the same amount of width to guard their wickets. 

 The rule, therefore, should designate the exact length of 

 the "pod" or bat proper, leaving the handle to be short or 

 long, but not exceeding a certain length. The rule does 

 not state how thick a bat may be or what limit of weight 

 there should be. All this is left to custom to govern, when 

 the rule should expressly define it. All good bats arc iioav 

 made of straight-grained and well-seasoned willow, with 

 the handles strengthened by strips of cane. Of course it is 

 the umpires' duty to see that the laws governing the 

 materials of the game, such as size and weight of ball, size 

 of bat, length of stumps, &c, are all enforced; but there is 

 nothing in the above rules calculated to have them properly 

 enforced. 



THE STUMPS. 



3. The stumps must be three in number; twenty seven 

 baches out of the ground; the bails eight inches in length; 

 the stumps of equal, and of sufficient thickness to pre" vent 

 the ball from passing through. 



This rule is very badly worded. .What is meant, is, that 

 the stumps shall not exceed 27 inches in height when fixed 

 in the ground, and that the width of the "wicket" — the 

 three stumps and the bails — shall not exceed eight inches 

 in any part of it, while the stumps are to be of such a 

 thickness as not to allow the ball to pass betAveen them 

 without touching the stumps. By the rule, as it now reads, 

 the stumps may be made of iron, and the bails can be 

 eight inches in length, instead of four, as each bail should 

 be. The best material for stumps is hickory, which is 

 tougher than oak or ash. They should also be brass, tipped 

 with iron at their points. The rule ought to state that the 

 stumps shall be of equal thickness and not exceeding an 

 inch or an inch and a half in thickness. 



THE BOWLER'S POSITION. 



4. The bowling crease must be in a line with the stumps; 

 six feet eight inches in length; the stumps in the center; 

 with a return crease at each end towards the bowler at fight 

 angles. 



The term "bowling crease" is very indefinite. The 

 proper way is to word the rule so as to define the bowler's 

 position as being limited by lines of three feet, extending 

 from the outer stump on each side of the wicket. The 

 word "crease" is a technical term and scarcely suited for 

 the phrasing of a law. There should be a three-feet line 

 located where the "return crease" is now laid, and also a 

 limit to the ground the bowler occupies in the preliminary 

 run he makes in delivering the ball. 



THE BATSMAN'S POSITION. 



5. The popping crease must be four feet from the wicket, 

 and parallel to it; unlimited in length, but not shorter than 

 the bowling crease. 



The batsman's position is behind a line unlimited in 

 length, but located four feet distant from the bowler's line 

 or line of the stumps. Both lines require to be plainly 

 marked with chalk or some white substance so as to be seen 

 by the umpires, the line of the batsman's position— called 

 the "popping crease"— not being less than six feet in length. 

 Every cricket club should have a frame made six feet eight 

 inches in length by four feet in width, and by laying this 

 down in front of the wicket with stumps in the center of 

 one side of it, the two lines or creases could be correctly 

 laid down. 



PITCHING THE WICKETS. 



6. The wickets must be pitched opposite to each other by 

 the umpires at the distance of twenty-two yards. 



Lillywhite's Guide for 1873, in its code of rules, has the 

 word "caps" in place of wickets. What the rule means by 

 the words "wickets must be pitched," is that the distance 

 from the centre stump of one wicket to that of the opposite 

 wicket must be exactly 22 yards. The umpires are by the 

 above rule alone empowered to place the stumps in position, 

 oi in other words, "pitch the wickets." 



THE CONDITION OE THE GAME. 



7 It shall not be lawful for either party during a match, 

 without the consent of the other, to alter the ground by 

 rolling watering, covering, mowing, or beating, except at 

 the coalmen cement of each innings, when the ground may 

 be swept and rolled at the request of either party; such re- 

 quest to be made to one of the umpires within one minute 

 after the conclusion of the former innings. This rule is 

 not meant to prevent the striker from beating the ground 

 with his bat near to the spot where he stands during the in- 

 nings nor to prevent the bowler from filling up holes with 

 saw-dust, etc., when the ground is wet. 



In commencing each innings, if the side at the bat desire 

 it the ground between the wickets can be rolled and swept; 

 but the other side can only do so lyitil the batting side ob- 

 ject to it. Of course, by mutual consent, this can be done 

 at any time dining "the game. Before the delivery 

 of the ball the batsmen can step out of their ground 

 for the purpose of beating down any inequalities of 

 the ground with their bats, as also after the ball has been 

 heldby the wicket keeper and thereby rendered temporarily 

 dead, as also, after an over has been called. The rule in 

 this latter respect is, however, too indefinite in its wording 

 for so important a point, 



CHANGING THE WICKETS. 



8. After raiu the wickets may be changed with the con- 

 sent of both parties. 



There is no rule providing that the wickets shall not be 

 changed. The above are the rules referring to the ball, bat, 

 ard the wickets. Next come those governing the delivery 

 of the ball to the bat, to which wc shall refer in full in our 

 next article on the subject. 



America rs. England.— Arrangements have been made 

 by the Boston and Philadelphia Base Ball Clubs to send a 

 joint team to England next August, the same to consist not 

 only of two tens to play base ball together in championship 

 matches in England, but also a tAventA r -two to play at 

 cricket against the strongest professional and amateur 

 Cricket elevens of England. Mr. H. Spalding, of the Boston 

 Club, leaves New York, next Saturday, for England, to 

 make the preliminary arrangements. The American 

 twenty-two will practice cricket together on exhibition 

 games before they leave, playing the St. George Club, in 

 this city, in July. 



University, Ya., Jan. 12, 1874. 

 Editor Forest and Stream: — 



Since my last letter to you, wc have had such bad 

 weather, that we could not play foot ball, and of course 

 did not expect the Englishmen to come here, when the 

 ground was soaked by a week's rain ; they disappointed us, 

 for they came, and although it; was pouring down rain, 

 they insisted on playing, saying they would claim the game 

 if we did not play, as rain never stopped a game in England 

 Each side won a goal, and when time was called we were 

 playing the third game with the ball within a few feet of 

 the Englishmen's goal; it was decided a drawn game. We 

 have, so far, had only one freeze in Virginia this winter; 

 very few persons have filled their ice-houses. 



J. C. McK. 



— Mr. II. W. Collender has published a pamphlet con- 

 taining a full account of the first International Billiard 

 Tournament held at Irving Hall in June last. It is illus- 

 trated with diagrams of the most diffiult shols made by the, 

 celebrities who participated in this great contest, and is a 

 very useful and interesting publication. Sent, postage free 

 on receipt of twenty-five cents. 



^.^ 



Creedmoob,— We regret to state that the last heavy 

 rains have done no small amount of harm to the range at 

 Creedmoor. Five hundred and forty feet nearly of the 

 cmbarkment on the south side, the side fronting the shooter 

 is down, carried away by a regular land slide. The earth 

 was evidently saturated by the rains, and tumbling down 

 has filled up the drain and the road, which had been care- 

 fully laid between the targets and the embankment. The 

 fall of earth has covered the target platform, and the roofs 

 of the butts, and in several places the debris extends past 

 the terrace and into the plain to a distance of sixty feet from 

 the edge of the embankment. The force of the dirt-fall 

 was such as to have moved three of the iron slabs, weighing 

 fully 1,250 pounds and to have torn up the extra heavy 

 weight iron sheeting used to cover the butts. The doors of 

 the butts have been in some cases broken in, but fortunately 

 the butts have held firm. It will cost fully $2,000 to repair 

 damages. We are pleased to state that the Range Com- 

 mittee, Generals Shaler and Woodward and Captain Win- 

 gate, have already made arrangements to repair the damage. 

 The misfortune about the tumbling down of the embank- 

 ment is, that with the open winter, the managers of the N. 

 R, A. were in hopes that rifle practice might have been 

 commenced quite early for 1874; as it is, with the well 

 known energy of the Range Committee, we feel sure the 

 delay in the opening of the range at Creedmoor, should it 

 occur, win be but short. 



The Woods of the Sierra.— No tiling can be more 

 charming than the woods of the Sierra summit iu June, 

 July, and August, especially in the level glades margining 

 the open summit valleys, at an elevation of 0,000 to 7,lM) 

 feet. The pines and firs, prevailing over spruces and 

 cedars, attain a height ranging from 100 to 200 feet, und 

 even more. Their trunks are perfectly straight, limbless 

 for fifty to a hundred feet, painted above the snow-mark 

 with yellow mosses, and ranged in open, park-like groups, 

 affording far vistas. The soil may be thin, but it is soft 

 and springy to the tread, covered with needles of the pine, 

 greened with tender grasses and vines, and thickly sprinkled 

 with blossoms. Huge boulders of granite relieve the ver- 

 nal coloring with their picturesque masses of gray, starred 

 with lichens. These rocks are of ten nearly hid In vines, 

 or in dwarf oaks and manzanitas, which, under the pres- 

 sure of deep snow, assume a vine-like growth, winding all 

 about a boulder with their clinging" and sinuous small 

 branches. Thickets of wild-rose and other flowering 

 shrubs occur at intervals, giving an almost artistic variety 

 to the woodland scene. The crimson snow-plant lifts its 

 slender shaft of curious beauty. Large patches of helian- ' 

 thus, some species with very breoad leaves, spread their 

 sun-flowers to the air. Sparkling springs, fresh from snowy 

 fountains silver-streak these forest meadows, where birds 

 come to bathe and drink, and tracks of the returning deer 

 are printed. Once more the quail is heard piping to its 

 mates, the heavy whirring flight of the grouse startles the 

 meditative rambler, and "the pines give forth again their 

 surf-like roar to the passing breeze, waving L their p'fumed 

 tops in slow and graceful curves across a sky wonderfully 

 clear and blue.— Overland Monthly. 



-*— ^ 



—What seems to be a perfectly authenticated c ue o f 

 horrible death from the bite of a cat, hydrophobia having 

 been developed, has occurred in Brooklyn, L. I. Mr. Jas\ 

 P. Raymond, a young man of twenty-two years of age, was 

 bitten by a cat some six months ago, and expired on the 

 29th of December last, with every symptom of this terrible 

 disease. The testimony of the physicians leaves no doubt as 

 to the origin and character of the fearful maladv. 



