Sept. 30, 1883. J 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



148 



tjtL either side. It -was a tedious jobj but when I came out: 



inn, ihe clear bright waters and entire solitude uf Big SfUni 

 Pond. 1 was well rewarded. They have a way on the east 

 ,in side of calling a lake n pond. Big Slim Pond is a boan- 

 tifullake: narrow, lona and lonely. One may herecateh 

 all the trout anj trawonabte sportsman may desire, and oil 

 ai i-ii! i . Oeei may be floated successfully on either 

 Big or Little Slim, Half way down Big Slim there is 8 

 point jutting out on the right, on which there is a pine bark 

 Camp, and just at this point one may catch tine tVOUt at the 

 mouth of the cold spring brook which come-, brattling down 

 by the camp. 1 noted all this for future reference, and Then 

 made mj wa\ hack to Pliny Robins's hotel. 



The next day was fair, and as is my way, I paddled out sit 

 fi A. .U. I take the early day in canoeing when the winds 

 are low. Uaymy course the day before. If a dense fog 

 covers the wafers.' as it often does. I lay the compass on the 

 keelson In fore me, and steer by the points. Men and women 

 have deceived me often, the compass never. And no across 

 little Tupper by Stony Pond, Big Slim, Little Slim. Mud 

 Pond, the three-mile carry, across Clear Pond, the one-mile 

 carry to Long Lake, and three miles up the lake [ came 

 again to Ihe camp of hones! Dave Helms. Rather glad to 

 get i la-re. I may say. 1 had camped over night on Big Slim. 

 and caught— just one trout, lie was fourteen inches long. 

 [ reeled up and quit at once. 1 wanted no more. Was I 

 fishing for creels, counts or hotels'/ Rather not, I should re- 

 mark.' I take what, 1 need, no more: I do noi fish for hotels. 



U was on the l.ith of August that [reached the camp of 

 Dave Helms. The law on hounding deer "runs out" on that 

 day. There is a gentlemen on an island in Raouette Lake— 

 (or was) yclept Mr. Chats. Ihiraut, 

 notoriety. This gentleman has a 

 that looks like a Swiss villa. Havi 

 ing myself unon him, I did not lam 

 off," and took stock of the camp 

 and if, as was said, the camp cos 

 reasonable; and cheap — for the mat 



Now. Mr. Durant had organizer 

 tions, to come off on the lot 

 was going up from Long Lake 



h uf 

 to B 

 ffgestdeei 



tk Railroad 

 Raquelte Lake 

 tse for obtrud- 

 np;uut 1 "laid 

 :1 up the lake: 

 , gns.MIO, 1 think it was 

 who could afford it. 

 a hiint of feudal propor- 

 August. Just the day I 

 (tiette, I had, and have. 



if Adir 

 amp 



1 pass, 



a theory that 1 can gaff the largest, deer in a light canoe, and 

 handle 'him as easily as 1 can a large trout. And so, on the 

 morning of the 16th, with hue and gaff in readiness, T pad- 

 dled slowly up the head of Long Lake listening for hounds, 

 but hearing none. Going up the Haquette River and over the 

 three carries, I rather made time. But once on Forked 

 Lake 1 took it easy and looked for deer. 1 saw several blue 



.lid sp< 



r that 



-we 



nidnight. There had been 



boats along shore with guidi 



out and "cut off'' Ihe hapless 



But 1 saw no deer, though 1 twi 



Resting, laving off. and slow] 



Forked Lake House, I laid up 



down and awaited reports. Tl 



about dark, and continued unti 



thirty-six sportsmen in the hunt, with nineteen guides and 



thirty hounds, more or less. The results were, one tine buck 



.and a small yearling. Eleven guides, who could find no 



room to spread their blankets at Ourant's camp, rowed down 



to the Forked Lake House for quarters, and they rather 



made it lively. And there was high jinks at thelHmvnt 



camp until "the wee short hour ayout the twal." 



Gossip said that: the hunt cost the originator of it $1,000. 

 If so. he probably does not regret it. He might as easily 

 have invested it on a single hand of draw-poker, with not a 

 tithe of the sport. 



Crossing Raouette Lake once more, I found Ed. Bennett's 

 place, "Under the Hemlocks," well stocked with .guides, 

 tourists, sportsmen and summer hoarders, all eager for any 

 little excitement or novelty. Whence it happened. T sup- 

 pose, thai nearly all tin- force turned out to have a look at 

 the little canoe. To lift her and exclaim on her lightness. 

 To ask questions of the rough-looking, little old duffer who 

 had cruised her from side to side of the Wilderness, and 

 pretty well back again by a different route. Ed. Bennett, 

 who weighs 170 pounds, was hound to paddle the Sairy, 

 He took his shoes off to get in. 



"You promised to let me ride in her when you came back," 

 said he. 



•'Not for twice her value. She might collapse like an 

 eggshell. She is within forty-seven miles of the Moose 

 River House. I know the route as well as any guide. If 

 her frail siding should get broken now, I had as lief vou 

 broke my neck." 



And I'ported the double blade, tied in strongly, and took 

 the canoe up to the porch, •'under the hemlocks.'' 



A! the landing I met honest doe Whitney, who was en 

 roateforBlue Mountain Lake. Finding 1 was bound for 

 his camp he put me in care ol Billy Cornell, a young guide 

 who takes charge in his absence, saving. "Take good care 

 of him. ami keep him till 1 get back." And we walked over 

 the point, crossed the beautiful bay, and were once more in 

 the quiet, breezy cainp of .Toe Whitney. 



Now, 1 was very glad of a chance for a visit and a talk 

 with young Cornell. It happr 

 ' July, th 



that you won't find laid down on any map. And I doubt if 

 you can find two ponds in the North Woods where more 

 deer come to feed than riffat there- It is on the ground 

 where my partner and 1 still-llimt in the fall anil early win- 

 ter, led is too far off for floating from this side. We can 

 get good fmating in a quarter of the distance. But, on the 

 other ; ide there U s gang oi Itali i reeds who make it a part 

 of then religion to get in on the ponds on the last day of 

 July, and just go for slaughter. Last year they floated "two 

 nights and dragged off fifteen deer. This year we thought 

 it might be well enough to cut them off. So we packed 

 boat and baskets ten miles through the woods, and spent I 

 three days 'educating' deer. The ponds were swarming 

 with Ihein. and they were tamer than sheep. We would 

 paddle u)i to the deer, and when within 30 or 40 feet cut 

 loose with 4 drains of powder and just a pinch of No. 13 

 shot, to sling him. so he wouldn't forget his lesson, Wc 

 educated over a dozen the first night.' The second night 

 we look the other pond aud gave free lessons to as many 

 more. Not a deer of them will ever stand lor a light again. 

 Of course, the gang will come in aud get a few deer this 

 season, but they wdn'l make slaughter-yards of the ponds as 

 they did last year. 



We saved one little yearling buck. What moral differ- 

 ence was there between killing him on the night of the 28th 

 or the 31st of July? And the'eamps all need venison. We 

 saved every pound of the meat, and it was more than it was 

 worth to pack it out. Yes, the best speckled trout fishing, 

 and the best, floating, is ou ponds, lakes and streams not 

 down on the maps." 



"And there are many of these?" 



"Scores of tnern. Perhaps hundreds. 1 could take you, 

 If you didn't mind some hard travel, to ponds where you 

 could get half a dozen shots in a night, or catch all the trout 

 you cared to pack out: and I don't set up for much of a 

 guide." 



it is true that along the traveled routes and where camps 

 do most abound, deer have become wary and rather scarce, 

 while trout are hard to get. 



But, OH the secluded lakes ami ponds, far in the woods, 

 away- from frequented trails, deer aud trout are most abund- 

 ant. Nessmttk. 



Tub Editor of the Carson City, Nev., Appeal has been 



camping out in the mountains. He say: "A man who has 

 ever slept ou a wood pile knows what a pine bough bed is in 

 advance. You strain your coffee through a gunny sack and 

 with a trackless forest all around, you have to "forage two 

 hours every morning for wood. The only way to get wood 

 is to climb a tree and pick it just as you would apples or 

 pears. The stoves are built: out of rocks and the draught of 

 these stoves is always from back to front. Move a tent 

 nine times an hour and Ihe smoke still tiles from the Are into 

 the front of (he tent. This is what, gives one that fine, rich 

 olive-brown complexion, which in the valley passes for the 

 sun-painted trade mark of perfect health. The Indians come 

 round the camp, beg canned fruit, squat themselves in your 

 tent and otherwise make themselves sociable, under the 

 peculiar hallucination that- they are wanted for curiosities 

 and companions. The kind of a white man they dote on is 

 one who will take lot) pounds of their miscellaneous freight 

 down to Woodford's for nothing and pay two prices for 

 woodchuck skins. Sometimes they sell woodchuck skins 

 for fox skins to the unsuspecting tourist, but to the ripe 

 student of natural history they only succeed iu making wood- 

 chucks pass for beaver. This is as tar as they were able to 

 play us, and then only twice." 



Mxfmpj j§$firrg. 



THE FANGS OF SERPENTS. 



r PHE "very venomous looking snafee'' which "Ouachita,' 



t of M 

 September (5. 

 mtcrodm, of 



Forest and Stream of 

 teeth, was probably a 

 common in the United 

 - 'spreading adders," 



, but are all harmless, 

 so that the old writer. 



the serpent d la (Hi ck 



ake, 



guished b 



'which gi' 



Thus, by 



'''/" '' 



M,i 



prominent and reci 

 them a pug-nosed or 

 s. ffitetodm platyrld 

 •ognized. "Ouachita 

 nake with tour rows of upper t 

 jaw and two rows along the pnlutt 

 Rattlesnakes, and the other most dc 

 have palate teeth, but in the uppe 

 only; and these are elevated or tier 

 owner: that is to say, the very short 

 fixed is mobile and can partially ro 

 the fang lies back against the gum 

 use the fang starts down like si petti 

 cliita" inquires, "Do venomous snal 

 odically?" and he gives a capital descri 

 developed reserve' fangs which he saw 

 whose only means of defense are thei 

 :th these marvellous instruments to 



"the 



li s: 



ale ou the 



sed appear - 



"hog-noseil 



may be sure that 



th, viz., a row in each 



-is perfecllv harmless. 



fly American serpi m,. 



jaws the pair of fangs 



ssed at the will of the 



aw in which Ihe fang is. 



te. so that when at rest 



ind when "erected" for 



il'e half opened. "Oua- 



d their fangs peri- 



on o! the partially 



Venomous snakes, 



Ving*. are supplied 



idimited extent. 



she 



You may find them behind the functional fang iu all stages 

 of development, buried in a soft sheath of the gum; so that. 

 in ease of accident to the one in use, there is always a re- 

 serve fang ready to replace it, and in turn to become iixed to 

 the bone and "in working order," as "Ouachita" graphically 

 expresses it 



Though the fangs are shed regularly aud frequently, we 

 cannot strictly say "periodically." because much depends ou 

 the condition" of the reptile; its functional vigor, which again 

 is dependent on season and climate, these sensitively inllu- 

 eneing all its functions. Catherine C. Hoi-ley. 



Author of "Curiosities and Wonders of Serpent Life." 



camp the hist week 



young man were of 



seemed very anxion 

 them the night of n 



did not come until 

 below the hill 

 and paddle, pretty 

 baskets, one eontai 

 the other holding the 



hen I was at this same 



t Lilly Cornell ami another 



off on a rather peculiar expedition, and Jot 



OUS about their return. He was looking for 



' my arrival. They did not come. They 



il the next evening as the sun was sinkin". 



They came up the bay wearily with oars 



11 fagged out. they had two pack 



ii about twenty pounds of large trout, 



tat of a yearling buck. They had 



SPARE THE SWALLOWS. 





of swallows for 

 ds of these birds 

 The birds that 

 d swallow hole, 

 lan. Spare the 



QPABE these little children of the happy air, 

 The blue-wing'd, sbarp-beak'd. harmless sw 





tllows spare ! 



When the pink petals of the poach unfold, 





When the shy violets blossom in the mold, 





When buttercups display their urns of gold. 





And birds enchant the air with song's of spring, 





And vines in woods their verdant garlands fling- 





Then hearts and homes are throbbing with delight 



toted boat and baskets ten miles through tangled woods 

 where there was no trad, and were too tired lor'iuuch talk. 

 They letl me a couple of large (rout, with some venison, and 

 took the balance to Hathoru's camp, across the bay, It 

 struck me as paying pretty dearly for the whistle, putting r. 

 three days of such work for a small deer and it basket of 

 enii. Hid "I said so. 



• Well," said Joe, "the trout and venison were in order, 

 seeing they were there and might as well lake them iu. 

 "But that' wasn't what they went for. They went over to 

 educate Ihe deer." 



I had a pretty close notion of what he meant, but was not 

 goin.tr to ask questions, lest I give myself away. And, as I 

 left at 5 A. M, the nest morning, while the boys were sleep- 

 ing like the dead, there was no Chance lor explanations. 



But now thai Bill}' Cornell had me in his care to feed, 

 warm and look after; that the out o' door tire was burning 

 brightly; that he had paddled the Sairy about the bav as we'll 

 us I could— his weight is just 1-IUlbs.— I thought if in order 

 to ask, "By the way. how did you make it. educating the 

 deer, and what was the object, anyhowv" Billy adjusted 

 the fire, settled himselt on his block, and thus explained: 

 Vou -ee. there are tWOpOnde ah, nit ten miles from here 



As the spring swallows gather in their flight, 

 Rehearsing I heir sweet carols as they fly : 

 Now sweeping low. anon careering high. 

 Swift as a pointed arrow from the bow. 

 At every rosy dawn, at sunset's glow. 

 Around the old barn gahles, moss'd and gray. 

 They circle swift in wild, ecstatic play : 

 The insect pests that hover in the breeze, 

 Whose larvae taint the grain, the budding trees. 

 These nimble guardians of the air assail. 

 And save the ripening harvests of the vale. 



Where sweeps th' unruffled lake its sheet of blue. 

 The restless swallows llieir forays pursue— 

 They skim its azure plain, they skirt; the pool, 

 They dip the wing, the beak in eddies cool; 

 Nor leavethe keen pursuit of insect prey 

 'Till fades The glimmering twilight of the day. 



Anil where the river-horders, slaut aud steep, 

 O'erhangthe currents flowing dim and deep, 



The blithe bank-swallows Imild their airy home, 



'file crumbling sands their store-house and their dome. 



And herein myriads from each hermit cave 



They dart forth into space, they skim thews,, e. 



Cut when the autumn glory of the woods 



fades iu its pomp thro' all the solitudes. 



Then like a whirling cloud they I ake their High I 



For brighter climes, and vanish from Ihe Sight 



Ah. pity 'tis these plenteous wing'd guests, 



That please our hearts aud rid life of its pests, 



That charm the blithesome air with chirpings sweet. 



And fill with merry sound each calm retreat. 



Sbi mid die that Youth should win another grace 



To nod above the witchery of her face ! 



Ah. she forgets that to enhance her bloom, 



A sweet bird dies to yield its purple plume. 



ISAAC Mcl.Iil.l.AN. 



of the Nuttall Ornithological Club," of 

 , and as my attention has been especially 



icism, hence this response, 

 jeuclature of the catalogue I quite tisree 

 title, "W. B.," that "its general adoptio: 

 •econimonded." The triple quotations, hoi 

 " identification to readers having aci 



can 



f our non 





e. it is 



vmg at a 



glance s 



mie of 



lions and 



confusio 



n with 



ure is no 



w encumbered. 



ess to but 



a single 



stand- 



THE BIRDS OF MAINE. 



r pHE catalogue of Maine birds lately published, with pop- 

 JL ular nctes of the species common to this half of New 

 England, was of a nature that rendered it open to consider- 

 able criticism from an extremely technical point of view, but 

 the author deemed it outside the notice of the. specialists 

 in technical ornithology. The catalogue, however, has 

 ] : . i :-,- received le compliment of a criticism at some length 

 iu the "Bullet! 

 Cambridge. M: 

 called to that c 

 As to the t 

 with tf 

 scareelv 

 afford 



any one of the three standard wo 

 of the present unsettled condition < 

 probably a useful feature"— in sho 

 the incongruities, absurdities, varh 

 which North American nomenclatur 

 To the ordinary reader, having a 



ard hook ou North American birds, of what use would te 

 the quotation of a Latin name genetically and specifically ■ .Af- 

 ferent from thai used for the same bird by the author of t,';e 

 work on which the reader relies? 



If the catalogue had given "No. 2" simply as Wilson's 

 thrush {Tu/fthU wiUoni Aud.), identification would have been 

 sufficient to any one turning to the writings of Audubon 

 for a reference. " But with access to that authority alone, 

 would the reader readily infer that Hylocivhla j wtccitcen* 

 Ridg., if the sole Latin name quoted, signified the' Wilson's 

 thrush of which Audubon wrote'.' 



Passing over that portion of the criticism based upon the 

 assumption that the author of the catalogue is merely an 

 "enthusiastic sportsman." and although through his love for 

 birds "almost an ornithologist," without accurate knowledge 

 of species other than game birds, it may be well to speak in 

 detail of the instances cited that impugn the catalogue as a 

 record of facts. 



The critic was well aware of the fact that no technical 

 descriptions were included in the plan of the catalogue, 

 and that the most general terms were used in the very brief 

 indications of the character of the eggs and places of breed- 

 ing of the various species. In a few instances attention was 

 called to notable variations. 



Of the goldfinch it was written. "Lays five bluish-white 

 eggs, occasionally with brown spots around larger end. "The 

 word occasionally was dropped in the text, but this error 

 was corrected in the summary, although the correction was 

 evidently overlooked by the critic in accusing the author of 

 stating that the goldfinch "habitually lays spotted eggs." 



' 'lead of merely the state- 



ed "breeds usually on 



to Western Maine as the 



he species is common. 



• supplemented by the 



ever seen in Maiiie bv 



. ted on large trees; and 



h above the ground. The 



eh of a large broken h rag- 



pie tree, and fully forty feet 



The Easterx Auchbuy AssoCTatjoh will hold its annual 

 meeting on October 3 and 4, at 10 A. M each day, on the 

 grounds of the Brooklyn Archery Club, Prospect Park. 



catch 



,de 



s phi 



Of the .great crested tl; 

 uicnt that it nests on trees, 

 high trees." aud reference v 

 only portion of the State 

 The brief statement eriticisi 

 note that all the nests of t hi 

 the author of the catalogue 

 nearly all of these lie-:- we: 

 last nest observed was in th 

 iuglimh of a huge swamp 

 above the ground. No doubt ti 

 rude bulky nest in quite a diff. 

 as well as" elsewhere. And 

 writer that this careless builde 

 a fallen treetop, a stump, fenc 

 location for its nest. 



Of the winter wren the gem 

 "its eggs and habits are similar to those of the house wren." 

 Its eggs and habits do more resemble those of the house 

 wren 'than of any other bird in Maine with which a rela- 

 tive comparison can be made. The family characteristics 

 of these two species are similar. The character of food, 

 mode of flight, and times of arrival, are similar. The eggs 

 of the winter wren have reddish spots, not so profusely 

 spotted as those of the house wren, but quite unlike the im- 

 maculate white eggs of the only other species of wren found 

 in Maine, the short-billed mars'h wren. 

 The black-throated blue warbler "breeds usually iu trees" 

 I rather than In bushes, in Maine, although sometimes within 



tl sometimes places its 

 nt son of place in Maine, 

 is very well known to the 

 if nests is often content with 

 corner, or brush heap as a 



'I ic nii.nl was made that 



