Orr 11. 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



205 



that there would lie fresh meat in our camp that night, and 

 In mi Such tt Uuck as a man only chances to get a shot a( in 



,Mir ["pnn examination when? he fell, and Caking the 



trail whirl. „.-:,- pi..,],. Ml,. <■ seen twenty yards ahead, I fol- 

 !,,,,! -i pi lly :.- ;|i.Miaiure of the ground would admit, 

 foi after leaving the slough the cane mid greenbriers were 

 mntted together, so thai il was with the ntmost difficulty that 

 I forced my way; but. I did not have far to so before J came 

 on to him in a little opening. He staggered to bit feet when 

 be saw me, blood came from Ilia throat in a purple stream, 

 hiseyes w civ green and glassy. My ardor was dampened by 

 a feeding of regret that f had slain such a magnificent crea- 

 ture. But the hunter in me soon overmastered (bat feeling, 

 and I quickly and mercifully put him out of his misery. At 

 the report of ray gun I beard the doe bound away; she had 

 been standing 110$ more than sixty yards from me, awaiting 

 and perhaps wondering why her lord did not follow her. 



The next thing to be done was to bang the game out of 

 reach o£ wild bogs and varmints, Then when I came to 

 drag him to the open ground of the .slough I realized what a 

 .1. i r he was. Tl was wdth difficulty that I could drag hi in 

 bv resting every few -yards. Reaching a. large log with an 

 immense clay root, I 'worked fen- some time before 1 got him 

 placed on the roots out of reach of hogs. [ will not tell you 

 now how I went to camp for help, carrying the heart and 

 liver; nor how two of us did not hang him until we bad cut 

 him up: nor how around a rousing camp-fire of hickory logs 

 that niglU there was spun many a yarn of big deer. They 

 all acknowledged that my buck was as large as they had 



TO seen, though old B. insisted that be bad once killed a 

 deer in Illinois that was as large. My buck had shed his 

 antlers, SO the only means we had of 'judging of his age was 

 his teeth and hooTs; judging fioni them be was an old 

 settler. BrcK Smrr. 



bS Cockty, 111. 



"HARD LUCK." 



I WANT to ask you an honest question, Did you ever go 

 bunting and have "hard luck'*? f know this to be a 

 direct and pointed question, but do not hesitate to answer it 

 honestly, tor misery likes company: and having been a vic- 

 tim myself with a friend we want your sympathy. We can- 

 OOlexpectany from those fortunate ones who always bring 

 so much game to bag and send us such glowing accounts of 



Bight o'clock found me at my friend's door. Carefully 

 placing our guns in the bottom of the wagon, and his l'aith- 

 t ul puiuter Dash upon the blankets, we started. It was de- 

 cided we would first drive out to where we had been told 

 there bad been three or four dozen pigeons seen and a few 

 killed. After a ride of eight miles, we reached the grounds. 

 It certainly lonked promising, being a large field of buck- 

 wheat surrounded by timber. Our hopes were raised; and 

 ;iiin bitching our "team and feeding, we made a survey 

 of the territory; 'nit not a bird was to be seen. Nothing 

 discouraged, knowing it to be a bad time of day, we con- 

 cealed buraelves ami waited. We waited until patience 

 ceased to lie. a virtue. Then, not having seen anything re- 

 sembling a pigeon, we concluded to strike for some of the 

 surrounding wood, hoping to find them, but no birds were 

 found. 



Coming back Henry said: "1 want to take in that birch 

 cover mi our right there; may lie a bird there.'' and be and 

 his dog were soon out of sight. 1 wandered back toward 

 our starting point: upon reaching the field of buckwheat I 

 discovered one bird near the center but out of range: but the 

 bird's quick eye discovered rne at about the same moment, 

 and away it went out of range. I was left in doubt when it 

 got up wliethei it was a pigeon or a dove, and felt a strong 

 desire to hag tiie specimen in order to satisfy myself. Mark- 

 ing its course, which led to some pine timber, I followed 

 on, and making a circuit, was gratified to come out at the 

 desired point, and within shooting distance of where I saw 

 the game enter the wood. But. nowhere could it be seen. T 

 resolved to move carefully forward. In doing sol accidentally 

 stepped upon a small dry twig, which broke. A whir of 

 wings immediately followed, and four or five birds were on 

 Hewing Sighting my gun •vh'chhas dwiysbeen I rue to 

 me, [ [Hilled the trigger. No report followed. It was a 

 miss-fire. Well, you yourself may have "been there." There 

 was still one loiterer, and drawing upon it with my remain- 

 ing barrel. I was fortunate enough to bring it down. If 

 proved a dove. This was enough. It satisfied me that we 

 had gone upon a fruitless hunt; and seeing Henry upon the 

 opposite side of the field, 1 beckoned him to come in, and we 

 stalled for our train. Now here was bard luck: the best 

 part of our time ban been spent, and we had nothing satis- 

 factory to show for it. How many sportsmen have been 

 deluded likewise'.' 



Seating ourselves in our wagon, we drove to a small cover 

 on the river bank, where partridges love to congregate. 

 Upon reaching it. 1 suggested to Henry that he should take 

 Ids, dug and enter at the upper end and'l would drive to the 

 lower end and hitch the team, and then work back until we 

 met J so now you tiud us located really where [our hard luck 

 began Leaving the team I. commenced to work back care- 

 fully upon the outer edge, not caring to get into the brush 

 until Wtl should meet, I soon heard Henry's signal and his 

 low -spoken caution to be on my guard. \Vhu\ vhir, went 

 a partridge, out of the thick brakes into still thicker alders 

 without giving either a sight. By the sound we judged she 

 had ,.oi gone i'ar, and we concluded that she bad 'lit in some 

 tree, as they are very apt to do at this season of the year; so 

 Cttlhn/2 Dash to. heel we separated, and began working back 

 in the direction she had taken. We covered the ground 

 carefully, and when we had gone a considerable distance, 

 and thought she had not flown so far, we came together. 

 Just ahead of us was a large white oak tree toward which 

 we were making, when out like a flash of light went that, 

 bird r.oi over twenty feet from our heads, but covering her- 

 self sn effectively that neither of us could get a shot . We 

 took her course, and followed on. As the cover grew nar- 

 rower, I took the outside, while Henry and Dash worked it 

 up. Soon Henrys low "Be on your guard" told me that 

 Dash had done his duty. A rustle— a shot— an exclamation 

 of chagrin from Henry— a. momentary glimpse of that bird 

 through the leaves, followed by a parting salute from your 

 humble servant — and she is out of sight. She made for a 

 cover at least loll rods distant, to reach which she bad tn 

 cross an open field. 



YOU have heard of councils of war being held; we had one, 

 and decided that we must secure that particular bird at all 

 hazards. Across that open field to the cover we went. After 



I g search she got up wild and started back to where she 

 bad just Come from. As she rose among the pines I fired. 

 She kepi, tight on. Henry couldn't stand it any longer and 



said, "What did you -hoot at that bird for? Yon stood 

 about as *ood 8 chance of bitting her as of being struck by 

 lightning." I replied, "I thought it best to give her my 

 Compliments, that she might learn I desired a closer ac- 

 quaintance with her." 



Then back again to where we had just left, Henry took 

 the Center and I Covered the outer edge. This lime it was 

 no easy matter to find her hiding place. Dash did his work 

 nobly 'and she lay to his point carefully. Henry crept 

 forward, and, taking position, ordered 'Dash lo hie on; 

 with great, reluctance the dog did so. Up went the bird; 

 bang went Henry's gun. I caught a glimpse of the grouse 

 disappearing over the hill. I called oul to 1 lenry, "Did you 

 gel. her," His reply was nol all audible lo me", although I 

 heard him saving to'bimself. "How in blazes did I miss that 

 foot?" Henry is a good shot; 1 have seen him kill two part- 

 ridges out ni i e; i i h: i •-/• at nearly the same time and flew 

 in 'opposite directions. "U here did she go':" be asked, 

 ".fust over yonder, probably down by that rail fence." "It 

 don't seem "to me as if she went there," be said. "What 

 should make her go there, out on the edge?" "Probably to 

 bide." "Well, I shouldn't have believed it if you had not 

 told me so." "Come on," [ answered, "we shall soon see." 

 Calling Dash to heel (poor fellow, he had never been used 

 such kind of work), we soon reached the ground. Send 

 g the dog in he soon made game. Henry says, "Now. T 

 ill work the dog and you shoot the bird." "No," I an- 

 swered, "vou shoot the bird and I will work the dog." But 

 no, he insisted that I must do the shooting. "Well, bold 

 cm." I replied, "if I must do it, let me gel into position." I 

 bad started lo do so, having just got into some tall scrub 

 yellow pines, and was parting the brandies to get through 

 to the opening, wdien 1 beard the bird rise and caught a 

 glimpse of her right, over my head in the pines. Of course, 

 1 gave at hei a parting shot, hut, that was all I got. I asked 

 Henry why he didn't "shoot. No matter about" His reply in 

 this letter.' 



. ' 'It's hard luck w T e are having, " 1 ventured to say. ' ' W hat's 

 to be done now, shall we go after that bird again?" "Of 

 course we shall." So into the brakes and alders we went. 



• again, but this time did not see her. 

 to come quick. The brakes and brush 

 ad it very difficult to make mv way, as 

 avep and push through the best 1 could. 

 I the edge, and was bending over parting 

 land while- 1 held my gun in the other, 

 getting nearly "through, when out 

 T feet went a partridge. I tried a snap 

 afe. If you have ever bad this "luck," 

 my feelings better than I can describe 

 not, it would do no good to try. I went 

 ished me to take position, assuring me 

 on to me. The bird did uot 

 dug my way she headed 

 ie went. I "saw- the mo- 

 B the bird. I decided to 

 She went out from the 



Soon we started h 



Henry called tome 



were so thick I be 



I was compelled lo 



i led nearly reachi 



the brush with one 



congrat ulat i ug myself 



from under my 



shot, but she was 



you can apprecia 



them ; if you hav 



on to where Hen 



he could send a bird Tight out 



come worth a cent, Instead of c 



for a large maple tree, into which 



tion of the leaves but could not 



try a chance shot. It was a failur 



Opposite side anil safely covered her retreat. 



It was now getting liite and the sun was just sinking be- 

 hind the hills. We bad nothing to show for our afternoon's 

 work. It was the first time we had been compelled to go 

 home without game. But fortune often favors the persist- 

 ent ones. The fickle goddess was at last kind to us. As 

 Henry was coming out of the lower end of the cover, he 

 started and bagged a tine bird. 



We had ridden some distance, recounting the mishaps 

 of the day, and had decided to send our bird Lo a friend's 

 sick daughter. Henry remarked that he thought the bird 

 a very heavy and fat one. I said 1 would like to see it. He 

 reached down to get it, but was so long trying to find it 

 that I asked "What's the matter?" He safd he did not 

 know where that bird had gone to. but. il was not there. I 

 innocently remarked that perhaps he had nol been feeding 

 his dog as web as he should have done lately, and perhaps 

 the animal bad helped himself. I do wish you could have 

 seen Henry as be looked over the back of our wagon seat 

 and discovered all that was left, of that partridge, that rem- 

 nant was the tail feathers sticking out of that dog's mouth. 

 We will draw a veil over the scene, for Henry is one of my 

 dearest friends. 



Perhaps 1 will some time write an account of a day's sport 

 where we did not have so much "hard luck." Don, 



Qetpber 1,1883. 



SEALING IN ALASKA. 



8T. GEORGE and St. Paul are two of the Aleutian islands 

 _ iu the Northern Pacific. The latter island is about 

 eighteen miles long, the former not far from one-third of 

 that size. Two kinds of seals frequent, these islands, the 

 fur seal and the hair seal, which has. no fur. The former of 

 course is the one killed for its skin. About the 1st of June 

 seals commence to come ashore, or "haul," as it is termed, 

 for purposes of breeding. On or near the 1st of Augusl the 

 seals begin to shed their coats, and continue in stages of loss 

 and growth for some three months. 



Tin: Alaska Company captures about a hundred thousand 

 seals every year, twenty thousand on theislandof St. George 

 and the remainder on other islands, chiefly ou St, Paul. 



Bachelor seals two. three and four years old are chosen 

 for the fur Hade. These bachelors "haul" by themselves, 

 so that there is no difficulty in selecting the proper victims. 

 This separation of (he young males is caused by the fact 

 that the older and stronger bulls drive their weaker brothers 

 from the general herd, and at Hie age of six years or there- 

 abouts the bachelors find themselves strong enough to join 

 the bunds of cows and bulls. 



Old bulls attain a weight of six or seven hundred pounds, 

 but, aside from the necessity of sparing breeders, the fur of 

 old animals is apt to be rough and "maney." Bachelors, on 

 the- contrary, have fine, even fur. They average in weight 

 a hundred and fifty pounds, and their skins when stripped 

 are some four feet long by three and a half feet wide. 



The sealing season, beginning on the first of June, lasts 

 six weeks, a Tit lie more or lessen that, to get the full harvest 

 of a hundred thousand skins, over two thousand bachelors a 

 day must be killed. 



The Aleuts, natives of the islands, are employed for the 

 capture of the animals. These Aleuts are very different 

 from the Indians on the main land. The whites in the em- 

 ploy of Ibe Alaska. Company suy that they an: ot Japanese 

 descent, as fcliej have great similarity in stature, skin and 

 countenance with that race. Also the westernmost Aleutian 

 islands are uot far from Japan, .and it would not have been 

 hard for the Japanese to cross over. It does not ap- 

 pear that the language of thesa Aleuts has much, if any, 

 resemblance to Japanese, 



Prom seventy-five to one hundred men do all the work of 

 li . so that the average number of seals for a man's day's 

 labor "mounts high. A seal's hide, like a beaver's, sticks 

 very close to the body, but the men become so skillful in 

 skinning, that they are said to be able to skin a seal in a 

 minute. First, however, as in other hunting, you must 

 catch your game. 



A herd of bachelors is found which has "hauled" sepa- 

 rately. Then the hunters get between the herd and the sea, walk 

 up and knock down the 'victims with clubs. The club-stroke 

 stuns the seal, and, before he has recovered consciousness, 

 the execution is finished by a. knife-thrust, Those in the 

 hand who are too old or two young, or whose skins are dis- 

 figured, as. lor instance, by" being bitten in fighting, are 

 driven to the water. The sk'insof the dead are taken off and 

 lalted at once. The men carry long knives, kept always 

 sharp by frequent whetting on a stone, bung at the belt. 

 They cut around the two arm flippers and the tail flippers, 

 so as to leave them attached to the body. They also cut 

 around the head at the ears. The skin is then taken off by 

 long, slashing strokes, often extending the whole length of 

 the body, and the round carcass is rolled over as the work 

 progresses. 



The fur seal, like the heaver, has, in addition to the thick, 

 soft coat, a crop of long, coarse hair growing through the 

 fur. This long hair gives the seal a gray color. The fur 

 below, when not dyed, is of a gray-brown color, abont the 

 shade of a door-mat somewhat the worse for wear, but a 

 little more glossy. 



The skins of the Alaska Company are shipped to San 

 Francisco and thence to Europe, where they are tanned, 

 lose their coarse hair and are colored for the market. The 

 skins of such hair seals as are takeu by the Indians are 

 shipped to Europe also, where the hide is split and prepared 

 for use in the uppers of shoes and the like. 



Seal flesh is eaten by the Aleuts, blubber and all. The 

 whites take off the blubber and there remains a meat similar 

 to porpoise flesh, very dark red and very coarse, but not, un- 

 palatable. " H. G. Dulog. 



THE WILD BULLS OF CUBA. 



D BRING the last insurrectional disturbance, the planters 

 and cattle raiseTs left their homes anil fled for pro- 

 tection to the cities and fortifications, far from the vicinity of 

 the much-dreaded guerrillas. Their stock and cattle was 

 left to take care of itself, being slaughtered freely by either 

 Spanish or Cuban troops. But in spite of all they multi- 

 plied extensively, and when the bellicose parties came to an 

 understanding and established peace throughout the island, 

 the farmers and hacendados returned to their demolished 

 and pillaged homes, building new dwellings and gathering 

 the remnants of their goods and chattels. Then they found 

 it difficult to establish claims to the cattle which ran wild 

 and were not marked, whose ownership could not be easily 

 traced owing to the difficulty of collecting all the scattered 

 herds and establishing claims which might involve suits, etc. 

 After trying several times unsuccessfully, they agreed to 

 have the right among themselves to have once in a while a 

 general hunt, dividing the game equally after allowing the 

 tirst choice to the slayers as due them for their skill and 

 good luck 



The day being appointed for a grand battue, the hunters 

 are at hand with the dawn. They are dressed in their odd 

 and scanty costumes, a pair of wide trousers and a linen 

 blouse shirt, which light airy apparel is suitable for the tor- 

 rid climate. This very light composite shirt is vety loose 

 and buttons in front as a sack coat, but generally is left half 

 unbuttoned to the more easily get at the fleas, which, judg- 

 ing by the energetic and wrathful motions the wearers of 

 the light shirts go through sixty times in a minute, must be 

 on hand in aggressive legions. It is said that fleas do not 

 bite twice iu the same spot," but to a very large person this is 

 small consolation, takiug into account the length and breadth 

 of his body, which surely offers plenty of room for new bites 

 before exhausting the ground. There is another insect in- 

 festing the body," the Put, x penetrans, which though not so 

 numerous, is just as bothersome and more dangerous, as 

 there have beeu many cases of lock-jaw caused by the slight 

 wound produced when extracting it. The natives of the 

 island do not know what comfort is. Their placidity of dis- 

 position is badly spoiled by the innumerable plagues of 

 filthy parasites which cause the ill habit of using ungentle- 

 manly language. Who can stand the countless myriads of - 

 mosquitoes, fleas, chigoes, flying roaches, scorpions, big- 

 haired spiders, lizards, and otner pests unnamable and in- 

 numerable, from January to December, and keep his temper? 



The hunters, riding their spirited horses and armed with 

 their "inseparable" machetes, and a diversify of large and 

 small arms, ancient and modern, frolick and shout, speculat- 

 ing on the chances of the rhasse. The horses, nervous and 

 restless, catching the excitement, offer the riders a good 

 chance to show" oil their horsemanship. Then wonderful 

 feats are witnessed, all trying their best lo show their skill. 

 Running at full speed and picking up hats, dollars, and even 

 smaller objects, is their favorite trick. The majority of 

 these men are "peoncs" or cowboys. They are not as 

 quarrelsome and wild as the cowboys" of the West, but they 

 can match the fatter in skill with the lasso and on horse 

 back, hul they are very poor shots with the rifle, for the 

 Spanish Government strictly forbids any r civilian to own a 

 title without a special permit, to obtain which is not a very 

 easy matter. Skill with such a weapon is not encouraged by 

 the ever suspicious government. 



After the hunting party had been organized and started for 

 the game at the place agreed upon, the dogs are let loose 

 after the wild pigs, which break cover, started by the bnrk- 

 ing, shouting and beating of bushes. When pursued very- 

 close tliey invariably stand at bay against a tree to protect 

 their rear from the attacks of "the dogs, and facing their 

 assailants, they will charge with a ferocious rush. 1 Inclose 

 a drawing showing the exact size of tusk pulled out of a 

 boar's jaw. This brute came very near destroying life wdien 

 slain. The boar being at bay. one of the sportsmen dis- 

 mounted, and armed with pistol and machete came forward 

 to give him his quietus, when the em aged animal, with 

 bristling back, scintillating eyes and frothy jaws, charged 

 upon the advancing hunter, who in his hurry to get. oul of 

 his way tripped and fell, the brute at. the same lime going 

 between his legs, ripping open one of his boots and causing 

 an ugly wound in the calf of the leg. Before more mischief 

 could be done another hunter came to the rescue, severing 

 the boar's head with a powerful and well-dealt machete 

 stroke. 



The bull hunting is even more dangerous, as the rider 

 may be thrown or the horse may stumble and be overtaken 

 by the Sow. This kind of shooting is done by men thoroughly 



