THE AMERICAN SPORTSMAN^S JOURNAL. 



[Emored Acoordlngr to Act of Congress, In the year wis, Xiy tUe l-'oresl. anrl sti-eam PubllsUng Company, In the Office of the Librarian of Conp'eas, at. Waslilngton.] 



NEW YORK, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 4, I880. 



CONTENTS. 



-- ..i-.jaumica Field ; Opening of the Quail Soaaou ; The 



Wiolier.shouj:ier Preaerving Process ; The Bbode Island 



T'ish CoiumiBBion ; The Pennsylvania Field Trials ; Bat- 



'■ noting: Mahways and Pish Laws: Striped Bagg; 



.= ;- ,... ' -^orida 2G3 



Th1£ SPOBTSMAk j..-Ott._ 



Southwcat Florida 264 



Natcbai Histoht :— 



Rail Inland ; The Flight of Birds ; Doea the Plying Fish 

 Fly ? Habits of the Beaver ; American Museum of Natural 

 Hiatoi-r : Sharks ai-e Viviparous ; A Monliey Uses Tools. . . 263 

 ■Sea and Riveh FisHisa :— 



Fishing at Belle Ewaj-t ; Bed Drum Fishing ; Fishing in Fox 

 Eivev: A Plea lor the Sunfish ; Catfish Take the Fly ; 

 Smelt Ftshiug ; Spawn Fishing in the Kangeley Lakes ; 

 The Northern Bairacula : Old Canned Salmon; The Mack- 

 erel Catch ' 266 



Fish CtrLxuRE :— 



After Big Trout Eggs for Iowa ; Growth of Carp ; IlUnois 



Commission ; Carp for Distribntion 207 



Game Bag asd Guk :— 



A Fag for Quail ; Long Island Sportsmen's Association ; 

 PbiladLlphi:! Letter ; Choke-Boring Guns : Buffed Grouse 

 Shur.(iii[^r _ G;>,n« Kegions in Maine ; The Maine Game 

 Lrnv : >. I ' i -; In the Canada Woods; Texas Notes : 

 Sail: ! i ; Canada; Ohio Notes ; Washington 

 Ten. : 1 7 rinie About Rochester ; Lake Okeecho- 

 bcL' : V iuiL Si irlHinOB ; Weight of Ruffed Grouse ; Con- 

 necticut ; Beti-oit Notes ; Deatli of an Old Hunter ; Ohio 

 Qnail Low : Rhode Island, Game Hesorts ; Notes ; Shbot- 

 ing MatcheH 2G8 



PennsylTania Field Trials ; Pennsylvania State Field Trials 

 AsBociation ; Cocker Spaniels : Notes from Foreign Ex- 

 changes ; Importations ; Biz : Kennel Notes 272 



" SB EiFiyE :— 

 ' Eange aud Gallery ; Professional Riflemen Shooting with 

 GlasHOK ; Ciioice of Huntmg RiOes. The Wimbledon 



Scandal '. 274 



YAOHTreo AKn Canoeino :— 

 Single-Hauded Cruisiug ; Measurement for Tonnage ; What 

 ■ the Lakes Say : What the Noupariel Is ; Notes ; Cmise in 



a Canne....! 276 



Aboheuv :— 



The Private rraetice Club ; Matches 277 



PuBusnERs' Dkpabtiiejit 277 



ASSWEBS TO CoBEESl'OOTJEHTS 277 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



NEW YORK, THUESDAT, N0VE3IBEB 4, 1880. 



\f* T!ie FOBBBT Axn Stream ffoen to pre^g W'edncidayti. 

 OoiTe,tpondmU are reqiiMi'd to mail (heir ci'mmmii'ciltMm no 

 Omt thtfy may rcm-Ji vx Wfrn-e t/mt dai/. 



A Hboabenbd Field. — Although the cricket department 

 of the F0EE8T AND STBEA.M \\&s tiom its inception been ac- 

 corded a very substantial support by the devotees of that 

 game, we are. compelled, by reason of the other deniande upon 

 us, to discontinue the department. The space thereby gained 

 wl! be devoted to our Bpecialties—fishiug, shooting and the 

 keiUM'l : ;in(l we sliall eive our undivided attention to these 

 ■branclns I'f Ani'ii^aii iieltl sports. Our game columns each 

 week arc iv-iw lillril with a rich abundance of matter, which 

 indicates eitluu- that au unusually large host of sportsmen ai-e 

 1u the Held this fall, or, perhaps, tliat the TTouest and Stream 

 lias been more successful tliau ever before in eliciting from its 

 hosts of friends their experience in the pursuit of game. 



By narrowing our field we have broadened it, and we sliall 

 .strive now to uialie the paper more than ever before a. reposi- 

 tory of all good thiugs pertainhig to (.he gun, rod and kennel. 



OpBKiNa ov TUE QiiAiL Sr-'.^fiN. The pi-iisou fur (|iiail in 

 this State opened on Mumti.v iln- Ist iiisiain. This tl.-iir i.s 

 certainly none too late, and in ihi' uiiinion uf many siuinsniou 

 it is too early. We shot last week in Comiecticut, and found 

 that several of the bevies moved were not yet full gi'own. 

 Wo have somelimes seen in November little quail just 

 hatched, but of course in such cases the ueats had been 

 broken up so that the second brood was e.xceptionally late. 



AVe think the opinitms of the oldest sportsmen, those 

 who have the widei^t ••xpcricrice, wriiikl ;i.;,rrrr that the liirds 

 shoidd never be shot bettne this time. The law in Pennsyl- 

 vania is defective and so is that of Connecticut in permitting 

 quail to be shot too early. Still it must l)e said that few 

 men, we hope, trouble the half-grown bevies. The sports- 

 men have too much self-respect to meddle with these broods, 

 aud as the marketmen will not buy the little things, the pot 

 hunters have no inducement to kill them. 



THE VvTICKERSHEIMER PRESERVING 

 Fi^UID. 



A FEW weeks ago, in an answer to a correspondent, we 

 referred to the "Wickersheimer process," aud it has 

 brought us a flood of letters which we have delayed answering 

 imtil we could get the formula for its preparation and so not 

 only give our readers valuable information concerning the 

 preparation of fish tmd other animals for natural history pm-- 

 poses, bnt also how to make the fluid to do it with. We first be- 

 came acquainted with this method at the International Fish- 

 ery Exhibition in Berlin this last summer, where in the dis- 

 pla}' of Prof. Jean Wickersheimer, Conservator of the Univer- 

 sity of Berlin, we saw many animals lying on the tables, with- 

 out even a glass over them, which were said to have been 

 kept for ttoee years. Among these were serpents of fifteen to 

 twenty feet in length ; birds, fishes, seals and crustaceans. 

 .Skeletons also were shown which were kept together by the 

 natural ligaments aud were perfectly flexible, among them a 

 snake and a crane — ^perfectl_v charming specimens — bearing 

 even the rude handling of the ordinaiy exhibition visitor and 

 exhibiting every motion which the animals were capable of 

 in life. Vegetable tissues were also preserved, and great sea 

 weeds himg ai-ound looking as if newly gathered. 



We naturally wanted to see how the fluid was used, and by 

 invitation of Prof. Wickersheimer we saw some fishes in- 

 jected. A fountain syringe was used, made of a tin can hold- 

 ing a quart, which hung on a nail about six feet high ; a rub- 

 ber pipe led from this, in the end of which was an injecting 

 needle about four inches long. La}'ing a fish upon its back 

 the Professor inserted the needle in its breast until it reached 

 the heart, and let (he fluid run until all the veins were filled. 

 "But," said we, "how are you certain that it exactly strikes 

 the heart?" " If it does not, then the fish wdll puff up about 

 the gills and you try it again," auswered the operator : " but 

 if it is all right, then in a few minutes you will notice the pec- 

 toral fins begin to expand and stand out. If the fish is fresh 

 the dorsal and other fins will also expand." The fish operated 

 upon would weigh about six pounds, and as soon as the fins 

 were expanded he threw it into a tub of the liquid, where it 

 was allowed to remain for two or three days and was then 

 ready to be placed on e.xhibilion. The Professor explained 

 that ut the case of those large serpents, seals, etc., he injected 

 them in all the large arteries which were accessible, as well as 

 in the heart ; but that for crabs, lobsters, spiders, stai-fishes 

 and such small deer it was onl}- necessary to keep them im- 

 mersed for a few days. Collectors of insects will readily ap- 

 preciate a method which leaves the legs flexible and not liable 

 to break. 



The colors in the serpents were well preserved. The fish 

 faded somewhat, and their eyes sank as much ais flsh in market 

 do when kept too long; but they w^ere well preserved, and fish 

 are the worst things which the taxidermist lui.s t.j deal ^yith, 

 while the collector is aghast at the bills for jars and alcohol. 

 After we left Berlin the newspapers chronicled the fact that 

 Professor AYicker.sheimer embalmed a boy and exhibited the 

 body in the open air lor several months, during which tune it 

 " looked like a sli>i.ping eluld, preserving its softness and life- 

 like appearance ;" while we saw the lungs of a tiu-tle in a jar 

 which eijuld be intlated by a pipe through the cork to several 

 times their .size. At this tune we knew that the Prussian 

 Government had bought the formula, but did not know that 

 it had been published by the Depaitmeut of Instruction in the 

 StfMiaanzeii/er, the official organ of the Department. Learn- 

 ing this we sent for a copy, ami mm lake pleasure in laying 

 before om- readers the foUowiuL; iransLaiiun : 



FOKMtrLA OF TUE W li KEKSilEIMEK FLUID. 



"In 3,000 grammes of boiling water dissolve alum, 100 

 grammes; common salt, 35 do.: saltpetre. 13 do.; potash, 60 

 do.; arscnious acid, 10 do. After cooling and filtermg the 

 above solution add to every ten litres of it fom- litres of gly- 

 cerine and one litre of nietlil. alcohol." 



The directions given in the paper albide<l to are as follows: 

 ■■The mode of appliearii.u varies with the nature of the bodies 

 requiring to lie pre.served. Anatomical preparations, entire 

 bodies, etc., which are to be preserved dry, are laid in the 

 fluid from six to twelve days, according to their size, and are 

 then taken out and dried in the open air. The ligaments aud 

 nmsclcs •will now remain flexible and soft, so that all natural 

 movements can be executed. Hollow organs, lungs, mt.es- 

 tines, etc., must be filled with the fluid and then laid in it; 



afterward they are taken out and dried, first being distended 

 with ah'. .Smaller animals, such as crabs, beetles, lizards, 

 frogs, etc., are not to be di-ied, but put up in bottles of the 

 fluid, if the natural colors are lo be kept unchanged. 



' ' If human or other large bodies are to be preserved for a 

 longer period before they are used for scientific purposes it is 

 sufficient to inject them with the fluid. Two litres, f. i., will 

 suffice for a child of two years; about five litres are requued 

 for an adult. By this treatment the muscles wdl appear as 

 if fresh, when sections are made, even after years. When 

 thus injected if human bodies are preserved in the open air 

 they will gradually lose their fresh appearance and the .skin 

 will become brown. This can be avoided if the fluid is rub- 

 bed into the Skin and if the access of air is prevented as far 

 as possible. 



"Tins latter treatment is recommended for bodies which 

 are to be exhibited or to be preserved for some time before 

 bm-ial, for the features will remain unchanged and there w-ill 

 be no smeU. 



"For real embalming a method combining injection and 

 immersion is to be applied. The bodies after injection are 

 wrapped in cloths which are satm'ated with the solution and 

 are then kept in tight cases." 



THE RHODE ISLAND FISH C03IMISSI0N. 



THE ninth annual report of the Ehode Island Fish Com- 

 mission, made to the General Assembly at its January 

 Session, is just at hand. The sea-fisheries of this State are of 

 great importance, so far overtopping the fresh water interests 

 that the Commissioners look more towardmeans of preserving 

 the former than increasing the latter and call the attention 

 of the law-makers to the fact that their law requiring all 

 .taking of fish by traps, weirs, and similar contrivances, to be 

 suspended from Saturdaj^ morning at sunrise to the same 

 hour on Monday, from Maj- to August, is not enforced. The 

 Commissioners have done all in their power to call public at- 

 tention to the law by publishing it once a week in the 

 principal newspapers and appointing deputies who shall have 

 supervision of certain parts of the bay shores included in the 

 act. 



In order to render their report perfectly clear it is aceemi- 

 panied by a map showing the traps at Seacomiet in the spring 

 of 1879, and another exhibiting the heart-nets or pounds set 

 in Narragansett Bay during the same summer, together with 

 the depths of water in which they are placed. The law was 

 found to be more generally ol (served after this, only one in- 

 stance of its violation being reported. The difficulties of en- 

 forcing the law were very great, as during a run of scup (the 

 " porgy" of New York), SUicitonmii ai-gyropa, the traps ai-e 

 overhauled every two hours, night and day. and when the 

 weather is rough it is imposible to tell what is going on about 

 a trap miless a boat is anchored beside it : and when no flsh 

 are running the fishermen are very law abiding, but frankly 

 say that in the event of a nm of fish on close days they would 

 run the risk of prosecution. The Commissioners decline to 

 argue the question as to the spring trapping interfering with 

 the hook and line fishing in Narragansett B.iy as after all that 

 has been written on the subject they seem no nearer a solu- 

 tion of it than twenty yeai'S ago. "The argnment," say 

 they, "has been a bitter one, and neither side has been at 

 all disposed to listen to reason. The trappers have fought a 

 hard fight with a bold front, and have never failed to appear 

 when called upon to as.sert their position, backing it up year 

 after year with the .same arguments by the same paities. 

 One wiseacre asserts that the pollution of the water from the 

 sewage of the City of Providence has mined the ba^' fisheries; 

 an opponent takes the floor and proves exactly the contrary. 

 * * * -'Aglanceat the map show's that the traps are so set as to 

 take the fish as they go out and not as they come in, aud this 

 year the most southem and ea-stward one at West Island took 

 more than any other, showing that the fish so taken were 

 boimd still farther East. In proof of this, it is a fact that the 

 trappers at Buzzard's Bay have found that their business has 

 come to an end since trtqi fi.sliin.g lias liecome systematized 

 and carried on on so huge a scale at Seaeonnet." 



In referring to the old saying that the fishes of the sea can 

 never be exhausted they very truly say that this maxim is 

 appUcable only to those species which remain at sea, while 

 others which ai'e obliged to seek the vicinity of the shore to 



