3G6 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



PJBOEMBBE 9, 1880. 



with the sc'iititQem. on my tongue, "I am better than thou," 

 for treating tlicse hated viprf.rs with so ninch ^ruce and 

 mercy. I put in no claim for HUyn'iiMr virtue. Th(> trulh is, 

 Ibis "ba,nds.olT," tliis "leave tliem :iloDe," this "let t.licm 

 live" fHilicy of mine i.4 »inipl_v to iiccomnioriato my 

 cowardice. As I hate snalies witli n perlecL hatred, 8o 1 fenr 

 Ibem with a perfiict fiTir. 'I'lic very sig-lir, of oue, however 

 harmlfts lie may lie, inni..es. niy'Tiesh creep. Tliere is 

 noiliiiig in the world lliai I will run quicker, faster 

 and t;irtlier from tiinn ;: Ki-iake— except the small-pox. 

 SonicUou- iherc is soiLiciirni^^ mLioiu luin tliat, imparts wonder- 

 ful ucceltraiioii to my l..r;.iiiioiion. And I Ihiidc it most ar- 

 rlently, if 1 don't say il audibly, "jXow, nnake, you attend to 

 your l.:uaine.<5s and J'll attend lo none, and don't you dare to 

 scare me like thai, again, or I'll be lianged if I don't joinissne 

 ■wuh ibe rest of ui!ud<ind and kill yon every time I nieut 

 yi.m," fjut in spite o£ my res<:.lnlion my cowardice proves 

 more lluui a match for my coniaii:c loid the usuiil tender 

 mercy ia the re-snlt. The viper proves the victor every time. 



It was my uiiooveted lot once to have a lilack-snake fm- a 

 bedfellow.betvveen my cliiim Hnd uiyself, on the tented field. 

 He .'.jid himself down to sleep all coiled up in a little heap. 

 I shall never forget, it. It was the night Ilio Army of the 

 Poloniac rested on the bank.? "f the Pamnnky. We arrived 

 there late and so fati.tfued by a lona; march that we spread our 

 blankets at once wii,lio\ir the precaution of inspection by the 

 Bid of a lighted candle as was our wont. It happened to be 

 near a dilapitated old fence, fialf stone and halt wood. At 

 the sound of ibe reveille we arose, and in rollhig up orir bed- 

 ding we uncovered an immense black-snake all snugly coiled 

 up in his warm nest, Many a niglii after this episode would 

 1 wuken from the slumlier .so sweet to the wesiry soldier and 

 feel ihcRubtle uiovtanents of .aerpcnts utidcrnea'th me, some- 

 thing like vibrating bed-cords, anri no sleep would coino 

 again lo my eye-lids till ! had tieen assured by actual exand- 

 nTitioD that they exist cd in I'ancy raliier than in fact. You 

 should have seen tliat e,lii t :,,•!: uli..;:!, !n) bom- after suin-ise 

 that morning. Tt was r-i ,i .i . n ■ .vith I he life of reptiles. 

 At a little distance il loi.i.iL ;i- ,: \: ■■ -re vrneered with pol- 

 ished ebony. Companies of ruen '^:iz..-d at the scene in amaze- 

 meat and then, as if suddenly seized by one impidse, they 

 hurled a perfect fusillade of atones and sticks and whatever 

 came tir.st to hand at the vile creatures, <pnte demoralizing 

 tJiem and the fence in the bargain. 



Barring my Virginii experiences I believe that I Lave not 

 wiineased in ail (he forl^- years of my life ns many snakes as 

 I have seen this summer ai, Illinois. While the most of them 

 are harmless many are not. Their sting is death unless the 

 antidote be at hand. And in my judgment a small phial of 

 aqua annnonia is .a^ necessary to insure safety on the prairies 

 a,s in the mountains- Indulge me now in a moment of serious 

 discussion. 1 will preface it, with an incident or two. I have 

 a brother a farmer, a few years my senior, living on a farm 

 four miles west of our village. Last sninuier while harvest- 

 ing his hay he killed a STiake of a brownish hue, about four 

 feet long "and of disproportionate tiiickness. Curio.sity led 

 hull to lake his knife and slit it open, whereupon sixty'liltle 

 snakes fbe counted every one of them) i.ssucil forth, each one 

 about a foot in lengiii. I asked him bow he accounted for it, 

 and he said, "On the theory that snakes in time of danger 

 swallow their young." To me it was a new idea, and I was 

 disposed lo be'iucredulous. A cousin front New Jersey, now 

 an old man, who had always been a farmer, was visiting us. 

 1 asked him if he had ever seen anything corroborative of 

 Uiat fact, if fact it was. He said " Yes ; 1 once saw on my 

 farm as many as fifteen or iw^enty small snakes run out of 

 the mouth of a large one." 1 have since argued t ae question 

 a little, and I tind a difference of opinion. One of our best 

 lawyers is somewhat skeptical on the question, -vhile, on the 

 other hand, one of our merchants is a firm believer. His 

 faith is founded on ocular demonstration. He was down 

 the river one day, when his doir encountered a snake. He 

 attacked if, and shook out of the snake's mouth at least 

 twenty little ones. I have consulted two encyclopedias. In 

 one tb'ere is no reference to the sutiject. In Cb-imbcrs' I find 

 this paragraph : "it has been often alleged that vipers and 

 other serpents, wleu alarmed, swallow their young, and 

 eject them again after reaching a place of safety. There 

 Btill remains some doubt on this curious question, which has 

 recently been much discu.ssed, and it is not improbable that 

 the alleged proofs of it from living young ones issuing out 

 of the body of the parent when crushed arc lo be accomucfi 

 for by the ovoviviporous mode of gciicratiem." What is the 

 latest oti this subject ':• \Vith this inquiry lauUscribe myself, 



MaUitia, III., 3'</B. 23. His. 



This question was discussed at some length m early issues 

 of Forest and Stre.^w, and the conclusion was reached that 

 snakes do sometimes swallow their young. We should he 

 glad to hear any further evidence on this question that our 

 readers can contribute. The following are some of the re- 

 ferences to this subject ! Vol. 1, p. 54; do., 86; do., 118; 

 do, leS; do, 198; do., 314. 



— •»— . 



The Nuttali. BoLtETiN.— The October number of the 

 Bulletin, which is the last of the fifth volume, contains, as is 

 usual, a great amount and variety of valuable matter. The 

 openiiik' article, by Dr. Cioues, is especially interesiing, a.s li 

 treats uf a great quantity of manuscript letters and papers of 

 Wilson and Andution, the existence of which lias not, up to 

 this lime, been generally known. The letters referred to will, 

 when publislRxk throw a tiood of light on many points which 

 have always been obscure, and will no doubt render clear the 

 facts iu the case of the ever-to-be-dcplored miKunilerstanding 

 ■which existed between these two great mtn. Dr. Coues, iu 

 giving us a little gossip about what he saw "Behind the 

 Veil," tells the story in his own inimitable style, and our read- 

 ers know how interesting .all his writings ate. Mr. Louis A. 

 Zerega, in his " Notes oil the Northeru liange of the Fish 

 Ci'ow {C'on>u~i cfifu'friigiM), with Some Account of its Habits," 

 gives some important particulars in rejfard to this species, 

 lie is inclined to believe that "one-third of tlie crows that 

 fly alxmt the Lower Bay of Kew York arc O, ois>Ji-a.ffu,-<." 

 This will be to most readers, a surprising announcement, but 

 the writer of the paper supports it by the statement that out 

 of twenty-six crows killed dm-ing the past year between Sandy 

 Hook and Seabright, N. .!., eleven were fish C4-0W8. He also 

 notes the interesting fact that crows will come to decoys. 



Mr. Frank \V. Lan^don's description of this new species 

 of JHelmiiUkopliaijc, J7. c'ncirf a'M^rum, is here reprinted from 

 the Ji'UrruU of tJif! CiMinnati Smkty of JVatuml ffUtory, 

 •where it first' appeared. Part III. of Mr. J. J. Dalghish's 

 " List of Occurrences of North Anicrican Birds in Kurope" 

 concludes the series, the number of species delected on the 

 other side of the water reaching sixty-eight. 



Mr. jUdgway gives an inlereeting description of the eggs 



of the Caspian tern (Sternn luispia) found at Cabb's Island 

 during the past summer, and the number concludes with 

 some " Notes on Colorado Bii-ds," by H. U. Minot. 



Becenl Literature contains a number of interesting notices. 

 Amoug "General Notes" Mr. Nathan Clifford Brown records 

 the capture of Pif/(?;* to cirru'm in ]\Inine and Air. .lencks 

 that of rin-iialhoriix ludnvinaminyn Rliodc Island. Mr. Hidg- 

 way suggests that Ilelmjnthophaga c ne'iinaUcv-sh may lie a. 

 hybrid between H. pitiM and Opmrarnh JhrmoKm. There 

 are other notes of much interest lo bird lovers. 



A Br-AOK Rabbit— .Vorw, Franklin Oo., N. 7., Dec. 8.— 

 Two friends of mine, while huntiug foxes last weel< back of 

 this village about three miles, came across a black rabliit. 

 They put their dog on his track and the dogciiught and killed 

 it after a long cba'se. They gave it to me and I have skinned 

 it and intend to have it mounted. It is black all over, save a 

 small white spot on the breast about the size of a .silver quar- 

 ter No one abemt here ever saw a black rabbit before, that 

 is, a wild one. I once saw a lame black Fiiglish rabbit, but 

 this is the same species as the common wild raliliit alioiit here 

 which are all white now and brown in the summer. Please 

 let mo know in your Answers to (..'orrespondents if such cases 

 are common. The two gentlemen irom Bridgeport, Conti., 

 that went up to Blue Mountain a week ago Saturday came 

 down Tuesday with two deer. They had a very unfavorable 

 vi'eek while tliere, being very cold weather, making it bad for 

 still hunting. The snow is aliout a font rleep here ou the 

 level, and the cold ranged from twenty down to two degrees 

 above zero the last week. A. C. 



EsoLisn Spabrows in Canada.— Mr. H. G. Vennor, the 

 Almanac Man, writing to the Montreal Oaxette, says: 



" A colony of English sparrows have reached St. .lerome. 

 Province of Quebec, and have taken np their residence around 

 the Convent and House of Cure Labelle. In this spot they 

 appear to take great delight, and the louder ring the church 

 bells the louder they cliailer. Up to the present date the 

 sparrow has not made much inroad through the country 

 north of the Ottawa Valley. They arc not seen to the north- 

 ward of Buckingham Village, Thurso, LachuteorSt. Jerome, 

 and it would appear as if the range of Laurentian Mountains 

 limited or arrested their migra'lion. I have not met with 

 one individual of this species anywhere beyond St. Jerome, 

 although the villages of Piedmonle, St. Sauveur, St. Adele 

 and St Agalhe all possess as sullahle places for their abode 

 as St. Jerome. Possibly hawks and shrikes are too numeruus 

 for the sparrows' liking among the Laurentian hills, bu' 

 however this may be, their loss is not felt, as the forests are 

 full of our own native binls, which have not only higher 

 musical powers, but likewise much more insectivorous 

 tastes." 



TnK NATijnALisT.s DiRKOTORT. — Thts manual is r great 

 convenience to all naturalists who wish to know the addresses 

 of others who are working in the same line with them.seWcs. 

 The new volume for 1880 centains the names, addresses, 

 special departments of study, etc., of the naturalists, chetn- 

 isi.s, physicists, astronomers, etc., etc., and al.so a list of (he 

 scieutilfc societies, of scientific periodicals and the titles of 

 ■scientific books published in America, frour July 1, 1879, to 

 October 1, 1880. 



We think this is the third year that the directory has been 

 isssucd and it is enlarging its list all the time. This year it 

 baa adopted the plan of arranging the names liy States by re- 

 qust, a nlan iu whieli il ia doubtful if the advaiUages balance 

 the disadvantages, and the publi.shers say that next year they 

 will return lo the old iilan of an alphabutical arrangement ir- 

 respective of ge<.)graphieal location. The list of names occu- 

 pies 118 p.ages averaging thirty names, or about ,'S,.500 names, 

 and i^ives a lisi of tiio.se who have died within the past year. 

 It is edited and published by S. E. Casino. 390 Wiisliington 

 street, Boston. 



S§h £nUme. 



^ GERMAK CARP IN TENNESSEE. 



ON last Wednesdav, the 24tli of November, the second 

 consignment of German carp intended for distribution 

 in ihis Stale, arrived in charge of iMr. J. T. Ellis, an assi-t- 

 rmt nf the United States Fish Commission. Col, Akers, our 

 State Fisb Coiinii.ssioner, bad been notified by telegraph and 

 wa.s at the depot to meet Mr. Ellis and receive the fish. The 

 local press gave notice of their arrival, which brought to- 

 gether a number of gentlemen who have ponds on their 

 farms, with numerous buckets in hand to transfer their al- 

 lotted number of fish to their new homes. 



As there are no protedion laws for fish in the Slate, or ap- 

 propriations made to meet the necessary expenses incurred in 

 introducing new varieties, of fish. Col. Akers determined to 

 give this consignment only to persona whom be knew would 

 tuke care of the trust and footed the bill himself. A bath tub 

 was at once secured at George Barbour's tonsorial jmrlors and 

 the tish not actually dispo.scd of put into it ; there they will 

 be fed and watched until called for. Mi-. Ellis said to ine 

 that be had never seen a liner lot of young carp than the 

 nnrs fi.- lirr,u''-lit, here. He had with Inm 1,000 in ten cans, 

 ,;.; , I I :.!!.ii ij 100 fish, to be distributed as follows: GOOfor 

 i; ,. . .me and tiie others for the Western portion of 



ill. -Ill , - ' ii nf this large number, though they had been 

 on the riiafi several days, not one died. The weather was 

 favorable and the wal er was changed every five hours. Mr. 

 E. is entitled to much credit for the watchfulness and skill 

 displaved durina; the journey. 



It is" gratifying to notice the grooving interest on the part 

 of our farmers for fi.sh-cnlture, and il is to be hoped that 

 the protection laws, so nearly passed at the last session of our 

 Leiiislature, will pass the one assembling here in January. 

 Thev should make a reasonable appropriation for the stock- 

 in" of our principal streams with such fish as will thrive in 

 them. By this means iu » few years we will have an abund- 

 ance of this delicious and wholesome food. 



The carp distributed here last yeai- ai-e all doing remarkably 

 well, but those entrusted to Dr. Callendcr, Superintendent of 

 the Insane Asylum, have made phenomenal progress. When 

 placed in iheponds of the asvlum grounds the fry did not 

 exceed one and a half inches in length, and they looked very 

 puny. The other day he brought into town five of the 

 smallest he could catch in order to show Col. Akers. Those 

 would weiffh one and a half pounds each, and livelier or 

 finer looking fish could not be seen. The doctor could not 

 say dcfluitery if any of them had spawned this year, though, 

 judging from their present condition, Ihey certainly willuext 



spring. Every care has been given, feeding regularly and 

 not allowing any one to disturb them. They have become 

 so tiune as to come at call to be fed. 



Rather an amusing scene occurred on Wednesday wliile 

 ttif distribution was going on. An elderly colored man came 

 up witli a bucket on bis arnt to get some fish, being, as his 

 whnle race are, fond of them, and, being told the'Oovern- 

 nii'iit were giving them away, said to one of the assistants : 



" Look a heah, I wants some of dem fishes." 



'■How many will you have, my good man ?" 



" Dat'S 'cording lo the size : 'specks t;wo dozen is 'nnff." 



"But have you a suitable pond to put them iu?" inquired 

 Col. A. 



" Ain't got no pond, but suah de ole 'ooman's got a pot 

 big 'ruff to hold what I wants." 



" Old man," .said the colonel, "these fish are sent here to 

 breed from and cost about $5 apiece, and hard to get at 

 that" 



•'Den honey, dem creeturs not 'tended for de blacli man, 

 so you can keep 'em; fic cats and buffaloes good 'nufffor 

 dis'chile, and five dollars' wuff of dem las' me all my days.' 



With these few- remarks he walked off, showing no great 

 disappointment at ids refusal. j. D. H. 



JVashi)ille, Tenn., .Nco. 25. 



FERTILE HTBRIDS- 



RocitESTEE, Dec. 8. 

 Editor Eoi-eU and 8trmm: 



At the New York State Hatchery we have a pond contain- 

 ing Ri.Kty hybrid trout. The cross'is male salmon trout with 

 the female brook trout. They are now throe years old and 

 will average one-half pound in weight ; the lar.geat will weigh 

 tbrce-qu:triera of a pound. Thev resemble both parents, but 

 are inclined toward the salmon trout a little the most. 



November 1st they commenced spawning for the flr.st 

 time and continued until .November T2tli. We succeeded 

 iu obtaining Ifi.'iOO spawn. A remarkable fact con- 

 cerning the spawn is that they are fully twn sizes smjillcr 

 than brook trout spawn. It may be nece.ssaiy for me to state 

 that .salmon troiii spawn are twice as large as brook trout 

 spawn. One would suppose that the spawn would he in size 

 between salmon trout and brook trout, but instead tliey are 

 amaller tlian eiiher. 



The esgs are pertjTa, in shape fl,nd a good percentage are 

 im(n-egnated and doing well. The formation of the fish in 

 the I'sg can be seen "plainly at present. They commenced 

 -pawniiig just after the salmon trout in our ponds had 

 sKmtierl.and just bcforc the brook trout had fairly oom- 

 niffltMid. It is my opinion that they will make a fish well 

 adapted to eiiber lakes or streiuu.s. They are well-formed 

 and handsome tish, and the prospects aia^. they will be a vitlu- 

 able :iddition lo our better class of food tithes. 



AVe also cro.ssed a few hundred of the hybrid spawn wilh 

 male brook trout. A good ppirentiige are impregnated. All 

 the fish at the hatchery are looldng exceedingly well. AVe 

 shall take a large supply of brook trout spawn, also Califor- 

 nian mountain' trout spawn. The breeders of this variety 

 iu-c in fine condition, and we shall be able to furnish all par- 

 ties ill this State wilh a good supply of the young fry who 

 are desirous of procuring them for the purpose of stocking 

 public waters. Seth Gbkes. 



EGGS FOB DISTRIBUTION. 



The following circular has been sent out. Those wishing 

 eggs .should apply at once. 



UsiTED States Commission, Fisn aito Eishekies, 1 



WASiire&TON, D. C, Nov. 27, 1880. | 

 Dear Sir — The eggs of I he species of Salmonidn' mentioned 

 below, are now beii g malnred by the U. S. Fisli Commission, 

 and I write to ask what mnnber you are desirous of receiving 

 in behalf of your State to be Imtehed out and pUuited in pub- 

 lic wa'ers. Thev wi'l tie ready foi diairibution during the 

 Jnd March 1881. 

 jr the e<:gs themselves, but the 

 m from the hatching houses nniat be 



iths of Jan 



■y, Fe 

 11 be mad. 

 expense of transi 

 paid bv the reeip' 



Due notice will 

 time of Kliipt lien! 



It, willof cour-: 

 limited, so that u 

 can lie properly i 



The eL,-s will b 

 the waters of 



11 be given by telegraph or otherwi.9e of the 

 I i I' -/L- riiat are assigned to you. 



:•■ . I ' I ''•'•<[ that thcsupplv of eggs is 

 , . i .. , ,1 lier should be a.sked foK'thiin 

 iiiULM.-.J Out aiifl distributed, 

 lie .Hipplied to localities, the temperature and 

 icb are known to be favorable to the growth 

 of the fish asked for. 



Should (as is probable) the aggregate of eggs be le.ss than 

 the number for which application is made, a pro rata reduc- 

 will be made. 

 Respectfully your obedient servant, Spencer P. Baird. 



Commiiisum-i^. 

 Species. 

 Snlmn mlfir (Sea or Atlantic Salmon). Bucksport, Maine. 

 Sahno mlar (vnneiy Sebago). Land-locked Salmon. Grand 

 Lake Stream, i\Iaine. 



Snlmo iridca (California Trout). McCloud River, Cali- 

 fornia. 

 CoregoTma albus (White-flsh). North viUe, Michigan. 



Fisn Notes feom Mawe. — The Belfast Journnl is re- 

 sponsible for the following statements : The salmon-lireeding 

 work.? at Orland, under the supervision of Ilany Buck, re- 

 port good success in procuring eggs, and are niiiking ready 

 for hatching. Mr. Ellis Hanscoin, of JIacbias, is m;iking 

 prenurations for the hatching of salmon from spawn lo be 

 furnished by the Slate Fish Commissioners. He will have 

 oC. 000 or more spawn. The Y'ork County f^ame and Fish 

 Pmiecrive Soeiily intend to have li.shwnys constructed on 

 Saeo Iviver, and persevere in their efforts till the river is 

 stockeii wilh salmon. Gov. Davis baa appointed S. Black 

 Pish Warden at BrooksviUe. Smelts have been biting lively 

 at South Waldoboro. The new hatching. house for fish at 

 Kiueo, Moosehead Lake, containsinany thousand eg.gs, which 

 will keep the lake well stocked with fish of various species. 

 There are now thirteen sardine fiictories in full operation in 

 Enstport, employing about 800 hands. These factories are 

 running night and day, and turn out about 5,000 cases per 

 week, ^Some S8,000 per week are paid out weekly to the 

 hands, men. women and children. The sardines bring from 

 ailO to $12 per case in New Y'ork, and yield, at the lowest 

 figure, $60 000 per week. The Bay Chaleor fishery has 

 proved a fiiilure this season. 



AsTOTJNDrN-o Gbowth of Carp.— It is a fact that the carp 

 has grown faster in America than it does in Its original home 



