388 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



[l)gOBMBBBl6,1880. 



basket caiTied by a small boy nearly t^o hnndrorl small 

 birds, including two woodcock that I am snre were sitting 

 birds, the result of a day's shoot by four or five larger boys. 

 Once I met a man, evidently a fJroi.E;rio.r receotly arrived, 

 who knevsr nothing of our laws or laugnftge, v.iili I'l hunch of 

 seventy-two wood-thrushes from hia morning's woi-k. jVs I 

 traverse the wooda of Long' Iskud thyy art iiov, lo inc. pain- 

 fullv i-ilei!!,. A few years atro the woods resounded with llie 

 sou;;- nl birds ,19 tliey'tlilled-from tree to trci;, and their nests 

 were ai every iiush. The sweet notes of the eh>U, ibeprctly 

 warblings of that lill-le ventrUoquiat, the mocking wren, and 

 the soug of the melodioiis wood-thrush are now only heard 

 occasionally. 



"For the destruction or robbing nesta of wild birdti. — The 

 present law ia a good one, witli l")ie i-xeeption tluit if is not 

 slrinfrent enouRh. I would make the penalty .*10 insteiid of 

 """"' ' ■ ' r,: : iir.d f.ir rulilrinL' the nests of any 



••I ,V -■■,„,:i.'.M-i- r.'il, l-ilfiekand other 



. - ] -. ■ ; r.-.,uld make till- 



■ ■ ,■- ^ - ■', v.-!iLi iiiiiinsonnicnt in tlie 

 iijontlis ur.d not more than six months, 

 ■mily of tlie olTense. My leaRon for re- 

 fine for robbing nests ia this : The 



fioiif,'!']- 

 duclts, 



flue fril 



county J!ii! Iiir 

 accordimr Ui tY 

 lending n 



thief 11 



present fin.- of Sfi is nut enoue-h to intimidate tl' 

 even the sui;ill boy whose fatlier paysthe tine. V^t exfinipie. 

 !i niKu y.-i!'; arrested for robbing birds' nesU in tin- woocis ot 

 .finniucii. He whs fined five dollars and I heard be said 

 that Hvc dollars was only live out of the thirty he eould make 

 out of the sale of his day's plunder which ho had conceal e<l. 

 Out of more than fifty nosts watched by memljers of the 

 society for the protection of soug birds oiily four remained 

 undisturbed, and of these two were robbed of the young birds 

 by these A^andals before they were fledged. 



"Trapping or feeding birds with prepared grain for the 

 purpose of de.struetion. — Any person using traps or snares of 

 any kind for tlie capture of any ^vild l)irds, or using grain 

 soal<.ed in alcohol or any other stupefying drug for the pur- 



pose of capturing tlie: 



and lined .■?:10 for Uie til 



formn l.-ssthan tlin-r r 



janiV.r-': :-•:-' ^ 



ganir 1, 



perstii' ' 



wlueii'i 



ped and captured yearJ. 



ber of traps this year, 1 



ill Ije guilty of a misdeuieanor 



jtfense and 850 witli imprisonment 



lore than six months in the county 



- fvineed that this part of you'r 



't serious attention, as not one 



I'l-inolest idea of tlie extent to 



M. Hundreds of birds are trap- 



1 haye destroyed donbie the num- 



50, than I did in 1870, and have 



picked up birds in a stupefied slate 1 had taken for dead. 

 This proved two ihing.s — viz., that trapping is on the in- 

 crease, and that the present law ia !i dead letter, as there is 

 no one to enforce it 



~"Ga 

 pfote< 



shoul 

 mittc 

 Man. 



? proteeto: 



leh f 



—There should be appointed three more 



^ " -Q, (>tir cos and Suffolk comif 



IS 1 



(,MV ii 



office ; 



mt tlie Oovi.'r 



J or 



-ll 



the r 



'COiunie 



atation of a ei 



IH- 



1 il-.. 



«ideni 



s of tlu 



State and L 



™g 



■ ) ■ 



r.teeti 



on of Fi 



sh and Game. 







'le a 1 



r.v passed to preyent 



uiy 





ill or 



"owlina 



piece in tiie tl 



rec 





■ tlin 



have a 



ecrtifieatelss 



aed 



by tin 



d'-, 



ai\yaystob'-c: 

 protector whe? 

 lificatcwill nu 

 the cj'rtilleate 

 should be ban', 

 fit of tii- ■■: - 

 in ev< . 

 a lav. 

 strike 



all other lav.-.s ■ 

 discriniinate n- 

 jioorest person 

 freedom extendi 

 stroy eyerytliiiig that 

 to continue i Ids nuird 

 a few years dest 



of li: 



. the 



. I ■ ■ ! ...CI tOlbc 



... .r, ..-ii:;,n.,:,,M- iliccer- 

 liai'l- to :irrc-it. 'J'lie price charged for 

 be l^dO, and all moneys so collected 



lo the tJounty Treasiuer for the bene- 

 L' importance of this law is recognized 

 nty except this, 'i'lic passage of such 

 111 the appoinlnient of protectors 



of the diffleulty, and w'ithoiit it 

 in my opinion) a dead letter. The iii- 

 !-arml:, wliieli are in the reach of the 

 eapness of jiowder and shot, and tlie 



ciaiies to hand, are great iiiLlucenu-iits 

 ■roiis work, and will, if unelieelied, in 

 our .song liirds and many of the game 

 birds of onr licautiful island. JTow the most important part 

 of the laws thus recommended if passed yyould la-. I lie ap- 

 pointment of protect or,-., or game constables, andiieen.ses to 

 shoot. I should strongly recommend that tliese oflicers be 

 appointed and governed by the State laws irow in force 

 rather than in any other way. By lieiag appoiiued bj^ the 

 Govr-rnoi- it giyes them nioi-e eiUeient authority tinin they 

 wotdd have if ai.pointed otherwise, as thev ^votdd" be aeknowj- 

 edged and paid by tin; Bi.ale. Now, if a. law should be 

 passed allowing tiii; k'jng Island Society to appoint, il Avonld 

 bn considered a local atiair, and approprialions for the paj'- 

 uient of tfjcse eojistablcfl Avonld be rr-fuse.d. "But if a law 

 should be proposed such as iTcron-uer^H ii wnnldpassnndoubt- 

 edly, and Ihel'resident.sof III. ', , 7' 1 . 



cialions would have the poi,-. 

 dent of the State Aa.sociatioi; 

 reanes'- tbp Pp:-siiicnf of r 



lesl judge lo aelecl proper per- 

 sons. .1 I o'<nonsibilityforpayment of these 

 ofllccrs, ,1 ii I ii T.' 110 as'^ume tlmt. .But if local legisla- 

 tion is resorteu to I do not lielieve one farthing would be 

 appropriated for sucii a purpose. The people are opposed to 

 such use of moneys, a? our taxes are now high enough. If 

 resort is had to clubs it wdll cert.ainly fall through! The 

 above suggestions will meet all objections so far as politics 

 are concerned and ^^•i]^ remove tlicse ai)iiointmeiitH out of the 

 reach of Die poliiicians.'' 



After the readine: of the ahoyi' )aii.ier ilr. Pike was ten- 

 dered the thanks of tiie .'Vssoriaii'.n ami elected a member of 

 the Game Comndlice. The e . - .ng Uien adjourned. 



The Game Law Committee of the Long Island Sportsmen's 

 Association met last Saturday evwiing, Cnpt. A\'. ].. B. 

 Steers in the chair. Several letters were read and dLscussed. 

 The smrE-eetions of Mr. F. S. Wagev, of Eome, N. Y., re 

 Hpecting.Tiuiceway damswas adopted. Mr. John N. Bab- 

 cock, of Syracuse, -wrote: 



" In perfecting tte game laws for next season pernnt me 

 to suggest that iu the eighth line in section 2:? as amended 

 May 81, 1880, tlierc he added after the word (riljutaries, ' nor 

 in Seneca, Oi I '■ - '"^ - r ';o rivers or their tributaries.' 

 That is the V, iiill was drawn, for I drowMt my- 



self, and tbo . : re iaadvcvteiiily left out. Also 



hBTe added -: -li.;_ ... .ai 'ii, afterword 'minnows' in 

 15th line, 'in any other manner.' I would also call your at- 

 tention to the last claim of section 23 in which is staled that 

 all nets, etc , etc., are declared contraband, and may be 

 destroyed without liability to persons so lindLDg and de- 

 stroying. 



"That right to destroy is a mooted qufstion so far as I can 

 learn, and has never linen judicially decided If a person 

 can so desirrn,' such nets, etc., ujider such circumBtfluees and 

 not be legally liable, it is a first-rate clause ; if they cannot, it 

 onglit to be expunged and save trouble. Otir Onondaga 

 County Fishing Club have a suit now pending ou that very 

 cpiestion, on account of our '/..imc constable." The sugges- 

 tions iu this letter were r' > 



Mr. Hasbronek; of K.'. ih follows ; 



"! wisli to call your rio . .lIiou 2'^ as to fouling 



waters. That section as it nov. staiids is an utter nidiity. If 

 possible it slioidd be amended so as to be operative. Our 

 bretliern in several of the AA'estem States and Territories are 

 in advance of us in tliis matter : abso, I believe, in Canada, 

 where it U nnu.ie a misde.inennor and a pen.alty inflicted as 

 well, 'i'anneries are compelled to rrm their leaclungs in sink 

 holes, where gradual absorliiion will lake place, or iu the 

 neighborhood of cities and villages into vats, yvhere the valu- 

 able liquid manure may be utilized for fertilizing purposes, 

 for wh.ich it is adniiraldy adapted and would be a source of 

 profit to the taimer. In the case of saw mills Ihey are com- 

 pelled to burn their slali and dust, or otherwise dispose of 

 such waste, b>U not run it off into the stream, destroying Ilia 

 fish and the spawntnj; beds. The lower part of a fine large 

 stream in ibis vicinity has been utterly ruined by a large 

 tannery erected upon it a few years ago and now iu active 

 operalfoii. Last spring when they first let off their leacluugs 

 at the time the fish were ascending the boys iu the neighbor- 

 hood picked up ba.sketfuls of fine fisli, and among ihem over 

 loO fine trout, one weighing over two pounds. The salmon 

 part of this stream was famous tor its line trout iu former 

 years, and would lie again if the tannery could be interdicted 

 from discharging its Jeaehings into the stream. The same 

 may be saiid with equal truth of another tanner)' near by on 

 the'Upper KondotU, one of the finest natm-al trout streams in 

 the State. The stream was rapidly filling up with trout, 

 when two years ago tanning operations were resumed, when 

 the .same sad results occurred; nearly every fish except a 

 few small worthless suckers and red fins were killed for 

 several miles below, and the beautiful, limpid waters made 

 to reek with odors like a cesspool. It may be tliat the time 

 has not arrived for such legislation, vet it seems to me 

 reasonalile that it younger States can ijass and enforce such a 

 provision surely the gre'at Statu ot iSew York should not be 

 behind in progressive ideas." 

 This was idso adopted. 



A lengthy letter was received from Dr. Hart, of Hudson, 

 K. Y., in '-'"lard to 'lip restrictions on waterfowl shooting on 

 Oioliu'i :. : ie'i he thought that there .should be very 



fewre'-.i.ii "aei-c did jiot very many waterfowl stop 



there, v. • i 1 n: ■ ih -l did only staid a short finie. The com- 

 mittee were greatly in favor of the' above, and the letter was 

 placed on file for further discussion. It was decided to 

 make the law in regard to the meshes of nets read "a immber 

 of inches sipiare," Instead of a "certain inind.ier of inches." 

 Now a net with a one-inch nie.di can be made to measiue two 

 inches, but if made to lueaam'e two inches square, they Can- 

 not do that. Mr. Chappel then showed a collection of si.x 

 fish. A yellow pendi wliich would weigh 2 lbs. and one tliat 

 wcadd not weiab halt an ounce were .shown, both of which 

 M'ere eauErht in the same net. He also showed several dif- 

 ferent varieties in the same way. He said what is sold tor 

 whitebait in our markets is nothing more or leas than the fry 

 of all kinds of fish, and also I hat it was of no use to plant 

 fish until this was stopped. It was decided tt) adopt the fol- 

 lowing; That no net or sieve should be used in Coney 

 Island' Creek, or in Gravesend Bay, withiu one mile of the 

 mouth of said creek, exeeptmg between the first of October 

 and the first of April, and theaf the mesh must be four inches 

 squai'e. After a discussieai on the size of fish .allo\^'ed to be 

 sold the meeting adjourned to meet at the Fountain Gun 

 Club roejms on Saturda:. '- i "^tli irst. If any section of the 

 Slate washes to be lice; ■ ' 1 eioi to the game laws it 



is reouested to write M^jsible, as the iie.st will 



probably be the last niee, : ;.: d lae 1 ommittee. 



OUR PHILADELPHIA LETTER. 



THK admirable arlicles on the wild fowl of oiu- coimtry 

 which appear m For.tssT and SxREAiki, espcchally the 

 column on the marsh, uplanil, or fresli-water ducks, reminds 

 your correspondent of the acute sense of smell they have as 

 compared with the sea ducks. This is particulaidy notice- 

 iible iu decoying for geese and lirant, when stools represent- 

 ing the black duck are also set out, but always in such a 

 position that the latter approaching th,. J -.e ,, ,.- ,|nt catch 



the wind of ihe sporbsnian. t;ver\ ■ ■■■hlug the 



decoys and cro.ssing the line 01 wind in ■ ^ ■ or Wind, 



no matter how deeeptiye il is, will ai o;.c- "jump" or 

 "climb" skvwa.i-d the neaiinil, his ex.jiuaiie .■jcenting powers 

 detects the hidden slioei|ei\ d"le^ I h-n-e noticed is not tiie 



-'■.'"' -' '• Ar;\ i\ui-ky. ivn- •' '"'-'e or braut appear 



vci- Ihe Ijtind, ie ' !■ ti the decoy in 



.in, oftentimes ill a, Without being' 



.,::,, ,,,._,i j lie innllard, blael 1 ; iiil, baldpato, or 

 Widgeon and te^d, of the list of "marsh ducks," all act in 

 this'manner, and it has struck me that this acute sense of 

 snudl is a characteristic of all ducks which, as a rule, are not 

 deen divers in feeding and secure their food mainly in shoal 

 wat'cr where it ca.n'lie olii.ained fioni the lioltoin without 

 submeririns their bodies. The deen divers, of which I 

 would mention the eanvas-baek. red-head aud black-head, 

 have never acted so in my ex]ierienee, and may it not be 

 that the rule holds good iu the entire list of both classes, and 

 that the marsh ducks possess the acuter sense of smell and 

 the deep divers the less sensitive olfactory powers. 



Mr. Charles Whitman, in a letter lo your correspondent, in 

 descnbing hia Pedigree, I.)(;mutirB Kato seller dog, tells me 

 he is fully as handsome as the sire, eonsider;d)ly larger, and 

 jioasesses dark points, lyhieh the father did not. Certainly 

 this would make him a finer show dog, but we question if 

 there ever e.xistetl a dog with a more beautiful coal and 

 feather tlian PcdigTce, to say nothing about his iinmonso 

 depth of chest. 



In speakinc: of his kennel Mr. ■VVliilman stales he intends 

 dis]]osuig of Idl his sellers, a Petrel-Cotmt Dick, bitch, and 

 a Druid ("ubaB bitcii, and devote his time entirely to his 

 black pointers, wldeh he likes better and better every d.ay. 

 "Theyliave rcm.arkable noses and are the nio.st tractable in 

 training of any dogs I ever -saw. Stonehenge spoke so 

 veiy highly of the black pointer and of their rarity that I 

 turned ^to them, aud am much pleased with my decision. 

 They are no parlor dogs, but are stout in limb and body, 

 hea'vily muscled, and show quality all over, with thick, 

 glossy coats. The first quails the bitch (^six months old) ever 

 scented she poiuted and stayed there while I killed several of 

 ttutiO." 



W Mr. Whitman refers to the criticisms published on his call- 

 ing his pointers " Spanish blacks," and asks my opinion on 

 the subject and remarks, " I have the breeder of the strain in 

 England as authority." We have never heard of such abreetl 

 of pointers, but do know black pointer puppies siiow them- 

 selves in many litters, and we cannot .see but that by contin- 

 ued choice iu breeding black to black for many generations, 

 this color, if it may lie called a color, might become thechar- 

 aclerislic one of tile strain. This breeding to color is nolice- 

 alilc in Ml-. Theo. .-ylorford's sellers, anfi we lind bis dogs in- 

 ■ariably orange and white (seldom freckled ,1 with dsirk nose 

 nd eyes ; and here let rue slate that even iu the pedigrees of 

 ilr. M'a dogs there appears the name of Phi I is, a black and 

 tan setter hitch, but away back. We mention this to show 

 how tins gentleman's continued sticking to 1 ho orange and 

 white and dark nose and eyes in choice of sire aud dam has 

 fmallv overcome the sho^nng of any other color in his litters. 

 Some, say there may crop out a liiack and tan. There never 

 has yet, "at least withiu the past five yeiirs, to the writer' 

 knowledge. WOl Mr. Jlorford inform us t- 



But to return to the name of Mr. A'v'hitman's pointers, 

 ' Spanish black." We do not knoyv that the breeder intends 

 by thus callmg them to show they are of the old Spanish 

 blood, aud he errs here if such is bis intentifjn, for the color 

 of this old breed was liver and liver and white, and even iu 

 Spain the strain as it once existed is never seen, having been 

 modernized and refined by the ligliler and speedier pointer. 



Several of the late works on dogs mention noted breeds of 

 black pointers as purely English, and without wi'ihing to dic- 

 tate in any miuuier, wo think Mr. WTiitmstn should give to 

 his new importation the name of their breeder and await the 

 result of the union of the dog and bitch he has purchased in 

 the first litter. We trust he may find llic puppies all black. 

 We doubt it, however, but would be pleased to find that be 

 has or will succeed in establishing a breed of pointers that 

 will invariably " throw true to color." Shade of coat is no 

 criterion logo by as regards superiority iu the field; how- 

 ever, it is merely fancy, and as the old saying tells us "a. 

 good horse may bo of any color." And now tiu-ning from 

 the dog to game again, what a trying -winter the poor quail 

 has in prospect. You have taken up a capital subject to ven- 

 tilate Messrs. Editors, that of their protection, etc., and you 

 correspondent particularly noted the reply to your call for the 

 opinions of sportsmen in last week's issue of Forest akd 

 Si-BEA.!!. I refer to the article signed by "a member " ot the 

 West Jersey Game Protection Association. Such matter 

 from the pen of so able a gentleman as the authoi- proves 

 himself to be cannot fail to do great good, and lie should be 

 earnestly reciuested to furnish frecpient letters. Ho!«o. 



In last week's issue "Homo" was made by tlie types lo 

 s))eak of the sale of vaccine by the " pint," whereas he wrote 

 "points." Vaccine is ordinarily- obtained in one sf three 

 forms, viz.: (l.j the dried crmsh ; (2.) quills charged on 

 convex surface with lymph; (3.) ivory pointK. 



In. the same article, iov " allnUun" read ■■albatus,^' and for 

 "kyperiarus" read "Uyperlmreua." 



PENNSYLVANIA GROUSE-SHOOTING. 



NOT since the opening of the Columbia aud Port Deposit 

 Railroad has sport been as good as this year in southern 

 Lancaster County. The opening of the road through Uiat 

 hitherto iuaeeess'ible region of Southern Pennsylvania was 

 tlie signal for a rush of the sportsmen of Philadelphia, Wd- 

 niingtwi and Baltimore in such numbers as iu a few years to 

 almost clear that once famous game section of every game 

 liird that chooses that romantic section for its habitat. 



The time was wdien the sportsman of Lancaster cherished 

 with no smidl degree of pride the tact that on the rugged hills 

 on the banks of the Smsquohanua that prince of game birds, 

 ruffed grouse, wa.s alwa3-s to be found ; and ,is w-e write we 

 ea-n recall the chagrin of many a cit.y sportsman, who, under 

 the care of the hospitable Muldenberg or genial Hopple, 

 tramped for days to bag one, but whose nerves were unstrung 

 at each successive rise and whose shots were as often sent al- 

 ter the echo of the whu--r-r as after the hmrying bird. 



We never can forget the quiet.pomted humor of the man first 

 named above, that was so searching and provoking over one's 

 faihu-es as to cause the subject to peraevere from day to day, 

 unto, worn out by sheer fatigue, he abandoned the getting of 

 one trophy untU the following season, when, ten to one, the 

 same thing was again repeated. 



Muhlenberg, kiunvn far and wide among genuine lovers of 

 field sport, is gone; but the memory of hia interest in all that 



— "--'-- a deep hold upon the af- 



' sportsmen in this vicini- 



,os: appreciateck 



-i--;.- ''! ■ 'nils bordering on 



i ! lehanna through 



I ; the river — was 



a Limners during the 



ire for the purpose 



the ex-pcctnney of 



liat VA possible if the 



ad : 



sited it, 



was noble in outnloor recrcal 

 fections of the present generat h 

 ty, where he ^vas best known f 



Knowing that the -svoodland 

 the Pcqua— a stream emptyiiiL' 

 a deep, wild cut in the range o 

 comparatively free from the i 

 seasons of 1878 and 1879, we v 

 of seeing what could be foimd than 

 finding anything. The result shows v 

 birds in a country can only be left for a short time to replen- 

 ish themselves. There could not in this section iu 1877 he 

 found a dozen grouse. 



Getting out early in the morning for partridge, the dog« 

 found a eoyey near the edge of a thickly wooded hill, which, 

 on being flushed, tlew to the cover. Following them, and 

 fmchng the dog on a point just inside the wood, but beneath 

 the thtckest of green briars, to the throwing in of a stone four 

 grouse -.iot up simultaneously. This was too much for the 

 writer, tin aigh used to the sound of their oalbbeat and noise of 

 rapid lUght since childhood. They got. away while we forgot 

 the gmi in our hands, but tlie sight and sound fired our blood, 

 noand more part ridges for us that day. Tocall nut the dog, to 

 pat, praise and encourage her was the first thing; then to move 

 on cautiously, following the thickest of growths bi the rough- 

 est of ravines, with dog alw.ays in sight and.well in hand. 



We were, about giving up a'fler a long aud tiresome tramp 

 a-n-av beyond the nud-day bom, when to the whistle for theever- 

 obedient do.^ we received no response. After a hurried look 

 she was found up the hUlside on a rigid point iu almost clear 

 gromid, liut no bird iu sight. Folluwina rarefnlly. and witli 

 hope of seeing a bird at every step, :■ ' '-guat tC 



see the doir move slowly onward, but iiat and 



clo.so, andlhc next instant two grouse J ,, _ yy. By 



this time, having regained composiu!.- an- 1 Icnov-irig iv hat was 

 comiug, both loads were sent after them, hut only one bird 

 secured. This was enough. Tlicre w^ere birds on the hillt), 

 and we would have them. The dog, always good on part- 

 ridges, aud alwavs loved, surpassed anything we ever saw 

 and suddenly acquired an inestimable value hi our sight. 

 No dinner, no thought of fatigue and we went on and oa till 

 daik -with vaiyiiii; success. 



