JisvAsr 13, 1881.] 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



469 



tilt! cimt side " is that deer are 



;■ ■'[ l-iiLvliii- „rr that thev 



and liked by everybody, ohb who appreciates a good act and 

 quick to resfint iu justice. 



Ttieresiiltof houiidiiiLT 

 very scarce, aud tin- :iiv 

 iavB "killed the l- • . i 



sequence, thewarui ,, , I'l - :. . ;ii:-,islrou.f. for 



many havi;bc(3n pois..,M.-.l 1,1 ;-, ^, i I ;i[ri'',i ■>! one pariy 

 that lo.m six bounds iu 111:,; ,. i ihrt-o ;iEfl ai-jYrr'i] 



parties wilb cacii II .singl!.' ii,',, ; , -, visited witli ilip 



same remedy. I know how i !;,_- ;;,,,,: -^ li el, for I havo been 

 enough interested in the subject to find out by talking with 

 them. 



The rush from " the east side 

 to " the west side " during the p: 



■west side " ptuiile must do 

 east side " ha 

 have been i^s 

 houndiiJL'' ■.'•''■ 

 forthfanif.,, _ 

 side.'' wbih 

 ina tbo faiihf 

 iB-oba^iriirlh, 



laetliod of pivjttciiivj 111," d, 

 The Long Island A.s.vji-ia 

 their reCOminendiU.ion, ■mrl 

 to still further eoiisul! wlMi 

 their petition "perfeclnd." 



iidvocate,^ of hounding 

 , i , : rhat "the 



1,-er. '-The 

 hIv 1:iv I . iiid hounds 



•-) loiiL'ti !,,,,.. ,_..,,-:,. ,Lic- ,i,ivocates of 

 !i joy lit the giues lieing opened 

 ' pursiit- their Epori on "the west 

 " is partially protectiid by poison- 

 iit hound, who only obeys instinct 

 •I'lasr, that is a very eUieacious 

 leer. 



i.tioti ciinnothope to EUii.;,.,| ivii], 

 I 1 iliink it would be nii- , , r,, 

 asHoeiations bef, ,r, mIji 



VVu,.i,AI 



No. 4, ADIRo^^5Ac■KS. 

 I notice tliat your St. I/awrence County correspondent com- 

 plains of an undue amount of deer slanghtercd by the use of 

 dogs. This is only one of a hundred instances of the kind 

 that have taken place all over the Adiiondacks since the pa.s- 

 sage of the present obnoxious law making the open season 

 for hoimdlng deer two and a half months. There is no doubt 

 but that that law has been the means of the destruction of 

 more than, two thousand deer during tiie past two years. 

 Deer take very readily to water late in' the fall. Pot hunters 

 have taken advantage of this fact, siireariing themselves on 

 the numerous lakes' of this region and iiterallv fillinir the 

 woods with boimds. Visit any pail, of the Adironriacks 

 during October and you will hear the voice of the hound her- 

 alding the swift destruction of this noble game in our great 

 New York wilderness. As this mode of hunting requires no 

 skill, any one with an outfit consisting of a boat" and dog, an 

 old musket or two-dollar fowling-piece, or what is consider- 

 ed an equally indispensable armament — a good club -can be 



^sful as tl. 

 breech loading gun o 

 quired skill. It is tr 

 " to hold the d(>er bj' 

 the iiead," Cut ther 

 Shore the deer is cnti 

 him as many times as ii 

 his club. Now, right b, 

 me wherein is .the difEc 

 deer and crustmg li 



lie, hi,s lo 



r sportsnuin with his modern 



,g eisperience and hard-ac- 



Hie pot niinter does not have a guide 



ic tail vdiile he shoots him through 



.'hec oDCfc he has heen cut off from the 



ly ill Ids power. Ke can shout at 



pleases, or lieat out his brains with 



■e, will you be kind enough to tell 



'uce between this mode of killinir 



killing them in the deep snows rrf 



winter on snow-shoes? In cilhercusc they are deprived of 

 all llie means with which nature has provided them to 

 escape their enemies, and thus requires no skill on the part 

 of the hunter. 



I am of the same opinion of your correspondent. Unless 

 the game laws regarding deer are so amended as to prohibit 

 houmUng deer, the time is shoM: when deer will to any 

 amoimt cease to exist on tlie Adiiondacks. Or if sportsmen 

 requhe a short open srastui, let th it be at a time wheii deer 

 cannot be so easily driven to water, and also at a time when 

 sportsmen are most likidy to he lienefited Ihereby. 



Very few sportsmen visit, the woods later iban the middle 

 of September, unless they go in for tlie purpose of slaughter- 

 ing deer by hounding. Tlii.'retore 1 would suggest that if 

 any open season for lionnciing deer be allowed, lei that time 

 be the first two weeks ui Sepiember. This would accommo- 

 date the sportsmen, while it would prevent the great slaugh- 

 ter late in the fall by pot hunters and uiarketmem 



C. rsNTON. 



FOX-SnOOTING IN DUTCHESS COUNTY. 



of the asioiii 



induces me o 



however, bef 



out of oj-der I 



for the very misportsi: 



om red ganic (of whici 



K>en b-vine- -n- limes with Reynard this fall, 



■ -I' i! - ' ' Ml,.' last run, to sav nothing 



: L - : : ,', r I :, I favored our !it;tle partv, 



•!,,i _• ,11 :. , -•-., Mphoii of the SHine. Isuppose, 



e lelliyig yon riiy story, that it wiuld not be 



frankly upolf)gi7,e lo our pinlc-coaled brethren 



dike manner in which we bagged 



they will surely accuse us). "But 



when one has no alternative, what is one to do? Shooting 

 foxes is not the sport " par (excellence " of any country, much 

 less om' own — but enough ! pin in for it, so here goes '. 



Dutchess County, ten miles east of Poughkeepsi'e, presents 

 an appearance not fiivoriible to ecjueslrians, to say the least, 

 "off of the road," and I have yet to see the nag that will fol- 

 low the hounds in that locality, much less the I'nau, be he ever 

 so bold or daring. The only way in which the red thieves 

 can be brought to bag up here is by the trap and gim, and as 

 the former method is only practiced oecasieuially by the far- 

 mer lads, we were forced (shall I say r ;, lo adopt the latter. 



One bright October morning, tlie frost lying thick and 

 white over hill and vale, and ihe air heen 'as' mid-winter, 

 found our party of shivering, good-natured Nimrods busily 

 stowing away the dogs and guns and gelling ready for the 

 Start. The horses were dancing and impatient to be off and 

 we were soon bowling merrily along. A drive of several 

 miles linaJly hroiighl us to oiu-"destiuaiion— a long, low, old- 

 fashioned f.iiiii-buise, lialf buried in the grand old trees. So 

 with inauv a whoop and cheer we drove into the old barn- 

 yard, seatteriiii.; Ihe duekfi and ehickeiis hi all diivcli,.ns an,l 

 bringing to the doors aud windows the sleepv faces of the' ia- 

 matea, who probably ihemght a band of savage Sioux had ar- 

 ived. 



It did not take long to put the ponies under shelter and to 

 get the breech-loaders out of their cases, and we were soon 

 wending our way up the steep hill to the west of the Imuse. 

 preparatory to taking om- stands on the different runways^ 

 Old "Lester," our guide and general-in-cliief— than wlioui a 

 better shot or more ihnr.-.n.rir w,„iOs;iein never lived— was 

 confident of '," 1 , n.i.-same hill. So, 



afteraralhei • :, ,: , ■■i,.id olT" by the 



oldmanlo,,,; ; , - ,, ,i,,,i,,-r there, until all 



were settled. Dor and myself Ijciiii;- mI,1 iiaiids, eouiparativcly 

 Speaking, at the business, quietly slipped around the liill to 

 the meadow lands below aud located ourselves behind the 

 Stone wall. The dogs were running high above us, through 

 the woods and over the huge rocks^ but save the anery caw 

 of some startled crow at his breakfast, not a soimd broke the 



stilluess of the morning air. In a short time I saw Bugle 

 thrust bis black and tan muzzle out of the dense underbrush, 

 and I kue\s' that tbo .jig was up as far as that hill was con- 

 cerned. So, calling to Lester, he soon had the dOL'S iu and 

 we three went on lo the wn ridge, afiout half a iiiile distant. 



Here the old man left us and |.iluoged into the swamp with 

 Ihe dogs, cautioning Doe. and 1 to get to our places. The 

 former, not minding the cold air iu "the least, iiei-elied bim- 

 se'd' up on Ihe top rail of the fence, to better view the land 

 below him, wldle 1 choie a warm corner in the old mo.ss- 

 covcred wall. The lime lunig heavily for iqiward of an hour, 

 and I began t,j weary oi' the- ceMistam, sli-ain t,ryiuL: to hear 

 the dogs, when rhe dis-,ani liay r/f a hound came' umsiwilly to 

 my ears, and sent the blood Imgling through my veins 'like 

 fli-e ! Yes, I was not mistaken." Tlie long-chawn howl again 

 faintly quivered through the ah, and 1 hastily drew out' the 

 shells to make "sartain" sure of my charge. It was with 

 fhrfereut feelings that I again glanced over the stonewall, 1 

 can assure you. Every ra.Hnent now the notes of the pack 

 in full cry could be heard, and I judged from the direction 

 of the sound that they were running a hill miles to the south 

 of us. 



I was enjoying the situation exceedingly, and mentally 

 -' Mie ,;■ ihe final scene if his crafty lord.ship would only 

 If" my way^ wiien looking "up the knoll toward 

 lid tliat worthy gesticulating wildly with his hat 



i\nii,B fcviileutly to follow" h 

 hammers and glancing cautiously 

 lordship trottLug along, "kind o' ( 

 up and evideutly suspi<ious, for a 

 rels in rising to a standing posilir 

 likoaflasbr 1 knocliedhim ov 

 about to n.ake matters 



,l)lc. Draw ing back both 

 ver tlie wall, I beheld his 

 relefis like," his head well 

 I glanced alo'-g the bar- 

 , lie saw me and was off 

 at full .sixty yards, and 

 him the second 



barrel, when Doc. yelled to me to fook out! I was puzzled, 

 to say the least, as the hounds were just within hearing and 

 could not possibly have heen trailing this one. Here the 

 Doctor joined me, and we sat down lo discuss the matter in 

 the open field, when like magic the music of the dogs burst 

 full upon us. To move was i'mpossible. and so we remained 

 like two brown statues, our hearts iu om throats, for in full 

 view comuig down the hillside a fox was running for his life 

 aud the dogs not seventy yards behind him. Tt was the 

 finest chase 1 ever saw. On he came, no time to look ahead, 

 and in less time than I can tell it the Doctor's gun rang out 

 his death-knell, and he, the cunning scamp, was no more. 

 Two pelts aud the sim not four hours high was grand good 

 luck indeed, and we were highly elated. The rest of the 

 boys hearing the guns now came running in, and we were 

 soon talking as only fox'-shooters can talk over the result. 

 0;d Lester had not as yet put in his appearance, so lighting 

 our pipes we sat discussing the run and "fighting the"'battle 

 o'er again." In a short time, however, the old man was seen 

 striding along toward us, mtich to our amazement, with a 

 fox dangling from his arm and a merry twinkle in his eye at 

 our unfeigned astonishment. Mutual congratulations of 

 course followed, aie.j we learned that dru-ing the morning the 

 dogs started the red iinj) alnrost under his feet, and he "cut 

 loose" with the re-ult above stated. To say that we were 

 not a h.appy lot of fellows over those three "varmints" 

 would lie uniicccssar}''. 



So ended our last himt in Dutchess for 1880, and it is the 

 sincere wish of your correspondent that all who contemplate 

 a day with " Keynard and the gun " will have as good a time 

 and be favored with as good luck. Blue Bill. 



WILD FOWL IN CONFINEMENT. 



IHA.V.E lately been inspecting the collection of wild fowl 

 at our Philadelphia Zoologital Garden, and cannot help 

 remarking upon their excellent condition. Until this year 

 all the geese and flocks indigenous to North America have 

 been housed during the winter, which necessarily deprived 

 them of tlie exercise which is requisite for good health. Now 

 the society has inclosed a portion of these grounds, partly 

 sheltered by trees, about an acre iu extent, and 1 found lh"e 

 several varieties, without exception, in fine feather, and be- 

 ing present at feeding lime noted their very healthy appe- 

 tites. Ban-els turned over on ilu-ir sid>s and partially fiUed 

 with straw furnished a shelter for the birds in extreme cold 

 weather, but as all om- wild fowl are of a hardy constitution 

 and accustomed to storms and ice, I learned they seldom 

 took advantage of the cover offered them, preferring to 

 sleep outside. 



In the collection I noticed the black aud white swan, the 

 European gray goose, the Canada goose, the brant, the can- 

 vas-back duck, the red-head, the widgeon, the lilaek duck, 

 the teal aud summer duck. Six or S(f\eu years ago, wdiUe 

 your correspondent was attending to some building ou Long 

 Beaoh, N. J., eigM l.lack ducks but a few davs old were 

 brought to nie alive. They were pmchased and"given to one 

 of the baymen to raise, with the promise lliat for every one 

 reared he should have a dollar. Supposing the wiiole 'num- 

 ber had died 1 thought nothins more about them until the 

 following September when I was aliout leaving the lieach 

 where I had been spending the Hinniner. As the boat was 

 about leaving the dock my liayman brought tome a huge box 

 containing Ihe eight black ducks, now nearlv three-qmirlcrs 

 gTown. H-astily directing the IjOx to tlie Zoological Garden, 

 Philadelphia, and afterward writing to the society regardiuc 



them, I saw nothing more of the ducks 

 ed the garden ami found ihem r|uiellv and c 

 ming in the lake. Tliey are now In their 

 and as glossy as an ibis. Two have died, o^ 



ance are as gentle as barn-var,r fowl, and 

 species is one of our wildJst ami slives>,. 

 and !■,:■ 



tr ve-rv ta 

 ■;e widge 

 ng his la 



1 one day visit"^ 

 entedlyswim- 

 nter plumage 

 g lo the bung- 

 led. The bal- 

 ls known tliis 

 le eanvas-back 

 lie, and I wit- 

 on and a male 



- . ,. opponent 

 t"-"" ""■ '< "1 ■■' ■ ■• ' ■■•■■■II"! here mention that the Zoo- 

 logical Society of Philadtlimia would be much pleased to re- 

 ceive from sportsmen any \ving-t,ipped game I hey nniy come 

 in possession of, especially Ihe wild geese, liraiit or" ducks, 

 for the collection at their garden. 



Ihe intensely cold weather we have been having, accom- 

 panied by the heavi' falls of snow in the past two weeks, is 

 playiv'L' ■^•■.<\ !i:iv,,e with our game in this State and New Jer- 

 sey. .11 1 :: II r; and quail have lieen foimd frozen, and 

 whol, , , Oil." laller bird discovered under the snow, 



hud.ll,-i, :r jr i.i ■ :.s they roosted, stiff and dead. In the 

 wilder counties of Pennsylvania deer have been seen near the 

 'odda- stacks in close proximity to the farm-house, being 

 driven there to seek food. We must remember our winter 

 has just begun aud we will likely have as severe, if not more 

 severe, weather in Janu.-u-y and February. With this in 

 view is it not necessary that something should be done for 



the protection of our game (if there rem-^ms any) next au- 

 tumn ? What sportsman would not fore-io his quail shoot- 

 ing for one season aud devote his atteutlou to the duck's, 

 snipe and woodcock which are migratory,, while poor Bob 

 While, decimated in numbers as he will most certainly be, 

 may increase iu quantity ? 



While I write it is aii.dn snowing, with a prospect of a 

 fourth heavy fall, Resi assured this is certaoilv to he the 

 most disastrous winter on thi^ quail we have had for many 

 years. 



On the New Jersey ,-.:oast, at Atlantic City, Tuekerton aud 

 Barnegat, all the feeding-grounds frequenled liy the black 

 duck are frozen over, consequenlly they are pushed to poLotS 

 wiierc they are easily killed in numbers, but they are poor 

 and \vortliless for the table Great quantities were Shot last 

 wi;ek, ^useless save f,:ir their feathers. 



At Sinnepuxent the sound is freizeu completely over, and 

 what few ducks the perch fishennen, with their Iiets. do not 

 frighi;en off the shoals are obliged to go further south. We 

 fancy these waters afford Utile pereleii.shing, nov,' that every- 

 thing is frozen up. 



AVc remember some years ago being ai. SinrKpuvenl Soimd 

 goose-ahooling and eibserved the eileel, ihe hotels ami liridge 

 had on the flight of fowl as tliey neared the objects mcn- 

 tioned. Not a goose passed within gun-shot, every bird 

 crossing this capital shooting point much beyond rantje, when 

 at one time, before the hotel was liuih, and l,liebri(Ige"'erected, 

 .Messrs. Tabor and Stokes, who still eiwn the point, enjoyed 

 great sporl wiienever there was a. flight of either geese or 

 ducks. K-nowinsT it to be a waste of time to ixanain where 

 we w-ere, we made (mr way to the beach side of the sound 

 and there, hidden in boxes sunk into the .sand r.ear llie wa- 

 ter's edge, with wild .geese decoys ,;honkers, as they are 

 caUed there), managed to get .several good sl,o,:,s and to 'kill a 

 quantity of fowl. But the day for alf siieh sport at Siniie- 

 puxent Sound is over, the best part of the bea'eli beinsr taken 

 up by a waterLug-place hotel and outbuildings at Oceiur City. 

 And so it is all along the New Jersey coast, from Long 

 Branch to Atlantic City, aud soon will bJ to the capes of the 

 Delaware. Capital grounds for bay-bird shooting in the 

 summer and fowl and duck-shooting in the fall and winter 

 are enthely destroyed by watering-place hotels. Homo. 

 Philadclphifi. 



A TRUE PLOVER SHOOTING STORY. 



WITH A MOKAl. 



IT is said that " the best laid schemes o' mice and men 

 gang aft a-gley," and thus must all those have thought 

 who have tried upland plover shooting. 



Of all the birds on the sportsman's list, the gray or grass 

 plover is the wildest and most not get-atable. Unlike his 

 wary imele, the goose, he will be enticed by neither stool nor 

 call, in fact his cry is so hard to imitate that we liave only 

 Imown one mau who could correctly counterfeit it. Thfs 

 was an old bayman of Long Island," vdio used to say that 

 when he first got it dowm fine, he used to fool himself, so 

 much so that he would in an abstracted moment go and hide. 

 Down in the East the good folks call this pitiver the HumiUty 

 or Humilt for short, perhaps on account of his modest and re- 

 tiring natiu-e, but the Yankees used to circumvent him oc- 

 casionally by shooting out of wagons or from behind a stalk- 

 ing horse. 



Our story takes us back to many years ago, when the 

 pasture lands of Ocean County, N. J., were a 'favorite ram- 

 bhng place for plover. They came there in September in 

 flocksof himdreds, filling the ah with their plaintive call aud 

 straining the " long Toms" of the Jersey farmers. 



It was upon a crisp, frosty morning that four of us crossed 

 the bay from the beach to have a crack at the plover that 

 frecpiented the rolling upland pastures of the mainland. 

 The Honorable S. was of the party, a short, jolly personage, 

 of fifty summers, well gromided in all that pertained to spra-t| 

 liut extremely nearsighted. The prow of om- skiff' had but 

 just grated against the sand, when the Honorable S. drew 

 from under the gunwale of the lM>at a huge cow's skin, sur- 

 uwunted with a pair of huge horns. To don this and se- 

 curely fa.sten it by kuotling a short piece of fish Une iiromid 

 his neck, was but the work of a moment. He then looked 

 up, and with a Satanic smile said: "Boys, I've got them 

 now." Away to the westward rolled the hills, dotted here 

 and there with large herds of cattle, while from tlic wetiish 

 slashes between the knolls the flute-like note of plover was 

 born down upon tire air. "Now, boys," said the gay de- 

 ceiver, "you station yourselves behind'' the fences and I'll 

 start up tlie birds." On went the RoiioraOle S bent over in 

 imitation of a cow, his gun in hand, and his spe-ctacle.^ with 

 demoniac luster gleaming ou his nose. We, in slleat admi- 

 ration at his "happy thought," ensconced ourselves behind 

 the fence and peeped through the rails witli anxious feehnn's, 

 waiting to see wheilier the vim: would prove effective. ° 



At last the Honorable S. spied a plover light at the base of 

 one of the hills, and bobbing after him he went. He had 

 lessened the distance almost half and was witliin a hundred 

 yards of his vieiim, v ' ' 

 hull. He was a gra 

 made him look larger 

 before. He was not 

 he could use up tliis 

 his tall a snap that sf 

 say, "Whoopda: Ei 



new ?" Tlie cows of 



took in the silualion at a ghmee. They first looked at the 

 counterfeit and then at then- lord and master, who was mark- 

 ing lime to the thoughts that Heeled through his mind. One 

 and all shook their heads, as if to say, "Just like him," and 

 being of the f-hilosoiiliie sort, resumed the o'opping of the 



The bull took one step forward, and, like Hiunlet's ghost, 

 sniffed the morning air. There was a devil-may-care twm- 

 kle in his eye, aud an e.\iiltiDg chuckle in his respiration, as 



ben from the nearest he 



d fail, strorle a 



Id animal, and the air 





to us than mix bovin,' 



• ■ . •■■,-eu 



jngry, but pleased, j - 



:.,,ii , 1,1. iiow 



intruder r,,, Ids d, 'ir,.-:ii 



-.. ;ii,u, ii,.- gave 



undod likea|iist,ob.,li,,r, 



as mueli as to 



ivka! What- is this eni 



these i.iaslures 



Ihe herd raised their he 



ids at this aud 



he sent from each nosiri 

 pulled both iriagers at once, 

 gau trotting toward \.\\c. unco 

 We yelled "Lookoui !" w 

 with dread and wild '.viil, d 

 heeded us not, bin 

 has been said that ]■,!■■: 

 weeks and a half; ii •,,; 

 seconds the Hoimrablc S. 

 btdl standing over him, lo 

 gun went off, and the bull, II , 



lost tiis bahmce and feU over l..aekwnrd. Ttie Honorable „. 

 resmned his normal position and started for the fence, the 

 btdl rolled over and resumed his and followed in pursuit. He 



cloud of smoke, as if he had 

 Yam," said the biffl, and be- 

 ious S. 

 •d f>ur hands and were frantic 



ir The fraudulent bovine 



11 toward the i)lover. It 



■meliniea af.'pear like two 



up, 



