|1>EC. ■-*.- 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



42B 



Kpostle Paul "TCeep wide awake and watch, for you know 



i-i « hole a ship may coine." T^hia was on the 88th of 



peeemher, bul no ship did come, and we thought it bad that 

 fra should be left on that solitary island in spend a winter 

 .in aceoutit of Oapt. Fuller's neglect. We had nbl much 

 ■ pass away" the time, only a few pages of ITn rp< ■;■' '.< 

 '■' :.,, Which we "would read in stormy weather, nud for 

 outside amusement we would be patroling the beach for 

 something to eat, of which we always found plenty, such as 

 it was, elephants, penguins and wild cabbage, We would 

 bum i be blubber of the elephants as fuel for cooking. 



We had a trifle of powder and duck shot, and in one of 

 the robins I found a Remington douhle-baxri i ; run 

 had been left there some years before, hi cleaning it I 

 broke the feather spring of the look, so that the trigger was 

 of no use; but I managed to Shoot by holding the hammer 

 under my thumb until I could level ber On the object and 



e pi 



then letting go. After a short practice, it 

 pa well as if I had had the use od the it 



shot save out [ used small stories for amiro 



intil August, hssi. 1 had no tin 

 but pleutj Of nautical insimmeiii-. SO 1 

 plv myself with a time keeper. With ; 

 drew a cirele on a hoard eighteen inch, 

 and pul a peg in the renter of il. Then with my quadrant 

 I found the apparent time, and marked it off' where i he 

 shadow of the peg showed on the cirele. and by repeating 



■red about 



When my 

 i. My gun 



ir compass, 

 sup- 



npa 

 eircumferen 



fa< 



the 



f ids, 



ill last 



at eh 



ap 



lippi 



observations I madi 

 tain used to come ovc 

 clock bv mv sun dial. 

 amplitude.' Sol Wa$ 



On the last of January . l«si, a serious trouble occurred. 

 Five of our white men went lo Rocky Beach, about six 

 miles off, f Or elGphanl meat. A heavy storm of rain and 

 Meet ciinic on them, and al night three of i hem, William 

 Rice. James Hartwell and Christopher, returned much fa- 

 tigued, and so exhausted, in fact, that thee could give but 

 little account of the other two. Christopher, who belonged 

 to London and went by the name of "Cockney." fell down 

 when he got lo my shanty, too weak to speak.' 



The nfixt morning we went in search of the lost men. 

 We found one of them, named Kelley, on the summit of an 



fceb linehed iii the cold embrace pf death. By his cut 



bands and torn clothing, it was evident thai he had strug- 

 gled hard and foughl bravely lor his life, lie belonged to 

 New York, and was twenty-two years of age. In a short 

 lime aiterWe round Watson, ship's carpenter, also dead. He 

 had evidently lain down to go to sleep: he did sleep, and 

 bflvei woke. He belonged to Scotland, and was thirty-two 

 years old. "Cockney" found an Episcopal prayer book in 

 K'elley's eloilics bag — given him by his mother before he 



lefl home— and Captafi 

 We buricl I hem there, 

 left them at Fairehild 1 

 pet to nr»Use them for 

 The ih Mill Of K.elley 

 trouble that came upon 

 (let oiler, 1804, I the 



"Willis 



ml all 



each, to 



id Wats. 



■end the burial prayers, 

 nourned their loss; and we 

 await tie- Judgment trum- 



liuds me of a similar 

 crew once up in tie Arctic, in 

 first mate of the steamship 

 Wolf. We-WOre Out in a small boat, six hands all told, 

 Inoking for whale-, when a storm came on, and .being six 

 miles from the ship. Ave went ashore on an island for a 

 refuge for the night. Having landed, 

 out iiy the whale line 400 fathoms fn 

 nor gel Stove in; and I hen we started 

 the night to keep warm. The great 

 this is Ihat a man wants to sleep. Ol 

 Malloy. a native of Ireland, -non ere 

 go on We shook him uj 



as long as we could, but Anally he refused and we could not 

 budge lorn; -o leaving him. we went our round, and when 

 Lack again we found him dead. 

 February having come around, we banked up our shan- 

 ties and made them as comfortable as we could for the win 

 ter. March. April and May are the three t'n 1 1 moullis on 

 Heard's Island : .Tunc. July and August the winter months. 

 There was never while we were then si severe frost, but 

 very heavy- gales of v.-trol and great fall- of snow, with hail 

 and sleet at times. 



|TO B¥. rotVTDfUEIJ. ] 



elet 

 u shore, 

 ii.it to v 

 rouble 



pnipelledhi 



boat swing 

 so she would 

 alk about for 

 in a time like 

 crew, James 

 nil refused to 

 with us 



Jfa %a/ §i<i fom 



BEARS ONCE MORE. 



MY persona I knowledge of live bears is not extensive; 

 aid yet, living ten years (from 1885 to 1845), 

 in Maine, at the head Of tide water on the Penobscot, it is 

 only fair to suppose that the sojourn brought under my eye 

 many dead be lis, and under my notice many facts in regard 

 to forest life, perhaps interesting to those "of less favored 

 climes. 



The bear's partialily for human flesh which has been under 

 discussion in Potsest ustj Stream is thus far undecided, 

 with the weight of argument in the negative. Still, there 

 arc so many.', -'-.-on record wherein the bear was "ju tgi m- 

 to eat n man. " that a yasl amount of tear remains, and* the 

 great bugbear of children still lives. The first case 1 shall 

 notice hardly lends to allay this fear, referring, as it does to 

 a bear that actually began his repast, or father breakfast, 

 on a man. Bul then, he had no cubs, and suddenly stopped 

 eating and 'didn't eat no more." "1 saw the man's hand." 

 said my informant, "he will not be able to Use M in a 

 mouth, if ever." The man referred lo went into the woods 

 in March, rutting timber; the sound of his axe broke the 

 slumbers offttl old bear, who finally crawled from his den 

 nearby, J laving not eaten a '■square meal " in over three 

 month's, he undoubtedly 



Begaa to feel as well he mi^ht, 

 - - i een demands of app. - 



He marched straight for the man with the ostensible pur- 

 pose of "making meat." Tile man, taking in all aspecta oi 

 the ease presented bis left hand, which the bear kindlytook 

 in his mouth gfvingit a ckiwor two^ when the axe In the 



man's right Viand was buried in the bear's brain. Here 

 science fell the blow, but not quite so hard as the bear; it 

 .\ as a sad di-appninlini nt, ItOWever, The man iu bis: hurry 

 probably forgot l hat a great question was on the poin^of 

 settlement: had bewailed a, lew minutes, a circumstance 



ii 'i .l'i iv, ■ bean recorded ys bieb now probably never w ill 

 And yet. the inference is fair, that had tfre hear been 

 allowed to eat OQ undisturbed, he would have eaten up the 

 man, at any rate it is nearer a demonstration Hum any pre- 

 vious record. 

 Another question baa been under consideration. Will a 



bear attack a man in defense of her euhsV "This reminds 

 me of a little story.'' "My brother." said my informant, 

 "was oui bunting deer, and ran over a couple of cubs. He 

 recollected having often heard it asserted I bat a bear would 

 attack a man who should kill her rubs, here was an oppor- 

 tunity to settle the question, and he might never find another 

 as favorable. He shot one cub. loaded again, ami shot the 

 Other. Jusl then he heard the bushes crack. The old bear 

 teai thi aim. She came up to Ihc cubs, sinellcd a moment, 

 and looking up discovered the man. She sprang to within 

 six feet. Of him. sl,.»d up growling, gnashed her teeth, strik- 

 ing her paws toward him : he in the meantime leaning on 

 his gun, looking to see what she was going to do. Think- 

 ing best to reload his gun he proceeded to do this, keeping 

 one- eye tin the bear, lo be sure of the very moment when 

 she should 'attack a man.' She went hack to her cubs, 

 both dead by that time, then made a second lunge at him. 

 and coming a little nearer than before, she fairly throw froth 

 from her jaws in his face. Having loaded his gun. native 

 avarice overcame his love of demonstrative science, he pre- 

 sented the muzzle to her breasi and Shot her dead." Here 

 again was disappointment, an addition to natural historv 

 spoilcd lo- lack of scientific interest, and the srrami question 

 left again all afloat. The truth of the mailer was this, the 

 cubs could not run away, and give the old bear the Chance 

 to retreat behind them as in the case of the "tattoo on tile 

 tin pail," she. therefore stood up with no design to attack the 

 man bul to stand between her cubs and menacing danger, 

 falling dead where she stood. 



Once more; "1 was .mi gathering spruce gum." said my 

 informant, "with a bag on my shoulder, and found two 

 small cubs rootin' round. I went for them as worth more 

 than gum, thrust them into tin- bag, and made tracks across 

 a hollow, and was just goins out of sitrht over the bill be- 

 yond when the old bear saw me, 1 run and she run. hie- 

 ing the longest winded, she gained, and the distance between 

 us grew fearfully less. Loaded with the cubs, I was obliged 

 to stop to catch 'breath. She came close up. and when I 

 Started again 1 stumbled and fell." (Here I rose on mv toes 

 to announce to the world that f had found a man killed bv a 

 bear ) He continued : "But I held on to the bag— there v. as 

 money in it— regained mv feet, the old hear running by my 

 side till I reached the house. [Tp the Steps I ran, audi 

 slammed the door in her face. She knew I had the cutis, 

 and didn't touch rue for fear of hurting them." Here was 

 another "jusl going to" spoiled, and I got discouraged. 

 The old bear was a suppliant, not an antagonist. "Give me 

 back my cubs — give me back my cubs. I do not want you." 

 would have been her cry had she language, and when the 

 door was shut she turned sadly and silently away. A resi- 

 dent of my native town, a few years since, poured a charge 

 of partridge shot, with fatal effect, into the open mouth of 

 a bear Standing between him and her cubs, and, as he said. 

 bya hair's breadth saved his life. The next door neighbor to 

 my father's house was kepi "up a tree" by a bear whose cults 

 he' had shot, a long afternoon, the bear dividing her time be- 

 tween growling at him. and trying tO induce tile cubs to fol- 

 low her 'awa.v. At length, she wandering a little out of 

 sight, he slid dowu the tree, and by good use of the legs 

 Providence had given him "providentially" escaped. With 

 his life. 



An old bee hunter told me how he was chased out of the 

 woods by a bear which seemed to hesitate when very near 

 Mm, and for which he could not account. The I'ae'i was. 

 the hear snielled the honey used in hunting bees, and only- 

 sought to negotiate for its possession. 



1 could cite other and numerous instances of "dangerous 

 encouuteis" with bears, ail of the same general import, and 

 all hut one again-: Ih- bear-, (if .our-.-, the exception 

 here referred to was the lirsi public act of "Elisha" after his 

 investment. In this ess,, the St. •bones and other translators 

 have evidently mistaken aid used the word "tear" where 

 they should have placed scare, since the hitter position the 

 two she bears have occupied throughout Christendom ever 

 since, and perhaps will to the end of time. But this is ground 

 on which even a "Christian philosopher" must tread rightly. 

 I will therefore beat a hasty retreat, and close with the 

 earnest hope and desire that the first man who is killed by a 

 bear will report the same to Fiuiebt axii S'rBEAM without 

 delay, so that we can in this life read on record the fact that a 

 bear lias taken that one step they have been so long "just 

 going to." I am ready to believe almost anything except 

 that a man's hair need lift his hat off at the sight of our black 

 bear, cubs or n» cubs, B. IhmsFonn. 



THE SPARROWS MUST GO! 

 Editor Forest and Stream) 



I'm glad to find the feeling against this English nuisance 

 culminating, if people can be induced to make game of 

 them and convert them into pies, a good beginning will be 

 made toward extermination; and as they tire a marketable 

 bird in Europe, what is therein our Democratic institutions 

 to prevent their being palalahle here? 



Feed them for a few days on coarse meal or broken grain 

 and they will make a pie for gods to hanker aftei I " But 

 beixrc the, arc xcked tb:-y sh aakl be : aught and this feat 

 may be accomplished in this way (as I used to catch snow- 

 birds when a boy); Take mi old door or very wide board 

 and prop it up with a stick: (hen put a supply of food under 

 it every morning, and every Utile villain of them in the 

 region round about will find it and breakfast there. Then 

 tie a string to the stick, and when a goodly number of them 

 get under pull the siring and they pay the penalty for steal- 

 ing provisions. 



This modeof ending their worthless lives would meet, with 

 no objection from humanitarians, for thev would never 

 know what happened to them. If people throughout the 

 country would adopt (his plan their numbers would be sur- 

 prisingly reduced bast summer I was at a village on the 

 Massachusetts hills, and was told that a single pair were 

 once seen prospecting (here, but a sensible voting man took 

 down hi.- gun and cheeked the i ide of emigration to that 

 region. That is what should hedone in every village when 

 they first appear. There are laws for the protection of iu 

 secihorons bird-, is this noisy little devil a member. if 

 that gang'; lie may be. but he seldom eats anything that w e 

 want him fcl eat sis, long as lie can find anything thai we 

 don't care whether heeals or nol. If he is included in that 



list then alter the law and lei the Germans at him. When 



a German goes (Hit with bis gun he means business, and no 

 1 thing that wears a feather and comes within ten 

 yards of him is sate, .and he shoots every thing, from a wood- 

 pecker to a crow. Bv all means gi\ e him unlimited license 

 in the sparrow line. One of the Ten Commandments is. 

 "Thou sbalt not kill, "but you may assure your readers that 



when Moses wiole lhal law he hadn't a sparrow in his eye. 

 I have assisted Mr. Bergh in his protests against the pigeon 

 butchers, but if they would substitute the sparrow for tits 

 pigeon neither of us would move a finger to sup] i 

 "port. When that blessed time arrives, and lite 

 clubs begin to advertise I'm -Ihc. sparrows a new- industry 

 will be opened to keep the tramps and loafers out of mi- 

 chief, the useful song birds will increase and multiply, and 

 the grateful people will feel like appointing a "thanksgiving 

 day" thai will last, from the earliest day in January till the 

 laie-,1 in December. Ibm mi -, 



THE BIRDS OF MAINE. 



With Annotations of their Comparative Abundance, 



Dates of Migration, Breeding Habits, etc. 



IIY BVRRETT ,:MITU 



Introductory Nt/Us. 



MAINE is the most easterly of the United States of 

 America, and occupying the northeastern corner of 

 the Republic, includes within its boundaries more thun one- 

 half of tile area of the -New England" States, of which il is 

 one. 



The area of Maine is estimated lo be 31, Itiii. square miles. 

 or &Q,S30,240 acres, lis geographical position is between 66 

 49' and 71 4 west longitude, ami between 48° 5' and 4? 

 81' 89" north latitude. It is adjoined by the Canadian 

 Provinces of New Brunswick on the east and north, and 

 Quebec on the north and northwest, the State of New Harap- 



he south. The 



it the St. Croix 



oiiument at its 



the SI. Johu 



to (he head Of 



31' ail . west 



esterly on the 



corner of the State of 



of New Hampshire; 



shire on the west, and the Atlantic O 

 definite boundaries are as follows: 

 River and a line running due north fi 

 the St. John River; on tie 



River and its tril 

 Lake Pohcmagam 

 longitude fin 1 ; 

 "divide " or highh 

 New Hampshire: 

 on the south by H 

 Maine's greatest 

 the not! beast an 

 due west o, \,_v 

 boundary of coasi 

 h\ ihc shore line i 



lie 



lok, (b 

 11 i tit 

 nds to 

 m the 

 e Atlai 



St. Franc 

 north la 



ce a lin 

 e norlhei 



■si the Si 



- Ocean 



nrip, 



i Kittery Pi 



lint to 

 Head 



lacustrine, and one-thin 



rivers and vallies are th( 

 the Penobscot, the Kern 

 boundary. 



The highesl mountain 

 central part of the Sta 

 feet in height. Several other elevntio 



Leain length The inland 

 es. of which two-thirds is 

 rbe [our most extensive 

 d the eastern boundary. 

 lie 9g .;,. near the western 



ited peak in the north 

 abdin. or Ivtaadn. 5,8£~ 



ailed 



seed 4,000 feet. 



r wilderness of 

 through- 

 oograpbj 



- of small 

 OC.ky ami 

 :-hes and 



ortiou of the Sta. 

 dense- forest-. The region most I hiel-.P 

 mil the southerly half of the Stale . Th' 

 of Maine is decidedly hilly, hut iticlud 

 meadows and plains' The coast hue i- 

 precipitous, ami along this shon the] 

 marshes, and innumerable islands. 



The arboreal vegetation includes aboul all the varieties f 

 trees indigenous to New England. The Slate U tfainC 

 owing to its geographical position, extent of territory, di- 

 versity of mountains, valleys, plains, marshes, cultivated 

 fields, lakes, fivers, and seaeoasi. i- a region of especial 

 ornithological interest, and includes a i/reai varielvnof species 

 in its bird fauna. Nearly all tie- species known to New 

 England occur in Maine, and many whose general habitat, is 

 either more northern or more southern, :<r<'><x\ commonly 

 here, but rarely elsewhere in New England, Maim 

 breeding resort, appears to be the northern and eastern limit 

 for some birds, • and the southern and western limit for 

 others. Species that commonly- breed in one portion of this 

 Slate, are quite unknown in other portions. Foi 

 it becomes necessary to qualify the terms "common," 

 "abundant," "breeds," etc.. by references to various parts 

 of the Sp'te. Such nualiticatiote, will lie especially appre- 

 ciated by local observers. For example may be mentioned 

 our largest thrush, the brown or rufous thrush, Eurdua nifils 

 of Wilson and Audabon, llarporhy-Mhu* pqflu of Baird, 



Ooues, Ridgw 

 and is common i 

 he found at any 



The same ma 

 wink," PipHoer} 



The puffins a 

 common residei: 

 are not known t< 

 along the wester 



writer to delen 

 meet the objet 

 deavor is here 



and others. This bird regularly breeds 

 hwesterti Maine, but seems never lo 

 i the easternmost portion oftheState. 

 ■aid of the towhee bunting, or "che- 

 hdfai u , and of other species. 

 ilk-mots that regularly breed and arc 

 ug the easternmost part of the coast, 

 I, nor are ihcy abundant at any time 



ailalogue for publication it became 

 -menelaini'e should he selected. No 

 ad to liv American ornithologists, and 

 ithorily for reference in regard to the 

 linK It therefore devolved upon the 

 in whatever course might seem best to 

 .cope pf this -publication. The en- 

 present facts in as condensed and 



simple a form tis possible within the limits 



prehension. Birds are mentioned by their 



lish names as recognized by ornithologists 



cadv . 



try Eng- 



merely 



naming the gem and - 

 most, authorities of Anic 

 "And. "—"Birds of North 

 lion, whose work on An 



■ mitted from tin 



■d is further identified liv 

 lopted by ihc tie. . re 

 These references an to 

 i," by John James Audu- 

 raithology is in many re- 

 spects Unparalleled, but not generally accessible in private 

 libraries; lo "Kidg. '—"Nomenclature of North American 

 liii-ds," by Robert, Ridgway, the eminent ornithohmist of 

 the United Stales National Museum, and to "Cs."=" Check 

 List and Ornithological Dictionary,'" 1888, by Dr. Elliott 

 Cones, Whose publications are invaluable to students of 

 ornithology, For references lo this last work of Dr. Coues 

 1 am indebted to the publishers, Messrs. Estes & Lauriat. 

 Boston. "Mass , for .-.dy.-ui.e sheets forwarded to me Cor this 

 purpose, 



Of the many authorities thai niav be quoted, the refer- 

 ences to tbethree -elected I deem of the most practical 

 value for my purpose; ami without the encumbrance of ad- 

 ditional synonyms, these references should be sufficient for 

 a convenient and unmistakable identification of every bird 

 mentioned in the catalogue. Each reader may choose for 

 himself what scientific name lo adopt, Whether, for ex 

 example, the black tern snail be known to him as Stoma 

 nhjni, a term sanctioned by good authority and long usage 



