J AS 11. 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



469 



Mr Kinney, the local gun dealt r, w ho will either Lave it 

 mounted, or else hav» the skin tunned and placed upon a 

 a rug. 



As l lip fox hunting season is a little more than half over, 

 the score to date may be of interest to some of the i cades 

 ol the Fouf.pt asd BTHSAM, Mr. Kinney hunts this season 

 with Mr John M, White, proprietor of the Tonrtellotte 

 House in Millbury, and ihey own together a splendid pack 

 of hounds, six in number.' Mr. White occasionally has a 

 guest who wnnis to go out ami see how the thing is done. 

 The party have killed twelve foxes, nine of wi ich were 

 killed by Mr. White. The score follows: 



John SI. White and party, 13; John V Slocum, 0; Leon- 

 ard Rand, 5; Henry Locke, 4: John R. Thayer, 3; E. H. 

 Smith, 3; N. S. Harrington, 1; Mr. French. it; total. 86. 



The club held a pleasant glass ball shoot on Christmas 

 Day. Now that the hunting season is really over, the club 

 •will without doubt inaugurate the weekly shoots, and the 

 clua house at the lake will again be a lively place on Friday 

 afternoons. 



There has been much good weather the past month for 

 fishing through the ice, and it has been faithfully improved 

 by the local fishermen, and some big catches have been re- 

 ported. Last Saturday, Dec. 30, a party of five went to the 

 adjoining town of Orafton. and caught 131 picker -1, weigh- 

 ing ninety pounds. K. 



WottOESTsn, Mass., Jaa. 1, 1883. 



CARIBOU AT TIM POND. 



HAVING received a letter from Kennedy Smith that the 

 earihou had appeared on his pond, a friend and my- 

 self arrived at his house Friday evening, Dec 33. Satur- 

 day tnoiniug Kennedy and his' sou, Edgar, started us off 

 for The pond, which we reached about live the same day. 

 After a. good night's rest in one of his Jog nuts. Edgar and 

 I went down tf) the pond, where we saw some four caribou. 

 We immcoi itelv stalled along the east shore, keeping well 

 bade in the woods. Owing to the grert depth of snow we 

 were four hours in getting around within shooting distance, 

 Then I counted Iwenty-five on the pond. We tried to get, a 

 little nearer, and after hair an hour's walk managed to pet 

 within a hundred yards of sever;, all the others having left. 

 We cautiously crept up to the edge of the poud, and after 

 waiting about ton minutes in hopes the caribou would come 

 ite irer.'l lired at a large buck. Before th/ 1 others had re- 

 covered from their surprise 1 shot two more. They then 

 started off and I tired the two remaining cartridges, tilling 

 two others, the last beng 33.1 yards distant. 1 killed the 

 the with five shuts, using a 'Winchester Express, which 

 holds five cartridges. 1 know- that many of Stnilh's friends 

 doubt the abundance of game at bis pond, but if one can 

 stand a little roughing and cold weatlir they* will he 

 warmly welcomed by "old Ken ," as he is familiarly called, 

 and they will be repiid by spending a few days with him 

 during December. . We saw many fresh tracks of deer, but 

 the law coming on January 1 prevented my remaining. 1 

 have hunted caribou in Nova Scotia >nd New Brunswick, 

 but advise nil who wish success to go with Kennedy to his 

 pond. E. W. Davis. 



OUR CHICAGO LETTER. 



[From a Regular CbieiiKO Correspondent.! 



very thing that can at 



•ction of the country 



. but 



tain 



r |MIE game law, as far as concern 

 1 present be killed, closes for this 



The boys will hive nothiug to fall back 

 club hoiiM- pigeon shoots and the regular little e 

 tainnrenls they always give at the club houses at th 

 of the year, The only law now open about Chicago is that 

 On dneV.s, and, alas, there are no ducks' The law closed on 

 deer, quail, partridge, etc., in Michigan, Wisconsin, Indi- 

 ana and Illinois. Monday. There are few of our hunters out 

 now. Messrs. Q. Newberry and J. J. Gore have just got 

 hack from a long stay about Emporia, Kansas, where they 

 got plenty of quail. ' They had a pleasant time. J. Newton 

 is at Centralia hunting, and Mr, Lawson Smith has gone to 

 Tennessee about Hermit's Bay for ducks. E. T. Martin is 

 at Fountain Bluff, in Lower Illinois, on the Mississippi 

 Kiver, dlick hunting. He sends word back that in the 

 m .r-lies about i hat place there are plenty of mallards and 

 teal, and that if the weather Keeps open a while longer 

 there v. ill lie more there yet, The feeding is fine. This is 

 ju.sl a few miles above Cairo, and surprises the boys, who 

 thought the duck's had winged their flight further south. 



There was no trouble lo amount to anything last week at 

 the TollestOn Gau Club grounds, and in" consequence there 

 is nothing to send lo the Forest Ajfrj Sikeau. By the 

 way, (Jit. ergo sportsmen, happily, do uui wait for their home 

 papers '■<• publish late news m local matters. The report of 

 the Tolleston Club case., tea- example, which has not yet 

 been published here, thej may fin 1 precisely set forth' in 

 the '.:: -i ■,.,:'. s niBAH, with the lull opinion of Judge 

 Feild, something like three or four weeks ago. 



There is a little item teat wi 1 interest "the boys, but it 

 must n< it go any fui titer than the Foicest and Stream and its 

 tens of thousands of readers, il would cause a worthy man 

 to blush. This is a rarity for one of his ilk, but. he docs not 

 h;..e his name hi print, connected with sportsmen's matters, 

 i think a. false modesty. It never injur ..s a good 

 business man to fie coosi ler, d a lover of healthy recreation 

 and sport. Well, now for I he item. Mr Win. "Dexter, the 

 .- . i i eve. lawyer, is having built for himself autt friends' 

 use a HuC, large 'hunting boat at New Bo.-tou, on the Missis- 

 sippi River. This point is famous in the spring and fall for 

 ducks. There is probably not a belter hunting" place in the 

 en, ire West than x\ r ew Boston Bay. The boat is to be a large 

 cabin boat, little steam engine, screw propeller, and fitted 

 out elegantly and thoroughly for hunting tiips. It will be 

 ready by spring, and Mr Dexter will open the season then 

 by along num. He has ordered everything necessary for 

 fitting out this boat. 



, i ■■■ imglisu Lake Gun Club grounds last Thursday, 

 there was a pleasant poly Of sportsmen and members 

 present and they had a hue SaOOt. flew used up about 500 

 pigeons and then turned their attenti in to turkeys. At [he 

 the latter Messrs. Cantield ami Mears carried oil the honors. 

 It was a successful shoot, though there were no medals up. 

 Only sweep-take purses went licit trip. There will soou be 

 OBOUUir match. Of the other shoots last Monday, Christ- 

 mas day. there was a good oae at Pullman and a sweepstake 

 pigeon shoot at Q-raucf Crossing. The Tolleston dm club 

 held one of their tw'i :.rr.hi club shoots at tbcil I I 

 Friday. They had wild pigeons and turkeys and it was o 

 pleasant affair. It is never possible, however, to get any 

 particulars of these events from the club members, so desir- 

 ous are they of not seeiug their names ill print. There will 



be a grand bad, pigeon and turkey tournament New Tear's 

 Day. at Grand Crossing, under the auspices of John Watson 



and theKleinmans. Those veterans can always make a 

 Of anything they put therr atteulion to in the sport- 

 ing line, aud'this will surely prove no exception. It will 

 be the turn of the Mak-Saw-Ba Club boys to hold some sort 

 of a festivity soou. This will about finish the rounds. 

 The regular medal .-hoot of the South End Club occurred 

 at Grand dossing week before last and there was a large 

 attendance of club members. The entries were fair, and in 

 the medal shoot, pigeon--, 28 yards rise, there were ten 

 entries. M. .1. Eieh, A F. Pond and H, Scott, got 11 birds 

 out of a possible 13 and tied for first place. In the shoot-off 

 Eich and Pond tied at five birds and twice at three birds 

 M. J. Eieh won in the fourth lie shool-otf at the birds, kill- 

 ing them straight. Tire medal was formerly held by Dr. 

 Hutchinson hut now belongs to Eieh. 

 Chicago, Dec. 89. 



PROTECTION FOR QUAIL. 



IN your paper of the 3Sth I see a letter from B. B. H., re 

 furring to the protection Of quail on Robbln's Island. 

 1 have had quail shelters on my grounds for years past, and 

 they have proved a great success. Mine arc a little differ- 

 ent from the ones mentioned 1 had them built in letter A 

 shape, sixteen feet long. They are m ide of untlireshed rye 

 straw or corn stalks. 1 have the snow carefully swept away 

 from the hut whenever we had a storm. Feed is strewn 

 under the hut every two or three days, and the quail take 

 to these feeding places at once, and "come there reguliriy. 

 But one thing B. B. IL has overlooked— that vermin of ail 

 kinds will find out these places as quickly as du the quail; 

 therefore 1 have traps going around the shelters, and many 

 an owl have we taken. 1 consider owls much m»re destruc- 

 tive lhan hawks: (he latter you can shoot, but owls, since 

 they are prowling around at night, are very much more to- 

 slnn live. 



If all our sportsmen would only do something for the 

 quail in the wit ter our shooting would itn, rove, but. un- 

 fortunately, when the shooting season is over the ma- 

 jority novel give the quail a thought. 



Traps are most neees-an and easily handled. Wherever 

 we discover a killed rabbit, or mouse or bird we put up a 

 trap, baited witb rabbit; these make the best bait, and we 

 always catch (he robber. Vermin must be killed promptly; 

 attention must be paid to game if sportsmen want, to enjoy 

 shooting. 1 am doing it, and have been very successful. 



" C'BOXTETIT, 

 Neversink Lodge, Orange County, & T. 



THE NEW YORK ASSOCIATION. 



TILE annual meeting of the New York (City) Association 

 for the Protection of Fish and Gone was held on the 

 evening of the 8th hist., at Angeat & Croghnn's. 69 Madison 

 avenue, Mi'. Benj. L. Ludiagton. Vice-President, in the chair. 

 The report of the Treasurer showed a balance on hand after 

 all expenses had been paid of sii04.<)5. In addition to this 

 the association has invested, in bond and mortgage, §0,5(10. 

 Air. Thomas N. Culhbert. Secretary, read a letter from Mr. 

 Charles Hallock. a member of the association, dated Pales- 

 tine, Texas. December cl, in which that gentleman says; 

 "I have had a few days' fine sport ou the Rio Grande amo'ug 

 the blue quail, in company with Major Sumner of Fort Mc- 

 intosh. The eastern boundary hue runs from Corpus 

 Christi to Colorado Springs on the Texas Pacific Railroad. 

 The Arizona and Mascona quail are found further to I he 

 southwest. The blue quail is, perhaps, larger than Eastern 

 ' Bob White,' and is a very beautifully crested bird, which 

 blends the colors of the Northern bluebird. His head was 

 also tipped with dark spols on the breast and shoulders." 



A letter from the president of the association, Hon. R. 

 B. Roosevelt, was read, in which he says he will probably 

 spend the winter in Florida, and that he and his companion, 

 Mr. Green, will observe toe k.ihils of the fishes as far as 

 possible, in the hope of lea. ning something of the spawn- 

 ing of the hlticfish and the striped bass. Mr. Abel Crook 

 sent a communication to the association in reference to al- 

 lowing venison from the West to be sold after Jan. 1. 

 there was but little discussion of the question, which w.s 

 referred to the committee on game laws In former years 

 Ihe. association has permitted venison to be sold in the city 

 untd February by declining to prosecute dealers, and so 

 allowing much of the Western meat to be disposed of. This 

 year they notified dealets that the sale, would not be per- 

 mit ted after tue legal time, aud the absence of venison from 

 fitience of the society. The 

 I io be contributing "Western" 

 *e tiie change. 



invited to Talk ahoul Adiron- 

 had made a collection of them 

 ek Colvin. Su.pt. of the Adir- 

 ermuie Ihe number of species 

 i waters, and to gain such 

 distribution and habits 

 Tee Adironda* k region is not rich in the number of its 

 ipecies, owingio I ne elevatiou of the country and consequent 

 •oldness of I lie water. At the same time there are found 

 here fishes— such as suckers, suntish, etc. — which are popu- 

 arlv supposed only to inhabit warm waters. He haa gath- 

 ered many small iTshes of no interest to anglers, but of great 

 interest to the naturalist), and would send the collection, ac- 

 companied by a map showing their dis.'.i bullion, to the Intel- 

 national Fisiiery Exhinilion, "\\ inch op .lis in Loudon in May 

 Several member's ..sked que.-iious concerning tome scicuiiiic 

 distinctions between nil e 1 lishis, which Were explained in a 

 manner tliat lightened the dry technicalities by a touch ot 

 humor. In concluding, .Mr. 'Mai her announced that though 

 it was generally supposed eels did not exisl in the waters o. 

 the AdirouJacK regioa, he ha 1 found thorn ia several of the 

 lakes. 



Mr. Fayette S. Giles brought up the subject of the State 

 Gam _• Pro-lectors, and askM Mr, Mather if lie had not facilities 

 for knowing something of their efficiency, and if so, if he 

 would not give the association such information as lie pos- 

 sessed. Mr. Mather replied; Thorn my connection with 

 the paper devoted to field spoils. I have had occasion lo 

 write to the Game Proieco.. ._ ' n id i I lei Liperation 

 and have wa -ohed their actions closely. Souieol I 



to be of little use and others have been active. One in par- 

 ticular 1 know to have done excellent service in the Adiion- 

 daek region, and to have spent his own i oney to prosecute 

 Offenders, This is W. P. Dodge, of Prospect, Oneida 

 county. 1 never met him, and consequently have no per- 

 sonal bias in his favor. I he appointments should have no 

 relation to politics, and the force should he increased by 

 good men, selected for their fitness alone." 



The following officers were elected for the ensuing year: 

 Robert B. Roosevelt, President; Benjamin L. Ludington, 

 Vice-President; Thomas IN. Cuthherl, Secretary and Treas- 

 urer; Counsel— Charles F. Whitehead; Executive Commit- 

 tee — Dr. Stephen A. Main. Dl\ John W. Greene, aud 

 Alfred Wagstaff. A game dinner of oysters, terrapin and 

 canvas back duck, followed, aud many enjoyable things 

 wetu said. 



TEXAS GAME LAWS. 



Editer Fores! and Stream: 



I note in your issue a request for advice of new game 

 laws. The Texas law quoted by you has been amended by 

 our Legislature so tint the open seasons are as follows: 



Deer, June 1 to Dec. 1 . 



Wild Turkey. Sept. 15 to May lo. 



Ruffed Grouse. July 31 to March 1, 



Quail, Sept. 1 toMaichl. 



Our game laws, however, exist, I amsorry to say. in name 

 only, and are but little if any protection to game. ' Our law- 

 makers saw fit to exempt sixty nine counties, some, of which 

 are the oldest and most populous- of the Slate, besides ex- 

 empting all unorganized counties attached to same for 



■ urposes, which g'tvt 



in the Stale that are exempt 



The exempt counties suffer at 



Bom hunlt rs from 



i total 



soon extinguish the gain 

 parties to kill game 'in ti 

 was killed in the adjoini 

 must be made to apply t 

 provide efficient game con 



li" 



lOUl IO0 counties 

 ly of the game laws. 

 ngerduring the closed 

 ainties as from local 

 the two classes will 

 eomman practice for 

 ties and claim that it 

 nty. Our law 

 ' s alike, and 



;ed 



respeei 



.. _-s before it is of much 

 use, as our civil officers take but little interest in Ihe enforce- 

 ment of such minor matters as they consider them. 



ScBSCP.lUER. 

 KiNOSDtmv, Tex >'. D e. 27. 



"IS AN AIR-SPACE DANGEROUS?" 



T \ T II1LE I should never shoulder my rifle to shoot it with 

 T a ball away or apart from the powder charge, I will 

 peeli'ullv refer vou to C. M. Wilcox's (TJ, S. Army) work 

 ._ '•Rifles aud Rifle Practice." published 1859, New Work, 

 bvD. Van Nostrtmd, 193 Broadway, patjes 187, 188 and 189, 

 describing the Swiss federal rifle. "I will quote a part oi a 

 sentence: '•The rammer is so made that it presses the ball 

 Hown, but not. upon the powder (thus leaving an interval) 

 being arrested at the muzzle by a projection on the rammer, 

 for that puroose at 2.0 inches from the head." The calibre 

 0.41 inch, length of ball 1.0039 inch, weight 257 grains, 

 charge 62 grains. See page 181 as to the Austrian tige car- 

 bine." "The tige is used simply to support the ball, thus pre- 

 serving an interval between it aud tue powder," etc. 

 SoiTEHViLur, Mass., Dec. 10. 1882. 



D\ 



the city markets shows the 

 Adirondack region was f 



misou up to Febiuarv, 



Mr. Fred Ma.her had to n invi 

 dack fishes He said that he had 

 ar the request of Mr. Verplanck C 

 ondaek survey in order to di epn 

 of tishes iuhauiliug the Adiroudar 

 facts as were possible as to tneii 



During my target practice with muzzle-loading rifles I 



have fired many bullets from the point in the barrel where 

 the short euide starter left, them, forgetting to ram them 

 borne with the long driver, but have never in a single in- 

 stance bulged one, I used rifles weighing from ten lo four- 

 teen pounds, with about one hundred grains oi Hazard's 

 sea-shooting powder. 



On the other hand. I have bulged a ten-pound rifle made 

 by G. H. Ferris, ol Ltica, the bore of which was freed or 

 enlarged toward the breech, so much so that the ball, after 

 entering the muzzle some To ir or six inches, could be seated 

 ou the 'powder with a slight push with the driver; this I 

 had made to lit tie- sharp pointed bullet I was using, that 

 it might not bruise the point, hut it did not til, well and 

 would adhere to it and draw it back into the barrel, till the 

 bore became narrow enough to disengage it, from the rod, 

 which in this ease was about ihe middle of the barrel. I 

 tired it from this point, and upon attempting to reload dis- 

 covered the damage, which amounted to reboring the bar- 

 rel. 



Now the difference as I see it is this: The ball in the 

 target rifle was left where the bore was narrowest, which 

 ihe" ball perfectly tilled, leaving no room for the gas to 

 escape by it, while in the ride that was bulged the ball 

 till, J bo bosely as to allow the gas to escape by :t, thereby 

 bulging tin lie'riel 



I do not believe it possible to bulge a rifle of ordinary 

 thickness if the ball perfectly fits the bore. A. B. Conn. 



Eocklaxd, 3Ie. 



It was something else than an ah- space that burst "Bulls- 

 eye's" rifle. At the last Cm dmcor shoot. 2110yds.. off-hand, 

 two of the competitors made scores respect ively of 121 and 120 

 out Of a possible 123, Both gentlemen loaded as follows: 

 45-70 sh-11. 50 grsius oi powder, thin blasting paper wads. 

 ,n air space ciVrelnlly measured of £ of an inch, antl a 450- 

 grain grooved ini'h l well lubricated. Guns aud men sLill 

 nr good order. Let us have more light ou this air space 

 business. (JttSBKkoBN. 



Concerning The hursting of shotguns by obstructions in 

 the muzzles'/ air. W. \V. Greener says in' his book '•The 

 Gnu and its Development," page 450: "It has always been 

 taken as ao axiom, that if the muzzle of a gun barrel be by 

 any means plugged up with flirt, snow. 01 other matter, and 

 the eun then tired, the barrel will burst. It has also been 

 repeatedly asserted LlnU a wad slipping a lew inches down 

 ihe barrel, oi left from a preceding charge, would burst the 

 banc! should it be hied before the impedimenl was removed. 

 We have experie cnted to prove these assertions, aud find 

 them far fiom being true. Taking a light double breech- 

 loader, with a vcrv "thin, but sound barrel, we placed a felt, 

 wad, f in. thick, six iuchos from the breech, ami tired with 

 ordinary cartridge. The wad was blown out, the barrel re- 

 maining uuinjur'd. We nexl placed a WAd at [%, 24, 28 and 

 30 in. success! ilv. with the same result. The experiment 

 we seveial times repealed in difleient guns, the wad at last 

 being placed level with the muzzle, but, to our surprise, the 

 barrel remained uninjured. VVen.xt plugged Ihe muzzle 

 with stiff mud for the distance of one inch; this resulted in 

 one iuch being blown oil' the- muzzle We afterward placed 

 a plug of pulped paper i wo inches from Ihe muzzle, and a 

 eoiieenliator midwav in the barrel, hut no bulging or burst- 

 ing insulted. Now' we are willing to own that we have 

 attributed several Imrst barrels to wads slipping and muzzles 



becoming plugged up, but we shall be less liable to state 



theses i a t'i Parrels do sometimes hurst in the 



most unaccountable manner, but from these experiments il, 

 appears lhat wads slipping will nol cause them to do so as a 

 rule, and plugged muzzles are not always attended with dis- 

 astrous or dangerous results." 



