THE AMERICAN SPORTSMAN'S JOURNAL. 



Entered According to Act of Congress, In tbe year issi, by the Forest and Stream Publishing company, In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington, 



erms, S4 a Tear, 10 Cts. a Copy.) 

 SixMo'n,!]. Turee Mo's, SI. / 



NEW YORK, THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 1881. 



/ vol. lr— no. 10. _ 



\No». 39 and 40 Park llow, Now Tort. 



CONTENTS. 



Editobial :— 



Hints for the Early Shooting ; The International Gallery 

 Match ; The Indiana Fish Commission ; Salmon Beported 

 on the Virginia Coast ; The Cutter Madge ; Our Kennel 



Department ; la It Gambling ? 188 



Tee Spobtsman Tourist :— 

 Ootober; The Great South Bay; Sportin Northwestern Iowa; 

 Game and Sport in Newfoundland 184 



NATUBAJj HlBTOBr: — 



Habits of Pet Snakes; Echoes of Some Old Discussions; Vis 

 Mediuartix Nalime ; The Mocking Bird's Song ; Is the 



Turtle Pitth or Game ? Skunk vs. Woodchuck., ... -» 187 



Game Bao and Gun :— 

 A Day With the Hounds ; Reminiscences of Forty Years ; 

 Another Ancient Gnn ; "Left-Eyed Shooting;" Bust 

 Spots in Gun Barrels ; The Bttriiegttt Sneak Box ; Let the 



Turkey Be Called 188 



Sea and Biveb Fishing ; — 

 The Marine Catfish ; Izaak Walton's House ; Fisheries, 



British and Foreign ; The Silver Salmon 190 



Fishohltdbe : — 

 Nebraska Fish Commission ; Fiehruilturo in Georgia ; Green 



Scnm in Ponds ; Fishways for the Bappahannoek 192 



The Kennel :— 

 Eastern Field Trials Entries ; London Dog Show ; The Col- 

 lie and Sheep Dog ; Bed Irish Setters in New Hampshire ; 



Notes 192 



klfle and trap shooting 195 



Anbwebs to Cobbespondents 195 



Yaoutino and Canoeing : 

 The Nationality of the Thing ; The Madge : the America 

 Cnp in Danger ; Opinions of the Press ; No Time ; Start- 

 ing from an Anchor ; Brought to Book ; Yacht Etiquette. 197 



TO CORRESPONDENTS. 



The forest and Stbk am Is the recognized medium of entertainment, 

 Instruction and Information between American sportsmen. 



Communications upon the subjects to which Its pages are devoted 

 are Invited from every part of the country. 



Anonymous communications will not be regarded. No correspond- 

 ent's name will be published except with his consent. 



The Editors cannot be held responsible for the views of correspond- 

 ents. 



Subscriptions. 



Subscriptions may begin at any time. The subscription price is $4 

 per year ; $2 for six months. Remittances should be sent by regis- 

 tered letter, money order, or draft payable to the Forest and Stream 

 Publishing Company. The paper may be obtained of newsdealers 

 throughout the United Stales and Canadas ; and Is on sale In Europe 

 by The American Exchange, 449 Strand, W. C, London, Eng.; and by 

 Em. Terquem, 16 Boulevard, St. Martin, Paris, France. 

 Advertisements. 



Inside pages, nonpareil type, 25 cents per line. Special rates for 

 three, six and twelvemonths. Heading notices 50 cents per line— 

 eight words to the line, and twelve lines to one Inch. Advertisements 

 should be sent In by the Saturday of each week previous to the Issue 

 In which they are to be Inserted. 



Address: Forest and Stream Publishing- Co., 



Nos. 39 and 4fl Park Row, New York City. 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



Thursday, September 6. 



Mb. Charles H. Gilbeut, the ichthyologist, whose inju- 

 ries by a fall on the Matterhorn we recorded in our issue of 

 AuguBt 25, has recovered and has returned to his home in 

 Indiana. It may be remembered that he was struck on (he 

 head by a rock in climbing that mountain which has been so 

 fruitful of accidents, llis companion, Prof. Jordan, writes 

 that the injury was severe at the time but that he is well 

 now, "with only a sabre cut to show for the Matterhorn.'' 



Moosk in Maine — We printed last week a communication 

 in which was reported the killing of a moose at King and 

 Bartlett Lake, Maine, in September. As the law on moose 

 in Maine was not off until the first day in October, the case 

 reported in our coluins might profitably engage the attention 

 of the Maine Game Commissioners, and we hop i that the 

 publicity which we have given to the affair may be of some 

 use. 



The Gnoss Injustice of the pound-nets in the Great South 

 Bay of Long Island is only alluded to by Mr. Roosevelt this 

 week. He has not told the whole story. This wholesale de- 

 struction of fish is a matter claiming attention at Albany. 

 We know one man whom we could wish were appointed 

 with full license to exterminate (he nets. A year or two ago 

 he ran a steam launch through an army of illegal nets, and 

 their owners did not thiuk that there was enough left of them 

 to pay for gathering the remnants. 



HINTS FOR THE EARLY SHOOTING. 



THE first of October in a number of States is the opening 

 of the shooting season, and from that time until January 

 1 almost all game is in season. This date is, however, much 

 too early for most of the birds that we kill. The quail, on 

 which most people are apt to depend, are, many of them, too 

 small to shoot, and have not yet settled down to their regular 

 fall feeding grounds. The woodcock have not begun to move 

 in any numbers, and what few snipe are to found are very 

 "scattering." The ruffed grou?e are, it is true, in good or- 

 der, but in our thickly settled East these birds are scarcely 

 to be found in numbers sufficient to make it worth while to 

 go out for them alone. Moreover, the weather is usually at 

 this time hot and dry, and the foliage and weeds still 

 thick. The work is hard both for men and dogs, but es- 

 pecially so for the latter. In fact, shooting in the early part 

 of October too often bears a strong family resemblance to 

 shooting in July. 



This year the weather has been especially unfavorable for 

 early fall shooting. The heat antf drought are something 

 almost without parallel, and no dog, however good he may 

 be, can be expected to do himself j ustice uoder such condi- 

 tions as are now prevailing along our Atlantic seaboard. The 

 snipe have as yet scarcely made their appearance, and the 

 rail have about gone, though an easterly storm may be likely 

 to bring along one more flight of good heavy birds. Until, 

 however, we have some rain and a few frosts we shall prob- 

 ably not hear of any satisfactory bags. Later, when No- 

 vember's breath has turned brown, and wrenched from the 

 trees, the leaves now so green, each of us will seek some 

 favorite spot not known to the multitude which will 

 yield to us a couple of dozen cock, half as many ruffed 

 grouse and a few quail. Thither, with one or at most two 

 friends, we shall repair, ana have a day or two in the field. 

 Old Rex and True will be given an opportunity to w r ork off 

 their superfluous flesh, and to get so tired that they will groan 

 all night, and be so stiff in the morning that they can hardly 

 move. We shall make a few lucky difficult shots, and no 

 doubt miss a lot of easy ones, which we will try to excuse — 

 to ourselves. At last we shall drive to the depot and take 

 the train for home, carrying with us our birds — not a great 

 many to be sure, but enough to excite the envy of some of 

 the friends that we left behind in the city. 



Before that time, however, it will be possible to find a few 

 snipe on the meadows, and as the blue wing teal, widgeons, 

 shovellers and black ducks are coming in in fair numbers, and 

 are to be found on all the rivers and creeks where the wild 

 rice abounds, there will be many opportunities for getting 

 occasional shots at them. 



It is high time now for those who have not already attend- 

 ed to the matter to prepare to get their dogs into condition 

 for the fall shooting. Most doa;s accumulate during the sum- 

 mer a good deal of fat which should be got rid of before their 

 regular work begins. Animals kept in the city are especially 

 apt to be in a state which makes them utterly unfit for any 

 hard and regular work. It is absurd to suppose that a dog 

 which has been kept on chain or confined in a small yard for 

 months should be able to undergo the enormous amount of 

 work which, even in a single day's shooting, is expected of 

 him. The animal should be put through a course of training 

 to fit him for the very severe labor which he is obliged to 

 perform. We have always considered that the easiest and 

 best way to give our dogs the necessary running was to have 

 them follow us when we rode on horseback. Roads should 

 be chosen where the clogs can always be kept in sight, 

 and they should be allowed to range in the fields 

 but should always be kept within call of the rider. The 

 dogs having all their spare flesh taken off them by exercise, 

 and having become hard and able to stand work, should have 

 a little medicine given them two or three days before taking 

 the field. Let each of them have at night a teaspoonful of 

 sulphur, and the next morning from a teaspoonful to a des- 

 sert spoonful of sulphate of magnesia, which may be dis- 

 olved in water and poured down tbe animal's throat. We 

 have never believed that it was well to feed dogs meat except 

 during the season when they are at. work, although we know 

 that others differ with us ou this point, and up to the open- 

 ing of the shooting we feed them almost wholly on vegetable 

 matter. When their work begins, however, let them have 



some cooked meat, and if they are hunted regularly they 

 should have plenty of it. The very severe drain on the 

 system must be supplied by generous nourishment. 



The reports which we have received from various quarters 

 would seem to indicate that quail will be rather abundant 

 this season. Certainly the spring and summer were very fa- 

 vorable for them, and it is possible that in this way the de- 

 struction of last winter may have been in part repaired. 

 Ruffed grouse or partridges are said to be very scarce, and 

 about other game it is as yet too early to say much. 



We shall be glad to receive from our correspondents in all 

 sections of the country reports as to the abundance or scarci- 

 ty of game, and hope that all our readers will let us hear 

 from them. 



THE INTERNATIONAL GALLERY 

 MATCH. 



THE final prelindnaries for the coming International 

 Gallery Rifle Match are now arranged. Mr. Rigby, 

 the famous long-range marksman, will select four gentlemen 

 of Dublin ; and Mr. J. S. Conlin four New York gentlemen. 

 The respective fours to compose the team. The Irish team 

 will shoot at a range in Dublin, and the Americans at Con- 

 lin's Gallery, 1,222 Broadway, New York. As the match is 

 in progress the scores will be cabled. 



Each member of the team is to shoot twenty consecutive 

 shots, with a .22 calibre rifle, three pounds pull, off-hand, at 

 tbe Rigby target (one inch bullseye) distance twenty-five 

 yards. Highest possible score for team, 400 points. Mr. J. 

 K. Milner, the noted "crack" long-range marksman of 

 Ireland will act as referee for the American team in Dublin, 

 and Col. L. C. Bruce will act in a similar capacity in New 

 York for the Irish team. 



The names of the gentlemen who will compose the teams 

 will be announced in due season. There is every indication 

 that the contest will bring out some wonderful scores. 

 Both sides are confident of their ability to win. This will be 

 the first match of its kind ever shot. The riflemen on both 

 sides of the Atlantic are taking great interest in the affair, 

 and not a few think that such matches will become as 

 popular with the general public as the famous international 

 long-range matchess of a few year ago. 



THE INDIANA FISH COMMISSION. 



IN our last issue we published a list of the Fish Commis- 

 sioners of North America. It had stood in type for sev- 

 eral days before the day of publication and after Indiana were 

 the words "no appointment as we go to press." We had 

 learned that the Governor was soon to make an appointment 

 m accordance with'the law passed last spring and a corres- 

 pondent at Indianapolis hid promised to telegraph us when 

 announced. We received his telegram at 6 v. m. on Wednes- 

 day, the 28th, just as the forms were about to be locked and 

 the change was made announcing Mr. Calvin Fletcher, of 

 Spencer, Owen county, as the Commissioner. 



The appointment we judge to be a good one, for, while we 

 never had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Fletcher, we know 

 him to be an ardent fishculturist, who has been engaged in 

 breeding carp — a fish, by the way, that is peculiarly adapted 

 to ihe warm and sluggish waters which abound in parts of 

 tins State. We know that he has the question of fish food 

 for the people at heart by correspondence which has come 

 from different parts of Indiana, showing also that he has been 

 publicly mentioned as being so interested. 



Indiana has long needed such an officer, for her streams 

 have been depleted by all sorts of illegal fishing, and now 

 there is a chance of their being stocked again. This work 

 takes time. It has taken thirty years or more to impoverish 

 them and they cannot be restored to their fruitfulness in five 

 years, nor in ten. The restoration will be gradual in the streams, 

 because it is the food fishes which have disappeared and left 

 their aquatic enemies. The bony gar still flourishes in the 

 streams of Indiana, because its worthlessness has protected 

 it, and it is capable of destroying thousands of the fry of 

 good fish before the latter become numerous enough to com- 

 pete wii hit in the struggle for food. The streams swarm 

 with other animals, which, if they do not devour the adult or 

 half grown fish, as the gar doe?, still enter into this competi- 

 tion for food. The science of flshculture, for it is a science, 



