0OTOKBK 27, 1881.] 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



a 



249 



i i iim sports, which was productive of good health and 

 ■ ;il development, and was a pleasant relaxation from 



Cap 1 . E. 8. Kuowles, the leader of the winning side, spoke in 

 a sympathetic manner of hisopponent, Capt. A. B. P. Kinney, 

 am! the true honesty with which he owned up to missing his 

 fox while only four rods away, and closed by congratulating 

 his side <in th. ir victory. Remarks were also made by Capi. 

 A. B. P. Kinney, Samuel Porter and Chas. H. Bowker, and 

 the exercises closed with the singing of Auld Lang Sync. 



audi 



THE DECREASE OP GAME BIRDS. 



Halifax, N. S., Octol er 16. 

 Editor Forest and Stream : 



If " Monte Verde's " letter had come from Nova Scotia I 

 might, perhaps, offei some excuse for the scarcity of par- 

 tridges this season, and as it is my excuse may be of some 

 moment concerning Vermont. 

 In Ibis Province, and I think within a radius of several 

 ' Is of miles hence, the summer (?) just past has been 

 one of the most wretched on record, and as the partridges 

 rse depend upon the warm dry weather for breeding 

 ir young, the poor blue-nose mate rf ami lias 

 id a most BeriouB time of it, during the months 

 of June, July and August last, for we had anything or every- 

 thing but summer weather — fog and ram being largely sub- 

 Btituted for the sunshine vainly looked for from week to 

 ■ week. That partridges are scarce in Nova Scotia ihis 

 ot the opinion of one or a few, but of every one 

 ■-whom 1 have met. Since this season began 1 have spent 

 geveral days on some excellent spots of partridge ground 

 E without seeing, much less bagging, a bird. 



1 was told yesterday by an Indian, who had been sonic 

 weeks in the woods after moose, that he never saw fewer 

 partridges, and never knew them to be so scarce generally. 

 I also have it from a gentleman in the country that he went 

 over fifteen miles of the "very best" partridge couu- 

 try without seeing a covey; he got a few birds, but 

 -they were all single ones over from last year. Another good 

 evidence of theii scarcity is that the Halifax market people 

 are asking fifty cents per pair, which is just double the or- 

 I dioary price. 



Some may be at a loss to account for the absence of game 

 this year, but anybody who noted the disastrous summer 

 ►weather us I did cannot be surprised at so many complaints 

 KOf flat bags. Josepbxs. 



find Stream: 



A few d ivs ago, prompted by the beautiful weather and 



sharp fn trip up the New Jersey and Northern 



i I ai! road, Imping to find a few woodcock. The 



iage ■ began to turn, the air was clear and still and 



altogether it was as perfect an October day as a sportsman 



could wisli for. 1 hunted through some splendid cover, dry 



swamps, with here and there a nice spring surrounded with 



good boring ground and side hills covered with alders and 



i .! where cock love to lie and rest after their long 



flight from the North. I found only one solitary bird and 

 not a single grouse. It was really sad to go through miles of 

 such beautiful cover and not find birds. 



" It is almost useless," as an o',d sportsman said to me this 



morning, "for one to keep a dog and gun nowadays." The 



deadly breech-loader and more deadly pot-hunter have about 



* exterminated game birds in this part of the country. Every 



day, in and out of season, every inch of cover is gone over 



and over again by men and boys, determined to kill every - 



fthing they see ; and it seems impossible to prevent it. The 



farmers are too busy or indifferent, and justly fear to inform 



against poachers. The sportsmen who are really in earnest, 



are mostly engaged in the city, and are not out during the 



close season. The societies for the protection of gome are 



^loo apt to devote their time to pigeon matches, although 



there are some honorable exceptions/and it is only here and 



there that steps are taken to enforce the laws. 



W, It seems to me that, with the exception of those tracts of 



iaud owned or preserved by clubs, the quail, grouse and 



woodcock are doomed throughout this section, and like the 



| .Once plentiful pinnated grouse and wild turkey, bound to dis- 



- appear. Yet with the unbounded cover we "have, there 



should be plenty of game for all. All it requires is, that this 



' senseless and selfish shooting and trapping in and out of 



season should be BtOpped; then sportsmen would be en- 



j out birds and restocking our desolate 



At ■_c.il t this is useless, for the game is 



killed before it has a chance to breed, 



1 think we all begin to see the necessity of stopping spring 

 and summer shooting, for even the once numberless quanti- 

 ties of wild fowl and bay birds show a terrible falling off. 



The laws should be so that no man should have an excuse 

 to out on the uplands before Oct. 1 or after January 1, and 

 Tall the Eastern States should combine on an opening day. I 

 must confess that I really douot know where to go within a 

 Rasonal distanced New York for a day's upland shoot- 

 ing. Five years ago 1 could name a dozen. — Holbebton. 



'. !, ■• / and Stream: 



In a trip for wild pigeons in New York State we got twen- 

 ty-eight within three miles of home. Found them as usual 

 at their old game of picking up wheat on newly-sown grain 

 I Tields. Not very many. And we left nine-tenths of them to 

 I ittise some more another year. We were satisfied and give 

 •' 'ontinue your fight against the miserable trap 



I shooting. Wliv wouldn't it be better to discontinue all spring 

 si otiui bi ix 1 Might as well kill off the bens in the 



(spring as to be always harassing game in its breeding season 

 or just before— nature's lime for everything in the game 

 line to mill iply and replenish September to March, is long 

 I enough season for shooting in our climate, and then put up 

 Kieguti. Am giad to t-ee your steady opposition to cheap 

 I guns. Every nigger in the land will have a breech-loader 

 I soon unleess |he flood of cheap trash is stopped. 



I Notks on- Game and Snoomra — Chester County, Pa. — 

 I Edlt'ir Forest and. Stream : The growing scarcity of our game 

 I birds is, in m} r opinion, not all due to spring shooting, breech- 

 I loaders and notoriety for big bags, although they have in a 

 I great measure i l the scarcity. But I think it 



Ijb due to the men. Thirty years ago you 



Hfenld count, sportsmen in Chester county by tens; now you 

 ni I hem by t be hundreds. Thirty years ago you could 

 d only here and there one that could stop a bird on the 

 there are any number of them. Then it was a 

 f thing for a fanner to shout on ihewing; now it is a 

 iderataud me io say that 



all expert shooters, but they kill on an average, say ten birds. 

 Ten old birds ought, and will, in the. following spring, bring 

 forth at least forty or fifty young birds ; thus you will see 

 what becomes of the birds. Of course I can speak for Ches- 

 ter county only ; it may be different in other places. I do 

 not envy the farmer the sport, for no one has a better right 

 to it. Game this year is very scarce, though the severe 

 winter killed more than was shot ; but our winters, as a gen- 

 eral thing, are more mild thlm last winter was. Farmers and 

 farmers' boys are shooting birds now. The law is off — of 

 course they are at liberty to shoot them — but no true sports- 

 man will shoot them this warm weather that we are having 

 now, so they have it all to themselves. There is, as far as I can 

 see, no remedy. Farmers will shoot birds as long as there is 

 any; so will sportsmen. And let me say here, in answer to 

 here take the same plan that the 



Mr. Beebe, that the f 



old Californian does, except th 



ginning of the shooting 



with rags, ram home a little r. 



loaders), put on a cap and bi 



ready for use, and, as far as I 



spotted. Ruffed grouse are scar 



ash their guns at the be- 

 with pure water, wipe dry 

 wder (lhey all have muzzle- 

 g away j then their gun is 

 an tell, their guns never get 

 here, but in the " forest " 



in Berks County they are plenty; but, as "Wad "in your 

 last number puts it, you have to shoot at the noise scven- 

 tenths of the iime, the forest is covered with thick scrub 

 oak, the leaves dying and remaining on the trees until spring. 

 Quail, as T have said before, arc scarce. Woodcock have not 

 yet arrived. — Shap Shot-. 



[ This is a subject of dce-p interest to sportsmen in every part 

 of the couutry. The causes of the decrease of different kinds 

 of game arc many We invite all persons having facts bear- 

 ing on the question to give them to us. J 



PLAN OP A SINK-BOAT. 



TBE WltBATLANuS, Oct. 1. 



Editor Fort-it and Sin-am : 



It will afford me pleasure to give your correspondent the 

 dimensions for a sink-boat, but I hardly understand what he 

 means by asking for dimensions of sink-boat " suitable for 

 man weighing 175 pounds," as the weight of man using it has 

 not anything to do with size of sink. 



The dimensions, materials, etc., to be used in construct- 

 ing a sink-boat are as follows : The box in platform should 

 be made of ;j inch best white pine; or still better, white 

 cedar, if to be bad. Tha ends of box should be of white 

 oak, 1A inches thick. The box should be 5 feet 10 inches 

 long, fn the clear (this will accommodate any man not over 

 G feet in height, as both bis knees and nock are bent in lying 

 in the position to shoot) 15 inches deep in clear and 22 

 inches wide, sides straight, perpendicularly, but sprung to- 

 gether at ends to 14 inches at head and foot, Now, in re- 

 gards to the depth of ends the simplest way is to make the 

 box the same depth all over, but it is by no means the best 



-<---- £~ feet /p?;?z, - 





"Pic 



-way. My own box is only inches deep at head. The foot 

 should be of tub depth, viz,, 15 inches. The reason I cut 

 away the head of b ix is that the shooter, in lying down, has 

 to have his eyes above th9 level of the box in order to watch 

 the flight of the fowi, so that very little depth is required at 

 the head. The I ox should be put together in the very best 

 manner, as on its being perfectly tight depends the comfort 

 of the shooter. Now make a :V inch dram board to be in 

 bottom of box, and the sink is completed so far as the box is 

 concerned. 



Around the box is built the '-platform," as follows t Have 

 two oak carlings cut our 6 feet long, 1| inches thick and 2J 

 inches wide in the middle, tapering off to about 1{ inches at 

 ends with 1 inch spring or 1{ at most. Now bolt these se- 

 curely to ends of box, 1 inch below the top. 



You are now ready to pit on the platform or deck. This 

 should be of ;f inch white pine or cedar. 6 feet wide and 10 

 feet long, the seams of deok to be well tilted together and 

 especially made tight where it tils round I he box, which will 

 project above I lie deck ; inch. On each end of deck nail on a 

 batten of t inch strip, 3 inches wide, on under side of deck. 

 ... platform is the head wing, which should be 

 made ol thri e i * Inches 



wide, anil i . , 



lie wing joins the 



platform. These hinges should.be so arranged as to give the 

 board composing the wing free play to swing down at right 

 angle with platform and to fold back on top of same, tack 

 loosely so as not to interfere with swing of wing, strips of 

 hervy drill or duck (of color as nearly resembling as possible 

 the water that boat is to be used in) over each crack between 

 wing board and between inner wing board and platform. 

 This completes the head wing. Side wings to be of i T inch 

 pine or cedar boards, two on" each side, each board 8" or 10 

 inches wide and connected together and with platform by 

 three heavy sole-leather hiDges in such a manner as give free 

 play with platform with the strips of drill or duck nailed 

 over the joints as in head wing. 



I neglected to state that in addition to the battens nailed 

 under platform there should be one on each side of box 

 amidships on under side of platform which should be braced 

 to box by an iron ell. The ends of all these battens should 

 project beyond the sides of the platform about an inch, so 

 that the side wings will have something to rest on, as the 

 leather hinges must be long enough to let them fold over the 

 foot wing when the boat is folded up. The foot wing 

 should be made like the side wings, extending across the foot 

 of box, or a single board 14 to 16 inches wide can be used at 

 foot. Connecting the wings at each of the four corners are 

 triangular pieces of lead colored duck, or heavy drill, tacked 

 to the wings and having a stout cord sewed to their outer 

 edges, on which cord I use small corks to keep the corner- 

 pieces on top of the water as much as possible. 



Now for the leads. These consist of two rows of sheet 

 lead from four to five inches wide, the inner row tobe tacked 

 round the edge of box along the inner edge of the lead in 

 such a manner that the outer edge can be bent up to keep 

 the sea out. The outer row of lead is nailed round the plat- 

 form half way between the box and the edge of the platform 

 all round. Paint box, platform and wings as near the color 

 of the water in which the box is to be used as possible. 



The sink is to be moored by two anchors, one at head and 

 one at foot. For head anchor two holes should be bored at 

 head carling, about 15 inches from each end, and a rope 

 knotted through these holes making a "bridle" about 10 

 feet iong. The anchor rope should be made fast to the 

 '' bight " of this bridle. This lets the head of box ride free 

 in a sea. For stern anchor bore a hole in the platform near 

 the edge at foot and let the anchor rope pass through this. 

 This enables the shooter to trip his stern anchor "(which 

 should be alight one) in case of a sudden shift of wind so 

 that the box will swing head in. 



This is the arrangement of my own box, though differing 

 somewhat from those in use at Havre-de-Grace. There they 

 use a light frame for side and foot wings, with drill or tick- 

 ings stretched over them. These platforms are generally 

 larger also, the usual dimensions there being 12x7 feet, biit 

 after a trial of both 1 have found the board wings to be better 

 than the canvas or drill, and I find the 6x10 platform quite 

 large enough, and I use my box in much "wilder" water 

 than they have at the head of the bay. I inclose a set of 

 drawings which may help to explain my letter. I shall be 

 always happy to assist you or your readers in all matters that 

 relate to shooting or yachting, as I am devoted to both. I 

 have but one word foryou, dear Forest and Stub am— Don't 

 go crazy over Madge. 



In the above sink about 200 pounds of weight in addition 

 to the man will have to be used. We accomplish this by 

 having iron decoys cast, each weighing from 25 to 30 pounds. 

 These are set in the platform with wooden decoys of about 

 one-third the usual thickness. The bodies should not be 

 more than 2 inches high and flat on the bottom. Use also 

 light wooden decoys on wings, with a " stool " of about 200. 



Sink Boat. 



DOGBERRY IN THE FIFLD. 



Memcuis, TenD., Oct, 18, 1831. 

 Editor Forest and Stream : 



I inclose you a " trew tale " on our Arkansas Prairie Club, 

 and 1 was one of the " wictims." Gnmo. 



Dr. Mitchell, Mr. Arthur Wheatly, Judge Sam P. Walker, 

 R. D. Jordan and Mr. Dave Poston, with some dozen others 

 not necessary to mention in this chronicle, were of a party of 

 huntsmen returning from the prairies in Arkansas on Sunday 

 last. Being ahead of their companions . they concluded 

 while waiting for them to while away the time in shooting 

 at a mark. Along came a justice of the peace and a con- 

 stable, and with many apologies for the necessity of per- 

 forming a painful duty proceeded to take in the whole party 

 for violation of the Sunday laws. These gentlemen pro- 

 tested that they did not know it was wrong, and they had 

 never read the laws of Arkansas; but it was no go, the 

 justice telling them that ignorance of the law would excuse 

 no man. They then proposed to go to trial then and there, 

 and if the justice concluded they had violated the law, after 

 proof and argument, they would go to jail without any fur- 

 ther trouble to him. The accommodating justice agreed to 

 this, saying there was no statute in Arkansas against holding 

 court ou Sunday. The guilty defendants retired for consul- 

 tation and elected Judge Walker for their lawyer, and unan- 

 imously agreed on Mr. Dave Postou for their witness. The 

 attorney first argued that they were citizens of Tennessee 

 and not subject to the laws of Arkansas, but the justice cut 

 that off short by saying that it was too thin, as all persons 

 were bound by the criminal laws of the Stale they were ir. 

 The attorney then argued that under the Constitution of the 

 United Stales all acts of the Legislature were entitled to the 

 same faith and credit in all the States as in the one making 

 the law, and that corporations chartered in 'I ennesse might 

 do business in Arkansas. The justice said this was so 

 he did not see what that had to do with the case. The at- 

 torney then told the court that he proposed to prove by a 

 witness that. Dr. Mitchell and the witness himself belonged 

 to the German Rifle Club, and the other defendants to the 

 American Ride Club; that these two clubs were corporations, 

 chartered under the laws of the State of Tennessee, and that 

 there sole business was shooting at a mark; that the charter 

 and laws of Tennessee allowed them to shoot at a mark ou 

 Sunday as well bs aoy other day, and it was the constant 

 practice to do it. The Attorney- General conceded that if ' he 

 defendants had been hunting or shooting in the air, or at each 

 other, they would have been guilty, but on the principle al- 

 ready conceded by the court they could not be convicted if 

 they proved these facts, and he could prove both the law 

 and the facts by the witness for the defendants. After the 

 case was over the court remarked that on the law and the 

 facts as proved he must say that there had been no violation 

 of the statute, as such a case was a clear exception 

 statute, and in obedience to the Constitution of the United 

 states Lie must release the defendants, but that the oos 

 as prosecutor, must pay the costs. Dr. iitcbj 



