Dboember 1, 1881.] 



FOREST AND STREAJtf. 



349 



WILD FOWL SHOOTING ON LONG ISLAND. 



New Yobk, Not. 23. 



IT may not be uninteresting in view of your article of 

 ■■ Wild PiVwl on Long Maud," 

 to give yon ;■ ightfi prompted I 



article, and of my experience in search of sport near ilie 

 locality mentioned. I spent a few days duck-shooting at a 

 place between Great South Lay ami Shiuneeock Bay. In 

 reference to tins subject it. will be necessary to state the con- 

 dition of tilings existing in August last, when snipe shooting 

 was in order on the " meadows." These meadows jut out 

 into the bay from the sand-hilled beach that protects the 

 shoal waters of the south coast of Long Island from old 

 ocean's inroads. These shallow waters remain the same as 

 they have existed for centuries, though Rakish, their shallow- 

 ness affords an excellent bed for the growth of grass— chick- 

 grass— as it is called, upon which, as is well known to every 

 shooter, the ducks in their spring and fall flights feed so 

 greedily. This grass has a more luxuriant growth this year 

 than is usual, ergo, the ducks are unusually aumero 

 became evident to those experienced gunners living adjacent 

 to this body of water, that there would be good shooting 

 this fall, so, when August was ushered in, flocks of black 

 and sprig-tailed ducks were arriving, also large bunches of 

 teal; and while sniping parlies were ostensibly shooting 

 snipe, they did not disdain a shot at any duck that ventured 

 viithin the range of their'guns; and long before the duck law 

 was "off" many a flagrant act of violating the game law 

 was committed, and many a day witnessed a bunch of black 

 ducks, teal or gray clucks as the result of the day's "snipe 

 alwotintj." This shooting of wild fowl, before the season 

 opens, I surmise, is indulged in wherever the ducks congre- 

 gate, be it Long Island, New Jersey, Virginia or North 

 Carolina, and the question is: Are sportsmen, as a rule, so 

 nicely adjusted iu their moral attributes when engaged in 

 -the pursuit of bay birds, as to resist the temptation to knock 

 a black duck over, if he comes within range ? I do not offer 

 this as an excuse for violating the law, but isn't it character- 

 istic of a follower of l he gun, when arrayed in his panoply of 

 war, so to speak, to blaze away at anything that comes to 

 his"blind?" The fact iB, that so far as the waters confined 

 in the shallow bays along the coast of Long Island are con- 

 cerned, there will always be shooting; there will be "off 

 years" as there are in crops, but so long as there is good 

 "feed" in these hays, you cannot drive the ducks away. 

 Shooting uninterruptedly will make them wild, which is a 

 wise provision of nature, for if these birds were to remain 

 gentle, and obligingly offer to come within easy gun-shot 

 range, fly slowly, balance themselves in the air, or stand on 

 their tails, while the sportsman takes aim, all the resorts of 

 Wild fowl would be thronged with ardent shooters, and the 

 wild duck would soon be a dreamy reminiscence — a hallowed 

 memory. 



I think it a mistaken idea to make the breech-load ex re- 

 sponsible for the scarcity of game. As well charge the 

 multiplying reel with the destruction of trout or black bass. 



It is true one can get more shots with one breech-loader 

 than with one muzzle-loader, but the bayman I am in the 

 habit of engaging, when going duck-shooting (aud he is not 

 an exception in this respect) uses always two muzzle-loaders, 

 and not infrequently three, and I know he gets as many shots 

 as I do with my one breech-loader. 



And now, in summing up, 1 beg to present to you for your 

 consideration, the following facts : Within a few hours 

 journey from this city is a spot I have been in the habit of 

 visiting regularly every spring and fall for some years. 

 Last fall the bayman referred to did not use five pounds 

 of shot, and thought somewhat, of selling his surplus stock 

 of guns ; this fall he has used nearly 100 pounds of shot, and 

 is bound to have a breech-loader. 



Last spring 1 went two days with a fi lend, aud we brought 

 back but six birds apiece ; this fall 1 have seen more birds 

 and got more, and I haven't been hoggish either. 



On the 27th of October a gentleman got fifty- nine broad 

 billBj on the 14.t,h of -November two gentlemen "got seventy- 

 one black ducks , on the 1st of November a party of eight 

 gunners at Smith's Point shot 108 dead. They made no effort 

 to get a fifth of the wounded, mostly old squaws, 'broad bills, 

 whistlers, etc. 



I went down the 31 st of October for a couple of days' sport 

 and got about forty good birds. 1 went again November 

 15, 16 and t'T, and brought back about sixty ducks, 

 mostly black ducks, widgeons, etc., among them being three 

 canvas-backs, two redheads, and four teal. 



I missed the big day's score mentioned above, in the one 

 instance by nearly a week, and in the other, I was a day 

 " behind the fair :" but I had royal sporl, a healthful recrea- 

 tion, and returned both limes rejuvenated, and while firmly 

 believing in the wisdom of making close seasons for all kinds 

 of game 1 maintain thai legislation protects the wild fowl 

 very little as the law now stands. 



The true and only sensible legislation would be to enact 

 laws abolishing, "spring shooting," and the beneficial results 

 would amply repay the temporary disappointment, so that, 

 when the wild ducks and geese take their annual flight 80Uih 

 iu the fall of the year, the prospects for sport would certainly 

 be increased, some forty fold, and some a hundreii fold. 



Van. 



- Philadelphia Shooting Notes— Nov. 36.— Owing to the 

 great scarcity of upland game this autumn many of the 

 Philadelphia sportsmen are devoting their entire leisure time 

 to duck shooting ; aud we find at the leading gun stores the 

 demand for large cal it.,, c] shot very materially 



increased. At, Havre do Grace canvas-back ducks, which 

 had not put in their appearance in very great numbers, have 

 shown themselves in larger bodies since the 

 and 24th ins'... and during the following cold clear up. 

 Braut, black ducks, blue bills, aud a sprinkling of the other 

 varieties of wild fowl are increasing iu numbers in the bavs 

 along the New Jersey coast, but the continued south-easterly 

 and easterly wind's of last week made sbootfng h 



waters poor, as it influenced the flight of all travelin 



at great distances away from the best island 



ambush and decoying. Thus far this fall panada 



seem to 



lurch, for great, bodies have passed • right aim 



the air, not even 



Just now yOur Correspondent thinks he could, Witt 



Coffin, of Berlin, ~Md. j find mid fool I ■ ,, 



Sinepu.venl r„ -on the 



beach as a hid la> I havin ■ his live wil 



decoys or honfeera as persuaders. — Homo. 



Illinois— (Ihark-sio, ., N iv. 32. -Rabbit shooting i 

 C- Calhoun and George Thrall bagged 18 theother day'— J.Li. D . 



"MAINE WARDENS AND VISITING SPORTSMEN." 



MoUSosr, Mc, Nov. 23. 1881. 

 Editor Eons!, and Stream : 



1 read with s great, deal of interest, both of the recent let- 

 ters from two different gentlemen upon these subjects. 



As I have I he honor of an acquaintance with both writers, 

 I can testify to the honor and integrity of each of them. 



And although to some there may appear to be n conflict in 

 regard to the facts which both have borne witness of, yet I 

 believe the two statements are substantially true. 



There are many visiting sportsmen who are not as con- 

 scientious and honorable as is our esteemed friend, L. L. 

 Hubbard, Esq. 



There is a class of these men who are flagrant violators of 

 all our game and fish laws. Their influence is bad. Their 

 operations are often no more nor less than outright poaching. 

 And yet they help swell the vast amount of revenue which 

 so many of our interior towns and villages annually receive 

 by virtue of " sporting " in general. 



But this should not be considered a mitigation of thcir 

 bold infractions of the law, nor as a reason why their acts 

 should be tolerated. 



There are many men of Maine who entertain an honest 

 desire that all of our laws relating to these important mat- 

 ters should be impartially enforced^ 



But we have a strong local public sentiment in nearly every 

 county (so far as my knowledge extends) which is directly 

 opposed to our laws, aud the one great argument which they 

 continually present is that in their enforcement the "sports- 

 men" are not prosecuted with the same ardor and to the 

 same extent that our own citizens are. 



They claim that there is an unfair discrimination made 

 between these genflemeu and the Maine " yeomanry," which 

 smells a little of the ancient "Forest Laws" of Old England. 



I do not now, and never have, espoused the cause of these 

 complainants. Every line that I have, in my humble way, 

 written, and every word that I have ever uttered upon this 

 subject has been such as in my judgment would aid in pro- 

 moting a healthy public sentiment in favor of the enforce- 

 ment of the laws with equal and exact justice to all ; and I 

 only refer to these facts now to show the reason why wardens 

 aud other officers of our State labor under difficulties. 



Public, soutiment is not yet up to the proper standard, and 

 this demoralization is partly owing to the very facts set out 

 in Hon. E. M. Stilwell's letter. 



On the other hand,- there are many disgraceful cases of 

 willful negligence on the part of wardens and other public 

 officers, just exactly as stated by Mr. Hubbard. 



1 rejoice that some of the able correspondents of your val- 

 uable, journal have commenced a discussion of this question 

 which is of such vital importance to the " Pine Tree State," 

 as well as to the sporting world. 



These evils exist. They are glaring. The doers of them 

 seem to defy and scorn law and justice, and taunt and sneer 

 at those who have the courage to advocate sentiments and 

 opinions adverse to poaching. 



The fact is that any poacher of game and fish who in- 

 fringes upon the law of the State or who, in the words of 

 one of the Foebst and Stream's editorials, " takes trout, or 

 venison out of season, except to supply his necessities when 

 beyond civilization, is a thief." This is true whether he 

 comes from a far city with all of the rich paraphernalia of a 

 "lord of the manor" or whether he be the most humble 

 "native." who, with his cheap "set lines," catches his 

 "pung load" of trout and hauls them to the village market 

 to swap with the merchant for the barter and truck of the 

 country store. 



Neither class is above the law. Both should be so se- 

 verely punished for the commission of these sins that future 

 generations shall find out that poaching in Maine is a crime. 



But what is the remedy most needed to-flaj ? 



Heave this question to be answered by others of your 

 readers more able than myself. J. P. 8pbag.uk. 



Bakuoe, Me., Nov, 37, 1881. 

 Editor Fortst and Shram : 



I departed from my usual custom when I replied to what 

 I deemed a wholesale aspersion of the wardens of Maine, sev- 

 eral of whom I have had in my employ, and whose friendship 

 and respect 1 am proud of. My departure from my habit 

 has met with that result which my experience had taught 

 me to expect— personalities and uusustained assertions. lam 

 again impelled to break away from my resolve, but my state- 

 ment shall be short, and will be the last from me in response 

 to any attack. 



Two years since the Commissioners of Fisheries, with 

 thci i wardens, had their duties extended by legislative act 

 to include the game of the State, but no provision was made 

 to enable them to execute the laws of their increased duties. 

 The wardens are appointed by the Governor and Council, 

 the lawnot even requiring a reference to us of their qnalifi- 

 catli m,s. The law directs that their pay shall be fixed by the 

 Governor and Oounoil, and adds "provided that the whole 

 sum paid to all the wardens shall not exceed $1,600." My 

 list of wardens from the Secretary of State's office at 

 i .' v.-ar shifo. contained fifty-three names. Many 



have since been added, whose names even we are ignorant 

 of. I have referred above to fish wardens, whose powers 

 have now- bi en extended to came. The game wardens i s 

 such have no salary by statute, their pay being one-half of 

 tbe penalties when a party is convicted. 



It is almost-impossible to make out a case of hunting deer 

 with di igs. The dogs can be, and are, killed to great exten , 

 but whence is to come the pay of the faithful warden for that 

 duty? Men go into our forests with packs of hounds; we 

 know tbey intend to hunt our deer, but what then? Men 

 go into^ur forests, during the close time of our game, armed 

 with both shot-gun and rifle. The "luiimiis" is thercthe 

 same as in the ease of the hounds, aud yet, we are powerless 

 in both cases. Occasionally one of our "wardens is fortunate 

 enough to obtain evid nee upon which a conviction ink's 

 place, but never, we sincerely believe, with any discrirnina- 

 or citizens. Our mv i \ 

 kill only when they can market their game. They 

 ■ lo not kill for trophies unless hribed to do so for sale, such 



being no novelty to them. If any of 



sre caught they do not ru h into print. Most ot 

 , in cold weather by pot hunters. At 



ie.ally taking sal- 

 mon, spearing or netting trout in spawning lime, 



"Mapong Lake," "Lead Mouo- 

 uin," "Citizens of Bangor," etc., have been auswi 

 and again in our local papers by complaint- of li 

 Faithful wardens have bean sent 'o these 

 and our work is being done. Must we adveniss all ocr 



movements, and thus defeat them, to protect ourselves from 

 charges of partiality emanating from those whom out war- 

 dens have convicted ? We do" not think our Bangor c 

 referred to credit us with much forbearance toward them. 



We know no personality in arrests made. They are made 

 entirely by the wardens, who are only accountable to us 

 when charges are made and substantiated against them. 

 There is no law by which we can compel a warden to do 

 work when there is no provision made for his payment. Our 

 instructions by statute arc "tq examine into the working of 

 the law." We have no power of arrest. The wardens have. 

 They are expected, without a salary, to leave their occupa- 

 tions at home, and go into the forest at their own expense, 

 and try and make out a case of hunting deer with dogs, in 

 anticipation of the rich reward of one-half the penalty Id case 

 of conviction, and the very remunerative privilege of killing 

 at sight any dogs found running deer. 



We cannot admit the right of persons traveling strictly for 

 their own amusement armed with shot-gun and rifle during 

 tbe close time for our game, "to eke out the scant fare of 

 camp table," by killing either our birds or our venison. For 

 what other purpose do sportsmen ever take down their shot- 

 guns or rifles? Surely not to shoot for market. We do 

 hold all persons responsible for the acts of their guides and 

 employees. Every one, however exalted his position, owes 

 to society the moral tax rt a worthy example for all those 

 that look up to him ; and there are none in this world so 

 low down that they are not guides to some one humbler or 

 weaker. 



The Provinces jf Nova Scotia and New Brunswick have 

 found it not only necessary to protect their game from the 

 utter extermination by stringent laws, but, also by requiring 

 a license fee of $80 in the former, and $35 in the latter 

 Province, for the right < f any visitor to hunt, trap or shoot. 

 The result has been to precipitate upon us all those who for- 

 merly sought their amusement or profit there. We require 

 increased mcaDS to employ and pay efficient officers. This 

 will all come in time. We are steadily progressing to a better 

 system of fish and game laws. Are we expecting too much 

 in looking to sportsmen, without distinction of residence, for 

 aid and sympathy ? We shall ever believe that with every 

 true sportsman the law of noblesse oblige will prove the only 

 true and reliable guide wherever he may go. 



E. M. STrtWBii. 



A NEW JERSEY PARTY IN THE SOUTH. 



Nye's, Van Slyke's Landing, Nov. 33. 



WELL, here we are ; and ye gods ! how it does rain ! The 

 fountains of -the great deep are broken up, and it verily 

 pours down in sheets. The gunners, and there are some 

 eighteen here including our party from Jersey, are discon- 

 solate. With lugubrious countenances they severally and 

 often scau the sombre heavens and pray for a let up. Sev- 

 eral have donned their rubbers and oil-skins and essayed an 

 attempt to cross the bay. But it is too moist, and the fowl 

 will not fly well in a dead rain and no wind. There seems 

 to be plenty of fowl here ; and for several days the bay has 

 echoed to the boom of the breech-loaders in every direction. 

 There are a goodly number of geese and many canvas-backs. 

 All are waiting for a cold snap they say. Two members of 

 the Currituck Club on Friday last bagged to their two guns 

 109 geese. Seventy red-heads and canvas-back ducks to a 

 boat is about the thing (they say) for the Currituck Club. 

 They certainly have done shooting enough, or did yester- 

 day. 



We left Gotham on Saturday last, Al Heritage, Dr. Bur- 

 den, Capt. Johnson, Ben Payne, Thos. Hall and your 

 bumble servant, on the "Old Dominion " of the Old Domin- 

 ion Line, where we were joined by Mr. Laucake, an old 

 pigeon shot, of Long Island. We had a delightful trip, 

 though we had some rough water and considerable wind, 

 especially crossing the Delaware— the good ship was aa 

 steady as a clock. The Old Dominion is the largest wc 

 bdievi; in the line, a side-wheeler and rolls very little. Cnpt. 

 Geo: M. Walker, commodore of the line, is too well known 

 to be complimented by us. An old sea-dog from his boy- 

 hood, every inch a sailor and for niue years master of the SS. 

 Fulton plying with the Aragon between New York and 

 Havre, he made many friends. He has been captain of the 

 Old Dominion since she was launched, some ten years ago, 

 Courteous and attentive to his passengers, they all feci safe 

 when he is in command. Jas. M. Gal higher (also a commo- 

 dore,;, purser, has been with the line since its organization, 

 fifteen years ago. We found him a gentleman and well 

 posted in the duties pertaining to his position. How from 

 sinail things great ones grow. The Old Dominion Line now 

 has nine steamships running to Lewes, West Point, Norfolk 

 and Richmond, besides five steamboats plying between Fort- 

 ress Monroe, east and west shores of Virginia, Albemarle aud 

 Pamlico Sounds of North Caroliua. In M. O'Brien (another 

 commodore, commodore steward), we found that personage 

 80 necessary to the comfort, good feeling of passengers 

 right man for the place, and all were more than satisfied 

 wiih the good things he provided aud in the way it was 

 done. 



The Old Dominion has an electric light on her bow, which 

 is used when entering or leaving harbor or running up the 

 James lliver to Richmond. It is of 5,000 candle power, and 

 takes a six-horse power engine to run. They say thi t 

 the Old Dominion first came into Norfolk with the light on 

 in full force, there was somewhat of a commotion, especially 

 among the darkeys. They thought they millennium had come, 

 and they fell on their knees, mauy in the bottom of their 

 boaLs, calling on the Lord to save them and take them to 

 glory 



We reached Norfolk about 8 P. m. Sunday eve. Had a 

 splendid trip throughout Sunday. We found George, the 

 ' bOSg " porter, awaiting us at the landing, and were so, mat the 

 I'lin-i;!) House, Of course we had u good Lime there-, Mr. 

 R. T. James knows how to run a hotel Always 



come a second time if travelins that way. Six a. m. found 

 Hi on the Cygnet. With all the freight to carry, anrl at tins 

 lime of the year the huge mnnbei ot passenger 1 

 ishing to us tti-it. they don't pUI On a larger h 

 kind Of aCOOmtnOdatiOn. The Cygnet, is a dirty hoi. 

 about the size of one of our New York tug-boats, no 

 rooms and hut. little, r 



believes, down below, As there were some twenty-fivi 



sengers, among them several ladies, and it 

 day, j ou can imagine what a 

 through the canal and clown tbesoiihi 1 . We 

 Norfolk by Mr. E. E. Pray, of the Killy Hawk ('lob. U>, 

 With bis friend lim-l, look thr Mine do 



both aver the next time they come 1 hey will come by cars and 

 -or Harbinger at Norfolk aud get off at Cain 

 Dock, and then six miles across, So say we all of us. 



