THE GAME BREEDER 



4d 



This almost equals the record of the wild- 

 est pot hunter. 



Oregon is a great state for game and 

 splendid trout streams, and here at Sil- 

 verton, which is at the very foothills of 

 the mighty Cascades we have ideal con- 

 ditions for both hunting and fishing. In- 

 deed no greater paradise for game birds 

 could probably exist than the Willamette 

 Valley — barring pot hunters and cats. 



Oregon. C. A. Benson. 



[The modern breeders often purchase four 

 or five hens for each cock. They get excellent 

 results breeding the pheasants in small pens 

 containing one cock and five hens and also 

 in large pens where 25 or even a hundred 

 hens are confined with from 5 to 25 cocks. 

 The cggc- gathered are fertile. — Editor.! 

 • 



A Use of Black Sporting Powder Not 

 Generally Known to the Public. 



The du Fonts send the following: 



"Do you know that black sporting pow- 

 der is used for lambing purposes ? While 

 the season for this year is past, this in- 

 formation may be worth remembering. 



"Black powder is used for this pur- 

 pose in many western states. In Wyom- 

 ing especially a great many kegs are used 

 in the course of a year. The powder is 

 used to scare away the coyotes and 

 wolves at night, so that they will not get 

 the young lambs. The sheep are bunched 

 at night, as a rule, and the sheep-herder 

 puts out a fe\v pans and at intervals dur- 

 ing the night* 'goes the rounds,' putting 

 a small charge of black powder in each 

 pan, then lighting it. 



"Some herders use the powder in a 

 shotgun. 



"There are three theories as to why 

 the above keeps the coyotes and wolves 

 away. One is that the smell of the pow- 

 der is disliked and the undesired ani- 

 mals will not go near. Another is that 

 seeing the flash of fire which is made by 

 the powder, they are scared away. The 

 other as reference to the gun, and, of 

 course, it is assumed that the noise from 

 it naturally scares them. 



"No doubt the powder companies can 

 and will supply full information on this 

 subject." 



[Black powder we find also works nicely 

 on stray dogs and cats, crows, hawks, skunks 

 and others that visit game rearing fields. — 

 Editor.] 



Game Breeding in Texas. 



Although the Texas state game officer 

 reports that game breeding is not encour- 

 aged by legislation in his state, the peo- 

 ple seem to be going in for it. 



Mr. C. N. McElheny, one of our Texas 

 members, sending the following clippings 

 says: "They may interest your readers 

 showing that the doctrine of game pro- 

 tection and propagation has reached the 

 boundaries of our country." 



Establishes Game Preserve. 



San Angelo, Texas, Dec. 12. — Five thousand 

 acres of range sixteen miles south of here 

 has been fenced by J. D. Shipman, a Tom 

 Green county ranchman, with wolfproof fence 

 for a game preserve. He is now making et- 

 forts to get a number of deer, antelope and 

 buffalo for the preserve. 



Soldiers and Armadillos. 



In twelve counties lying northwest 

 of San Antonio is the greatest game preserve 

 for wild turkeys perhaps in all the United 

 States. In one or two counties is one land 

 owner who claims more turkeys than any 

 other man in the world. About much of his 

 property he has erected a twelve-foot game 

 fence for the protection of both deer and 

 turkey, confining them in a great preserve and 

 contributing to both their protection and their 

 reproduction, granting hunting permits only 

 to hunters of responsibility and game appre- 

 ciation. 



The sheep and goat men say that when 

 coyotes were destroyed or driven from that 

 section upon the advent of the sheep and goat 

 industry the turkeys multiplied rapidly, but 

 that, in the last few years, upon the advent 

 of thousands of armadillos from the south, 

 wild turkeys and quail are not multiplying so 

 rapidly. 



I have personally interviewed a great num- 

 ber of people in that section in the last few 

 years, who expressed generally the opinion 

 that armadillos are very destructive of wild 

 turkey eggs, driving the hens from their nest. 

 This explanat'on is general, and is universally 

 accepted. While a number of ranrhmen say 

 they have been eyevv'tne^ses to the destruction 

 of chickens' eees bv armadillos about their 

 houses, and, while others have found arma- 

 dillos in close proximity to turkey nests with 

 eggs destroyed, showing signs of the ravages 

 of little animal, I have found only one man, 

 Marvin Bode, Noxville, K'mble County, 

 Texas, who says he has personally witnessed 

 an armadillo destroy wild turkey eggs in the 

 hen's nest. 



West and south of San Antonio, especially 

 since the concentration of troops from vari- 

 ous States of the Union, are hundreds of men 



