THE ORBGON SPORTSMAN 257 
ground for water fowl of every description. In many of the sloughs 
and small lakes the water is almost black with ducklings of every 
size. This, you will realize, means plenty of shooting for the hunters 
of not only Malheur County, but also for Multnomah and other valley 
counties. This also accounts, in a manner, for many of the ducks 
that fly up and down the Columbia River in the fall and winter. 
Another line of work that certainly is due in this locality is 
enforcing the law of screening the irrigation ditches along the Mal- 
heur River. There are a hundred or better of these, and the cost 
will run into many hundreds of dollars. The sportsmen are all 
willing to lend their aid in this work for co-operation with the ditch 
owners, for they realize what it means to the salmon industry. 
It can readily be seen from the work that is being contemplated 
in this country that Malheur County is only a big infant to what it 
will be in the near future. The Warm Springs reservoir, which will 
be constructed at once after the bonds for it are sold next month, 
will be big enough to store water for some 25,000 acres of farm land 
that is now in sage brush, increasing the grain fields for the Chinese 
pheasants, and making a lake for breeding purposes which will be, if 
properly cared for, second only to the Malheur Lake. 
I have had but little trouble to the present date in enforcing the 
Federal law, as the sportsmen of the county seem willing and eager 
to assist me in every way possible to do the work, 
SUCCESSFUL MULE DEER HUNT 
By Nick Leatuers, Hardman, Oregon. 
Having considerable spare time, the standing invitation of the 
Blue Mountains in the distance for a big game hunt was too much 
for me. So, oiling up my reliable 30-30, packing a few provisions, 
and calling my dog was the work of a few minutes and I was on my 
way. Heading due south, I arrived at Pine Ridge, about 20 miles 
from Hardman. As this locality had been very lucky for me in many 
a past hunt, I concluded toc make my camp for the night. A rough, 
mountainous country, with considerable timber, it is a favorite ren- 
~dezvous for the deer and the bear. After eating a hearty supper, 
making my bed of pine boughs, I laid down for a good rest, with the 
alluring thoughts of the big hunt in the morning. Several times during 
the night.I was awakened by my dog, who seemed very restless, rush- 
ing to and from the fire with the hair along his back raised, growling 
and barking savagely. I knew from past experiences that some wild 
animal was in our neighborhood. The next morning, leaving the dog 
to guard camp, and taking my rifle, I set out for the top of a neighbor- 
ing ridge, sparsely covered with underbrush. Arriving at the top, 
I picked out a position that enabled me to get a good view of the 
country, lit my pipe and waited for developments. I lounged about 
till 5 in the evening, and as nothing of importance had been sighted, 
I set out for camp. I had not gone far when I heard the sound of a 
heavy footfall. Stepping into the brush, I carefully looked around, 
and standing about twenty yards from me was the finest specimen 
of a bear that I had ever seen. The bear saw my first movement 
as I raised my rifle and quickly plunged into the brush. He finally 
reappeared in the open at a distance of a hundred and twenty-five 
yards. I hastily took aim and fired, hitting him just back of the 
shoulder. He turned two complete somersaults, gained his feet and 
started running. With the next shot I broke his back and brought 
