4° 



RECREA TIOX 



parlance, muster day — or did. some years 

 g 



Lieut. Roe being absent on leave, felt in 

 duty bound to be present at the muster of 

 his troop. It was the alternative of a fear- 

 ful night ride, or a reported absence on the 

 muster rolls. He chose the former. Se- 

 lecting his 2 best horses, one to ride, the 

 other to lead — tirst adjusting a fur robe on 

 the back of one in lieu of saddle — he 

 mounted and set out by the chilly light of 

 a midwinter moon. The distance was 54 

 measured miles, with the road merely a 

 trail in places — hilly and covered deep with 

 snow. The thermometer marked 12 below 

 zero. 



We learned 2 days later, that Roe ar- 

 rived in camp Harney, plucky, but badly 



frozen. He lost a bit of each ear, besides 

 sustaining a general numbness which lasted 

 him for 3 months. 



At his cabin door he was greeted by his 

 mother, who had journeyed from her home 

 on the Hudson to this secluded spot, to 

 spend a winter with her son. 



He was the same officer who rode one 

 horse the same distance — 140 miles — in 22 

 hours, and without the slightest injury to 

 man or horse. This on duty, however. 



When in the saddle, he always seemed 

 infatuated; not with pleasure, but an ap- 

 parent desire to go on and on. He is now 

 Capt. Roe. of the crack Troop of Militia 

 National Guards of New York — raised and 

 equipped. I think, principally by his own 

 efforts. 



RABBIT SHOOTING IX KANSAS. 



A. W. BITTIXG. 



From the time I learned to point my 

 grandfather's old muzzle-loader in the di- 

 rection of game. I have enjoyed hunting 

 rabbits. While the sport may be thought 

 rather mild by some, yet with a well trained 

 dog — one that will set the rabbit and not 

 run in — enjoyable shooting may be had. 

 It takes a quick eye to stop a prohibition 

 cottontail, scudding under full sail, on a 

 Kansas prairie. 



One bright morning last December, my 

 friend Whittier dropped in on me and sug- 

 gested a day after bunnies. I: did not take 

 long to get the light hunting-wagon loaded 

 with tent and camp outfit. Then we were 

 off for the Ninnescah river, some 20 miles 

 South of Wichita. The roads were in ex- 

 cellent condition, as Kansas roads gener- 

 ally are, and we went bowling along at a 

 lively gait, reaching our destination before 

 noon. 



After the horses had been taken care of. 



we selected a sheltered nook in a small 



grove, on the South side of a steep bank. 



s :o be out of the North wind. We 



soon had camp in good shape. The stove 



s placed in position near the entrance of 

 the tent; camp utensils arranged in order. 

 and then we were ready for lunch. 



It is always my custom, when camping, 

 whether for a day or a longer time, to put 

 the camp into good shape the first thing. 

 Then, in case of bad weather. I am ready 

 for it. In this Western country, one gets to 

 depend on his own resources, for there 

 are no hotels scattered over the country. 



back Eas:": and settlers' homes 

 not always convenient. The most satis- 

 factory way. therefore, is to take a tent: 

 for then you can stop whenever and wher- 



ever you please: and can go to bed with 

 your boots on, if you wish. 



We had with us a pointer and a setter, 

 both well broken on birds and rabbits: and 

 when they made a stand, there was always 

 business ahead. It was generally impossible 

 to know whether the game was quail or 

 rabbit. My friend and his pointer Sancho 

 took one edge of a cornfield, while Bird 

 and I followed the other. Before we had 

 gone 50 yards, my dog came to a stand. 

 Moving up. I gave him a gentle push. 

 Away went a bunnie. bounding along until 

 brought to grass with a load of 6's. 



Alternating between prairie and corn- 

 fields, we repeated the same movements: 

 the rabbits often coming to bag. some- 

 times getting away. More escaped in the 

 cornfields than on the prairie. Having all 

 the rabbits we could easily carry, we re- 

 turned to camp an hour before sundown. 



It was a beautiful evening, so we built a 

 fire outside the tent, and put the kettle over 

 the fire. While Whittier was stirring the 

 mush. I prepared a generous supper of 

 stewed bunnie and sweet potatoes. 



After the meal, we were ready for " swop- 

 ping " the usual camp-fire stories of former 

 hunting trips. While my companion was 

 giving me a " whopper." we were joined 

 by 2 lads from the neighborhood who had 

 seen our fire and came to see " what was 

 going on." They were pleasant boys and 

 gave us some information about the game 

 of the vicinity. The quiet of the evening 

 was enlivened, occasionally, by the howl- 

 ing of coyotes in the valley: otherwise 

 everything was in repose. Feeling the 

 need of rest ourselves, we sought our 

 downy couch. 



