FROM THE GAME FIELDS. 



Editor Recreation. 



Hams Fork, Wyo. 



Your crusade against the Indian butchers is 

 all right; but what is annihilating our game now, 

 particularly the elk, is, that while almost starved, 

 in the spring, while the snow is soft, some men 

 run them on horseback, and capture them alive, 

 to sell. Only one in 10 to 15 of all those caught 

 and tied down live to reach the railroad; while 

 hundreds of others, mostly cows, over-heated by 

 long runs in the snow, starved and exhausted, 

 only lie down and die. 



These are the facts as I get them from those 

 who run the elk. In one case, where 18 were 

 tied down, only one lived to be taken to the 

 ranch. As a rule, the men engaged in this work 

 are as worthless a set as were ever allowed to 

 live. The work is easily done; the elk string out 

 in single file, making a deep trail, which a horse 

 easily follows, until one or two elk at a time step 

 out into the deep, soft snow, lie down, and then 

 any man can walk up, put a rope around their 

 necks, and tie their feet together; then go on 

 after the balance of the herd. I wish this busi- 

 ness could be stopped, and I trust it will be, 

 soon. John Hastie. 



Ten Sleep, Wyo. 



A curious sight here, a few days ago, was a 

 mixed band of deer and antelope, 50 to 60, on 

 the open hills, on their way from the bad lands 

 to the mountains. They loafed round in sight 

 of the house for several hours. 



Sheep are numerous. They go up to the snow 

 peaks in summer, but all winter Ten Sleep canyon 

 has been tracked by them from end to end. 

 There are enough elk, in season, for good sport 

 — 25 to 300 in a bunch. The cedars near the 

 ranch have been alive with deer for two months. 

 We see them everywhere — 5 to 20 in a bunch. 

 Trout are biting and some big fellows are being 

 caught. James Fullerton. 



Marysvale, Wyo. 



Have just returned from a short trip up Smoke 

 river, toward Jackson's Hole. Saw a great deal 

 of game. From one bend of the river three 

 moose came out of the willows. The bull took 

 across the river, while the cow and yearling went 

 up the stream on my side. I gave them a little 

 chase with my horse and got within 20 feet of 

 them. They had to break their trot and run. 

 On my way home I was within 25 yards of 62 

 antelope. They are coming in from Green river, 

 in their usual numbers, on their road to their 

 summer range farther up the river. The elk 

 are on their way to the mountains again. 



S. N. Leek. 



On the estates of Prince Adolf Schwarzenberg, 

 in Bohemia, over 50,000 game birds and animals 

 were killed last year. These consisted of wild 

 boars, deer of all kinds, hares, partridges, pheas- 

 ants, wild cats, foxes, etc. 



Alpine, Texas. 

 Game in this country, with no state protection 

 to speak of , has nearly all gone. Only a few of 

 the old timers can bag a deer or an antelope, in 

 a day's hunt. If I get four or five old bucks (I 

 never shoot a doe) from September 1st to De- 

 cember 15th, I am more than satisfied. I have 

 not killed a mountain sheep in two years. There 

 are a few left in the Guadaloupes, but it takes 

 so much hard climbing to get them that it is 

 hardly worth the labor. J. B. GlLLETT. 



Editor Recreation. 



Marysvale, Wyo. 



While myself and companion were walking 

 along a small stream, a mud hen came down 

 past us in the water, and my companion shot at it 

 point blank with a 45.70 Marlin rifle, when not 

 more than 15 feet away. The bird was thrown 

 several feet in the air showing conclusively that 

 he shot under it. His retriever brought it out, 

 and what was our surprise to find its head shot 

 entirely off. It must have had its head down, 

 in the act of diving, showing how very quick 

 they must be. S. N. Leek. 



Oakmont, Pa. 

 The best rattlesnake joke I ever heard was 

 of a young surveyor, out West, who came on a 

 rattler on the prairie, and not being able to find 

 a weapon or missile, fired his boots, one after 

 the other, at the snake. Both boots missed, yet 

 landed close together. The snake coiled around 

 them, and the man had to walk home, bare- 

 footed, imagining he was stepping on a rattler 

 at every step. Wm. Wade. 



A trick with wet matches, taught me by a 

 sailor, may be new to you, so I give it for the 

 benefit of the craft. 



He took an ordinary blue-head match — com- 

 monly called a sulphur match — immersed the 

 head in water for five minutes, took it out, shook 

 off what water he could, and inserted the head in 

 his ear, giving the match a twist. On taking it 

 out, I saw that it was coated with wax from his 

 ear. He allowed this to remain on the match a 

 few moments, then wiped it off, and lighted the 

 match in the regulation way. 



F. W. Grant. 



New Glasgow, N. S. 



The Nova Scotia Game and Inland Fishery 

 Society reports a steady increase of moose in 

 this province, owing to excellent protection. 

 The law prohibiting the killing of cow moose 

 will no doubt be rescinded, as the females far 

 outnumber the males in most sections of the 

 province. 



Prohibiting the sale of game would greatly aid 

 in preserving it. O. A. Pritchard. 



Bound volumes of Recreation, October, 

 1894, to June, 1895 ; $2.50 postpaid. 



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