450 ee 
Most of our quail were very young and 
smaller last season, and we had a gen- 
tlemanly set of sportsmen in our vicinity, 
for they spared the “‘peeps,” but our hard 
winter didn’t. A good many farmers are 
willing to feed and protect the birds, but 
they take the wrong way for it. They 
throw the grain out ready threshed, which 
is kind, but the first snow or sleet that 
falls covers it up, and frequently the birds 
suffer before they put out any more feed. 
I wish RECREATION and every man who 
belongs to the L. A. S. would tell. his 
neighbor farmer to spare a dozen sheaves 
of wheat in the beginning of the winter. 
I know any sportsman in our section would 
be willing to pay for a bushel of wheat in 
the sheaf, and build an “A” tent with it near 
where the birds are known to be. This 
will serve for food and protection from 
winter and hawks. The latter destroy 
more of our birds in the river district than 
any other enemy of the quail. We have 
the bird hawk and the “sharp shin;” and 
even the duck hawk has been known to 
leave the river several miles in winter in 
search of quails. 
The openings in the wheat tent should 
be small both at the ends and sides. A 
hawk will not pursue the quail if it 
retreats into the tent. A bird stands cold 
weather much better by having to thresh 
his own grain. 
Now, Brother Shields, if I am right, pub- 
lish this so that the 300,000 readers of your 
valuable magazine may take an _  in- 
terest in the protection of the birds. I 
don’t feel like slaughtering birds, but I 
do like to see my dog work on them. 
I did not kill more than a dozen last fall, 
but I saw my dog make 3 points that 
were pleasure enough for a whole season’s © 
work. 
L. C. Danner, Wormleysburgh, Pa. 
THE KLONDIKE IS FLAT, 
I have just returned here after a jaunt in 
the Rockies. Left here latter part of 
March, with 3 dogs, moccasins and furs, 
and got back clad mostly in whiskers and 
a money belt. Found some quartz, but 
none good enough to stay with. Went 2 
months without a sight of game. I then 
killed a bull caribou and in the same week 
a moose; so we, men and dogs, proceeded 
to lay on some fat. 
This town is dead. You should draw a 
circle of 1,000 miles around it and never 
step inside of it. There has not been a 
new creek discovered in a year. Lots of 
the same old stampedes, but no gold—that 
is, not enough to work. Gold Run is the 
only tributary of Dominion that any work 
is being done on, and outside of the old 
RECREATION. 
creeks there is not a claim here you could 
give away. : 
There is a strike reported from near St. 
Michaels, and if I could sell out what I 
have here at Io cents on the dollar I would 
go down and see what the fuss is about. 
I feel sure, however, it is simply a steam- 
boat stampede. The down river boais 
are doing nothing and we have been an- 
ticipating they would have a “‘strike’’ down 
there, sanve asi at Atlin’ last year -iaheas 
Atlin has only a few claims worth working 
and that the rest is pure fake. 
I hardly now what I shall do next; about 
made up my mind to go up Hunker or 
Bonanza and look for some spot far away 
on the hill side that has been missed, but 
the government comes out now and says 
no more locations or relocations on Bo- 
nanza or Eldorado, and Hunker and Do- 
minion soon to follow. More official graft- 
ing. The fractions are to be sold at Ot- 
tawa. More grafting. I have some claims 
on 40 Mile and may go down there, but 
the reports from that country are far from 
encouraging. 
If the snow had held out on our last 
trip we might have been on the Peel, Bea- 
ver or Porcupine; but we ran low on grub 
about the time the snow went off the hills 
and so had to come down in the valleys to 
hunt. There we killed some meat and that 
brought us home. 
E. A. Jackson, Dawson. 

GUN DEALERS SHOULD JOIN THE L.A.S. 
A gun dealer wrote me the other day: 
“You deserve the gratitudeand the cor- 
dial support of every maker of and dealer 
in sportsmen’s goods, for your war on the 
game and fish hogs. The sooner this 
slaughter can be stopped the better for gun 
and fishing tackle makers. | 
“A pot hunter buys a cheap shotgun, a 
bag of shot and a few pounds of cheap 
powder, and there is little in his trade for 
the dealer. A decent sportsmen buys a 
good gun, a supply of the best grade of 
loaded shells, a good suit of hunting cloth- 
ing, a good rod and reel, a full outfit of 
flies and other tackle. His bill is likely to 
run up to $100 or more and to be dupli- 
cated several times during the year. It is, 
therefore, easy to decide which class of 
men the dealers should encourage. 
“RECREATION is driving the game and 
fish hogs out of existence. It is increasing 
the supply of game and game fishes, and is 
therefore making it possible for real sports- 
men to have good sport for a hundred 
years to come. All makers of and dealers 
in sportsmen’s goods should stand solidly 
with RECREATION.” 
It is gratifying to have the sympathy of 
gun makers, ammunition makers, tackle 
makers and dealers in these various goods, 


