2&4 



RECREA TION. 



to make it profitable to come and trap them. 

 Mr. Rogers, editor of Sisson Mirror, tells 

 me that 3 years ago he killed a passenger 

 pigeon in Oregon, the only one he had seen 

 for years. 



The pigeons now in California are blue 

 rocks, from England, brought to Vancouver 

 and liberated. There are only a few thou- 

 sand of them. 



H. M. Smith, M.D., Sisson, Cal. 



PIKE COUNTY GAME. 



I think I can give Mr. O. Fisher the in- 

 formation he asks for regarding game in 

 Pike county, Pa. There is good deer hunt- 

 ing in Blooming Grove township and vi- 

 cinity, although so many dogs are used 

 that deer are wild. Still, a man, with a few 

 pointers from anyone who knows the coun- 

 try, will get a deer without much trouble. 

 There are many bears in the country. Also 

 good ruffed grouse, woodcock and squirrel 

 shooting. Game would be more plentiful 

 if the natives would not shoot during close 

 season. At Paupac, last year, 500 to 800 

 gray squirrels were killed before the season 

 opened. A few years ago there was good 

 small game hunting in Wayne county, but 

 the market hunters have cleaned the grouse 

 and woodcock out. The new game law 

 prohibiting the sale of game birds and their 

 shipment out of the State, has had a good 

 effect. As express agent I handled thou- 

 sands of game birds for the New York 

 market in '96, while in '97 I did not ship 

 one bird. I know of one man who killed 

 over 500 grouse and woodcock in '96. In 

 '97 he did not kill 30 birds. 



J. F. McFarland, Lake Ariel, Pa. 



VANCOUVER ISLAND. 

 I have so many inquiries about Van- 

 couver island that I write the following for 

 the benefit of those interested. The island 

 is 300 miles long, 60 wide. On it are found 

 mountains, plains, fern prairies, lakes and 

 marshes. The Southern half is more of a 

 level country and is well settled near the 

 coast. The Northern half is unknown, and 

 uninhabited ir the interior. There are a 

 few native villages on the Western shore, 

 and several on the Eastern. Logging is the 

 only industry carried on in the Northern 

 part of the island. It has a splendid cli- 

 mate, as climate goes on the coast. Trans- 

 portation and supplies can be had from Van- 

 couver or Victoria +.0 any part of the island. 

 Supplies can be had at reasonable rates at 

 either place. Spring months are best for 

 trapping, say from February 1st to June 1st. 

 It is best to go over the ground the fall be- 

 fore. 

 L. L. Bales, Alaska Guide, Seattle, Wash. 



WESTERN QUAILS. 

 I have been frequently asked what the 

 difference is between a valley email and a 

 Mexican, or mountain, quail. The valley, 



or California, quail is of a darker blue color, 

 has a black top-knot, is a quicker flyer and 

 the most difficult of all the quail family to 

 hit on the wing. When one gets up, 30 

 yards off, and starts down wind, 9 out of 10 

 men used to shooting Bob White will get 

 left. 



The Mexican quail is somewhat larger, 

 of a lighter blue color, and has a white top- 

 knot. Its flight is not quite so fast, but it is 

 harder to kill. It will carry away more shot 

 than any other game bird in America ; and 

 after striking the ground, it will hide as 

 long as there is life left in it. It is the hard- 

 est quail of the 2 to hunt, as it inhabits the 

 roughest country. 



Of all quails, Bob White is the easiest to 

 kill. It is the smallest and slowest of the 

 3 varieties, and besides will lay to a dog, 

 which neither of the others will do under 

 any circumstances. F., Alpine, Tex. 



GOOD COON HUNTING IN ESSEX 

 COUNTY. 



Last October, when my men were gather- 

 ing corn on one of my seed farms in Mid- 

 dleton, Mass., they came across a dead rac- 

 coon, evidently but recently killed. It was 

 the first one ever seen there, though once or 

 twice their peculiar cry had been heard at 

 night. I asked Roy, who is quite a hunter, 

 if coons were common around Middleton. 

 " There's lots of 'urn," was his reply. I 

 took but little stock in his statement, for a 

 few days after, when he came far his monthly 

 pay, he said, " Well, Mr. Gregory, what do 

 you think about coons now? " " Well, what 

 about it, Roy? " I asked. " Why," said he, 

 " a young doctor who has lately come to 

 Lawrence, started out with a coon dog the 

 other night, and about a mile West, hunted 

 up to your barn. In 2 nights he killed 11 

 coons, one of them weighing 22 pounds." I 

 suppose the one we found dead ought to be 

 added, making a round dozen in all. 



Essex county was settled in 1628, and is 

 the most densely populated in proportion 

 to its area of any county in the United 

 States. 



J. J. H. Gregory, Marblehead, Mass. 



A GOOD QUAIL COUNTRY. 



Richmond, Va. 

 Editor Recreation: With my friend, Mr. 

 Frank Tolsom, I left here on Wednesday, 

 November 17th, for a 3 days' hunt. We 

 went about 145 miles South, to the little vil- 

 lage of Stem, N. C, situated in an ideal sec- 

 tion for quail shooting. We employed Mr. 

 J. B. Mays as guide. Mr. Mays, Tolsom 

 and I started Thursday morning, with 4 

 dogs, and found birds before we got out of 

 sight of the village. By noon we had 

 bagged 22 quails and 4 rabbits. After lunch 

 we made another start, and found birds at 

 every turn ; never saw them more plentiful. 

 We saw during the day 14 coveys, and 

 bagged 45 birds, as well as 11 rabbits. Fri- 



