78 RECREATION 
to amputate her scratching legs close up to her 
head. Still, in spite of the hen’s fussiness, all 
the chicks throve for the first three weeks. 
“‘About June 20 we had a severe, cold rain. 
The chicks were carefully housed and did not 
get wet. Still, they showed signs of being 
chilled, and went back to brooding again. 
They were now too large to find shelter under 
the hen, though the partridge could cover her 
five. To cut a long story short, all but one of 
the chicks (one belonging to the grouse hen) 
took sick and died during the storm or within a 
few days after. 
“Fortunately, Prof. W. E. D. Scott happened 
to visit me at this time, and he freely gave me 
the benefit of his long and successful experience 
in rearing and especially in feeding young wild 
birds. He also referred me to Dr. George 
Creswell, the leading English authority on 
bird hygiene. All the symptoms as well as 
bacteriological tests made in my laboratory 
by Miss Anna A. Schryver and Mr. Charles 
W. Miller left little doubt that acute septic 
fever was the cause of death in all cases. 
According to Dr. Creswell, the feeding of egg 
is the most fruitful source of septic fever in all 
sorts of wild and cage birds. It seems that this 
food is too rich, or is not well absorbed, and the 
part which remains unassimilated in the intes- 
tine forms the best possible food for the germs 
of septic fever to grow in. If the weather is 
fine, and the bird has plenty of exercise in the 
fresh air, this may not result seriously; but let 
the bird encounter some unfavorable condi- 
tion—get chilled or wet, or be confined for a 
day or two—and it is dead almost before we 
notice that there is anything the matter with it. 
I think the principles here involved may prove 
of great value in rearing young pheasants and 
turkeys and a number of other birds. In case 
I am able to attempt the rearing of partridge 
chicks again next spring, I feel reasonably 
certain that, barring. accidents, I can bring 
to maturity every chick hatched. I shall substi- 
tute ‘ants’ eggs,’ and a great variety of insects 
obtained by sweeping the grass with insect nets, 
for custard and all forms of egg food, use as 
much coarse foods—greens and fruits—as 
possible and carefully avoid overfeeding. 
While I regret most keenly the loss of our 
beautiful flock of young birds, I feel that the 
lesson learned is worth the cost many times 
over. I think, in fact, that it will definitely 
insure the success of our experiment in the 
artificial propagation of the ruffed grouse. 
“Tt only remains for me to add that on 
October 1 my entire flock of tame grouse was 
poisoned. The poison used was white arsenic, 
which was pasted over fragments of acorn 
kernels and thrown into the grouse enclosure. 
All the birds came through the summer well, 
and (‘were in perfect health and feather. A 
quantity of the poisoned acorns was gathered 
in the enclosure, and chemical tests leave no 
doubt as to the poison used. Fragments of the 
fatal acorns were found in all the dead birds. 
The greatest obstacle which I encountered in 
my work was the plague of uncontrolled cats 
which infested the neighborhood. In attempt- 
ing to keep my premises clear of these pests I 
must have incurred the spite of some un- 
principled person, with the result above stated. 
“T have, however, accomplished the chief 
objects of our experiment. I have succeeded 
in rearing the ruffed grouse to maturity from 
the egg, have been enabled to study in detail 
the foods, habits, instincts and character of 
the species as it has never been studied before, 
and I have demonstrated that the grouse will 
mate and rear young in conditions of domesti- 
cation. I had hoped to go one step farther, and 
show that this could be done on a considerable 
scale, and rear a number of the birds which 
the commission could use for purposes of fur- 
ther propagation. I had also some correspond- 
ence with reference to sending some of the birds 
to England, for purposes of introduction and 
experiment there; and also with reference to 
placing pairs of the tame grouse on country 
estates from which they had been exterminated 
where they would be carefully protected and 
encouraged to increase. All these plans will now 
have to await the rearing of another flock, 
which I hope to do next spring.” 

British Columbians Busy 
The Fish and Game Club, of Victoria, B. C., 
seems to be doing good work. A short time 
ago a deputation waited upon Senator Temple- 
man dnd represented that the lakes of the 
island near the capital were being fished rather 
too hard for the natural increase to stand the 
strain; and, in consequence, the Senator 
induced the Fishery Department officials to 
set aside some 250,000 trout fry for distribution 
in the lakes nearest the centers of population. 
This, in itse:f, was evidence that the association 
is alive, but it has done much useful work in 
other directions. It is now highly dangerous 
for fish and game dealers to have fish or game 
on hand in contravention of the law in the city 
of Victoria. The slaughter of grouse and deer 
has been very great in the past, and nothing 
but the population has saved the game and 
fish from extermination, but it looks as though 
the past bad days are gone, and the future is 
promising. No part of the continent has at 
present so much game as British Columbia. 
If such independent, energetic bodies as the 






