44 



RECREATION. 



Here are a few quotations from the article: 



The most famous hunter for egrets in the world is 

 David L. Bennett. Of himself he says, "Of course, 

 my business is that of a common pot-nunting shooter, 

 I don't apologize for it. The first 2 years 1 was 

 hunting there were thousands of egrets more than now. 

 On some days I used to get asmany as 2oegrets or herons. 

 In the regions where 1 have been a rapidly growing 

 scarcity of egrets is evident, lam sure that in a dozen 

 years or more, if the fashion in women's millinery 

 prevails as now, there will be very few egrets left on 

 the West coast. A full grown egret will yield about % 

 of an ounce of feathers and % ct an ounce of plumes. 

 None of the other leathers are touched, and it takes 

 much experience for a hunter to know just what will be 

 marketable. All the available egret plumes are on the 

 bird's back, just back of the tail. 



"Generally I can get 3 or 4 successful shots at the 

 frightened birds before they are out of range, for 

 they are so easily frightened that they are power- 

 less of flight t ">r a moment and make good 

 targets of themselves. Sometimes we get as many as 

 15 birds in one evening's shooting. Years ago, when 

 egret9 and herons were plentiful, I have killed 9 birds 

 in as many shots before they got out of reach." 



I have no doubt that Bennett is a co- 

 lossal liar, and for the sake of the birds 

 let us hope so. The fact that a great news- 

 paper like the Call could be induced to 

 print such a fearful record of slaughter as 

 this, whethc true or false, is, however, 

 deplorable. The editor of that journal 

 should be heartily ashamed of himself, 

 and I regret there was not some Anthony 

 Comstock at hand, backed by the neces- 

 sary statute, to have suppressed that issue 

 of the Call. — Editor. 



HOW ABOUT IMPORTING QUAILS? 

 Virginia Beach, Va. 

 Editor Recreation: 



Referring again to the subject of ship- 

 ping live game birds: When I wrote 

 you in regard to sending live quails from 

 Kansas and other Southern States to 

 Northern States, I wrote simply in the in- 

 terest of the game birds. If it were law- 

 ful to ship these birds it would be quite a 

 different thing, but the most of these birds 

 are trapped during the closed season and 

 are shipped out of the State in violation of 

 the law. The open season in Kansas is 

 October and November, and there is a 

 law against transportation out of the 

 State, so it seems clear to me that to en- 

 courage the shipment of these birds is to 

 encourage the violation of the game laws 

 in Kansas. As a rule, when quails are 

 trapped the whole covey is caught, and 

 this means a rapid extermination of birds 

 on everybody's farm. Since writing you 

 I have had occasion to speak to several 

 gunners from Pennsylvania and Connecti- 

 cut, and all agreed there was no doubt that 

 more birds died in the Northern States 

 from extreme cold weather and snow than 

 were shot. One man from Pennsylvania 

 said he had tried to stock a preserve with 

 quails from Tennessee, but after 3 years 

 he couldn't find a quail on his place, and 

 not a single one had been shot. Another 

 man from Connecticut said he had fre- 



quently found a whole covey of quails 

 dead in the snow. It seems to me that 

 if quails could thrive in the Northern 

 States, as some suppose, you would have 

 more birds there than, you have at pres- 

 ent, for your game laws are much more 

 rigidly enforced than ours are. 



W. L. Harris. 



I should be glad to hear from other 

 readers who have imported quails from 

 the Southern States, as to their success. — 

 Editor. 



CONDEMNS THOMPSON. 



An Illinois weekly paper (which should 

 be spelt weakly) devotes half a column to 

 defending J. C. Thompson, Jr., from a criti- 

 cism made on him in February Recrea- 

 tion. In that issue I printed a letter from 

 Mr. Thompson telling how he and his 

 friends slaughter ducks on a certain marsh 

 which they control. I commented on their 

 conduct in severe terms, but not more 

 severe than the men deserve. The local 

 editor characterizes my remarks as ungen- 

 tlemanly, and pats the local shooters on 

 the back in a way that will no doubt result 

 in their continuing to subscribe for his 

 paper. 



And now comes the following letter: 



The enclosed clipping will give you an 

 idea of the effect of your roast on the "in- 

 jured gentleman" and some of his friends. 

 Luckily you gave them a small dose, for a 

 large one would surely have been fatal. 

 Poor fellows, they are to be pitied. Per- 

 haps their bristles are long and much tan- 

 gled, and the pulling of a single one causes 

 severe pain. 



Game is not only slaughtered here, but 

 the game laws are violated with impunity 

 by anyone so disposed. To locate the of- 

 fenders and secure evidence sufficient to 

 convict them would require more time and 

 labor than the wardens who are appointed 

 seem disposed to give. I shall be glad to 

 see the time when the laws for the protec- 

 tion of game are rigidly enforced and when 

 a limit is placed on the number that may be 

 killed in one day. I feel confident that the 

 L. A. S. will accomplish this in time. 



G. J. Shrader, Canton, 111. 



GO TO MONTANA. 

 In the spring the only game accessible 

 here is bear; goat, elk, deer and sheep be- 

 ing out of season. The trout fishing can not 

 be excelled, there being an abundance in 

 all streams, weighing one ounce to 20 

 pounds, and they are game to a finish. 

 The fishing in spring is chiefly bait. 

 The trout will hardly rise to a fly as they 

 do when the waters subside. Bait fishing 

 is good from May 1st or earlier to the 

 middle of July; fly fishing from the mid- 



