NATURAL HISTORY. 



3o; 



are no more classed as wild game here than 

 are the chippies the pot hunters shoot 

 and sell for reed birds. Our large hawks 

 and the golden eagle, Aqtdla chrysaetos, 

 do much to check this rodent, which is 

 naturally shy and suspicious. I have ob- 

 tained best results in gunning for them in 

 the hills by coming over the crest of a 

 knoll and firing at them as they scamper 

 for their burrows. The birds of prey 

 seem to hunt them by surprise also. A 

 specimen of Western redtail, Buteo borealis 

 calurus, that I was skinning had torn up 

 a squirrel and eaten every particle, includ- 

 ing the hide and intestines. 



The farmers throughout the country are 

 always fighting this pest, because of its 

 rapid increase and its destructiveness to 

 growing grain and orchards. It is in the 

 latter places that these squirrels do most 

 damage, burrowing under the roots of'the 

 trees and eventually causing them to die. 

 They also cut young trees to pieces and 

 the number of apples a squirrel will de- 

 stroy in a day, just to get at the seeds, is 

 enormous. They also honeycomb the 

 ground, so that considerable pasturage is 

 destroyed, and they even make holes in 

 the road that cause carriages to jolt and 

 that trip up teams if not closely alert. 

 Poisoned barley is generally used to put 

 down the holes. Bicarbon sulphide put on 

 a piece of sack or rag is thrown into the 

 hole and the mouth of the hole stopped 

 up, allowing the heavy gas to creep down 

 and poison the inmates. I spent 2 weeks 

 one summer smoking squirrels. This work 

 consists in using a nozzle attached to a 

 receptacle filled with damp straw and a 

 little sulphur thrown in to quicken the 

 work. The fumes are pumped down the 

 squirrel hole through the nozzle by a bel- 

 lows attachment. When the bellows be- 

 gin to work hard you know the hole is 

 full enough. Then start for the next hole, 

 but be sure there isn't another hole con- 

 necting, through which the smoke can 

 escape. 



I would just as soon grab hold of a 

 lively squirrel as I would of a rat, and a 

 curious incident 'I witnessed did not 

 change my mind. One winter when things 

 were pretty wet a young Chinaman 

 found a small colony of squirrels under 

 the roots of an apple tree. He put his hand 

 in and pulled them out one by one. There 

 were over 15 of them, but the Chinaman 

 was not bitten. I didn't see him in the. 

 act, "but arrived just as he was stringing 

 the last squirrel into the bunch. I saw 

 his muddy clothes and that he had no 

 Implements Or chemicals or any artificial 

 means that he could have used. One win- 

 ter when the wet weather had driven about 

 150 squirrels under a floor of a summer 

 house and a nice, sunny day had coaxed 

 them out to feed, a friend and I used shot 



guns and commenced a lively fusillade. 

 We killed about 10 before the others got 

 under the- floor, entering through a de- 

 cayed spot in the corner of the steps, 

 over which we nailed a piece of tin. The 

 floor was 3 feet from the ground, and the 

 brick foundation hemmed them in at all 

 sides, so that was the last of them. 



Donald A. Cohen. 



MODERN BEE HUNTING. 

 In looking over your valuable magazine 

 I find several articles on bee hunting. As 

 I have had some experience in that in- 

 dustry I will add a few suggestions. In 

 the first place, a bee hunter must be a lazy 

 man and must have eyes as keen as an 

 eagle's. He must never be in a hurry, but 

 be content to try day after day until con- 

 ditions are just right for a bee hunt. Then 

 he must have a good bee scent. Oil of 

 anise was used by our forefathers, who 

 also crosslined the bees; but we live in an 

 age of progress. Bee hunters ought to 

 progress with all other workers. I neither 

 use a box nor crossline bees. My bee food 

 consists of white sugar dissolved in water 

 and my little bottle of scent in my pocket. 

 I usually seek low ground near water, as 

 bees nearly always pick a tree near water 

 if they can find one. I tie a bunch of 

 grass, weeds or flowers together, sprinkle 

 some bait on it and put some scent out 

 near by. If any bees are near they will be 

 at the bait in a short time. Bees will come 

 y 2 a mile to the scent I use. When I get 

 my stand arranged I sit down, light my 

 pipe and smoke; or if I am near a trout 

 stream I fish. One who has never hunted 

 bees in this way would be frightened to 

 see the number he would have in a short 

 time. They will all be settled and working 

 steadily, not circling. A man can see with 

 one eye shut which way they go. 



I then go about 100 rods and make a 

 new stand; but before I leave the old stand 

 I put more bait there, as I may have more 

 than one line. In that way I keep all the 

 lines I have. I prepare my second stand 

 as before. Bees passing over will smell 

 the bait, drop down and go to work. By 

 following this method the tree can easily 

 be found. As I get near the tree the bees 

 come thicker and faster. When I have 

 found the tree I put a mark on it near the 

 roots. Then I go back to the first stand, 

 put out some more scent and bait, and in 

 a few minutes I have plenty of bees again. 

 J. B. Watson, Cedar Springs, Mich. 



HOW RATTLE SNAKES BREED. 

 In your reply to the query of Dan W. 

 Slayton, in a recent number of Recrea- 

 tion, as to how rattlesnakes reproduce 

 themselves, you say the young are born 

 alive. This puzzles me, for I caught 



