EDITOR'S CORNER. 



399 



who send me the reports invariably urge 

 me. in strong terms, to roast the hogs. 

 The writers also assure me of their entire 

 sympathy and approval of my crusade 

 against the game hogs. In many instances, 

 however, when I reply to such letters, 

 asking the writers to join the League of 

 American Sportsmen and thereby help 

 carry out the only practical plan ever of- 

 fered for the protection of game, I hear 

 nothing further from them. 



I am always glad to be advised of any 

 destruction of birds, game or game fishes, 

 and am glad to use the full force of 

 Recreation against the destroyers; but 

 why do I not have the financial support 

 of every true sportsman in this work? 

 Why are so many content to sick me on, 

 without putting up a dollar to aid the 

 cause? 



I am spending every hour and every dol- 

 lar I can spare to further the work of the 

 League. Many other sportsmen are doing 

 the same; but not until every true sports- 

 man in the country is willing to put his 

 shoulder to the wheel and his dollar into 

 the treasury can the League accomplish all 

 it seeks. 



Whenever I roast a game hog I make 

 enemies of him and of his friends. If 

 -ny of them are subscribers to the maga- 

 zine I lose them. I am perfectly willing 

 :o meet all this; but meantime it costs 

 money to educate these people and to 

 turn public sentiment in the right direc- 

 tion. Therefore, send in your dollar. Join 

 the League and help while help is most 

 needed. 



THE RECREATION GROUP. 



The Recreation Series in the Zoologi- 

 cal Park has recently been increased by the 

 addition of a pair of black ducks which 

 were presented^ by A. R. Smith, of Syra- 

 cuse. Mr. Smith has been very successful 

 in rearing black ducks from wild stock. 

 He lives about 500 feet from a small pond, 

 and every morning after he gets through 

 feeding the ducks the oldest drake rises 

 20 feet in the air and flies for the water. 

 Usually he stays there 3 or 4 hours, and 

 returns about noon. During the afternoon 

 he is always at home to callers. His fa- 

 vorite sleeping place is under the wheel- 

 barrow in the yard. Mr. Smith announces 

 his intention to take some photographs of 

 this drake while on the wing. 



The Zoological Park collection of water 

 fowl now contains the following species: 

 Trumpeter swan, Canada goose, black 

 brant, white fronted goose, lesser snow 

 goose, Coscoroba swan, black swan, mal- 

 lard duck, mandarin duck, Tadorna shell- 

 drake, black duck, Java tree duck, wood 

 duck, East India black duck, white peli- 

 can, brown pelican, ring billed gull, her- 



ring gull, and cormorant. The species of 

 ducks and geese are now so numerous that 

 next spring the ducks ' aviary will be 

 divided into a number of separate enclos- 

 ures to facilitate the identification of spe- 

 cies by visitors, and also breeding. 



A SUGGESTION FOR CHRISTMAS. 



Have you commenced to think of Christ- 

 mas presents? If so, here is a suggestion: 



A yearly subscription to Recreation 

 furnishes one of the most delightful, in- 

 structive, entertaining Christmas presents 

 you can possibly give a man or a boy who 

 is interested in nature, in fishing, shooting, 

 amateur photography; or, who is fond of 

 the woods, the fields, the mountains, the 

 lakes or the rivers. 



Many of the presents which people give 

 their friends afford pleasure only for a few 

 days, or weeks. A subscription to Recre- 

 ation means solid comfort a whole year. 

 It reminds your friend 12 times during the 

 year of your kindness and generosity. 

 There are many men and women who for 

 5 years past have annually sent in long 

 lists of names of friends, accompanied with 

 a check in order that these friends might 

 be made happy a whole year. Would it 

 not be well for you to adopt this plan? 



Try it and see how grateful the recipient 

 will be. 



EDITORIAL NOTES. 



I have written at least 5,000 personal 

 letters to Nebraska sportsmen within the 

 past 5 years, urging them to take prompt 

 action to protect their game. Not more 

 than one in 100 of the men addressed 

 has been polite enough to even acknowl- 

 edge receipt of my letters, or to answer in 

 any way. Yet, even as the dripping water 

 wears away the solid rock, so has this con- 

 stant hammering finally aroused the Ne- 

 braska sleepers. This shows the result of 

 persistent effort in a good cause. There are 

 yet thousands of alleged sportsmen in Ne- 

 braska who go out and shoot prairie chick- 

 ens in June and July, when the birds are 

 no larger than quails; but I shall continue 

 my work on them as long as I can swing a 

 club, and it is to be hoped we may eventu- 

 ally reform them all and get them into the 

 League. 



I want 10 copies each of February, 

 March, April, and May, 95; January, Feb- 

 ruary, and July, '96; "September, Novem- 

 ber, and December, '97; July and October, 

 '98; August, September, and November, 

 '99, Recreation. Subscribers who have 

 these on file, and who do not care to keep 

 them, will confer a favor on me by mailing 

 them to this office, wrapped flat. 



