THE REFERENDUM 



569 



to his back and as soon as he saw us he 

 made for the opposite shore again. 



I was tired of this kind of sport by now, 

 so I took the Winchester and fired and the 

 moose rolled over in the water dead beyond 

 a doubt. Then we cut two long slim poles, 

 lashed them together and tied the remainder 

 of the rope in the form of a running noose, 

 and I swam out and fastened it to one of the 

 horns and we towed the carcass ashore. 



We couldn't begin to get it out of the 

 water, and as it was now getting late in the 

 afternoon we decided we would have to go 

 back to town to get help. So we went back 

 to the boat, ate a very hearty meal and 

 started on our long tramp home. 



I was feeling pretty weary when we 

 reached Phillips', for we had to walk the 

 whole twelve miles there. We harnessed his 

 horse and he drove me home. 



When they saw me walking into the house 

 of course they thought something dreadful 

 had happened, as I had told them I would 

 not be back for a week. And when they heard 

 I had only shot a moose they felt very much 

 relieved. Then I had to tell them all about it, 

 and every one seemed to think we were very 

 fortunate getting off as well as we did, for a 

 wounded moose is a dangerous thing to be 

 near. 



Next morning early we started off again 

 with six or seven of the boys in town to help 

 us, and after a long, hard day all the meat 

 and the head were brought out of the woods 

 and distributed around to our friends, for 

 there hadn't been a moose killed around our 

 section for twenty years, and every one was 

 curious to know what moose meat tasted like. 

 I had the head nicely mounted, and now 

 when I go home and see it hanging in the 

 hall it takes me back to that hunt two years 

 ago, but I think it looks much more peace- 

 able hanging there than it did in the lake 

 when I was guarding it, and although I was 

 offered a fancy price for it, I would not 

 think of parting with my first moose head. 



THE BLACK, BLACK CROW 



Editor Recreation : 



In July number of Recreation, I see you 

 regret the destruction of crows by side hunts. 

 As I live in this State I may be able to show 

 how the game and crows get along here. 

 The game here in this State is declared the 

 property of the State, and each hunter is 

 obliged to procure a license to hunt even 

 rabbits. By paying one dollar he can hunt 

 game in season. The prairie chicken and the 

 ruffed grouse are absolutely protected for 

 five years, or until 1907. Nearly 50 per cent. 

 of the quails in the northern part of the 

 State were destroyed by the hard winter of 



1904-5. As a result, the State game com- 

 missioner posted up notices for the destruc- 

 tion of crows. The prairie chickens were 

 almost exterminated in the northern part of 

 the State when the law protecting them five 

 years was passed. And they have not shown 

 much increase during the three years of pro- 

 tection. It is the belief of many, and is also 

 my belief that crows destroy the eggs and 

 young, not only of these birds, but any other 

 birds whose nest they find. The crows are 

 very numerous here, and seem to be on the 

 increase; vis they have no enemies except 

 man, and their nests are built in trees, it is 

 no wonder they increase. There were at least 

 two crow roosts in this township last spring, 

 each roost containing over a hundred birds. 

 I told some of the young men in the neigh- 

 borhood I would pay a bounty for the crows. 

 The boys thought it would be easy to get ten 

 birds a day. Three of the boys in six months 

 have killed just three crows. I soon found 

 out it took veteran hunters to get them. One 

 roost was practically wiped out by the vet- 

 erans. We killed about ninety birds. Ihe 

 other roost now has about one hundred -id 

 fifty in it. One of my neighbors told me 

 that in 1904 the crows destroyed about one- 

 half of his young chickens. One sportsman 

 in the central part of the State reported that 

 in nine prairie chicken nests he found the eggs 

 were all destroyed by crows. A friend tf 1 1 

 me he had seen them catch young rabbits. 

 When young rabbits first leave the nest they 

 are very weak and frail ; they are about the 

 size of a short-tailed meadow mouse, and 

 would be easier for a crow to catch than a 

 wise aid grasshopper. I could mention many 

 other instances where I have seen crows de- 

 stroying eggs or young birds, but this letter 

 is too long now. I have not seen a live 

 prairie chicken in at least five years. When 

 I can write to the Editor of Recreation and 

 say I have not seen a crow in five years, then 

 I will hang up my gun and give the crow a 

 rest. But that time will never come in this 

 State, for the crow is too wary. 



Geo. O. Greene. 

 Princeton, 111. 



OBJECTS TO THE WARDENS 



Editor Recreation : 



I fully indorse Recreation's platform, but 

 think two more clauses should be inserted ; 

 namely, the abolishing of the present system 

 of polluting the rivers with the filth and ref- 

 use of the cities, and the employment of hon- 

 est and honorable men as game wardens. In 

 Ohio we have had about as many rascals em- 

 ployed in enforcing our game laws as we have 

 had good ones. The game laws are all right 

 and should be enforced, but let them be en- 

 forced by gentlemen and in a gentlemanly 

 way. Clarence Vandiveer. 



