404 



FOEEST AND STREAM. 



They are practicing a game which will train them for the real 

 battles of the years to corne. 



Oct. 9— A pleasant day. The restriction in regard to thing 

 has heen removed, and antelope steaks are again seen at our 

 supper table. Next day we have more buffalo around us ; 

 several are killed and the Indians are in great glee. The 

 squaws, who are hideously ugly, are all animation and ac- 

 tivity when around a carcass. 



Oct. 1 L— A gala day among the buffalo. The Indians are 

 in raptures over the prospect of replete stomachs. 



Oct. 13— A bright, clear morning. We pass over a hill 

 which gives a flue view of the surrounding country. The 

 Little Rockies loom up grandly. They will long remain pic- 

 tured on my memory as one of the. most delightful places that 

 a hunter could visit. One man killed ten antelope, and others 

 were very successful. The next day was chilly, cloudy and 

 windy. Buffalo arc in sight, as they have been for many 

 days. A huge fellow attempted to cross our trail. An old 

 squaw, with an emphatic gesture, exclaimed in Chenook jar- 

 gon, "Scucom muc-a-muc." (Heap meat.) I fired two 

 shots from my rifle, and at the second fire an annoying acci- 

 dent occurred, which never happened to me before, although 

 it does happen occasionally. The head of the shell was torn 

 off by the ejector, leaving the balance in the chamber. 1 

 took the orderly's carbine, and at the third shot finished the 

 magnificent monster to* the intense delight of the Indians. 

 All three shots had taken effect. The tongue was handed 

 over to me, while the rest was appropriated by the light- 

 hearted followers of Joseph. 



We arrived at the Mo. River in the afternoon, and the slow 

 process of ferrying began. The majority of our wounded 

 were sent down the river by steamer. An elk was Mlled at 

 the mouth of Squaw Creek, but a short distance from camp. 



Oct. 16— We start up Squaw Creek. A fine mountain 

 sheep and three black-tailed deer were bagged during the day. 



Oct. 17— A small hunting party go out to-day. 1 saw two 

 black-tailed deer, and had a hasty shot at one. He came 

 within 80 yards of me, but unfortunately two men were be- 

 tween the noble fellow and myself. As frequently happens, 

 h ey were unconscious of his near proximity. An instant 

 and he was gone. He was in sight again at 150 yards, but it 

 was a farewell bound, and my shot did not stop him. 

 He was such a splendid specimen that I had not the heart 

 to grieve over his good luck. Seven mountain sheep were 

 seen, and one enthusiastic young officer was determined to 

 secure the head of the grand old ram, whose horns made one 

 complete turn, and half of the next circle. The experienced 

 hunter of the party said they would weigh sixty pounds. A 

 long chase, and they got a good shot, wounding the ram and 

 a doe. The seven were seen to go into a cedar thicket, aud 

 only five left it. The blood marks were distinct, but the 

 thicket was full of fallen timber. They could not ride through 

 it. They were so far in rear of the column that they could 

 not trust their horses on the outside of the thicket, while they 

 mack?, a careful search on foot over a three-acre patch. They 

 were liable to meet gentle savages, who had left their pipes 

 of peace at home, and so they reluctantly retraced their steps 

 and left the sheep to the wolves. 



We nad an illustration of the amount of lead an antelope 

 can sometimes carry. One was struck seven times, twice with 

 explosive bullets, before he stopped running. Two men who 

 went to the right of that trail killed two fine black-tailed deer. 



An officer who left us yesterday morning to examine the 

 valley of the Musesl-shell River returned this afternoon. He 

 had a detachment of ten men. They saw plenty of elk, black- 

 tailed deer, antelope and two bears. The Mussel-shell is 

 represented to be a splendid game region. It is the border 

 land between the Sioux and Crows. A party who ventures 

 there must be prepared to fight. Uutil recently no white man 

 could go five miles up the Valley of the Mussel-shell without 

 the risk of leaving his remains, minus his scalp, for the wolves. 



October 18— Wo reach a branch of the Big Dry Fork of the 

 Mo. River. Fewer buffalo and more antelope are seen on the 

 march. October 19— We still have plenty of antelope about 

 us. I saw a flock of sage hens. October 20— A pleasant morn- 

 ing. I killed a fine doe antelope at long-range. After reach- 

 ing camp a herd of buffalo pass near, and a few of us gave 

 chase. Two are lulled, a fine cow and call. I wounded one, 

 but failed to bring her down, and after an exciting chase of 

 four miles over a rough country I gave it up, niuch to the dis- 

 gust of my orderly, who would have gone until his horse 

 dropped in his tracks. It requires a decided effort to give up 

 a chase which is thrilling to the rider, but death to his horse. 

 It is a great abuse of horse flesh to run buffalo after a forced 

 march of several hundred miles. The animals used for buffalo 

 hunting should be led until the chase begins, and then a dash 

 made, regardless of the. ground. Any attempt to favor a horse 

 at the bediming of a run only leads to a long and frequently 

 fruitless effort. It is easy enough to catch the bulls; the 

 cows and calves require good horses and bold riding to over- 

 take them. 



We could see two immense herds a mile away as we reluc- 

 tantly turned our horses' heads toward camp, but the sinking 

 sun warned us to loose no time. 



We got into the Bad Lands, and meandered over a very 

 rough, broken country, deep ravines, abrupt hills, fantastic 

 mounds, yawning chasms— a very hell with the fires put out j 

 but finally reached the open country, and were, not long in 

 making camp. The next day we made the head of the main 

 branch of Sunday Creek. A great many buffalo and antelope 

 ■were killed. 



After a march of over 500 miles the command arrived at the 

 cantonment on Tuesday, October 23. A lovely day. The 

 scene was interesting and picuresquc. The approach to the 

 Post on the north side of the Yellowstone is over a high 

 plateau, from which a road {winds down a ravine to the river 

 bank. First came the commanding officer and his staff, ac- 

 companied by Joseph and a few of his followers; than the ad- 

 vance guard, followed by Indians in picturesque groups; then 

 the pack train and more troops, the wagon train and flanking 

 columns, the pony herd and rear guard. As the command 

 filed down the ravine, flags were unfurled, the band struck 

 up, "Hail to the Chief," while cannon thundered forth a 

 salute of welcome to the troops who had so successfully ended 

 the campaign against the Nez Perces. Rem sen. 



OUR WASHINGTON LETTER. 



Cakp foe Southern Watees— A National Caep Hatch- 

 ing Establishment — Views of Prof. Baied, U. S. 

 Fish Commissioner — Salmon and Brook Trout foe 

 Maryland Waters, Etc., Etc 



[from our own CORRESPONDENT. J 



Washington, D. O, Dec. 22, 1877. 



The propagation of carp for the purpose of supplying the 

 streams and ponds of the Southern States with this fish has 

 occupied the attention of Prof. Baird, U. S. Fish Commis- 

 sioner, for the past year, and the work has been pushed for- 

 ward to a limited extent at the hatching establishment of the 

 Maryland Fish Commission, in Druid Hill Park, near Balti- 

 more. Arrangements are now being made, however, to pros- 

 ecute the work with more vigor, and we are soon to have a 

 National Carp Hatching Depot in this city. In the Monu- 

 ment lot, just south of the Executive Mansion, there are two 

 large lakes covering an area of about ten acres, and a third 

 one of the same extent can be made by constructing an em- 

 bankment across the outer edge of a gully, bordering on the 

 Potomac, which is filled at high tide and bare at low water.' 

 Prof. Baird for some years has been impressed as to the im- 

 portance of the carp as a future element in the food supply of 

 the United States, and I quote his reasons from a recent letter 

 which he addressed to Hon. Henry G. Davis, a member of the 

 Senate Committee on appropriations : 



"First, The carp is a fish which has been domesticated for 

 a thousand years in Europe, occupying there and in China the 

 same position among fish that poultry does among birds, being- 

 susceptible of cultivation in limited waters and thriving in 

 sluggish and muddy lowland streams, entirely independent of 

 the temperature; indeed, growing more rapidly and faring the 

 better the warmer the water. I am satisfied there is no mill, 

 pond in any part of the Southern States where the carp will 

 not thrive. It grows very rapidly, attaining the weight of 

 two or three pounds in the course of as many years, and is 

 extremely hardy. The flesh is excellent, the better varieties 

 in Germany bringing a quarter of a dollar a pound and rank- 

 ing among the most esteemed species. 



" The second merit or special qualification of the carp con- 

 sists in its being a vegetable feeder and subsisting readily upon 

 aquatic plants, whether they grow naturally in its vicinity or 

 are planted for the purpose of furnishing its sustenance. In 

 this it differs from the trout, black bass, and other favorite 

 pond fish, which, in order to become of practical value as a 

 food supply, must be fed with meat, involving more or less 

 expense, especially in view of the fact that it takes from five 

 to ten pounds of flesh to make one pound of trout or black 

 bass. 



"I do not think it possible to over-estimate the future import- 

 ance to the United States of this fish ; and as you are per- 

 haps aware, I have already imported a supply of breeders for 

 the purpose of distributing their progeny to different parts of 

 the country. These are now kept in the ponds in Druid Hill 

 Park, Baltimore ; but the space allotted to them is entirely 

 inadequate for the purpose of their satisfactory propagation 

 and multiplication. In looking around for some more suita- 

 ble situation, I am advised by Mr. Rudolph Hessel, an ex- 

 perienced cultivator of this fish in Europe, and who is in 

 charge of those in Baltimore, that he has never seen a more 

 favorable place for carp culture than is to be found in the 

 two ponds on the Monument lot in Washington. It these 

 had been constructed especially for the purpose they could 

 not have answered it better, with a little additional labor. 4 ' 



In the Deficiency Appropriation bill which passed Congress 

 last week is a clause appropriating $5,000 for the purpose of 

 adapting these ponds to the culture of carp, and it is proposed 

 to so grade the bottoms of the ponds that the water can be 

 drawn off from one or the other at will, and the fish secured 

 for distribution. In one of them there is a small island covered 

 with tree3, and shallow basins will be excavated upon this 

 island into which the breeding fish can be placed. The 

 opinion is expressed that these ponds with the basins above 

 mentioned for breeders would be quite equal to many first- 

 class establishments for purely breeding purposes in Europe, 

 where so much attention has been paid to this fish. The 

 grading will be commenced at once so that the fish can be trans- 

 ferred at the earliest possible date from Baltimore to Wash- 

 ington, and there will be an extended distribution of young 

 fish in the course of the coming summer. 



It will be remembered that Prof. Baird in an interview 

 with your correspondent last summer, spoke of the value of 

 introducing carp into the waters of the United States, and 

 especially those of the Southern States for which it is emi- 

 nently suited; and though he thought the carp did not promise 

 to be as valuable as the mackerel, shad or salmon, it would be 

 a fish of great commercial importance, for the reason that many 

 can be kept in a small body of water. The meat of the carp 

 is very palatable, free from bones, and as a»food fish it stands 

 high. " On account of its quick growth aud great increase it is 

 regarded as the most valuable of ad fish for stocking ponds; • 

 besides, it is ornamental, being of a rich golden color. 



Two importations of carp were made in 1875, but of an in- 

 ferior kind. Unfortunately, on account of hot weather and 

 overcrowded tanks, all but twenty-two died on the voyage. 

 Subsequently all died but eight, and from this small number 



several thousand were hatched in the ponds at Druid Hill 

 Park. Last year Mr Rudolph Hessel, a German fish culturist 

 of notej arrived with fortv-four from ponds bordering on the 

 Danube, in Hungary- These were fish of a superior 

 quality; and, later, another supply from the same ponds was 

 received, all of which were placed in the hatching establish- 

 ment at Druid Hill Park, and already many young ones have 

 been distributed in Maryland waters. The ponds in this city 

 to which they will be removed were constructed by Gen. O. 

 E. tfabeock when he was Superintendent of Public Buildings 

 and Grounds, merely as ornaments to the public grounds, and 

 they are used every winter for skatiDg purposes; but the 

 breeding of carp in them will not interfere with this amuse- 

 ment in cold weather. Sixty thousand young California 

 salmon have recently been deposited in the headwaters of the 

 Potomac river by Maj. T. B. Ferguson, the energetic Mary- 

 land Fish Commissioner. The first lot of 30,000 was placed 

 iu the tributaries of the Potomac in the vicinity of Fort Pen- 

 fileton near Oakland, Garrett County, Maryland, and the 

 second lot, of about the same number, in the Potomac, near 

 Piedmont and Keyser, West Va. They were hatched in the 

 breeding establishment at Druid Hill Park from eggs received 

 from, the United States salmon hatching establishment on the 

 McOloud River, California. The work of stocking the Poto- 

 mac with'salmon was first commenced Professor Baird, the 

 United States Fish Commissioner, about four years ago, 

 when thirty-five thousand young fish were placed in the 

 Conecogoague, a small tributary of the Potomac, near 

 Chambersburg, Pa., and later in the same season 35,000 

 were turned loose in a small branch of the Shenandoah, 

 near Winchester, Va. The young salmon were placed in the 

 extreme headwaters of the river, because there were no black 

 bass there to destroy them; and, secondly, to induce them to 

 ascend the river as high as possible upon their return from the 

 sea in subsequent years, as the salmon, like the shad, 

 return to the streams in which they were bred. Another 

 reason was, the waters of these tributaries are cool and clear, 

 and well adapted to the growth of young fish. By the time 

 they descend the stream on their way to the sea they have 

 attained* sufficient size to protect themselves against the 

 ravenous appetites of the black bass. It is anticipated that 

 the salmon first put in the river will soon make their appear- 

 ance on their return from the sea, and they have by this time 

 attained a weight of ten or fifteen pounds. It is supposed 

 they return in four or five years from the time they were first 

 placed in the stream, though difference in the temperature of 

 the water, currents, etc., may have more or less influence 

 upon their return, and make the period longer or shorter. 

 When they do come, it will be with a rush, and they will, no 

 doubt, be plentiful until the time for their departure for deep 

 water. It is their habit, I believe, to remain in the vicinity of 

 their spawning grounds about three months before again 

 set-king deep water. . 



The work of stocking the Potomac, as well as other Mary- 

 land waters, has been carried on for several years past 

 by the Maryland Fish Commission until several hundred 

 thousand young salmon have heen turned loose in the 

 Potomac alone. Last year I think about one hundred and 

 fifty thousand were placed in the tributaries of this river 

 above the point of rocks, and in the course of a few years we 

 may expect magnificent salmon fishing in this locality. Major 

 Ferguson expects shortly to have a supply of several hundred 

 thousand brook trout eggs in process of hatching at Druid 

 Hill Park, which he will distribute to all persons who desire 

 to stock their streams with this most delicious of all fish. 

 Several fine trout streams in the Shenandoah Valley, of Vir- 

 ginia, have been stocked with the speckled beauties within the 

 last few years, and the sport of taking them was enjoyed by 

 quite a number of visitors to that section last summer. Per- 

 sons interested in having the larger streams of Maryland 

 supplied with fine fish' are becoming concerned in ref- 

 erence to the laws of the State for their protection. It has 

 been stated that large numbers of young salmon and other 

 valuable fish have been destroyed by the seine-haulers and 

 " pound net " fishermen during the past summer. In 

 some of the creeks contiguous to the Susquehanna 

 and on the Eastern .Shore, which a few years ago 

 afforded great quantities of the smaller varieties of table 

 fish, there are now none whatever. Shad and other larger 

 kinds of fish have suffered to a great degree, many of them 

 being taken when too small for market iu the seines, and 

 allowed to perish and rot on the shore. The attention of the 

 Legislature will be called to this subject, and a strong effort 

 will be made by Major Ferguson and others to secure the 

 passage of a law to protect, within proper limits, the valuable 

 productions of Maryland waters. 



The Virginia Fish Commissioners .are also paying much 

 attention to the propagation of salmon for the purpose of sup- 

 plying the. waters of that State. They have also lately entered 

 into contract with several persons at Trout Royal, on the 

 Shenandoah, to catch 1,000 black bass for the purpose of 

 stocking suitable streams in that State with these game fish. 



R, P. If. 



TEAM SHOOTING. 



FOB THE " FOBEST AND STREAM AND BOD AND GUN " MED AX. 



Under the following conditions this journal proposes pre- 

 senting to the best team, members to belong U> some 

 regularly organized association, a gold medal : 

 Shooting to take place January 23, 1878, at Union Hill 

 Schutzen Park. 



BULBS AND REGULATIONS. 



Each team to consist of twelve men; ten shots per man. 



Shooting, off-hand; distance, 200 yards, any rifle; open to all 

 clubs or associations. 



No person allowed to compete in a team unless he is an 

 active member of the club for ninety days. 



Practice from 10 a. m. to 1 p. m. 



Team shooting to commence at 1 p. m. Targets to be 

 drawn for by each captain of each team. 



Entrance fee, $6 for each team. 



Ring targets to be used, three-quarter inch rings. 



After deducting the expenses for the markers, the balance 

 will be divided to the second and third highest teams. 



Shooting to be governed by the Schutzen Bund rules. 



All teams can enter for the competition at the Forest and 

 Stream and Rod and Gun office, 111 Fulton street, city, 

 Dn or before January 20, 1878. 



Captains of teams" entered will constitute the committee. 



