JCOTS 15, 1882,] 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



387 



wounded him severely. The dog came up near me, and not 

 knowing mo turned back. Boon afterward one. or two of 

 the hunters mine up , and we followed the deer by the blood 

 mark.-. It was not long before he was found, but not dead. 

 i6t at him brought him down, and he was safely 

 carried to the camp. When skinned his hams were white 

 with fat, as are a well-fed sheep's, and he needed the help of 

 no hog's lard to make his flesh quite palatable. His net 

 weight was one hundred and thirty pounds. I have seen 

 larger deer, but never saw such a fat one. 



That night, as we sat around the camp fire of logs of black 

 jack and pine knots making a hot and blazing fire which 

 lighted up all the ground and sent its glare for many rods, 

 we indulged in the narration of stories, some of which had 

 Dut a remote connection, if any at all, with the life and 

 snorts which we were enjoying. Each one had told his tale, 

 when one of the crowd asked our friend Martin Bicket to 

 give us an account of an occurrence w hi ch took place at a 

 stone house not many miles away, and which he claimed to 

 bare witnessed. So after cleaning his throat, laying down 

 his pipe and putting into his mouth a piece of plug tobacco, 

 he gave us the following: 



Among other things sold at the store in question, was an 

 article purporting to be derived from a distillation of the 

 fermented juice of corn and rye, and a gentleman well-known 

 in that section as a politician of considerable pretensions 

 was exceedingly fond of visiting the establishment to hear 

 the news and quench his thirst. On the occasion referred to, 

 the aforesaid politician, Gulliver Heart, was present and en- 

 joying a small game of "seven up" with one Murrell Bills, 

 the stake being a nipperkin of Bankler's best, to be paid for 

 by the loser. Several drinks had been indulged in, but after 

 a while Gulliver, whose thirst was hard to assuage, roared 

 out : 



"It's along time betwixt drinks— bring us the bottle." 



A man named Day was a sort of employee about the store, 

 and he had the misfortune to be suffering with a sore leg, 

 which the doctor was attempting to cure by direct applica- 

 tions and constitutional treatment. Among other medicines 

 which he was taking was whisky, with a mixture of as- 

 safcetida, aloes, myrrh and wild cherry tree bark, kept in a 

 hottle and to be used, tahlespoonful at a time, three times a 

 i lay. 



The aforesaid bottle was hid securely under the counter. 

 Bandlcr had placed Gulliver's bottle under the counter, also, 

 and unfortunately put it inclose proximity to Day's leg 

 medicine. So when he heard the demand for more whisky, 

 he reached under the counter, got a bottle, and handed it to 

 Gulliver. B. took out the stopper, whilst G. held the glass. 

 The hottle was tilted, and gave repeated sounds of "google, 



foogle, google" before Gulliver yelled, "nold; enough." 

 hen, with eyes sparkling with delight in anticipation of a 

 refreshing draught, he wished a health to all and put it to 

 his mouth. One good swallow of Day's leg medicine went 

 down his throat, when his rebellious palate forbade all 

 further attempts. With retches, salivary ejectations and 

 indistinct oaths, G. called for water. Just then Day came 

 in ami protested with great earnestness against the use of his 

 physic. He took his cherished treasure and put it hack in a 

 safe place under the counter. The taste of the drugs de- 

 stroyed all Gulliver's appetite for "sperrits" for a short 

 while, and he engaged again in the delightful pastime of 

 "powring o'er the devil's picture beuks." And then he 

 called for the bottle. Bandler went again and took out the 

 precious liquid from under the counter and poured into the 

 glass uutd Gulliver directed him to stop. Then raising the 

 goblet to his mouth, with an invocation of "good luck to 

 all," he swallowed another mouthful of Day's accursed 

 " hell broth," which made his recalcitrant stomach break 

 out in open mutiny, whilst Day, with whining voice and 

 subdued look, begged that the means of his physical salva- 

 tion should not be again taken to serve the demands of Gul- 

 liver's appetite for whisky. 



This last effort ended the hilarity of the occasion, and with 

 sheepish mien and disturbed visage, Gulliver left for home, 

 reflecting that Leg Medicine was only another instance of 

 where "All that glisters is not gold."" The recital of the 

 story, with the mimicry of voice and gesture, at which 

 Bickett is no mean proficient, kept the camp in an uproar of 

 laughter. Whenever Gulliver "gets on his high horse," and 

 "sloshes around," in Bickett's presence, he manages to bring 

 things to a calm by a mild suggestion of Leg Medicine. 



On the morning of the fourth day we took up stakes, and 

 left for home, having managed to get eight deer, besides 

 having had a pleasaut time during the hunt. 



The memory of joys that are past is, like the music of 

 Caryl, "both pleasant and mournful to the soul;" pleasant, 

 because- they cany the mind and heart back to green fields 

 and flowery meadows; and mournful, because, these bright 

 spots have faded away, never again to bloom and gladden 

 and refresh. Wells. 



"THE CHARMED WHITE DEER." 



THE subject of while deer, which appeared in Fokest 

 asd Stjikam, has occasionally been a theme of discus- 

 sion among old hunters for more than half a century. Some 

 of the old pioneer hunters believed that if a white deer had 

 been discovered in the vicinity of their hunting ground 

 (which was a rare occurrence), it portended ill-luck, and 

 that it was the cause of all their poor shots, loss of wounded 

 game. etc. ; and the hunter who was so reckless as to shoot a 

 white deer, would surely come to some bad end. Many of 

 those old hunters with whom I used to associate were men 

 who seemed to have good common sense, and yet would 

 have some imaginary whims mixed up with their hunting 

 excursions which were simply preposterous. 



I am led to believe that there is not more than one white 

 deer among 10,000. T grew up in the wilderness and among 

 deer, and the most that I ever positively knew about white 

 deer was. that 1 once, saw a white deer "skin, soon after it had 

 been taken off. The. ears, eyebrows and nose were reddish 

 brown, the feel and legs were the same color as other deer 

 Up co mar the knees and gambrel joints; the rest was 

 pure white, except a few brown hairs on the rump, and a 

 tuft of dark hair on the upper side and root of tail. It was 

 a two-year-old doc, was killed in Pennsylvania on or near 

 i he driftwood branch of the Susquehanna, as long ago as the 

 fall at 1835. Killed by J. Davis and H. M. Wattles, each 

 having a shot and both shots striking the deer. Ikucw those 

 men for years afterwards. The latter named gentleman 

 died about tWO years ago in Kansas, having lived to be more 

 than eighty years old. I am not aware that he suffered any 

 serious loSses or had more ill-luck than usually falls to the 

 lot of ordinary mortals, Axtler, 



i Falls, Teuntesei 



MEMPHIANS AFIELD. 



WITHIN the vivid consciousness of all men of fine 

 feelings are imbedded far under the crust and dust 

 of the surface, that, is the daily battle-ground of the fight, 

 for ordinary living, pearls of precious remembrance, 

 jeweled thoughts of victories along the heart's side avenues. 

 With very many the ardent penchant is aglow for the Arab's 

 ambition, to own and caress and advance into extremest 

 beauty, strength, speed and affection, the flyers of the turf 

 or private ground, loving them like children; while other 

 men infuse their own life and elasticity and elan into yachts 

 and buoyant boats, that ride the foaming waves with the 

 supremacy of disdain and the light ness and grace of the 

 swan. While many joj r ous and innocent hours are so spent 

 when "off duty," scudding new and warmer blood through 

 him who has earned his sport, there is yet another noble 

 army blended into one brotherhood by similar tastes grow- 

 ing old, yet green in happy memories of prairie and stubble 

 fields, corn, pea and sedgegrass fields shot over many frosty 

 days, and cheerily talked over many nights and sultry 

 summer days. In memory and reality the beloved forms of 

 Addie, Guy, Pauline, Countess, Lilly, Scott, Mack, Pat, 

 Lee, Kate, Pedro, Josio and other prime favorites of the 

 present or past, lovingly return our glances and bound in 

 delight when the gun "and shooting-suit are brought out. 

 No new and freckled family of dogs can supplant them in 

 our affections, and when the aliens shall have long and 

 gallantly swept the fields, woodlands, prairies and marshes, 

 aiding the ringing Scott, Daly and Harris guns to bag quail, 

 grouse and snipe, they will then be only even with those 

 already tiled, true and proven worthies. Often I have 

 wondered, when making a long, clean double (hit or miss) on 

 snipe, if these same birds have "scalped" and escaped, while 

 darting and gyrating before the deadly tubes of my far away 

 friends, Sheldon, Von Lengerke and Montclare. If so, 

 they are to be congratulated, although numbers of their 

 kin doubtless warmed the cockles of these sportsmen's 

 hearts, forgetting to emigrate. When hurling leaden hail 

 and death among the glossy and rich-hued mallards, 1 

 have often wondered if they ever had the pleasure of quack- 

 ing before the blue pills of Mislher Philip McShane, of 

 California's golden shore, who is genial and spirited as an 

 Irishman. When doubling up the sly old cock pinnated, 

 that doubles on track like a' wily fox, I often muse on the 

 chance that he is a link between me and the artist-sportsman 

 of St. Paul, owner of Morford's Joe, who, with his wife 

 drove over the plains, with ranging setters pointing and 

 retrieving, and who charmed the hours at Windom and 

 Heron Lake. Years of admiration lavished on my brace of 

 (pheasants) ruffed grouse that grace my dining room aviary 

 of mounted trophies impress on mo the refinement of a 

 Dayton (O.) sportsman who sent them as testimonials for 

 courtesies to his friend, R. B. Morgan, then here with some 

 admirahle dogs, among them "Friend." 



One picture', framed in gold and hung in memory's hall by 

 silver cords, is the eighth annual hunt of four of us sons of 

 Tennessee, who popped fire-crackers together thirty years 

 ago, as our sons are doing now. Time, December 28, 1881; 

 place, Goodwin, Ark. , at the west edge of the prairie. Dave 

 by old Guy, Camille by field champion Joe, Jr., Bapp by 

 Erin, and Chuck — himself a host — were among our dogs; 

 also, among the best, was red and white Pat, the star duck 

 retriever, kindly given me by Mr. "Washington A. Coster, of 

 Long Island. Pairing off, and having two light wagons fol- 

 low us with shells, lunch, etc., wc gave the first day to quail, 

 bagging respectively 29, 35, 52 and 39. Late that afternoon 

 Postoak and I followed a bevy of quail into the edge of a 

 woody, grassy slough, and bombarded them, when a roar of 

 wings crashed and hurtled through the brush, and a line of 

 mallards rose for hundreds of yards, circling, wheeling, 

 quacking, and with bowed wings and down-stretched feet 

 alighted further up the slough. For the first time we. ' 'soured 

 on" our life-long friend Bob White ; he flew unheeded by, and 

 was, by contrast, no larger than an humble bee. Where, 

 then, was the queen of all retrievers, my red setter Countess? 

 Loaned to a friend, who had seen her swim lakes, plunge into 

 muskrat holes, and trail through wild rice near Spirit Lake 

 for wounded ducks, and who was now shooting near the 

 banks of the Mississippi River. 



Postoak boldly waded in, the bottom being firm, and the 

 top covered with small, floating acorns ; and at pitch dark he 

 came groping out to my halloas with seven greenheads. not 

 counting his own. I had to "put up" with two; but to my 

 great surprise Camille pointed a snipe, then another, theii 

 several arose, and the work grew red hot, until fifteen gray- 

 backs were smoothed again into symmetry. Shipping our 

 game home — sixty miles — by the express that night, 155 quail, 

 duck and sni]*e reached there on ice in time for twelve break- 

 fasts next morning, as eight fellow spoilsmen beside our four 

 families were presented birds. 



Our companions, Sam and Mack, going south, had not 

 seen a duck, but made fine bags of quail, and heartily con- 

 gratulated us on the past day; and we drank several night- 

 caps to the promise of to-morrow from a jug of mild cock- 

 tad, always leaving it till night. For two drinks will cause 

 a sportsman to see two birds when one rises, and he will 

 shoot between them, while three nips make him dangerous to 

 man and dog. While tod is the poorest of all masters it is a 

 good servant, about time for robe and slippers. Shooting 

 quail over the four miles of prairie next morning, between 

 us and the duck slough, we dined, lolling on the grass; and 

 about 4 P. M. were rewarded on stands by seeing scattering, 

 then bunches, then, as it grew late, streams ami long, dark 

 fines of mallards wheeling, swerving, whistling low over us. 

 bent on roosting in the brushy pools, and, about dark, devoid 

 of fear and caution. Oh, that we could have had an inkling 

 of this flight of ducks! then 12-bores and Nos. 8 and ij 

 shot would have been relegated to birds alone ; and 4-draohms, 

 with No. 5 shot, would have doubled our bag of ducks, 

 which was 110 in all, the darkness losing us many cripples. 

 Repeatedly we dipped our heated barrels in water* and shells 

 and daylight gave out at the sane time. Our alrm 

 tard-seed shot only intensified the lyric stanza of Bryant. — 



"Vainly the fowler's eye 



Might mark thy distant flight to do thee Wrojig, 

 As darkly limned upon the crimson sky. 



Thy figure floats along." 

 For sake of the exquisite sentiment is added— 

 "He who from zone to zone 



Guides through the boundless sky thy certain -flight. 

 In the long way that I must tread alone, 



Will lead in\ steps aright," 



Carpeting the/wagon bads with game al on* Bad and setter 

 at the other, we rapidly drove to Mr, Pierce's hospitable 



home at Goodwin, where bath and ".upper rejuvenated and 

 happily refreshed us, recounting the rattling doubles and 

 rattled misses of the jolly day. Our driver and pleasaut 

 companion was Mr. T. J. Walker, whose three brothers were 

 killed and robbed last year near Aberdeen. Mass., the crim- 

 inals shortly after being both hung. Having at 10 P, M. 

 shot over again our last heavily splashing double, between 

 snowy sheets we sank to perfect repose— well-earned rest. 

 Slumber was dreamily and delightfully deepened by the 

 flickering firelight; the ghosts of dying' embers chase each 

 other athwart the ceiling until sleep closed the windows of 

 the soul. As bright anticipation and cheery preparation are 

 often the magna pars of a hunter's enjoyment, it is happily 

 true, that dreams frequently augment delight following 

 glorious sport thus thrice experienced. Visions of gaily- 

 crested, scarlet-eyed wood drakes, with querulous quaver arid 

 screaming mates skimming along the water, till Scott and 

 Daly rang a deadly- halt and pealed forthwith tongues of 

 fire, quickened the heart's pulsations. Keener pleasure still 

 hounds through the thrilled blood when a perfect storm of 

 mallards come roaring by, swooping, veering, climbing as 

 danger wdth leaden death 'bursts in flaming volleys in their 

 midst. Excitement gradually fades and "a corresponding 

 sweet languor pervades the system, and while the myriads 

 of wild fowl mount into azure distance the faint, yet silvery 

 tinkle of dainty wee sleighbells seems to float from their 

 clearing wings. The glint and glitter of sunlight seems 

 ghstening on breasts and pinions, but in reality is the golden 

 stream of the morning sunrise awaking us for the royal sport 

 of the thud and last day. 



The forenoon was hotly spent among the whizzing quad, 

 the afternoon piled up the scores on ducks, and we were 

 sated and heavfly loaded with that grand game. The fat 

 boy poured a charge of No. 8 into the ham of an old buck 

 that jumped from a treelap, and the same good hunter ''broke 

 a gobbler's wing which took the brush then and Dexter-ously 

 outtrotted Postoak. Mounting our wagons we had a 

 delightful drive home through*" the grassy plain, frequently 

 flushing water fowl from the reedy ponds en route. Casting 

 up our three days' scores for four men, we had bagged 348 

 head of feathered game, each gun making nearly an equal 

 average; and heaving ducks, dogs, valises, and all aboard, 

 we waved adieu to our cordial aids-de-camp, and met the. 

 new year, 1882, "at home" precisely at noon of night, 

 December 31. Guido. 



Memphis, Tenn. 



THE AVERAGE BOY OF 30 YEARS AGO. 



t^TTIS mother loved him and oft entreated him," saying: 

 XI "Now r , Mit, are you sure, that gun is not loaded?' 

 That gun was the terror ot her life and she took no peace 

 until it was safely back and out of Mit's hands. A ud it was 

 not much of a gun either, bought with the first four dollars 

 he. overbad, fearfully and wonderfully made; painted rings 

 upon the barrel— "pug and twist" the boys called it— about 

 thirty-six inches long and No. 16 gauge; stock of stained 

 beech; front action lock that looked just from a country 

 smith's shop. It was loaded with an uncertain amount of 

 ammunition poured out in the palm of the hand, and was the 

 death of many squirrels. If it happened to bring down a 

 crow or hawk at "nine or ten rod" its reputation was estab- 

 lished in the neighborhood as a wonderful gun, and the 

 farmer who still owns it, thinks it the best gun in the world 

 although it is more than thirty years old. What amount of 

 money would induce you to shoot this gun with, say, three 

 drams of powder? 



It is w r onde'rful that more boys are not hurt with these 

 cheap guns, but "ignorance is bliss and it is folly to be other- 

 wise." The boys keep popping away. A merciful providence 

 must protect them, for the powder has no visible means of 

 support. From the tour dollar gun the average boy of that 

 day passed up to the twelve dollar double gun, not a whit 

 more safe, but the pride of the owner and the envy of his 

 chums. This gun suits him for several years, when be be- 

 gins it ILink a r-Ile is more manly, and 'the. first thing you 

 know, he has swapped for an old set lock rifle, muzzled' in 1 

 ing, of course, and carrying from 90 to 120 to the pound. 

 It will "sling" a patched leaden pill for a short distac 

 as true as a die. He soon acquires skill enough to Sp 

 a squirrel's head almost every shot. Again a few years 

 and he will pick up a bird dog and again turn hi'-, at- 

 tention to the scatter gun. When he has shot a few quail 

 or sniped over points, if there is any Sportsmanship in hissoul, 

 he learns to appreciate a good gun and wonders what power 

 of foolhardiness ever impelled him to shoot the original ring- 

 tad pug and tw ist, birmagem, that he now looks upon as more, 

 likely to hunt and kill the shooter than the game or chipping 

 bird it is aimed at. " Meuitablk, 



Cleveland, Ohio 



LARGE GAME IN THE SOUTHWEST. 



I HAVE not been here long enough to become fully 

 aequaintcd with the hunting prospects, though I am of 

 (lie opinion that this is a good rendezvous for hunting par- 

 ties. I will gladly aid my brethren in any way I can, 



Goodhuntfng grounds 'in New Mexico and Western T< - 

 can be found at from forty to sixty miles away. I am told 

 that in New- Mexico, especially in (he Sacramento "Mi 

 tains, elk, black-tailed deer and cinnamon bear are to b 

 found in large numbers. There are also plenty of mom : 

 quail and turkeys. I hear also of mountain sheep in 

 ii'i East of El Paso, along the line of the Texas d 



cific and the Sunset Railroad in Texas, say from 100 to -'(.hi 

 miles, there are Jarge numbers of antelope. These cannot 

 behimted successfully except with long range rides, as 

 are always found on the open plains. I am told that 

 are almost numberless, and 1 know that, this must lie the 

 case, for I saw a great many from the train. 



At different points, in fact almost anywhere along ' 

 plains, good hunting can be had in the way of quail" jack 

 rabbits and antelope. At Big Springs and Toyaih, on 

 the T. & P. road, good hot' 1 acc<3rj , had, 



and I presume, horses and wagons could be had also i 

 moderate price. Near Big Springs, only a mils oi 

 are a great many ponds, basins in the sand hills, where eery 

 tine duck-shooting can be had in proper season. Even n 

 there are large numbers of small ducks there. I took \ 

 to be leal and redheads, though I could not get i good ta I 

 at them. 



Near El Paso, in the Rio Grande Valley, there 

 many of what they there «all valh , 

 but totally until for dog htrafcirig, as they run Like ) I like 

 rarely lying to a dog. The} 

 as many as several hundred, and al 1 

 Gen, Harrison and other Bportsmcn of tins place introd 

 ■ lumber of "Bob Whites' last full, to the hope , 



