206 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



[April 10, 1884. 



GAME IN TEXAS. 



I CAME down here last fall, and was agreeably surprised 

 to find myself in a region where game was abundant. 

 The sportsmen of the town and neighborhood were then 

 lulling deer in abundance. I had no opportunity to partici- 

 pate in the sport, but as soon as the quail (partridge they 

 call them) were lit to kill I took a hand in, going outovt least 

 once a week. 



Previous to my leaving the North my shooting had been 

 principally done in New Jersey, where one would consider 

 himself amply rewarded by a find of four or five bevies and 

 a hag of a dozen birds, after a long day's tramp. No wonder 

 then that 1 was astounded when the first day I went out 

 Waxy McCoy brought me to a field, not a mile and a half 

 from the business portion of the town, in which we found 

 six bevies of from twenty to forty birds each. They gave 

 us enough hunting the whole afternoon, never leaving" the 

 one. field. Of course the birds and ourselves had ample room 

 to move about in it, consistins as it did of about five hun- 

 dred acres. Bags of from forty to fifty birds are frequently 

 made in an afternoon by two guns over a pair of good dogs, 

 and that is saying a great deal for the number of birds, when 

 it is considered that the shooters here never follow them into 

 the brush, hunting up a fresh "gang" when the bevy seeks 

 the kindly shelter afforded by the pines and undergrowth. 



The English snipe seem to remain with us all winter. I 

 have shot a few each mouth from September to the present 

 time, killing sixteen one afternoon two weeks ago, the best 

 bag of them I heard of being twenty-six to two guns for one 

 afternoon's shoot. Many of the native sportsmen do not 

 consider them game, and will not shoot them, but believe 

 me, your humble servant, and other hunters in town who 

 have been raised in the North, know how to appreciate them 

 for the sport they afford and for their table qualifications. 



As you predict in your last issue, the little beauties must 

 be on their way north, as the other day I shot but four on 

 ground which' was literally alive with them a short time 

 previously. 



Woodcock must be a rarity here, as I have seen only two; 

 one was brought to town by a countryman, who had shot 

 it, and wanted to know if it were "good to eat." Think of 

 it! The other 1 flushed while shooting quail one day, and 

 was so surprised at its appearance that I missed him clean. 



A friend brought me the other day three birds which he 

 had killed with one shot, within the precincts of the town, 

 and asked me what they were, as he had never seen any like 

 them before. They were large yellow-leg snipe. Is is not 

 rare to find them so far inland? As I looked at them, visions 

 of old times on Barnegat Bay arose before me. Many of 

 them had I shot between Bill Chadwick's and Uncle Jake 

 Herbert's, when there was not a sign of a human habitation 

 between those two places, and the Tailroad brought you only 

 as far as Squan. 



Wild turkeys are plentiful here, and can be found almost 

 anywhere within a radius of five miles of town. I heard of 

 a fine gobbler being shot day before yesterday. The prairie 

 chicken is about the only southern "game bird which is not 

 found in this immediate section, as we are surrounded by 

 dense pine forests, but they are found in large numbers a 

 short distance .further west. The cottontail "rabbit is very 

 plentiful too, you kick them out of bushes every few step's 

 when quail shooting, and the tall pines are alive with squir- 

 rels. Aliquis. 



Jeffrkson, Texas, March 38. 



WOLVES IN MAINE. 



rgMIE Maine wolf cry is being narrowed down to pretty 

 -L close quarters, and when the Forest and Stream 

 stated some weeks ago that there were practically no wolves 

 in that State, its assertion was as near the truth" as can ever 

 be approached concerning such subjects. All the prominence 

 the subject has been given by the discussion drawn out has 

 failed to bring to light any hut a couple of dead wolves, one 

 killed several' years ago and the other last December — pro- 

 vided it was a wolf. 

 A Portland correspondent writes: 



Portland, Me., March 29, 1884. 

 Editor Forest and Stream: 



In answer to your inquiry about a wolf being- at Fryeburg, 

 in this State, will say that John Heath caught what was called 

 a Canada gray wolf Dec. 22, about a mile from Fryeburg Vil- 

 lage. His trap was set for fox. The wolf was a large one, 

 measuring 5 feet 8 inches from tip to tip, and stood 2}4 feet 

 high. He dragged the trap, heavily clogged, more than a mile. 

 He was very savage when found, making a vigorous attack on 

 Mr. Heath, who dispatched him with a shotgun. A few days 

 before he was caught he attacked a young man while cutting 

 wood, and tore his clothing, scratching him considerably before 

 being frightened away. P. 



This is a good ,wolf story, but as Fryeburg is' about fifty 

 miles to thenorthwest of Portland, the account must have 

 grown in traveling there. The Forest and Stream has 

 carried its investigations of the wolf subject still further. 

 The selectmen of Fryeburg have been written to, since they 

 would be called upon to pay the bounty, and would be very 

 likely to know the truth of 'the matter. One of the board 

 writes : 



Fryeburg, Me., , 1884:, 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



Yours, making inquiries about a wolf killed here last winter. 

 is at hand. I would say there was one killed here and the 

 bounty paid. The animal was captured in a common trap; 

 was undoubtedly a traveler, as they are not common in this 

 part of Maine. They are very seldom seen or heard. This 

 wolf was of the Canada gray speeies, and is supposed to have 

 strayed from the forests of that province. His size was 

 medium. Will give you other information with pleasure, if 

 desired, , Selectman of Fryeburg, Me. 



This letter gives no account of an attack by the wolf or 

 wild animal upon a young man or anybody else. A letter 

 from another correspondent in the same county says: 

 Editor Forest and. Stream: 



No wolf has been killed in this section for a great many 

 years, I hear that one was killed in New Hampshire recently. 



Still another correspondent, from a town adjoining Frye- 

 burg, writes: 

 Editor Forest and Stream: 



Yours is received. I have heard that a wolf or wild animal 

 was killed in Fryeburg or Lowell. 



It seems that there is some doubt about the animal being a 

 wolf at all, while others claim that the creature was killed 

 iu New Hampshire, which is not difficult to understand 

 when it is taken into consideration that the town of Frye- 

 burg borders upon that State. But in order to investigate 

 the wolf story still further the Maine Fish and Game Com- 

 missioners, who offered the special wolf bounty in that State, 

 have been applied to. One of them writes: 



"We have not as yet been called upon to pay a wolf 

 bounty, neither do I much expect we shall be. There is 

 always a stray panther or wolf reported in the forests of 

 Maine, and probably with some degree of correctness. The 

 time is past when either of these creatures can exist in any 

 numbers in our forests, whatever may be the plentifulness 

 of deer and other game, so great is the enterprise and com- 

 petition among our fur hunters." 



All of which goes to show that our position was not far 

 out of the way. 



Since the above was in type, and at the moment of going 

 to press, we have received information from a gentleman 

 well acquainted in Oxford county. Me., and perfectly relia- 

 ble, that a wolf escaped from the collection of curiosities of 

 a traveling showman a year ago last fall. The showman is 

 an eccentric character, a resident of Oxford county. He 

 had for several years a collection consisting of a. black bear, 

 a couple of Canada gray wolves, etc., which he was,* accus- 

 tomed to exhibit at a side show at county fairs, and Fourth 

 of July celebrations. When not on the road he kept his 

 animals in a pen in his barn, and from this pen one of the 

 wolves escaped. The exhibitor kept the matter still for a 

 long time, fearing trouble, if the story of a live wolf astray 

 should get out, but finally the truth became known some 

 months after. It is pretty generally believed that the wolf 

 killed in Fryeburg is none other "than the tame one which 

 had escaped. 



From Shawneetown, III.— The winter was an exceed- 

 ingly severe one, the thermometer going as low as 23° below 

 zero, and fears were entertained that all small game would 

 be frozen out. With some degree of interest, I have noticed 

 the quail since the advent of spring and find them much 

 more plentiful than could have been hoped earlier in the sea- 

 son. By inquiry among farmers and others I am informed 

 that very few frozen birds were found after the hard weather 

 of the earlier part of January. Squirrels are verv plenty in 

 the woods. On Saturday, while out ducking in the Wabash 

 bottom, I noticed quite a number in the woods, although 

 the ground was covered with from five to ten feet of water. 

 During the exceeding high water in February the turkeys 

 were all driven to the hills and, I am sorry to say, quite a 

 number were slaughtered. Water fowl have been plentiful 

 for a month past, but at present are fast wending their way 

 northward. Mallards are pairing and will soon leave us. 

 Saturday, March 22, I took a trip into what we call Hamp- 

 ton bottoms, on the Wabash, and ducks and geese were 

 found in immense numbers. To the true lover of nature, 

 life has no greater pleasures than when in the solitude of 

 the woods. The air is filled with the resonant honk of hun- 

 dreds of geese and the incessant quack of the wild ducks. 

 There is a charm that seems to haunt his memory and bind 

 him closer to the sports of the chase. While silently gliding 

 through the thick timber of the inundated bottom lands 

 the very air seemed alive with the wild commotion of the 

 frightened fowl, as, rising upon every hand, they sped away 

 upon frightened wing. I am pleased to say, however, that 

 they all did not get away, as I had all I could possibly carry. 

 Jack snipe are just coming in, and No. 10 shot will soon be 

 in demand. By the time they disappear the young squirrels 

 will be ready for shooting, and then the dogwoods will be 

 in blossom, when the gun can be laid aside and some of the 

 finest black bass that ever gladdened the heart of the angler 

 will be ready to bite. In fact, I am already getting rods and 

 hues ready — reels are of no use in this section, as the fishing 

 grounds are so difficult to approach that nothing but a rod 

 can be used. Last season I tried trolling faithfully, but 

 could not succeed in hooking anything. Think I'll not try 

 it this year. I will say before closing this that your articles 

 on the most desirable gun for sportsmen's use are read with 

 interest and are of real benefit to amateur sportsmen like — X. 



The Black Hills Sportsman's Club.— A brief history 

 of the organization of a sportsman's club in Deadwood, Dak. , 

 will interest many of your readers. It is by the efforts of 

 clubs such as this one that game on the frontier is to be saved 

 from extinction. A meeting was called for the purpose of 

 organizing a sportsman's club in Deadwood, D. T., for Jan. 

 8, 1883, and was attended by tbe following gentlemen : Seth 

 Bullock, W. M. Brewer, E. Butterfield, Porter Warner, 

 Jas. Lawler, L. F. Whitbeck and John C. Ickes. A com- 

 mittee was appointed to draft and submit a constitution and 

 by-laws at a meeting called for Jan. 11, 1883, at which time 

 the club was organized, to be known as the "Black Hilis 

 Sportsman's Club." The club is said to have been tireless in 

 its efforts to prevent the wanton destruction of game, out of 

 season, and has secured the passage of wholesome laws by 

 the Legislature to that end. Steps have been taken by the 

 club for the introduction of quail with whose progeny to 

 stock the Hills and surrounding country. The officers 

 elected on Jan. 1 were as follows : Dr. L. F. Babcock, Presi- 

 dent; John Stannus, Vice-President; John J. Ickes, Treas- 

 urer. Board of Managers — Seth Bullock, E. G. Phillips and 

 E. Butterfield. At present the club is composed of twenty- 

 one effective members and fifteen honorary members; one 

 from each of the journals published in the counties of Law- 

 rence, Pennington and Custer. — Stamps. 



Size of Measures. — "Hammerless" says that there is a 

 difference of ten pellets between the Bridgeport and Dixon 

 measure. I have a measure that, when it is set at the ounce 

 notch, holds about six pellets of No. 5 shot over l£ ounces. 

 The maker neglected to put his name on the measure. 

 Another one, stamped "Bridgeport G, I. Co., 23 C. R.," 

 when set at the H notch (there is no 1-ounce notch on it) 

 holds eleven pellets less than If ounces. Another, without 

 stamp, is about correct. The measures were filled level full 

 and the shot weighed on a postal balance. I said that I did 

 not consider the shell chamber in the gun any benefit. I 

 presume some of your readers will differ from me in that, 

 but I Avould like to see the 12-gauge gun that will shoot 

 stronger than mine. Bitter Boot Bill says that his gun is 

 chambered for 3-inch shells, but that it shoots as well with 

 2f shells. Now if it shoots as well with a shell f of an inch 

 shorter than the chamber, would it not shoot as well (or 

 better) without any chamber? It appears to me it would.— 

 Gkkkx Wing (Freestone, Cab, March 20). 



A NEw r Gun Club.— The Independent Rod and Gun 

 Club, of Rochester, N. Y., was organized March 25, 1884. 

 Its object is to protect fish and game and the promotion of 

 legitimate sport with the rod and gun. Officers for the en- 

 suing six months are: President, H. Ritter; Vice-President, 

 J. G. Zimber; Secretary, T. J. Zimber; Treasurer, J. C. 

 Enders; Executive Committee, C. L. Harris, J. Long, T. J. 

 Zimber; Vigilance Committee, J. Nouch, W. G. Weston, J. 

 G. Zimber. 



Summer Shooting.— In your issue of March 20, ' '16-Bore, " 

 ot Madison, N. J., under the head of "Summer Woodcock 

 bhootmg," makes some statements to which we take excep- 

 tions, it must be very tame sport, indeed, in New Jersey, 

 it his views are correct. With ten vears "constant in sea- 

 son woodcock shooting in this vicinity we must say that 

 our experience is decidedly different from ' '16-Bore's." The 

 season here opens July 4, and if the Jerseyman will come and 

 make us a visit about that time we think' that wc can demon- 

 strate to him that it requires something more than a mere 

 boy to "catch on' to even a bare majority of the birds 

 Hushed. In all ot our experience we have never seen a single 

 woodcock (after July 4) that could not get out of as small a 

 hole and do it as quickly as anything clothed in feathers 

 We have very fine partridge and quail shooting, hut the 

 woodcock is king of them all, and the hardest by tar to ba°- 

 — Pedro (Mehalson, Pa.). 



Slaughter,— Mr. Francis Burritt, of South Norwalk, has 

 been going for the ducks in a remarkable manner this spring. 

 His first shot resulted in bringing to bag twenty-eight broad - 

 bills; the second shot twenty-seven broadbills; and the third 

 shot thirty-eight broadbills. These shots were made with a 

 twelve-pound double eight-bore, with six drams of Hazard 

 No. 5 duck, and If ounces No. 5 shot. The birds were 

 plenty, and he sculled on to them, and fired both barrels 

 with the above results. This only includes the birds that he 

 picked up dead, of course, some cripples getting away. Last 

 year he made another shot at old squaws, off Beaufort, Conn., 

 killing fifty (50), having used a single four-bore at them sit- 

 ting, and a double eight as they rose. He picked up fifty 

 dead, and many wounded escaped. We do not think this 

 shooting has been beaten recently,— Four-Bore. 



Birds in Maryland.— Snipe shooting has commenced in 

 this section. As early as March 24, R. Cantler shot one snipe 

 in Anne Arundel county, Md., and on March 30, he made a 

 bag of six snipe in Baltimore county. Blackheads and sprig- 

 tail ducks have made then appearance on the Patapsco 

 River. I saw several coveys of partridges close to the city 

 the last few days, and if they are not disturbed by the mar- 

 ket gunner, sportsmen may expect good shooting close to 

 the city this fall. There have been woodcock shot this spring 

 to supply the demand of the taxidermists, the killing of 

 which is against the law. But as long as they can be sold 

 for a good price, those shooting for gain will continue to 

 violate the law and destroy the birds. — Amateur (Baltimore, 

 Md. , April 2). 



Birds in Ohio.— Quail wintered pretty well here, the 

 pheasants a little better. I found a few dead birds in the 

 field that had been frozen and starved to death. Ducks are 

 abundant here, fishing is fine also. I am getting Hon. H. C. 

 Greim, a representative, to try and help our game law 

 through. That will protect the game when shooting seasons 

 arc over, it also forbids trapping birds and selling them. Let 

 us hear from some other young sportsmen in the future. — 

 Young Sportsman (Somerset, O., March 25). 



New Jersey Notes. — Quail seems to be very scarce in 

 this section of the State, notwithstanding the efforts of the 

 game society we have here, who annually stock their leased 

 ground. I was out with my dog last Sunday for a walk and 

 put up two woodcock, hut they were very wild. I also ran 

 into a flock of upland plover. Robins are quite numerous. 

 Mr. Willis, the champion quail raiser, has an addition to his 

 feathered pets in the shape of two imported pheasants. — 

 Dash (Westfield, N. J., March 27). 



Pennsylvania Notes.— Game wintered well in this sec- 

 tion, for although we had a great deal of snow, there was 

 little drifting, and no sleet or freezing rains. I flushed seven 

 English snipe the other morning near town and, on the 20th 

 ult., saw the first woodcock of the season. Trouting season 

 opened on Tuesday, 1st inst., with a general rush to the 

 streams, and although it is cold and stormy, some pretty 

 good catches have been made. — T. E. D. (Elollidavsburgh, 

 April 3). 



» 



"That reminds me." 

 108. 



THE late Dr. John R. Curd was a native of Goochland 

 county, Virginia, and possessed a talent for fiction 

 which gave him a broad reputation. 



At a dinnerparty he related the following incident in con- 

 nection with his experience as a high private in the army of 

 Northern Virginia. 



' T was attached to a battery at the battle of Gettysburg, 

 and in the fierce cannonade which preceded Pickett's charge, 

 every man, except me, in my detachment, was killed. But 

 although left alone, I did not desert my post; and long after 

 the shattered remains of Pickett's division had returned to 

 the Confederate lines, I continued to fire grape into the 

 masses of the enemy on the opposite ridge. While I was 

 ramming down the last charge, General Robert E. Lee 

 galloped up and cried, 'Curd, cease firing; let there be an 

 end to this bloodshed.' But I said to him, 'General, I have 

 but one charge left; let mo give them this.' Overwhelmed 

 by his emotions the noble Lee sprang from his horse, seized 

 my hand, and with tears iu his eyes exclaimed, 'Dr. Curd, 

 henceforth do not call me General^ but call me Bob!' " 



Northside. 



109. 



In a recent visit to Adironda I had the pleasure of calling 

 on your occasional contributor. Major Joseph Verity, U. S. 

 H. M. I found the veteran hale and well and full of remi- 

 niscences of the past, which he freely discoursed of. Early 

 in the conversation he spoke of his first and second wives 

 and his children, but later on, when I spoke of something 

 concerning domestic relations, I think it was of wives some- 

 times objecting to their husbands going fishing and shooting, 

 he said that he "was not competent to give an opinion in 

 such matters, having lived a bachelor all his days." 



"Why, Major!" said I, in some astonishment, "if I under- 

 stood you aright you were telling me not long ago of your 

 wife and children." (1 was afraid to venture on more than 

 one wife). 



"Was I?" said he, and then after a short pause he added, 

 with great dignity of manner, "Well, sir, it cannot bo ex- 

 pected of one of my years that he should remember every 

 little thing that has happened to him in the course of a long 

 and somewhat eventful life." Awahsoose. 



