124 | , 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
(Seer ii 1984, 
pose of banging at deer, is not to be considered, If the ad- 
yocaites of that practice will abandon it for the rifle when 
deer hunting they will, on a proper qualification for its use, 
haye a clearer, far-searching eye, a steadier nerve, kill more 
game, a cleaner conscience and be entitled to rank them- 
selves as sportsmen the world over. I respectfully ask every 
buckshot banger that reads the forrsp anp SrrRHAm to try 
it. ADIOS. 
Tucson, Arizona, Aug. 26. 
Hiditor Forest and Stream: 
I haye handled both bullets and buckshot and shall not try 
lo give any other than my own experience and views. There 
may bea few kinds of hunting, such as quail and duck 
shooting and some others of a kindred nature where a rifle 
would be of little use. But for hunting anything larger, be 
it bird or beast, my choice upon all occasions would be the 
rifle in preference to the shotgun. Iam aware that the sub- 
ject scarcely includes hunting anything smaller than deer, 
but let us enlarge the subject and consider in general the 
rifle compared with the shotgun, 
Tf the object in hunting were simply to procure a delicacy 
for the table or camp then I must heartily indorse “Cap 
Lock” in lust week’s issue, for I scarcely ever saw a dish of 
small game that had been killed with shot that could be 
called a delicacy. Compare a dish of squirrels killed with 
shot, splintered bones, wads of hair, bloodshot meat (and a 
shot between your teeth now and then for variety), with a 
dish of the same killed by a rifle, the meat as white and clean 
us the finest yeal or mutton. And suppose we do occasionally 
shoot one through the body, if the wounded part be removed 
when dressed the remainder is far preferable to that killed 
with shot. 
But the principal object in hunting generally is not so 
much jn the meat obtained as in the enjoyments of the chase. 
In this tastes differ. But on the score of mercy I think the 
rifle has decidedly the advantage. For my own part I can 
find more pleasure in quietly following the wild creatures of 
the woods and fields and studying their ways and habits and 
seem them enjoy their liberty undisturbed, than in a whole- 
sale slaughter of everything endowed with life, whatever be 
the means used. 
j have hunted nearly every species of game known to our 
country smaller than buffalo and grizzly bear, m the woods 
of the Hast, on the prairies of the West, and from the lakes 
and glades of Northern Minnesota to the pine flats and 
eypress swamps of Louisiana and the plains of Texas, and I 
cin say that when my immediate wants were supplied I 
neyer had a desire to kill just for the sake of killing. But 
when 1 want meat then I love to pit my reasoning faculties 
and skill with the rifle against the instinct and cunning of 
the denizens of the woods. 
How much nore well-earned is a saddle of yenison if the 
hunter has followed the antlered monarch of the woods into 
his most secluded haunts, and by superior cunning has 
brought down the coy King with a single buliet, than if he 
has simply stood upon a runway and hurled a handful of 
buckshot from a hand-cannon at his flying and unsuspecting 
viclim, as he was endeayoring to escape from a dozen hounds, 
The skill and cunning in the Istter case are simply and soleiy 
on the part of the hounds. 1 know it takes a certain amount 
of skill to kill a quail or prairie chicken on the wing with a 
shotgun, for I have been there, and | also know how much 
practice and skill it takes to enable a man to bit a squirrel’s 
or pheasant’s head with a rifle or to hit the vital part of a 
deer at 200 yards, and I pride nvyself more upon my skill to 
bring down game at long range with a single bullet, than to 
riddle it with shot at short range, as any boy or half-blind 
old man might do. Law Win.Low. 
Leverton, Mo. 
OPENING DAY AT WORCESTER. 
} NE could hardly imagine a more glorious day for the 
opening of partridge shooting than was Monday, Sept. 
1, and there was something a little peculiar about it. The 
last days of August were hot and sultry, and as the boys 
gathered in ‘‘Shattuck’s,” it was the general prediction that 
all who went shooting on “‘opening duy” would pay dearly 
for their fu. It appeared, however, on Saturday evening, 
that about everybody had concluded to go, and there was a 
large and lively party at the ‘‘rendezyous” till quite a late 
hour, Conversation ran brisk, and remarks like the follow- 
ing could be heard on all sides: ‘Who you going with?” 
“Which way you going?” “‘Whattime going to start?” “Bet 
you the cigars no party of two gets fifteen” (no takers). 
“Guess that’s safe enough,” etc, Monday morning dawned 
with a clear sky, a tresh breeze from the northwest, and as 
cool and comfortable as heart could wish. Many a ride of 
five to ten miles had been taken, and many a Worcester 
sportsman was in cover before 7 o’clock. 
Never do I remember of finding the foliage so dense on 
the first of September as the present year, the covers appear- 
ing about as they usually do the last of June. Many a bird 
was pointed and flushed within twenty feet of the shooter 
that was never geen till the dog brought it in, the shot hay- 
ing been fired merely at sound. There is, without doubt, a 
fair supply of partridges in this vicinity. Some of our fel- 
lows had their ideas very high, and because the woods where 
they happenedto go was not fairly alive with them, are in- 
clined to be disappoimted. However, the results of the first 
day show conclusively that the birds are more plenty than 
for many years. lt does not require a bushel of birds to 
satisfy your cortespondent, therefore his first day’s shooting 
was entirely satisfactory, My shooting companion was 
“Tnecle’ Nathan Harrington, and just here let me say that I 
believe we have noi failed of going together on opening day 
for about a dozen years if 1 except the season following the 
amputation of his foot at the instep, the result of an acci- 
dent while fox hunting some eight years ago, 
The old gentleman is now seventy years old, but he enjoys 
the sport with all the zest of a young man. His eyesight 
has failed him somewhat and he is obliged to shoot with 
glasses; notwithstanding he can do very creditable work, and 
his powers of endurance are something truly wonderful, 
an excellent example of what field sports will do for a man 
physically, for while “‘Uncle Nathan” has always been a 
thrifty, industrious man, he has done a goodly amount of 
shooting for more than fifty consecutive years. Our bag 
consisted of six partridges and two woodcock. Happy Jim 
D. was one of a party of three who bagged nineteen birds, 
eleyen partridges and eight woodeock. If Jim killed a 
brown rabbit he forgot. to mention it. Myr, 8, had three 
friends in his party and reported seyentcen partridges to four 
guns. The best individual hag reported was killed by Ed. 
Whittaker and consisted of eleven partridges. There were 
many others who got good bags, and nearly every one had at 
jJeast a fair shoot and a good time generally. 
. 
. 
Now comes the peculiar part mentioned at the commence- 
ment of this letter. Monday, Sept. 1, was like an oasis in a 
desert—tor it has been followed by a succession of the most 
blistering hot days we have known for years. Meantime 
the birds are taking a rest, The evil resulting from the pres- 
ent woodcock law was exemplified here the last week in 
August. A man who hunted through a woodecock cover 
about three miles from the city, bagged three partridges in 
this way: His dog brought them to him. One dead, freshly 
killed, the other two alive, one with both legs broken, A 
gentleman living in the neighborhood informed him that a 
party was shooting there the day previous. The fox hunters 
are looking forward to the first of October with high antici- 
pations. They give the dogs an occasional run on moon- 
light evenings just to keep them in good trim, while their 
owners sit and listen to the delicious music. 
The other night while Messrs, Kinney & White's pack 
were taking a run the leader of the pack met with a fatal 
mishap. The fox had apparently run under a picket fence 
and the dog in attempting to leap over, fell back, caught on 
a picket by his collar and strangled. Mr. Kinney feels the 
loss deeply, as it was his most valuable dog and exceedingly 
hard to replace, E. SPRAGUE KNOWLES. 
WorcestEr, Mass., Sept. 8, 1884. 
ILLINOIS SHOOTING GROUNDS. 
TMIANKS to My, Van Dyke for his ‘‘Memories of Senach- 
wine Lake.” It is still a famous resort and large bags 
are made there every season, though no doubt the game is 
less plentiful than it was twenty years ago. At that time I 
resided in Peoria, and then the whole Illinois River was the 
paradise of sportsmen. The local sportsmen of Peoria had 
their choice of Hooshaw Slough, at the northern extremity 
of Peoria. Lake (the latter a widening ofthe river ten miles 
or so in length) or Besan Lake in the bottoms, a mile or so 
below the town, and indeed of many points on both lake and 
riyer. Iwas the happy possessor of a boat, a set of decoys 
and two guns (this was in muzzleloading days), and a ten 
minutes’ row would bring me among the ducks or to the 
best of snipe ground. I never saw such woodcock shooting 
as could be had in the bottoms opposite town, and in these 
same bottoms back among the farms nearer the bluifs quail 
were always plentiful, while a twenty mile trip by rail cither 
east or west would bring one among the ‘‘chickens.” Happy 
the man whose lot is cast beside such a stream as the Illinois 
was at that time. What with geese, duck and snipe in the 
spring, woodcock and bay birds in the summer, and all of 
the flight birds again in the fall, grouse and quail until 
January, our guns were kept warm for ten months in the 
year. Then the fishing was not 1o be despised, although the 
bass a8 a general thing rarely exceeded three pounds. 
Jhad a shooting companion, one of the best of fellows 
but 4 little nervous, and I always kept one eye open to see 
that he didn’t blow my head off. He isa gray-haired old 
man now, and I haye not seen him for nearly twenty years, 
but there has been some kindly correspondence and 4 tender 
feeling still for the old time comradeship. Well, I’m getting 
pretty gray myself, aud I find that shooting from a blind 
suits me better than July and August tramps after woodcock 
and prairie chickens. 
Our own bags were always moderate—enough for our use 
and that of our neighbors—bvt the market hunters would 
come home with their boats loaded to the gunwales. But 1 
don’t care lo imperil my reputation for truth and veracity 
by stating just how plenty geese and ducks were in the 
height of the season, 
The summer has been so dry here that woodcock shoot- 
ing has been very poor. Ruffed grouse are more plentiful 
than in the last few years, and give promise of some fine 
shooting this fall. Should [ go to Dakota for geese in 
October you may hear from me after my return, 
Harry TuntTer. 
HigHuanp Parg, Ill. 
NEW YORK GAME LAWS. 
Editor Forest and Stream: 
There seems just now to be considerable discussion as to 
the game laws and the enforcement of the same, Only last 
session the member of Assembly for Suffolk county intro- 
duced an act to amend the game laws by permitting the 
snaring of quail. The execution of these laws requires much 
tact, patience and care to render them as little obnoxious as 
possible, and a preventive system is the best to adopt. The 
owners of the land {bink they ought to have some voice in 
ioaking the laws, and that the laws should not be made (as 
they believe them to be) for the benefit of the self-styled gen- 
tleman sportsman, who often is the first to break them when 
it is for his pleasure and amusement to doso. There canbe 
no question as to the advisability of restraining the snaring 
of quail and partridge, and as to the latter the men and boys 
engaged in it do not make the wages they could get by legiti- 
mate work. Yet let an officer do anything that interfered 
with the personal liberty or the property of any one of these 
men aud boys and the people and press of the county would 
give him no rest. As to snarivg quail, many owners and 
farmers think it an injustice to them that their boys cannot 
enjoy this pleasure, but the law in this respect should be en- 
forced or this beautiful bird will soon become almost extinct, 
as the prices they now command would give a great impetus 
to the taking of them. Still the sportsmen, most of whom 
are non-residents, should not be in too much haste or they 
will get no shooting at all, as already threats out of revenge 
have been made to poison the birds. The people for years 
have been educated to believe they are entitled to do what 
they please with the game upon their own land, and have 
claimed and enjoyed this privilege in contradistinction to the 
great abuse so freely imposed by the game laws in England, 
The people are, however, now becoming more reconciled to 
the game laws here, and it only requires time to convince 
them that the law is not only not prejudicial to them, but a 
benefit, and increases the value of their property. 
I would cursorily examine the means we have for the en- 
forcement of these laws. There is a State game protector 
for four counties in this district, a game constable in each 
town, and a, bay constable in some of the towns, ‘The gaine 
constable is elected at the town meeting, and his becomes 
a political office of no value either to the people or to him- 
self. Who knows of a single prosecution having been made 
by them? The State game protector is appointed By the 
Governor, and subject to remoyal by him alone. His duties 
are onerous and under the present laws the means of per- 
forming them unsatisfactory. He gets no credit and is a 
target for every man whothinks he can make himself of some 
consequence in writing an attacking letter to some periodical 
or to serve a revengeful spirit for some personal notice un- 
connected with the office. Ifthe Jaw could be so framed 
as to give the protector power to appoint deputies for special 
purposes, be would at once become an important officer and 
would be able to serve the people to his own and their satis- 
faction. The cry now is why does he not rigidly enforce 
the law, birds are being snared by the thousand. Does this 
mean that he is expected toseize and arrest in donbtful cases? 
Suppose we admit the facts of birds being snared contrary 
to law, the law is framed in such a way that a breach of it 
cannot be reached. Remedy the law and then hold the pro- 
tector responsible, but he is not to be blamed in anything 
that is defective and which he had no hand in making, his 
duty is to take it as it is and make the best of it. If the 
sportsmen would get iogether and frame a law for the next 
Legislature and get the practical experience of the game pro- 
tector, a great deal might be accomplished. 
There should be framed separate acts, one for game, birds, 
ete., and one for fish, and not combined, for the reason that 
if there bean objectionable clause in the fish act it would 
throw out the whole bill although that part with reference 
to game may be unobjectionable, and ace versa. The gentle- 
man who is now the game protector in this district published 
his views in the FormsT AND STREAM somne two years ago; 
those views which related to seasons for shooting have been 
adopted by the State of New Jersey, and are almost identical 
with the law sought to be passed by the State Association at 
the last Legislature. ~ : 
One word as to the ducks in the bays. There is a grow- 
ing dissatisfaction by the people at the wholesale-slaughter — 
of ducks by shooting from batteries, more especially in the 
Shinnecock and East bays. The ducks no sooner get to 
their feeding grounds than there are dozens of guns blazing 
away at them, which drive the ducks to sea and into Pe- 
conic Bay and some of them entirely away. I have heard 
that one man owns six batteries there, Then as to the net- 
ting, it is against the law to take ducks in nets, and no 
doubt it will be stopped, I understand it only remains with 
the Commissioners to give instructions to the game protector 
and he shall have no alternative but to take just such steps . 
as they may direct. The netting is not as bad as the battery 
shooting—if neither were used there would be splendid 
shooting along the banks and points of the bay, and why 
should Shinnecock Bay be excepted by this act, to serve 
the interest of half a dozen persons to the injury of hund- 
reds, Mr. Editor, I propose in a future letter to show you 
what the fishing interest is and what kind of fish is caught in 
the South Side bays. Bpra. 
GAME LAW JURISDICTION. 
Heitor Korest and Stream: 
Would it be possible for a citizen of the State of INinois— 
provided with proper eyidence—to secure in one of the 
United States district courts in the State of Illinois, the con- 
viction and punishment of a citizen of Lowa, who had vio- 
lated the laws enacted by his own State for the preservation 
of game and fish, the object being, of course, to make it very 
expensive and troublesome to the law breaker? It is yery 
difficult to secure convictions before local magistrates in 
many parts of the West. OrBoLo. 
New YoreE. 
ANSWER.—The laws of lowa for the protection of its 
game and fish provide for that class of crime known as 
offenses against public policy. They are criminal statutes 
inflicting punishment by fine or imprisonment in the county 
jail, or both, and, therefore, should be strictly construed. 
The forum in which offenders are to be prosecuted is ex- 
pressly designated. Violators of the game laws may be 
brought to trial either in the county in which the offense 
was committed, or in any other county where they have had 
or have in their possession game in violation of the statutes, 
Punishment for infraction of the fish laws is provided for 
on conviction before justice of the peace, or in the language 
of one of the statutes ‘‘on conviction before a justice of the 
peace in the township in which he [the offender] resides, or 
where the offense be committed, if arrested therein,” 
Further than that, the district court would have no juris- 
diction of the subject of the action. United States courts 
were long ago held to be without criminal jurisdiction in 
common law cases, unless conferred by an act of Congress, 
making the deed a crime. A former Ohief Justice of the 
United States Supreme Court is authority for the statement 
that no man can be prosecuted in the Federal courts on a 
State law. Although jurisdiction of parties may be obtained 
by their consent, it is otherwise as to the subject of the 
action. Where the subject matter of any suit is not within 
ihe court’s jurisdiction everything done is void. 
Our correspondent’s inquiry, therefore, must be answered 
in the negative. First, because the game and fish acts of 
Towa designate a court for prosecuting offenders other than 
the one he desires to proceed in; and; second, because the 
U. 8, District Courts'of Illinois could have no jurisdiction, 
THE SEASON OPENS IN MICHIGAN. 
YEPT, i was ushered in, not by the booming of cannon, 
S asis the 4th of July (although hot enough for a first- 
class 4th), but by the incessant booming of the shotgun from 
every point of the compass. Nor did our markef-hunters 
wait for the first, but took a good-early start by gomg out 
Saturday night and Sunday, so as to be first on the grounds, 
There were some good bags brought in on Monday and 
Tuesday, the largest consisting of fourteen ruffed srouse, 
eleven prairie chickens and five ducks, by two guns (market- 
hunters). These men make no seeret of it that they did most, 
of the shooting on Sunday, Aug. 31. Very few woodcock — 
have been brought in. Quail shooting will be excellent in 
November from all reports. Several gentlemen of this city 
have purchased a forty-acre tract of marsh land on Fish 
Point, Saginaw Bay, and have formed a club withont by- 
vlws but plenty of constitution, and Messrs. Adams, White- 
head and Cuoley are up there now giving the ducks a salute, 
We expect to hear some big duck stories on theirreturn, and 
perhaps have a bone to pick, as they are veteran duck hunt- 
ers and generally ‘‘git thar.” , : 
Knowing full well that the early bird catches the worm 
(that is some kinds of worms), still I have had no desire as. 
yet to overheat myself or dog by taking a tramp this hot 
Weather, Old Pard looks at me once in awhile, when he 
sees the ardent sportsman going by with his gun, as if he 
would say: ‘Why can’t we go too?” but I only pat him on 
the head and say, ‘‘Never mind, Pard, we may not get so 
many birds, and we may have to go further after them, but 
we'll have heaps more fun when our time comes. Pard 
likes to fish as well as hunt, and I generally take him when 
I go; he will go to the banks of the river and fish alone for 
hours, and will actually stand as if on a point when he sees 
a fish, and woe be unto the minnow that comes too close, “I 
—_— 
