mind the time when one of the Knickerbockers first came 
down from New York and roamed at large with his rifle. 
The buzzard, flying or sitting, looky like a turkey; and the 
aforesaid Knickerbocker, who goes by the name of the ‘‘Fat 
Sportsman,” anxious to distinguish himself and keen on the 
scent for larger game, for he carried a rifle, saw one of these 
members of nature’s board of health flying in a graceful 
circle some distance away, Almost wild with pent-up en- 
thusiasm, he worked bimself into position, and taking good 
aim, made a true shot, and brought down to the ground and 
thence inte camp—a buzzard. 
I wish that you could have seen the picture which I saw 
the other day, when four of the Knickerboeckers came back 
from a good day’s hunt in Burk’s Creek Valley. One of 
them stood with twenty-eight ducks and sixty-one quail in 
his hands and strung over his shoulder, With bis gun lean- 
ing against a tree and his two dogs crouched at his feet, he 
presepted a picture that would have been an inspiration for 
a Landseer and one which merits a long word painting from 
some more facile pen than this particular pen of this par- 
ticular KNICKERBOCKER. 
KNICKERBOCKER RANCHE, October, 1884. 
[The description of the strange fowl applies very well to 
the red-breasted merganser, except as to size. | 
ADIRONDACK GAME PROTECTION. 
Hiditor Forest and Stream: ; 
Under the above heading your New York correspondent, 
who signs himself “.,” and the Hon. R. U. Sherman, have 
given expression to widely diverse opinions concerning the 
- killing of deer in close season; and also concerning the char- 
acter of the guides of the region. Loose assertions of this 
sort are productive of tittle good. Nothing short of a specific 
charge, accompanied by the complainant’s name, is suffi- 
ciently explicit to admit of verification or refutal; while, on 
the other hand, a general denial of the killing of deer out of 
season in all parts of the Wildemess is absurdly iueorvect. 
As a matter of fact the game Jaw is respected in some parts 
of the Wilderness and notin others. ‘To be more explicit, 
and to speak only of the western side of the region, the law 
has, to my certain knowledge, been openly violated during 
the past season at Beayer Lake and the Oswegatchie Ponds, 
where yenison was regularly served at well-known and much 
frequented ‘‘hotels,” of which fact a deputy game constable 
is not in ignorance. On the contrary the proprietors of 
“hotels” and ‘‘camps” along the Fulton Chain and North’ 
Branch of Moose River seem to vie with one another in 
securing the enforcement of the law, and the Killing of a 
deer before Aug, 1 in this part of Brown’s Tract is a rare 
event. 
I confess much surprise at ‘‘L’s.” statement; ‘I talked 
with a great many of the most experienced suides, and I did 
not find one who gave the game law the least attention.” 
Indeed thisis so contrary to my own experience that I can 
only explain it on the supposition that ‘‘L.” fell in with 
what Gen. Sherman calls ‘‘a set of mushroom oarsmen, who 
in the press of tourists to this section are employed as guides, 
but who have no more respect for law than the men who 
hire them.” 
To sive the public the impression that the Adirondack 
guides, as a class, are willing and anxious to aid unscrupu- 
lous parties in violating the game laws, is doing great injus- 
tice to a large number of honest and conscientious men. 
C. Hart Merriam, 
Locust Grove, N. Y,. Oct. 26, 1884, 
Fiitor Forest and Stream: 
Deer are searce here this fall, and will be more so after an- 
other decade of hounding, Upward of fifty men, with about 
as many hounds, are employed along the Beaver Riverin the 
work of extermination, More than one hundred deer have 
already been killed. ‘‘L.” can talk as much as he pleases 
about deer slaughter during the month of June. I can assure 
him that ten are killed by hounding them into the water 
where one is killed by jack light. MuUsSsET, 
Number Four, Adirondacks, Oct. 16. 
OPENING DAY IN IOWA. 
UR Legislature wisely, I think, put off the legal season 
for shooting prairie chickens until Sept. 1, or two 
weeks later than heretofore, but the lay was ignored by so 
many that it was practically a dead letter. 
Chickens were shot for 4 full month before the open season 
began, the only apparent effect of the law being to cause the 
law-breakers to call chickens snipe, and make them late in 
coming into town after a day’s shooting. 
This is a disheartening state of affairs for those who do re- 
spect the law, but there seems no escape from it, and if is 
probable the law will not be enforced until there is no game 
left to protect, which, in our open country, will not be far in 
the future. 
The season was favorable for the birds, there being but 
few rains to endanger the lives of the young, ana some of us 
had been looking for rare sport when the season should open; 
so Monday morning, Sept, 1, a party of four and a driver 
were up betimes and off for a favorite shooting ground about 
twelve miles out of town, and had arrived on a good shoot- 
ing pround by sunrise, with the day before us, for we did 
not expect to start home till too dark to shoot. 
The morning was a glorious one, not a cloud to be seen, 
the pure and bracing air making it a, pleasure to be out. All 
were eager for the fray, and soon we were divided, two tak 
ing the stubble fields on the right, the others those on the 
left; and for a mile or more we kept at it, hunting what 
scemed to be the most inviting cover, the dogs doing their 
work in splendid style, but nary a chicken was seen except 
a pair of old ones, that got up fully a hundred yards away 
from the nearest gun, 
“Hunted to death” was the unanimous verdict, and we 
loaded up and drove on a few miles, hoping we shoul find 
a range that had not been hunted so much. Again we were 
out, and for the rest of the afternoon we searched earnestly 
for chickens. The braciness of air wore off, the glory of 
that lovely September morning departed with the passing 
hours, but we would never give up, perish the thought. 
Wehad sent the team on to the house of a jolly friend, where 
we expected to make our midday halt, and around whose 
hospitable board we would fain appease. the cravings of the 
inner man, to apprise him of our approach, a sort of advance 
courier, who was in some appropriate and effective way 
to give him a hint of the probable extent of our appetites, 
and that same crayen driver had in some manner missed us, 
leaving us to hoof it in as best we might, ; 
Hot, hungry, tired, thirsty and footsore we ranged field 
31 inte St me el Goo ge Le 
“OREST AND STREAM. 
after field. The beauties of the magnificent landscape were 
lost on us, the luxuriant richness of the maturing corn 
ceased to cause a thrill of enthusiasm in the breast of any 
member of that party unless it was at the thought of the 
amount of Johnny cake those thonsands of acres of corn 
would make. We had no eyes for the beautiful, no ambi- 
tion to figure as imaginary corn kings, our every energy was 
concentrated on one object, aud that was to get a chicken, 
Hark! bang! bans! goes a gun over that hill; the boys have 
either found some chickens or are practicing on our credul- 
ily. No; there they go over the next hill and in our way, 
a fine covey of them, and we mark them down in a small 
cornfield. Hunger, thirst, heat, blisters are all forgotten, 
and we go for those chickens. Pshaw! they rise wild, but 
a long shot brings one to the ground, and the rest fly on and 
on until we lose sight of them in the dim distance, but we 
do not care much now, for we are surely in the chicken 
country and will find others, but as field after field is ranged 
with no sight of game we lose courage and make for dinner 
by the most direct route, four big men with one poor little 
chicken to show for a half-day’s hard work. 
A long nooning we made of it, sleeping on the sweet hay 
in our friend’s barn for more than an hour after dinnet, a 
dinner he must have been conyinced that we appreciated. 
After resting we consulted what were best to do, and de- 
cided upon a couple of hours’ drive further from town and 
another trial, as ourfriend told us that there were really no 
chickens where we had been, as the ground had been hunted 
every day for fully a month. 
That afternoon we did not work quite so hard, as we kept 
the team near us and would ride a part of the time, but we 
only found two coveys during the afternoon, From one of 
them we got two chickens and from the other we got twelve, 
as they scattered and we got them up one at # time until we 
shot almost the entire covey. 
We went home aiter dark, tired and happy but unsuccess- 
ful, Hereafter we will either join the throng and and get 
our share of the birds as they go or make a trip of it and 
go where they are so plenty the outlaws cannot kill them all 
before the season opens. W. 5. P- 
EvpurRA, Ia., Sept. 26. 
BULLET VERSUS BUCKSHOT. 
Editor Forest and Stream: 
Ihave been a reader of Forust anp Srream for the last 
seven years, and during that time haye never ventured ‘‘to 
give my experience.” Like “Nessmuk,” my ‘“‘best holt” is 
the rifle and paddle, and as I have done nothing save hunt, 
trap and fish during the last ten years, my pen has become 
decidedly rusty. lam now laid up with a wounded hand— 
relic of the carelessness of a greenhorn with a scatter-cun— 
which will preclude the possibility of uny sport for this fall 
and winter, to say nothing of the loss of at least one finger; 
but as I must occupy myself in some manner to pass away 
time, [ will give my views of the bullet and buckshot ques- 
tion. 
When I went into the woods ten years ago to stay, I pur- 
chused a Winchester rifle and a little 20-cauge English 
breechloading gun. After using the rifle a few times, I 
found that I was losing much game from shooting over. 
therefore determined to try the rifle ata target. After re- 
peated trials I found the bullet struck nearly fourteen inches 
high at 100 yards, This would never do; so the next spring 
I came down from the west to Pittsburgh, and had a pair of 
.90-caliber barrels fitted to my little shotgun, They were 
twenty-four inches long and parallel, ¢. ¢., the same diameter 
at muzzle and breech. The rifling consisted of six very 
shallow grooves, the grooves and lands being of the same 
width, and having one turn in 144 inches. Charge of pow- 
der 150 grains C. & H. No. 6, weight of bullet, 395 grains; 
ratio 1:2.5. ‘The projectile was one inch in length, and solid, 
flat-pointed conical. This pair of barrels, together with 
fifiy screw-head steel shells, cost me $73, and after using the 
gun afew times on deer and twice on bear, I came to the 
conclusion that I had solved the problem of a successful 
hunting rifle so faras I was concerned. I used it during 
the following winter on all kinds of game, from a wild goose 
to moose and elk. The next spring, while on my way out 
of the woods, Ihad the misfortune to have it stolen from 
my camp by one of a band of Chippewas. 
My present armament consists of four double-barreled 
express rifles, one Sharps, one Stevens, one Winchester and 
one little Wesson, beside three shotguns of 12, 16 and 20- 
gauges respectively. The dimensions of the express rifles 
are as follows: First, .380-caliber, 20-inch barrels, 60 grains 
powder, 150 grains lead; weight, 6 pounds. Second, .400- 
caliber, 22-inch barrels, 90 grains powder, 225 grains lead; 
weight, 7 pounds. Third, .450-caliber, 24-inch barrels, 120 
grains powder, 300 grains lead; weight, 8 pounds. Fourth, 
.900-caliber, 26-inch barrels, 150 grains powder, 375 grains 
lad; weight, 9 pounds. It will be noticed that the bar 
rels are yery short, and also that the guns are not heavier 
than the ordinary single-barreled weapons of the same 
calibers. 
In regard to length of barrels, I have found that the 
lengths enumerated above give satisfaction equal to those 
which are one-half longer in each caliber. Some may object 
to them on the ground that they do not burn enough powder. 
To test this 1 had a muzzleloading rifle made, caliber .36, 
100 balls to the pound; weight of conical bullet, 180 grains; 
length of barrel, 30 inches; charge of powder, 65 grains; 
ratio 1:2, sighted for a point-blank range of 100 yards. The 
highest point in the trajectory was at 56 yards, the bullet 
being 12 inches high at that point, showing its great initial 
yelocity, I then reduced the length of the barrel to 20 
inches, and used the same charge ag before, and at the same 
range. I could discover no difference in the trajectory. My 
theory is that in rifles made on the express principle and 
with very slow twist, light bullet and a heavy proportionate 
charge of quick powder, the difference in length of barrels 
ranging from 20 to 30 inches, in calibers of .3850 to .500, has 
very little influence on the trajectory up to 200 or 250 yards, 
which is the extreme working distance for which a true ex- 
press title is Intended. 
It is generally conceded by intelligent sportsmen through- 
out the world who hunt large game that that certain rules 
must be followed in making a rifle suitable for their use. In 
brief, they are as follows: (1,) The weight of the bullet 
shall be equal to twice the weight of 4 round ball which ex- 
actly fits the bore of caliber desired, (2.) The weight of 
the charge of powder shall be equal to not less than one- 
third of the weight of the bullet, and from that to one-half, 
(3.) The twist of the rifling shall be no quicker than is neces. 
sary to preserve sufficient accuracy to place successive shots 
in a ten-inch circle at 250 yards, and the grooves only deep 
enough to take hold of the projectile so that it will not strip, 
265 
(4.) That the weight of the arm shall be io greater than is 
suificient to withstand the shock of the explosion of thé 
powder or the recoil, as weight greater than this is objec- 
tionable in 4 hunting arm which is seldom used on stationary 
objects, although it may be desirable in a target rifle. (4,) _ 
That a cartridge shell capable of being reloaded indefinitely 
shall he provided—a taper shell is the best form, (6.) The 
sights to be open and rather coarse, and the rifle to he sighted 
for a point-blank range of from 100 to 150 yards. A rifle 
made on these plans will be found to “‘fill the bill” for all 
kinds of shooting in which a rifle is used—the caliber, of 
cone to be large enough for the game which you intend to 
unt. 
For express or hollow-pointed bullets I prefer to have the 
eavity from 4; to 8; of an inch in diameter at the point of 
the bullet, according to caliber, and tapering to nothing at 
the bottom, the depth to be equal to one-half the length of 
the projectile. 
The best powder that is manufactured is, as far as I have 
been able to ascertain, Curtis & Harvey’s diamond grain. lt 
is expensive, but clean and strong, I prefer the Winchester 
primer, as the anvil is renewed with the primer and the shell 
is not injured, 
The merits of straight or taper and bottle-neck shells do not 
differ greatly, although I use the taper ones when possible 
and always reduce all shells before reloading, and am not 
troubled with sticking. The best sights for hunting are: 
Fore sight rather coarse and square across at top, not filed 
to an edge, as in the majority of cases. Rear sight, plain 
leaf, without ‘‘buckhorns” or ‘‘clover leaves,” but having a 
V-shaped notch no larger than can be filled by the fore sight. 
If properly made there will be no blurring or indistinefness. 
I like a round barrel for a single rifle or repeater, as I have 
found it to give better results, and it is also lighter. 
The only country for which I have sometimes found one 
of the above-described express rifles unsuitable is on the 
plains and in the open mountain country, where the work 
partakes somewhat of the nature of target shooting, and 
where a fellow must occasionally take a shot as far as 500 
yards, and it is sometimes impossible to approach any 
nearer, Hor this use 1 have a Sharps .45-caliber, 9-pound, 
30-inch rifle, chambered for the inch shell; charge, 185 
grains of powder and 405 grains of lead. It is one of the 
most accurate and strongest shooting rifles that I ever owned. 
Ihave found a shotgun loaded vith a heavy charge of powder 
and a round ball which will go into the muzzle easily to be 
a most deadly weapon for deer and other large game in thick 
cover, where it is generally started within a distance of 
twenty-five or thirty yards. 
If I were obliged to content myself with one rifle I should 
prefer the .400-caliber, 90-225, for all game found east of the 
Mississippi. For the West, however, where the game is 
much larger, with a chance for grizzly, | want the .500-cali- 
ber, 150-3875. Ihave been greatly amused at different times 
to read of the deadly effect of a single buckshot. Now I 
cannot understand why this shot is more deadly when fired 
from a shotgun than the same ball fired from a rifle, if each 
arm is loaded with a proportionate charge of the proper 
powder. Don’t you think that the rifle would come out 
ahead when used at the same range as the shotgun, and be 
effective at twice the distance? 
One of the most successful deer Lunters that I ever knew 
was a Mississipian who used a muzzleloading rifle carrying 
120 to the pound, 58 grains, about .33-caliber. He used to 
chaff me not a little on the size of my favorite .50-hore ‘‘with 
a kick like a mule,” as he expressed it. He was one of the 
best shots at a stationary object that it has been my fortune 
to meet, and a good, whole-souled fellow to boot. He was 
killed by the Apaches in Arizona or Northern Mexico in 
1878. 
I have always remarked that the majority of men who use 
small calibers for large game seldom if ever shoot at a run- 
ning deer; but they are invariubly good shots and equally 
good hunters and woodsmen, and depend upon these quali- 
ties to approach near enough to their game to make sure 
work at the first shot. The smali ball is perhaps as fatal 
under these circumstances as a largerone. Men of the above 
class are generally old backwoodsmen, and so were their 
grandfathers before them. 
There are only three animals in North America which can 
be classed as really dangerous, and they are the grizzly and 
cinnamon bears, and the panther, or mountain lion, as he is 
called in the West, and the two first, especially the grizzly, 
by reason of their thick hides and large bones, and the con: 
sequent difficulty of killing, and the latter on account of 
having all the tenacity of life of his little brother of back 
fence fame, only in a much higher degree. Fora sportsman 
of to-day to take up a work published forty years ago, and 
read some of the stories relating to the difficulty of killing 
the grizzly, he would be led to believe that ‘‘Hph’* wore a 
boiler iron jacket over his ribs, that his head was solid hone, 
and unless a ball penetrated the eye the hunter was a ‘‘gone 
coon.” 
This was no doubt all well enough when the only men who 
ever met the grizzly were the adventurous trappers who, by 
reason of the necessily of economizing ammunition, were 
obliged to use small calibers, and depended upon their mar- 
vellous skill in placing the light bullet in a vital spot; but in 
the present days, when the sportsman can be whisked to the 
mountains at the rate of thirty or forty miles per hour, and 
is enabied to use a repeater and bullets weighing nearly an 
ounce, it will not apply, Ido not wisn to be understood as 
haying a low estimation of the danger of an encounter with 
this dangerous animal, And here I wish to ask if grizzly, or 
grisly, is the proper adjective. I incline to grisly, as it 
agrees with the Latin herriditis, being derived from the 
Anglo-Saxon verb grisan, to dread, the adjective being gris- 
lic, frightful or horrible, while grizzly is from the French 
grts, gray. Itisa curious coincidence that the two words 
of the different languages, haying different meanings, should 
be rendered in English with the same pronunciution, but 
different orthography, and that either adjective should ex- 
press 4 marked quality of the animal to which it is 
applied. 5 
Your correspondent ‘‘C, F, M. G.,” in the issue of Oct. 9, 
says: “‘Now, | should say that the average deer killer who 
goes into the woods for a month’s slaughter could kill more 
and so wound less with the shotgun than with the rifle, on 
the theory that the more pellets fired the better the chances 
of hitting a vital spot.” 
That's all right in theory and for a man who cannot hit a 
flock of barns with a rifle (no disparagement to ‘'C. F, M, 
G.” insinuated) or for one who has poor eyesight, but for a 
man who cap use a rifle, to stand on a runway or paddle 
up to a deer on open water and blow his (oftener her) head 
ie with a charge of grapeshot, does seem heartless to say the 
east, 
