388 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



("June 11, 1885. 



addition to their family. The structure is not much greater 

 in depth than an ordinary nest, but it is nevertheless of two 

 stories. It contained three eggs of the warbler partly 

 incubated. The condition of affairs would not have been 

 observed by me, had I not in removing the nest from the 

 bushes accidentally broken an egg of the cowbird by too 

 much pressure on the lower part of the structure, and as it 

 was somewhat addled the discovery was quickly made that 

 bad eggs of that species had occupied a lower section, being 

 cut off fiom the nest proper and its contents by a very thin 

 partition or floor to the upper story. Birds of such deter- 

 mination were certainly deserving of abetter fate than to 

 fall into the hands of the collector. 



The eggs are almost invariably five in number, though 

 sometimes four or only three, and in one case in my exper- 

 ience six They vary" decidedly, both in ground color and 

 spots, but are usually readily recognized. The ground color 

 is more commonly a faint greenish white to dirty white, and 

 occasionally with' a delicate reddish tint. The markings are 

 of different shades of browu with here and there a dot 

 almost black, and some faint markings of lilac, and even a 

 tendency to pink in rare cases. The blotches are principally 

 collected at the larger end and usually fonn a ring. Some- 

 times a ring is found around the smaller end, and quite 

 frequently the eggs are blotched more or less thickly over 

 their entire surface. The dimensions vary exceedingly lor 

 such small eggs, but a fair average from a number of random 

 specimens are .66x 51 of an inch. After autumn appears 

 few birds are seen, and if present they rarely show them- 

 selves. I have not seen a specimen after September 20. 



THE BIG WOODPECKERS. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



"Red Wing" wishes some one baving acquaintance with 

 the ivory-billed woodpecker (Camperfrilns principalis) to send 

 a note to the Forest and Stream. This bird, now quite 

 rare, was not uncommon in all the large swamps in Florida. 

 from Lake Washington to St. Mary's River. It was more 

 abundant up the Wekiver, a small stream below San ford, 

 but used to be common about Lake Jessup and all the large 

 swamps en the west coast, but of late so many shooters and 

 bird collectors go South that they have nearly exterminated 

 many very interesting birds. 



But a few years ago the little Carolina parrot or parakeet 

 (Comtrus eafoUnenm) was very abundant all over Florida. 

 Now they are not seen. The ivory-billed woodpecker is 

 easily found, if you know its note, which it utters continu- 

 ally as it ascends the tree, but 1 have never heard any sound 

 When flying. As soon as it alights, at nearly every leap 

 commences its loud queer note, repeated three times — Pate, 

 pate, pate, and this can be heard a long way, and often leads 

 to its destruction. 



I have never taken their eggs. They breed in large high 

 trees and are not easily got at.' Capt. Brock, at Lake Jessup, 

 a lew years since, told me of a pair he thought were breed- 

 ing, but a look at the tree and hole was sufficient. We did 

 not get the eggs, but both birds were secured. They were 

 not inclined to leave the tree, and we thought they must 

 have eggs or young; and this was early in March. Mr. 

 Maynard, of Boston, collected seven or eight on the west 

 coast of Florida in the winter of 1883-4, and I had two sent 

 me from near Palatka. A smaller bird of this variety is 

 found in the West Indies and a larger one in Mexico. 



Geo. A. Boardmah. 



Calais, Me., May 27. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



"Red Wing." of Glencoe, Fla., inquires in Forest and 

 Stream for May 21 concerning the ivory-billed woodpecker 

 (Campephilm principalis). I am glad to call attention to a 

 charming article on this very bird, published in the April 

 number of the Library Magazine and also in the Elzevir 

 Library No. 149, entitled "A Red-Headed Family," price 

 two cents. John B. Alden, publisher, 393 Pearl street, New 

 York. The author is Maurice Thompson, the naturalist, 

 and also I believe a well-known contributor of articles to 

 the Archery department of your valuable journal some years 

 since. 



Richard M. Conway tells me that he killed a number of 

 ivory bills near the Brazos River, in Texas, some years since, 

 and I have myself seen birds of same appearances near the 

 San Marcos and Guadalupe rivers, in same State. There 

 are plenty of the pileated woodpeckers in this section of 

 Virginia. J. M. H. 



HOLLADAY.Ta. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



The pileated woodpecker is not common here, yet hardly 

 a season passes that I do not see or hear one or more. The 

 bird is not mentioned in "Thompson's Vermont," and some old 

 hunters do not know that it exists here. But it breeds in Ver- 

 mont, and is a winter resident — at least, I bave seen and 

 heard it in the depth of winter many times. 1 saw a pair in 

 East Montpelier, Washington county, Vt., some years ago, 

 and was shown by the owner of the woods, the tree in which 

 he said they had nested. He called them "woodcock." 



R. E. Robinson. 



FEEBiSBfJRaH, Vt., May 30. 



In an Odd Situation.— While out botanizing on May 20 

 Within a few miles of our city I came across a small party 

 of young gunners, one of whom had succeeded in killing 

 what he had supposed to be an old horned owl. The bird 

 when first discovered by him was standing upright upon a 

 large roughly constructed nest resembling in appearance that 

 of our hawk, and served by its position as a conspicuous 

 landmark for any passer-by with an eye intent upon the 

 capture or destruction of their kind I arrived at the very 

 time when this uncouth-looking quarry tumbled down head 

 long from its insecure retreat. It was still alive, and proved 

 to be a nearly full-fledged specimen of the great horned owl 

 (Bubo virginianus). The primaries of its wings were about 

 two-thirds developed, and the so called tufts of its ears were 

 already projecting to the height of about half an inch above 

 their surrounding feathery level. The down, which marks 

 so prominently and very late the fledglings of all owls, had 

 almost disappeai ed, and in a week's time at the latest the bird 

 would have been able to take care of itself. The. nest was 

 near the top of a large maple tree about thirty feet from the 

 ground and in as exposed position as could be possibly im 

 agined, as the tree stood in a very open little grove and only 

 within two hundred yards from a principal railroad cross 

 ing where great bodies of noisy laborers mid been busy all 

 spring laying tracks and making repairs. It was in the very 

 last place which any might have suspected that a bird of 

 such retired solitary habits as the great horned owl would 

 have chosen to raise its brood.— C. L. (Buffalo, June 7). 



A Marsh Hawk's Nest.— On June 6, the discovery of 

 the nest of the marsh hawk (Circus hudsonius) was made by 

 Mr. Otto Buser, an enthusiastic voung student of our local 

 birds, at Linn Lake, a little village about forty miles from 

 Buffalo. It was found in a small peat bog, which was 

 densely overgrown with an almost impenetrable jungle of 

 shrubbery (Andromeda) to the height of about 'two' feet, 

 affording, therefore, a very secure retreat. The nest rested 

 right on the ground, and its lowest layers were thoroughly 

 soaked from being in direct contact with the surface of the 

 wet marsh. It had no lining of any kind, and its contents 

 proved to be four dull white-colored, rather round eggs, 

 looking very much soiled by being spattered all over with 

 dirty spots, which imparted to them a very neglected appear- 

 ance. The female was sitting, and by being accidentally 

 flushed, revealed the presence of her nest,— 0. L, (Buffalo. 

 H. T.j June 7). 



Adirondack Birds — Many of the birds are very late. 

 From December to April we did not see a blupjay, but they 

 are now herein great numbers. All the summer birds have 

 arrived, except the cedar bird; when he comes we are "all 

 at home." To-night we hear the booming of the night hawk 

 for the first time.— A. R. Fuller (Meacham Lake, N. T., 

 May 25). 



Recent Arrivals at the Philadelphia Zoological Garden.— 

 Purchased - One whittling swan {Cyt/uns americavus), one bald eagle 

 {Haliaf-inxh-ucoceplialus), and oue pine snsfce (Htyaphis menctrlo- 

 leueus). Presented— One wildcat, (Lynx rufuS), one raccoon (Procyon 

 loicir), one cornmonrabbir. four white rats, one wild turkey {Heleagris 

 gallopavd), one loon (Colymbus torquatus), one great-horned owl 

 i b'vleo virginianus), one red-tailed hawk i Bnleo borealis), two crows 

 (Corrunamerica -i »*,<?), one sulphur-crested cockatoo (Cacatua r/alerim). 

 one horned lizard (Phrynosomacornuta), one water turtle (Cinostcr- 

 nam pennsylvavicum), two gila monsters (Heloderma suspectum), 

 six: alligators (Alh'yatormh-shsippieiisis), and oncpainted box tortoise 

 (Cistudo ornafa). Bor>>— One female oryx (Oryx leucoryx), one fe- 

 male and two male buffaloes {Bison americanus), and five prairie 

 wolves (Oanis latrans). 



fytq$ §%g m\A $m{. 



BEFORE OR BEHIND A TREE? 



TN the Forest and Stream of February 12, I saw and 

 read with interest an article signed B. B. Seaman, des- 

 criptive of a deer hunt in Grayson county, Kentucky. From 

 the account given, it appears that the writer was told by his 

 conductor to take his place behind a large oak to escape the 

 sight of the. deer in case one should happen to pass near him 

 in the forest where he stood, and that when he heard the 

 noise made by the buck in his running, he incautiously ex- 

 posed his head, which caused the deer to change his course. 

 Notwithstanding all this the game passed within sixty yards 

 of him, and gave him the chance of shooting. I must, state 

 some surprise at the location of the stander. It was an un- 

 wise and needless precaution. I would have stood in front 

 of the tree and not behind it, so that I would have used my 

 eyes and not my ears entirely for a knowledge of the 

 approach of the deer. With us, deer often pass very near a 

 stander without making much noise, and bucks especially, 

 after they have gained something by experience, are apt to 

 leave their lairs, so soon as they hear the first crying ot the 

 dogs, and move cautiously and almost silently beyond the 

 limits of the drive. The wonder with me is that Mr. B. B. 

 Seaman got a shot at all. He could not tell for his life 

 whether the deer was in range, unless he saw him, and 

 see him he could not have done unless he had looked around 

 the tree. If he had put his back against it the deer could 

 not have discovered him by the use of his eyes. I have stood 

 in open ground when the wind was favorable, and have had 

 deer run within twenty yards of me, and I have known them 

 to get within that distance of men on horseback in cultivated 

 fields. If, however, the wind is blowing toward the deer, 

 his sense of smell, which is very acute, will cause him to 

 turn bis course, even when he sees not his mortal foe. From 

 this I draw the inference that the vision of a deer is not 

 sharp like that of a turkey, and he depends far more upon 

 his ears and his nose than his eyes for his protection. 



One who is uninitiated would be sure, if turkey hunting, 

 to get behind a tree to screen himself against the sight of 

 the fowl. He who has had experience or has learned from 

 others will place his back to the tree and face the game as 

 it approaches. In this attitude, if the sportsman is still, a 

 gobbler will come within twenty yards of him iu open woods 

 or even in afield. But if he phces the tree between himself 

 and the gobbler and makes the slightest visible movement, 

 he will lose all chances of a shot. 



If a deer is running it is clear that his opportunities for 

 seeing are far less than they would be if he was standing 

 and the hunter was running. All, therefore, the sportsman 

 has to do is to select a spot where he can see and keep still. 

 Then if he is on the line of the course of flight and the deer 

 does not smell him, he will get a good chance for game. 

 My opinion is, and it is expressed with all respect, the deer 

 which "B B. S." killed did not see him at ail, but found 

 the route which his knowledge of the topography of the 

 country had taught him afforded the easiest means of 

 escape. 



In nothing which I have written above in regard to the 

 position which he occupied has it been my object to criticise 

 the sportsman whose communication I am considering. 1 

 do, however, most decidedly impeach the knowledge of 

 Captain Van Nuter and advise "B. B. S." that when he next 

 takes a stand, either in Kentucky or elsewhere, to place him- 

 self where he can see, and then keep quiet, 1 think I speak 

 advisedly when I say that deer rely far more upon their ears 

 and noses than upon their eyes. 1 recollect quite distinctly 

 that six or eight years ago I was occupying a stand, when 

 one of the dogs trailed a deer within foity yards behind the 

 tree at the base of which I was sitting. Whether the deer 

 passed after or before I took my position I do not know. I 

 kept still, however, for fifteen minutes or more, while the 

 dog had gone beyona my hearing. It was open pine land, 

 where I could have seen a deer, if looking, for more than a 

 hundred yards, in all directions. I got up and went along 

 the trail which the dog had followed, for eighty or ninety- 

 yards, with the view of determining the best position to oc- 

 cupy in future hunts. Then I started back, mv gun thrown 

 across both shoulders. After walking about thirty yards I 

 heard a noise behind me, and turning, I saw the deer within 

 easy range just changing its course because it saw me. It 

 might have done so, and turned off, without my 

 knowledge, at least a hundred yards away, if its vision 

 had been like that of the Kentucky buck. But, in 

 open ground, with nothing to prevent except an oc- 

 casional pme, that doe approached me while I was walking 

 within the distance I have stated. It is but just to say that, 



though I fired one barrel at her, she escaped my gun, only to 

 fall before the surer aim of my companion, Calvin Me.F., 

 who was several hundred yards off, and near whom she acci- 

 dentally passed. At another tim" and near the same place, 

 I saw a large buck emerge from a swamp beyond the range 

 of my gun. 1 ran toward what I supposed would be the line 

 of his flight until I got where I thought I would be near 

 enough. I then stopped, and to mv great gratification he 

 gave me a broadside at forty yards." I fired one barrel 

 charged with twelve No. 1 shot, and saw at once that my 

 aim was correct. He did not change the course which he 

 had selected, nor did he see me, for he paused within thirty 

 yards, and with the other barrel I brought him clown. He 

 had nineteen holes in his right side— four by the first barrel 

 and fifteen by the second. That deer never saw me, and yet 

 the woods were open piue lands with no undergrowth. If I 

 bad been behind a pine I should not have seen that buck, and 

 to this day would have been iu ignorance that one with 

 seven points on each beam and netting one hundred and titty 

 pounds, could be so fat as to be "kidney curved," with more 

 than five hundred big ticks living upon his blood. Get in 

 front of the tiee, keep your body still but your eyes wide 

 open, and take in the whole view. 



I shall not find fault with Captain Van Nuter or his com- 

 panions for using hounds in their hunts. Whether that is a 

 legitimate way of sport'depends greatly upon the country. 

 In those sections where there are many places of refuge, 

 that mode of hunting will not exterminate the breed. It has 

 been pursued in this locality for more than three-quarters of 

 a century, and yet we have a fair supply left. The number 

 would be far greater if our wild lands had not been subjected 

 to the demands of commerce for what are called "naval 

 stores." But there are places where the deer can find but 

 few pools of water large enough to elude the dogs, and to 

 these the hunter goes, secretes himself, and is sure of his 

 game, oftentimes without the use of a gun, depending upon 

 his canoe and a heavy paddle. And there are places where 

 the favorite feeding spots are well known, and to these the 

 still-hunter takes himself and kills every one he sees. 

 Hounding is, in my view, quite as sportsmanlike as the last 

 plan, and~far more so than the other. Wells.' 



DEER IN THE SOUTH. 



THE last Forest and Stream announced the passage of 

 the law forbidding the "hounding of de< r in the Adir- 

 ondacks" of the great State of New York. All honor to the 

 gentleman who drafted this law, and to the legislators who 

 voted for it. During the discussion of this law 1 was under 

 the impression that one of its features was to permit the killing 

 of the hounds should they be caught in pursuit of the deSr, 

 and also that the Forest and Stream was in favor of this pro- 

 vision. While I heartily approved the prohibition of "hound- 

 ing deer," yet 1 could not sanction the cruelty of killing the 

 innocent hound in pursuit of its natural game. 1 say natu- 

 ral, for every true hunter that uses hounds knows that the 

 hound" will leave the track of a fox, unless he is most thor- 

 oughly broken, to pursue a deer that jumps up before him. 

 It is the nature of the young hound to open on the track of 

 the hare the first time" he goes hunting, and should a deer 

 appear, or a fresh trail be crossed, the puppy will cease fol- 

 lowing the hare and take that of the deer. 



As I have stated, most sincerely iu favor of prohibiting the 

 hounding of deer in the Adiroudacks, I was anxious for the 

 act to be passed in order that it could be used as a precedent 

 in urging a similar law for the entire State of Louisiana when 

 the next Legislature convenes. 



Not only am I in favor of the law as to the Adirondacks, 

 but I would go further, and most heartily approve it for 

 every State in the Union, Nay, I would go further, that in 

 order to preserve the deer from destruction a law should be 

 passed prohibiting the killing of a deer for the next five 

 years. It is only a question of a short time before the wild 

 deer will become extinct in the several States. It behooves 

 every true and thoughtful hunter at this time to co-operate 

 in securing the passage of acts that will prevent the extinc- 

 tion of the deer, antelope and elk. I have been in deep 

 sympathy with every measure for the preservation of the 

 large game in the great National Yellowstone Park. But I 

 am not in favor of preserving the buffalo in any other por- 

 tion. I do not think the Indians can be civilized until the 

 game is extinct, and so far from disapproving the slaughter 

 of the buffalo by the pot-hunters or skin-hunters, I have re- 

 joiced to learn they are so rapidly exterminating Ihe bison; 

 regarding the civilization of the wild tribes of Indians as 

 far more necessary than the preservation of the herds of 

 buffalo. 



Every hunter is well aware of the fact that bounding of 

 deer causes a more rapid diminution of the species than kill- 

 ing by still-hunting. The does do not breed so fast when 

 kept in constant fear of the hounds — the pregnant ones so 

 often lose their young when they have been severely chased 

 —and so many fawns fall victims to the voracious jaws of 

 the hounds, without the least benefit to the hunter. 



In those States where a few deer can be found the number 

 decreases yearly as railroads traverse the portions of the 

 country they frequent. Unless measures are promptly taken, 

 we shall soon know of the deer as a "myth of the past." In 

 the Southern States, they are now to be found ouJy in the 

 large river bottoms, or on the hills contiguous to them. The 

 great overflows of the large rivers of the South for the last 

 three or four years, have almost caused the entire extinction 

 of the deer. Those that were fortunate enough to escape 

 death by drowning met a more miserable fate fiom the hands 

 of the merciless human bipeds, who slaughtered them by 

 huudieds as they swam to the lulls, too weak to avoid being 

 killed by stones and clubs, or they su< cumbed to the attacks 

 of the buffalo gnats, should they nave succeeded in hiding 

 lrom their human foes. 



In 1850 1 ti aveled over almost the whole State of Texas,. 

 south of the Southern Pacific from Foit Woith west, At 

 that early date the deer and antelope were to be seen every- 

 where by thousands. Now it is a rare tiling to find them, 

 except aloug the hills and bottoms of Red Biver or in the 

 Pan Handle portion of the State. Three years ago, before 

 the railroad passed through the parish of 'Webster, in wbich 

 1 live, deer were abundant; now it is difficult to start one 

 with a good pack of dogs. In Bossier Parish, the adjoining 

 one, a aood day's sport can be obtained, but I doubt whether 

 a dozen deer will be found in that parish five years hence, 

 unless we can secure an act not only piobibiting hounding 

 of deer, but the killing of them in any manner for a term of 

 years. When the next Legislature of Louisiana convenes L 

 shalL get the member from this parish to introduce a law 

 similar to that of New York, to prohibit hounding of deer 

 iu the State; and iu the meantime I shall correspond with 

 our prominent sportsmen to co-operate in securing the pas- 



