Dec. 7, 1895.] 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



493 



The only contributions made to the National Zoological 

 Park at Washington last year were ten beaver, a few of 

 the smaller animals, and some birds. This was, of course, 

 largely due to the fact that I was uncertain as to whether 

 1 would be permitted under the new law to capture and 

 ship them. An affirmative decision on this point came 

 too late in the season to be of any value, for the young 

 were then too large to be captured. I am arranging to 

 make some captures for shipment this autumn. 



Geysers. 



I have had observations made on the eruptions of the 

 geysers covering only such hours of the day as the men 

 stationed thereat were on duty. Eruptions occurring dur- 

 ing the night were, as a rule, not observed or included in 

 the report I append for publication. A list of these obser- 

 vations was made last season and published in my last 

 report with a view of counteracting the prevailing opinion 

 that there is a general law of periodicity in their action. 

 Old Faithful, which years ago was carefully observed 

 during all of its eruptions for nearly a month, was found 

 to have a nearly uniform interval of about sixty-eight 

 minutes. It is probable that this interval has slightly in- 

 creased, but that it is still measurably uniform from one 

 eruption to the next is quite certain. The Fountain Geyser 

 also has a fairly regular action with an interval of about 

 five hours at the present time. This interval seems to be 

 dependent somewhat upon the water-surface supply, being 

 greater in dry months late in the season than in the spring 

 when the supply of surface water is larger. A fairly 

 regular interval has also been noted for the Great Foun- 

 tain. At the present time its interval is about eight 

 hours. 



ADIRONDACK DEER HOUNDING. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



Your correspondent, Mr. Allen, thinks because no 

 starter or dog can steer a deer into any given lake, hound- 

 ing is no more destructive than other methods of hunt- 

 ing. But how is it when there is a party of hunters at 

 every lake and pond, as is the case during the hounding 

 season? It makes little difference where a deer runs be- 

 fore the hound, in nine cases out of ten the deer is killed. 

 This fall a party, at one little pond containing no more 

 than forty acres, killed over twenty deer— the larger 

 number being driven to the water by dogs belonging to 

 other parties hunting in the vicinity. Another party 

 killed thirteen deer, nine of which were driven by dogs 

 not belonging to the party. And so it is all over the 

 Adirondacks. Having the opportunity to observe the 

 effects of hounding deer in all its phases, I am fully con- 

 vinced that if hounding could be abolished at the expense 

 of legalizing crusting and the killing of deer in the deep 

 snows of winter, it would be an advanced step toward the 

 protection of our Adirondack deer and the brutality no 

 greater than when butchering them in the water. 



MUSSET. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



Of course a deer has a chance to escape when run by 

 dogs. I know it and I don't believe that there is a dog- 

 ger of deer but can tell of at least one deer having 

 escaped. I'm right glad Mr. J. 0. Allen has jumped on 

 to those indiscreet writers who talk as if a deer had no 

 chance to escape. Maybe half of them escape. It's pos- 

 sible, but I'd hate like sixty to swear to it. "Stray races 

 are frequent," says Mr. Allen. The blamed deer have a 

 way of going over into the other party's territory that is 

 just fearfully provoking to a man who is after heads or 

 meat. 



I can believe Mr. Allen when he says he knew a dozen 

 dogs backed by a dozen men to hunt one whole day 

 without getting a deer to water, but it seems too good to 

 be true. Were the dogs sick or pugs? Tell us all about it. 

 Such instances should be marked with big letters and all 

 the details told. They should be carefully studied and 

 the whys of it understood. Why is it that th« parties 

 who hunted "for a week with dogs" and naver downed a 

 hoof haven't told of their wonderful experience? 



Raymond S. Spears. 



OREGON NOTES. 



Ducks. 



J. Roberts Mead, F. T. Swift and Frank Hart killed 

 238 ducks, a Canada goose and a swan on Jewett's Lake, 

 Sauvie's Island, yesterday. I saw them and they were a 

 nice fat lot. At this rate of speed sportsmen will soon 

 reach the other end, where there are no ducks. Truly, it 

 makes my heart ache to view such slaughter; but the boys 

 are cruel enough to suggest that it is a kind of death-bed 

 repentance on my part. 



Elk. 



Captain W. J. Riley has just returned from his annual 

 elk hunt. Every fall he takes a trip over into the Coast 

 Range for elk and has never yet failed to get meat. 

 This time he killed two magnificent elk, each carrying a 

 fine set of antlers. He thinks that one of the elk was the 

 largest he has ever seen. He also brought back some fine 

 trout, caught in the Nasel River. 



Turkeys. 



Not wild turkeys, but the good old Thanksgiving kind 

 are plentiful and the boys are having great fun at their 

 shooting matches. And in this connection they tell a 

 good one on H. T. Hudson. It is said that he went out 

 to the turkey shoot at Riverside Inn with his .38-40 Mar- 

 lin and used .44 S. & W. shells. George Norcross, the 

 gunsmith, says that while the turkeys came out of the 

 ordeal in good shape the gun didn't. 



Live Decoys. 

 Here of late our sportsmen are using a great many live 

 duck decoys. And now some fell disease is carrying 

 them off as if stricken with the plague. The cause of the 

 trouble is not known and the boys are in sore distress. 

 Some think that the mortality may be accounted for in 

 the lack of gravel on the grounds where they are kept. 

 Others claim that it is from eating a kind of newt that 

 abounds in those waters. At any rate the decoys are 

 rapidly dying off and the boys are correspondingly un- 

 happy. 



Swans. 



Speaking of live decoys reminds me of a little incident 

 that occurred down at the Jewett the other day. The 



boys were shooting the "little rowdy." Hart was on one 

 side with his live decoys, while Mead and Swift were on 

 the other. A couple of swans came in over the heads of 

 the latter and each picked his swan. Swift's bird was 

 tipped and fell just across the lake among Hart's live de- 

 coys. When the decoys saw the monster descending 

 upon them they all made for the shore. But one old hen 

 was too fat to get out of the way and the boys had to send 

 up to Jewett's for a spade with which to resurrect her. 



Sirens. 



There is considerable human nature about these live de- 

 coys. Nothing seems to please them more than luring 

 their wild cousins to destruction. It sounds a little fishy, 

 but it's a fact. After they get thoroughly educated they 

 are very attentive to business, and will call themselves 

 hoarse to get their brethren within range and never wink 

 when the gun goes off. 



Use for Carp. 



You know that the carp have eaten up all our wapatoos, 

 widgeon grass and other duck food, and ducks are not 

 easily decoyed because they seem to know that there is 

 nothing to eat. So the boys have to resort to all kinds of 

 schemes to get the few ducks within range. An enter- 

 prising sportsman of my acquaintance has adopted a 

 novel method. He first anchors his decoys and then 

 takes a good strong hook and snell, inserts the hook 

 through the carp's dorsal fin, ties the loop on the snell to 

 the decoy and turns the business loose. The carp keep 

 the decoys in constant motion, occasionally causing them 

 to dive, and wild ducks seem to imagine that the decoy 

 ducks have struck a fine lot of food. S. H. Greene. 

 Portland, Ore., Nov. 25. 



QUAIL IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA. 



North Ontario, Cal., Nov. 16.— As our summers are 

 always dry, that would cut but little figure in the matter 

 were it not for the grass fires, which, in my opinion, de- 

 stroy more nests and very young birds than almost any 

 other cause. The past summer has been very favorable 

 and the crop of birds promised to be one of the best for 

 years, and were the game laws enforced no doubt it would 

 have more than fulfilled our expectations. Bad as mat- 

 ters are in this respect, there are still a goodly number of 

 birds. 



The last Legislature made a move in the right direction 

 by shortening the open season, but did not make adequate 

 provision for enforcing the laws. The matter being left 

 to the boards of supervisors of the various counties, but 

 few game wardens were appointed, and the illegal killing 

 of the birds has gone on as before. What we need most 

 in this part of the State is protection in fact. The birds 

 will multiply if given any sort of a chance. I am in- 

 formed on the best of authority that some parties who had 

 been seen killing quail almost daily from the first of July 

 were reported to our local officer, and nothing whatever 

 was done. The supervisors refused to appoint a game 

 warden, and what are we to do? One man, the superin- 

 tendent of a large vineyard, makes his boasts that all are 

 free to kill quail on his property whenever they choose. 

 A good, active warden, with the sportsmen of the State at 

 his back, could soon put this matter to the test, and a few 

 heavy fines would do a world of good to those who seem 

 to think they can do as they please. An officer of the 

 State did, I believe, make a couple of alleged arrests in 

 this county; but as nothing further has been heard in the 

 matter, we suppose it will end at that. 



There is no place on earth where quail have fewer 

 natural enemies than here in southern California, and 

 never in my experience, which extends from the Atlantic 

 to the Pacific, have I seen or heard of such willful viola- 

 tions of the game laws or such laxity on the part of those 

 whose duty it is to see them enforced. H. M. Tonner. 



IMPORTED GAME BIRDS. 



Brooklyn, N. Y. — Editor Forest and Stream: As I was 

 one of the speakers at the first meeting of the Maine Game 

 Protective Association, at the Hotel Buckingham, Lewis- 

 ton, Me., two years ago, I have read with the deepest 

 interest the accounts you have published in Forest and 

 Stream of the experience of those who have been attempt- 

 ing to introduce black game and capercailzie into the 

 State of Maine. 



I am familiar with these grand birds and have shot 

 them in Scandinavia, and I of course regret that they 

 have not yet succeeded in Maine — but the result is just 

 what I expected. If a sufficient number of birds were 

 turned down in a suitable locality I am sure they would 

 succeed. As for sharp-tail and pinnated grouse, they are 

 certain to fail in Maine. 



My theory is that alien birds or beasts may often be suc- 

 cessfully introduced into a region apparently suited to 

 them, and to which they could not have obtained access 

 without the aid of man, but that failure will invariably 

 result by introducing them to a region to which they 

 could have spread naturally had it been suited to their re- 

 quirements. I may instance the success of the pheasant, 

 transported from the Euphrates to Britain by the Romans; 

 the rabbit, taken by settlers to Australia; the California 

 quail, introduced into Vancouver's Island, the climate of 

 which ia mdd enough for its welfare, but which is 

 separated from the natural habitat of the bird by many 

 hundred miles of unsuitable country; the introduction of 

 the Mongolian pheasant into the Pacific States; the re- 

 stocking of Scotch coverts with capercailzie from Scandi- 

 navia, and such well-known instances of success. 



I possess a good deal of information upon black game 

 and capercailzie which is at the disposal of any person 

 desiring to make use of it. St. Croix. 



Snow for Foxes in Vermont. 



Sheldon, Vt., Nov. 23— The definition of the term 

 "sportsman" can be given very briefly and fully. A 

 sportsman is a man who indulges in the sports of rod and 

 gun for the sake of the sport itself, and is generally a 

 person who uses as good tools as his means will admit. 



The slight snow this morning brought the fox hunters 

 out in full force. The writer shot a large dog fox in front 

 of Whirlwind and Drive. At the time of writing the 

 other hunters have not reported their success. 



Stanstead. 



A New Jersey Vermin Bounty Complication. 



Under date of Nov. 21 the New York Sun had a report 

 from Blairstown, N. J., which ran: "The township com- 

 mittee of Stillwater, Sussex county, met to receive 

 groundhog, skunk and weasel scalps a day or two ago. 

 They were surprised to see several loads come in. One 

 man had all he could haul in a truck wagon. Another 

 came in with a wheelbarrow full. A bicyclist brought 

 almost 300 strung together and tied to his wheel. School 

 children, too, brought in large quantities. When the 

 committeemen came to count up the scalps they found 

 that they had some 10,000 of them, and would have to 

 borrow money to pay for them. Due bills were given, 

 and the hunters will not get the cash until the taxes are 

 collected. The committee has hired two corn cribs to 

 store the scalps in, as hundreds will be brought in nearly 

 every day for the next week or two. The township agrees 

 to pay 10 cents for every scalp, but the committee will 

 cut down the reward one-half." 



These figures were only 1,000 more than three times too 

 large. The facts are given in this communication from 

 Town Clerk Driscoll: 



"Middleville, N. J., Nov. 28.— Editor Forest and 

 Stream: In reply to your request of Nov. 25 in regard to 

 scalps, the township of Stillwater pays 10 cents per scalp 

 for groundhog scalps only. The town committee met 

 Nov. 16 to receive these scalps. About 3,000 were brought 

 in, not 10,000. Cannot say as to how they were brought 

 in, whether in truck wagons, wheelbarrows or on bicycles. 

 No corn cribs were leased to store these scalps; kerosene 

 was thrown over them and then they were burned. There 

 was not sufficient money in hands of treasurer to pay all 

 bills, and a few bills will not be paid until next meeting 

 of committee. W. F. Driscoll, Town Clerk." 



Miss Milhau's Moose. 



Aroostook County, Me.— Miss Mary Dudley, of New 

 Jersey (formerly of Presque Isle, Me.), Miss Zella Milhau, 

 and Mr. W. H. Penny, of Now York, and Miss Tenney, of 

 Houlton, Me., have just returned from Big Fish Lake, 

 where they were unusually successful in securing two 

 moose and a deer. Miss Milhau succeeded in shooting a 

 monster moose with a spread of over 4ft. in the horns. 

 Added to this, she has a record as an angler; she visited 

 the lake in July and caught some fine trout. The party 

 speak in glowing terms of the entire country there, and 

 claim that they have never seen its superior as a model 

 hunting ground. 



Mr. Frederick Harding and Henry Garrison, of Pater- 

 son, N. J., have just returned from Squaw Pond and 

 Black Water with two caribou and a moose, besides 

 several other smaller specimens of game. This is Mr. 

 Harding's second trip. He was here in the summer and 

 succeeded in capturing three bears. 



Mr. A. A, Barker, of Newport, R. I., and Mr. Joe Rob- 

 inson, of Presque Isle, have just returned from Big Fish 

 Lake and Machias with two moose, one of which is a 

 perfect monster, weighing dressed nearly l ; 2001bs., with 

 a spread of 5ft. lin. between antlers. He has shipped it 

 home complete, and is to have it mounted just as it stood 

 in its native elements. H. H. S. 



[We would like to have authentication of the antler 

 measurements.] 



Michigan Deer Hounding. 



Lansing, Mich., Nov. 28. — Hounding deer seems to 

 have been practiced pretty generally all over northern 

 Michigan. At Bravort Lake the hotel keepers and guides 

 run dogs all the year through. At Gilcrist the hounding 

 was general. At Alpena and all west of there dogs are 

 used constantly. In Clare county dogs are used all the 

 year through. At Roscommon almost every hunter has 

 a dog, and the report there is that the game wardens and 

 prosecuting attorney use dogs for deer. In Jack Pine 

 cownship I hear that dogs are used constantly, and it is 

 the custom there to muzzle the dogs to prevent their 

 making too much noise. From Raney Lake a party just 

 in state that dogs were used there every day during their 

 stay. At Indian River and all through that section, I am 

 told, almost every deer hunter has his dogs and runs 

 them whenever he wants to hunt. All this I get from 

 hunters who have been on the ground and seem to know 

 what they are talking about. From about McKinley 

 comes the same report. For outside hunters the season 

 has been poor. Julian. 



Shooting Incidents. 



In reading a recent issue of your valuable paper I read 

 of two incidents of killing foxes with a quail load and 

 a white woodcock. 



In the winter of 1867 I was shooting quail in Dataware 

 county, Ohio. My pointer made a point m an open wheat 

 stubble. I walked in ahead of him to flush as 1 supposed a 

 covey of quail. Instead I started two red foxes, both of 

 which I killed with No. 8. shot. The dog fox was killed 

 dead in his tracks at about 20yds,, the vixen ran after 

 being hit say 50yds. and dropped dead. 



While shooting summer woodcock at Mogadore, O., 

 eight miles from Akron, O., in August, 1892, I found in 

 a piece of topped corn seventeen woodcock in a three 

 acre piece of ground. Among the lot was one white bird, 

 which was killed. It was a young bird fairly well grown, 

 and was all white with the exception of a few dark spots, 

 some five or six, about the siZ9 of a pea. I have it 

 mounted and it was nicely done by H. E. Chubb, of 

 Cleveland, O. R, B. Morgan. 



Pennsylvania Game. 



Osceola Mills, Pa., Nov. 25 — Pheasants are very 

 plenty this fall, but the poor little quail that were around 

 last season are a thing of the past. I think the severe 

 storms in February killed all of them. Rabbits are very 

 plenty. On last Friday we had a fine tracking snow for a 

 few hours in the morning, and there were hundreds of 

 rabbits killed. Some scored as high as thirteen to one 

 gun. My friend C. and myself managed to kill thirteen 

 cotton-tails and six pheasants from 8 A. M. till noon, and, 

 as I heard one hunter say, it was not a good day to hunt 

 either. (It snowed.) No deer have been killed here this 

 season. I have only heard of four being seen, and that 

 was before the season came in. Squirrels are very scarce, 

 very few being bagged. I have been out only five times 

 and have killed twenty-six pheasants and eight cotton- 

 tails. E. C. B 



