Fed. 9, 1888.J 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



49 



A BRUSH WITH EPHRAIM. 



IT was in the year 1852 that Dr. F. closed his office door 

 in a mining camp, to spend a few days at his ranch 

 down in the valley. At that season of I he year it was a 

 very busy time with the field lianas. But the Doctor 

 being a very kind-hearted gentleman, told them to rest 

 in the morning until breakfast time and he would catch 

 up the horses. So the next morning at the break of day 

 he saddled his horse and rode out in the valley. He had 

 not ridden far before he saw some object in the distance 

 which he thought to be one of the horses. On he went 

 until quite near, when to Ids surprise it proved to be a 

 grizzly bear. The Doctor quickly turned about, took his 

 back tracks and was soon at his' ranch-house door. He 

 called his men, told them what he had found, and said 

 he would ride up and down the main road and invite all 

 his neighbors to the hunt. 



It was but a short time before they arrived, mounted 

 and equipped in good style as they thought, some armed 

 with rifles, some with smoothbores and some with army 

 revolvers, all muzzleloaders in those days. The plan was 

 soon made to ride in single file within short range of one 

 another, and to skirt the edge of the valley near the foot- 

 hills, and finally out-flank and cut off Bruin from the 

 mountains. But in this they failed, for the bear, taking 

 in the situation, left in good time for the highlands. 



Thereupon the whole line of hunters (except one) 

 dashed on upon his trail. This one, Mr. B.. started 

 around the opposite brow of the hill hoping to cut off the 

 bear. In this he succeeded much sooner than he antici- 

 pated, for all at once he met bruin face to face. The old 

 man soon unhitched the contents of his smoothbore, 

 which set the bear in a terrible rage, and Mr. B., not lik- 

 ing the looks of his eyes nor the sound of his voice, made 

 up his mind very quickly to take his back tracks to the 

 valley. It was then and' there that the race commenced 

 between life and death, and it looked as if death might 

 win. Nevertheless Mr. B. rolled the large Mexican spurs 

 up his pony's flanks, arid at nearly every leap gave a 

 whoop, which rang out on the mountain air and even 

 reached the ears of the pursuing party. On, on they 

 came with lightning speed, and at "the edge of the valley 

 are within range. Now every man shoots at will. Some 

 of the shots sting bitterly: and to the great joy of old 

 old Mr. B.. bruin falls to the ground to rise no more. 

 North Wintebport, Me. L. H. S. 



Auxiliary Rifle Barrels for Shotguns. — I no- 

 ticed some time ago an inquiry of those who had experi- 

 ence about auxiliary rifle barrels for shotguns; and 

 although many must be in use in this country, but little 

 response was made. I have a fine shotgun and fine 

 auxiliary barrel plated, and plated front protector, as 

 also a breech sight to use as peep. This sight can be 

 made to slide from side to side. I have had these arms 

 several years. The rifle barrel was discarded for the 

 following reasons: I found that when the rifle barrel 

 was used in the right barrel the ball struck about a foot 

 to the left at 50yds. ; and when fired in the left bai rel it 

 struck about a foot to the right. That is the lines of fire 

 crossed each other near the muzzle. At the same time 

 when shot was fired from the gun barrels it went very 

 accurately at the same distance. I suppose this is because 

 the shot takes its direction from the last few inches of the 

 muzzle, whereas the rifle barrel was held in position in 

 the direction of the axis of the gun barrel at is 

 breech. The recoil of the powder charge was so great 

 that it blew the primer from the cartridge against the 

 firing pin with such force that it bent the pin so it would 

 not work and had to be repaired by the gunsmith. My 

 experience is given that my brother sportsmen who think 

 of using auxiliary barrels may move with caution and 

 know- that all auxiliary barrels are not fine shooting 

 arms even under favorable conditions. — Hock-o-mock 

 (Bath, Me.). 



Arkansas Varmints. — Beehe, Ark., Jan. 28. — Some 

 time ago I promised to give you an account of a wolf 

 chase, but I cannot do it, as we have no dogs that will 

 trail them. Wolves are to be heard any night running, 

 and wolf sign is plenty. Stories of encounters with 

 wolves and panthers are told around the fires at night, 

 some of them bordering on the improbable and ahuost 

 beyond belief. One man fought a panther successfully 

 with a club and got off without a scratch. Frank Ford 

 killed a large panther with his fists. Jack Rudolf, a 

 young trapper, killed a half -grown panther with his hunt- 

 ing knife. A farmer named Cramer is reported to have 

 been chased by wolves. Game is plenty. I am going 

 trapping for fur as soon as the waters go down a little 

 more, and shall probably have some interesting items for 

 you soon. — G. J. B. 



A Disclaimer from Little Rock.— Little Eock, Ark. — 

 Editor Forest and Stream: I notice an article signed 

 '■The Wise Acre" in your paper of Jan. 19. It alleges of 

 four boys from this city that, going out shooting, in less 

 than an horn one had both legs shattered, one lost an eye 

 and another was minus a hand. There has not been an 

 accident of any kind with boy hunters here in the past 

 four years. Four years ago two or three boys were out 

 hunting and one accidentally got a charge of small shot 

 in one foot; but it was nothing serious and soon got well. 

 We nearly all use breechloaders of the latest and most 

 improved pattern, not the old-style cap gun, and some of 

 us are pretty good shots. — Little Rock Boy. 



How it Works.— Philadelphia, Jan. 28.— While off on 

 a fishing trip last September. I was induced to try my 

 hand at gunning, a pleasure I had not indulged in for 

 eighteen or nineteen years. The result was a thorough 

 awakening of the old passion and a very bad case of the 

 "gunning fever." Before the winter closes I want to put 

 myself in possession of a good gun and some theoretical 

 knowledge, which, with the practical knowledge acquired 

 in years gone by, will enable me to be ready to enjoy 

 some sport with gun as well as rod when the spring sea- 

 son opens.— X. 



Dillingersville, Pa., Feb. 3.— The late storm was 

 very hard on game. Out of nine covey of partridges I 

 knew of, I have heard of but four since the snow; the 

 cotton tails are all right, and on deck, but they have a 

 hard go just now to find food. — L. W. M. 



Mr. Henry C. Squires will sail this week for Europe, 

 to be gone a month. 



PASSAIC COUNTY F. AND C. P. A. 



THE annual report ol the secretary of the Passaic County Fish 

 and Game Protective Association records that during the 

 year 1887 the prosecutions for violations ot the fish and game laws 

 have not been as numerous as they were the preceding year, vio- 

 lators of the laws being aware of the fact that detection mea.nt 

 punishment. It is a gratifying fact that the wholesale violations 

 of the law have ceased and that if game and fish are illegally 

 taken it is done very quietly so as to avoid detection. Men who 

 in past years made a practice of taking lisii end game out of sea- 

 son and in illegal manner have abondoned that practice and some 

 have gone even so far as to assist the Association when it was in 

 their power to do so. 



The principal prosecutions had during the year were for viola- 

 tions of the la ws prohibit frig the killing of song and insectivorrnis 

 birds. This class of offenders have given the Association a great 

 deal of trouble. A number of Italian residents in the suburbs of 

 Paterson were in the habit of shooting everything that bad feath- 

 ers; they presumed this was a free countrj and if they chose to 

 have song birds Cor diet they had a right to indulge in them. This 

 has been stopped, but not until a number of them had been fined 

 and three imprisoned. Since the last meeting of the Association 

 in October there have been four prosecutions of this nature. In 

 three of these cases the offenders professed repentance and ignor- 

 ance and were allowed to go on the payment of costs of prosecu- 

 tion. The fourth was the case of a man who knew better, and so 

 he was fined §10 in addition to the. costs. 



The Association has at present a membership of seventy-two. 

 At the beginning of the year there was a balance in the treasury 

 of §19 05. The expenses during the year were $47 83, leaving a 

 balance in the treasury on the first of January, 1888, of §3:.'.12. 

 Prosecutions, as a rule, paid for themselves. When violators of 

 the law were arrested and were allowed to go on payment of the 

 casts no entry was made on the books of the Association as the 

 proceedings had no effect on the treasury, just as much money 

 having boon returned as was taken out. It luis been the aim of 

 the officers cf tho Association to make each prosecution pay for 

 itself, and I find at the end of the year there is a b - lance of only 

 five dollars to the credit of the Association from pro- ceutious, the 

 rest of the income being derived from the payment of dues. 



One of the principal complaints of the frequeuters of Green- 

 wood Lake was that thousands of fish escaped during the summer 

 months into the Morris Canal. The Association accordingly 

 entered into an agreement with Mr. T. E. Fuller, the proprietor of 

 a hotel at the lake, by which Mr. Puller agn ed to put in a screen 

 if the Association would furnish the netting. The netting was 

 woven to order, baying a mesh cf one and a half inches. This is 

 to be doubled, the meshes broken, and put in in seciions. It has 

 not yet been put in, but Mr. Fuller will undoubtedly carry out his 

 part cf the agreement as soon as the weather permits. The neces- 

 sary permission to put in the screen has been obtained from the 

 canal company. 



Another subject of complaint at the lake was the wire which at 

 some places spans portions of the lake and thus interferes with 

 casting ai> some of the best places of the lake. Correspondence 

 drew from the Superintendent a promise that t he wire would he 

 removed as soon as possible. 



The quail with which the Association stocked the woods of Pas- 

 saic county two vears ago are doing well, and the cheerful call of 

 "Boh White" is heard in places where it had not been heard be- 

 fore in many years. 



In the early part, of the year the Association determined if pos- 

 sible to improve the fishing in the Passaic River. The stream 

 already contains bass, pickerel, perch and other varieties of fish, 

 and steps were taken toward securing some letnlurus albirtwt, tho 

 white channel catfish of the Potomac. The fish, if successfully 

 introduced, would afford amusement and food for hundreds of 

 the residents along the banks of the Passaic. "The Fishery In- 

 dustries of the United States," a government publication, says of 

 this fish: "The white catfish of the tributaries of Chesapeake 

 Bay is very abundant in the Susquehanna and Potomac rivers, and 

 forms an important part of the fish su upiy of the Washington mar- 

 ket. It reaches a weight of 2 to 5 pounds." A letter of inquiry 

 addressed to the United States Commission of Fish and Fisheries 

 elicited the following reply: "In response of yours of Jan. 8, 1 am 

 directed by the Commissioner to say that the species of catfish re- 

 ferred to by you is not to be obtained in the Potomac river at this 

 season of the. year. The channel catfish is migratory, and is only 

 present in our waters during the shad and herring season. Ar- 

 rangements could be made to procure, at little trouble or expense, 

 a supply of these during the spring from fishermen either on the 

 Potomac or on the Delaware, which would, of course, be much 

 more convenient to you.— M. M. McDonald, Chief Div. Dist." 



The matter was dropped for the time being, but was again taken 

 up and the secretary instructed to make further inquiries. Ac- 

 cording to the Government publication the catfish referred to is 

 a fresh-water fish, inhabiting the Potomac aud Susquehanna 

 rivers. According to Prof. Baird it is a migratory fish and maybe 

 found in tbe Delaware. If it is migratory where does it migrate? 

 If it forms an important part of the fish supply of Washington 

 markets why should it not be introduced into the waters of New 

 York? It is reported to be a hard tighter at the end of the line 

 audit is certainly very prolific. Would it not be a material ad- 

 dition to the fish supply of this part of the country? The As- 

 sociation would be glad to obtain further information on these 

 points. 



The Association applied through counsel to the Supreme Court 

 for a certiorari to set aside the dog ordinance of Paterson which 

 requires the owner of every dog to pay a registry fee cf two dol- 

 lars annually, but Judge Dixon decided that two dollars was a 

 reasonable fee for the trivial work doue by the citv in registering 

 each dog and declined to grant the certiorari. The prosecution 

 was accordingly dropped. Chas. A. Surinek, 



Secretary and Treasurer. 



THE ALBANY GAME LAW MILL. 



[Correspondence of Forest and Stream.} 



ALBANY, Feb. 8.— As the game committee of neither House 

 has held any meeting as yet it is unnecessary to state that 

 the progress of legislation is slow. Indeed, the Assemblymen 

 have speut so much time in looking after the Assembly ceiling 

 that they seem to have paid very little attention to any thing else. 

 The game committees are, however, to meet this week and 

 arrange for hearings upon several of the bills. A number of the 

 bills will also be printed. 



The hearing, which will be of the greatest interest, is that upon 

 the code that is proposed by Mr. Roosevelt. It is declared, by 

 those who assume to know, that the bill does not stand auv 

 chance cf passing in its present state. The provisions which it 

 contains forbidding the hounding of deer have stirred up all the 

 elements which opposed the Curtis anti-hounding law of two or 

 three years ago; and which were responsible for its repeal. They 

 declare that the Curtis law was a direct loss to Franklin, and 

 other of the Adirondack counties, because i-fc prevented tourists 

 from coming into the woods at all. 



It is very evident that very much of the legislation of the 

 coming winter will tutn upon this very point, whether hounding 

 shall be permitted or not. 



A bill introduced in the Assembly by Mr. Cromwell, Feb. 1, 

 makes it uulawful, by day or night, to place any purse net, 

 pound net, weir, or other device, except the hook ana line, for the 

 capture of menhaden or other fish, in the waters of Raritan Bay 

 within the jurisdiction of the State of New York and of Richmond 

 county; or in any arm, bay or river emptying into the same. 

 But this shall not forbid fykes as now allowed by law subject to 

 regulation by the supervisors. A violation of this law is punish- 

 able by a line of §100, or imprisonment for 3D days. One half of 

 the money collected is to go to the poor of the countv, and the 

 other half to the informer. 



AN ESTIMATE OF "FOREST RUNES." 



THE name of poet may be ungrudgingly applied to the next 

 volume on our table, "Forest Runes." Mr. Sears, under the 

 now* de guerre "Nessmuk," has been known for years to the read- 

 ■ ers of Porter's Spirit of the Times and Fobest a_nd Stream, by 

 ] occasional contributions, and has also published recently a guide 

 to sportsmen entitled "woodcraft." But he has been little known 

 to the general reader. The preeeut volume, the first collection of 

 ! his poems, ought, however, to give him a national reputation, for 

 I very few of our poets have shown any such original power of 

 expression or such creative force of imagination as we find in 

 these poems of "Nessmuk." 

 We learn from the brief but spicy autobiographical remarks in 

 ! the preface that Mr. Sears is a man approaching sixtv-five, whose 

 boyuood in Massachusetts, of which he is a native, was passed in 

 the woods cr iu the company of the remnants of theNiprauek 

 tribes. Later on he became a hunter by profession. He tells us 

 that he was fond of rhyming in youth, but that be never made a 

 : study of the laws of prosody, while his life has been passed chiefly 

 in the forests with his rifle, and his assocates have been men of 

 action rather than of thought. Inferentially we learn from these 

 I poems that at some period not mentioned he visited Brazil, where 



he was much impressed by the scenery and people. 

 1 In style Mr. Sears's poems are vigorous and raoy; they are 



free from sentimcntalism. The expression is direct, the diction 

 nervous and clear, the rhythm musical and sometimes powerful. 

 Tho thought is rarely profound, but it has tho flavor of being 

 suggosted by experiences, which seem to have been familiar 

 enough with hardship to have given the author a touch of pes- 

 simism. 



In "An Arkansas Idyl'Vind/'HowMiahJones Get, Discouraged," 

 "Nessmuk" takes a more merry touo, and shows in this sort of 

 "folk lore" a fae'lity of humorous suggestion and rhythm not in- 

 ferior to that of Bret Ilartc and John Hay. But bis true origi- 

 nality and power arc best exhibited in 1 he poem entitled "The 

 Mameluco Dance." It represents a tragedy among the swarthy, 

 black-eyed, hot-blooded half-breeds of Bra/11. As a piece of 

 dramatic description, as an example of statelyblank verse, full of 

 rush and fire, it is entitled to a very respect ible rank in Anier em 

 poetry- The blemish of the poem is the closing passage, after the 

 murder of the Vaqnero. which is a great descent from a lofty 

 scale of poetic excellence to prose, and indicates defects which 

 the circumstances of tho author's life account for. — The Inde- 

 pendent, Jan. 6, 1888. 



"That reminds me." 

 228. 



"THE AT reminds me," said Colonel Tucker to the Bank 

 I President. "Several years ago I was superintend- 

 ing the building of the dyke at tbe head of Brown's 

 Island (on the Ohio River). Just below the old wing 

 dam, on the line of whicb we were building: tbe dyke, 

 was a famous place for taking bass and jackfish at cer- 

 tain seasons. One morning an unusual number of ama- 

 teur anglers had gathered there from vario us qu alters. 

 They Avere having very poor success. The fish wouldn't 

 bite. At length Parson G., rector of the church at S., 

 appeared on the scene. The Daininie's outfit was rather 

 unclerical in appearance, and none of the woikruen knew 

 who he was; but I knew him very well. He soon had his 

 tackle in order, and was not long in finding the fish. As 

 the sport progressed and the Pardon's string rapidly grew 

 in numbers, one of tho workmen was so filled with ad- 

 miration for his skill that he called out to him above the 

 ioar of the water. 'Say, mister, you beat the devil!' The 

 Parson looked solemnly over his shoulder and answered 

 back, as he reeled in another jack, 'That's my trade, my 

 friend. I've been trying bard to beat him at all points 

 for the last ten or. fifteen years with more or less success. 

 I am glad you think I can down him at this business!' 

 There was a quizzical look on the man's face as he took 

 hold of his wheelbarrow handles and went on with his 

 work. The enjoyment of that brief interview was ail 

 mine— and the Parsons." Blivens. 



229. 



On no part of the hunter's life does his mind dwell 

 with pleasanter retrospect than on the evenitags spent 

 around the fire after the day's sport is over. When 

 the years have dimmed the memory of the cold and the 

 failures s nd the other discomforts, he sees only the glow- 

 ing fire, feels again its genial influence as it permeates 

 his whole body, producing that delicious languor which 

 makes his sleep so sweet, and hears again the voices of 

 his companions, now stilled in death, as they relate the 

 adventures of other days. 



It was on a winter night, when the thermometer was 

 among the minus twenties, that a party of us sat thus 

 around a glowing fire, in the house of a miller, in one of 

 the valleys of the Alleghenies. The hours were spent in 

 telling of bunting experiences. We were of three or f our 

 hunting parties who had met at this place by accident, 

 for all desired to enjoy the hospitality of this excellent 

 family. Everything about the house was as neat and 

 comfortable as any of us had at home. The wife was a 

 model housekeeper, and set a table that it makes one's 

 mouth water only to remember. After each one-had con- 

 tributed his story to the entertainment, some one called 

 on our host to tell his turkey hunting experience. Al- 

 though living in the territory where deer and turkeys 

 were so plenty that we had come many miles to enjoy 

 the privilege of hunting here, be never Went out after 

 game. 



"About twenty years ago," said he, ".I was working in 

 the mountains above here. Turkeys were then very 

 plenty. I have seen a hundred in one flock. One day a 

 friend told me that there was a very large flock in the 

 woods above the house and insisted on my going with 

 him to get some of them. We took our rifles and started 

 up the mountain. After going half a mile we came to a 

 field in the woods. On approaching it carefully Ave saw 

 what I thought to be about an acre of turkeys. They 

 Avere busy feeding, and as they were not hunted much in 

 those days, they Avere not very wild. We got near 

 enough to shoot and I wanted to have both fire together, 

 as that would give both a chance. He insisted that as he 

 Avas the best shot, he would shoot first, and I could have 

 the next chance. I saw that I could not do any better, 

 so I let him have his way. He fired into a bunch of 

 about fifty that Avere close together, and missed them all. 

 They rose and flew. All of them went together except 

 three. I was so mad at him for taking the first shot and 

 then missing that I told him to take his choice of the two 

 flocks, and I would take the other. He went after the 

 large flock and I started across the hollow after the three. 



"I was following a path, and when I came to the bottom 

 of the hollow I found it winding around a little patch of 

 laurel. As I was making the turn around this I came 

 within five steps of a large black bear, which yvas root- 

 ing among the leaves. He was quartering from me. and 

 as he was making a noise in the leaves did not hear me 

 coming. You may knoAv that I stopped rather suddenly. 

 I began to consider AA'hat I would dor I could see a light 

 spot just behind his ear, and as I had heard hunters say 

 that was the spot to shoot at, I said to myself, if I only 

 had a gun I would shoot him right in that spot. He was 

 so close to me that I could almost have laid my hand on 

 his rump. 



"Just about the time I had completed my survey, and 

 concluded what 1 would do if I had had a gun, he had 

 rooted around untd he was almost facing me, then iif ting 

 his head he gaw me, and there was one surprised bear in 

 that hollow. He gave a great grunt and in a second had 

 plunged into the laurel. As soon as he was gone I re- 

 membered that I had stood there looking at him all that 

 time with a rifle in my hands. I was so disgusted that I 

 said to myself that any one who was such a fool as that 

 bad no business hunting after turkeys. So without going 

 after them I Avent home, and have never hunted any 

 since, unless they came where I could shoot them from 

 i the door. Hoiiertjs. 



OnEATELANO, Ohio. 



