s 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



[Jan. 26, 1888. 



WINTER IN THE PARK. 



"YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Jan. U.-Edi- 

 JL tor Forest and Stream: The weather here up to 

 Dec. 20 was pleasant, with very little snow fall. The 

 game that was on its winter range turned back to the 

 higher country it had left with the first heavy snow 

 fall, so that very little could be seen where usually at that 

 season hundreds were feeding. I was out two weeks on 

 the winter range for elk and only saw one band of eleven. 

 The weather continued pleasant so long that the black- 

 tail deer (the first to change then- range) thought they 

 had made a mistake in the season and went back to their 

 summer feeding ground. I saw several higher up and 

 further back in the mountains than ever before at this 

 season. All the hunting parties out in the country adja- 

 cent to the Park met with poor success; some saw where 

 hundreds of elk had been, but they had all gone back 

 into the Park. Less game has been killed this season 

 in Montana than ever before, owing to the absence 

 of snow in the reservation to drive the game out. 



Since Dec. 20 we have had more snow, and since 1888 

 came in, we have had some very severe weather, with a 

 very heavy fall of snow, which ranges in depth from two 

 to over four feet throughout the Park. Teams and men, 

 who have been engaged in cutting ice for the hotels, 

 experienced great difficulty in getting out to the Mam- 

 moth Hot Springs. They report seeing one fine buffalo 

 between the Upper and Lower Basins, where he took to 

 the road just ahead of their horses, keeping in sight and 

 being sometimes only fifty yards off for half a mile, until 

 he turned off on another road. He did not appear much 

 alarmed, considering probably that lie had a perfect right 

 to the use of the Government roads, and preferred travel- 

 ing them to the rough work in the timber. He went 

 toward the part of the Lower Basin where I reported 

 seeing buffalo sign last spring. He and several others 

 will probably winter there or on the head of Alum Creek. 



Thousands of elk are now to be seen. Elk in very large 

 bands are in the Swan Lake Basin, near Mammoth Hot 

 Springs, in the Blacktail Creek country, on the East Fork 

 of the Yellowstone, around Mt. Washburn, on Alum 

 Creek and all along the Cooke City road. Antelope are 

 plenty around the Junction Butte and on Mt. Evarts. 

 Mountain sheep have returned to the Gardiner Canon and 

 will probably becomo as tame as they did a year ago, 

 when one could pass within a few yards of them without 

 frightening them at all. Generally people show more 

 excitement than the sheep at an unexpected meeting in 

 the roadway. 



The Gardiner River, below where the hot waters of the 

 Boiling River join it, is free from ice, and much frequented 

 by fishermen, who catch some fine strings of trout with 

 flies. On any clear day the fish (mostly small) can be seen 

 in still pools. The river above the Hot Spring is frozen 

 over, and is uninviting cither to fish or fishermen. 



How cold it has been this year it is impossible to learn, 

 except that the mercury froze in the thermometers at 

 Soda Butte ; that it was —28 ' at the Hot Springs and —29" 

 at Gardiner. All this very cold and wintery weather is 

 producing some very beautiful frost work at the geysers 

 and falls. The mail to Cooke City is carried part way on 

 horses, the rest on snowshoes, Dave Dobson making the 

 weekly round trip of a little more than one hundred miles. 

 Very few people are left in Cooke City now — not over 

 twenty-five. Soon the use of horses will be abandoned 

 and the mail will be carried all the way on snowshoes. 



H. 



♦THE QUEBEC CLUB. 



MONTREAL, Jan. 16.— The twenty-ninth annual gen- 

 eral meeting of the Fish and Game Protection Club 

 of the Province of Quebec for the reception of reports, 

 the election of office bearers, and the transaction of other 

 business, was held in their rooms on Saturday afternoon, 

 when there were present Mr. W. H. Rintoul, President, 

 in the chair; Mr. J. Nelson, Jr., Hon. Secretary -Treasurer; 

 Lieut.-Col. Massey, Col. d'Orsonnen, Messrs. Jas. Slessor, 

 R, McKay, A. N. Shewan, I. H. Stearns, A. J. Dawes, L. 

 A. Boyer, Alex. McDonald, R. C. Bagg, E. Levy, John 

 McGillis, John A. Walker, E. B. Goodacre, Angus Grant, 

 Selkirk Cross, C. C. Newton, George Horne, Jesse Joseph, 

 Geo. de Beamer, A. McKeard, De Martigny, L. Huot, 

 Geo. Cameron, J. A. Cantlie, R. L. Dillon, Duncan Mc- 

 Dougall, Geo. W. Ahern and others. After the meeting 

 had been called to order, Mr. Nelson read his report as 

 follows: 



Your executive committee, in laying before the members 

 the work done by the club during theyear just ended, have 

 to report fewer actions taken than on previous years, due 

 undoubtedly to the fish and .game laws being better known, 

 especially in the city. The first two actions taken out were 

 against two noted "Chasseurs" of Three Rivers, for having 

 killed a number of caribou some forty miles back of Three 

 Rivers on the grounds of the Shewinigan Club. Your sec- 

 retary proceeded to Three Rivers, where he remained a couple 

 of days picking up all the information he could. When he 

 had been assured by eye witnesses that these men had really 

 been guilty of killing eleven caribou between them, and had 

 openly driven to the city with them, he made sure of obtain 

 ing convictions against both, so took action out, but unfor- 

 tunately the cases were dismissed. The next cases were 

 taken against no fewer than ten parties in the Grand Nord 

 for shooting ducks before the time, viz., Sept. 1. Your sec- 

 retary procured a steam yacht and two small boats and 

 spent one week cruising on Lake St. Peter and around the 

 islands, but great difficulty was experienced in obtaining 

 the people's names. Not only did they refuse point blank 

 giving their names, but rebelled and refused to allow their 

 boats to be examined. However, after securing the services 

 of local men to identify them, the actions were taken out. 

 A short time after the Hon. Mr. Mercier, the Premier of 

 Quebec, was telegraphed to asking him to instruct Judge 

 Dugas to proceed'toSorel, where the parties were to be tried. 

 Playing police, or even game keepers, is not what it is 

 cracked up to lie, even in a good cause. Eight other actions 

 were taken out, but of no great, importance. A good many 

 infringements of the law have taken place, and so will con- 

 tinue until our Government realizes the necessity of having 

 paid game keepers. 



Important changes have been made in the law for the pro- 

 tection of game during the year. These are mostly in the 

 direction in which the club has been working for years. The 

 first amendment to be noticed is the prohibition to hunt, 

 kill or take moose up to Oct. 1, 1890, which is to be com- 

 mended. Then the open season for deer and caribou is fixed 

 at from Oct. 1 to Jan. 1. As regards deer, the latter date is 

 also satisfactory. Your committee are of opinion that the 

 old date for opening, viz., Sept. 1, should have been retained, 

 as many sportsmen are in the woods during September, and 

 that month is a perfectly legitimate, season for hunting these 

 animals. Your committee also think that the open season 



for caribou might have been extended to Feb. 1 without 

 any detriment to them and to the advantage of sportsmen 

 who desire to secure this kind of game in a fair and sports- 

 manlike manner. It has been enacted that hare may not be 

 hunted before Nov. 1. Why it is would be hard to say. A 

 most important and valuable amendment has been the clos- 

 ing of the duck season on April 15. On the whole the Gov- 

 ernment is to be congratulated on the enlightened way in 

 which they have treated the subject. Wild rice has been 

 sown this autumn on both sides of the St. Lawrence from 

 River Beaudette to Lake St. Peter. In some localities what 

 was planted two years ago is doing very well. Your com- 

 mittee takes this occasion to inform lovers of the rod that 

 it can be used on Sundays as heretofore (but they mustn't say 

 so). Some misunderstanding appears to have existed by an 

 order-in-council which was recently issued, but which only 

 applies to tidal waters, salmon is the fish aimed at. The 

 Department of Crown Lands at Quebec have been written to 

 as regards allowing this club the privilege of issuing shoot- 

 ing licenses, Which is likely to be granted, the answer re- 

 ceived being deemed satisfactory. 



Mi-. Shewan suggested the enforcing of the law pro- 

 hibiting trout fishing through the ice during the winter. 

 The club should urge the new officers to take action in 

 the matter. In answer to a question, the chairman said 

 that the secretary had acted as overseer, and thought that 

 by next winter they would be able to legislate to put a 

 stop to trout fishing during the winter. A member 

 understood that they could not get this on account of this 

 being a French province with so many holidays on which 

 the people required to eat fish. The treasurer's statement 

 showed the balance on hand to be $464.10. The election 

 of officers for the ensuing year was proceeded with, 

 resulting as follows: President, I. H. Stearns; Vice- 

 President, G. W, Ahern; Secretary-Treasurer, John 

 Nelson, Jr. Committee— Dr. Brainard, W. H. Atwater, 

 L. A. Boyer, Stanley Bagg, E. B. Goodacre, Robert 

 McKay, Geo. Matthews, Geo. Home, L. Huot, H. R. Ives, 

 W. H. Parker, W. H. Rintoul, Alex, McDonald, A. J. 

 Dawes and Selkirk Cross. 



Mr. Horne, in the course of a few remarks, paid a high 

 compliment to Mr. Nelson for his zealous and untiring 

 efforts in the interest of the club and moved that a recom- 

 mendation be made to the new board to grant Mr. Nelson 

 $100 for his services. Unanimously agreed to. 



MASSACHUSETTS GAME. 



ABOUT all the Worcester sportsmen are willing to 

 admit that they have had a very good season for 

 bird shooting. Very few woodcock bred about here, and 

 the flight was hardly up to that of a year ago; but part- 

 ridges were very plentiful, and we had about the usual 

 number of quail. A very good stock is left over, and if 

 the Massachusetts Fish and Game Protective Association, 

 with the cooperation of the local clubs throughout the 

 State, succeed in their efforts with the Legislature and 

 secure a repeal of the snaring clause of the game law and 

 cut off the month of August from the open season, we 

 shall hope for another good shooting season next year. 

 Since close of shooting, the Sportsman's Club have inau- 

 gurated weekly shooting at the trap, but the weather has 

 been so cold and rough that the members have not turned 

 out in great numbers. As the days grow longer and with 

 warmer weather, the interest will without doubt revive, 

 and it will again be lively at the club house. 



E. Sprague Knowles. 



Worcester, Mass., Jan. 18. 



Philadephia, Jan. 20.— A reception and an informal 

 banquet was given by the Anglers' Association of Eastern 

 Pennsylvania last evening at the rooms of the associa- 

 tion, 1,020 Arch street, to the Commission of Fisheries of 

 the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, consisting of Henry 

 C. Ford, H. C. Demuth, A. S. Dixon, W. L. Powell and 

 James W. Long. Letters of regret were received from 

 Governor Beaver, "William Silencer, Charles N. Pine, W. 

 H. Bowman and N. Y. Seltz. Remarks of unusual inter- 

 est were made by the president of the association, A. M. 

 Spangler, State Senator General Osborne, Dr. Kingsbury, 

 Dr. Rushrod James, James Long, of Pittsburgh; president 

 of the Connecticut State Commission Dr. Hudson, Rev. 

 Dr. Wiggins, of Philadelphia, and a report was read by 

 H. C. Ford, president of the Fish Commission of Penn- 

 sylvania. Reference was made to the important action 

 of the association in its untiring efforts to abolish the 

 unlawful means used by the menhaden pirates who are 

 devastating the coast and the active part the members 

 have taken in reference to this great abuse, both in New 

 Jersey and Congress. 



Narcoossee, Fla., Dec. 20.— Yesterday saw six of us 

 seated in a couple of wagons jolting over the roots and 

 stumps for which our Florida roads are celebrated, on 

 our way to a marsh, where it was reported there were a 

 great many ducks. Our expectations were far from 

 being fulfilled, only seeing some half-dozen ducks, which 

 carefully kept out of range, but having taken the precau- 

 tion to bring some small shot, four of us decided to try 

 our success at snipe. In the evening on reaching camp 

 we found we had bagged forty-eight. Sun-up saw us 

 busily engaged preparing breakfast," and shortly after we 

 might have teen seen walking through the marsh very 

 gingerly, as the Avind had backed into the north and was 

 blowing pretty stiff, consequently the water was none too 

 warm, but we soon forgot that as we got among the birds. 

 Having exhausted our ammunition about two hours 

 before noon, we returned to camp, and on counting the 

 birds we found we had grassed fifty-two, making in all 

 105 snipe. Not having fired a shot at cluck we struck 

 camp and drove home after a very pleasant shoot as 

 regards snipe. — General. 



Kent County Club.— Grand Rapids, Mich.— At the 

 annual meeting of the Kent County Sportsmen's Club the 

 following officers were elected for the ensuing year: 

 President, E. S. Holmes; Vice-President, S. F. Aspinwall; 

 Secretary, A. B. Richmond; Treasurer, N. Fred. Avery. 

 Directors, one year, T. Stewart White; two years, C. D. 

 Spaulding; three years, W. C. Dennison; four years, H. 

 Widdicomb; five years, N. A. Earle. The club expects 

 to arrange for a series of friendly and competitive shoots 

 between teams selected from the members of clubs in 

 Grand Haven, Spring Lake, and other towns during 

 the coming season. 



Orange, N. J. — Rabbits are very scarce in this vicinity, 

 more so than previous years, possibly owing to the 

 numerous sportsmen who can nearly every day be met 

 with on the Orange Mountains.— Crack Shot. 



That Wire Fence Incident.— Meriden, Conn.— If it is a 

 fair question I would ask the writer who described a wire 

 fence incident, what point he is endeavoring to make. 

 In this advanced age of hammerless guns with safety 

 under your thumb, such an accident could not happen. 

 If I was so careless as to push a hammer gun at full cock 

 along the ground in a way to discharge it, it seems to me 

 I would not advertise it.— J. F. I. 



Quail for Long Island.— The Brooklyn Oxford Rod 

 and Gun Club, which owns 7,000 acres of land at Patch- 

 ogue, L. I., have received from their agent in Virginia 

 300 pairs quail, 120 pheasants and about 50 wild turkeys, 

 which they have turned loose on the grounds. 



St. Augustine, Fla., will have a tennis tournament in 

 March. Particulars may be had on application by letter 

 to Geo. Stuart Smith, St. Augustine. 



THE ALBANY GAME LAW MILL. 



[Special correspondence Forest and Stream.] 



ALBANY, .Tan. 24.— The session of the Legislature has 

 passed thus far without any very great excitement. 

 No one has been able to procure a copy of the short code that 

 has been introduced at the instance of Mr. Roosevelt, a 

 brief outline of which was given in FOKEST AND Stream last 

 week. No one, however, seems to care to push the bill 

 along; and it is not likely that any one will do this unless it 

 is Senator Langbein. It is known that Mr. Hadley, the 

 chairman of Last year's game committee, in the Assembly, 

 will oppose it with all the power at his command. It is well 

 known that Mr. Hadley has considerable influence in the 

 Assembly, and that his idea is not to change the laws. 



Assemblyman Roesch's bill amends Sec. 6 of Chapter 427 

 of the laws of 1886. as amended by Sec. 1 of Chapter 641 of the 

 laws of 1887, so that the last clause shall read: "It shall be 

 lawful to shoot robins and blackbirds on Long Island and 

 Staten Island from the 1st day of October to the 1st day of 

 January in each year." 



Assemblyman Ainsworth's bill extends for thirty days the 

 time of killing deer. That is to say, deer killing need not 

 stop until Dec. 1, instead of Nov. 1, as at present. 



Assemblyman Fort has introduced a bill which changes 

 the time of killing woodcock from Aug. 1 to Sept. 1, thus 

 making a uniform law throughout the State. Assembly- 

 man Knapp has a bill allowing the shooting of woodcock in 

 Delaware county on the 1st of August. 



Senator Coggeshallhas introduced his amendment to the 

 game laws of 1884 (his bill of last year), providing that the 

 woodcock and gray squirrel and partridge seasons shall be 

 only duriug September, October and November. The bill 

 also provides that no snare or bird lime shall be used: and at 

 the 1st of April the wild duck season shall begin. 



Assemblyman Flaherty has introduced a bill, No. 188, for 

 the further protection of game and the protection, benefit, 

 and convenience of sportsmen's clubs and hunting associa- 

 tions, organized within the State of New York. It provides 

 that to be recognized as a sportsmen's club or hunting asso- 

 ciation for the purpose of this act there must be an organi- 

 zation having a president, vice-president, secretary and 

 treasurer, elected for one year; and such cl ubs or associations 

 may select captains once each year, who shall choose sides 

 from the members of the club for an annual hunt, which 

 shall take place either in the month of September or October. 

 It shall be lawful for the members of such sportsman's clubs 

 or hunting associations, so chosen on either side, and on the 

 day of the annual hunt of the club of which they are mem- 

 bers, as above described in Section \ of this act. to shoot and 

 kill for the purpose of count, the following named biros aud 

 animals, to wit: Bear, deer, panther, wolf, lynx, wildcat, 

 fox, raccoon, skunks, porcupine, mink, woodenuck, musk- 

 rat, otter, beaver, rabbit, hare, squirrels, wild turkey, wild 

 goose, wild duck, raven, gray eagle, blue heron, loon, bit- 

 tern, brant, rail, coot, mudhen, gallinule, surf bird, gull, 

 sandpiper, partridge, grouse, prairie chicken, quail, erow, 

 owls, hawks, woodcock, wickup, bluejay, lark, plover, 

 tattler, curlew, kingfisher, pigeons, snipe, woodpecker and 

 blackbird. This act applies only to the regular sportsmen's 

 clubs as above described, organized and residing in this 

 State, and to no other persons or clubs, aud no person shall 

 engage in more than one hunt under this act in any one 

 year, and no members of any clubs are hereby given any 

 privileges under this act further than any other person, ex- 

 cept on the day of their annual hunt, as above described. 

 This act shall take precedence over any and all acts affect- 

 ing the rights of sportsmen to the contrary now existing, 

 and this act shall take effect immediately. 



The original law of 1885, Chapter 283, creating the Forest 

 Commission, was altogether too sweeping in many of its 

 provisions. It was provided that no lands of the State 

 within certain counties should ever he sold. The fact 

 appeared to be overlooked that lands are constantly coming 

 to the State through mortgages. It has, therefore, been 

 thought desirable to change the law so that the land com- 

 missioners may sell as they did before the law of 1885 was 

 passed. Senator Sloan has, to this end, introduced a bill 

 which amends Section 7 of the act so that it shall read as 

 follows, the additional part being placed in brackets: All 

 the lands now owned, or which may hereafter be acquired, 

 by the State of New Ybrk, within the counties of Clinton 

 (excepting the towns of Alton and Dannemora), Essex, 

 Fran Id in, Fulton, Hamilton, Herkimer, Lewis, Saratoga, St. 

 Lawrence, Warren, Washington, Greene, Ulster and Sulli- 

 van, shall constitute and be known as the forest preserve, 

 [except such lands as have been, or may hereafter be, ac- 

 quired by the State of New York upon or by foreclosure of 

 or sale pursuant to any mortgage upon lands made to the 

 Commissioners for loaning certain moneys of the United 

 States, usually called the United States deposit fond; and 

 all such excepted lands acquired by the State of New York 

 may be sold and conveyed as provided by law.] 



Simon Loder and Christopher Raymond, lumbermen work- 

 ins in the Pine Creek woods, in Lycoming county, Penn- 

 sylvania, declare that while they were driving from English 

 Centre, on Pine Creek, to White Pine, near the head waters 

 of Larry's Creek, on Monday night, they were pursued by six 

 wolves for several miles. One of the wolves attempted to 

 jump in the sleigh, and was shot by one of the men with a 

 revolver. Another of the pack approached so close to the 

 sleigh that it was also shot and wounded. The wolves then 

 gave up the chase. The Pine Creek region is a very wild 

 one, but, although bear and catamounts are still numerous 

 in the swamps and forests, this is the first timein many years 

 that the appearance of wolves has been reported there- 

 about. — New York Times. 



On Thursday William Dempsey of Rondout received a 

 quantity of smelts and pickerel which were frozen stiff. He 

 put them in a barrel of water to thaw out. About three 

 hours after (so Dempsey said) he went to the barrel and 

 found that the pickerel had thawed back to life, but he could 

 find no smelts. The pickerel had eaten them.— Albany 

 Argus. 



A fine diamond-back terrapin, weighing seven pounds and 

 nine inches long, was received yesterday by the steamer 

 Enoch Pratt. It was sold for $1.25 a pound. It is very un- 

 usual to find a diamond-rback as large as this, One sent to 

 President Cleveland last year weighed, it is said, nine and a 

 quarter pounds. — Baltimore American, Jan, 19. 



