ArftiL 5, 1888.] 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



20B 



1866 



1885 

 1835 

 1835 

 1885 

 ISftI 

 1885 



18S5 



1885 

 1 •>:, 



1885 



1885 

 1835 

 1885 



18r5 

 1385 

 1885 

 1835 

 1385 

 1885 

 1885 

 J 885 

 1385 

 1805 

 1335 

 1835 

 1885 

 1385 

 18S5 

 1885 

 1835 



1885 

 1885 

 1885 

 1885 

 ls35 

 1*;JS 

 1-85 

 1885 

 1887 

 1887 



1887 

 1887 



1887 

 1887 



18S7 

 1S87 



1887 



J 887 

 1887 

 1887 

 1837 

 1837 

 1387 

 1387 



Date. 



Aug. 25. 

 Aug. 25. 

 Aug. 25. 

 Aug. 25. 

 Aug. 35. 

 Aug. 25. 

 Aug. Z6. 



Aug. 27. 



Aug. 27. 

 Aug. 27. 

 Aug. 27. 



Aug. 27. 



Aug. 29. 

 Aug. 29. 

 Aug. 29. 

 Aug. 29. 

 Sept. ?.. 

 Sept, 8.. 

 Sept, 3.. 

 Sept. 3.. 

 Sept, §.. 

 Sept. 8.. 

 Sept. 3.. 

 Sept. 3.. 

 Sept. 3. 

 Sept. rs, 

 Sept. 13 

 Sept. 13. 

 Sept. 13. 

 Sept. 13. 

 Sept. 13; 



Sept. 18. 



Sept. 13. 

 Sept. 13. 

 Sept, 13. 

 Sept. 13. 

 Sept. 13, 

 Sept. 13. 

 Sept. 13. 

 Sept, 13. 

 May MJ. 

 May 10. 



May 10. 



May 10. 



May 10. 

 May 10. 



May 10. 

 May 10. 



May la. 



Mey 10. 



May 10. 

 May 10. 

 Mav 10. 

 May 10. 

 May 10. 

 May 10. 

 May 10. 



Yg.. 

 Yg.. 



P 



Ad.. 

 Ad.. 



Vg.. 



Yg.. 



Yg.. 

 Ad.. 

 Ad.. 



XI:: 

 if; 



1; 



$ ad. 

 i ad. 



5 ad. 



S ad. 

 S ad. 



t ad. 

 S ad. 



? ad. 



? ad. 

 ? ad. 

 ? ad. 

 s ad. 

 ¥ ad. 

 ¥ ad. 

 ¥ ad. 



Contents op Gizzard. 



Broken oats (from horse manure), seeds of Verbena hcustata and 

 frag ments ut grasshoppers 



The same 



The same 



The same 



Ttie same .'. 



The same • 



The same 



An unrecognizable mass of broken-down vegetable matter and 

 sharp sand 



The same 



Tne same, plus remains of grasshoppers 



The same as preceding 



The same as preceding. In this the fcpecies of grasshopper was 

 clearly made out by the head and legs as C.doptenua femur- 

 rubitim 



Fragme its of Calotte nus femur-rubrum and sharp sand 



The same 



The same 



Tee same 



A m iss of broken-down vegetable matter 



The same 



Tbesame 



The same, plus fragments of grasshoppers 



The same as preceding 



The same as the preceding 



A mass of vegetaole mat ter and pupra of Diptera 



The bame as preceding , 



A mass oi vegetable matter and three small lepidopterous larvic. 



Amass of broken down vegetable matter witn sharp sand 



The same 



The same , 



The same 



The same t 



The same with portions of femores of (Er!ipt:da Carolina 

 A mass ot broken down vegetable matter with sharp sand and 



fragments of grasshoppers (spoeies not made out) 



The same 



The same 



The same 



The same 



The same 



The same 



The same 



The same 



A mass of broken grain, chiefly oats and very sharp sand 



The tame 



Five entire oats, two of the kernels quite hard, the rest appar- 

 ently frcm manure; also a mass, as in the above 



Five entire oats, one kernel hard, and a mass of broken grain 



chiefly oats, and sharp sand 



A mass of broken grain, chiefly oats, and 6harp sand 



One em ire oat and a mass as in the preceding . 



The sharp angular fragments at a large grain of Indian corn, 



apparently broken by ihe bill of the bird, and egg shells 



Fi ve grains of oats and a mass of grain and vegetable matter 



too much reduced for recognition 



In gullet two grains of wheat and four graius of oats; in giz- 

 zard a mass of broken graiu and vegetable matter, and egg 



shells , 



A mass of broken grain and unrecognizable vegetable matter; 



and egg shells 



The same 



The same 



One entire cat aud a mass as above 



Two entire grains of wneat and a mass as above 



One entire cat and a mass as above 



A mass of broken Indian corn aud egg shells 



A mass of broken grain and vegetable matter, also sand 



PorNTP. 



All from one flock that was feed- 

 ing on the Don Flats then over- 

 grown with the plant named. 

 -W. B, 



Killed in Bast Toronto by W. 

 Squires. 



Shot in Iiosedale by C.Armstrong. 



•Shot on Don Flats.— W. B. 



Shot on Don Flats. — W. B. 



Killed at two discharges of the 

 gun at Greenwood's Crossing, 

 Toronto— W. B. 



[The last 17 birds were 

 shot in Toronto Marsh, ap- 

 parently they gathered the 

 grain found in them from 

 adjacent wharves, cow- 

 byres and distilleries.] 



\ Sexual organs apparently in full 

 size and activity. 



|- Within a few days of laying. 

 1 



[Ovaries showing almost no en- 

 | largement or signs of activity. 



This gives a total of 120 dissections, in 47 of which were found insects, making 39 per cent, of the sparrows 

 msoctivoiou-*, and, estimated in points according to Dr. Brodie's valuation, gives 795 for and 584 against; majority 

 in favor of Passer domesticus, 261. Ernest E. Thompson. 



Toronto, Olit. 



The Audubon Monument.— Circulars have reached us 

 issued by the committee of the American Ornithologists' 

 Union and of the Linnean Society of New York, appointed 

 to solicit subscriptions for the proposed Audubon monu- 

 ment. The members of the A. O. U. Committee are 

 Messrs. Geo. Bird Grinnell, G. B. Sennett and Wm. 

 Dutclier, of that appointed by the Linnean Society Messrs. 

 L. S. Foster, C. S. Allen, M.D., and J. Nathan Dwight, Jr. 

 The committee of ttie Linnean Society circular says: " We 

 are largely indebted to Auuubon for the present lofty 

 standard or American natural history, his name has given 

 inspiration to many, and uhe grandeur of his achievements 

 in this department of science has produced a line of suc- 

 cessors of which America is, and may well be, proud. 

 Genius knows no national bounds, great men are cosmo- 

 politan; in honoring Audubon, the American Frenchman, 

 the hunter-naturalist, the artist-ornithologist, the inde- 

 fatigable and ardent lover of nature and depictor of her 

 manifold beauties, we feel that all the world will heartily 

 commend the project and rejoice at its successful con- 

 clusion." Thecircularof the A. O. TJ. Committee says: "It 

 is true that America'-s painter -naturalist has left behind 

 him in his great work a monument more enduring than 

 stone or brass, but it is fitting that America should show 

 her appreciation of one of her greatest sons by the erection 

 of a tribute which shall honor the living not less than the 

 dead, the present not less than the past, and shall tell to 

 each one who visits his tomb that Americans are not un- 

 mindful of their great dead." Subscriptions may be sent 

 to any member of either committee. 



Dr. Emil Be&sels.— The death of Dr. Emil Bessels at 

 the early age of 42 years, is announced in the Washing- 

 ton papers. Dr. Bessels was well known as the naturalist 

 of several Arctic exploring parties. He was with the 

 ill-fated Polaris expedition, and discovered that a tide 

 from the north meets one from the south, near Cape 

 Frazer, in Smith Sound, thereby proving Greenland to 

 be an island. The later discoveries of the Greely party 

 proved that he was correct in opposing the theory of an 

 open Polar sea, and also the views of Nares, that the 

 sea north of Giinnell Land is covered with impenetrable 

 ice every year. As chief of the scientific corps of the 

 Polaris expedition he did much valuable work, and spent 

 two winters in Smith Sound, which impaired his con- 

 stitution, as has been the case with most of those who 

 have endured Arctic winters. 



Early Plover.— March 25.— At about 2 o'clock P. M. 

 to-day, within 50yds. of Spuyten Duyvii Station, I saw 

 on some ice a plover. I got within 30yds. of it and it rose 

 and tie v over an open piece of water, and piped out two 

 notes twice, which sounded like "You know." A man 

 saw him, and showed the early bird to a couple of his 

 friends. Is this not uncommon for this kind of bird to 

 be here so early, and prefer ice to mud, as there was 

 plenty of the latter in the Harlem River, opposite the 

 workings of the new canal near Kings bridge?— F. Btl- 



Value op some Hawks.— Engl e wood, N. J., March 17. 

 —Editor Forest and Stream: In yovu* issue of the 15th 

 inst. a correspondent requests "any of your readers who 

 are practical field sportsmen," if they "have any regard 

 for his opinions," to slay, to extermination, four species 

 of hawks which he considers as specially destructiv e to 

 our most beautiful and beneficial birds. It may interest 

 your correspondent to know that the slate colored hawk, 

 as a species, does not exist, and that the rough-legged 

 hawk is one of the most thoroughly useful and m destruct- 

 ive of our rapacious birds, almost always preying upon 

 mice and such humble quarry. To quote from Audubon: 

 "The greatest feat I have seen it perform was scrambling 

 at the edge of the water to secure a lethargic frog." 

 Your correspondent's "opinions" are eviden ly not above 

 criticism. Now, would it not be better that he should 

 leave the investigation of this question to those who are 

 competent to pursue it with accuracy and justice, rather 

 than to disseminate his incorrect opinions, and to aid in 

 strengthening an ignorant and unjust prejudice, on ac- 

 count of which much precious and useful life is des- 

 troyed?— E. M. Evans. 



An Early Yellow Rail — Gaylordsville, Conn., March 

 26. — On Saturday, March 24, there was picked up on the 

 bank of the Housatonic River, in this place, a yellow- 

 breasted rail. It was alive when found, but in an ex- 

 hausted condition, and died in a few hours after being 

 taken into the house. I think it a very rare bird in this 

 section, and a remarkable occurrence," when the time of 

 the year and the temperature are considered. The ther- 

 mometer that morning stood at 10 . — E. H. AUSTIN. 



How the Birds Wintered.— Perth Amboy. N. J., 

 March 30. — I have another letter from Virginia, this 

 time from Nottoway county, some fifty miles west of 

 Richmond. In it the writer says: " I can tell you some 

 good news; we have had no snows this winter to kill the 

 birds in the covey, and it has been a cold day for the pot- 

 hunters, too. I am very proud of it. The blizzard did 

 not reach us. The day it snowed so hard in New York, 

 it was clear, cold and windy here." — J. L. K. 



Calling the Pigs.— Some one has made a study of 

 the different pig calls in different secti ons of the coun- 

 try; and says that in Pennsylvania the farmer calls 

 " Pig-Pig, pig, pig-gie, pig-gie;" in North Carolina he 

 shouts " Pig-sye, pig-eye," dwelling on the " eye;" 

 the Hoosier whoops " Whoo-ee, whoo-ee," and the hogs 

 answer gladly; the Buckeye calls " Soo-soo, soo, soo, 

 soo-o;" the Blue Grass pork raiser shouts " Poo-hee, 

 poo-hee," and the Dakota man brings his hogs with a 

 whistle. — Ex. 



Coming op the Birds.— Hartford, Conn., March 31 — 

 Editor Forest and Stream: Spring seems to have at 

 least reached Hartford. While on a tramp to-day I saw 

 meadow larks, robins, crow blackbirds, bluebirds, yellow 

 hammers, wood thrushes, cedar birds (?) and an English 

 snipe, besides hawks, bluejays, crows, etc. Is it not 

 rather eaxly for snipe in Connecticut?— J. B. B. 



me 



Every person who is sufficiently interested in the National 

 Park to do his share toward securing proUc'ion for it, is in- 

 vited to send for one of the Forest and Stream's petition 

 blanks. They are sent free. 



SHOOTING ON SHINNECOCK BAY. 



THE early part of August, 1886, found me at Foster's 

 house, Good Ground, L. I. This was the third season 

 I had spent in that neighborhood, and I consider it as 

 good a place as can be found convenient to New York 

 for any one who may wi-h to go iter snipe and likes 

 solid comfort, the facilities for sailing anil bathing are 

 fhvt-class, but the fellow who goes down there and thinks 

 he is going to make a big bag of snipe will get lelt. 



Intending to go out early the next moi ning, I retired 

 early, but before doing so laid all my duffle out so as to 

 have no trouble in findivg things when lgot up. At 3:45 

 A. M. I was seated in the stern of a catboat with a grip 

 on the tiller, tacking over to the opposite shore of the 

 bay to a place called "The Hole in the Wall." This is a 

 name given it by the natives, as it is a breach in the nar- 

 row strip of sand which divides the ocean from the bay. 

 After a sail of about half an hour, the boat grated on the 

 sand, I let the sail down, dropped the anchor overboard 

 and waded ashore with my gun, dragging the box con- 

 taining the decoys after me. It did not take very long to 

 put the decoys out, set tha box in the center of a hide 

 patch of bunch grass and fill it with dry tea-weed and 

 then get into it and await the result of all these prepara- 

 tions. 



By this time it was about half past four, and the birds 

 had begun to move. The faint peep of the ox-eye could 

 be heard in the distan e, but as I had not come out for 

 ox-eyes I paid little attention to it. As time went by I 

 thought that perhaps I had had all my pains for nothing, 

 but still it was quite a treat to lie in the box and watch 

 the change of scene as the sun commenced to flush the 

 east with a pink glow. The breeze had died out, and as 

 I lay there I heard a cock crow about one and a half 

 miles off, the sound coming over the water faint but dis- 

 tinct, but just then I heard the clear call cf the brant 

 bird, and looking off to my right pretty sharply sa^ that 

 it was making straight for me, and as it sailed just out- 

 side of the decoys I cut loose at it at about forty-five 

 yards, and had the pleasure of seeing it dro.% 



The bhooting was slow, but I was very much amused 

 looking at the little ox-eyes which ran i-ometinies within 

 ten feet of me, while they were feeding in the pools. 

 Although they are a very small bird I shot some and. 

 found them to be very fat, so I made up my mind that as 

 thtre was nothing better I might as well enjoy myself 

 shooting them, and it was great sport, as they are swift 

 flyers, and shooting at single birds it took some pretty 

 lively shooting to get them Later on in the day I shot 

 at a robin snipe and wounded it so that it could not fly, 

 but as it ran along the sand it attracted the attention of a 

 large meadow hawk, and he circleu over it f or some time, 

 but always out of gunshot range. 



About eleven o'clock I gathered in the decoys, pulled 

 up the anchor, hoisted sail and had a quiet sail, and 

 finally made for the hom-e. When I tied up at the dock 

 I found I had about fhteen lar^te snipe, including large 

 yellowlegs, robin snipe and dowitchers, two brant birds 

 and about twenty ox-eyes. The birds were cooked next 

 day for dinner, and I found the ox-eyes to be tine eatmg, 

 although small. 



This little sketch represents only one of the many 

 pleasant days I spent at this place. Robin Snipe. 



CONNECTICUT GAME PROTECTION. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



Your recent editorial on systems of game protection 

 will bear several readings. The Connecticut system is 

 one that should not be copied by any other State that 

 wishes to be within a gunshot of the present age. 



Our laws provide that the selectmen shall appoint two 

 or more game wardens, and the writer was unfortunate 

 enough to be appointed one for Hartford. Our law pro- 

 vides that game wardens "shall be paid the same as grand 

 jurors in ciiminal ease?;." I have ju.vt looked up the law 

 relating to the pay of grand jurors. They get the mag- 

 nificent salary of $2.50 per day for actual work, and your 

 readers may judge of the vast army who seek such a 

 position. The selectmen of other towns have been asked 

 to appoint game wardens, but they seein to fear that it 

 will cost the town something. I have never known our 

 game laws to work automatically nor by talk unless 

 backed up with good earnest endeavor. 



As an example of the interest taken by sportsmen in 

 enfoicing the game laws, let me cite a case. I had the 

 pleasure of writing one of the incorporators of a game 

 prolective association in a neighboring county, asking 

 him or his association to prosecute an offender in his 

 county. The "game protector" replied that he "was too 

 busy." However, the party who violated the law was 

 fined, and without any help from the association. With- 

 out egotism, I may express the belief that no other game 

 warden has secured a conviction during the past ysar. 

 I am under deep obligations to Hon. Geo. P. McLean, 

 Hon. Samuel F. Jone-> (our noted criminal lawyer). Messrs. 

 D. A. Markam, Lucius F. Robinson, Sidney E. Clarke, 

 all of the legal fraternity, and the police department of 

 this city; C. C. Goodrich, Gen Agt. Hartford & New 

 York Transportation Co.;C. S. Davidson, Supt. N. Y., 

 N. H. & H. R. R.; C. H. Piatt, Supt. N. Y. & N. E. R. R. 

 Co.; Mr. Rawson of Adams Express Co., the Middlesex 

 Association for the Protection of Fish and Game, and the 

 Water bury Game and Fish Club. 



The city of Hartford has no game club, but the writer 

 would be pleased to hear from any one interested in the 

 subject of forming a club with members from each town 

 for the protection of game and fish. Such a club should 

 be formed not to talk but to act. Tin re should be one 

 person at least in every town that should have sufficient 

 backbone to enroll himself in such a club and to do his 

 ut ) ost to see that the laws are obeyed. The trout season 

 opens April 1, and the netters and "liners" vvill be at 

 their work, and "what are you going to do about it?" 

 Gentlemen, hone-t, earnest sportsmen of Connecticut, 

 who have any interest whatever in the preservat on of 

 game and fish, let us hear from you. A. C. Collins. 



Hartford, Oonn., March 19. 



