April 12, 1888.] 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



223 



Ercnj person who is sufficiently interested in the National 

 tftark to do his share toward securing protection for it, is in- 

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

 Wanks. They are sent free. 



AQUATIC TURKEYS. 



To him who hi the love of nature holds 

 Communion with her visible forms, she speaks 

 A various language. 



SOME years since uiy friend K. and myself bundled 

 cur traps into a skiff and pulled up the placid Iowa 

 june or ten miles to a lonely spot just at the mouth of a 

 • clear, bright sparkling little brook," which to the sleeping 

 woods all night singeth a quiet tune," and whose bank on 

 the upper side, in conjunction with that of the river, 

 fbrrned a grand spot for a camp. Beaching this beauti- 

 ful spot we soon had everything ashore: the tent was 

 Soon up and the coffeepot on the fire. Wo had come for 

 iish and got thern, catching the largest at night on the 

 lines stretched across the river. 



One bright warm afternoon a day or two after our 

 arrival, my friend was asleep in the tent and I was taking 

 my siesta under the trees, when my attention was at- 

 tracted by the low clucking of a hen turkey on the oppo- 

 site side of the stream some little distance above me. 

 Quietly getting on my feet and running noi selessly through 

 the bushes about 50yds. up the stream, I came in sight of 

 ter. She was standing on the edge of the bank of the 

 river, here some 100yds. wide, and- evidently trying to 

 get her brood together, preparatory to some other move. 

 What it was I did not long remain in ignorance of. 



In a few moments she rose and flew slowly over the 

 stream to my side, reaching the bank not far from where 

 I was hid. As soon as she alighted she began calling 

 loudly, and immediately some twelve or. fourteen little 

 yellow turkeys, apparently but a few days out of the 

 shell, ran swiftly down the sloping bank and boldly took 

 to the water. They- paddled vigorously and made good 

 headway, apparently swimming with ease. I was much 

 astonished at this proceeding, as it was something un- 

 dreamed of in my philosophy, and as the little swimmers 

 approached the shore, on which the mother bird stood, 

 clucking in a very satisfied way, my curiosity and 

 eagerness got the better of my caution, and I exposed 

 1 myself. 



Instantly, and with a cry of alarm, the hen fled back to 

 the initial shore. The chicks turned bravely about to go 

 back, but they had by this time reached the strongest part 

 of the current, and after a few struggles, some six or 

 seven of them gave it up, and floated helplessly with the 

 Stream. 



^Ooing at once to the boat, I called K., we put off, and 

 picked up the little mariners. At our approach they 

 struggled very hard to get away, but were soon cotn- 



Seitcd to desist, and when gathered in lay quietly in the 

 ottom of our craft. After drying them as well as we 

 could, we ferried them over to their mamma, who was all 

 this time a deeply interested spectator of the proceedings. 

 Meantime, the rest of the brood had safely reached the 

 starting point and disappeared. When we reached the 

 bank, we handed the captives out carefully, and they, 

 standing not on the order of their going, went at once, 

 and for all I know fell victims, at some later day, to my 

 "old trusty." Dupont. 

 Kellogg, Iowa. 



THE CHIPMUNK. 



AMONG the American species of ground squirrels, 

 one of the most common and interesting is the 

 chipping or striped squirrel, called ohiohin or dormouse, 

 and hackee or chipmunk throughout New England 

 and the Middle States. It is a very pretty little creature, 

 being brownish-gray above, with five longitudinal black 

 stripes, and two yellowish-white ones along the back; 

 the under surface is white; the length of the head and 

 surface is white; the length of the head and body is 

 ahout six and a half inches; the tail, with the fur. four 

 and a half. It lives in holes in the earth, and is usually 

 Been on the ground, or on rocks, fences, and stumps, and 

 is hence called the ground squirrel. It is frequently seen 

 in the villages around the farms and gardens and even 

 running along the fences of the streets. It is not swift, 

 but is lively and playful, and though careful not to be 

 allowed a very close approach, it will come out of its 

 hole and look at a person, and often pursue its avoca- 

 tions without being disturbed by his presence. 



In the autumn, this creature may be seen around the 

 fields of Indian corn, and in the walnut and chestnut 

 Woods, filling his ample cheek-pouches, and carrying off 

 nig store to his granaries. He is able to carry four hic- 

 kory nuts at a time, two being held in his cheek 

 pouches, the third in his mouth and the fourth with his 

 tore-paws. His hole is generally placed near the roots 

 [Cf trees, or in a decayed stump, or among a heap of 

 rocks, or in a bank of earth, amid the forests or fields 

 from which he draws his supplies. Sometimes his re- 

 treats have two or three openings; it usually descends 

 perpendicularly at first, then it rises with one or two 

 Windings, and at last, at about the distance of eight or 

 ften feet, terminates in a chamber lined with grass, 

 'tle&ves and moss, amid which the animal sleeps. Three 

 I or four usually occupy the place together. There are 

 fl^Gral side-galleries, where the stores of wheat, corn, 

 ■Swrns, g rass seeds, hazelnuts, walnuts or chestnuts, ac- 

 jlWding to the productions of the locality, are deposited. 

 JiTliey are exceedingly provident, continuing to add to 



I heir supplies until forced into their nests by the severe- 

 si ifiSS of the weather. Often their stores are much be- 

 i pond the necessities of the winter. The chiDmunk hi- 

 i /JSrnates in these retreats and becomes somewhat slug- 

 i ?l6h, but does not approach the torpidity of the mar- 

 i| not. In the spring the young, four or five in number, 

 i ue produced, and beautiful little creatures they are 



II Then first led forth by the mother. 



i The chipmunk rarely clirnbs trees, unless to escape 

 :«nrrsuit. or perhaps to obtain food. His voice is a sharp 

 '1 hip, often changed into a gurgling sound when the an- 

 nual escapes into his retreats. At other times his chip 

 |»ecomes a sort of song, in which several chipmunks in 

 lufferent parts of the woods seem to answer one another, 

 Imd thus fill the forests with a kind of a merry chorus. 



He does no harm upon the farm, the garden, or the 

 orchard; if he ventures into the grain fields it is only as 

 a wanderer. Nor is he included in the sportsman's list 

 of game, being permitted to be passed by unharmed, and 

 even the dog rarely gives a bark and seldom has a chance 

 to get a bite, owing to the smartness of the chipmunk 

 in always keeping near a retreat and his admirable 

 quickness in reaching it. Yet his life is one of unceasing 

 peril. The woods that he occupies are the haunts of 

 hawks, owls, foxes, wildcats, minks and weasels, all 

 ready to pounce upon him. He never peeps from his 

 retreat but with the fear that any of those are on the 

 watch and ready to seize him. Carlos Shelton. 



BIRDS AT A GOVERNMENT POST. 



DAVIDS' ISLAND, New York Harbor, March 16.— 

 Editor Forest and Stream: Possibly a few bird 

 notes from this little island may not prove uninteresting 

 although they be as limited as the field of observation 

 itself. Never before have I been confined to a patch of 

 two hundred acres in which to indulge my love for the 

 observation of birds and their habits. Last year, and in 

 fact for some years past, Boston audits suburbs have been 

 my stamping grounds, and rich fields they were, a fact 

 that makes my present barren surroundings, speaking in 

 a bird sense, the harder to bear. There is one bright spot, 

 however, and I congratulate myself that I have seen 

 here what I never dreamed of looking for in New En- 

 gland, namely a kingfisher (C. alcyon) as a winter resi- 

 dent. On December 10, one perched upon the railing 

 surrounding the government coal dock, and allowed me 

 to approach within twenty feet without manifesting the 

 least uneasiness. Just back of him was a coal shed from 

 which came a noise that only coal shovelers can make, 

 but he paid no heed, and it was not until the steam launch 

 Hamilton blew its whistle under his very bill that he 

 took flight, springing his rattle defiantly the while. I 

 claim him as a resident, for I saw him or one of his cou- 

 sins, in the same place on January 27, and again in 

 another part of the island in February. 



As a boy I hunted meadow larks (S. magna) on the 

 Mohawk flats, but never saw them later than Dec. 1, 

 which is equally true of my Massachusetts observations. 

 Here on Dec. 13 I put up a flock of at least fifty, and 

 have seen them occasionally throughout the entire winter. 

 I feared that the storm of the first of this week might 

 have exterminated them, but a trip yesterday to the only 

 part of the island that in any way resembles a meadow 

 was rewarded by the sight of several larks, apparently as 

 lusty and vigorous as ever. Have our game birds in New 

 Jersey and this State fared as well? 



My first spring tramp in the field last year was on Feb. 

 20, in the vicinity of Concord, Mass. Bluebirds (S. sialis) 

 and robins (T. migratorius) were abundant, and a week 

 later song sparrows (M. melodia) came in numbers. This 

 year to date I have not seen a single bluebird with his 

 patcb of "earth and sky." Is my domain too small to 

 tempt him? The first robin appeared last Tuesday in the 

 midst of a tempest, and seemed thoroughly disgusted with 

 himself for coming then. From the 25th of February I 

 have watched and listened for the song sparrows, but not 

 untfl the 10th of this month was I rewarded. I heard his 

 note in the wood pile, and approaching, saw him sitting 

 on the topmost log facing the sun, swelling his throat 

 and singing the story of his southern sojourn, and to a 

 sympathetic listener, I can assure you. Birds know those 

 who love them, and he allowed, without evident distrust, 

 a near approach. I adopted him at once as a comrade, 

 although his coat was not of blue, and three days later I 

 gave him a soldier's burial with the honors of war. The 

 blizzard came, and on Tuesday morning last I found 

 Master Melodia in a snowdrift with his sweet song frozen 

 in his throat. I mourned him sincerely and hated to 

 think how many of his race must have* likewise per- 

 ished. 



One somber-coated bird I have seen many times, but at 

 too great a distance to accurately describe. It is new to 

 me, and I trust I may yet scrape acquaintance. 



Edward Clark. 



EASTER'S COURIERS. 



OUTSIDE the domains of those feathered poachers, the 

 sparrows. Easter this year ushers in with the first real 

 springtide the songsters who have spent their winter in 

 Southern climes, the truly veracious messengers of the 

 season of renewed life and effiorescene. 



Robins and blackbirds are the avant couriers of the 

 migratory throng, and their piping notes will soon 

 awaken the lifeless trees into buds and vari-colored rai- 

 ment of odorous blossoms, paying a genuine Easter tri- 

 bute to resurrected foliage and fruitage. Flocks of crows 

 are now beginning to haunt the lofty crags and ridges 

 bordering New York habitations, and are prospecting 

 with a view of constructing their curious nests from 

 pillage of farm house and garden, beyond the reach of 

 the sportsman's bullet or the ken of the farmer. 



Small numbers of robins, white-belbed swallows, the 

 hungry and practical kingfisher, the penetrating wood- 

 pecker, cedar birds, red- winged blackbirds and cow bunt- 

 ing chh"p occasionally to get their pipes in tune and 

 break the silence of the long-slumbering forests. The 

 chickadees, kinglets, snowbirds, pine finches, linnets 

 and nuthatches, whose tough coats were not thick 

 enough for the trying winter's severities, come whist- 

 ling from the South, plethoric of joy and song at re- 

 gaining once more then summer roaming grounds. They r 

 are begining to mate, and will soon begin housekeeping 

 in their summer villas. 



Some of them, with fidelity to marital vows that 

 wotdd startle the social life of Chicago, especially the 

 conjugal oriole, robin and pewee. return with the identi- 

 cal spouse they journeyed with southward when the chill 

 of last November foretold the approach of an unprece- 

 dented winter of blasts and blizzards. The fox-sparrows, 

 who are gypsies of the feathered tribe, never remain- 

 ing here long, will soon hasten northward to peal forth 

 their tributes of song in the land of fugitive boodlers 

 and gorgeous auroras. Partway on their course they 

 will be attended by tree sparrows, pine finches, gros- 

 beaks and butcher-birds, the latter the only songsters 

 valiant enough to resent the oppressions and aggressive- 

 ness of those vociferous bullies — the English sparrows. 



And pretty soon, when the leaves begin to clothe the 

 forests, and the air is balmy and mild, and one feels the 

 joy of living to be a luxury past description, partridges, 



quails, bluejays and the game birds of the woods will 

 make the morning and the noonday vocal with every 

 kind of song. Then will come the marauders and ruf- 

 fians of the sky, hawks, and in the mountainous Alleghe- 

 nies, eagles, vigilant for prey and plunder, to be followed 

 by hooting owls and the croakers of the night that tell 

 of summer, with its good and its evil omens, of birds as 

 well as of men, gaudy of plumage, but "prone to evil 

 as the sparks are to fly upward . " Allen Norton Leet. 



Roadrunner and Rattlesnake.— Rioville, March 26. 

 — Editor Forest and Stream: I have long been an inter- 

 ested reader of Forest and Stream, but I have never 

 seen any one attempt to describe the habits of the little 

 roadrunner or Californian peacock. These are the names 

 that it goes by in this country; I do not know any other 

 name, for it. This little fellow has a very cute way of 

 destroying rattlesnakes. He will find one asleep and he 

 will gather cactus and lav them in a ring around his 

 Bnakeship. When the snake rouses himself from his 

 mid-day nap he is corralled. Now, he has no opening 

 by which he can get out, so he tries to crawl over the 

 cactus and is pricked: this, he thinks, is more of an im- 

 position than a joke, so he makes an angry strike, and, 

 of course, be gets the worst of it. Now his anger is at 

 boiling heat and he strikes at anything, himself included, 

 and he soon perishes from the evil work of the little road- 

 runner. I do not think that the roadrunner eats the 

 snake, he eats mice, scorpions and the like. So much 

 for the little roadrunner. I hope he may get the credit 

 he deserves. — B. F. Bonelli. [The roadrunner is also 

 called paisano, chapparal cock and ground cuckoo. His 

 Latin name is Geocoecyx calif 'or nianus.] 



Albino Chipmunk.— Montreal, April 5.— Editor Forest 

 and Stream: I inclose photograph of an albino chipmunk 

 killed near Huntington, a place on the River Chateau- 

 guay, not far from the boundary line. The animal is of 

 a dingy white all over; the stripes on its back can be 

 W e |l E* 6 COl ° r being alislltly dark wnere the y occur.— 



Butchered to Make a Trap-Shooters' Holiday.— 

 Detroit, Mich., April 4.— Editor Forest and Stream: Can 

 you tell us where the clouds of pigeons have gone that 

 used to fly on the borders of the island lakes during the 

 spring and fall months, making it nearly dark as they 

 passed over? — .50-95. 



%nmt Jf#fj nnd %m\> 



Every person who is sufficiently interested in the National 

 Park to do his share toward securing protection for it, is in- 

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

 blanks. They are sent free. 



ONTARIO GAME LAW. 



WE print below the full text of the bill amending the 

 act for the protection of game and fur-bearing 

 animals, passed at the recent session of the Ontario 

 Legislature: 



1. Section I of the act for the protection of game and fur-bear- 

 ing animals is hereby amended by omitting [herefrom the words 

 "dter, elk, moose, reindeer or caribou, between the 15th day of 

 December and the 15th day of October," and inserted instead 

 thereof the words following: "Deer, elk, moose, reindeer or cari- 

 bou, between the 20th day of November and the 15th day of 

 October; but the period hereinbefore limited shall not, as to 

 moose, elk, reindeer or caribou, apply before or until the 15th day 

 of October, 1895, and no moose, elk, reiudeer or caribou shall be 

 hunted, taken or killed between the 1st day of April, 1888, and 

 the 15th day of October, 1895." 



2. Section 7 of the said act is hereby amended by adding after 

 the word "act," where it lastly occurs in sa d section, the~words 

 "and where no other penalty therefor is by this act provided." 



8. The said act is hereby further amended by adding thereto 

 the following as sections 16, 17, 18. 19, 2(J and 21 of the said act: 



No person shall at any time prior to the year 1S95 hunt, rake or 

 kill any deer, unless such person has been actually resident and 

 domiciled within the Province of Ontario or within the Province 

 of Quebec for a period of at least three months next before the 

 said time, and any person offending against this section shall be 

 liable to a tine not exceeding $80, nor less than $10. with costs of 

 prosecution, for each animal so hunted, taken or- killed, and in 

 default of immediate payment of said fine and costs shall be liable 

 to be imprisoned in the common jail of the county or district 

 wherein the offense was committed for a period licit exceeding 

 ten mouths: Provided always that, this section shall not apply to 

 any person who, being a shareholder of or in an incorporated 

 company, hunts, kills or takes on the lands of such company any 

 of tne animals mentioned in this section: Provided, moreover, 

 that this section shall not apply to any person in any year for 

 which he has obtained from the Commissioner of Crown Lands a 

 permit to hunt, take or kill any of the animals in this section 

 mentioned, and the Commissioner of Crown Lands is hereby 

 authorized to grant and issue such a permit upon payment there- 

 for of SflO for each year during which the same is to be in force, 

 and Upon being satisfied that the person applying for the permit 

 maybe relied upon to observe and comply with the other pro- 

 visions of this act. 



No one person shall, during any one year prior to the year 1895, 

 kill or take alive more than five deer, and no two persons hunt- 

 ing together or from one camp or place of rendezvous, or forming 

 or being what is commonly known as a hunting party shall, in 

 any one year prior to the year 1895, kill or take alive more than 

 twelve deer, and any person offending against this section shall 

 be liable to a fine not exceeding $20, nor less than go, with costs of 

 the prosecution for each deer beyond or exceeding the number 

 so permitted to be killed or taken as aforesaid, and in default of 

 immediate payment of such fine and costs shall be liable to be 

 imprisoned in the common jail of the county or district within 

 which tne offense was committed for a period not exceeding 

 three months. 



Where, under this act, any person has been convicted of an 

 offense agaiust any of the provisions of this act, such person, in 

 default of the immediate payment of any fine or costs imposetl 

 upon him or for which he had been adjudged to be liable in 

 respect or because of such offense, shall be liable and may be 

 adjudged to bo imprisoned in the common jail of the county or 

 district in which the offense was committed for a period not ex- 

 ceeding three months. 



On the trial of any complaint, proceeding, matter or question 

 under this act, the person opposing or defending, or who is 

 charg"d with any offence against or under any of the provisions 

 of this act, ahull be competent and compellable to give evidence 

 in or with respect to such complaint, proceeding, matter or 

 questiou. 



A conviction or order made in any matter arising under this 

 act, either originally or on appeal, shall not be quashed for want 

 of fofin. 



All prosecutions under this act may be brought and heard 

 before any of her Majesty's justices of the peace in and for the 

 county and district where the penalty was incurred, or the offence 

 was committed, or wrong d.ine.'and in cities, towns and incor- 

 porated villages m which there is a police magistrate, before such 

 police magistrate; and save where otherwise provided by this 

 section the procedure snail be governed by "the act respecting 

 summary convictions before justices of the peace and appeals to 

 general sessions." 



The Old Men in New Hampshire.— At an entertain- 

 ment recently held here selections were read from "Uncle 

 Lisha/s Shop " and " Nessmuk's Poems," which gave 

 general satisfaction. — R. S. F. (Laconia, N. H.). 



