30 FOREST AND STREAM. [Aug. 4, 1887. 



In the first place, wardens should not be wanted in all of 

 the counties, and only in a few would their active service be 

 required for more than a few months of each year. They 

 would hold their positions during the entire twelve months, 

 but would be actively engaged only a part of the time, and 

 hence their pay would not be very large. This fact, how- 

 ever, is rarely considered at its real worth by those county 

 officers who are empowered by law to pay for warden ser- 

 vices: therefore, if the State is to derive the benefits to which 

 it is fairly entitled from its investment in fish propagation, 

 county officers must either be instructed to make provision 

 for the payment of such wardens as may be employed within 

 the limits of their respective counties, or the Legislature 

 should authorize it to be drawn from the State treasury. 

 New York pays her wardens from the State's funds, and it is 

 appropriate to state just here that her liberality in that re- 

 spect has been well rewarded. 



As an illustration for the necessity of such wardens, at* 

 tention is asked to the lack of such guardianship in the 

 lower part of the Delaware River. There, there is not only 

 no guardianship, but absolutely no law which gives to the 

 commissioners or any other public officers the right to inter- 

 fere with illicit shad fishing. There is a law that defines 

 the close seasons in the Susquehanna River, but none for 

 the Delaware, although in the latter river the necessity for 

 warden protection is many times greater. The only check 

 upon illegal shad fishing in the Delaware is the supervision 

 exercised by the State of New Jersey. Pennsylvania has 

 been remiss in duty to herself in failing to provide means 

 for the payment of wardens, and in the absence of such pro- 

 vision the Board has been helpless, as every dollar of the 

 regular appropriation has either been granted for special 

 purposes, such as the erection of fish ways and the new 

 hatchery at Erie, or has been applied to the improvements 

 and maintenance of the other hatcheries. It is the hope of 

 the Board that this long neglected matter will secure the at- 

 tention of the present Legislature, and that a law defining 

 the season when shad fishing may be pursued in the Delaware 

 River be enacted 



THE NEW YORK COMMISSION. 



A MEETING of the Commissioners was held on Monday. 

 July 25, at the office of Hon. R. B. Roosevelt, president 

 of the Board, in the Equitable Building, New York city, a 

 full board being present. A resolution was adopted that the 

 new hatchery should be located at Clear Creek, a tributary 

 of Round Lake, in the Adirondacks, in accordance with the 

 law passed by the Legislature last winter, and the sum of 

 $1,000 was set apart for the purpose of locating and prepar- 

 ing plans. 



A discussion followed concerning the law passed last 

 winter in regard to the granting of franchises for the culti- 

 vation of shell-fish. President Roosevelt thought that the 

 law was inconsistent, as it provided that no person or cor- 

 poration should hold more than 250 acres of land for the 

 cultivation of shell-fish, but allowed the absolute sale of 

 such laud. Mr. Blackford replied that sales must be record- 

 ed at the office of the Commissioners, and none would be 

 recorded which gave an undue amount to one person or cor- 

 poration. 



Mr. Blackford said that maps and surveys of the lands 

 would be completed in three months; he did not think the 

 Commissioners would be ready to act on a purchase inside 

 of four months. He thought it was the duty of the Com- 

 missioners to f ormulate rules for the guidance of themselves 

 and of persons making applications for grants, and read a 

 set of rules which he proposed for adoption. Mr. Blackford 

 said that some of the rules needed immediate attention, such 

 as that providing for an office for the Board and that fixing 

 the time of meetings. Mr. Joline and Mr. Blackford were 

 appointed a committee to select an office, and it was voted 

 that the Commissioners meet on the first Monday in Sept- 

 ember and on the first Monday of each month thereafter for 

 the purpose of hearing and granting applications for fran- 

 chises. It was voted that franchises be granted to the high- 

 est responsible bidder. The proposed rules were ordered to 

 be published. 



The meeting then adjourned to meet at Cold Spring Har- 

 the following day; a full Board was present there, also the 

 Secretary, Mr. H. H. Thompson. 



An inspection of the grounds and fish was made, and the 

 growth of they earl in gs was commented upon. Commissioner 

 Sherman thought it one of the best places in the country to 

 grow trout, on account of the cheapness of food, and re- 

 marked that the yearling brook trout were as large as most 

 of the two-year-olds found in the Adirondacks. Besides the 

 yearling brook and brown trout there are in the rearing 

 ponds, from this year's hatching, the following fishes: Brook 

 trout, brown trout, Loch Leven trout, rainbow trout, Ger- 

 man garbling and golden ide. Supt. Mather stated that the 

 greatest difficulty he had to coutend with was the presence 

 of eels, which came from the neighboring mill ponds across 

 the road and up from the salt water, and that he hoped to 

 fence them out. Turtles also came from the same source, 

 and these, with the kingfishers, being the only enemies he 

 had to contend with, with the exception of mink. 



The plans for the new hatchery were examined and ap- 

 proved, and it was decided to have it built by contract; to 

 begin as soon as the lease which the law requires is given 

 and approved by the Commissioners and placed on file. The 

 superintendent was directed to make specifications to accom- 

 pany the plans and to advertise for bids in the Long Island 

 papers. Mr. Townsend Jones, one of the owners of the land, 

 joined the party at lunch, and discussed affairs with the 

 Commissioners. 



It was decided to draft some proposed rules governing the 

 granting of oyster franchises, and to have one hundred 

 copies of them printed for the use of the Commissioners. 



It was also decided that a tour of inspection of the Adiron- 

 dack hatcheries should be made aboutthe middle of August. 



Imneh 



FIXTURES. 



DOG SHOWS. 



Aug. 30 to Sept. 2.— Horned Kennel Club Show, Hornellsville, 

 N. Y. J. Otis Fellows, Superintendent. 

 Sept. 7 and 8, -Second Show of the Fox-Terrier Club, Newport, 



intendent. 



Sept. 20 to 23.— Fourth Show of the New Jersey Kennel Club, 

 Wavorly, N. J, Percy C. O hi, Secretary, U Broadway, N. Y, ! 



Sept. 20 to 23.— Wisconsin Kennel Club's Annual Show, Mil- 

 waukee, Wis. R. D. Whitehead, Manager. 



Oct. 12 and 13.— Third Annual Show of the Stafford Kennel Club, 

 Stafford Springs, Conn. R. S. Hicks, Secretary. 



FIELD TRIALS. 



Sept. 6.— Manitoba Field Trials Club Field Trials. Derbv entries 

 will close July 1; all-aged entries Aug. 1. Secretary, Hubert Gait, 

 Winnipeg, Manitoba. 



Oct. 31.— First Annual Field Trials of the Indiana Kennel Club 

 at Bicknel, Ind. Open to dogs owned in Indiana. P. T. Madison, 

 Secretary, Lock Box 4, Indianapolis, Ind. 



Nov. 7.— Third Annua l Field Trials of the Western Field Trials 

 Association. R. C. Van Horn, Secretary, Kansas City, Mo. 



Nov, 21 —Ninth Annual Field Trials of the Eastern Field Trials 

 Ctub, at High Point, N. O. W. A. Coster, Secretary, Flatbush, 

 Kings County, N. Y. 



December.- First Annual Field Trials of the American Field 

 Trials Club, at Florence, Ala. C . W. Paris, Secretary, Cincinnati, 



A. K. R.-SPECIAL NOTICE. 

 rpHE AMERICAN KENNEL REGISTER, for the registration 

 of pedigrees, etc. (with prize fists of all shows and trials), is 

 published every month. Entries close on the 1st. Should be in 

 early. Entry blanks sent on receipt of stamped and addressed 

 envelope. Registration fee (50 cents) must accompany each entry. 

 No entries inserted unless paid in advance. Yearly subscription 

 $1.50. Address "American Kennel Register," P. O. Box 2832, New 

 York. Number of entries already printed 5206. 



THE DOG FOR BIO GAME. 



Editor Vorest ami stream-: 



In your issue of July f ybu had an interesting article un- 

 der the above heading, by "Leatherhead," in Kennel 

 zette, 



In his communication "Leatherhead," while discussing 

 the merits of the various breeds of large dogs, favored the 

 "old-fashioned staghound from the foxhound source." That 

 the staghound does the work well will be seen by the follow- 

 ing from a Montana paper: 



"The staghounds recently brought in from Colorado by 

 by the Sun River Range Association, of Montana, are doing- 

 good w ork killing wolves. Six "hounds recently brought to 

 bay double their number of wolves and engaged them in 

 battle, doing to the death all but two of the sheep and calf 

 destroyers. Not a few single combats have occurred, result- 

 ing in uniform victory for the dog, which has the advantage 

 of fleetness, pluck and strength. A pair of hounds can do 

 up a wolf in pretty short order. One will tons the wolf in 

 the air, and before the astonished ahimal is again on the 

 ground he is caught at the heck and loin and torn asunder. 

 The hounds are fed no meat, their diet being confined to corn 

 bread and buttermilk in most part. The Range Association 

 are satisfied they have made a good investment in these wolf 

 exterminators." 



It has not been long since I saw in a Western paper that 

 Dr. Van Hummell sold a lot of dogs for this purpose, so I 

 have no doubt these houuds were from his kennels. 



I bring this cutting to your notice hoping it may catch 

 the eyes of some of your correspondents who have had some 

 experience with these hounds. These experiences given to 

 your readers would prove very entertaining. Here is a new 

 field entirely for a series of enjoyable letters. 



Victor M. Haldemax, 



[The papers entitled "In the Cherokee Strip," in our guii 

 columns, bear on this subject and may well be referred to. | 



BEAGLES FOR BENCH AND FIELD. 



Editor Forest and Stream : 



Several years since I wrote an article for the Forest and 

 Stream with the above heading. It brought out a lengthy 

 discussion by the leading beagle men at that time, and the 

 matter was thoroughly ventilated. Evidently a new set of 

 fanciers are now exercising themselves over the same tonic 

 and I am glad that it is so, as it keeps the beagle before the 

 sportsmen and gives hku the prominence he deserves. Years 

 ago the beagle had a hard struggle to maintain his reputa- 

 tion as a gentleman sportsman's" dog. "Only a rabbit hunt- 

 er" was a sort of stigma, and the little hound was selected 

 to be the fitting companion of small boys and negroes. Set- 

 ters and pointers were the craze and it was considered in f ra 

 dig to be seen hunting rabbits with a pack of beagles. The 

 steadily growing scarcity of feathered game has driven these 

 over-fastidious sportsmen to look for other sources of sport 

 in field, and the beagle is becoming more generally appreci- 

 ated as he is being better understood. 



For nearly forty years the writer has been an owner and 

 breeder of Beagles, and in that time has been at particular 

 pains to study the breed both at home and abroad. 



With this premise, which is not intended as trumpet 

 Id owing, I propose to discuss "H. H.'s" article in some of its 

 points and trust he will accept my strictures in the proper 

 spirit, as they simply are a difference of opinion. 



And now to begin, "H. H." says: "My best results have 

 been obtained with four beagles, whose sizes and propor- 

 tions are very nearly about the same. They stand 17 l .;'in. 

 in height, with chests measuring 26%in., length of bodies 

 and heads 21 and 25in." 



Are they beagles? What is the meaning of the term beagle* 

 It is a modification of the Celtic word Begele. the definition 

 of which is small, little; and the breed when it was origin- 

 ated received this descriptive title. 



Now "H. H.'s" dogs are neither "small nor little;" iu fact 

 they are harrier or dwarf foxhound size, consequently his 

 dogs are sailing under false colors; their sizes show them 

 not purely bred beagles. Therefore any comparison as to 

 relative value fails in argument, the fact that they run well 

 proves nothing; harriers or foxhounds trained to the work 

 will run rabbits as truly as beagles, but we believe in the 

 eternal fitness, to use that for which it was specially created, 

 and therefore we use the little beagle to hunt the little hare. 

 The mistake that "H.H." makes is that he hunts a mixed 

 pack 14in. dogs with 17.4'in., the regular racing gait of the 

 big dog keeps the little one on the keen jump during the 

 entire run, no wonder the latter plays out at the end of the 

 day. 



It would be about as reasonable to expect a Sheltie to run 

 a steeple chase across a still country, hunters' weights up, 

 matched against a well bred 1634-hahd hunter. If big dogs 

 are preferred, leave beagles out of the pack altogether. A 

 lopsided hunt gives poor results and is altogether unsatis- 

 factory. 



It has been said somewhere in this correspondence that 

 bench-winning beagles cut a poor figure in the field. This is 

 very possible m many instances, and readily accounted for. 

 There are manyHjeagle fanciers, city men, who lack the taste, 

 time, knowledge or opportunity to work and educate their 

 dogs. These dogs, wh^n bred, have little hunting instinct to 

 transmit, their produce in the next generation have still less, 

 and as they go down the line of descent the grand law of 

 heredity asserts itself, like will beget like, the worthless par- 

 ents produce still more worthless offspring, intensifying the 

 bad at each downward step. That dogs thus bred are a pest 

 and a nuisance any sportsman may satisfy himself by trying 

 to break one. All hunting sense is so entirely bred out that 

 it is a lost instinct; such dogs are veritable 'mug hunters' 

 and fit for no other kind of hunting. These are the sort that 

 bring the beagle into bad repute, if the unfortunate owner 

 has had no previous experience with those bred in the right 

 way. 



I will now give "H. H." my idea of a beagle. In the first 

 place, he must be rightly and truly bred. By rightly bred I 

 mean that his ancestry on both sides must be performers; 

 by truly bred, that they are pure, unalloyed beagles, and 

 nothing else. Now, this is all-important in the outstart 

 If the start is wrong, it takes a long course of careful breed- 

 ing to remedy it, if it can be done at all, besides the vexa- 

 tion, trouble and loss of time. And just here the breeder's 

 axiom shows its force, "Like will produce like, or the like- 

 ness of some ancestor." How imperative, then, that the 

 progenitors should be right in blood and other transmiss- 

 able qualities. 



Next comes height; 13 to 14in. is about the mark, Such a 

 pack will run evenly and smoothly: no appreciable difference 

 m speed will be noticed, and they should run steadily day 

 in and day out, of course soundness and perfection of form 

 being essentials. 



Color, as a fancy point, is sometimes carried to an extreme. 

 Some breeders affect to think that if a beagle is white, black 

 and tan, all else is of secondary importance. 



All colors that properly belong to the beagle are good 



enough. Still, there is a choice. I would regard with a 

 shade of suspicion a black and white, a pure white, or a solid 

 black; yet 1 have seen some likely looking dogs thus col- 

 ored. 



I will not touch on the subject of form, all that is treated 

 in the beagle standard, and nothing need be added. 



But be the dog ever so well bred, bear in mind thattohave 

 a satisfactory worker, plenty of opportunity is all essential. 

 I have found dogs to steadily improve Up to four years old, 

 therefore the more practice the better the dog. Youngsters' 

 working in a pack with old experienced dogs will often fall 

 into a f ollow-my-leader method, and I have found it a good 

 ilau to take out such shirkers solus once in a while. Alone 

 _je has to depend on his own resources and the improvement 

 is much more rapid. One thing more and I have done, don't 

 whip. There is no breed of dogs more sensitive than the 

 beagle, none so easily cowed by the whip, and none so 

 utterly worthless when scpielcbed by a severe beating, it is 

 almost impossible to reassure them and overcome their 

 timidity. Kind treatment, plenty of work, and well bred 

 and well watched hounds will give all the requisites of a 

 merry pack of beagles. L. H. T. 



JOHNNY AND DRAKE. 



Editor Forest and. Stream: 



For upward of two months I have waited for Mr. Mason 

 to reply to my letter on the above subject, but so far I have 

 waited in vain. I am surprised at this as Mr. Mason has not 

 appeared to me to bo a man who would shirk a reply. Is he 

 still bound by the promise which he gave to some unknown 

 person, and which, in my opinion, he had no right to gi*e? 

 Or does his book occupy all his time? 



As Mr. Masou Avas engaged by the Forest and Stream to 

 write the report of the Philadelphia show he should criticise 

 all the dogs "without fear, favor or ulterior motives;" and, 

 as I have said before, he promised to in his Hartford report. 



I quote the following from a letter published in one of 

 your contemporaries on the subject under discussion, as it 

 treats of the matter in the fullest manner: 



"* * * I would like to * * * settle, once and for all, 

 that 'Newark judging business.' That affair may be wholly 

 summed up as follows: Mr.Mannaduke Richardson took the 

 two dogs, Johnny and Drake, in the ring when the judging 

 took place, and Mi'. Hemingway awarded the blue ribbon to 

 Johnny, and as he was doing this, Mn, Richardson noticed 

 the 'blunder' in the. n umbers, i. B>. that they had been re* 

 vei'sedi .lohnny having on Drake's and Drake having on 

 Johnny's ndinber. He at once called Mr. Hemingway's at- 

 tention to this, when Mr. Hemingway replied: "I am not 

 judging numbers, I am judging dogs, and that dog (pointing 

 to Johuny) is the best.' His subsequent remarks, made after 

 judging the class and while the dogs were still in the ring, 

 and also after awarding the special, were to the same pur- 

 pose and went to show his iireferencefor Johnny over Drake. 

 After the judging took place, Mr. William Tallman (who 

 was keeper for the dugs during their stay in this country) 

 properly adjusted the numbers so that the award would ap- 

 pear correctly upon the record. I beg also to say that Mr. 

 Tallmau, Mr. Wm. G. Martin and Mr. Richardson can all 

 certify to Mr. Hemingway's choice of Johnny over Drake. 

 All these facts go to show that it is a mistake that (accord- 

 ing to Mr. Mason) Mr. Hemingway said: 'It was purely owing 

 to a blunder in taking down the numbers that Johnny got 

 the prize in Newark.' ~ Johnny got the prize simply because 

 Mr. Hemingway considered him entitled to it. 



Now as to the points and my reasons for believing Johnny 

 to be the better dog! s 



Head— Johuny beats Drake in size of nostrils and in 

 length and depth of muzzle. He is flat on the top of the 

 head, while Drake is round, and the line rnnuiug up- the 

 center is more clearly defined in Johnny. It is true that the 

 Clumber spaniel should have a marked stop, but Drake's 

 for the length and size of his head is rather too heavy. 

 Johnny, iu the opinion of some, may not be heavy enough, 

 but even admitting for the sake; of argument that it is not 

 heavy enough, the superiority of the rest of his head should, 

 in my opinion, outweigh this defect and put him well ahead 

 of Drake. Johnny's occiput is also sharper than Drake's. 



Eyes— Johnny's are fuller and the droop of the skin below 

 the eye showing the haw is perfect. His expression if also 

 better than Drake's. 



Ears— Johnny's are better shaped, the vine being more 

 clearly defined; the hair is shorter and silkier and the color 

 better. They are set on about the same. 



Neck— Johnny's neck is much longer and more powerful, 

 but he may be a little more throaty than Drake. 



Shoulders — Johnny is much heavier and more powerful in 

 his shoulders, and the muscle is much more developed. 



Body — Johnny beats Drake hands down here in length, 

 and every one having a knowledge of a Clumber knows what 

 an important characteristic of the breed that is. From all I 

 can learn Johnny is as long as the best dogs iu England. He 

 measures more around the chest than Drake, and also around 

 the loins. His hindquarters are larger and far better 

 muscled. Height at shoulder Johnny is less than Drake. 



Legs and Feet — Johnny is much the heaviest in bone of 

 legs." In size of feet they are about the same, but Johnny's 

 feet are more compact than Drake's. 



Coat — In denseness and texture Johnny is away ahead; his 

 coat is perfection. In feathering of forelegs and feet Drake 

 beats Johnny, but in the hindlegs they are equal. 



Color and Markings — Drake's head is the best marked. 

 Johnny T has a spot in the middle, which is a defect. His legs 

 are heavily ticked, while Drake's are not. Drake has a little 

 white on one ear. 



General Appearance— I need hardly say anything about; 

 everybody knows how they compare. 



One thing more, if you will pardon me. In regard to Mr. 

 Watson's opinion, I consider him (as well as Mr. Mason) a 

 very good judge of spaniels, but when he gave such a hasty 

 glance, as he ctid at Philadelphia, and decided iu favor of 

 Drake by pointing to him and saying : ' That is my dog, r 

 he was no doubt moved more by impulse than by a judg- 

 ment based on a careful examination of their various points. 

 I regret that he did not give the dogs a closer examination, for 

 I am sure he would then have decided in favor of Johnny." 



A Member op the American Spaniel Club. 



CONFLICTING DATES. — St. Paul, Minn., July 29.— 

 Editor Forest and Stream: In this week's Sporting Life, I 

 notice that the New Jersey Kenuel Club claims the dates 

 Sept. 30 to 23 for their fourth bench show, an action which I 

 feel obliged to publicly condemn and brand it as an infringe- 

 ment upon the rights of one of their sister clubs in the A. K. 

 C, the Wisconsin Kennel Club, of Milwaukee, who have 

 claimed and published these dates for the last four or five 

 weeks. Not alone this, but the St. Paul and Minnesota 

 Kennel Club and the Wisconsin Kennel Club have arranged 

 their dates in such a way as to allow Eastern exhibitors to 

 take in two shows in one trip, and they are trying their ut- 

 most to make these shows a success. It is the duty of the 

 Executive Committee of the A. K. C. to step in and protect 

 these two clubs aaainst this uncalled for proceeding on the 

 part of another member of the association, and I trust that 

 every honest-minded man interested in dog matters will 

 sustain me in this justified protest against an action which, in 

 my o£)inion, is an outrage. Yours respectfully, Chas. Weil. 

 [T"he New Jersey Kennel Club is under contract with the 

 New Jersey State Agricultural Society to give a bench show 

 annually for a term of years in connection with the State 

 pair of the Society. The time is selected by the Society and 

 the club has no option iu the matter. The conflict of dates 

 is unfortunate, but the New Jersey Kennel Club cannot be 

 held responsible for it. | 



