162 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



[Sept, 22, ml. 



Address all communications to the Forest and Stream Pun. Co 



YELLOWSTONE PARK NOTES. 



YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PAEK, Sept. 10.— Ed- 

 itor Forest and Stream: The weather here is fall- 

 like, reminding me that winter will soon be here. Some 

 of the days are quite hot, with cold rains and wind in the 

 evening, the rain being snow on the mountains. The 

 drifts of new snow on the higher peaks have come to 

 stay until next spring. Some of them are already Oft. 

 deep. With all the unpleasant weather this is the most 

 enjoyable time to visit the Park and will be for a month 

 or six weeks. 



I have little to report about the game in the Park. 

 Antelope are seen every day on Mount Evarts br resi- 

 dents of Gardiner. Porters have reported seeing buffalo 

 and elk in the Queen's Laundry Basin. 



The topographers connected with the Geological Sur- 

 vey, whose special work this year has been to make sur- 

 veys of the Geyser Basins and. Mammoth Hot Springs, 

 are camped at the Norris Basin, having completed the 

 survey of the Upper and Lower Basins. The scale on 

 which the work is being done will accurately show the 

 situation of every geyser, spring and pool. These prop- 

 erly named and mapped out will do much to prevent the 

 confusion of names so indiscriminately applied, and if 

 enough of the maps are published, one can be placed in 

 the hands of every visitor, doing away with the unsightly 

 signs that now deface so many points of interest and 

 remind one of advertisements, and the labeled objects in 

 one of Mrs. Jarley's wax work shows. 



The geologists of the Survey are at work on the east side 

 of the Yellowstone Lake. This season will enable them 

 to about finish their work in the Park. 



A party of specialists, with Prof. Ward in charge have 

 been at woi-k in the East Fork country on the petrified 

 woods and plants to be found there in great abundance. 

 Their work for a short season shows some 800 pounds of 

 specimens. Road Superintendent Lamartine has been 

 out with a party to locate a wagon road from the Upper 

 Geyser Basin, following the Eire Hole River past the 

 Lone Star Geyser, across the Continental Divide to the 

 Shoshone Geyser Basin, along the south shore of the 

 Shoshone Lake to the east end, then recrossing the Divide 

 to the west arm of the Yellowstone Lake, striking the 

 lake at the Lake Shore Springs and Geysers, and follow- 

 ing the shore of the lake to the outlet. This road is part 

 of a system contemplated by Captain D. C. Kingman, 

 when he was in charge of improvements in the Park. 

 Congress neglecting to appropriate any money for the 

 purpose, no work has been done at these points. As most 

 of the country over which this road would be built is open 

 parks, a comparatively small sum would be reqiiired to 

 do the work, which would open 1173 a most interesting 

 part of the Park scarcely ever visited by tourists. 



Travel in the Park by stages is falling off. Travel by 

 -wagons and camping parties from neighboring territories 

 is quite heavy. This popular manner of visiting the Park 

 increases in favor every year. 



Cooke City and Gardiner, Montana, the two towns close 

 to the northern boundary fine of the Park, are almost 

 depopulated by the stampede to Nye City and Castle, two 

 new mining camps in Montana. H. 



CAMPING OUT. 



Editor Forest and Stream : 



Having just returned from a summering in the Adiron- 

 dacks I read with peculiar pleasure your editorial in the 

 current number of Forest and Stream, on the subject of 

 camping out. Those parodies upon woods fife — the so- 

 called camps, formed of fanciful, well-built cottages, 

 some of them as costly in their appointments as a town 

 residence need be — are gradually encroaching upon the 

 wilderness until one who is a lover of nature undefiled is 

 compelled to seek other haunts each year deeper in the 

 forest, in order to escape the dude with the skull cap and 

 penitentiary suit, and the novel-reading, be-rouged and 

 be-powdered female, who play at camp, as it were, in a 

 house furnished with luxurious tete-a-tetes and downy 

 beds. Each recurring summer these people jotu-ney with 

 their Saratogas to the wilderness, play billiards and lawn 

 tennis, swing in hammocks for a few months, do little 

 fishing and hunting by proxy, clothed in immaculate linen 

 and flashy jewelry, and in the fall return to their city 

 homes to boast of having spent the summer in camp in 

 the North Woods. Very seldom can you find among them 

 one who can appreciate the beauty, grandeur or delight 

 of a broad view from the mountain top, or a pedestrian 

 trip through the virgin thicket with its endless succession 

 of surprises. Not one of them ever experienced, or have 

 the capacity to experience, the subtle pleasures that lie 

 in the rod and the gun, the lonely camp and the bath in 

 the sparkling waters of the brook, the homely meal pre- 

 pared by the guests who eat and the healthful appetite 

 that is earned, by exercise, the song of the nightingale 

 and the cry of the lynx, the dash of the deer and the play 

 of the trout, and the dreamless sleep by the camp-fire and 

 under the shining &tars. No, they have no idea of the 

 glorious life a true camper leads. They gather up their 

 dog-carts and four-in-hands and journey to the wilder- 

 ness merely to be in the fashion. Thank heaven! there 

 are some portions of the Adirondacks yet to be reached 

 only by the stream and the trail. 



Mr. Wing in Forest and Stream of July 28, under the 

 caption ''Hard Lines in the Adirondacks," gives a touch 

 of the. discomforts attending a life in the wilderness. 

 But probably he went in too early in the season to avoid 

 the annoyance of the mosquito and the fly, for I was not 

 greatly troubled with them. I surrendered more blood 

 to the mosquitoes in on> night in a hotel at Toledo than 1 

 shed during my five weeks in camp. 



Another thing: Mr. Wing doubtless pushed ahead too 

 far each day and wearied himself by excessive labor. 

 One should travel moderately at the start, increasing the 

 extent of the day's journeys as the muscles harden to the 

 work, and at the end of a week or two he will be sur- 

 prised at the distance he can travel and the hardships he 

 can undergo in that bracing atmosphere without fatigue. 

 I mention this because I know that Mr. Wing does not 

 complain under ordinary difficulties. Years ago while I 

 was encamped upon one of the wilder islands of the St, 



Lawrence, I peeped out from my tent one midnight and 

 saw a pale-faced boy lying upon the ground near by 

 rolled in blankets and sleeping in the moonlight without 

 other covering than the starry vault of heaven. It was 

 this same plucky Ralph Wing, who had paddled along 

 the margins of the great lakes in a little canoe with 

 meager outfit, and was cheerfully roughi g it to a degree 

 that would have disheartened many a veteran of the 

 woods. During the years that have intervened since 

 then, in our respective canoebial wanderings our eccen- 

 tric orbits have several times undesignedly crossed each 

 other and we two have briefly renewed our fragmentary 

 acquaintanceship. This year we missed striking hands 

 in the Adirondacks by probably a day or two. 



Western canoeists must cruise more extensively than 

 then- paddling brethren of the East. Wherever I go in 

 my canoe, east, west, north or south, I see the flash on 

 some quiet lake or mountain stream of a Western double 

 blade, but to see an Eastern canoeist I must go to the East. 

 The tendency of the East is toward racing, that of the 

 West toward cruising, although there are notable excep- 

 tions to the rule. The cruise of the Western man seldom 

 gets into type; the racing of the Easterner is his common- 

 place event. The perfect canoeist that is to be evolved 

 in the coming years must combi . e the qualities of a per- 

 fect cruiser with those of a perfect racer; but seldom do 

 we see them united in one person in these days of the in- 

 fancy of canoeing. Qrang-e Frazer. 



Wilmington, O., Sept. 12. 



WACHAPREAGUE. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



'•Where the deuce is Wachapreague?*' I have heard 

 said more than once. I propose to tell through your 

 valuable journal and also some of the attractions and 

 advantages it presents for sportsmen. Virginia owns 

 two counties on the Lower Peninsula, bounded by the 

 Atlantic on the east and the Chesapeake Bay on the west. 

 Cape Charles is the lowest point on the Peninsula. The 

 New York, Philadelphia & Norfolk Railroad runs the 

 entire length of the two counties, with two trains daily 

 each way. We have a daily mail, end New York, Phila- 

 delphia and Baltimore papers reach us the day they are 

 published. There is also daily (except Sunday) commu- 

 nication with Baltimore by the Eastern Shore Steamboat 

 Co. to Onancock (ten miles) and to Bogg's Wharf (eight 

 miles). 



The nearest stations on the railroad are Only (seven 

 miles), Milford (three miles), and Keller (five miles). 



Wachaprea ue is on the river of the same name that 

 runs in from the ocean — the ocean is distant about three 

 miles in a straight line and some six by the river, as the 

 river has many turns. Vessels passing up and down the 

 coast are in plain sight of the town. The tide rises and 

 falls some 5ft. ; you can carry 10ft. some three miles up 

 the river at mean tide, I mean above Wachapreague. There 

 are some 300 inhabitants, mostly oystermen and fisher- 

 men. 



There is not a healthier place on earth. We are not 

 troubled with mosquitoes, and during the past summer, 

 when Long Branch, Atlantic City, etc., were rendered 

 almost uninhabitable by them, we had none. Malaria is 

 unknown. 



Wildfowl, i. e., black ducks, blackheads, brant and 

 geese, etc., are plentiful, but difficult to come up with, as 

 the people are not conversant with sinkbox shooting and 

 the waters are too extensive and the tides rise and fall so 

 as to make bush blinds inconvenient. To sum it up, to 

 one accustomed to the convenience of the Chesapeake 

 Bay shooting above Baltimore, as I have been , ducking 

 here is too hard work. However, with scows and batter- 

 ies, such as they use at Havre de Grace, the wildfowl 

 shooting should be excellent. Quail are abundant, but 

 later in the season, after being shot at, they become wild 

 and take to the woods. There is not a tolerably decent 

 bird dog either in or near the town. 



The fishing is unsurpassed on the Atlantic coast, north 

 of Florida. It commences the latter part of April and 

 lasts until late in November. We have weakfish, spots 

 and pigfish, the last the best pan fish in the world, also 

 sheepshead, black and red drum. The sheepshead do not 

 take the hook kindly, but it is great fun to strike them 

 with grains at night with a light. I have killed nineteen 

 of a tide, and others many niore. The weakfish, spot 

 and pigfish are taken inside, in the many channels and 

 branches of the river and in the broad water between the 

 islands and the mainland. The black drum are caught 

 principally in the surf . 



But from the middle of September until the run of fish 

 south ceases, is the time for our great fun, when we go out 

 on the ocean. I have never caught a tarpon, but there is 

 far worse sport than to be fast to 30, 40 or over 501b. red 

 drum on a 300yd. 15-thread line. I have sometimes been 

 over an hour bringing them to gaff. They make quite as 

 good a fight as a striped bass, and what is better, drum of 

 that size are plenty while striped bass are not. Of course 

 drum can be caught outside as early as June, but the 

 sharks and dogfish bother you. It is great fun to go after 

 shark properly rigged for it. 



In October the big weakfish of 10 and 121bs. commence 

 to run, and then the man with the rod and reel is in his 

 glory. The people here use the hand line exclusively, as 

 they can catch more, which is an object to them, as they 

 salt them for winter use. Until the Accomac Club bought 

 a place here I had the only rods and reels in the county. 

 You would have laughed to have heard the comments of 

 the natives on the 15-thread line. "Dou you 'spect to 

 ketch a drum on that? Why, he'll tare you up." It so 

 happened the first time I went out, with two companions, 

 I struck the first drum. "Give him line," "let him run," 

 and lots more of advice. I was not a novice with the rod 

 and reel, but it was by far the biggest fish I was ever fast 

 to. I quietly remarked, "My friends, this is my private 

 funeral; please let me alone." After taking viciously 

 some 200yds. of line, the fish circled around the boat, 

 twice making the line hiss as it cut through the water; 

 then he weakened, and in some thirty minutes I had him 

 side up at the boat. One of the men grabbed him by the 

 gills and slid him over the gunwale. To say T was proud 

 but feebly expresses it, and I was made more so by such 

 comments froin my companions as "Well, if I hadn't a 

 seen it I'd never believed it," and "it sartinly beats any- 

 thing 1 ever seed." I caught two that day, one of 301bs. 

 the other of 521bs. 



The shore or beach bird shooting is excellent and close 

 at hand, but the birds are not near so plenty as a few 



years ago. There are no finer oysters in the world, and 

 in any quantity. Hard clams abound, as do scollops; 

 there are very few soft shell clams, and hard crabs are 

 plenty, but not much used except for bait. For some un- 

 accountable reason nearly all the crabs are she ones, the 

 big Jimmy crabs going up the bay shore. 



After giving this far from exhausting account of the 

 attractions of this place for persons fond of outdoor sports, 

 I will now tell you what is the principal cause of this 

 communication. My place is about an acre in extent, 

 running down to the river. Next door to me is another 

 place rather larger than mine, with a new house (four 

 years old) on it, and all necessary outbuildings. It is the 

 property of a person nearly eighty years old and his wife, 

 not much younger. Their children are not willing for 

 them to live there by themselves, and the place is for 

 either rent or sale. Now, Mr. Editor, I have not one 

 cent of pecuniary interest in this place, but I do desire, 

 as is quite natural, to have a congenial and companionable 

 neighbor or ne ghbors. The house has some eight good- 

 sized rooms to it, with porches back and front, it has 

 some really architectural merit. The yard, like mine, 

 runs to the river, and th-re is an excellent garden of more 

 than an acre adjoining that can be rented with the place, 

 not bought. The drinking water is most excellent. 



By thus bringing the place to the notice of your sub- 

 scribers, I am in hopes that some of them may be tempted 

 to join together or individually rent or buy one of the 

 most desirable places for shooting and fishing I know 

 of. The fishing being mostly in smo :th water and inside, 

 is equally as desirable for ladies as for gentlemen. There 

 is still-bathing within 100yds. of the house, and surf 

 bathing a short distance off. The rent asked (also the 

 purchase money) is so ridiculously low to a "city man" 

 'that I prefer giving it by private correspondence. Of 

 course after either renting or purchasing they can make 

 their expenses what they please in the way of furniture, 

 table, etc. 



There are two clubs in the county now; one the Acco- 

 mac club of some twenty members, about four miles clown 

 the river (Mr. Wood, of tarpon fame, is a member of it), 

 the other is at Revels Island and has some one hundred 

 members, I believe, from all parts of the country. It is 

 very inaccessible, being a long sail to it. Mr. Hamilton 

 Disston, of Philadelphia, owns, I think, several shares in 

 it, and hi3 steam yacht Manatee is a frequent visitor to 

 our waters for shooting and fishing. 



Of course no one would rent or buy simply on my rep- 

 resentations and without visiting the property. I assure 

 any r proposing renter or purchaser that I have very poorly 

 presented the deshability of the place to those fond of 

 outdoor amusements. 



I will be happy to correspond with any one who may 

 desire to know more particularly about it, and give them 

 the price and rent, which is trifling, but I request any 

 correspondent will be so kind as to give me either New 

 York, Philadelphia or Baltimore references. My desire 

 for this must be evident. If satisfactory I will be glad 

 for any proposing visitor w r hile inspecting the place to 

 be my guest. 



Any letter addressed to "Wachapreague, Accomac Co., 

 Va.," and inclosed to the Forest and Stream, will be 

 promptly forwarded to me. 



Jfa/wp/ jgistorg. 



Address all communications to the Forest and Stream Pub. Co. 



THE AMERICAN BADGER AND ITS 

 CONGENERS. 



BY R. "W. SHUFELDT, U. S. ARMY. 



SIR WILLIAM HENRY FLOWER, F. R. S., Superin- 

 tendent of the Natural History Collections in the 

 British Museum, in his classification of the Mammalia, 

 divides his Section Arctoidea into four families, viz. : 

 the Mustelidw, the Proeyonidoz, the Ailuridoz, and the 

 Ui-siciie. In the present connection we have to do but 

 with the first of these, the Mustelidce, and this family 

 Professor Flower divides into three sub-families with 

 their genera as shown in the following arrangement : 



LUTRINiE. 



Lutra— The Otters. 



Aonyx — Species from South Africa and Java. 

 Enhydriodon — Extinct. 

 Enhydra—Se& Otters. 



MELINjE. 



Mephitis — The Skunks. 

 Arctonyx— The Sand Bears. 

 Mydaus— The Teledu. 

 . Meles — European and Asiatic Badgers. 

 Taxidea — American Badgers. 

 Mellivora — The Ratels. 

 Helicitis— Species from Asia. 

 Jctonyx— The Cape Polecat and others. 



MUSTELINJE. 



Galietis— The Grison : the Tayra, etc, 

 Mustela— Martens and Sables. 

 Putorius— -Weasels, Polecats, Ferrets, Mink, etc. 

 Gulo — The Glutton or Wolverine. 



According to this eminent authority we see, then, that 

 Badgers and Badger-like animals fall into the subfamily 

 Melince, of * the Family Mustelidce, of the Section 

 Arctoidea. 



Mr. F. W. True, the Curator of the Deprrtment of 

 Mammals of the U. S. National Museum, presents us with 

 a somewhat different arrangement from this. Mr. True 

 divides the Order Carnivora into two suborders, the 

 Pinnipedia (with three families) containing the Sea Lions 

 and Seals: and the suborder Fissipedia or Terrestrial 

 Carnivores, with five families, the third of which being 

 the Mustelidee, containing the genera representing in the 

 main the three subfamilies of Professor Flower, given 

 above. 



In our United States mammalian fauna we have two 

 species of Badgers, the American Badger (Taxidea ameri- 

 cana americana), the subject of the present article, and 

 the Mexican Badger (T. a. berlandieri), the latter being 

 found upon our southwestern border, from whence it e 

 tends into Mexico. 



Upon glancing at either of the above schemes of class 

 fication, it will at once be observed that the nearest kin 



