March 10, 1887.J 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



131 



BEARS, DOGS AND CUBS. 



TTERNANDO, Miss.— In your issue of Feb. 17 "Bruin" 

 XX says he never knew a bear to kill a dog, and does 

 not believe one could do it. He either does not know 

 what he is talking about or northern bears are very dif- 

 ferent from southern ones. A few years ago Mr. Sam 

 Williams, a noted bear hunter of this county , lost seven 

 dogs, all killed by one bear, and he did not get the bear 

 either. This was caused by a negro, who saw the dogs 

 where they bayed the bear and urged them on. Only last 

 winter I knew personally of two fine bear dogs being 

 killed by a bear, Mr. Waldran, a deputy sheriff of this 

 county, killing him afterward. Six dogs were in the 

 chase, two were killed and another badly wounded. I 

 could cite numerous other instances, but think this 

 enough. Any southern bear hunter will tell you that 

 when a bear gets a " square lick" at a dog he is done 

 for, as he will fairly disembowel him. T. C. R. 



I Avish to make the inquiry of the numerous bear 

 hunters who contribute to your columns, if any of them 

 ever killed, or saw killed, after having been run by dogs, 

 a female bear that was oiceinte — that is, had unborn 

 young. Issaquena. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 

 r In the Forest and Stream for Dec. 23, "Mark West" 

 asks for information on explosive bullets and their effect 

 when used on large and dangerous game. Having had 

 quite a httle experience in the line of bear killing with 

 different kinds of ammunition, I will give him a few of 

 my ideas on the subject. I have used explosive bullets 

 and have seen them used to some extent, but so far I have 

 not seen any great execution done with them. Several 

 instances I remember of explosive bullets fired at bears, 

 when they exploded in the muscles of the neck and head, 

 and never reached the bones, and did not seem to bother 

 the creatures much. I suppose if you could get bullets 

 to explode in the right place they would do great work. 

 But then, if you can get solid balls in the right place, 

 bears both large and small are easily enough killed. My 

 preference of bullets for large game is a soiid ball slightly 

 hardened, with enough powder behind it to send it crash- 

 ing through flesh, muscles and bones, and either to go 

 through the animal or batter itself up into twice its 

 natural caliber. I have used a Ballard .40-85-370 for 

 several years, and to my notion it is as effective ammuni- 

 tion as a man need ask for. The. greatest trouble we 

 have in killing bears here is to find gentle ones that will 

 stand fire. I suppose that what makes them so wild is 

 that we hunt them a great deal for the bounty the Terri- 

 tory pays for killing them. Though I have killed and 

 helped to kill some forty odd bears in the last two years, 

 I have yet to see the first one show anything like a dan- 

 gerous fight. Charlie Menges. 



MONTAXA. 



ONTARIO NOTES. 



BELLEVILLE, Ont., Feb. 28.— With some amusement 

 and no little disgust, I read in a recent issue of an 

 Ottawa newspaper the following: Messrs. G. B. Moore, 

 A. J. Angus and J. F. Inglee killed near the Schyan 

 River, near Pembroke, three or four days ago, the largest 

 moose ever seen in the Upper Ottawa district. Mr. Moore 

 is the local agent for Messrs. Bronson & Co.'s lumber firm 

 at Schyan, forty miles from Pembroke, and Mr. Angus, 

 the book-keeper. Some of the men at the shanties having 

 reported that an enormous moose had been in the woods 

 near Black River, Moore and Angus started out to find 

 him. They got on his trail and followed him. The snow 

 in the woods was very deep, with a crust on the surface, 

 and the moose had difficulty in getting along fast, cutting 

 and bruising his legs. Moore and Angus eventually over- 

 took him on a high hill, and near the edge of the steepest 

 side he stopped and showed fight. Angus fired, and the 

 ball, striking on the frontal bone near the eye, glanced 

 off without baving much effect except to render the huge 

 beast desperate. He charged his assailants. Moore's gun 

 missed fire and the beast reached him. Moore had an axe, 

 but before he could do any damage with it the beast 

 knocked it out of his hand. Both men had to dodge it 

 round trees, the deep snow helping them, getting in an 

 occasional blow with clubs, and things were looking 

 serious when another factor appeared upon the scene. Mr. 

 F. J. Inglee, jobber for Bronson & Co., who had been 

 tracking the moose for two days, came up, and getting a 

 broadside chance at the moose, put a bullet into him, and 

 on Inglee turning to rim he tripped on his snowshoes and 

 fell over the steep brow of the lull and down the almost 

 perpendicular descent of 150ft. or so, the snow alone sav- 

 ing liim from severe bruises. The moose stood on the 

 brink of the precipice shaking for a moment, and then 

 dropped dead in his tracks. Inglee's shot had passed 

 through his lungs. Brought to Schyan, the dressed car- 

 cass was found to weigh 9001bs. The skin weighed 113. 

 The residents of the district agree that it was the largest 

 animal they had known to be killed there." 



It seems to me, and I think every sportsman among 

 your readers, that there is not quite so much honor or 

 glory in slaying a moose under the circumstances above 

 narrated as the "heroes" of the exploit seem to imagine. 

 It never occurred to Messrs. Moore, Angus and Inglee 

 that they had violated the law in killing a moose in On- 

 tario in February, otherwise their boastings would have 

 been made in private. As the law stands, however, 

 moose and other deer are protected between Dec. 15 and 

 Oct. 15, and the parties concerned in the killing this 

 "forest giant" are liable to fines of not less than $10 nor 

 more than $50 each and costs, which ought to be exacted. 



It is reported that the slaughter of red deer in the 

 Province of Ontario, and of caribou in the Province of 

 Quebec, has during this winter been very great. The 

 snow which fell in January had a crust upon it during 

 the greater part of that month sufficiently strong to carry 

 a man on snowshoes, but through which the sharp hoofs 

 of the deer broke. All through "the back townships" of 

 Ontario this was taken advantage of by scores of hunters, 

 and in many districts so deep was the snow through 

 which the deer had to plunge that it was possible to run 

 them clown and kill them with an axe. The depth of the 

 snow, by preventing the deer from getting at their usual 

 food, drove them into the vicinity of the lumbermen's 

 shanties and the outlying settlements for food, and quite 

 a number were actuaUy killed in barnyards. This whole- 

 sale slaughter has resulted in a plethora of venison hi all 

 the markets, and the price realized for it toward the end 



of the season was so low that it hardly compensated 

 the hunter for the price of his powder and shot. The 

 same condition of things has prevailed in the caribou 

 country. The game laws, as they at present exist, do 

 not allow of a stop being put to this useless slaughter. 

 What is needed is a la w preventing the killing of deer 

 and caribou during the months of December and January , 

 as well as February and March. As a result of this year's 

 slaughter the deer' have been exterminated, it is believed, 

 hi several districts in Ontario. 



The following lamentable result of criminal carelessness 

 in the handling of firearms is reported by telegraph from 

 the same district of Ontario: 



"James Cherry, cook, Nipissing district, accidentally 

 shot himself on Tuesday. Feb. 22, and died a few hours 

 afterward. He was hunting with a repeating rifle, and 

 had shot a squirrel. The squirrel, wounded, fell among 

 some fallen branches. Cherry swung the handle which 

 loaded the repeater, and poked at the squirrel with the 

 butt of the weapon, forgetting that it was loaded and 

 cocked. As he worked among the debris the rifle was 

 discharged and the ball entered his left breast near the 

 shoulder and passed out obliquely. He managed to get 

 to the shanty, and explained the accident to his comrades. 

 About 5 o'clock in the evening he expired." R. S. B. 



Gunner, Dipper, Hawk and Crows.— Bay Ridge, Md., 

 Feb. 28. — I noted in your issue of Jan. 27 the report of the 

 West Chester Microscopical Society on the food of hawks 

 and owls. Here is a strange hawk incident which hap- 

 pened in my experience. A few days ago while shooting 

 over decoys I shot a dipper through the head and he be- 

 gan circling upward at a lively rate. I stood watching, 

 expecting every moment to see him fall to the water 

 dead, but you may imagine my surprise to see a large 

 red-tailed hawk give chase, and after folding the duck 

 carefully in his large wings, I suppose to get a firm hold 

 with his talons, sail leisurely to the opposite shore. I fol- 

 lowed in my boat, but he saw me coming and flew to a 

 large cedar. By this time a half dozen crows joined the 

 chase and for a while it was doubtful who would get the 

 duck. I followed the hawk from tree to tree for at least 

 a quarter of a mile, but not until he had received part of 

 a charge of No. 4s (though not enough to kill him) could 

 he be persuaded to drop it; and when 1 picked the duck 

 up it was still alive, with an ugly gash on the head, which 

 must have been made by the hawk's beak. I was very 

 sorry not to kill the hawk, as he would have been a beauty 

 to mount. — H. C. 



Toronto, Ont., March 5.— The act passed by the 

 Ontario Legislature prohibiting spring shooting will be 

 felt by us for the first time during the coming season. 

 Hitherto all ducks not known as mallards, gray, black, 

 wood or teal were not protected until May 1. Now, how- 

 ever, all are under the same law. Nobody objects to 

 this, with the exception of some pot-hunters about the 

 Bay of Quinte and Presque He. Some of these say they 

 are going to shoot those species known as sawbills, coots, 

 etc., claiming that they are not ducks. These species are 

 not worth much for food, being "fishy," so if they con- 

 fined their operations to such game there would be no 

 harm done. The trouble is that the others would suffer if 

 they came in the way, and it would be very hard to con- 

 vict transgressors. If there is no excuse for having a gun 

 out at this season there will be little trouble. It is to be 

 hoped the game protection societies will see that the 

 meaning of the law is enforced and will not let the 

 decision of a country magistrate settle the matter if it 

 happens to be adverse to the interests of legitimate sports- 

 men.— Test. 



Massachusetts Association. — A goodly number of 

 lovers of rod and gun assembled around the hospitable 

 tables of the Tremont House last Thursday evening and 

 partook of the good cheer afforded, more than fifty mem- 

 bers of the Massachusetts Fish and Game Protective Asso- 

 ciation attending its regular monthly meeting. Supper 

 being finished, President E. A. Samuels called the meet- 

 ing to order, and in a few words congratulated the asso- 

 ciation on its success in enforcing the laws, and the recent 

 decisions of the Supreme Court in its favor in regard to 

 the lobster cases. The committee appointed to solicit funds 

 for the purpose of enforcing the fish and game laws re- 

 ported that about $400 had been paid to the treasurer of 

 the association , and that if more money were needed it 

 would be ininiediately subscribed. Attention was called 

 to the recent death of George D. Oxnard, for many years 

 a member and staunch supporter of the association", and 

 a committee was appointed to prepare appropriate resolu- 

 tions. Seven new members were elected, and applica- 

 tions received from fifteen more. 



Introduction op Blackcock into Newfoundland.— 

 A most interesting experiment is now being tried in New- 

 foundland by the introduction of blackcock into the 

 island. Mr. Robert Langrishe-Mare, of St. John's, a 

 sportsman who has had considerable experience in cari- 

 bou and other shooting on the island, has received from 

 Scotland a number of "black game. The first shipment 

 arrived in Newfoundland on Oct. 21, and the second on 

 Dec. 3, something like twenty brace, three birds only 

 dying on the voyage across. "On arrival they were at 

 once conveyed by Mr. Langrishe-Mare to suitable places, 

 and set free by him, when they immediately went off on 

 the wing, and seemed quite strong. Since then the birds 

 are doing well, and when last seen on the 1st inst., appear 

 to have become quite at home in their new quarters. The 

 Newfoundland Parliament has passed a laAv protecting 

 the new arrivals for five years.— London Field, 



Vermont.— Post Mills, March 1.— This has been a winter 

 of snow, fences and walls are now all covered with the 

 mantle of white. How fares the game ? Only last night 

 I saw a number of grouse budding upon a neighboring 

 apple tree and acting as if they felt perfectly secure in 

 tins quiet valley, where the game and fish laws are well 

 respected. My gun is resting quietly in its case, but is 

 not forgotten, as a look at its burnished and glistening- 

 barrels will show that it has good care. My little cocker 

 spaniel has grown fat and lazy and lies quietly sleeping 

 on the rug before the fire, but rouse her and whisper in 

 her ear the magic word "partridge," and presto, with one 

 bound she is upon her feet, ears raised, and tail wagging 

 at the rate of 500 wags a minute. — Ompompa?<oosuc. 



The Doctrine of Chance.— This is rather neatly put 

 by Forest and Stream: "A Combination Sure to Work. 

 —One law-breaking fool with a bullet in a rifle, and 

 another law-breaking fool with a. leg to put the bullet 

 into. Send them out deer hunting on Long Island on 

 Sunday, and the chances are ten to one that the bullet 

 will find its way into the leg. It happened so last Sunday. 

 Leroy Hill, a hotel keeper of Ronkonkoma, had a rifle, 

 Michael Downey supplied the leg. They were hunting- 

 deer. Downey hid behind a tree; Hill saw him, took him 

 for a deer, smashed one of his legs and lodged another 

 bullet in his side. We extend to these two Sunday deer 

 hunters the spnipathy due those who encounter misfor- 

 tune while in the commission of a double misdemeanor." 

 But the odd thing is that if a deer instead of Downey had 

 been behind that tree the chances are about 66 to 1 that 

 Hill would have missed! — London Illusfroied SjJortijig 

 and Dramatic News. 



Bismarck Gun Club. — Bismarck, Dak., Feb. 25. — At 

 the annual meeting of the Bismarck Gun Club, held to- 

 night, the following offiers were elected: W. H. William- 

 son, President; H. V. Wetherby, Vice-President; W. 

 Aug. Fonda, Secretary and Treasurer. Range committee: 

 Edmund R. Otis. C. B. Little, D. A. Tyler. Finance com- 

 mittee: O. H. Holt, J. George Rapelje, H. H. Day. The 

 club resolved to appropriate sufficient money to stock the 

 brush of this county with quail and partridge, and also to 

 procure wild rice seed. The board of directors is making 

 arrangements for a tournament next fall, and we expect 

 to be able to welcome visiting sportsmen with a good old 

 time. The club took decided action on the bill for the 

 preservation of the National Park, and ordered a copy of 

 their resolutions forwarded to the Committee on Public 

 Lands, and a copy to our delegate in Congress.— W. A. F. 



Wild Turkeys in Georgia.— Bainbridge, Ga.. Feb. 29. 

 — A wild turkey weighing when dressed 221bs. was 

 killed on Spring Creek, twelve miles from this place, a 

 few days since. Two others were, subsequently shot near 

 the same place. Within a week a flock of three splendid 

 fowls flew up in front of a train of railway cars a few 

 miles from Bainbridge. When driving through the 

 woods about ten miles south of Blakely the writer caught 

 sight of one as it was rushing ostrich-like through the 

 oak forest. It did not seem possible to me that any bird 

 could have attained such speed by means of its feet alone. 

 Southwestern Georgia will still afford fair sport in the 

 matter of wild turkeys to him who will take sufficient 

 time and exercise and due patience in hunting them. He 

 may also happen on an occasional deer. Quail are abun- 

 dant. — Edward Jack. 



The Alaska Expedition.— We are advised that ar- 

 rangements are maturing for a proposed excursion party 

 to set out for Alaska in May. Some twenty individuals 

 have signified their intention of joining the party, the 

 complement of which will be thirty. Mr. J. E. Palmer, 

 No. 115 Greenwich avenue, New York, the projector of 

 the excursion, has succeeded in making arrangements 

 for a suitable vessel, the steam schooner Leo, rated as a 

 staunch vessel. The estimated expense per member is 

 placed at $500, a total of $15,000, to be expended as fol- 

 lows: Railroad tickets from New York to Tacoma and 

 return, at $180 each, $5,400; special sleeping and parlor car, 

 $700; Leo, ninety days at $60 per day, $5,400— $11,500, 

 leaving $3,500 for board, hire of cook, porter, etc. Mr. 

 Pahner will soon have ready a ch-cular giving full in- 

 formation. 



Black-game have been introduced into Newfoundland, 

 and promise to thrive there and add to the available shoot- 

 ing resources of the island. Baron Von Seidhtz, of Poni- 

 mern, Prussia, writes to the Forest and Stream that he 

 is desirous of attempting to import into his covers our 

 American ruffed grouse. The bird would, no doubt, 

 prove a most desirable acquisition to the sportsmen of 

 Prussia, could its transportation be accomplished. Mr. 

 J. B. Battelle has dispelled the old notion that ruffed 

 grouse cannot be kept for any time in confinement: but it 

 may be put down as extremely doubtful that pairs could 

 be safely taken across the ocean. 



A New Explosive. — Still another explosive has now 

 been introduced, this time by a Russian, who claims that 

 the penetrative power of the new substance he has dis- 

 covered is ten times greater than that of gunpowder when 

 used for cartridges. The ingredients composing the 

 "silotvaar," as it is called, are not yet known, the inventor 

 keeping liis explosive a secret. No smoke or heat is 

 emitted, it is said, and the discharge is not accompanied 

 by any report. It is also asserted that this explosive may 

 be used in a motor for the generation of power, and the 

 inventor even claims superiority over steam and gas 

 engines. — Industries. 



High Point, N. C, Feb. 28.— Editor Forest and Stream: 

 The quail have wintered well and we are having some of 

 the best shooting that we have had this season. The birds 

 are strong and I think they can fly about as fast again as 

 they did last fall, but the shooting is now more in the 

 open and some good bags are made. There are enough, 

 however, to give us all the sport we wish, and if the breed- 

 ing season is favorable we shall have more next season 

 than we have had for many years. — Point. 



FlatbuSH, Ulster County, N. Y., Feb. 28.— Grouse have 

 wintered well in this section notwithstanding a severe 

 winter, noted for its many falls of snow and icy crusts. 

 I put up ten different biros the other day (eight being in 

 one flock) in an horn's walk. Two or three bud every 

 evening hi an apple tree within 20yds. of my house. 

 Grouse were quite plenty last fall. — Howard Burhans. 



A 20-Bore Pattern.— My gun is a 20-bore, 7-Jlbs., 30in 

 barrels, and I shot 40yds. at a 30in. circle, with Sdrs. of 

 Dupont's powder and loz. No 8 shot, and put in circle 331 

 shot. I would like to hear from "Syntax;" can you not 

 draw him out on the details of his experimenting with'a 

 20-bore?— C. P. F. 



Deer in Sullivan County, N. Y., are occasionally 

 seen and now and then one is killed. A large buck was 

 seen in the vicinity of Monticello a week or two ago. 



