Sept. 20, 1888.] 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



163 



deer, drinking from the lake, his slender figure standing- 

 out plainly from the dark forest behind, I tried to raise 

 iny rifle, but could not lift it; it seemed as if it had be- 

 come an immense weight that could not be moved. 

 Thus I gazed upon the picture before me, hardly know- 

 ing whether I was awake or in a dream. 



The flight of time was unheeded. Suddenly the spell 

 ■was broken by the cry of a loon. One by one the stars 

 iad disappeared from the sky. The east was already 

 aglow with gold and purple clouds. The moon had sunk 

 in the west, just as the sun made his appearance, an- 

 nouncing the approach of another day. Silently we 

 jpaddled back to camp, 



As I sat down to breakfast, I could hardly believe that 

 I had not wakened from a dream. A mist seemed be- 

 fore rny eyes, beyond which was the picture of that 

 beautiful night. " W. H. C. 



Bangor, Me. 



A VISIT TO THE PARK. 



; T was my fortune, during the month of August, to 

 have been traveling and sojourning in the Territories 

 jd States lying west of the Continental Divide. I saw 

 any places where sage hens, willow grouse, curlew, 

 neks and sandhill cranes were abundant; and on my 

 rip from Beaver Canon, Idaho, to the National Park, a 

 [distance of a hundred miles, I had the oppoitunity to 

 rahow my skill — and the want of it — on several of these 

 fbirds, especially the sage hens. At this season the 

 [younger ones are very palatable, and when possible T shot 

 [at no other. They made quite an agreeable addition to 

 [the table at the places where we stopped. These way- 

 sidc inns afforded shelter and food enough to prevent 

 starvation, but were far below what a dollar a meal and 

 la dollar for lodging should have afforded. At Snake 

 [rJiver, a beautiful stream, there is most excellent fishing 

 [for salmon trout, and I am sorry to say that spearmen 

 |are more abundant than anglers. Thousands are killed 

 at night, for the market, and I fear that the host himself 

 lis setting a very bad example. I did not like the fish — 

 I tout attributed my dislike rather to the grease used in 

 hooking than to the quality of the trout. 

 I Our party saw the wonders of the Park— for a large 

 [part of it is "fearfully and wonderfully made." The 

 [atmosphere is charged with the fumes of sulphur, thrown 

 put by boiling springs of water and mud, and through 

 email holes, from which nothing comes but varjor. I 

 [should think that somewhere below there is a veritable 

 i lake, hot enough to satisfy any devil who desires a phys- 

 ical hell. I am glad that the Government has dedicated 

 ffihis tract of land to a park. It is fit for little else. If it 

 [shall be so unwise as to allow railroads to be built in it, 

 then the tax on the visitors will be far more than now, 

 [while the monopolies would become the owners of the 

 [dominant estate. As it is the Northern Pacific Railroad 

 [Company, which have a branch road to Cinnabar, nine 

 miles from the Mammoth Springs, have almost practical 

 control of the Park, by owning all the hotels in it and 

 [Charging fabulous prices for the accommodations which 

 they furnish. Besides this, they give all advantages to 

 |those who visit the Park by that route. When our party 

 [reached the hotel and offered to register, we were asked 

 if we did not come from Beaver Canon. Upon our affirm- 

 ative answer, we were told that we could not get rooms 

 [and had better apply to the Cottage Hotel, a smaller 

 Chouse, about 200yds. off. We had sent a telephone coni- 

 imunication that we were coming. After we left and 

 [were quartered at the Cottage Hotel, many persons 

 •arrived and found accommodations at the railroad 

 [hostelry. Some one who seemed to speak advisedly said 

 in the presence of our party that the hotel ''felt bound to 

 itake care of their own people." Such conduct is simply 

 outrageous, and those who have legal charge of the Park 

 should see to it that the injustice be stopped. Some of 

 [these gentlemen ought to have been able to see how this 

 [thing is managed. It is certain that if I ever visit the 

 Park again I shall be prepared to cainp and thus be in- 

 dependent of the exactions of a close and remorseless 

 corporation. We had better quarters and better treat- 

 ment at the Cottage Hotel than we probably would have 

 (had at the Northern Pacific establishment. 



| saw several antelope on the plain between Snake 

 [River and Beaver Canon, and quite a band of Shoshone 

 flndians, of nearly all grades, on their way to get meat. 

 Some of the "bucks" were then in the mountains. One 

 [old fellow had strapped behind him a fawn antelope. 

 [They were a hard looking set, but not so much so as some 

 [Piutes whom — or which — I saw in that very populous 

 [State called Nevada. The women did not rise side sad- 

 dles, but bestrode their horses just like the tmgentler 



[ What a great upheaval of molten rock the whole of 

 [Idaho once witnessed. The whole land is underlaid with 

 Kava. It looks to me that after Nature's huge furnaces 

 mad covered the country with a fluid mass and had be- 

 [come exhausted then they either sunk or that the higher 

 [mountains were upheaved. But I leave all that to scient- 

 ists, or those whose business it is to guess, as to the means 

 which the Almighty used to produce His wonders. 

 | I heard that far in the recesses of the mountains, where 

 [the timber is dense, there are deer and elk. The labors 

 [and deprivations necessary to the successful pursuit of 

 [these animals are far greater than I am willing or even 

 [able to undergo. It would be no sport to me. If I had 

 [a few select companions, and some good dogs, as well as 

 [a gentle horse, I could enjoy hunting sage hens and other 

 [variety of grouse, and diversifying the pastime by indulg- 

 ing in the "gentle art" which old Izaak Walton has canon- 

 Bzed in his "Complete Angler." 



I Railroad travel during the summer in that dry land 

 Bias no comforts in it. At least it has none to me. I 

 prefer "a boundless contiguity of shade" to a "bound- 

 less contiguity'' of sunshine. I like the green grass, 

 Itub tegmine fagi, where I see and hear the sparkling 

 [waters as they glitter in the straggling sunbeams. 



Wells. 



| Rockingham, North Carolina. 



PARK PETITION SIGNATURES. 



COLORADO. 



L Jas. W. McOreery, F. O. Patton, G. W. Weber, W. J. Bigger, L. 

 B. Williams, L. B. WiUard, C. A. White, S. G. Fuller.A. W. Jones, 

 a. M. Ferguson, H. C. Watson, W. T. Blake. Jesse Hawes, J. E. 

 fearriguea, E. L. Duuliatn, E. L. Dawly, F. P. Frost, Frank Mad- 

 hlen, James Tori-enB, H. K. Goodvking, L. L. Wyatt, W. JJ. Ran- 

 dolph, A. J. Park, W. B. Mason, George Peshby, B. D. Harper. 



THE "FANTAI L" DEER. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



In my Forest and Stream for Aug. 6 I see a letter 

 from "Gazelle," asking: "Who knows the fantail deer?" 

 As I have had some experience with this deer, I will tell 

 your readers what I know. 



The first I saw of them was in southern Oregon. They 

 w ere the re known asthe^flagtaU." Inn or th er n Ca 1 i f orn ia 

 they were generally called "chomecho," from the Indian, 

 and were very rare in that part. The next place I came 

 upon the "fantail" was in Wyoming Territory, in the Lara- 

 mie plains and hill country. Here he was masquerading 

 under the title of "towhead." This deer is considered by 

 all hunters who are acquainted with it to be a distinct 

 species, and is never confounded with the whitetail, which 

 is much larger. The true "fantail" will seldom dress 

 over 50 or tSOlbs. The tail is very long and wide. I think 

 I have seen some which would measure 12in. if not 14in. 

 in width. The horns of a full-grown buck are very 

 small, a G-point not being much larger than the two 

 hands laid together at the wrist with the fingers turned 

 in. Many of them have a mass of long towlike hair ou 

 the forehead, which gave them the name in Wyoming. 

 They are the most cunning of all deer, and the hunter who 

 gets a "towhead" must get up very early early in the 

 morning, as the saying is. 



I will relate a little." incident of a "fantail's" cunning 

 which I happened to be an eye witness of. I was on a 

 hunt in the Little Wolf Mountains, in the northeastern 

 part of Wyoming, in the spring of 1882. The country 

 slopes down to Tongue River, "and was a paradise for 

 game at that time, with amper valleys, long, amper, park- 

 like ridges, pine groves, and thickets of wild kern and 

 plum brush, with grass everywhere, rich, sweet, green 

 grass, which made one think of a field of growing wheat. 

 The Little Wolfs were a choice range for wild game. In 

 the spring, elk, mountain sheep, buffalo and antelope 

 could all be found in this range of hills. 



One morning early my two chums and myself saddled 

 up our ponies and rode up the little gulch until we came 

 out upon the main ridge. Here we separated, and each 

 took a point or side ridge. It was a beautiful morning, 

 just cool enough to be pleasant. I might have been rid- 

 ing a couple of hours when the sharp crack of a rifle 

 away off to my right awakened me from my dream and 

 brought my pony to a halt. We could see across the 

 valley to the ridge top a mile away. I knew the shot 

 came from beyond it. Thinking game might come my 

 way I dismounted, turning my pony loose, knowing he 

 would not leave me. Then I took a seat on a fallen log 

 to watch the valley below me. I had not long to wait. 

 A small deer bounced up on the ridge and came sailing 

 across the valley almost directly to me. I saw it was a 

 "towhead," and he was making direct for a little knoll 

 or mot of timber, which lay some 300yds. below me. He 

 was but a short time in reaching it, when, springing up 

 the side, he dropped his flag and sneaked into a little 

 patch of kern bush, and lay down so quickly that I 

 thought he was shot. Juat then came another shot from 

 over the valley, when up sprang my deer like a jack-in- 

 the-box. Running to the edge of the little hill he gazed 

 long and earnestly over the valley. Apparently satisfied, 

 that the shot was not for him, back he came and dropped 

 like a shot in the kern brush. Now was my time. I 

 started to crawl clown the kill, keeping a big pine between 

 me and his deership. I had got nearly to the bottom and 

 was congratulating myself on how I had fooled him, 

 when on looking up what was my disgust to see him 

 standing on my edge of the hill gazing down upon me 

 with what seemed like a grin on his frowsy little head, a 

 sort of a no-you-don't-my-friend look. What was I to 

 do? My head was down hill; I had to sit up to shoot; but 

 at the first glint of the sunlight on my rifle, barrel he was 

 off, putting the hill between me and him. When next I 

 saw him he was a full half mile away, flag up and scratch- 

 ing the gravel in fine style, for a brushy little creek about 

 a mile off. 



Why this little deer should be becoming rare I don't 

 know, as regular hunters seldom trouble them. I have 

 seen but few of them killed. The venison of this deer is 

 very fine, much more so than the blacktail or white, 



Nevada. J. J. FULTON. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



The statements of •'Gazelle" in regard to the "fantail" 

 deer, together with the editor's request for specimens, 

 prompt me to contribute my mite to the sum of general 

 information. I will confess at the start that I am skep- 

 tical in regard to the existence of the "fantail." 



"Gazelle" does not appear to have made any measure- 

 ments or to have saved any specimens. Until a specimen 

 is produced it seems to me that the subject can safely 

 be dismissed with the Scotch verdict, "not proven." 



Since coming to this Territory I have heard many 

 statements made by local hunters in regard to the "fan- 

 tail" or "flag-tail" deer, said to be found in these moun- 

 tains, and some years since I began collecting specimens 

 of deer tails to satisfy myself how much they really did 

 vary from the true type. The result surprised me and 

 taught me that the tails of the Cervvs virginiamts vary 

 much more in appearance than all the rest of the parts of 

 the animal. 



Antlers also take fantastic shapes. One deer's head I 

 remember to have found on the mountain side while 

 hunting, which, though badly torn by wolves, still held 

 the antlers. The deer had evidently been killed at the 

 latter end of the velvet period of horn growth, and the 

 antlers were two slender tines without prong or spur, 

 more than a foot in length, ctuwing beautifully, with the 

 points less than 2in. apart. Palmated horns are occa- 

 sionally found here: and in fact antlers seem to be more 

 irregular here than in the prairie States. 



Inclosed I send to the editor of Forest and Stream 

 five deer tails, four of which were selected from among 

 the 106 deer killed by me with the rifle since coming to 

 this Territory. I mention the number killed, that the 

 reader may know that I have had at least fair opportu- 

 nities for observation. The fifth is from a deer killed 

 by my son. Four where whitetails, one a mule deer, 

 and all were killed "in the red," No. 1 is that of a buck 

 of medium size, apparently about four years old. killed 

 June 25. This is a perfect specimen of the tail of the 

 white-tailed deer, the hah- of which shows but two 



, colors, red (in early summer) on top of the tail when it 

 is held horizontally, and white beneath, with the last 

 inch of the tip white. 



No. 9 is that of a buck killed June 10, which in size, 

 build and shape of antlers might have been the twin 

 brother of the first, yet the tails are utterly unlike. The 

 red in No. 2 extends less than half the length of the tail, 

 while all the rest is white above and below. Again, 

 while both were killed in the red (which fact proved that 

 the hair was of new growth) and both were killed the 

 same month and year, the hair on No. 2, killed 15 clays 

 earlier than No. 1, is fully twice as long. 



No. 3 was killed by my son May 15, and is remarkable 

 from the fact that the red is tipped by two or three! 

 inches of dark brown— almost black. 



No. 4, killed June 21, shows four colors. White 

 beneath, while on the top nearest the body appear two 

 inches of red hair, next six inches of buff color, then two 

 inches of brown, tipped finally with two inches of wlute. 



No 5 is the tail of a mule deer buck killed June 25, and 

 which weighed as much as one and a half of the others. 



But what, asks the reader, has all this to do with the 

 subject? These were not "fantail" deer nor claimed to 

 be. True enough. All that is intended here is the prob- 

 ability that No. 3 is as near a "fantail" as will be produced 

 for some time to come, and that the finding of an odd 

 specimen like it first gave birth to the notion of a new 

 deer. 



"Gazelle" says that in February, 1879, Henry Fancher 

 killed five "fan tails," three of which were bucks with 

 horns, at the foot of Crazy Mountains. In all my hunting 

 m this Territory I have never seen but one whitetail deer 

 carrying horns in February, and our winter climate is 

 said to be much milder than that of the mountain country 

 east of us. Still, if the true "fantail" exists, he may be a 

 hardier animal, and may carry antlers later than the 

 whitetail. If a deer can be shown with a tail eight inches 

 wide I would very much like to see it, but the burden of 

 proof is upon "Gazelle" and his friends. Gentlemen, 

 please show us a specimen. Orin Belknap. 



Washington TEnmroitv. 



INDIAN ANTIDOTES FOR SNAKE BITE. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



In your number of August 19, Horace Caruthers, M.D., 

 asks for an antidote to snake bite. I refer him to the 

 plant Lycopus virginicus, or bugle weed. It resembles 

 somewhat Lycopus sinnatus, or water hoarhound. Both 

 belong to and resemble the mint tribe, but are wanting in 

 fragrance. A description of Lycojjus virginicus, or bugle 

 weed, may be interesting and useful. 



Smooth; stem obtusely four-angled with concave sides, 

 sending out runners from the base; leaves ovate -lanceolate 

 (egg-shaped and long like leaf of peach) or oblong, coarsely 

 toothed, tapering and entire toward the base, on short 

 leaf stalks: flowers small, purplish, white, in few flow- 

 ered axillary whorls; calyx-teeth (cup or leaves that hold 

 the flower) four, ovate-obtuse. Stem ten to fifteen inches 

 high. Found in low ground in July and August. 



The Cherokee Indians chew large quantities of bugle 

 weed and swallow the juice to counteract the poison of 

 snake bite, and also that of the bite of the tarantula. 

 For further information see Dr. Briggs' paper before the 

 Texas State Medical Society, on information from Dr. W. 

 H. Cooke, Bonham, Texas. 



Another item I gathered from a lieutenant it the regu- 

 lar army several years ago. Brieflv, the Indians, when 

 engaged in the severe and very exhausting dance called 

 the snake dance, handle without fear the most venomous 

 snakes. They are bitten many times during the dance. 

 Immediately they swallow something to produce vomit- 

 ing, all the while keeping in constant motion in order to 

 sweat freely. The result, no Indian dies of snake bite. 



Dayton, o. Sam J. Henderson. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



I add my quota of knowledge picked up in this section 

 of t he country, where more or less venomous snakes, and 

 especially rattlers, abound. 



The most common method employed in the case of 

 snake bite is to administer a potion of snake weed and 

 milk— the former boiled in sweet milk— in large quan- 

 tities. I am not aware of the scientific name of this 

 weed, though as "snake weed" it is well known by the 

 natives. 



From two pretty well authenticated cases, I am led to 

 believe that there may be some virtue attached to the 

 following so-called antidote. Several years ago a boy, 

 living not far from here, was bitten by a rattlesnake, and 

 it was some time before he obtained help, by which time 

 he was suffering agonies, and the bitten part was greatly 

 swollen and discolored. He was given a strong mixture 

 of alum dissolved in boiling milk, and the bitten part was 

 washed several times with the mixture. In a compara- 

 tively short time he had so far recovered as to be entirely 

 out of danger, and in a day or so was as well as ever. 



The other instance was the case of a dog bitten by a 

 rattier. A number of remedies had been tried without 

 apparent effect, when the alum and milk treatment was 

 resorted to, and although the dog was seemingly past 

 help, it was but a short time before he showed signs of 

 recovery, and soon was all right again. 



I am aware that there are a vast number of so-called 

 antidotes for snake bite, and have given these for what 

 they are worth. I do not think the above instances can be 

 accepted as sufficient proof of the efficacy of the appar- 

 ent remedy. Wm. F. Morris. 



Arkansas. 



Wild Birds' Eggs. — A novel point arose at the New- 

 castle (England) County Court recently, when the lessee 

 of the Fame Islands sued a Sunderland fisherman for 

 taking a seagull's eggs from a nest on his land. The only 

 question in dispute was whether there could be any prop- 

 perty in a wild bird's egg. The magistrate ruled that a 

 man had a. possessory right to any wild bird which was 

 on or over his land, and the same applied to the eggs. 

 Judgment for the plaintiff for £1 and costs. 



Habits of the Coon.— Central Lake, Mich., Sept. 7. 

 —"A Subscriber," in your paper of Aug. 30, expresses a 

 doubt as to the alleged habit attributed to the coon, of 

 washing his food before eating it. I had thought this 

 peculiarity of the creature to be pretty well established. 

 To be stu-e, I have never myself observed it, but then a 

 man can't see everything for himself, and must conse- 

 quently take somewhat on trust. I have little doubt that 

 among your readers are many whose fortune in this re- 

 gard has been better than mine. — Kelpie. 



