Feb. 13, 1891.] 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



65 



fore takes a rest with liis .25 or .32-caliber through the 

 opening of his duck blind, or perchance over the limb of 

 some tree growing along shore. But the Legislature is 

 invoked to prohibit this laclc of confidence in shooting 

 abilities, and deprecates sucli want of skill. The law 

 says that pai'ticular duck is within its own special iH'O- 

 tection, and if you can't hit him. at 150yds. off-hand shoot- 

 ing he is not your meat, so to speak. 



It is decreed that this single pet duck of legislative so- 

 licitude is guaranteed immunity from the shooter with a 

 rest, together with an additional lease of life, until some 

 fiend, armed with a 6 or 8-bore gun, loaded with from_2 

 to 4oz. of coarse shot, with intent to defraud by fair 

 promises, otherwise painted effigies, yclept decoys, lures 

 the confiding and unsuspecting duck within range of 

 treachery and destruction. 



The law, therefore, calls the 8-bore murderer, who can 

 stand in his shoes and take the recoil of bis small cannon 

 squarely on the shoulder, a sportsman, but the shooter of 

 a small-caliber rifle over a rest is another sort of person 

 and not entitled to be classed among artistic (?) shots nor 

 privileged to kill wildfowl. 



Pi'obably I have written more than is really necessary 

 to invoke though tfid consideration of this section of the 

 proposed new law. It certainly is not intended as a cap- 

 tious criticism. The bill, as a whole, is a meritorious 

 production and the plan indicated admirable. The revis- 

 ers have labored well, but there are certain sections that 

 must be viewed from all points in order to predicate the 

 effect of legislation that shall operate justly. While in 

 Section 71 some confusion may be avoided by rewriting, 

 still the explicit prohibition of shooting from a small open 

 rowboat or canoe where the shooter is not concealed, 

 should be modified. 



In the light of protection, no man will be able to get 

 the number of fowl from an open small boat that he will 

 behind blinds, i:sing decoys. On the other hand, the de- 

 coy shooters want the moving small boat suppressed so 

 that the wildfowl will be less wary and decoy better. At 

 any rate, it would seem that the small boat cruiser lias 

 some claims for respectful presentation for legislative 

 recognition. Cayuga. 



EdUor Forest and Stream: 



The codified game bill now before the Legislature is, to 

 me, in the main acceptable, but has some very objection- 

 able features. That relating to wildfowl, I th'ink,^ will be 

 generally regarded as unsatisfactory, excepting as apply- 

 ing to Queens and Suffolk counties. 



Sec. 71 prohibits shooting from any boat or floating de- 

 vice, etc.; but this is the only way that wild geese and 

 ducks can be successfully hunted in most parts of this 

 State, excepting in said favored counties, where shooting 

 is allowed in boats, although such prohibition would be 

 far less objectionable there for the reason that shooting- 

 waterfowl is done lai-gely best from sink-boxes and blinds 

 on. the Long Island bays. 



From the middle of JSToveoaber until April, or when the 

 ice breaks up. there is not much opportunity to shoot 

 waterfowl in this State, excepting Long Island, where, in 

 some parts, waterfowl remain and can be baited and shot 

 from blinds much of the time during the open season; yet 

 in Queens and Suffolk counties the open season for web- 

 footed wildfowl is made a half month longer, and two and 

 a half months longer for plover, snipe, rail, sandpiper, 

 curlew, mud hen, gallinule, grebe, bittern, surf bird, 

 water chicken, bay snipe, or shore birds of any kind. 

 Plover and other of the shore birds mentioned, that are 

 found here, have mostly passed from this State, excepting 

 on Long Island, by the middle of September, and since 

 comparatively few of the birds mentioned in Sections 77 

 and 163 are shot elsewhere in this State, it seems very 

 unreasonable to shorten the season in the north more than 

 in Queens and Suffolk counties, or beyond Sept. 1. 



From my own observation and opinion I have heard 

 expressed by others who have shot wildfowl in Great 

 South Bay and other places in tliis State, T think it safe 

 to assert that more wildfowl are shot (besides many 

 netted) in the two counties mentioned than in all the rest 

 of New York State. 



The law to be most fair to all interested, including the 

 birds, should rather reverse the provisions of the bill, by 

 making the open season commence earlier north of the 

 latitude of Long Island. The season, being short at best, 

 should here commence by Sept. 1, to get teal ducks; and, 

 waterfowl being less numerous and more difficult to get, 

 at least as much privilege should be allowed as is pro- 

 vided in the bill for Great South Bay, west of Smith's 

 Point, where is found the best wildfowl shooting in tlie 

 State. Yet this locality is favored even more than the 

 remainder of said favored counties by this bill. 



Tliis bill passed as introduced w^ould benefit those 

 localities to our detriment. These facts are so self-evi- 

 dent that to rightly amend ought not to mar the general 

 harmony of the measure in its passage. It is easier to 

 amend before than after the bill has passed, and unless 

 amended previous to its passage, at least next season's 

 shooting of waterfowl would be almost wholly prohibited 

 in this btate, excepting in the two favored counties men- 

 tioned, W. H. Hart. 



Hudson, N. Y., Feb. 7^ 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



I note with regret, in your issue of to-day, that in fram- 

 ing a game law which presumably has for its object the 

 interests of the people, the Commissioners have seen fit to 

 withdraw protection from both hawks and owls. It is 

 not surprising that the long-standing prejudice in regard 

 to these birds should be difficult to overcome in the poim- 

 lar mind. It might be expected, however, that a body of 

 men chosen for their especial knowledge of the require- 

 ments of the law, should, to some extent at least, be in- 

 fluenced by the recent investigations in the food of hawks 

 and owls, which, conducted by the Division of Economic 

 Ornithology and Mammalogy of the Department of Agri- 

 culture, have pioved beyond all question that with the 

 exception of five species these birds are not injurious, but 

 undeniably beneficial to agricultural interests." 



It seems unfortunate that investigations of this nature, 

 having for their object the proper du-ection of legislative 

 action, should not be considered by those to whom such 

 action is intrusted. Frank M. Chapman. 



Amtbrioan MtrsEUM OF Nattibai, History, Eeb. 5. 



Albany, Feb. 7. —The Committee of the Assembly on 

 Fisheries and Game met on Thursday the 5th inst., and 

 fts no 5>ife was present to be heard on the new revised 



code, adjournment was made to Thursday the 12th inst. , 

 when it is expected a large number of parties will be 

 heard on both sides of the bill. Assemblyman Schaaf 

 has introduced a bill amending the game laws so as to 

 make the close season for quail, partridge, hares and 

 rabbits from Jan. 15 to Nov. 15 in the counties of 

 Queens and Suffolk; also a general bill, an amendment 

 to the law of 1879, making the same provision for ^he 

 rest of the State. 



JFISH AND GAME IN MAINE. 



THE all-important fish and game question has scarcely 

 been reached in the Maine Legislature yet. Both 

 the enemies and the friends of the inuch discussed pro- 

 tection seem to dread the final issue. Petitions are num- 

 erous for this and that form of legislation, and newspaper 

 articles are the feature of the most of the live papers in the 

 State — discussing methods and making suggestions. The 

 terrible disregard for the fish and game laws, already 

 explained in the Forkst and Stream, is admitted in the 

 most of these articles, and even worse features are laid 

 before the members of the Legislature and the public. A 

 recent communication from Bangor, in the Lewiston 

 Journal, says that on a certain pond in the northeastern 

 part of the State three men encamped with 300 lines set 

 for the purpose of taking trout through the ice, and that 

 these men have gone about their work oj)enly and 

 not for fun, their camping outfit costing hundreds 

 of dollars, being hauled in by well known teamsters, and 

 that they are openly sending the trout they take to the 

 Boston market. This latter featm'e I doubt. There are 

 no trout in the Boston markets handled openly, and it 

 would not he easy or profitable to handle them on the 

 sly. 



'The article also claims that moose and deer are being 

 killed without the least regard to the law in Washington 

 county, and says that deer have been sold openly froim a 

 meat pung in Patten since the close time carae on. The 

 idea expressed is that no atteulion whatever is paid to 

 the game laws by the citizens of the north towns of 

 Washington county, who have any desire to poach. The 

 law is not mdy openly broken, but the idea of arrest and 

 punishment is laughed at. Mr. Jonathan Darling is 

 reported to be fostering a petition to the Legislature to 

 make dog-hunting deer legal, and it is getting some 

 signatures. The opposition to opening the month of 

 September for deer hunting is stronger among the lum- 

 ber land holders than I had imagined. They will oppose 

 such a measure with all the power they can bring to 

 bear. They fear the sportsman's fives, and they will not 

 willingly grant another open month to him in tlieir woods. 

 They are obstinate to pigheadednes8al>out the matter, and 

 can see no difference between the real s]oortaman, who 

 would as deeply regret a forest fire as they would them- 

 selves, and the worthless, thieving poacher of their own 

 State. 



Only the other day the papers had an account, from 

 this very Washington county, of the sad shooting of one 

 brother by another. They were out deer hunting — in 

 close time. One of the brothers is reported to have fired 

 at the deer, wormding it, but the rifle bullet, in its course, 

 first iiassed throujj;h the head of the other brother. The 

 accident is a sad one, and all at once it turns out almost 

 impossible for the papers to get any news concerning it. 

 The hunters were poaching, and their friends are appar- 

 ently determined to keei> the facts from the public. The 

 fact of the matter is that poaching is the popular thing 

 to do in many of the back towns of Washington, Hancock 

 and Penobscot counties. In some of these towns honest 

 citizens do not dare to proclaim that they are not in 

 favor of breaking the majority of obnoxious game and 

 fish laws on every occasion. Such a person would im- 

 mediately be under suspicion, and there are so many per- 

 sons guilty that they would make life a burden to any 

 one whom they had reason to suspect of giving infor- 

 mation concerning their wholesale slaughter of deer and 

 trout. They have no more regard for the close time than 

 a Hindoo has for the Sabbath, and they don't like such 

 people as would be glad to see the game laws enforced. 

 Why, they have only shot down wardens in cold blood in 

 that part of the State, and they are ready to commit 

 almost any crime against any man who may attempt to 

 restrain them. They even look with suspicion on the 

 hunter they are guiding till he has performed some act 

 that is contrary to the fish and game protective laws. 

 Then they laugh and quietly remark that "You will do. 

 You are one of us," or some acknowledgment of that 

 sort. 



Maine backwoodsmen are peculiar people when they 

 happen in their ignorance to believe that their rights are 

 about to be infringed upon, It is not out of the recollec- 

 tion of many people when some of the inhabitants of the 

 town of Kingfield attempted to "resist the draft." Men 

 actually armed themselves, and were ready to defy the 

 United States Government, but when a few squads of sol- 

 diers marched into town from Augusta, the armed citi- 

 zens slunk away or took to the woods, I have not the 

 slightest doubt but what a game warden would come to 

 harm who should singly and openly attempt to enforce 

 the law against crust-hunting deer in some sections of 

 the above mentioned counties this winter. 



But where is the government of a civilized State? 

 Where is the love for law and order found in the other 

 New England States? It is claimed that the Commis- 

 sioners have no means with which to enforce the game 

 laws, and this is, without a doubt, the truth. But where 

 is the Governor of the State? Has he no power in the 

 matter? 



Pickerel fishing through the ice begins to be popular 

 sport, on the ponds about Boston, The weather has been 

 very cold till of late, and those that have been the first to 

 start out have had good sport. Good strings are reported 

 from tlae Plymouth county ponds. Pickerel are being- 

 taken even in Charles Eiver, above the dam at Water- 

 town, None are taken in tide water, which flows up to 

 the dam, but above unusual numbers are i-eported this 

 winter. Hardly the usual amount of pickerel fishing 

 has been done on the ponds in Maine this v-inter, up to 

 the present time. The weather has been extremely cold 

 and the snow unusrtally deep. This, with the ice nearly 

 ■3ft, in thickness, has been sufficient to keep the average 

 pickerel fisherman at home and in some Avarm corner. 

 But pleasant A\'eather now will set the ball in motion, and 

 it only takes a single sti'ing of pickerel brought into a 

 town to bring out the tackle of all the other boya, and 

 the »ext day they are offi 



The first hearing before the Committee on Fisheries 

 and Game of the Maine Legislature was held last 

 Wednesday. The hearing was largely attended by noted 

 sportsmen and giudes. T. W. Vose, Esq., of Bangor, 

 represented the Fish and Game Commissioners. He 

 recommeiided amendments to the present laws asfollovrs: 

 That September be added to the open season on bull 

 moose, deer and caribou; December should be closed; that 

 special protection be placed upon cow^ moose at all sea- 

 sons; that nothing shall prevent any marketman having 

 an established place of business in the State from pur- 

 chasing any moose, caribou or deer lawfully caught, 

 killed or destroyed , and selling the same at retail in open 

 season to local customers; that no person or corporation 

 shall transport moose, deer or caribou, unless open to 

 view, tagged and plainly labeled with the name of owner 

 and accompanied by him, under a penalty of $40, and any 

 one not the actual owner of such game who represents 

 himself to be the owner shall be liable to penalties; that 

 any officer authorized to enforce the fish and game laws 

 may without process arrest any person found violating or 

 who has violated any of said laws; and he shall with rea- 

 sonable diligeitce cause him to be taken before the neigh- 

 boring trial justice in any county for a warrant and trial; 

 that no jierson at any one time in open season shall kill, 

 expose for sale or have in possession except alive, more 

 than fifteen wood ducks, wild ducks, teal, partridge, 

 woodcock, quad or prairie chickens, under penalty of $5 

 for each bird in excess; nor shall any person or corpora- 

 tion carry from place to place any of the above-mentioned 

 birds unless they are open to view, tagged and accom- 

 panied by their owner ; that one-half the fines recovered 

 for violation of the game laws shall be paid to the com- 

 plainant, and the other half, with costs, to the county; 

 that fishermen can only catch or have in their possession 

 251bs, of landlocked salmon, the limit now being 50, 



At the evening session of the committee these amend- 

 ments were reviewed and explained to some extent by 

 Commissioner Henry O, Stanley, and doubtless a bill of 

 some sue)) form will be reported by the committee. The 

 proposed, amendments met some opposition in. the discus- 

 sion which followed befox'e the committee and they have 

 been pretty severely handled in the newspapers of the 

 State since. The Itimber land owners of Washington 

 and Hancock cottnties are bitterly opposed to opening 

 September, because they regard the month as particu- 

 larly undesirable to have sjiortsmen in the forests, on 

 account of their fires. The closing of December was op- 

 posed by Capt. F. C. Barker. F. E. Timberlake, of Phil- 

 lips, would not limit the number of pounds of trout to 25. 

 He was in favor of opening September, If the lumber 

 people were very strenuous about the opening of all of 

 the month of September the matter might be compro- 

 mised by making the open season begin Sept. 15. 



A gentleman, evidently not a citizen of the State, de- 

 plores the opening of September to shooting in the 

 State and suggests' that the partridges will greatly suf- 

 fer from such action. He forgets, if he ever knew it, 

 that September is an open month on these birds in the 

 Pine Ti^ee State. 



D. H. Blauchard, of Boston, enters an earnest plea for 

 the moose. He has visited the State every year for thirty 

 years, generafiy with rod and gun, in legal open season. 

 He has never killed a deer or a moose. He regrets to 

 note the wholesale slaugliter going on under the present 

 laws. He would put an absolute close time of seven 

 years on tlio moose, and woidd shorten the time for the 

 killing of deer to two months, instead of lengthening it 

 to four. 



Another citizen of Maine would prohibit the hunting 

 of partridges with the ordinary yelping dog. He would 

 allow setters and pointers to be used in hunting that 

 game, but the dog that trees the partridge and barks, he 

 would abolish. A Boston sportsman objects to the limit- 

 ing of the number of partridges killed m one season, by 

 any one hunter, to fifteen, as proposed to the committee 

 by the representative of the Game Commissioners, M. 

 Vose, He thinks that a hunter should be allowed to take 

 all the game he can get in the open season. It happens 

 that this same sportsman makes an annual trip to Maine 

 for i)artridge hunting. He goes in October. He employs 

 tlie best guide that he can get and hunts all the time for 

 two or three weeks. His record has frequently been 

 100 partridges in a season, and seldom has it been less 

 than 50. A law limiting the nunaber he might kill to 15 

 — enough for any reasonable hunter — would distress him 

 exceedingly. 



The Piscataquis Fish and Game Protective Association 

 has memorialized the Maine Senate. They refer to the 

 great value of the fish and game about Moosehead Lake 

 to the citizens of the State interested there, some 15 ho- 

 tels being maintained there in the summer season and 25 

 steamers run on the lake. The committee deplores the 

 trouble between the Game Commissioners and wardens 

 and the people of Washington county (already touched 

 upon in the Forest and Stream). The committee prays 

 that the laws be so amended that one-half of the fines for 

 conviction be again given to the wardens. The committee 

 recommends that the State might very profitably expend 

 §25,000 annually in the proper lirotection and propagation 

 of fish and game. 



Another very curious feature has comeunder my notice 

 of late in regard to the Maine game law. Is is in the 

 form, of an item like this. It appeared in the Lewiston 

 Jo2irnal: 



*'N. C, Locke, of Salem, Mass., has oft'ered a liberal re- 

 ward for the apprehension of any one unlawfully dog- 

 ging or killing a deer in the towns of Eoxbury, Byron, 

 Mexico, Dixfield, Weld and Carthage. This reward 

 would be in addition to the State fines akeady imposed." 



Another gentleman in Massachusetts offers a reward of 

 $40 for evidence presented to the game w^ai'dens that shall 

 lead to the conviction of any person for dogging deer ia 

 either Oxford, Franklin or Somerset counties in that 

 State. He also offers the same reward to any warden 

 that shall of his own efforts work out the conviction of 

 any person for dogging deer in the same counties. This 

 is a decidedly new feature of game law enforcement. 

 There is a chance for wealthy men w^ho love to hunt and 

 fish in Maine to do a good work. Special. 



FOKBST AND Si'SEAM, Box 3,833, N, Y. city, lias deseriptive Illus- 

 trated circulars of W. B, Leflmgwell's book, "Wild Fowl Shoot- 

 ing," wtiich will be mailed free on request. The book is pro- 

 nounced by "Nanit," "Gloan," "Dick Swlveller," "Sybillene" and 

 other competent aattiorltlea to be the best treaties oa tbe BobJect 



