Oct. 15, 1891.1 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



249 



AMONG THE CURRITUCK BAY BIRDS-II. 



IConcluded from Page ?^9.] 



IirSED that morning a No. 12 Colts gun, and found is 

 worked admirably. The natives here though invari- 

 ably shoot snipe with a No. 10 bore. As regards the sizn of 

 shot the standard seems to be No. 8, but I think that it 

 too large for the work, one size smaller, or even two, 

 being better adapted to the task, as the snipe is not 

 a tough bird and is easily killed. 



The sun was about an hour high when the sky became 

 overcast with clouds, and one of those sudden storms so 

 common to the North Carolina coast buirst upon us. The 

 rain came down in a perfect deluge, and driven almost 

 horizontally by the gale of wind. Now it was that the 

 bay birds came with a rush, and it was something new 

 to me to shoot in the face of a tropical thunder storm. 

 The rain was so dense it was impossible to see the snipe 

 until they were well over the decoys, and it was tough 

 work bringing them down. I had to shoot entirely with 

 my bade to the wind, it was utterly impossible to see how 

 to aim facing the blast. The. rain came like buckets of 

 water dashed in my face, completely blurring my vision. 

 As it was I made many misses, and only knocked over 

 about one for every two shots. In a few moments the 

 face of the whole country becamed changed, instead of 

 the level sea meadows with here and there a pond, the 

 scene was reversed, and as the 

 storm died away and the sun 

 burst out his struggling beams _^ 

 showed a vast sheet of water, 

 with only here and there a hil- 

 lock of sand. 



Then ensued some minutes 

 of rest which we all utilized in 

 gathering our game. My setter 

 J essie saved me many a long 

 chase after cripples. It is a 

 singular fact that a blue-blood- 

 de setter hates to retrieve a 

 salt-water snipe. From long 

 generations of hunting the 

 quail, they learn to know that 

 kind of game by iustifJct, and 

 any bird so different in scent 

 from the quail, or upland game 

 birds, ceases to aft'ord them 

 pleasure. Certainly, Jessie 

 manifested at first great reluc- 

 tance to touch them, and it 

 was only the result of implicit 

 obedience brought about by 

 thorough training that made 

 her obey my commands. 



Unless one forces himself to 

 eat at the untoward hour be- 

 fore sunrise he is certain to 

 suffer for it. Nature abhors a 

 vacuum and shooting at such 

 a f>lace on an empty stomach 

 is sure to be followed by a 

 violent headache; the face be- 

 comes flushed, the eyes glassy, 

 and the temples throb pain- 

 fully. The summer before all 

 my" three companions were 

 compelled to stop shooting 

 and be taken back home in 

 the cart utterly prostrated. 

 This time I insisted upon the 

 crowd eating at least a biscuit 

 apiece, so when we knocked 

 off for the morning all hands 

 were as fresh as the proverbial 

 lark. 



A count up showed that my 

 pile contained 114 birds to 150 

 shells fired. Cap came next 

 with a score of 80, while York 

 made a fine showing, it was 

 Ms first experience with the 

 bay bu-ds, and with 100 shells 

 used he had brought down 57 

 birds, all single shots. 



Tuesday we varied the pro- 

 ceedings by a water trip to the 



various clubs in the Sound. The Swan Island property 

 is very valuable, so also is that of the Lighthouse Club, 

 and a glance over their register shows they are a set of 

 genial, jolly fellows, sportsmen and gentlemen to the 

 core. Our party is much indebted to the courteous 

 beeper of the Lighthouse Club for many kindnesses. 

 Monkey Island Club is a secluded retreat and is probably 

 the smallest club in existence, having only four members. 



There have been three new clubs lately formed in this 

 vicinity, the Martin Island Club, the Deal Island Club, 

 and the Ragged Island Club. The two former are fine 

 places for ducks, such as mallard, shufiius, black duck 

 and the like; but the Ragged Island's property is without 

 exception the finest game i^reserve along the whole At- 

 lantic coast for redhead and canvasback. This lies m 

 Back Bay, adjoining Currituck Sound, and consists of 

 some thirty or more islands, ranging from six acres to a 

 few rods in area. The preserve is about three miles long 

 by one and a half miles wide. The Ragged Islands have 

 been the most famous shooting spot in this section, in- 

 deed, if all the tales I have heard of the bags made there 

 are true it is a sportsman's paradise. The shares of this 

 association are held at .| 1,000, Mr. C. A. Woodward, a 

 young merchant of Norfolk, is the president. 



Returning, we reach our own club about 10 o'clock, 

 nearly starved, only to find Shant gone to bed and noth- 

 ing in the house to eat, he not expecting us until next 

 day. We then went over to Leon's house, and found the 

 remains of a supper. As hungry as we were, the sight 

 took away our appetites, and we told him we would eat 

 no supper if he would have a smoking hot breakfast for 

 us earlj' in the morning. To this he assented, and we re- 

 turned to sleep with such aching voids that it tinctured 

 our dreams. 



We aroused ourselves and went over to Leon's to eat 

 that hot breakfast; to our dismay the whole house was 

 buried in a profound sleep. After hammering at the 

 door that worthy came yawning into the porch, his 

 "gallusses" hanging down his back. He then drawled out 

 he "hadn't no breakfast," and he ushered us into the 

 same table that had already turned our Btomachs the 



evening before. There lay the greasy ham and the 

 saleratus biscuits. It was eat or starve, "we could not go 

 to the blinds in our condition, since we had not eaten a 

 square meal for twenty-four hours. We were like the 

 man who had to eat crow, "we got outside of it, but we 

 didn't hanker arter it." 



Getting Shant White to hitch up his team, York and I 

 put out for the blinds, and during the whole journey not 

 a word was spoken. We were too mad. But the bay 

 birds flew beautifully, and kept us working at our guns 

 in a lively manner. I used a No. 10 and 16, and the 

 latter fully answered my purpose in the majority of shots. 



After the first rush of birds was over I filled 'my briar- 

 root, and discovered I had forgotten to bring matches. 

 Calling Jessie, I strolled over to York's blind and found 

 him puffing away at his pipe, the perfect picture of con- 

 tentment. I noticed a couple of strange men in the 

 blinds banging away like mad, I was amazed, for I 

 knew none of the clubmen had arrived, so I inquired of 

 my companion what it meant. "Why," said he, "they 

 are two visitors that Shant White invited to shoot." 



"Who gave him the power to invite people to shoot 

 over the club grounds?" was my natural question. "No 

 one,'' responded York, "White says he owns a portion of 

 this marsh, and can ask whom he pleases: he invited 

 Burgess and myself to come and shoot here whenever we 

 wish to, saying he would take care of us." "Well," I , 



CLUB TEAM TROPHY. 



The trophy, made by Messrs. Tiff-my & Co , of New Yoi'k, Is a punch bowl, nuiu. in height, Uln. dla 

 about l-lpoz- The bodv Is decorated with a flock of pigeons and festoons of laurel yrowlug from the uup 



tci.aud weight 



_ _ _ .edg", while the 



stem Is divided In section!!, where the names of the wiaaors are to be inscrloed. On the lower partoi ase is etched in 

 floriated letters the iascrlption, "The Club Team Trophy." The bowl is richly gilt inside, and circling around the lining 

 the names of the competing clubs are etched In harmony with the rtecorationfl: The Carteret, Westminster Kennel, 

 Country Club and Larohmorit. The cup is now on exhibition in Tiffany's window on Dnion Square. 



rejoined, "I don't see that we clubmen have any rights 

 at all." 



"No," said York, "neither Burgess nor I are going to 

 take any stock in this club, we might as well throw our 

 money in a ditch." About noon we knocked off with 

 about eight dozen birds apiece to our credit. 



Wednesday evening we drove in the wagon several 

 miles, and seeing some grass plover I placed my decoys 

 in a pond and without any blind I squatted on the edge 

 and awaited developments. The others kept on to occupy 

 their old blinds. Of all the birds in this section the grass 

 plover is the finest, and largest, they do not often come 

 in such numbers as to afford continuous shooting. They 

 are fast flyers, and rarely circle around the decoys, but 

 dart by. I happened to strike the right spot at the right 

 time, and never in my experience did I ever see such a 

 steady flight, they came twenty or thirty a minute with- 

 out a break. I had some three score of No. 10 shells, and 

 I fired straight along, the birds ch-opping right and left, 

 and but for my dog I would have lost most of them, for 

 it was useless to chase cripples, one would miss a dozen 

 shots by so doing, and owing to the long shots, fully one- 

 half were only winged and fell into the grass. Jessie lay 

 crouched at my feet motionless, and only at the word of 

 command would she dart like a streak after the bird and 

 drop it at my feet. Owing to my want of concealment 

 all the birds shied to the right or left and every shot had 

 to be taken over 50yds. Just about this, time there oc- 

 curred the most fascinating effect for a sportsman that it 

 is possible to conceive. The birds flew straight from the 

 west, and low in the western horizon was a huge bank of 

 clouds behind which the beams of the setting sun 

 gleamed, changing the mass of vapor into a roseate, 

 golden and crimson hue, The sight was a gorgeous one, 

 and dazzled the eye. Right from this mass of opaline 

 tinted clouds the birds shot out like a dart hurled by a 

 powerful engine. The glare was so strong that the birds 

 could not be seen until within 50yds, It seemed an 

 occular illusion, to see the flash and glancing of wings 

 appear suddenly from the fantastic, colored mist and 



wing equal to a seagull's, and they know how to use 

 them; when killed they do not fall, but tumble to the 

 ground. I soon fired my last shell from my No, 10 

 Greener and seized my No. 16-bore, but I might as well 

 have shot with a horse pistol. 



The sun had set by this time, and I killed a few that 

 were directly over my head, but I did not knock over 

 more than one in five shots with the small gun. I 

 stopped shooting before it was too dark to pick up the 

 birds that had fallen in the pond, and just as the wagon 

 drove up I finished my count, having exactly 51 grass 

 plover and a few yellow shanks. Though I built a blind 

 in the same spot soon after, I never silled another plover, 

 nor did any of my companions. The birds simply and 

 mysteriously disappeared. Cap's score during the day 

 was 160 gray ducks and yellow shanks. 



Thursday morning all of the party save myself went 

 fishing about three miles uj) the beach, where a half sub- 

 merged wreck lay. They caught nothing, but the sun 

 got in its powerful work and as they had splashed about 

 bare-footed they all had blistered feet and ankles. The 

 condition of the men Friday was pitiable. Mac was sick 

 in bed, York had a big swelling on his upper lip, which 

 prevented him enjoying the hugest joke, for to laugh was 

 torture. The skin was cracking on his nose, and he 

 could hardly limp across the room. Cap was used up, 

 his ankles had all the skin burned off by the sun, his face 

 badly scorched, and his wrists 

 blistered by bites of mosquitoes 

 and bedbugs, and I was scari- 

 fied by the devilish insects on 

 wrists and ankles. I went to 

 the blinds alone that morning, 

 and had scored over a hundred 

 birds before my friends ap- 

 peared. The yellow shanks 

 and grass plover had vamoos- 

 ed, and the graybacks were 

 by themselves. When Shant 

 White dropped me my decoys 

 the sun had just risen, and I 

 was no sooner settled in my 

 blind than three men formed a 

 skirmish about 100yds. ahead 

 of me, and two more stood an 

 equal distance behind me, and 

 they blazed away at every bird 

 that flew over them. By what 

 authority they were shooting 

 on the club's territory I do not 

 know, nor did I ask. I was 

 almost as humble as Uriah 

 Heep by this time. Though I 

 said nothing, I was like the 

 Irishman's owl, and kept up a 

 thundering sight of thinking. 

 The birds flew beautifully, and 

 when my 135 shells were ex- 

 hausted it was somewhere 

 about 9 o'clock, so I signaled 

 Shant to bring up his cart and 

 take me back to hie house. 

 The others remained in the 

 blinds and retm-ned three hours 

 later, with but few birds, as 

 they had dispersed over the 

 feeding grounds. 



Early in the morning, and 

 late in the evening, is the best 

 time for shooting, the birds are 

 on the wing then and stool 

 readily. It is a waste of time, 

 labor and patience to sit in the 

 blinds during the forenoon and 

 afternoon, to gay nothing of 

 the positive discomfort of sit- 

 ting under a dazzling sun, un- 

 protected by shade or umbrella. 



The secret of making big 

 bags consists in three things, 

 first, good shooting, it goes 

 without saying that the expert 

 handling of the gun is the 

 paramount consideration. Sec- 

 ondly, to keep motionless in 

 the blind until the very mo- 

 ment you are ready to shoot. A single incautious gesture 

 and the game will swirl to the right or left out of gunshot. 

 The third is, to let the birds pass the decoys, and just as 

 they turn or beat back give it to them. Never, if you 

 can help it, let a bird light among the decoys. One is 

 almost certain to shoot, and the scattering pellets will 

 riddle the decoys as well as kill the birds. Many large 

 scores have been made by members. The club has un- 

 fortunately no written record, and he tallys are marked 

 Hke Rip Van Winkle'sscore on th^ wall. As brief as it 

 is, nothing could plainer show what excellent shooting 

 this place affords. The worst score was a member from 

 Washington City, who wrote on the wall under date of 

 May 7, 1890, "I bagged five yellowlegs, and that was all. 

 I made big preparations, and these snipe cost me about 

 $30 apiece." 



Friday all hands were out early, and it being our last 

 day we remained in the blinds until the early afternoon. 

 Cap, who took an all day's shot, closed the day with 106, 

 Both York and Mac did weU. I stopped at 118. A final 

 count up showed that the grand total was 1,267 birds. 

 As large as the Ecore is, it could have been easily doubled 

 had we hunted steadily and started out by dawn every 

 morning. 



On returning from each shoot the birds were laid side 

 by side belly upward in shallow zinc cases about 3ft. 

 long, 12in. wide, and about Sin. deep, there was only one 

 layer of birds put in each case, which was then fastened 

 and placed in a large refrigerator, and covered with 

 broken ice. In shipping these cases were placed in ice 

 boxes. The birds soon become frozen, and will remain 

 fresh and sweet as long as the ice last, which should be 

 renewed every twenty-fom- hours. It is indispensable 

 that this is looked to, a change of temperature for even 

 one hour will ruin the birds. We were compelled to 

 order another ton of ice; at least half was lost by melting 

 in transit. Another thing, the birds when packed must 

 be ijerfectly dry. The slightest moisture decomposes 

 them. 



After dark all hands set to work collecting our traps. 



luminous shade. These grass plover have a spread of Mac and I settled with Shant. His charges were ex- 



