FffiB. 2S, 1893.] 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



1B7 



some insect detected by his quick eye, was a little sparrow 

 hawk, whose tameness surprised me, untU one of the boys 

 whistled to the bird, and it flew down to him, and after 

 circling onc-e or twice about his head, alighted on his 

 shoulder. A less attractive pet was a great'horned owl, 

 which, having been recently captured, was still on the 

 defensive, and made hostile demoiistratioiiR wlienever any 

 one approached him, ruffling his feathers, rolling his great 

 eyes about, and snapping his bill in a manner quite 

 alarming. All these, and a hundred other pets quite as 

 curious and interesting, but wliich in the course of time 

 had died either by accident or of old age, had been cap- 

 tured and reared by the children, whose fondness for, and 

 interest in, these wild creatures was very great. 



The father of this family is an energetic and successful 

 man. His farm produces a hving for his family, and his 

 horses and cattle yield him profit. He has almost at his 

 door a gold mine which he works in a small way, and 

 which pays him. moderate return, .and half a mile from 

 the house is a coal mine which in time, after the country 

 has been settled up, can hardly fail to prove very valu- 

 able. A day was very pleasantly passed at this ranch, 

 and I greatly enjoyed meeting this charming family. 

 Then I had to pack my horse and resume my journey, 

 leaving with regret this modern "Desert Home.'" 



El Vie jo. 



MUSK OX SPECIMENS. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



. New York, Feb. 20. — The comments of your corre- 

 spondent, Mr. Tappan Adney, in your issue of Jan, 26, in 

 an article on the musk ox of the week previous, are likely 

 to mislead your readers and reflect upon tlie accuracy of 

 the statements therein, it is necessary to explain the 



. reason for the unintended omission. It Avas unfortunate 

 that we did not refer to the specimen of the musk ox in 

 the American Musemn of Natural History to which he so 

 kindly calls our attention. The omission was due to our 

 not knowing of its existence so close at hand. Tliat we 

 could not liave seen the specimen is quite true. That we 

 did not know of a specimen being 'mot more tlian two 

 miles from our shop" is also quite true. We shall lose no 

 time in hunting up the specimen. We are indebted to om- 

 correspondent for several items of interest. His informa- 

 tion as to the measurements of tliis particular specimen, 

 in which he is so interested, are veiy valuable. It is also 

 important to know by whom and when the specimen was 

 mounted. 



There is one item in our correspondent's comments that 

 is slightly cloudy, to wit, why he refers to the month of 

 November of the particular year of 1891 as a most favor- 

 able time when we might have seen this specimen. 



AVe regret exceedingly that we could not, under the 

 circumstances, have included this sixth specimen in the 

 article, and thus do jastice to the specimen and to the 

 American Museum of Natm-al History, of which we are 

 aU so justly proud, and have the data of specimens accu- 

 rate. 



It is interesting to know the specimen in the Musetmi 

 stands at the shoulder ("not including the long hair") 4ft. 

 and has a length of 7ft. 3in. The specimen figured in the 

 Forest and Streaji would measure somewhat more than 

 this, if it were not for the fact that the body as well as the 

 head of our specimen is turned from a central line very 

 much to one side, thus making the total measurement 

 much less in length. It would be very interesting if oiu- 

 corres]5ondent would give the size of the honf of the speci- 

 men in the Museum of Natural History. This feature of 

 the animal would very hkely prove or disprove the validity 

 of our claim as to the specimen which was prepared by us 

 behig the largest at present in this country. It is a w"ell- 

 known fact that the general size of an animal's hoof indi- 

 cates the size of the animal much more accurately than 

 the bulk of his horns or antlers, and we shall stand by our 

 assertion that this specimen is the largest until some other 

 more convincing proof is given than that recorded by our 

 correspondent in his comments. If he shall do this we 

 will gladly step aside and yield the palm to the greatest. 



Frederic S. Webster. 



The Pine Grosbeak. 



Bethel, Maine.— In your issue of Feb. 9, a well known 

 naturalist, Mr. William Brewster, of Cambridge, Mass., 

 makes inquiries regarding the pine grosbeak. I have 

 been much interested in that bu-d for many years, and 

 have observed its habits here, in the northern part of Ox- 

 ford county, Maine. They make their appearance every 

 year in the month of October — sometimes in large flocks 

 and at other times in small squads— a few paii-s, and often 

 one or two pairs are seen. They remain with us during 

 the winter and leave us as spring approaches. They feed 

 on the buds of trees, seeming to prefer the poplar to all 

 others. They are very fond of apples, iiying from ti-ee to 

 tree in our orchards in search of some remaining apples 

 left on the trees. For the past three weeks a few pairs 

 have lived in the village of Bethel, occasionally alighting 

 in our streets in front of the stores, picking up the waste 

 of fruit etc. , accumulated there. They seem to be very 

 tame, and can be apiM-oached Avithin a few yards. 



Their markings are of various hues— slate-brown tinged 

 with green, yellow, red in almost every shade, the old 

 males being quite brilUant with scarlet on their backs, 

 with always a white feather in the wing. 



I have never seen them in the deep forest, miles away 

 from human habitation, although my occupation as a 

 trapper and hunter for more than forty yeai-s has given 

 me the opportunity. They seem to love the open country 

 Avith occasional woods. Where they breed is a mystery 

 to me, as they do not summer in tliis part of Maine. From 

 the 20th of December last past to the 20th of last month, 

 was the coldest weather known in Maine for years, the 

 mercury never appearing above zero during that time, 

 even at noon, and often being 20 to 26 below in Bethel, 

 yet these birds have been frequently seen, I tliink they 

 change places frequently, moving from place to place,- 

 perhaiK in search of food. J. G. Eicfl. 



Newspaper Unnatural History. 



[From Harper^s Weddi/.^ 



When the boa constrictor Qxeg his glittering eye on the 



canary bird, the canary bird becomes exceedingly restless, 

 and flutters and ti-ies to get away. But it does not suc- 

 ceed. It cannot escape the boa constrictor's fascinations, 

 and in spite of all its shuddering struggles, it stays where 

 it Avas and gets swalloAved up. * * * The canary has 

 wings, to be sure, but once the boa constrictors eye is on 

 it, it cajiuoi fly aAvay. It cries out and flutters and strug- 

 gles, Ijiit m the end the serpent makes a meal of it, and 

 smiles and wipes his mouth.. 



ANOTHER MOOSE IN HARNESS. 



Princeton, N. J., Feb. 4.— I noticed in the columns of 

 the Forest and Streaai an account of a cow moose AAdiich 

 Avas being driven at a, fair hi Maine; the note also said 

 that this was the only individual to be found under simi- 

 lar conditions. I inclose you a picture of a cow moose, 

 which was one of a team exV'i'bited at the Trenton Fair 



MOOSE IN HAENESS. 



From an amateur photograpli by A. H. PUlUipa. 



last September by Mr. L. H. Fitzgerald, of Wmnipeg. The 

 mate was a Iavo year old bull, Avith apparently abnor- 

 mally-sliaped antlers, otherwise a weU-developed speci- 

 men. Both these Avere very gentle and easily managed, 

 either single or double. 



Mr. Fitzgerald also exhibited a team of elk (a picture of 

 Avhich I inclose) under the same conditions; both of them 

 were fine specimens, though of course they were not so 

 much of a rarity. These animals Avere procured in the 

 section of coimtry just northAvest of Winnipeg. A. H. P. 



'mife mid ^tttf. 



"Game Laios in Brief," United States amd Canada, 

 mustrated, 25 cents. "Book of the Game La/ws" {full 

 text), so cents. 



A BEAR'S FREAK. 



Proa^deNce, Rhode Island.— One day more and Ave 

 must turn homeward. For ten days Ave two "sporters," 

 with a guide and his helper, had"^ been camped on the 

 shores of a beautifvd little lake among the Canadian 

 mountains near the Maine boundary. We had killed a 

 fine caribou soon after our arrival, and, our larder being 

 amply supplied, we had taken life easy, enjoying the 

 Avoods, now bright in the glory of their autumn coloring, 

 the mountains rising in gentle slopes about us, the clear 

 pure air, and the sense of freedom. But now we wanted 

 some wild meat to take home, and arranged that the guide 

 and myself should hunt on the morrow. 



The cold fog of morning lay heaAy on om- little lake as 

 our guide paddled me across at early daAvn. For two 

 miles I followed a logging road, then turned off for a mile 

 to a little pond Avhere I had found our first caribou. 

 Quiet it lay in the forest bed, Avith not a ripple on its sur- 

 face nor a sign of life on its shores. I looked along the 

 margin for fresh tracks, but seeing none, turned back, re- 

 tracing my steps slowly, thinking where I should go next, 

 when across the pond a spot of white caught my eye. It 

 moved, and soon I could plainly see a small caribou walk- 

 ing away from me. Quickly as possible I placed mvself 

 behind a point of rocks out of sight of the animal. Then 

 I hurried to the point, and crouching low, worked my 

 Avay over the rocks and looked along the shore. The 

 little caribou, a yearling, was about 200yds. away, and fifty 

 yards nearer Avas a much larger one, a fuU-groAvn coav. 

 The cow was feeding and Avalking slowly almost directly 

 away from me. On one knee, Avith rifle cocked and 

 ready, I Avaited, hoping she would turn so as to give me a 

 quartering shot, and she did trum just enough to give me 

 a narrow view of her side and neck. Then I fired. The 

 4.5cal., hollow-pointed ball struck the hind leg about six 

 inches above the gambrel joint. The animal seemed 

 crazed by the shock, falling partly down and jumping in 

 and out of the water till I could fire again, putting a ball 

 through her neck, when she fell dead in about eight 

 inches of water. I was not able to move her from the 

 place where she fell, so I went to Avork taking off the skin 

 and dressing out the meat, standmg in the water. 



Before I had been long at this work I heard some ani- 

 mal make two jumps in the bushes about three rods from 

 me. Quickly I secreted myself behind a tree with rifle 

 ready, thinking a bull was following the tracks of the 

 cow and might show himself. Again all was stiU, and I 

 resumed my Avork. Just a little noise occasionaUy came 

 from the bushes, a shght rustling of the leav^ or the 

 breaking of a Httle stick. I removed the skin with the 

 head attached, and as it was too heavy to carry, placed it 

 over a big log at the Avater's edge. Then with my skin- 

 ning knife I separated one ham to carry to camp, and 

 placed the rest of the meat beside the skin. Back to 

 camp I went, and before noon our guide and his helper 

 started to bring in tiie skin and as much meat as they 

 could carry. 



They returned loaded Avith meat, but cotdd not find the 

 skin. It had disappeared, the meat by its side being im- 

 dietuxbed. - The men thought they had noisunderstood me, 



and that I started with the hide and had left it somewhere 

 on the A\^ay because it was too heaAy. 



There were fresh bear tracks near the meat, but they 

 supposed these Avere made before the caribou was killed. 



We had no time to investigate this mystery, as we must 

 make fifteen miles over a bad trail the next day. This 

 Avas in the fall of 1892. 



Our guide recently Avrites that he went back to the 

 place where the hide was lost, and by hairs on the roots 

 and bushes Avas able to follow where the hair had been 

 dragged tifl. he found the bones of the skull and pieces of 

 skin Avith quantities of hair where a bear had torn up the 

 skin. 



The bear must ha,ve been watching for me and waiting 

 for me to leave so that he could help himself, and it was 

 him I heard in the bushes. But why did he take the skin 

 and leave those fine caribou steaks? Strange, was it not? 



F. T. 



INCIDENTS IN MY HUNTING LIFE. 



Editor Forest and Stream: 



Looking over some old diaries, I come across things 

 which m.ay be of some interest to your readers, and for 

 my part I woidd be glad if some one would explain two 

 or three of them. 



In July 1888, while fishin.g a small trout stream in the 

 Eastern ToAvnships, not far from Shelbrooke, I saw some 

 rather peculiar things happen. I Avas carrying a .22 rifle 

 with me, and had given it to one of my companions while 

 I crossed the stream on some rather slippery rocks. I had 

 just reached the other side when I Jieard something 

 rustling in the_ leaves near my companion. He heard it 

 at the same time, and seeing a movement in a heap of 

 brush, fired the rifle at it. When we ,got to the brush 

 heap, we found, much to our regret, that he had shot a 

 hen gi-ouse. I said, "Of course it can't be helped, but 

 never shoot till you see your game." My other companion 

 Avas sitting on the ground and gave the unwitting law- 

 breaker no quarter. He felt it, too, but said nothing. 

 Just then his accuser got up, and there beneath his seat 

 Avasapoor little chick, crushed flat. "Now," said D., 

 who had shot the grouse, "talk about murderhig game 

 out of season; Jack has not got courage enough to face a 

 full groAvn grouse, but sits unmercifully on the poor 

 chick and smotliers it before it can fly," 



''Well," I said, "he deserves some credit for his attempt 

 at incubation, but he was rather too previous." 



In the same year and month I was in the woods near 

 Quebec, and foimd a very peculiar nest with two young 

 and one egg in it. I saw a black-eyed cuckoo fly out of a 

 bush near me and shot it, as I wanted to study the bird, 

 and to have convincing proof that this bird was a native 

 of our woods. It then struck me that there might be a 

 nest in the bush out of which it flew. There was, as I 

 have stated. Now can any one explain these statements: 



I. The birds were young "cuckoos," as nearly as I could 

 judge, and the egg was nearly hatched. 



II. The bird was a female, and flew only a short dis- 

 tance from the nest. 



III. Birds generally lay eggs in the morning, and it was 

 then 3.10 P.M. And, though the bird might have been 

 laying at the time I disturbed it (had it been moming), it 

 was scarcely likely to be doing so at that time of day. 



IV. Both the young birds and the egg were quite warm, 

 so the bird was probably sitting on the nest when dis- 

 turbed. 



I ha,ve always understood that the "cuckoo" laid its 

 eggs in other birds' nests, and hare even found eggs of 

 other birds thrown out of the nest when they, by their 

 number, pi-evented the cuckoo from depositing its oAvn. 

 I fear I am trespassing too much on your valuable space, 

 and will therefore defer my other anecdotes to a later 

 date. L. D. Von Ifpland. 



A SCRIMMAGE IN THE CORN. 



Ottawa, Kan., Feb. IS.— Editor Forest and Stream: I 

 promised to write you of our wolf hunt as soon as I could 

 obtain information. Well, the fact is we have had three 

 appointments during the winter, a round-up of coyotes on 

 paper. The appointments were all kept— boys, men, tin 

 horns and dogs were on the groimd; even the coyotes 

 Avere on time and did not disai^point their company, 

 except in not allowing themselves to be caught. At one 

 of the hunts it was claimed nine were seen, though it is 

 more than likely that there were three Avhich were seen 

 three times. There was always some open place through 

 which all escaped. The only successful round-up that I 

 have heard of in this vicinity was taken part in by Henry 

 G. , a German farmer, his wife and dog and one coyote, 

 and was not adA^ertised — in fact, was quite an impromptu 

 alfair, occurring shortly after midnight one moonlight 

 night in the early part of winter. I give the farmer's 

 version : 



"My vife she vake me up. She say, 'Henry, Henry, 

 A'ake up. The tog after someting.' I shump out of bed, 

 pull on my pools— not vait for pants— -und take my shot- 

 gun rmd two shells und run oud. Dere vas my tog — hair 

 all turned de wrong vay. I say, 'Sick em Tige,' und he 

 runs to chicken house und dere vas a coyote, und dey 

 fight avay troo der cornfield — corn all cut olf. Pretty 

 quick my tog he gets tired und covote start off. Too 

 far, but I shoots anyvay and cripples his hindleg; den 

 my tog fight him some more und I try for load my gun, 

 but de shell too big, so I call to my vife, 'Bring me some 

 shells quick.' Und I not likes to see my tog all chawed 

 up so I i-uns up mit him, mid der coyotelets go Tige und 

 shumps at me. I swing my gun round und hit him like 

 timder mit der gun, und hit him so hard I break off der 

 butt of my gun. Then Tige fight him some more again 

 und den my vife comes running troo der corn-stocks — falls 

 down some times— but brings me der shells, und I have 

 the grm barrels und locks all right so I loads again, imd 

 der coyote gets away from Tige und I gets a good shot 

 at his side, imd fills him full of shot and he goes dead, 

 und den my vife und me goes back to bed, but no go 

 sleep for long time." 



I suppose not— Avouid you? What a picture this would 

 have made. f. B. 



A Factor in Man Making. 



"Aztec" writes from Mexico: "Of course I like yonr new olothee, 

 hat and all. I have been sending the paper to a nephew in Missouri, 

 and my sister, who has just come from there, says it is an Important 

 factor in rapidly making a iqan of him." 



