Forest and Stream. 



A Weekly Journal of the Rod and Gun. 



Terms. $4 a Year. 10 Cts. a Copy. 

 Six Months, 82. 



NEW YORK, SATURDAY, JANUARY 20, 1894. 



< VOL. XLII.— No. 3. 



( No. 318 Broadway, New York. 



For Prospectus and Advertising Rates see Fage v. 



The Forest and Stream is put to press 

 on Tuesdays. Correspondence intended for 

 publication should reach us by Mondays and 

 as much earlier as may be practicable. 



SPECIMEN COPIES. 

 Any reader of the "Forest and Stream" may 

 on request and without expense have a specimen 

 number of the paper sent to a shooting or fishing 

 friend. 



PORTRAITS IN INK. 



Y. — ONE WHOM WE ALL KNOW. 



If all sportsmen were like our harmless friend, game 

 might live a quiet life and die of old age, while its human 

 enemies were getting ready for a campaign against it. 



Even though it makes you impatient, you cannot help 

 being amused by the fuss of his constant preparation, nor 

 fail to be warmed by his steady enthusiasm that burns 

 on and on like a slow-match, which never fires the mine 

 of action. 



What careful selection of guns, what labor of tinkering 

 and cleaning them, what cautious purchasing of a new 

 one and endless testing of its qualities, what thoughtful 

 study of ammunition and close measurement of charges, 

 what nice adjustment of all appurtenances go on while 

 the season draws near, endures and is gone. 



Then at once with unabated zeal he begins planning 

 for the next, and refurnishing his equipments, targeting 

 his guns, wearing them out with innocuous use. So his 

 year passes in a round of pleasant anticipation and free 

 of vain regret. 



Once in its course, perhaps, he is betrayed into going 

 shooting while yet unready. Your report of the abund- 

 ance of squirrels, his favorite game, in your neighbor- 

 hood, gets the prompt response of a promise to come in a 

 day or two for a raid on them. During the week or a 

 fortnight that await its fulfillment the woods are overrun 

 by a horde of gunners, and every squirrel is killed or 

 made alive to its own safety. 



At last, late in the afternoon of the last day, your friend 

 arrives with a wagonload of guns and equipments, whereof 

 nine-tenths are quite unnecessary. When he has made a 

 studious selection from his embarrassment of riches, you 

 go forth with him in the propitious last hour of sun- 

 light. 



You are so fortunate as to accomplish stealthy approach 

 to a squirrel that, unconscious of danger, sits rasping a 

 nut on a hickory branch, and as a courteous host should, 

 you signal your guest to take the easy shot. 



Slowly unlimbering his gun from under his arm, while 

 he calculates the distance, he cautiously raises the weapon 

 to its deadly aim. You hold your breath in expectancy 

 breathless; but if you held it till he fired, you would have 

 no further use for it. 



A busy spider runs out to the steadfast muzzle and 

 cables it to the ground with a silver thread. The squir- 

 rel turns his nut, half eaten, to begin on the other 

 side, and suddenly becomes aware of enemies. Down 

 drops the nut with raspings of shuck and shell, and up 

 goes the squirrels behind the sheltering trunk, then out 

 upon the further branches, and so goes plunging and 

 scampering through upper byways in swift retreat to the 

 heart of the woods. 



Without lowering his gun, the dilatory marksman turns 

 an almost triumphant face toward you, as who should 

 say, "If he had not moved his fate was sealed." 



He never risks a shot at running or flying game. You 

 would as soon think of an oyster snatching its prey as of 

 him shooting on the wing. If his game will not wait, it 

 may go unscathed. 



When the delayed opportunity arrives, he is as little ex- 

 alted by success as cast down by failure, and calmly 

 accepts good fortune with quiet thankfulness. 



Whether he bears home a light or heavy bag, he seems 

 never to be weighted with the burden of disappointment 

 nor to be troubled with jealousy, while you can but envy 

 his constant pleasure of anticipation, his sure enjoyment 

 of participation. 



Happy old man, long may he potter in endless prepara- 

 tion, long continue his meandering in the woods, a rarely 

 harmful foe to all their denizens. 



Our Maryland correspondent, it will be remembered, 

 testified that killing off a percentage of the old birds and 

 scattering the coveys had actually promoted the breeding 

 of the birds in a locality observed by him. This is sup- 

 plemented by a report of Mr. W. C. Witherbee, of Port 

 Henry, in the northern part of New York, who ha3 bpen 

 successful in introducing quail from West Virginia. The 

 report was read before the Genesee Valley Association in 

 Rochester last week and is given in our report of that 

 meeting in another column. We would be glad to re- 

 ceive further testimony and opinion on this subject. Tfre 

 importation of quail from one locality into another is 

 assuming proportions which entitle it to such discussion; 

 and in many districts the native supply has fallen so low 

 that interested persons would gladly forego shooting for 

 a period of years if they were fully assured of the good 

 results to follow. 



just where the joke comes in for the people of the State, 

 even Mr. Hackney might confess himself unable to 

 determine. 



SNAP SHOTS ' humorist and apparently does not fail to recognize that 



That is an interesting reminiscence of wartimes which hfe being on the Fish Commission is a huge joke, although 

 Dr. Ellzey sends us in reply to a Maryland correspondent s 

 inquiry concerning the effects of prolonged close periods 

 on quail and other game. Dr. Ellzey's testimony shows 

 that in "Virginia a close season extending over several 

 years brought a great increase of partridge (quail) and 

 other birds. On the other hand, some of the sportsmen 

 of central New York are of opinion that these good results 

 are not certain to follow such prolonged periods in that 

 latitude, and at the meeting of the New York Associatian 

 last week they asked that the five years' prohibition of 

 quail shooting in certain counties should be removed. 

 With the migratory instincts of imported birds and the 

 peril of extermination by severe winters, they argued, 

 the gunner might wait patiently year after year only in 

 the end to find the game fields barren as before. Opposed 

 to this again was the testimony of Mr. A. E. Babcock, of 

 Monroe county, in the same State, who reported that 

 some of the quail put out by Mr. Kimball, of Rochester, 

 two or three years ago, were still flourishing, and should 

 be given further protection. 



The second annual winter meeting of the New York 

 State Association for the Protection of Fish and Game, in 

 Syracuse last week, demonstrated anew the wisdom of 

 those persons who were instrumental in 1892 in providing 

 for the fullest exercise of the two-fold activity of the 

 organization — a summer meeting for its shooting tourna- 

 ment and a winter meeting for its deliberative conven- 

 tion. This is an old story, but one which is well worthy 

 of renewed attention, for in solving the problem with 

 which they were confronted the organizers of the Asso- 

 ciation on the new basis led the way in which similar 

 associations in other States may profitably follow. 

 Under the present arrangement both summer tourna- 

 nent and winter convention have been entirely successful 

 and satisfactory; each interest has had recognition, 

 neither one has interfered with the other. • Never before 

 in its hi*tory has the Association been more prosperous 

 nor more powerful than now. 



The proceedings at Syracuse were characterized by 

 earnestness, unanimity and an unselfish spirit. The find- 

 ings of the deliberations may or may not in every case 

 have been the wisest, but of one thing there is no 

 question, the advocates of the several measures adopted 

 urged them because of a deep conviction that in so doing 

 they were contending for the common good. 



At the Megantic Club banquet in Boston the other even- 

 ing Dr. Heber Bishop gave some interesting figures of the 

 development of the Megantic idea. The club has a mem- 

 bership of 270, which is widely scattered in this country 

 and Canada; controls in its preserve 250 square miles of 

 territory, over the waterways of which it travels by 

 means of its 100 boats and steam launches, and by 75 

 miles of trails on land; and having disbursed $50,000 in 

 improvements, it has a comfortable surplus of $15,000. 

 The members killed fifty-one deer in 1893, and a number 

 of caribou. The trout and salmon caught were numbered 

 by the thousand; while vast numbers of ova have been 

 produced in the club hatcheries, and yearling trout have 

 been put into twenty-eight lakes. A novel divertissement 

 of the evening was the introduction of a dead caribou 

 from the Maine preserves, which was carried around the 

 hall by Dr. Marshall and Mr.Wendal Stevens. Like all the 

 Megantic reunions, this was an occasion of true woodland 

 camp good will and enjoyment, long brightly to be re- 

 membered by members and guests. 



The Sunday fishing law of this State has been receiving 

 some attention since the recent Court of Appeals decision 

 brought it to notice. A resolution asking for the repeal 

 of the law was discussed in the Genesee Valley Associ- 

 ation at Rochester the other day; but adoption of the 

 resolution was deprecated on the ground that the public 

 might misinterpret the motives of the step and the atti- 

 tude of the society toward the observance of the Sabbath. 

 This disposition of the matter was the wise one. The de- 

 bate of a Sunday fishing law soon lapses from the com- 

 parative calm and serenity of fish protection talk into the 

 heated and possibly rancorous discussion of religion, and 

 ends in nothing more profitable than the firmer intrench- 

 ment of each party to the dispute in his own position. 

 As for the Sunday fishing law in this State, it has been 

 and is practically a dead letter except when made use of 

 as a spite measure. It will continue to be a dead letter, 

 or if enforced will be repealed. In either event, game 

 protective societies need not make hazard of their influ- 

 ence by taking action on it. 



Fish Commissioner Hackney, of this State, raised a 

 laugh in the meeting of the State Association last week 

 when he said in effect that at the time of his app >intment 

 to the Fish Commission he had known nothing about tish 

 and he did not now. Mr. Hackney is something of a 



A happy selection of officers has been made for the new 

 year. Gen. Bruce is one of the old guard; his devotion 

 to the Association has never wavered; it was his per- 

 sistent and unwearied effort which eventually brought 

 about the reorganization, and under his guidance healthy 

 growth and greater achievement may be anticipated. Mr. 

 Bannister 1 , the vice-president, . has been one of the most 

 active promoters of fish and game interests in central 

 New York, and will bring influence and strength to the 

 State organization. Of John B. Sage, the old and new 

 secretary-treasurer, it may be said that his occupancy 

 was coeval with the creation of that office, has been 

 coexistent with it, and promises to be coterminous with it. 



The presentation of a gold watch by the Association 

 and the district protectors to Major J. Warren Pond was 

 a fitting recognition of the Chief Protector's public ser- 

 vices. Major Pond is a quiet, sensible, unassuming, ex- 

 perienced, well informed, faithful, fearless and efficient 

 officer. As Mr. C. H. Mowry well put it, he does not do 

 his duty alone for what there is in it, but is actuated by 

 higher motives. He deserves the good opinion, the sup- 

 port and the backing of every citizen, and of every associa- 

 tion of citizens which desires to see the game and fish pro- 

 tective laws enforced. The force of district protectors 

 are as a body likewise efficient, honest and undeterred by 

 threats in the performance of their duty. They are a 

 very creditable branch of the public service. Their pres- 

 ence by invitation in the convention was an earnest of 

 the feeling entertained for them by the sportsmen of the 

 State. 



The first annual meeting of the National Game, Bird 

 and Fish Protective Association was held in Chicago last 

 week, and is reported at some length in our staff corre- 

 spondence from that city. We invite a reading of the 

 report, for the proceedings illustrate in a striking manner 

 what we have already said respecting the scheme of a 

 national association. 



The "same old grind" has begun at Albany. Our 

 special correspondent at that point has sent in his first re- 

 port of game and fish bills in the Legislature of 1894. A 

 long catalogue, we may be certain, will follow. They will 

 be reported promptly in our game columns. 



The annual dinner of the Massachusetts Fish and Game 

 Protective Association was held in Boston, last Tuesday 

 evening; just as these pages were going to press. Our 

 report of the pleasant reunion is of necessity deferred 

 until next week. 



Michigan has a new tri-county protective association 

 organized at Detroit last week. An expected report has 

 not come to hand in season for this issue. 



