290 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
[Oct. 6, 1894. 
iifnt[iil l§wtonu 
WAYS OF THE BEAVER. 
Bud leigh Salterton; Devon, England, Sept. 14. — 
Editor Forest and Stream: The article upon the beaver 
by Mr. Thos. Chester in Forest and Stream of Sept. 1, 
contains a greater amount of interesting and highly in- 
structive detail about that animal than any account I 
have ever previously read. 
The explanation of the means by 'which the sticks, 
stored for winter use, are held at the bo't^m of the pond, 
is certainly new to me. I never believed in the nonsensi- 
cal theory that they are made heavy bv the air being 
sucked out of the pores of the wood, but thought that the 
sticks were kept under water simply by being forced a 
sufficient depth into the mud, I have observed that most 
of those with the bark peeled off, which float on the sur- 
face of the pond when the ice melts, are sharp-pointed at 
one end, apparently for such a purpose. Doubtless, how- 
ever, the vacuum produced at the end of the stick would 
assist in keeping it down, even if this be not the sole 
means of holding it. 
Mr. Chester remarks that, when dam-building, the 
beaver has a wonderful facility in adapting itself to a 
change of conditions, 
In upper Canada, about thirty years ago, I met with an 
astonishing instance of this, the dam being constructed 
in such an unusual manner that it would be absurd to at- 
tribute the skill shown to mere instinct. There was the 
clearest proof of great reasoning, powers. The place 
selected for making a pond was on some moist land where 
the surface was level on both sides of a slow and small 
stream, so that the beavers had no slope or hollow to as- 
sist them. They had, therefore, cut the stems of the live 
alder bushes to a certain height and twined the cut off 
pieces between the stumps, filling the crevices with mud 
and weeds. 
The total length of the dam thus formed appeared to 
be quite 200yds. It was carried in a curved shape across 
the stream, with the two ends extending, one on each 
side, in the direction whence the cm-rent came. The pond 
was therefore something like the letter U in form, and 
instead of the water flowng over the dam in an unbroken 
sheet, a smooth trough-shaped sluice had been made in 
one place, keeping the pond about 4ft. deep. 
I helped the trapper, with whom I was then staying, to 
open the top of one of the houses. After pulling away 
2ft. thickness of sticks and earth we found that the inside 
wall was formed of thin alder stems neatly interlaced, 
almost like a hurdle. The floor was about 18in. higher 
than the water, with a bed of sedges upon it, and there 
was a well at one side through which the beavers could 
dive under the wall. 
Some of the trees near the pond, that had been newly 
cut down, were 12 to 18in. in diameter, ^ ' 
This trapper used to soak the flesh of the beavers in 
water in order to take away a peculiar muddy flavor and 
then roast it. To my taste it seemed more like mutton 
than anything else. 
Lord Milton and Dr. Cheudle state in their book, "The 
Northwest Passage by Land," that when in the neighbor- 
hood of the Saskatchewan River they found the remains 
of old works which proved that beaver, before their num- 
bers were reduced by trapping, were in the habit of cut- 
ting down much larger trees and making much larger 
dams than they do at the present time. 
The largest work I ever saw was an old dam in the 
bush of New Brunswick, which must have been originally 
uite 60yds. in length, 4yds. in width at the top* and 8yds. 
at the base. The meadow formed after the waters had 
drained away was about a mile long and a quarter of a 
mile wide. J. J. Meyrick. 
IT SHOULD BE PRESERVED. 
Gitronelle, Citrus County, Fla. —Editor Forest and 
Stream: I have hesi'ated writing you for some time, 
hoping to describe in glowing terms a successful wildcat 
hunt; but each time we started for the cats our dogs 
"jumped" deer or turkeys, and went after them as though 
the law did not protect them from our guns. 
But my object in writing is to mention a place where 
the "plume bird" is still a reality, not bv laws of the 
State, but by the watchful care of a man who desires to 
preserve the beautiful birds from destruction and keep 
one rookery from being broken up by plume hunters. 
I first visited this place four and. one-half years ago and 
made a collection of birds, and was surprised one day to 
find in a neighborhood long settled a large rookery on a 
man's homestead. Permission was easily obtained of him 
to shoot a few birds with a .22cal. rifle. 
He told me he had refused to allow any one to shoot them, 
and only once when he was away had hunters been there, 
and then they killed several hundred, many without 
plumes. Shortly after he proved up his claim he left the 
place, and when I returned here last winter I expected to 
find the birds all gone; but as spring came on I went there 
and camped three weeks to make a few skins and watch 
the birds. 
I made a step ladder into a big cypress tree, and there, 
concealed in its branches, I looked down for hours on the 
birds nesting in the bushes. I judged there were several 
hundred each of Louisiana and little blue herons, about 
fifty snowy herons or little white egret, and about a dozen 
American egrets. Besides these there were a pair of big 
blue herons, green herons, gallinules and other birds. 
At night, just before sunset, hundreds of herons, white 
ibis and wood ibis would come in to roost, and the cries 
and croaking were far from musical. 
The rookery is in a small pond about three and one-half 
miles from the Gitronelle depot and about one-quarter of 
a mile from the Withlacoochee River, on a homestead 
of 160 acres of ordinary pine land, about forty of which is 
cleared. Between it and the river is a palmetto scrub, 
where deer, turkeys or wildcats can most always be started 
with good dogs. The woods around everywhere are filled 
with quail, while for a distance of about ten miles around 
I consider one of the best deer sections in the State. The 
river has plenty of fish. 
I have entered into the details because the place is now 
offered for sale, and a purchaser may not care to protect 
the rookery, which it seems a shame to have destroyed 
now, as it surely will be. 
It would make a splendid place for hunters, and it would 
be a grand work if some sportsmen would purcha&e it and 
keep a man on itduring breeding season, as the birds leave 
for the coasts'and islands soon after. 
The writer has tried to make a clear statement of it, to 
arouse an interest in this last of accessible rookeries (so 
far as I can learn) in Florida. Frederic L. Small. 
SOME GROUSE OF WASHINGTON. 
Editor Forest and Stream; 
The first trip I made with a team across the plains in 
1856 I noticed pinnated grouse on the Big Blue River, in 
Kansas, but not further west than that. 
Then in 1860 I saw a good many between Plum Creek 
and Fort Kearney, on the Platte. The first sharptail 
grouse I remember to have seen was at the old Coeur 
d'Alene Mission, in Idaho, and along all the streams from 
there to Walla Walla Valley they were quite plentiful. 
Before they began to farm the bunch grass hills of the 
Walla Walla Valley there were thousands of them, but 
since all of the valley has been put under cultivation, they 
have become very scarce. Up here on the Okanogan 
they are quite plentiful, and range on the bunch grass 
hills from the Okanogan to Kettle River. 
When the winter is very severe they range up among 
the pine and fir, although birch seem to be their favorite 
buds. In the winter they burrow in the snow at night, 
and I have often seen them come up out of the snow where 
it was over two feet deep. 
The dusky grouse, or blue grouse as we call them, leave 
the high mountains in the spring to raise their young, 
and they stay down until the sarvis berries and wild cur- 
rants are gone; then they work back on to the mountain, 
in time to help harvest the huckleberries. Kinnikinick 
berries, as well as wild rosebuds, are favorite food for 
them. They are much larger than the sharptail grouse, 
and will lie much better to a dog. 
The ruffed grouse hpre are quite plentiful. They are 
much smaller than the ruffed grouse of the East, and are 
generally found along the creeks. Here near the mill 
they drum at all times; sometimes in the night. In the 
winter their principal food is rosebuds and fir browse. 
They are much the best table bird we have here. 
Then there is the Franklin grouse or fool hen, which 
stays pretty well up on top of the mountains, both winter 
and summer. They are a little larger than the ruffed 
grouse. Their flesh is much darker, but the young ones 
are very palatable. They are a strange bird. When they 
are flushed by a dog they generally fly high, but if put up 
by man they will fly but a little way. I have often 
caught them with a noose in a string on a stick not 10ft. 
long. I have had old hens stand and peck my feet when 
I was near their young. Lew Wilmot. 
Okanogan, Sept. 9. 
BREEDING QUAIL IN CONFINEMENT, 
It will be remembered that last year we printed some 
notes on quail reared in confinement by Mr. Allen Dun- 
can, of Wyoming, Ontario, who seemed to have attained 
a measure of success greater than has attended other 
persons who have made similar efforts to rear quail. 
This season Mr. Duncan has continued his experiments 
and they have been attended with great success. He re- 
ports this in the following letter: 
Wyoming, Ont., Sept. 24.— Editor Forest and Stream: 
I have at present twelve young quail. Three of these are 
about two months old and the nine are a little over a 
month old. I left ten eggs in the quail's nest which were 
hatched out by the male bird. One of these unfortunately 
strangled itself by getting a blade of grass, of Which the 
nest is composed, twisted round its neck. Those on hand' 
are all doing splendidly, 
I would be in favot of bantam hens to look after the 
young quail as they are then likely to be much tamer than 
when raised by a mother quail, because the quail is con- 
tinually giving cautionary signals and warnings, which 
the bantam finds no occasion for. 
Of the birds I raised last year, I sent two to Mr. Wells, 
and one to Mr. Taylor, of Chatham, Ont., only keeping 
one hen for my own use with the above result. This hen 
was mated with a bird from the State of Mississippi, 
which I obtained from Mr. Wells, of Chatham. 
The feed given to the young quail is hard boiled eggs 
chopped fine, followed later on with seeds and grain of 
all kinds. 
The quail are very quick to detect strangers and will 
invariably protest, if I take a stranger to look at them. 
The male bird is very courageous in defense of his 
charges and will promptly do battle in their behalf. On 
one occasion one of the young birds got separated from 
the others and was making lament in consequence. I 
went to put them right, but the old bird seemed to think 
I was responsible for the trouble and promptly charged 
me with great courage and ferocity. Allan Duncan. 
Rose-Breasted Grosbeaks. 
Preston, Sept. 29.— Editor Forest and Stream: Your 
correspondent "A. L. H." writes, Sept. 22, of a tame gros- 
beak of the rose-breasted variety, and expresses surprise 
at finding it in his locality, New York. The bird, though 
somewhat rare, is met with all through the United States, 
and is most commonly seen in autumn. Those who ram- 
ble through the orchards and shrubbery will occasionally 
catch the simple call, quick quick, or hear his queer song, 
hard to reproduce but to my ear something in this strain, 
ka-co-que-it, ka-co-que-it. Its coat of rich black with the 
white spots of its wings and the dainty rose-red of the 
breast, make a beautiful contrast of colors, to which are 
added the white abdomen , and tips of several of the tail 
feathers. The rose-breasted grosbeak is a great lover of 
fruit, and is found frequenting the orchards, and yet I 
have found him in the dense thickets, while trouting 
along the wildest streams, and have known him to ac- 
company me at a short distance for several hours. I have 
invariably found them alone; never in pairs. They are of 
good size, being upward of 8in. in length. 
E. M. Brown. 
The Linnasan Society of New York. 
Regular meetings of the Society will be held at the 
American Museum of Natural History, Seventy-seventh 
street and Eighth avenue, on Tuesday evenings, Oct. 9 
and 23, at 8 o'clock. Oct. 9, Juan Gundlach — '"Notes on 
Cuban Mammals." Oot. 23, R. W. Shufeldt— "On Pecu- 
liar Phases of Color assumed by Certain Birds." 
Walter W. Granger, Sec'y* > 
Albino Squirrels. 
Preston, Conn., Sept. 27.— Editor Forest and Stream: 
Now and then albinos of different species are described in 
your Natural History column, and these communications 
are always entertaining and instructive to me. J. Cobb, 
while out gunning Monday last, saw two small squirrels 
of a pure white color and shot one, while the mate 
escaped. Mr. Cobb will have the squirrel mounted. They 
resembled the common chipmunk in all but color. Now, 
were they chipmunks? - E. M. Brown. 
Two-Headed Kitten. 
Mr. John GL Gilbert, 2d, of Marblehead, Mass, , writes 
us of what he calls the "greatest wonder on earth," now 
in his possession. It is a two-headed kitten which was 
born alive and in good condition, but was killed by acci- 
dent after two days. 
"A Man From Corpus Christi." 
This volume records the adventures of two bird hunters in Texan 
bogs, and a dog who was with them. It is written by Dr. A. C. Peirce 
and evidently illustrated by himself. It is a humorous and laughable 
account of the way in which a Northern man went to Texas, where he 
found a companion to act as a guide in bird ranging. Without ex- 
Eerience in these parts, he believed that his companion would tide 
im over the difficulties of the situation and be of great service in the 
campaign. The adventures which they met with were thoroughly 
characteristic, and were enjoyed by the two hunters much more in 
retrospect than in reality. The dog had a great deal to do in plung- 
ing the hunters into difficulties, and wherever they went they had a 
fresh experience. The volume is very pleasantly and agreeably 
written. It is full of unexpected humor, although the language is 
frequently more expressive than choice. No one. who takes it up will 
be likely to leave it unread, and if it does tell one much about what 
can be hunted in Texas, it is full of amusing experiences on the part 
of those who are trying to have a good 1 ime. The book will make its 
way wherever it has a chance, and Dr. A. C. Peirce may well take 
rank among the amusing and comical writers of the day. — Boston 
Herald. 
''That reminds a6.'' 
MY CHANCE AC§UAlNTANCE.-VlL 
WE were sitting oh some drift wood by the lake oh8 
pleasant Sunday morning enjoying a delicious sun bath; 
absorbing as mubh of the cool, invigorating breeze which 
was blowing from Lake Michigan as convenient without 
labor on our part and speculating on which one of the 
many sailboats in sight would first arrive at the pier. 
Conversation was spasmodic-, it ebbed and flowed very 
irregularly, then finally dwindled to a dead stop. A little 
water snake slid out from under the pile we were occupy- 
ing* and gracefully skimmed its way over the light 
rippling waves to another of its hiding places where It 
disappeared. Slight as was the circumstance it waked 
up the company and furnished a prolific thettte foir somti 
heated talk. 
For sometime snakes were energetically discussed, from 
the monster sea serpent down to the insignificant hair 
snake. There was quite a difference of opinion in regard 
to hoop-snake and hair-snake, but it was decided by a 
large majority that there was no such a reptile as either 
one or the other. The minority, however, we re not satis- 
fied; they never are; and as is generally the case claimed 
"ignorance," "fraud" and "cheating" on the part of the 
other party. The defeated Ones appealed to the old gen^ 
tleman. He Was busy, having trouble with his ancieflt 
and constant companion briarwood, which was acting in a 
very unbecoming manner and entirely outside the rules 
and regulations laid down for the government of all 
properly disposed briarwoods. The old man said it was 
"clogged," "wouldn't give down." With the aid of a 
piece of wire, stripped from an old broom, communication 
was established with the bowl through the stem, alighted 
match applied, a young volcano started, peace established 
and all was serene once more. 
After a few vigorous puffs which sounded like the snort 
of a locomotive getting tinder wayj the old man got 
started and unloaded as follows: 
"You fellers ask about snakes, I don't like 'em; they're 
a mean, low-down, sly^ slimy, crawlin' set. Give me a 
gun and a good knife and I ain't afeel'd of anything that 
runs the Woods in Michigan; but when it comes to snake§, 
r- weaken every time. There's a creepy, crawly sort of a 
feeling comes over me and I feel as if there was about a 
million web-footed spiders with ice cold feet had got under 
my shirt and was having a regular go-as-you-please race all 
over me from the back of my neck to the end of my big toe. 
Ugh I I hate the entire sect and wish the hull lot could be 
run through a grist mill roller process and then dumped 
into thet lake. 
"You see that bit of a hay field over there between the 
foot of the bluff and the lake? Well, that's a great place for 
the nasty critters, and when I'm haying there I always 
keep a good look out for 'em; often wish I'd six eyes in 
my head, two in the back and one in each ear. One time 
I was a-raking hay there, both ears and eyes wide open, I 
seed one of those tarnal hoop-snakes come a-rolling down 
the bluff, coming straight for me like a streak o' lightning. 
I'd jest time to jump one side when he was up to me and 
as he whizzed past I chucked the rake into the center of 
the ring. I'll be durned if he didn't fasten to it, and 
away they rolled snake and rake, over and over, round 
and round until they splashed out of sight into the lake. 
Ever see my rake agin? Well, yes, three or four days 
arter it come to the top, but it was all sioelled up big as 
my leg. Don't know what become of it, I darsn't touch 
it, feared I'd get pisined too; 'spose it either drifted out to 
the big lake or got water-logged and sunk. 
"See that scattering bunch of rushes over yander? 
Well, the water's shaller where the rushes are; but jest 
over the other side the bottom slants down quick into 
about eight or ten feet of water. On that slant used to be 
a famous place to ketch yaller perch, croppies and rock 
bass. I've taken boat loads away from that place. One 
summer years ago a big pickerel almost pestered the life 
out of me there. You see jest . as I'd get nicely settled 
and the perch a-bitin' good, that infernal pickerel would 
come nosing round and scare 'em all off. I hooked him 
several times but he'd break my hooks or bite my line off. 
I got real riled up arter a while, and made up my mind 
that Muskegon county weren't big enough to hold us 
both; the county would have to be enlarged or else one 
of us would have to move on. I studied over that quite a 
bit and finally thought that moving the county line, even 
if it could be done, wouldn't change that 'ere bank; and 
as he seemed to have a particular hankering fur that spot 
