April 6. 1895, 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
263 
curiosity no longer. He shouted: "You didn't kill them 
both, did you? Where are they?" 
"Look there," answered Will, and Tom looked in sur- 
prise at the dead geese, and being a good friend and true 
brother sportsman, his congratulations were hearty and 
sincere. 
Yet another experience which befet the same sportsman 
may prove interesting. The scene of action in this case 
was Portsmouth Harbor. He had rowed down the river" , 
landing on the marshes, in hopes of finding, in some se- 
cluded pool, a' few ducks, as black ducks in small num- 
bers are in the habit of feeding about there all winter. 
While sitting behind an old stone wall, waiting for 
something to fly in, his attention was attracted by a 
familiar sound of honk, honk, and high up over head 
sailed along a single wild goose, \* hich suddenly altered 
Its course and dropped into a small pool in the centre of 
the open marsh, about 500yds. from him. Will strove to 
solve the problem of approaching the goose without at- 
tracting its attention, at least until within shooting dis* 
tance. A small creek ran along to within 100yds. of where 
the goose was resting. It being low tide, the water had 
ebbed so as to afford an opportunity to approach the 
goose. Crawling cautiously along the creek, knowing 
well the extreme shyness of this fowl, he at length 
reached the point in the creek nearest to the goose. There 
was but on^ chance of approaching nearer, so he crawled 
over the bank, and lying perfectly flat, kicked himself 
along over the marsh toward the goose. Instead of tak- 
ing alarm and at once flying, it evidently thought he was 
some strange animal approaching, and it assumed a de- 
fensive attitude, at the same time trying to conceal itself 
as much as possible. When within easy gun-shot, sur- 
prised that the goose had not already flown, Will raised 
himself on one knee, and, as the bird, at last realizing 
.its danger, rose into the air, it came in collision with a 
charge of No. 3 shot, which suddenly stopped its upward 
career. 
Another time, on the same marsh, there was ah episode 
which did not Tesult so pleasantly, but which left my 
friend and his companion in a state of very righteous in- 
dignation. "Al" had been on the watch for several hours 
over a flock of eight geese which were swimming about 
in a small pond, and which he had fondly hoped would 
come within gun-shot. There he was joined by Will. 
After watching them some time longer, the geese sjtowly 
swam down around a small island formed by the rising 
tide. Knowing that the outlet Was a small creek, about 
fifteen yards distant from my patiently watchful friends, 
their hopes Were high, the game was nearly theirs, when, 
down across the marshes from the other side, came three 
men who had also discovered the presence of the geese. 
Seeing that, apparently, the only chance now left was to 
cut off the geese before they flew, my friends left their 
concealment to approach neater. They now discovered 
that the intruders had no gUns, but had simply come 
down to satisfy their curiosity by a mere look at the big 
birds. The geese evidently returned the compliment, 
and doubtless concluding that they were harmless, and, 
instead of flying, continued on their way up the creek. 
It was then too late for my friends to return to their con- 
cealment, and the geese seeing them, and possibly see- 
ing the guns, immediately rose into the air. Bang, bang 
went the guns, and one goose fell to Al's share, but the 
remainder of the flock departed. Very likely, fellow 
sportsmen, you have at some time been in a similar 
place, and know that, at such times, wordt. seem very in- 
adequate to express your feelmgs. 
One more incident. At Rye Beach again. Crossing the 
beach in a severe storm, umbrella overhead and gun over 
shoulder, suddenly a lone goose is discovered down near 
the water's eflg«, evidently resting. Dropping the open 
umbrella to bring the gun into position, the wind catches 
the umbrella and it sails directly toward the goose, which 
furiously attacks it. Then, evidently bewildered, the 
goose rises into the air and flies directly toward the 
sportsman. A charge of shot stops it, and a rather sur- 
prised gunner picks up his prize and starts for home. 
Wilo. 
SKUNK CULTURE, 
Marsheield, Wis .March 16— Editor Forest and Stream: 
I have never raised skunks as a pecuniary speculation, 
but merely as an experiment, to study their habits, and 
I have also foxes and many others of the smaller animals. 
I have made their habits a thorough study, and have 
tried to learn the best way to raise them for fur. 
Although my stock at all times has been small, yet I 
believe the business could be carried on to a financial 
success. Two rules which the producer must be gov- 
erned by are these: To keep skunks when in captivity, 
keep them as close to their natural habits as possible; and, 
second, to get them as nearly black as possible, as the 
black ones always bring the best price. Skunks have 
to be raised on sandy soil, where no water is likely to set- 
tle, and where they can ha^e plenty of yard room. If 
they are kept in a small yard they will wear their fur off 
by rubbing against the fence in their efforts to get out. 
As they burrow in the ground, it is very essential that 
a few stumps be left in the enclosure for them to burrow 
under. 
I have never removed the musk sack from any of the 
young, and never experienced any bad effect to the fur 
after skinning them. The best way to kill them is with 
■chloroform or by suffocation. They generally have from 
four to seven young in a litter, and the month of April or 
the first of May is generally the time when they give 
birth to their young. A few old hollow logs will afford 
all the shelter they need, but it adds a great deal to their 
condition if trees are left in the park. They feed chiefly 
on meat, but are very fond of eggs and milk, but as these 
would be rather expensive food, meat alone will suffice 
During the cooler part of the winter they retire to their 
holes and remain until the warm days of spring open up 
hence the necessity of having soil suitable for them to 
burrow in. 
_ About six years ago I found six skunks in a hollow loe 
1 plugged both ends of the log and hired a man to haul it 
as near as possible to where I mtended building my park 
I dug a ditch around quite a large strip of ground, and 
placed boards edgeways in the ditch so that the skunks 
could not dig under them. 1 built a fence around my 
park, leaving a few stumps in the centre. I then hauled 
the log into the inclosure and liberated the skunks. For 
a few days they seemed wild and spent most of their time 
in the log, but they soon got over it and would come out 
on hearing my voice. They burrowed under the stumps 
and made themselves at home, always contented when 
their stomachs were full. In the spring I was overjoyed 
to see numerous young ones around the yard, and in the 
fall had as fat and slick a flock of skunks as anyone would 
wish to see. Some of these I had killed and skinned by 
way of experiment, and the hides were pronounced as 
good and prime as any taken from their natural haunts. 
Skunks are very nervous animals and dogs or strangers 
should never be allowed to bother them, and great care 
should be exercised not to give them any violent shock. 
Any information desired by those interested will be cheer- 
fully given concerning the breeding of either fox or 
sknuk. J. A. K. 
so that she drew up abreast of Reynard. Then Fifthian 
lashed at him with his whip, and that not having much 
effect he made a noose of his lash and got it o^er the fox's 
neck, drew him up to the saddle bow and rode into 
Gansett with him hanging there, stone dead." 
The above seems almost incredable, but I had it from 
a source which led me to regard it as true. 
Charles Burr Todd. 
How a Mocking-Bird Mocked Me. 
The climatic differences of the seasons in the region 
through which passes the boundary line between the 
United States and Mexico are hardly so much those of 
heat and cold as they are of dryness and moisture. In 
winter and spring the rainfall is sufficient to fill all the 
rivulets and streams and to flood all the marshes and low- 
lands. The region is so far South that vegetation starts 
e'arly in the year. Land birds are then abundant in the 
trees and chapperal, and ducks are plentiful in the ponds 
and streams. 
In summer all this is changed; the growth of vegeta- 
tion is largely suspended, and the growth of crops in the 
few cultivated districts mu4 be aided by irrigation. The 
rivulets, ponds, and most of the small streams, except 
those in the mountains, dry up, and in traversing the 
country one is obliged to go long distances without find- 
ing any water". Notwithstanding this dryness of tlie 
region, "many of the land birds remain there during the 
whole year, but in summer the ducks necessarily go to 
those districts where they can find congenial haunts. 
Among the birds which remain in that dry region during 
the summer is the mocking bird, with one of which I once 
had a novel experience. 
Desiring to make a geological examination of a portion 
of the Sierra San Carlos, a short range of mountains in 
the Mexican State of Chihauhau, I went to Presidio del 
Norte, on the Rio Grande, and i focured a span of mules 
and a light wagon for our journey of seventy-five miles. 
Mysparty, besides myself , consisted of two companions 
and a Mexican driver, Who was also our cook. There 
was no human habitation on the way, and we knew that 
the district we were to traverse was very dry, but we 
confidently expected to find sufficient water for our pur- 
poses in the Arroyo Alamitos. or little Cottonwood Creek, 
forty miles from Presidio del Norte. We therefore took 
only a keg of water from the Rio Grande with us for use 
on the first day, and at night we made a dry camp, with 
about twenty-five miles of our journey accomplished. 
To take advantage of the cooler part of the day for 
travelling, we started at daylight next morning, but be- 
cause we were yet to traverse the worst part of our road 
we did not reach the Arroyo Alamitos until nearly noon. 
To uur dismay, when we reached it, we found it dry, be- 
cause if we should fail to get water there we had no hope 
of getting any until we should reach the Arroyo San 
Carlos, thirty-five miles further on. Tired, thirsty and 
hungry, for we had eaten nothing that morning, we at 
once began a search of the bed of the Arroyo, hoping to 
find a water-hole or a place where we might obtain water 
by a little digging. AVe found no water -hole, but coming 
upon an apparently favorable place we began to dig in the 
sandy gravel, throwing it out with our strong camp cups 
for want of suitable implements. We soon found the 
gravel moist, a few inches deeper it was wet, and in a 
short time we had enough water to enable us to make a 
comfortable camp. 
While we were laboriously digging our small pit I dis- 
tinctly heard the familar sound, "quack, quack, quack," 
and immediately remarked to my companions that our 
labor was unnecessary because the presence of a duck in- 
dicated that we were in the neighborhood of a pool of 
water. We listened, and the sounds were repeated. To 
my surprise, I then saw that they came, not from a duck, 
but from a mocking bird, which was perched on a bush a 
short distance away. He was unconsciously, but cruelly,, 
mocking us in our distress. 
It is probable that this species of mocking bird prefers 
to imitate melodious sounds, but it is well known that it. 
will sometimes imitate the coarser notes of other birds. 
Its powers of imitation are such that observers in its 
native haunts are often mistaken as to its identity when 
it is audible but not visible. In this case, however, 1 was. 
deceived in a more serious way. 
I have never seen these birds so numerous as they are in 
the State of Chihauhau, and the Mexican natives capture 
great numbers of them for sale. Ducks are also plentiful 
there during the wet season, and it was doubtless then 
that the bird which deceived me had learned the lesson 
which it so inopportunely rehearsed in my hearing. 
Charles A. White. 
Pox Outstripped by a Horse. 
New York City, Editor Forest and Stream:— It is a 
fleet hound that can overtake Reynard in a stern chase, 
but on Montauk last summer I heard a well authenti- 
cated story of a horse running down a fox so that his 
rider effected a capture. 
"When Fifthian was herdsman on Montauk, before the 
town sold it to Benson" said my informant. "Helivedin 
the house at the head of Fort Pond, and had a big black 
mare, Meg, that was noted for her size and speed all 
through Suffolk comity. Fifthian set out one morning 
to ride to Gansett on business, and as be came out on the 
plain east of his house he started up a fox in the bushes 
just ahead. 
"The beast kept the road, which, as you know, is only a 
fov-il through the pastures, and Meg broke into a gal- 
lcm after him. They had it neck and heels for a while, 
the fox with his ears flat and his tail straight out behind, 
and .Meg a-gallopin' out of pure mischief. Bime-by 
Fifthian began to get interested and eiioouraged the mare 
English Starlings Hereabouts. 
New Rochelle. N. Y., March 25.— On Feb. 22, while 
walking with an English friend, we heard in a marsh near 
New Rochelle, some whistling and trilling notes similar 
to those of the goldfinch, but louder and clearer. Look- 
ing up, we saw an immense flock of what appeared like 
black birds, about the size of robins. My friend said they 
were starlings, as he had known them well in England* 
On making inquiries at the museum, I found he was cor- 
rect, as no species of the black-birds except the red-wings 
can sing as they did. The next day I saw more of them, 
and on March 9 another large flock, with a few early red- 
wings among them, the notes of the starlings, and the 
"quonk-a-ree" of the blackbirds sounding very well to- 
gether. In England they breed as often as the sparrow, 
(six times a year) so at that rate they will soon be 
numerous here, but let us hope, better behaved than the 
sparrow, the tramp. Edwin Irvine Haines. 
The Linnsean Society of New York. 
Regular meetings of the society will be held at'the 
American Museum c f Natural History, Seventy-seventh 
street and Eighth avenue, on Tuesday evenings, April 
9 and 23, at 8 o'clock. 
April" 9. — L S. Foster, "Remarks ( n the Petrels, with an 
account of the Specimen of iEstrelata hasotata taken in 
Ulster county, New Y< rk on January 26, 1895." Deferred 
from meeting of March 26. 
April"3. — William L. Sherwood, "Further remarks on 
the Salamanders found in the vicinity of New York 
City." Walter W. Granger, 
Amer. Museum of Nat. History. 
A Pet Mule Deer. 
Santa Fe, N. M., March 12.— I have one of the finest 
pets now I have ever owned; it is a mule-eared fawn 
about ten months old. He has been raised in the yard 
with my greyhounds, and I don't suppose he really knows 
whether he is a deer or a dog. He will play with the 
hounds until he gets tired and then he insists on their let- 
ting him alone, and if they don't agree to this he pro- 
ceeds to administer a course of correction with his fore 
feet in a manner that soon brings them to terms. He is 
perfectly familiar with the house, and if the door is left 
open will calmly walk in and take possession. The 
spring duck shooting is just coming on, and several 
parties are out in war paint already. H. B. H. 
Sportsmen's Exposition. 
May 13 to 18. Madison Square Garden, New York.— First annual 
Sportsmen's Exposition. 
A DAY WITH THE BLUEBILLS. 
Eight miles northeast of Ashland, on Chequemagon 
Bay, lies Kakagon — a succession of sloughs and sand 
ridges, extending across the northeast corner of the bay, 
between the high land and Lake Superior. These sloughs 
are bordered with beds of wild rice and furnish excellent 
shooting during all the fall months. Mallard, widgeon, 
teal, and an occasional saw bill, or spoon bill are to be 
found in the early fall months, and later when these have 
passed on south, or grown wary from too much educa- 
tion, the bluebills and redheads come in by countless 
thousands. 
It chanced that on a Saturday in October last, as I sat 
in my office, looking out across the bay, the telephone 
rang, and in response to my "hello," a familiar voice 
said: "Can you get ready to take the Hazel for Kakagon 
in half an hour? My wife is out of town and I had as soon 
spend Sunday down there as anywhere." Could I get 
ready? Well, I rather thought so", as all my outfit was 
at the office, and a messenger, dispatched up town, 
supplied plenty of nitros for a day's shoot. 
The little steam yacht Hazel cariied us from the dock 
to the ducking grounds in a little over an hour, and we 
had paddled to our camping ground in anotner. Until 
dark we were busy pitching tent, getting firewood and 
arranging bed, and turned in early with the expecta- 
tion of getting up before light and paddling to a slough 
or river, which makes in from the bay for several miles, 
and up and down which the bluebills take their flight in 
the morning and evening. 
Next morning, as the purple streaks of the dawn be- 
gan to appear in the east, we glided into cover at a bend 
in the river, which afforded an excellent view of a long 
stretch of clear water on either hand, and had scarce 
settled ourselves in position in our canoe when Doc, who 
was working the river on the east, said: "Look out! here 
they come." A whistle of wings, a crack from Doc's gun, 
a splash in the water, and I just caught a passing glimpse 
of two shadowy forms speeding out of sight in the gloom 
to the west. One poor victim, however, lay out in the 
middle of the river, his white breast gleaming in the un- 
certain light. Doc had been too quick for him. We were 
debating as to the advisability of picking him up before 
the current carried him further away, when Doc's "Mark 
here they come again!" brought us both as close to the 
bottom of the canoe as was possible, still keeping the east 
in view, the only point as yet affording light enough for a 
fair shot. There, against the flaming crimson, they were 
coming, a dozen at least. We had not long to wait; who 
does when bluebills are coming down the wind? It was 
crack, crack and crack, crack again as they wavered an 
instant after the first shot, and there were splashes too, 
following both right and left and more white breasts 
turned up to the light, and two cripples swimming away 
for dear life. 
Have you ever cha^d a crinntevi bloebill? If you bavr, 
