1 
FOREST AKt) STREAM. 
and left word for my man to wait for me should he return 
while I was away. 
Following directions, my course took me up the road a 
little more than a mile to the top of the mountain, where 
I discovered a thickly wooded and comparatively level 
country. There I turned in to the right as directed and 
began my hunt, I had not gone far when I flushed a 
large covey of grouse, but, unaccustomed to the heavy 
muzzled gun and the under hammer of the shot barrel, 
they were out of sip-ht before I could shoot. Marking the 
direction of their fligbt aa well as I could, I followed 
stealthily, prepared to shoot if any arose. I soon raised 
three or four more, which flew back m the direction of 
the road, and as the woods and undergrowth 
seemed to be getting thicker the further I pene- 
trated the wood?, I turned back, but without find- 
ing anything until I reached the road as;ain. Believing 
thev had crossed to the oth^r side, I went over and with- 
in SOyds, flushed another covey larger than the first, but 
again did not shoot because the uader/rowth was so 
dense I could n-^t have raisad my own lighter gun before 
they were out of sight, I followed them, however, deeper 
into the woods, hearing one get up now and then with- 
out seeing it until I began to despair of getting a shot at 
all. Tnen, recollecting that I was in a strange country, 
I bethought me to get back to the road, for I did not 
want to take chances of g&tting lost; but, after going 
twice as far as I thought I had come, I could not find the 
road, and soon realiz.-d that I was lost indeed. I knew 
that the road ran nearly north and south, but the day 
was cloudy and I could not tell which way that was. I 
brought all my licnitecl knowledge of woodcraft to bear, 
bat without satisfactory couclusion. I could not see far 
enough in the dense woods to tell which way the moun- 
tain slopsd, for here it was entirely level, and I tried to 
make out the north side of the trees by the bark, but 
could see no difference; and I finally d>-cided to take a 
straight course, in the hope that it would bring me to 
soTie sign of habitation. I found by my watch that it 
was past noon and I hurried on, worrying over the pros- 
pect of spanding the whole day and possibly the night in 
the woods. 
After I had walked a mile or more I thought I heard 
the snapping of a dry stick on my left and stopped to 
listen, but heard nothing more. 
At first I was inclined to go toward the sound, but con- 
cluded to follow my plan to keep a straight course and try 
to find my way out of the woods. In a little while I 
heard the sound again, only a little nearer, but could. see 
nothing, and I determined to investigate. The thought 
of finding game mad"^ ma forget my situation, and, mark- 
ing my position, I crept stealttiily in the direction of the 
sound, but could find nothing, and turned to go back, 
when I was startled by a gruff voice from behind a large 
tree which I had jasE passed, demanding: ''Say, mister, 
what you want yere, anyway?" 
Quickly looking up, I beheld one of the two men who 
had noticed me so particularly the night before, and at 
first I was glad, but his attitude was menacing, and an 
ugly look in his eye alarmed me. I almost stammered 
that I was lost and was trying to find the road. 
"Well," incredulously, "'what 'dye come yere.fur?'' he 
demanded. 
A little nettled at his impertinence, I replied that I 
thought I had as much right to be there as any one, and 
did not consider myself bound to account for my presence 
to him, but if he would direct me to the. road 1 would 
thank him for the favor. 
Without reply he placed his finger in his mouth and 
gave a loud whistle, then stepped forward, keeping his 
eye steadily upon me and his rifle ready. I began to 
have misgivings as to his intentions, and involuntarily 
drew my gun closer, for I had heard of men mysteriously 
disappearing in this country of moonshine, and the 
words of the landlord flashed through my mind on the 
instant, but be saw the movement and quickly said: 
"Keep yer gun down, mister. No one '11 hurt ye if ye 'r' 
tellin the truth." At the same moment footsteps in the 
rear announced the approach of another, who proved to 
be his companion of tne night before, but who remained 
silent while the firat gave bim my story. Then to me he 
said: "Ye may be all right, mister, 'n' we hope ye are. 
If ye ain't, the sooner ye git out b' yere the better fur 
ye." 
I assured him that nothing would please me more, 
and all I wanted was to find the road. Then I told 
him my business in the settlement, and how I came to 
be hunting in the woods, which seemed to satisfy him. 
"Well, that's all right, mister, but we don't allow hunt- 
in' on tuese premises; we been watchin' ye all day. The 
road's over yoa," pointing in almost the opposite direc- 
tion to which I haa been traveling, " 'n' it's a purty good 
stretch 'til ye reach it; ye better git there 's quic^ 's ye 
kin, 'n'," significantly, "don't ye git lost ag'in." 
Thanking hira, I lost no time in going, and found it 
was as he said "a purty good stretch," and I was con- 
scious of being followed all the way. 
When 1 rdached the tavern and returned the gun to 
the landlord he seemed to notice something in my appear- 
ance which he fully undeiatood, but saiu nothing, nor 
even inquired of my luck. My man had returned and 
was waiting for me. As an old acquaintance, he was 
pleased to see me, and we ate an early supper together in 
the tavern, while 1 related to him my experience. He 
expressed no surprise, nor made any comments further 
than to say it was not safe for strangers to go out in the 
woods alone. 
After supper he accompanied me the whole distance to 
the railroad station, and it need not be said that his com- 
• pany was agreeable. The interview was favorable and 
he made a good witness. While attending court he in- 
vited me to visit him for a hunt, and assured me that m 
his company I need have no fear of being warned off the 
"premises," but I never went. It is a game country, 
and the moonshiners are pretty well raided out now. 
iDnly last year an acquaintance returned from a shoot- 
ing trip there with more wild turkeys and rutiied grouse 
than 1 have seen together in a good many years, and I 
am now anticipating a trip with him next tail, 
J. H. B. 
PENNSYLViSlA, 
A DAY ON LONG ISLAND. 
Game liaws in Brief. 
Thk Oavte Laws in Brief, current edition, sold everywhere, has 
new game and flah laws for more than tlurty of the States. It covers 
f-he entire country, is carefuJiy prepared, an.d gives all that sbootera 
•n 1 Anglers reauire. Bee odvertisemeat. 
The 3:30 train from East Thirty-fourth street that Mon- 
day had at least one happy man aboard. I had been 
scheming for at least two weeks to get a try at quail, and 
finally, when about discouraged, I saw a loop-hole which 
I could equeeze through without entirely rupturing my 
coTiacience. 
No use trying to read my paper, for visions of flying 
quail at every conceivable angle danced before me, so 
that I at least gave myself up to a daydream of bliss — by 
the way, that's a gr^at habit of mine, and is frequently 
the only way and time when I really get good shooting. 
My destination — Bellport — being finally reached, I landed 
my gun, my bag and myself in the village stage, and was 
soon under way for the Bell House, a mile distant. A 
chat with the stage driver showed that the conditions for 
duck shooting were unfavorable, although a few were 
being killed — mostly rsdheads, black ducks, broadbilla, 
coots, with an occasional canvasback — but that quail 
were abundant. Arriving at the hotel, I was cordially 
welcomed by Mr. Kramer, the proprietor, and with a 
heartiness that it seems to me is to be met with solely 
between gunners — I mean the firm handshake and gen- 
uine look of pleasure in the eye that makes one's heart 
glow, and sinks all the mean pettiness of businesFt aims 
and strife out of existence for the time being. Friend 
Bill hustled around and stirred up the great logs in the 
open fireplace imtil they snapped and cracked, throwing 
a glow of warm light about the room and making things 
seem doubly comfortable by the coatrast formed by the 
dark gray of the eky and landscape showing from the 
winriows. 
"Well, so you thought you'd have a try at them, eh? 
What's it going to be, ducks or quail?" 
"Why, BUI, I guess I'll see how my pup will work on 
quail to-morrow. Charlie is talking pretty big about 
what he can do, and I'd like to see for myself whether 
he's preaching or telling a true story," 
"I guess from what I hear you'll be more than satisfied," 
said Bill, "but at all events you'll know to-morrow, and 
Charlie generally drops in of an evening, so you can ar- 
range your programme for the hunt to-night and let me 
know what you'll need in the way of eatables, horse and 
wagon, etc." 
"OhI by the way, BUI, do you remember that redhead 
you had cooked for me last faU? I'd give considerable to 
have another feast like that, but I'm afraid there's no 
such luck for a fellow twice in a lifetime. My! but the 
thought of it makes my mouth water — cooked just right, 
dressing and plenty of crisp celery." 
Bill's eyes twinkled and he answered, "We'll see; per- 
haps I can scrape up an old coot or sheldrake and help 
you out." And with that he picked up my bag and led 
the way to my room. Now, one word about roughing it: 
I am only too glad to rough it if it's necessary to do so to 
get where game is, but I must confess when I looked 
around at the large, well-furnished and home-like room 
friend Bill had assigned to my use, with its comfortable, 
clean-looking bedding, and turned from them to get the 
warm water sent up to me for washinar, I felt that I 
wasn't called upon to do much "kicking" because some 
more fortunate gunner was going to sleep under the gray 
sky, cook his own food and wash in water that numbed 
one. 
To a certain extent the Ball House cfiice partakes of 
the nature of a country store, inasmuch as during the 
fall and winter it is the general meeting place of the vil- 
lagers. After supper one by one they came dropping in 
with a howdy, generally followed by silence if a stranger 
was present; but I knew and was known by most of 
them, and a general chat ensued. "Well, Jay," said one 
sea captain, "I hear yer goin' to try yer pup on the quail 
to-morrow. Charlie thinks a heap of him, and I guess 
he's a pretty good one from w hat they tells me. Say, 
boys, did you ever hear about the time Jay and me had 
awhile ago, shootin' snipe? No? Well, 'twas this erway. 
Jay here had an idea that he could everlastingly kill 
snipe, even if he couldn't hit much else from his say so; 
so one day we started out early, and first we set decoys, 
and when they didn't show up we finally calculated we'd 
hunt for 'em; so we tramped and tramped till we were 
about tuckered out, when Jay spied a couple of creekers 
a-settin' on the medder. 'Now,' says I, 'let me see you 
make a clean double on em.' So he walked easy like till 
he got closer and closer, till by 'm by we wasn't more than 
ten feet from them, when up they got, one up wind and 
t'other downwind. I guess he tried trap shootin' style 
on 'em, for he emptied both barrels at 'em before either 
had got off twenty feet and clean missed 'em both. Well, 
he did look tired. He never said a word, but marched 
straight home; and the reason I've told of it is I've never 
hearn him say nothin' about it when he's been tellin' any 
of his huntin' yarns, and I thought maybe he'd forgotten 
all about it." A general laugh followed cap's yarn at my 
expense. 
By 8 o'clock Charlie M , Jim R. and Charles E,, who 
were to constitute our party, came in and we planned for 
the morning trip. Charlie M. was to furnish a horse and 
two-seated wagon, bring my pup Sport and an English 
setter dog, Brad, of his. We arranged to be off by 6:30 
A. M., so as to get the early morning shooting, especially 
as we had some five or six miles to drive to Yaphank, near 
which place we expected to find the best shooting. 
We were under headway on time, with the dogs scam- 
pering and barking around us, for they were to have a 
run first to take the wire edge off of them. 
Now for a word or two of our party. First, Charlie M,, 
a bright, active young fellow of about thirty, quiet and 
earnest, a native of the place, a carpenter by trade, and 
one of those men who command respect no matter where 
they are and among whom; one of the best quail shots in 
the section and a man second to none in handling a bird 
dog. Sdcond, Jim R , a right royal good fellow and a 
first-class duck shot, but with little experience on inland 
birds. Third, Charles R., the most mischievous imp and 
beet company going, but new to quail shooting. And 
fourth, the Scribe, a city man, one who delights in gun- 
ning above all things, but particularly for qaail, wood- 
cock and grouse over a good dog; whose time is too lim- 
ited to do more than steal away a day at a time two or 
three times during the shooting season, and whose suc- 
cess with a gun so far hasn't been such as to make him 
conceited. 
Sport, my pointer pup, is fourteen months old, and al- 
though quick, is one of the most careful dogs on game 
I've ever known, and I think he la a wonder considering 
hia age. Brad, the English setter, is finely bred, strong, 
eager, quick, but apt to get too near his birds and conse- 
qu'^ntly at times flushing them. 
With what a thrill of expectancy we watched the dogs 
quartering the first stubble on the road. Brad, high- 
headed, was going like the typical field trial dog he is; his 
broad flig handled with a vim showed his strength and 
eagerness to first find the birds; his white body with bold 
orange markings certainly constituted a beautiful picture 
as he made his long tacks to windward, and then hih 
training and instinct showed in his careful working of 
the hedge along the fence. 
Sport runs a little stilty; his strong point is not hU 
beauty and grace while quartering his giroundj although 
his work is rapid and thorough; but when birds ate 
winded, with his careful, almost cat-like, approach, his 
eager feeling of the air, followed by his stanch point-^ 
then, oh, then is when he seems beautiful to me— for he i 
can be relied on implicitly. 
The field, the hedge and nearby woods failing to pro- 
duce birds, we returned to the wagon; the next two or 
three fields proved tquilly barren, Arriving at last at the 
Yaphank station, we hitched the horse to a nearby tree 
and struck south through a couple of fields toward a 
woods where we had heard sevfral gun shots. There we 
ran across the station agent, who had a bunch of quail 
scattered and was quietly picking them up one at a time 
by means of very close careful work on the part of his 
Gordon setter. He greeted us pleasantly and invited us 
to try our luck on the birds. No game hog he, but a man 
well worthy of the name sportsman. 
We divided; Jim R. and Caarles R , with the Fetter, 
bearing slightly to the west; while Charlie M. and I, with 
the pup, went slightly eastward. We were in dense 
brush ot from 2i't to Sit. 6in. high, with here and there a 
bush from 8 to lOtt. high and trees rather widely scat- 
tered. Suddenly whir, out went a quail to my right, I 
turned quickly and had but a snap shot as he slipped 
around a big bush. I saw him pitch, but knew he was 
only wing-tipped. We searched diligently for him, but 
without success, as everything was as dry as powder and 
gave the dog no chance; it was some twenty minutes 
later when the reports to our left showed us Jim and 
Charles R. were onto them. 
We hailed to them and said we'd work toward the 
wagon and look elsewhere for birds, as we didn't care to 
impose on our friend the station agent's good nature. On 
meeting, we found Jim had one bird to his credit, while 
Charles R. had asked too much of his gun, the bird he 
shot at being out of range. We tried two more stubbles, 
the dogs working well, but failed to find birds. It then 
being nearly noon, we had lunch and stood westward for 
a couple of miles. Here again we hitched the horse and 
worked a couple of fields.- We were just getting over a 
rail fence, the dogs to one side, when X heard the report 
of a gun, saw what I supposed to be a large hawk pitch 
to the ground, and at the same instant friend Jim took a 
tumble from the fence and fell headlong into the sweet- 
est tangle of green cat briers you'd wish to see. In an 
instant up he came, smiling, his face and handsscratched, 
but with a look of wonderful satisfaction on his face; 
and why not? He had killed his first partridge (grouse) in 
a thoroughly sportsmanlike manner. We hurried for- 
ward and found the grouse to be a male and one of the 
largest I'd seen in some time. We shook hands with Jim, 
heartily congratulating him, and told him there were 
two things unusual in his case: one being that it very sel- 
dom happens that a person kills the first grouse he ever 
fires at; and second, it was not considered absolutely nec- 
essary for a man to turn a back somersault and shoot be- 
tween his legs. 
Jim certainly was happy, and showed it; but turning to 
me he said, "Jay, there's one thing would make me feel 
better." Being asked what, he answered, "To have seen 
you kill him!" 
Now, what do you think of that for generosity ? I'm 
afraid not many of us who lay claim to the name of 
sportsman are up to it. It's a pretty high standard, 
friends. 
We walked on a short distance further and came to a 
cider mill— one of the old-time kind— wandered around, 
and finally came across one of the women folks, who 
showed us where to find the best cider. Charlie M. 
syphoned it into a measure and handed us each a glassful, 
when we drank to Jim's further success and another one 
to our own. We were by this time in a comparatively 
hilly country, with wild wastes of pasture land here and 
there, patches of woods, and again stubble and meadow. 
Starting once more, we crossed the road and walked 
through an old orchard. When half way through I was 
startled by the report of a gun, and turned in time to see 
Charles R. with a grin on his fat, roguish face; he had 
shot at a cottontail just as it was going through a fence, 
but failed to connect. ''I'll get the next one if I get a 
ghost of a show, you can bet a dollar," said he. We 
laughed; but sure enough, in the very next field up 
jumped another, only to be stopped by a clever shot from 
Charles, to his evident satisfaction. 
We sfc pirated once more, Charlie M., the pup and I 
started tnrough the corner of a field over the fence, and 
had just got in the road when I saw what looked to me 
like a partridge silently disappearing among the trees. I 
asked Charlie if he had seen it, and he said ne thought he 
had caught a glimpse of a partridge, but wasn't sure. 
The trt-es through which the bird fldw formed a hedge of 
from 50 to lUOit. across, and ran parallel with, the road, 
and there were open fields on the other side. 
We decided to shoot even if the bird arose out of range, 
80 as to make him lie close the next time. I kept the 
road, while Charlie M. and the pup searched the woods. 
Before long 1 heard a shut and Charlie reported the bird 
as having flushed some ten rods ahead. Finding the bird 
so wild, 1 went well along the road to wtere a cart path 
intersected it leading into one of the fields. I took a 
stand here and made up my mind at least to burn some 
gunpowder if she triea to run across the road. Soon I 
heard Charlie working his way through the trees, when 
with a whir up went the partridge from among the bush 
and trees on the opposite side from where 1 expected her 
to start. I got a momentary glimpse of her form disap- 
pearing, took a snap shot and had the satisfaction of see- 
ing her strike with a thump m the open field on the other 
side, and roll over, but to my utter astonishment take 
wiug again instantly, when she gave me a somewhat bet- 
ter shot, and with the second barrel I succeeded in finally 
stoppipg her. 
Delighted as I was at killing the partridge, nevertheksB 
