S06 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
[kPni-L It, mi 
catcbingmv foot began to tumble; but as I was goina: I 
caught a glimpse of the bird as he was disappearing behind 
a thick bunch of alders, and threw the gun where I thought 
he ought to be and cut loose, and woodcock and I struck the 
ground at about the same time, both in rather a demoraHzpd 
condition. I was feeling rather badly, as I had msde quite 
an exhibition of myself, to say nothing of bruised shins; but 
as T gathered myself together pain and chagrin disappeared 
under the hearty clap on the shoulder by the veteran as he 
exclaimed, "I thought both my doubles very neat, and I felt 
proud of them; but I would give tliem and half a dozen 
more for a shot like that." 
There was onlv one woodcock in ^he orchard which fell to 
6abin. Listen to bis story of the affair, as he has told it 
many times: "I flushed the bird in front of Trump and 
killed it, and in falling it lodeed io the top of an apple tree 
that was more than 2ft. through at the butt. The old dog 
looked at it a moment, then with a wasr of his tail he deliber- 
atply climbed the tree, shook off the bird, then came down, 
picked it up and brought it in." True every word of it, as 
we all witnessed the performance. Althoueh Sabin never 
adds arother word, it may be as well perhaps for me to say 
that the tree had been blown nearly down, and laid at an 
angle of about forty-five degrees, which made the feat com • 
paratively easy for a dog with the sense possessed by old 
Trump. When Sabin went to put the bird in his pocket, 
somehow he made a misfire, and it dropped on the 
ground imnoticed by him, and as he started along I picked 
up the bird, and, showing it to the veteran, put it in my 
pocket and said nothins. 
We then beat out the birches just beyond the orchard, 
where we found two birds, both of them coming ray way. 
In the ground still further on we visited the good places, 
but there was only one bird here, which the veteran 
accounted for; at least he thought he did; but as T had fired 
both barrels at it there was room for doubt I said nothing, 
however, as I very much dislike to mar the enjoyment of a 
companion when he anpears to think he has "wiped my 
eyes;" in fart, this performance never disturbs me in the 
least. T have no reputation to maintain as a sure shot. I 
dearly love to shoot, and am pretty nearly sure to cut loose 
if there appears to be the remotest chance of getting the 
bird, and T often pull the trigger by gness when the game 
is entirely hidden from sight. The pleasure of shooting far 
outweighs the loss of the ammnnition, and I always consider 
myself ahead in the s-ame even if I do sometimes pile un the 
misses; and then when one does make a long or diiBcult 
shot there is lots of compensation for previous failures, to 
say nothing of laying un treasure in memory's storehouse 
that will increase and multiply as the years so on, no matte^ 
how much ©r how often you may draw UD©n it. Why? I 
would not barter the memory of one such shot of the many 
■fhat have fallen to my lot for tenfold the satisfaction en- 
joyed by him who never misses his bird. 
Crossing the road to the maple swamp that T have pre- 
viously mentioned, as we walked down the slope, T kept a 
sti'aight course, while Sabin diverged a little to the right and 
the veteran to the hft. which brought us to the swamp about 
SOyds. apart. Sending on the dojrs, all three of them pointed 
at nearly the same instant, and after admiring the beautiful 
picture for a short time the veteran gave the signal to ad- 
vance. When we went to the dogs almost simultaneously 
each of us put up a bird and there was not three seconds 
difference in the report of the three gunp. all of the birds 
being accounted for. "There," esclairaed the veteran, "I 
never saw nor heard of anything like this before, and do not 
believe that I shall ever see it agai" " Jt was indeed a 
wonderful performance for our rough New England shoot- 
ing. Although T have several times seen three and four 
birds killed almost simultaneonslv, T have never since seen 
it done from three independent points. We found four 
more birds here, two of them falling to the veteran's gun and 
two to mire, although Sabin should have had nne of these; 
but he was a sure shot and thought too much of his reputa- 
tion to take chances, and as I saw him lower his gun, refus- 
ing the shot, I cut loo? e at the corkscrew and had the satis- 
faction of bringing it down. 
After leaving the maple swamp we beat out a birch knoll 
and the little alder run beyond it without a find. Just as we 
reached the top of the bank at the head of the run a wood- 
cock flushed wild some 50yds. in front of us, and taking a 
circle of about 200yds in diameter it settled squarely behind 
us in the run that we had just passed through. Sabin was 
delegated to bring it in, and he at once started for the bird, 
sending his dog around to the right in order to give him the 
wind. When he arrived within about 20yds. of the bird it 
arose and Sabin killed it very prettily just as it was disap- 
pearing behind a clump of birches At the instant he fired 
'a cuckoo about halfway between him and the woodcock 
started into the air just in time to catch a portion of the 
charge, and it also fell dead; but Sabin knew nothing of 
this, and as his dog came in at the report of the gun he. 
ordered him to fetch dead. Old Trump went in the right 
direction, and when he came to the cuckoo he picked it up 
and brought it in. You should have seen the look on that 
man's face as he took the bird from the dog. The veteran 
and I were almost in convulsions— in fact the veteran did 
eo down all in a heap when Sabin came up and solemnly 
averred that that bird had whistled just like a woodcock. 
The fun of this was that Sabin had an impediment in his 
hearing, and often said that he had not heard a woodcock 
whistle for years ; but we decided that as an excuse for shoot- 
ing the whistle was first class. 
VVTiile recovering from the turn this performance had given 
us, I saw by the actions of my dog that he had marked the 
dead bird, so I silently motioned him on. and he was soon 
galloping back with it in his mouth. When Sabin caught 
sight of him he at once grasped the situation, and it was 
worth almost as much as the rest of it to see the changes come 
over his countenance as he turned to u.=i and remarked: 
"Pretty good joke on old Trump, wasn't it?" 
When we resumed our coarse the veteran's doe: was miss- 
ing, "Never mind," said the old man, "he knows the route 
and we shall soon find him if there are any birds " Sure 
eoough, we soon saw him at the edge of a patch of birches 
fast on point. As we came to him the veteran walked in 
front to put up the bird. He had advanced three or four 
steps beyond the dog when, with a yell, he jumped 8ft in 
the air, then scrambling back he tumbled over poor Joe and 
both went down together. Wondering what was the matter, 
Sabin and I hastened to him, and as he gathered himself to- 
gether he very energetically ejaculated, "Holy Moses! what 
a snake." It appeared that he had stepped squarely on the 
biggest snake he eyer saw, Uenoe the yell and quickly fol- 
lowing evolqtioDs. Joe meantime bad picked liimself up 
fid resumed bis polDt, witicb the veteran bade m attend to. 
Jl§ did 8Qt tW tM be could bit a barn, As I stepped to 
the front I saw the grass and bushes moving a sliort distance 
ahead and cut loose at the disturbance. At the crack of 
the gun a woodcock flushed just beyond and flew nearly 
over the veteran's head. This brought him round all right, 
at least he grasspd his bird in good style. We then investi- 
gated and found that my aim had been true, as the snake was 
writhing near by with a broken back. When we saw him 
we not only exonerated the veteran for his part of the per- 
formance, but soundly rated him for not yelling louder and 
jumping higher; the tumble over the dog we decided was 
"faultless. 
It was now past noon and high time for lunch, so we 
obliqued to the right and made for a cool spring under a 
maple some fifty rods distant, where we spent a most agree- 
able half hour discussing our lunch and reviewing incidents 
of the morning. 
Ah! that cool, inviting spring; how many happy half 
hours have I passfd under the noble tree that shades the 
sparkling waters; how many loved companions have shared 
with me the delights of this sylvan spot; how many well- 
told tales of sport galore have I listened to here; how many 
noble birds with their plumage all smoothed out have I seen 
lying side bv side on the evergreen turf ; what delightful 
"smoke talks" come to me as my thoughts go back to the 
good old times I Shadow. 
THE "RICH" AND THE "POOR." 
Editor Forest and Stream: 
The communication of Mr. W. W. McCain entitled "The 
Pennsylvania Game Law," and published in Forest ajsd 
Stream of April 10, is similar to a few others which appear 
now and then at infrequeat periods, and which represent 
nothing more than the peculiar idiosyncrasies of individual 
grumblers, whose ideas of economics are awry, or who mis- 
take their extremely acute personal cupidity for the true 
measure of justice. Their keynote is the injustice done to 
the poor man by the rich. They proclaim their personal 
vaporings to be general just principles. They arrogate to 
themselves the authority to speak as the true representative 
of the poor man. I do not believe that they are such. I do 
not believe that they proclaim the sentiments of the poor 
man. I do not believe thai the poor men of this country (that 
is, the meritorious poor men, those who are industrious, intel- 
hgent and progressivf) believe that there is an antagonism 
and opposition of interests between the rich and poor. Out 
of the army of contributors to Forest akd Stream, 1 am 
pleased to note that such opinions do not come from the best 
writers or thinkers, be they rich or poor. Men of influence, 
of high position, of good standing in the community, men 
who know what belongs to themselves as men, and what is 
due their fellow men as citizens, men who are earnest in pro- 
moting the public good, never hold such views. There are. 
however, a few men whose contribution to the sum total of 
social and financial progress consists of inveighing against 
existing conditions, and they even flourish so far as to organ- 
ize into bodies, whereupon their scattered ideas crystallize 
into a fantastic whole; thus we have Coxey armies, anarch- 
istic gatherings, etc., with a few blatant demagogues as 
leaders, who declaim against the monster, wealth — a monster 
which thty soon get on very good tei'ms with if they can 
but capture it. 
It is a vicious doctrine indeed which teaches that there 
exists an antagonism between the rich and the poor. On 
the contrary, their interests are common interests. Their 
life in society and its affairs is so interwoven chat there can 
be no antagonism without each suffering a common injury. 
Wealth and labor are inseparable. Where there is wealth 
there «ece«sari]y must be labor, for wealth owes its existence 
to labor. To capital and labor we owe the wonderful develop- 
ment of this country. They built our vast railroad systems, 
canals, bridges, shipping, cities, roads, telegraphs, etc., and 
the millions of dollars expended went into "the hands of the 
p"or, as milhons still continue to go into their hands for serv- 
ices rendered as employees Under the laws all are ( qual. 
Rich and poor are but relative terms. Few men are so 
poor that they will not find others who are poorer, and few 
are so rich that they will not find others who are richer. Of 
the rich, many acquired their wealth by years of indus-try, 
8<^lf denial, special training, and an aptitude for business. 
The same road is open to all. Many men are poor from in- 
dolence, or extravagance, or inefficiency in business. Yet 
envy only comes when a compari-con is made with the better 
fortune of others. No doubt Mr McCain, whatever his 
fortune may be, knows of many peop'e poorer than he is 
himself; but knowing such men, dois he deny himself the 
comforts or pleasures within his means because of that? I 
dare say that he is not interested in bringing himself down 
to the level of those poorer than himself. He enjoys his own, 
as is his right. Human nature is the same through aD the 
difftrent gradations of wealth, and each one enjuys for him- 
self according to his fancy and his means. 
1 have nothing whatever to do with the argument between 
Mr. McCain and Mr. Mazurie and Bon Ami. 1 take the 
points presented by him as being bad in themselves, entirely 
regardless of any application which he makes of them. 
He asks with much earnestness the following question; 
'•Whicti is the better fportsman and the more considei'ate, con- 
sistent Katne protector -the poor pot-hunter (?) who legally kills 100 
duck-!, grouse or woodcocli in a whole season's shooting, and from 
sheer necessity sells them to supply his lanal'y with the necessaries 
of hfe. or the wealthy club member or yacht owner who kills five 
times as roan v in a morning's shoot and gives them to his friends and 
companions?" 
Truly the answer is easy— the club member and the yacht 
owner are the better sportsmen. And why? Because the 
man who goes forth with no other motive than to kill for 
market is no sportsman at all, nor does he care a rap for the 
features of sport. He snares, pot-shoots, shoots out of sea 
son, and secures the birds any way he can. He is out for 
money . To call him a sportsman is to force the tei-m upon 
him, Mr. McCain's statement of the question is as unfair as 
his weak case demands; first, because no wealthy club mem- 
ber or yacht owner ever killed 500 ducks in a morning, and 
it is a rare occurrence when he kills so many as that in a 
whole season. Second, for every successful hunt enjoyed by 
a club mem* r he ha=i had a d(»zen or more which were un- 
successful, 'v/f ' club members" or ' 'yacht owners, " not more 
than 10 per cent, have successful outings so far as the mere 
ki. ling of game is concerned. Wherever they go they give 
a liberal return in money paid for services or mater. al. 
And alas! the poor pot-hunter who kills only 100 birds in 
a season. Poor, poor man! Let us pause to pity him Let 
us unite our voices and call him gentleman; yes, sportsman! 
Let us make a wreath of laurels for him, B.e has been 
maligned and despised these raauY years, tUe abhorred of all 
true sport'^meD, How solicitous lie is that he kills hU birds 
egailj'i And his modoratioQl Cfentlemen, we have done 
the pot hunter a great injustice. Let us henceforth denounce 
the sportsman and exalt the pot hunter. Let us do this that 
our game may be preserved. Let us do this that we may 
learn true sportsmanship. Let us do this that we may scorn 
riches and the pleasures that they bring. But before we do 
all this let us confer over it. 
Where docs the enormous market supply of American 
game come from? 
Who has swept almost from existence the prairie chicken, 
which onf e was found from the Gulf of Mexico to the 
regions of Britisji America? The "club member" and "yacht 
owner"? 
Who exterminated the wild pigeon, whose numbers in 
flight darkened th.esky? The "club member" and "yacht 
owner"? 
We now have a fragmentary flight of ducks. A few years 
ago every slough, stream, lake and roarsh was full of them 
as they made their way southward in the fall, and later the 
bays and coasts of the salt water were filled with them. We 
have a few ducks left. What has become of the rest? The 
"club member" and "yacht owner" again? 
Market-shooting as a vocation was one of the most profit- 
able. It is profitable yet to those who have a knowledge of 
the best manner of conducting it No greater ignorance 
was ever displayed of what was fitting than that shown by 
Mr. McCain in asking us to feel sympathy for the poor 
market shooter who is struggling to earn a meager living for 
a poor and needy family. It is a picture drawn from vapor 
ing sentiment or personal interest, and not from fact. There 
may be market-shooters in certain poorly favored sections 
who do not make any great sums of money, but the shooter 
who has the physical ability to travel through field and cover 
all day, and has the practice to handle a gun skillfully, has 
sutficient intelligence and physical strength to earn a living 
in some other manner. Once a man is a market-hunter, be 
remains one so long as the game lasts or until the 
law prevents. The occupation is followed for the 
profit that is in it and for the freedom which 
goes with it. In the Western chicken country a 
few years ago — with a cheap hoise, a cheap wagon 
and a cheap gun, with a d'^e or two to assist, the whole out- 
fit costing from $100 to $150 - it was not an unusual occur- 
rence for a market-shooter to kill from six to ten dozen 
chickens in a day, and th< y averaged about |3 per dozen, or 
from $18 to $30 for a day's work. Alas! poor fellow trying 
to support a family. The season opened in early August 
and lasted into winter. A man afoot could make from $6 to 
$12 per day. Market-shooters swarmed there from all the 
different States, and some of the resident farmers abandoned 
farming during the chicken season to shoot for the market, 
finding this more profitable than their regular vocation. 
When cold weather set in and ended ' the chicken shooting 
the duck season began, and the true market-hunter followed 
the ducks all the way south, killing all that he could, and 
then shot all winter on the coast, following them back in the 
spring. As ho in the gond years gone by could kill any- 
where from 50 to 150 ducks or more in a day, it is easily seen 
how the poor fellow was deserving of heartfelt sympathy for 
struggling so hard to "supply his tamiiy with the necesfcarii s 
of life" on $20 or $30 a day. The market-shooters have de- 
creased because they hive destroyed the birds. Some of 
them found that there were not birds enough for them to 
continue their model "sportsmanship." though there are 
market-shooters yet who follow the birds north to south, shont 
all winter on the southern coast and follow them back again 
in the spring. There are also market-shooters who are en- 
gaged on a regular monthly salary. There are hundreds of 
such engaged every season. They are paid good wages, not, 
however, for merely killing 100 bitds in a se ason. This dis- 
cussion is not a question of a few impecunio, s men making a 
living. It is a question of an army of expei ^^aarket shootcrs 
destroying the game of the nation. 
To further present something more targible than mere 
assertion, 1 consulted my scrap book, in which I presf rve all 
matters I deem of value and interest. In it I find the fol- 
lowing, from Forest aisd Stream of Jan 5, 1895. It was 
written by a staff correspondent of this journal. He wrote 
from New Orleans: 
"No section of country can preserve its game supply if it is system- 
atically worked by markf t-hunters Few sportsmen realize tne 
enormous destruction of game which is constantly in progress to 
supply the demands of the market. Forty or fifty birds each day i o 
one pun do not seem to be a destructive quantity, but it amotmts to 
an enormous total in four or five months. When there are several 
g^uns in one neighborhood used in market-shooting, such shooiinf? 
must result in the destruction of the game in that section. The 
western part of the State (Louisiana), I have been informed, is lositg 
its game birds rapidly from this cause. Market-shooting is in pro- 
gress there on an extensive scale, and not the ola-time style of shoot- 
ing, whereiQ the shooter relied on his individual effort, and carried 
his modest bag to the nearest dealer to sell for such sum as he could 
get, but organized shooting with modern equipments. The shooters 
scour the surrounding country, killing all toe birds that they poshi- 
bly can. A wagon is engaged to visit certain prearranged points at 
stated times to colUct the birds killed and take them to the town iu 
which is the shooters' headquarters. The birds are put m a refriger- 
ator box made for the purpose, and when l.OOOlb", are collected they 
are shipped in the refrigerator to New York. I was told that the 
shooters netted from 34:000 to ?5,000 per year from their work in 
m arket-s b 00 1 ing. " 
In a letter dated New Orleans, Dec. 32, 1894, he wrote; 
'•No one in the North who has not given the subject special study 
realizes the enormous qur mines ot game killed ia the South duilng 
the winter months. Hundreds of men are employed oti a salary to 
shoot for the market by business firms of New Orleans, One dealer 
told me that he had bought, at one order, $850 worth of ammuui'ioa 
to distribute among his 150 market-shooters, etc. » » » One 
gentleman, whose knowledge and veracity are above question, as- 
sured me that in past years he has known of upward of 100 baskets 
of duck,'! to be shipped from one point in that section, and as each 
basket averages about 100 ducks, the total Is almost inc-edi' le. An- 
other gentleman told me of a big day, wherein one man shipped as 
the result of three or four guns' work a total of 5,700 ducks." 
These are statistics from but one or two localities. There 
are many such now from JNew Orleans west to old 
Mexico. The refrigerator and fast transportation make mar- 
ket shooting an occupation of certain prt)fii;. The poor mar- 
ket-shooter who "from sheer necessity sells them to supply 
his family with the necessaries of lite" setms to be really an 
army of able bodied, skillful men followiog shooting as a 
regular profession, each one killing thousands of birds each 
season, and either receiving good s-alaries (not, howf ver, to 
him "who legally kills 100 ducks, grouse or woodcock," as set 
forth by Mr. McCain, whose expurieuce as a merchant dealer 
in game should qualify him as an authority on sport) or mak- 
ing sums which in amount rival the incomes of professional 
men. 
The markets in all the large cities are filled with an abuq- 
dance of game every season and for some days after the sea- 
son is (lobfcd. All the hotels, cafes, restaurants, steamships, 
etc., numbering ttiousands, aro able to supply their guests 
with any variety of game in geason and some out of seaeoa 
THh^vs id eoough to supply private u^iH alsoi The eQormou' 
