JtTDY 31, 1897.] 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
8B 
'We shall be glad to supply copies of Mrs. Bradford's book 
tb those -wishing to obtain it, at $1 each. Thejproceeds of the 
;sale of the volume will be applied to the monument fund. 
tunie mtd §nn. 
Tree Planting Association of New York City. 
New Yoek, July ll.— Editor Forest and Stream: The 
Tree Planting Association has been organized a year, within 
which time 149 members have joined, and a begioning has 
been made in the planting of trees. 
in cons( t[aence of the circulars that haVe been Issued and of 
thfc notices that hate appeared in the newspapers, i28 rt quests 
hate been- received by mail for inforttiation on the subject of 
tree planting from the general public, inany asking for 
Several duplicates. ' ', 
tleports from the nurserymen show that 513 trees ha^e 
been planted, and doubtless others of which the Association 
has not been notified. 
The selection of the proper tree for each locality depends 
80 much on various conditions that it will be safe for intend- 
ing tree planters to consult with and follow the advice of the 
miseryman with whom he places his order. 
It is very gratifying to find so much interest taken in the 
subject by citizens generally, and by the pfess, who almost 
without exception rtcognize thfe advantages and favor the 
work of the Association and tave done much to forward the 
plan and to encourage the project. W. A. Stiles, Sec'y. 
An Albino Quail. 
Burn SIDE, La. , July 22— Editor Forest and Stream: I en- 
close ycu a photograph of an albino quail. It is a perfect 
specimen of an albino, for it has not a single dark feather. 
This quail was killed in St. James Parish, Louisiana, last 
Jatuaiy. For several years one or two albmo quail have 
been seen in this section of the country, but this is the first 
specimen I have been able to secure. I have never seen so 
perfect a specimen, although it is quite a common thing to 
see quail with white patches of feathers. Another specimen 
that was killed was cream color, with a few brown feathers 
ECattered about over his back. W. P. Miles, Jr. 
[The photograph, which, ttnfortUnately, will not repro- 
dbce, shows the bird to be as Mr. Miles says, a pet-fectly 
white specimen ] 
A Cuckoo Out of Place. 
Rockland, Me., July 1".— Editor Forest and Stream: I 
send you by express a bird for identification. It was shot 
while swimming in deep water in a pond. 
I could not place it; the nearest I could come was a young 
butcher bird, a young kingbird or one of the flycatchers; 
blit neilher of theee satisfied. 1 have only "Samuel's Book 
of Birds" to assist me. .j, W. 
[The bird^is^ a young black-billed ctickoo {CoHyziis erji- 
ihrbphth'almiis), a nestling, which could probably tly only a 
few feet. It was of cotirse altogether but of place in the 
pond, and very likely fell into the water froiti the neSt, 
which it must have left very recently.] 
The Merchants' Association of New York. 
_ The Merchants' Association of New York, is an organiza- 
tion of gentlemen, whose object is to increase to as large an 
extent as po-^sible (he number of buyers visiting New York 
this fall. The ofllcers and directors, who give their services 
entirely without pay, are assisted by an advisory committee, 
which includes in its membership representative men in the 
various departments of trade. The Association will secure 
for its out-of-town members reduced rates from the various 
traffic associations, which will give any member, his family 
or employees the benefit of one and a third fare for a round 
trip ticket to New York, good for thirty days. Such tickets 
are also eligible for stop over at Philadelphia or Baltimore. 
Out-of-town membership may be secured without charge on 
application to the Association. Resident membership costs 
|25, and already large numbers of public-spirited business 
men, who appreciate the advantages to be attained as a result 
of the Association's efforts, have applied for membership. 
The Association has its headquarters in the New York 
Life Building, Broadway and Leonard street, adjacent to the 
trade center of New York, Here an attractive reading room 
will be fitted up, which out-of-town members will find con- 
venient as headquarters while visiting the city. All the 
facilities of a busmess club will be provided, including, of 
course, telegraph, telephone, etc , and there will also a bu- 
reau of information attached. 
Manufacturers and dealers in sporting goods will find it to 
their advantage to cooperate with the Association. The spe- 
cial railroad rates will probably apply for the latter part of 
August and first of September. 
Uncle liisha and Sam Lovel. 
"We have especially enjoyed, in our family of seven, the 
chapters of "Uncle Lisha" whenever they appear— the 
youngest member of the household is as eager to find Row- 
land E. Robinson's name in each new paper as I am. 
We own the three volumes of the "Uncle Lisha" series and 
have read them aloud till the characters are familiar friends, 
and their quaint speeches are quoted aptly on many occal 
gions. The books have also been placed in the public library 
of our town. Long live Rowland Robinson, to bring us 
closer to the heart of mother nature, and to help us under- 
stand human nature. L. H. Bailey. 
MAeSdCHOSETTS. 
The Pistol-Grip Stock. 
New Yobk, June S.— Editor Forest and Stream.- So much contro- 
versy atterward arises as lo where and when any improved device 
oriKinaied, fchsc it is not undesirable when one acciden tall v comes 
across an early mention of an improvement, which subseqaentJr be- 
comes accredited and adopted, to make record of the fact. In that 
connection I send you, in relation to the now almost universal pistol- 
grip, the followiofr extract from an interesting book-entitled "The 
Bportaman in France," by Frederic Tolfrey, E^q. (Lonaon 1841) 
Y.olume 2, Chapter 7, ''Rifle Sbooting by an American Gentleman": 
„ "KiNasTON, Upper Canada, Aug. 4, 1819. 
''Dear Sir: ' 
"* * ♦ I once saw a ripe made at Harper's Ferry, in our State 
splendid piece of workmanship. mo suruu suaro, a iimb 
which grew out of the main stock just below where the right hand 
grasps the breech, was fashioned to resemble thebutt-^nd of a pistol 
handsomely chequered and capped silvered. This enabled you to 
firasp the gun wiili strength and steadmess, and had a very handsome 
appearance. I thought it an improvement." 
The letter, which is addressed to Mr. Tolfrey, is quite lengthy and 
follows an argutnent, in the preceding chapter, in favor of rifles' over 
bell-carrying gups. It fe signed (in the printed book) only wkh the 
initials S. 8. ~ . . ' ,t 
From this it appears that the pistol grip at least considerablv ante- 
dates 1819. Curiously enough, the same letter recommends for a rifle 
"a foresight made altogether of ivory, * ♦ * as it. never glares " 
^yhicb idea I had supposed was to be properly credited to Mr. Lyman. 
Charles Stewart Davison. 
The "Brief's'* Pictures. 
There are twenty-nine illustrations in the current edillon of Game 
Laws in Brief, most of thetn full page half tones, and all admirahly 
printed. The book is a beau'y, and well worth having for the illus- 
trations which, Mr Charles Hallock says, so well represent America's 
wilderBeFs sports. The Brief gives all the laws of the United States 
and Canada for the practical guidance of anglers and shooters As 
an authority, it hag a long record of unassailed and unassailable ac- 
ciiracy. Fot-est and Stream Pub. Co. sends it postpaid for 85 cents, 
ot you^- dealer will supply you. 
A/VIERICAN (jAME PARK5. 
The "Forest and Stream's" Fourth 
Ahnual Report on Gafne in 
Preserves. 
Part One.— Fenced Parks. 
(Continued from page S3.') 
KEEPIKC4 pace with our diminishing game supply and de- 
creasing covers is the movement for game preserves. The 
experimental stage has long since passed, and the day when 
such preserves as Blooming Grove or Austin Corbin's Blue 
Mountain Forest Park were regarded as interesting, because 
exceptional undertakings, has gone never to return. Game 
preserves are now as thoroughly established in this country 
as they axe in the old world, and the fact that they have not 
as yet exerted a more powerful influence upon American 
spnrlemen is due only to the great extent of our country, 
which still affords abundant opportunities for the unattached 
seeker after game or fisli. 
There is, however, little reason to fear that the rich sports- 
man will monopolize the shooting, as is the case in Europe, 
for here there are large areas of hunting country, where either 
State laws, public sentiment or natural conditions eifectually 
operate against prciertes. The conditions which favor pre- 
serves are cheap land with attractive natural features, and 
trespass laws which are well defined and easily enforced. 
Under such conditions it is common for individuals or as- 
sociations of sportsmen to take up large tracts of what might 
fitly be termed waste land, often almost divested of flsh or 
game, and either by stocking with animals brought from a 
distance, or else by strict protection of the stock already on 
the land, vastly improving the sport for their individual 
benefit. It is worth noting that while such enterprise is un- 
tiuestionably selfish in its origin, it often redounds to the 
benefit of all sportsmen who frequent the neighborhood, for 
such preserves act in measure as asylums for game, and the 
free hiinting in the surrounding country is nearly always 
benefited. 
As an illustration, it is sstfe to say that there would be no 
deer hunting on Long Island to day wei-e it not for the pro- 
tection afforded by the preserved lands of the South Side 
Sportsman's CJub, and others. 
Though the object of our American preserves has been the 
same as that of their EuropeaQ prototype?, in that they have 
been organized to afford their owners better sport than could 
otherwise be afssured, we have gone a step further than the 
old world in one respect and developed a new type in the 
fenced preserve. In Europe, the hunting country is practi- 
cally nothing more than a series of contiguous preserves, and 
there is no need for fences, for while certain game may pass 
from one owner to another, an exchange is certain to be 
made sconer or later and the balance restored. In this 
country, however, many preserves are so isolated that fenc- 
ing is a necessity in order to keep any game at all, and in 
other cases owners desire to introduce game not found in the 
surrounding country, and here again a fence is necessary to 
keep their own. 
This type of fenced preserve is already well established 
and daily becoming more common. It enables the owner to 
experiment with exotic game, and also to locate his preserve 
wlienever he pleases without reference to the surrounding 
game supply. He is also in a position to determine the in- 
crease of his game, and under certain limitations to influence 
its breeding. All which considerations make the fenced 
preserves extremely interesting to the naturalist and worthy 
of separate classification. 
These reports are intended to show the progress of pre- 
serves in this country, and also to furnish material of inter- 
est to park owners and sportsmen in general relative to the 
effects of protection and the breeding of the various native 
and exotic species in captivity. The first report of this series 
was printed in our issue for Feb. 17, 1894. In 1895 articles 
were printed May 11 and 18. In 1896, July 4, 11 and 18. 
Litchfield Park. 
LiTCHMELXi Park, in the Adirondacks, is the property of 
Mr. Edward H Litchfield, of New York. Mr. Litchfield is 
a sportsman of ripe experience, who has hunted all over the 
United States, and is familiar with the different species of 
game animals in their native wilds. This fact gives the key- 
note to his park, for first of all it is designed to be a hunting 
park, where the game and fish are preserved for the sport 
their pursuit and capture brings. 
Litchfield Park dates back to August, 1893, when Mr. 
Litchfield purchased a ti-act of 9,000 acres of wild forest land 
in the southwest corner of Franklin county, N. ¥., and just 
east of Tapper Lake, The following September he had the 
park inclosed with Page woven wire fencing, using the 
growing trees to a large extent for posts. "The fecce has 
stood the racket nobly," said Mr, Litchfield, in referring to 
it recently. "In a number of instances large trees fell on it, 
but in every case as soon as they were removed the fence 
sprang back to its original position, and it is, at the present 
lime, in as good condition as when it was built." 
Beginning in the spring of 1894, Mr. Litchfield purchased 
a small band of elk, which, prior to the completion of the 
main fence, were kept in a smaller inclosure, and later other 
elk were kidded, till last year the herd numbered over 
thirty. Their numbers have undoubtedly been increased by 
births, but owing to the extent of the park, and the fact that 
the elk are scattered, Mr. Litchfield is unable to give any 
figures bearing on the increase. Thirty-five more elk have 
been ordered from a Western dealer, and will no doubt soon 
be added to those already in the park. 
In addition to the elk there are several black-tail deer, and 
a large number of native Virginia deer, besides jack-rabbits, 
pheasants and smaller game. ' 
Mr. Litchfield visited the park during the winter, in the 
moriths of January, February and March, and found the 
elk in good condition. At the present time they are looking 
well, and are fat. Mr. Litchfield gives them no hay or other 
feed, and believes in making them forage for themselves. 
The i_dea_ of feeding his game as though it were domestic 
stock is distasteful to him, and, moreover, he believes the 
game will do better in the long run if left to shift for itself;. 
Of course, a careful oversight of the game is kept by Super- 
intendent Du Bois, and if the animals exhibited any signs of 
starvation, food would instantly be provided. As a matter 
of fact, however, the elk and "other animals are sleek and 
'■sassy," and at the same time as wild as any other like game 
tD be found in America. 
Mr. Litchfield has recently added to the area of his land 
by the purchase of an adjoining tract in St. Lawrence 
county^ extending three miles along the eastern shore of 
Tupper Lake, and including the islands at the head of the 
lake as well as a half of County Island, and also a mile of 
the west side of the lake contiguous to the county line. This 
new tract takes in the best part of Tupper Lake, with a num- 
ber of beautiful little islands and a shore line irregular and 
very pi cturef que. 
Mr. Litchfield is at present engaged in building a good 
road to connect his park with the railroad at Tupper Lake 
Village. This road will begin at the park, west gate, and 
run northeast parallel with the general direction of the shore 
of Tupper Lake to Moody P. 0 , a distance of five and one- 
quarter miles. There is already a good road connecting 
Moody with the railroad at Tupper Lake Village. The 
work is being done under the supervision of a competent 
engineer, and thirty men are employed on it at the present 
time. 
On the preserve proper are a number of lakes all stocked 
with trout. While fishing in one of the smallest of these 
last summer, Mr. Litchfield found a brook trout that 
had been struck by a fish hawk and run up into a little 
inlet stream and died, that measured SO^in. long and 
weighed GJlbs. Under protection the fishing is greatly 
improving, and experience all tends to show that 
where the game is not already extinct protection will 
achieve wonderful results. In the case of the fishing the 
natives formerly were accustomed to skin the waters by 
means of set-lines and fishing on the spawning beds and 
through the ice. As a result, at the time when Mr. Litchfield 
first bought the tract the fishing was very poor. Now, how- 
ever, it is as good as could be desired. To keep up the sup- 
ply no permits for fishing are given, and all fish not required 
for the table are returned to the water immediately. 
All Mr. Litchfield's pheasants have disappearpd, as was to 
be expected; but, notwithstanding, he has turned out more 
this year, content f o have his neighbors benefit, even if he 
himself does not. He has not been able to procure any wild 
turkeys or caribou, though he has advertised for both varie- 
ties. Mr. Litchfield is also on the market for moose ; but 
though he has closed contracts for this game it has never 
materialized. 
Blue Mountain Forest Park. 
Chief among the fenced preserves, by reason of its size and 
importance, is the Corbin Blue Mountain Forest Park, near 
Newport, N. H. Wandering at will within the fences of 
this immense preserve, which includes a tract of more than 
forty square miles, are upward of 3,000 large game animals, 
including deer, elk, moose, buffalo and boar. Its conception 
dates back only ten years, and the first wild game was 
turned loose only a little over seven years asro. So much 
has been written of this park that no detailed description 
will be attempted here. Full details will be found in pre- 
vious reports, and also in our issues for March 13, 1891, and 
May 26, 1893. It is worth noting, however, that the present 
increase of wild game is due almost wholly to an original 
stocking of about 300 animals. - 
The leading varieties of game in the park at present, ac- 
cording to Supt. Stockwell's estimate, are: Buffalo 54, elk 
1.150, moose 200, white-tail deer 500, black-tail and Columbia 
650. European red deer 75, besides thar, boar, etc. 
We are indebted to Mr. Austin Corbin for the following 
particulars : 
"Every species has done well, with the exception of the 
wild boar. We have hitherto fed these animals with corn 
during the winter, but decided this past winter to see if 
they could not get along without it. As a result, a great 
many died, and 1 imagine that none of the young ones bora 
during the most severe season lived. The number is prob- 
ably reduced to less than half of that we had last year. I 
fancy that we have at least 250 up there. Anyhow, we 
have quite enough, as these animals are very destructive to 
pasture land. 
The buffalo have also done well, and we have to the pres- ■ 
ent date twelve calves born this spring, and expect several 
others. The above figure?, of course, do not include the 
portion of the herd sent to Van Cortlandt Park, which were 
originally twenty five, but received an increase of three 
young ones this year." 
The Berkshire Game Preserve. 
One of the most recent of American fenced preserves, and 
one that promises to be among the largest, is that of Hon. 
Wm. C Whitney in the Berkshires. near Lenox, Mass. Mr, 
Whitney owns about 10,000 acres of picturesque hill country, 
includiiig Washington Mountain. Something more than 
1.000 acres of this is at present inclosed with seven miles of 
Page fencing of a special pattern, which is higher and has a 
greater number of wires more closely spaced than the stand- 
ard game preserve fence. It is 9ft. 8in. in height, and has 
twenty-eight horizontal steel wires and sixteen vertical wires 
to the rod. For 3ft. from the bottom the horizontal wires 
are only 3in. apart, so that it is impossible for dogs or even 
smaller animals to pass through the fence. Higher up, the 
spacing increases gradually to 4, 5, 6, 7 and Sin. 
Last year thirty elk were turned loose in the park, and 
the game has been increased within a few weeks, by the ad- 
dition of thirteen buffalo, twenty blacktail deer and twenty 
antelope, ordered from H. K. Glidden, of the Moosehead 
Kanch, Jackson, Wyo. The buffalo include three bulls and 
ten cows. 
St. Louis Park and Agricultural Co. 
The preserve of the Sf. Louis Park and Agricultural Co. 
is in Taney county, Mo., in the southern part of the 
State, and forty miles from Chadwick, the nearest railroad 
station. 
It comprises an area of 5,000 acres, inclosed with a barb 
wire fence 13ft. high. 
It is stocked with elk, native deejr, red deer, fallow deer 
( 
