104 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
lot in tile mjittcf. It is true tlint I bad the. gun in my 
hands, but I nevel* fired it. and I will stick to it to my 
dying day that the buck alone was to blahie. But I 
said never a word of niy thoughts, and to all appearance 
I was as cool and collected as though this had been my 
hundredth deer instead of my first. Upon examination 
we found that my bullet had entered close behind the' 
ribs and passed out through the opposite shoulder, and 
that he had taken but a few jumps before he fell. As 
my companions came up he raised his head, when Tom 
put a bullet through it, for fear that- he might not be 
inortally hurt. Fastening a bush to the neck of the buck, 
Allen took charge of the other end. while Tom and I 
each grasped a horn, and We drew him to the house. 
in the evening there were quite a number who came 
in to see the game and talk over the hunt, and I re- 
ceived quite an ovation, as both my companions had 
sounded my praise. I tried to appear modest and free, 
from pride, and believe that I succeeded fairly well; but 
when the crack shot of that section, who was jealous of 
his reputation, ofifered to shoot against me at a 3in. target 
at twenty steps, best two in three, for half a dollar. I 
abandoned the modest role, and straightening myself up, 
I took a $20 gold piece from my pocket, arrd looking him 
squarely in the eye. told him that twenty steps was for 
boys, but if he really wanted a match, that I would shoot 
him one at the size of the gold piece, at twenty rods, 
for $20 a shot; the one nearest the center to take the 
stakes. This settled his hash, and I came off with fliying 
colors. Two years later, after my return East, I re- 
ceived a letter from a friend who had been up to Hickory 
Grove shooting, and he said that several times he heard 
me quoted as the very best shot that had ever been in 
those parts. 
About two weeks after our deer hunt Tom and I took 
an early start one morning and drove to the banks of the 
Wapsipinican River, some four or five miles from its 
mouth, in pursuit of turkeys. Tom was an old turkey 
hunter, and had often had lots of sport in this locality. 
Leaving our team at the only cabin in the vicinity, we 
started for the timber on the bank of the river and 
worked our way up stream, looking for fresh sign. We 
found old tracks in abundance, but nothing that suited 
Tom until we had traveled nearly two miles, when we 
found the footprints of a gang of eight or ten that Tom 
said had not been made an hour; so we turned short to 
the left and followed them to the edge of the timber, 
where I saw my first wild turkey; in fact, several of them, 
but was greatly disappointed to see them all in the air 
more than twenty rods distant, flying toward some heavy 
timber that was some quarter of a mile to the right of 
where we were standing. Tom, however, said that it 
was all right, and that we would have sothe fun with 
them. 
Following on their course, we entered the woods and 
continued on for fifty rods oi" more, when we found_ a 
place that Tom said could not be better. There was quite 
a large open space, and just bej^ond us was a narrow strip 
af hazel that jutted out from the timber some 50ft., and 
nearly at the end of it was the fallen trunk of a tree 3ft. 
in diameter that lay in and parallel with the thicket of 
hazel. Carefully working our way through the thicket 
at the root of the fallen tree, we took position in front 
of it, Tom some 20ft. beyond the station lie assigned me 
just at the root, where the growth of hazel in front of 
me was not nearly so dense, allowing me a very good 
view of the open ground in front as well as the edge of 
the timber. Tom had whispered instructions to me be- 
fore we entered the thicket, and I knew just what to do 
and what to expect, so I carefully pulled off from the tree 
a piece of bark and sat down on it with my back to the 
tree, taking care that my head should not show above it. 
Tom found a projecting limb that suited his- purpose, 
and sitting astride it with his rifle across his knees he 
appeared to be taking it easy. 
We sat thus about ten minutes, when Tom, putting his 
turkey call to his mouth, gave two or three faint yelps. 
Then we had another waiting spell, an hour it Seemed to 
me, but Tom said fifteen minutes, when we heard a single 
anxious call from the edge of the timber m front of us, 
not more than ten rods away. Straining my eyes in that 
direction, I soon saw the stately form of a large gobbler 
as he slowly passed an open space, coming nearly toward 
me. Never was I more sorely tempted to shoot, but re- 
membering Tom's instruction that the rifle was to have 
the first shot somehow by gripping my gun and holding 
on I m.anaged to keep it from coming to my shoulder. 
Glancing at Tom, I plainly saw that he was at concert 
pitch, and every second I expected to hear from him, 
but he afterward explained that there were too many 
twigs in the way to risk a shot. 
Sitting thus all keyed up for a few seconds, I heard a 
slight noise to my right, and without moving I turned 
my eyes in that direction and saw not 15ft. away the 
head and long neck of a gobbler. Tom's instructions 
and everything else were all forgotten, and in less than 
the tenth part of a second the top of that gobbler's head 
was blown to atoms, and as I heard the swish of wings 
beliind me I whirled and caught sight of another one 
in the air and gave him the other barrel, and with feel- 
ings impossible to describe I saw him pitch heavily to 
the ground. Just then 1 heard the crack of Tom's rifle, 
and glancing in the direction of the big gobbler I saw 
him 20ft. in the air. evidently mortally hurt, as he was 
turning and twisting and beating the air with his wings; 
but I had no time to attend to him, so I tore around the 
root of the tree and struggled through the dense thicket 
and found my prize. Picking him up, I carried him to 
the tree and laid him on it, and then went to gather the 
first one. When I stooped to pick him up I was never 
more surprised in my life than I was then, for there 
close beside him lay another one with his head also rid- 
dled with shot. I was about as full as I could hold, and 
when this was sprung on me I boiled over and gave a 
yell that Tcm said I ought to feel proud of, for he did 
not think that it could be beaten. 
Just as I had laid the three beauties side by side on 
the log and stood admiring them, Tom came back with 
the big one over his shoulder, but no sooner did he spy 
my layout than he dropped his bird and tried his best to 
beat my yell. Then we joined hands and danced. Tom 
said I sang, but this I stoutly deny, as I can't sing, so 
of course he- was mistaken. But we had a good time, 
even if I did try to sing, and so long as life shall last 
the memory of my first turkey hunt will remain a per- 
petual joy. 
Elliot's Game Birds. 
Most sportsmen will recall with pleasure the volume 
entitled "North American Shore Birds," by Daniel 
Giraud Elliot, which was reviewed in these columns 
about two years since. At that time, or soon after, it 
was intimated that a companion volume would appear 
.before very long, and we now have from the pen of the 
same author a work on the "Gallinaceous Game Birds 
of Nortli .A^merica," a book, as the title page tells us, 
"written for those who love to seek these birds , afield 
with dogs and guns, as well as those who may only de- 
sire to learn the ways of such attractive creatures in 
their haunts." 
Mr. Elliot is the author of very many works on birds 
and mammals, some of them sternly scientific, and 
others, like the present, popular in their form. He has 
been the President of the American Ornithologists' 
Union, and is to-day one of the foremost of our ornithol- 
ogists. To the readers of Forest .\nd Stream, the 
group of birds which he has chosen for this volume is 
perhaps the most attractive that could have been se- 
lected. In his preface' the author says of them: "As 
articles of food thty are of inestimable value, and the 
birds enter largely into the various accounts of trade. 
But besides the commercial aspect, wliicii is important 
enough, the species present other attractions that appeal 
most strongly to those for whom this book is especially 
written, the sportsman, viz., the pleasure they yield in 
the cha.se and the incentive they provide for action and 
effort when in the leafy aisles of the whispering forest, 
or in the thicket, and along the banks of the leafy 
strearts. or on the open, sky-encircled prairie, man in 
his quest for these game-like creatures, aided by his faith- 
ful dog, finds renewed health and strength to wrestle 
with the toils and troubles of his daily life." 
Mr. Elliot's Shore Birds was well received, and he has 
done a service to sportsmen in constructing the second 
volume on precisely the same lines. Few sportsmen 
realize how large is the number of species and subspecies 
of- gallinaceous birds to be found in North America, and 
not a few will be surprised to learn that in the present 
volume forty-six diflferent forms of quail, grouse and 
turkey are described and figured. Of these thirteen are 
partridges and ten are ptarmigans — some of these latter 
differing so slightly from their closest relations as scarce- 
ly to be distinguishable, except by the trained eye of the 
ornithologist. ' 
We have said that the present volume -is ■• constructed 
on lines precisely similar to those of the volume on shore 
birds. In considering any species, first is given the com- 
mon name of the bird, then follows an account of the 
habit, dispersion and nesting, a brief life history, and 
after this follows the Latin name, the geographical dis- 
tribution and the description of male, female and young. 
Each species described is illustrated by a full-page 
figure, from the pencil of Mr. Edwin Sheppard, an artist 
long known for his excellent portrayal of birds and bird 
life. 
Quite apart from the higli interest and value of this 
work as an ornithological volume is its especial worth 
to the sportsman. It is provided with a key to the fam- 
ilies, genera and species of the group included "in the 
work, and also with a full color chart, showing pre- 
cisely what is meant by the various colors which are 
named in the text. With the aid of this key. and of the 
color chart, there is no reason why any sportsman should 
fail to identify any species of gallinaceous game bird 
which he may find in North America. Besides this, Mr. 
Elliot has for very many years been a sportsman, and 
has himself seen and shot most of the species described 
in the regions which they inhabit. He is therefore able 
to speak of the pursuit of these species from actual ex- 
perience, and he does so very entertainingly. We could 
wi.sh that he had done so at greater length, since the 
present volume contains only about 220 pages. 
As an example of these life histories we quote what 
the author has to say about Mexican turkey, the pro- 
genitor of the domestic fowl. Pie says: 
"From this bird came the domesticated race of tur- 
keys. It is a common species on the table lands of Mex- 
ico, and within our borders is found in southern and 
western Texas, New Mexico and Arizona, at an altitude 
of from 3,000 to 10,000ft. above the sea. It is a bird of the 
highlands and mountainous regions, and is rather larger 
and heavier than the wild turkey of ihc Atlantic States. 
The light rump, with the broad white borders to the 
feathers, makes it conspicuously different from all its 
allies, and is one of the characteristic marks of the do- 
mestic bird. I found this species very abundant upon 
the highlands in southern New Mexico, near the borders 
of Arizona, and met with them in flocks of considerable 
size. They had all the habits of the Eastern bird, and 
were wary and difficult to approach. It was late in the 
autumn, and the pifion nuts were abundant, and the 
birds kept closely to the groves of the trees which were 
covered with these nuts, and apparently led exclusively 
upon them. Their flesh was so highly scented by this 
food that when the turkeys were over the fire they per- 
fumed the camp with a most appetizing odor, and I 
know no better dish than a roasted Mexican turkey 
that has been fed on pifion nuts. About three miles from 
one of our camps was a place where the turkeys were 
in the habit of roosting, and we visited the spot several 
times. On the first occasion I left camp about half an 
hour before sundown, and came near the roosting place 
just at dark. The turkeys had selected a grove of lofty 
pines, the first branches of which were too high for any 
missile to reach and do execution upon so large a bird, 
save a bullet from a ri.le. As my companion and myself 
quietly sat upon the ground a quarter of a mile away, 
waiting for the daylight to leave the sky, we heard the 
turkeys flying into the trees, and gtobhng at intervals 
as they sctlkd themselves forihe night. Soon darkness 
spread her veil around us and all sounds from the roost 
ceased, and we commenced cautiously to draw near our 
objective point. 
. "Soon we could distinguish the trees In which we 
knew the birds were, but the branches were so far from 
the ground that at first nothing could be seen that re- 
sembled a turkey. Gradually we drew near until we 
stood beneath the overspreading limbs and close to the 
trunk cf the tree each had selected. No movement or 
sound from above indicated that we had been observed 
by the watchful birds, and now to our eyes, grown more 
accustomed to the obscurity, some clumps and bunches 
appeared upon the branches toward the sky. It was 
almost impossible to tell what these were, whether tur- 
keys squatting on the limbs or masses of moss or foliage. 
But the only way to find out was to shoot at them, which 
we did. At the crack of the rifles came Humerous pit- 
pits and a stray gobble as the aroused birds moved upon 
their perches and questioned this unusual uproar. Their 
movements disclosed their forms without mistake, and 
soon there was added to the noise of the firearms the 
calls of the now thoroughly startled birds, the crash of 
the falling turkeys, striking the limbs as they descended, 
and then the heavy "thump," as the body reached the 
ground. For a short time confusion reigned. Unharmed 
birds began to leave the trees, and the whir and beat 
of their wings sounded above the various cries they ut- 
tered, and occasionally one wounded, but not entirely 
incapacitated from escaping, would drop to the ground, 
and the rapid "pats" of its swiftly moving feet could 
be heard upon the dead leaves as it ran quickly from the 
scene. The roost, however, was very extensive, and 
rf;ontinucd a long way up the ca"on, and the birds not 
in the immediate vicinity did not desert their posts. 
Picking up the dead birds, a few of which were quite a 
heavy enough load for two men, we were glad when we 
could transfer them from our own backs to those of our 
horses, which were waiting for us about a half mile 
away. This turkey is very strong upon the wing, rises 
without difficulty, and continues its flight for long dis- 
tances. It alights either upon the ground or in the trees, 
but, if the former, runs with great speed until a place of 
concealment is gained. While not uncommon in the 
districts named within our limits, this species is much 
more numerous in Mexico, where it goes as far South 
as Vera Cruz. The hen attends solely to the hatching 
of the eggs and rearing of the young, 'liding them away 
from the male, who cannot be trusted either with them 
or a knowledge of their location. The nest is a depres- 
sion in the ground, lined with grass, weeds and leaves, 
and carefully concealed among the bushes or grass. 
The eggs are creamy white, finely and thickly dotted 
with reddish brown. The food of this bird consists of 
acorns and various nuts that are found in those south- 
ern latitudes, especially those of the piiion tree, also in- 
sects of all kinds, and grain when it happens to be grown 
in the vicinity of their habitat. 
"This turkey was carried to some of the West Indieis 
Islands early in the sixteenth century, and then to Eu- 
rope, especially England and France, and in 1573 had 
become quite numerous, and was freely used as an 
article of food. In the days of the Emperors of Mexico 
Montezuma possessed extensive zoological gardens, and 
many of these birds were given to the wild beasts for 
food. Certainly they had no fault to find with the fare 
served to them. The Mexican turkey, as 1 have said, 
is possibly a somewhat larger bird and exhibits a good 
many of the metallic tints of its Eastern relative, yet it 
can hardly be regarded as equally beautiful, as the white 
on the rump detracts from the general brilliancy of its 
appearance. Still it is a magnificent game bird, and is 
worthy to be compared with its rivals of the eastern and 
northern portions of the United States." 
Much speculation has been indulged in as to the origin 
of the turkey named, and one of the explanations given, 
if net true, has at least a most plausible sound, if all 
the facts are as stated. It is this. 
When this bird was first brought to Spain it was 
called Indian peacock, or Indian hen, and this name re- 
mains in the French words paon pavon. poule-d'inde and 
dindcii. At that time it is said thac in Spain the business 
of dealing in poultry was almost universally in the hands 
of the Jews, and as they did all the buying and selling 
of this fowl they naturally came to call it by the Hebrew 
name for peacock, which is tukki. Gradually this name 
came to be generally adopted, and from its similarity 
in sound to the name of the land of the Turks the bird 
came to be called turkey, and the belief grew up that 
the species had come from that country. • 
Elliot's Game Birds is likely to prove even more inter- 
esting to sportsmen than its predecessor, successful as 
that was, and we are told that the first edition of the last- 
named work was exhausted shortly after publication. 
Besides the usual style of these books, issued at $2,50, 
the publishers have printed limited editions of 100 copies 
each of Shore Birds and Game Birds, numbered and 
signed by the author, on fine hand-made paper, with 
illustrations on a .special paper, and printed with great 
care, at $10 a volume. The less costly edition is hand- 
somely bound in linen, with a fine illustration in colors 
of the wild turkey as a cover stamp. 
Birch Bark Camps. 
I Notice in your editorial in issue of Jan. 22 an ac- 
count of building birch bark camps. When a boy I 
saw dozens at a time of these camps set up, and also 
when the In<lians went away they sometimes left them 
at my father's for safe-keeping, so that I had a chance 
to examine them closely. These camps were for summer 
use, and the Indians carried them in their canoes when 
they went to "salt water," as they always called going to 
the bay to shoot seal and porpoise. 
They had eight or ten small spruce poles not over loft 
in length and i3^in. in diameter at the butt. These they 
set up in a conical form, so as to have a diameter of 10 
or 12ft. The bark was cut in rolls, as you describe, for 
the very good reason that it could never be unrolled 
without breaking, unless first having been soaked se-veral 
days. It was in sections some 4ft; long and 2ft. wide, 
with thin cedar splits on both sides of each end, sewed 
