266 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
[Oct. t, 1898. 
CHICAGO AND THE WEST. 
Where the Birds Went. 
Chicago, 111., Sept. 23. — According to reports, a num- 
ber of sportsmen of Galesburg, 111., started out on Sept. 
15 in search of a little prairie chicken shooting. The 
result was a large and unanimous disappointment. After 
hunting all day. one party managed to kill two prairie 
chickens, another got one bird and a third killed nothing 
at all. It was the general belief that the prairie chickens 
were all gone. Some of the shooters laid it to the "wet 
spring." 
In connection with the scarcity of birds at Galesburg 
it may perhaps be suggested to mention the 'fact that 
during the past week a commission merchant by name of 
A. L. Weinberg, of Galesburg, was fined $254.15 for hav- 
ing thirty illegal birds in his possession something like a 
month before the opening of the season. Mr. Weinberg 
declined to state who were the parties who really shot 
the birds. As a matter of fact, it was well known that 
Galesburg shooters were killing chickens all through 
August. It seemed to be their belief that in view of 
the danger to be encountered by the prairie chickens 
in a "wet spring" it might be well to take them in out 
of the wet before they took cold. The general con- 
sensus of belief at Galesburg is that the prairie chicken 
is a hollow mockery, and in this position none is more 
firmly grounded that Mr. Weinberg. 
Out in Minnesota, at St. Cloud, County Attorney John 
D. Sullivan and City Engineer Samuel Shute appeared 
before a justice of the peace and told what they knew 
about shooting chickens ahead of the law. They were 
assessed $14.75 each. 
Season Ended. 
We may say that the chicken season for 1898 is now 
practically over. It has simply been a question of pro- 
tection. Where the law has been observed, there has been 
some shooting, and where the sooners have been in 
there has been no shooting at all during the legal season. 
Two weeks usually suffices to pretty well clean up the 
chicken crop after the opening day. In Wisconsin the 
chicken season is now regarded as practically closed. 
In some sections there was good sport, but from others 
come bitter complaints of the non-observance of the law. 
Minnesota had a good shooting season, and so did North 
Dakota. South Dakota I do not think showed up so 
well. In Nebraska the early days of the season were 
very hot, so that the dogs could not work very well, then 
came colder weather with frosty nights, and after that 
the quick packing up of the birds, which usually as- 
semble in large flocks soon after the approach of fall. 
After the packing of the chickens it is hard to do 
much with them, unless they are on country where they 
can be followed some distance and scattered during the 
warmer hours of the day, when sometimes good sport 
can be had. In Arkansas the five-years close season ex- 
pired Sept. 1, and at the expiration of three weeks the 
chickens are reported very much scarcer and very much 
wilder. It is thought that the next Legislature may put 
on another close term for this bird. Apropos of this 
restriction comes the rumor that so great has been the 
influx of non-resident shooters in the State of Minnesota 
this fall that there is strong talk of a $25 non-resident 
license for that State at an early time. 
Ducks. 
On the opening of its season last Thursday, the Duck 
Island Gun Club, of Illinois, had good sport at the 
club grounds, on the Illinois River, the total bag for 
the day amounting to 394 ducks. The following are the 
individual bags: 
Canton members: W.' H. Shaw, 25; Frank Grim, 28. 
Farmington members: Woodruff, 22; Nappin, 15; 
Brimmer, 10 ;■ Wickwire, 12. 
Peoria members: Lathy, 34; Clarke, 27; Bush, 15; 
McDougal, 27: Campbell, 20; Turner, 17; Allen, 24; 
Whiting, 22: Rayburn, 13; Fahnestock, 30; Armstrong, 
10; Thomas, 3; Griswold, 1. 
Pekin members: Albertson, 10; Strickfaden, 19. 
Springfield member: Nelson, 10. 
On the Horicon Marsh, of Wisconsin, the club mem- 
bers have not been having very heavy shooting as yet. 
There are a good many birds on the marsh, but they 
do not work well. The Northern birds have not yet 
appeared. Duck shooting is in full swing in the lake 
region of Minnesota this week. A number of parties 
have gone into Ottertail county, among others Messrs. 
E. N. Dellinger, P. J. Giesen and J. B. West, of St. 
Paul. The Wells-Dennis party, of Chicago, who usual- 
ly make a fall duck hunt in Wisconsin, are talking of 
going out into Minnesota this fall, their location being 
not yet decided. 
The law forbidding shooting before sunrise has been 
extensively violated in Wisconsin this fall. Two Mena- 
sha shooters were arrested by Warden Waite for shoot- 
ing before sunrise, and were fined $29.45 each. They 
got one mudhen. This must be a gluomy world for 
them. 
A duck shooting club by the name of the Decker's 
Lake Club has been organized at Salt Lake City, Utah, 
with a membership of twenty-four. They have leased 
Decker's Lake and the adjoining ground, and expect to 
have good shooting on wildfowl. 
Killed while Deer Hunting. 
It is stated that an insurance company in the East is 
hunting up information in regard to shooting fatalities 
in ti e State of Maine, with the purpose of getting up a 
new policy for sportsmen, it being thought that a great 
many sportsmen would like to go deer hunting and yet- 
would like to leave their families something after death. 
At first sight it would seem that the risk of being acci- 
dentally shot in a wild and unpopulated region, such as 
that occupied by wild deer, would be something too 
small to notice, yet, as has often been pointed out in 
these columns, the number of men who are each year 
accidentally shot while deer hunting is very large. I 
have seen it stated that thirteen men were killed last 
year in the State of Maine in this way, These accidents 
are among the most deplorable and heartrending which 
can possibly occur, and one can conceive of nothing 
sadder for a shooter to carry through life with him than 
the remembrance of having carelessly shot a fellow 
sportsman. Especially sad is the instance of this nature 
which occurred at Merrill, Wis., last week. Two men 
were out hunting deer at night. They were both vio- 
lating the game law, and neither knew that the other 
was hunting. One hunter saw the other, and fired at 
something he saw moving. He killed his fellow law- 
breaker, upon whose head was found fastened a jack- 
light which he was wearing in the prosecution of his 
own search for illegal deer. This is the first of the fatal 
accidents of this sort to be recorded for this part of 
the West this season. We hear a great deal of talk 
about the justifiableness of shooting deer out of season 
by residents of the deer country, and a great many 
persons who ought to know better saying that the "local 
interpretation" of the law sanctions such killing. If 
nothing else can stop this unlawful work, perhaps the 
facts above related may serve to give it check. It is 
not necessary to give any names in relating facts so sad 
as the above, but I should think that there might be at 
least one illegal night hunter left alive who would 
now feel that he had played his part in the unsportsman- 
like use of a gun, so that he might put aside the gun 
forever. 
Back irom the "War. 
To-day the Forest and Stream office here received a 
pleasant call from a party of soldiers who are on their 
way home from the war. These men are Lt. Will Cave, 
Sergt. D. J. Hefron, Corporal Kennedy and Private 
Harris, of Troop F., Third U. S. Cavalry, Griggsby's 
pers, of the sort to which I once this past spring called 
attention in these columns. The boys not only trap, but 
shoot song birds, and the deputy had made a good little 
round up. Twenty-three boys were arrested for assorted 
offenses of this ilk, and there was weeping and wailing 
in the Bohemian homes to which most of them claim 
allegiance. Among the cases settled by the justice were 
those of Fred. Narjes and Sherman Clayton, who got 
$15 and costs for killing three woodpeckers and a dove; 
J. Chochole and Joseph Kuesknadit, $10 and costs, for 
two bobolinks and a lark; Paul Kobyleke, $5 and 
costs, one thrush; Stanislaus Kajava, one robin, $5 and 
costs. All these boys promised to pay the fines soon, 
and left an assorted lot of guns as security. Their 
mothers shed large, burning tears, and I doubt not landed 
frequently on the persons of the erring youths when 
they got home, showing them that home and mother 
are good things for boys. 
At Blue Island there were five arrests on charges 
similar to the above, and five fines rattled comfortably 
into the pocket of Mr. Goetter in consequence thereof. 
At Morgan Park — another suburb — three cases were 
landed, and at South Chicago four arrests were made 
for shooting before sunrise. All in all, Monday was 
Mr. Loveday's busy dav. He crowned this period of 
activity hy seizing 800 teal duck, which some misguided 
mortal in Wisconsin had shipped into the Chicago mar- 
ket. Adding to this the little fine of $254, secured 
against Weinberg, of Galesburg, elsewhere mentioned, 
and it would seem that Mr. Loveday might go out and 
buy himself a large and expensive cigar and smoke it 
A ROCKY MOUNTAIN GRIGGLY. 
Killed by Dr. J. J. Noll. Photo by S. N. Leek. 
Rough Riders. _ The above are all from Missoula, Mont., 
and with them is H. M. Reynolds, of Troop L, the same 
regiment, who comes from Butte, Mont. This regiment 
has been at Chickamauga Park all summer and never 
got to the front. They say that there was a great deal of 
sickness, not A r ery much fun and no fighting at all, which 
was hardly their idea of what war ought to be. One of 
the amusing things was the workings of the U. S. army 
system, under which the cowboys of the far North- 
west were put through horseback drill in order to teach 
them to ride. They had one or two lessons bareback 
and then it was concluded that they could ride, and all 
they needed was horses. Later they got their saddles 
and were found able also to ride with saddles, and not 
fall off. Lt. Cave is one of the best-known sportsmen of 
Missoula. He has been twice to Alaska on the Klondike 
trail, and was one of the passengers on the ill-fated 
Corona, which was wrecked. He lost his outfit in this 
shipwreck, and came back home, concluding then to 
go into the army, where he could have a quiet time. 
Personal. 
Mr. Bennett, of. the Winchester Repeating Arms Com- 
pany, and Capt. Dressel, of the U. M. C. Company, were 
both in town this week and have passed on, the former 
to St. Louis and the latter to Omaha. 
Mr. G. W. Cunningham, of Portland, Ind., a well- 
known Forest and Stream contributor, paid the office 
a pleasant visit this week. 
Mr. John Waddell, of Grand Rapids, Mich., one of the 
best amateur fly-casters of that city of expert anglers, 
made Chicago a brief visit this week, and called among 
his friends of the Chicago Fly-Casting Club. 
The many friends of Mr. Irby Bennett, the Southern 
representative of the Winchester Repeating Arms Com- 
pany, will be glad to learn that his health, recently very 
poor, has been much improved by a sojourn at Ferndale 
Springs, near Nashville, Tenn. 
The Trapjjers Entrapped. 
• ■ . •> < . 
This week Warden Harry- Loveday came over to my 
office and left word to come" over to Judge Richardson's 
court if I wanted to see some fun. for he had ten cases 
for violations of the State .game laws on for trial, and 
they would likely all come up at about the same time. 
These cases proved to be a collection secured by Phil 
Goetter, an active deputy, who has been lying about 
the outskirts of the town watching the young bird trap- 
very cheerfully, having offered certain other persons 
material which they may smoke in their pipes. 
In Darkest Minnesota. 
In the opinion of Messrs. H. G. McCartney and his 
friend, Mr. Jennings, who are just back from a few 
weeks' exploring trip in the lake region north of Kabe-; 
kona Camp, in the Woman Lake chain of Minnesota, 
the country lying north and northwest of Grand Rapids, 
Minn., is without doubt properly to be called Darkest 
Minnesota. This State is in many ways the banner 
State of them all in protective matters, but there arei 
still a few localities where they need an expeditionary 
force before the inhabitants can be taught to be decent. 
Mr. McCartney told me that at Grand Rapids he ate, 
moose meat at the hotel table, not knowing at first 
what sort of meat it was. He was told that moose meat, 
was served there whenever jt was so desired, and that 
moose and venison were staples there at any season. 
He said he found a number of men ready to take out 
anybody after moose or deer a couple of months ahead' 
of the season. He saw one Chicago party, a mam 
whose name I could not get,, but who was said to be a 
man whose name would be very surprising if made' 
public in this connection, and this man told him he had 
just made arrangements to go out on a moose hunt that 
week (about Sept. 15; nearly two months before the 
open date). Mr. McCartney and Mr. Jennings went 
out with a guide named Hank, who acted as boatman 
on their voyages, and who claimed to be a celebrated 
sportsman and guidcr of such. He said that no game 
warden could ever come into that region and do busi- 
ness. "Do you mean to tell me I can't kill a deer when-i 
ever I want to?" he asked; and he was grieved when' 
told that he could not guide at Kabekona if he did 
illegal shooting. At Winnebegoshish Government dam' 
they found no fishway, but they found in charge of the 1 , 
dam a man who said he always speared all the fish he 
wanted, and lived on moose meat or venison whenever 
he could buy it, which was oftener in summer than any- 
other time. This man. had a spear about as long as a 
horse and wagon, .and he said he sometimes got muscal- 
lunge weighing 4olbs. below the dam. At Grand Rapids 
spears and nets were openly known. Going up to the" 
Deer Lake region the travelers found a lovely lake, but'' 
did not find much fishing. A farmer told "them that' 
the market fishers from Duluth cleaned that out long 
ago. • He said that ice fishing was very common in the? 
.past. ' Air, McCartney said he came back feeling very 
