March t8, 1S99.J 
N. Y,, in 1876, the flock had to be disposed "of. From that 
time until 1883 I had no country home, where my pet 
fancy could be resumed. Then these birds were scarce, 
the once prolific Michigan lakes where Northern-bred 
birds stopped to feed on their way South in early fall no 
longer paid the netters, hut I got a few. 
Lest some one should rise and accuse me of aiding and 
abbetting the netters. and so being responsible for the 
diminished number of wood ducks, let me say : The game 
laws of Michigan and Iowa, where I got some birds later, 
were not then so strict or as well enforced as now. The 
netters would have netted the ducks for- market just the 
same, getting 50 cents a pair for the birds; and my stand- 
ing offer of three times that figure more than paid them 
to keep them alive, box and deliver them to the ex- 
press. Then, my aim was a grand one ; to try to domesti- 
cate this beautiful bird, and as before said, the end justi- 
fied the means. If I needed birds for this purpose now I 
would not hesitate to employ men to get me a dozen pairs 
and ask no questions, but it is not necessarj'^ to do this if 
one wants wood ducks, for many men are breeding, but 
not domesticating them. 
I doubt if this bird can ever be domesticated. I learned 
how to breed them with certainty, but after being bred 
for ten generations in confinement, they would escape, if 
possible, and never return. They distrust man after he 
once catches them to pinion them, when a few weeks old. 
They have been so tame as to run to meet mc with a dish 
of bread and milk, or othx^r fond, and climb into it and 
feed greedily until once taken in hand. Then they be- 
came suspicious. No bird likes to be taken in hand, The 
stiff quills must hurt when pressed into the flesh. 
Pigeon men handle their birds bj^ a grip on the wings 
close to the body, ducks shovdd he so handled. Domestic 
hens may be handled by the legs. The man who takes 
a duck by the legs will have a crippled bird that must 
be killed, for their legs are weak and all attempts to heal 
a broken leg by splints or plaster bandages, by me, have 
been failures, but then it is recorded that I am not a 
surgeon. 
On a later trial of breeding these birds, theffe was a train 
of thought something like this: In nature every feniale 
breeds; with me it has been only one in ten, the climate 
is right, for they breed here; the trouble must be in the 
food. In western New York I have fed corn, wheat, rye 
and oats, with such vegetation as lettuce, purslaine, "pus- 
ley," young cabbage, water cress and duck weed, all of 
which they were very fond, yet they laid their eggs 
sparittgly. Evidently something was lacking, and then 
the fact that they had been seen to pick insects from 
overhanging leaves, eat frog spawn and gobble up polly- 
wogs and snails as well as small frogs, suggested that what 
was needed to round out their natural diet was animal 
food. When the new ration was issued in the next Feb- 
ruary, there was rejoicing in April and May, when every 
pair of wood ducks began nesting. 
The Hollow Tree Nesters. 
All the wildfowl of my acquaintance nest on the 
ground, with the following exceptions ; some "tree ducks" 
of Central and South America, wood ducks, Chinese Man- 
darins and the pretty little "hooded merganser," also 
called "little saw bill." M the other mergansers, or 
"Sheldrakes," nest in trees, I do not know, bur suspect 
them of it. 
The ducks which nest on the ground may be left to their 
own devices, if you give them a chance for seclusion, but 
for those which nest in hollow trees, we must provide 
natural conditions. Take a box I2in. high by 7in. square 
inside, tight on all sides, but with a round 4-in. hole in 
the middle of one side, set it on a post, 2ft. above ground 
with a slanting board leading to the hole, in which fine 
straw and leaves are placed, and the bird will do the 
rest. The male wood duck and Mandarin will stand guard 
at the entrance for a while, but tires of it before the four 
weeks are up, and abandons the job. Some males injure 
the young, and it is best to remove the drakes before 
hatching. I have had two broods in a season by remov- 
ing the first nesting eggs, but otherwise one brood is the 
rule. The male moults in June, and will not take any 
part in a second brood ; he then resembles the female, and 
does not get his bright plumage again until August. 
Young drakes show red on the bill at two months old. 
Hens are useless for hatching the small tender ducks, 
and the little woodie is very tender. The young ducks 
come to her for shelter, and she kicks them to death by 
scratching for them. I have lost several broods in this 
way. Then I got the "call ducks," those dwarf, or 
bantam, mallards bred in Holland for calling wildfowl; 
cute little ducks, the female being persistently noisy ii 
separated from her mate, but the "calls" were not broody 
when I wanted them to be, or I did not have enough of 
them. 
The first year a wood duck has four to six eggs, next 
year eight to twelve. The greatest number that T ever got 
from one was seventeen. 
How a Yotiog Wood Duck Leaves tte Nest. 
Some writers claim that the mother takes them in her 
bill and others say that she carries them on her back. I 
had a string of pens back of my house; a pair in each, 
for they are better to be separated, and usually I found 
the mother and her brood on the water in the morning; 
but, on two' occasions I saw them leave the ne.st. The 
mother went first to the pool and called ; she had brooded 
them for twenty-four hours, or more, and they were 
strong. Then one after another the little things climbed 
out of the box and tumbled to the ground, or to the 
water: 
They had to climb 4 to 6in. of plain board, but they 
did it. I have seen them climb a loin. base board and go 
through lin. poultry netting when alarmed. They weigh 
nothing worth mentioning, and they have claws as sharp 
as cambric needles. They have pricked my hands until 
they bled when pinioning them at eight weeks old. I 
can easily believe that they can climb up a hollow tree and 
drop 20ft. into the grass without injury. What need of 
such sharp claws and climbing ability if not for leaving 
the nest? 
I once had a wood duck that climbed 3ft. of poultry net- 
ting by aid of wings, and then sat on the selvage wires, 
which were less than l^'m. in diameter, and this shows 
how small a thing their feet can grasp. She went out- 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
side, into a swamp every day, and tried to coa-x her mate 
out, but he wouldn't, or couldn't, and she gave it up 
and nested in the box provided for her. Usually there was 
a 3in. strip on top to prevent this. 
I have spoken of the Mandarin duck. It is a Chinese 
bird that in everything but color is a wood duck. The 
prevailing hue with them is old gold. The male has 
two "fans" on its wings, broad-webbed single feathers, 
which it can erect, swan fashion. Tastes differ in com- 
paring the Mandarin with our native bird; the colors are 
not so bright, but there is the aoftaiess of hue which we 
admire in oriental rugs. 
Other Ducks. 
The redhead is hred in Europe, where it is known as 
"pochard," but the canvasback they have not. I had 
many inquiries for this bird from over the water, and 
went to Havre de Grace, Md., to try to get cripples or 
netted birds, but got only promises. The gunners there 
get $3, and over, a pair for them, and I offered $15, and 
would take ten pairs, but got none. 
The widgeon, both American , and European, I have 
had, but never bred from them; the minks would not 
permit it. The pintail I bred once, but lost the brood. 
If I ever trj-- to breed our beautiful wildfowl again the 
pools will be made mink proof by a brick or stone 
foundation 2ft. under ground, and ift. above it. The 
fence on this, with inviting openings for a mink to enter 
and remain in a trap until he has an interview with me. 
There are a few fanciers of wildfowl in America, and 
the taste for it is growing; in England, France and 
Germany, there are hundreds of men who breed wddfowl, 
and it is a most attractive "fad," for want of a better 
name, and a man must have a fad of some kind, or he Avill 
become a lonesome, miserable money grubber. What 
better sport than feeding your flock of beautiful wild- 
fowl, which most men only think of in connection with the 
potj" I have bred pheasants, golden, silver. Lady Am- 
herst and others, but they never were as dear to me as 
the little mother teal, who looked up and said "quack, 
quack" when I placed her with those little things which 
she thought to be teal, just because she had laid the 
eggs and hatched them. To me they looked more like a 
bunch of catkins from the pussy willow than like any- 
thing which might develop into a duck. And yet, a beast- 
ly, hairy caterpillar is said to resemble a buckwheat pan- 
cake because it is the "grub" which makes the butter- 
fly. We can't tell how the "ugly duckling" may turn out 
Range of Stone's Sheep* 
New York. March 8— Editor Forest md Stream: I 
talked recently with a Ston3'^ Indian from the reserva- 
tion of that people in western Alberta, and questioned 
him about the mountain sheep found in that region. 
The Stonies are known all over the Northwest as being 
remarkable mountain climbers and hunters, and they sub- 
sist l«rgely on the sheep and goats which they kill among 
the high peaks. 
It occurred to me that Nessadero might know some- 
thing about more than one sort of mountain sheep, and I 
questioned him closely on this point. He talfcs very fair 
English, and submitted gracefully to cross-examination. 
He told me that in his country there are two sorts of 
sheep, one small, dark in color, with slender horns, which 
are seldom broken; and another sort, larger, pale in 
color, with heavy thick horns that arc often broken at 
the points. He went on to say that these small "black" 
sheep are all found north of Bow River, while on the 
south side of Bow River the big sheep onl}- occur, The 
country referred to of course, lies all on the eastern 
slope of the Rocky Mountains. 
Nessadero's verbal statements as to the characteristics 
of these two kinds of moimtain sheep were confirmed by 
the signs which he made; for, like mo.st Western Indians, 
he- talks more or less Avith his hands. The shape and 
slenderness of the dark sheep's horns, as well as the .short- 
ness of its back, Avere explained by signs. Avhile its color 
was indicated by touching the dark fur on his shirt. On 
the other hand, he showed that the horns of the big 
sheep were at the base nearly as thick as his leg above 
the knee, "eighteen, nineteen inches," that their backs 
were longer, and that the color of tlie hair was gray. 
Subsequently I unfolded a map before him, and we 
went over the matter again, while he pointed out ott the 
map the locality of the two kinds of sheep. 
This information is of considerable interest as bearing 
on the question of the range of Stotte's sheep. 
In the Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural 
History (Vol. XIL, p. 2, March 4, 1899). Dr. j, A. Allen 
prints an interesting note on this same subject, recently 
received from Mr. A. J. Stone, who writes: 
"I traced the range of Ovis sloiiei or black sheep 
throughout all the mountainous countrjr of the head- 
waters of the Stickeen and south to the headwaters of the 
Nass, but could obtain no reliable information of their oc- 
currence further south in this longitude, They are found 
throughout the Cassiar Mountains, which extend north to 
61 degrees north latitude and west to 134 degrees west 
longitude; hoAV much further west they may be found I 
have been unable to determine ; nor could I ascertain 
whether their range extends from the Cassiar Mountains 
into the Rocky Mountains to the ttorth of Francis and 
Liard rivers. Btit the best information obtained led me to 
believe that it does not. They are found in the Rocky 
Nfountains to the south as far as the headwaters of the 
Nelson and Peace Rivers, in latitude 56 degrees. But I 
proved conclusively that in the main range of the Rocky 
Mountains very few of them are found north of the Liard 
River. Where this river sAveeps south through the Rocky 
Mountains to Hells Gate, a few of these animals are 
found as far north as Beaver River, a tributary of the 
Liard. None, however, are found north of this, and I am 
thoroughh' convinced that this is the only place Avhere 
these animals may be found north of the Liard River. 
"I find that in the Cassiar Motmtains and in the Rocky 
Mountains they everywhere range well above timber line, 
as they do in the mountains of the Stickeen, the Cheon- 
nees and Etsezas. 
"Directly to the north of the Beaver River, and north 
of the Liard River below the confluence of the Beaver, we 
first meet with Ovis dalli." George Bird Grinnell, 
203 
McKinley. 
" 1 1} 
The History of a Vermont Deer, 
On June 8, 1897, Mr. James H. Hoadley, of StDuth 
Woodstock, Vt., found a male fawn by the roadside in 
the town of Reading, too weak to stand, and apparently 
deserted by its mother. It was left for two hours to see 
it the mother would return and care for it. At the expira- 
tion of that time, Mr. Hoadley returned, found the help- 
less fawn and took it home. It then weighed zY^lhs. It 
was fed and cared for like a baby. It occupied a cot in 
the house, and Mrs. Hoadlejr fed it warm milk several 
times during the following nights and days, when the 
hope of saving its life was almost despaired of. When it 
had recovered strength, I was requested to name it, and 
at my suggestion it was christened McKinley.' Its rescuer 
wrote : "The name of McKinley is in every sense appro- 
priate, and as it thoroughly agrees with my political 
proclivities, McKinley it shall be." As it became strong 
enough to run about the house and yard, a wigwam was 
built in the yard and an enclosure around it to keep out 
dogs, rather than to confitie the deer. The enclosure en- 
compassed the back piazza of the house, and whenever 
McKinley wished to enter the house he would get up on 
the piazza and look into the kitchen window. If this did 
not attract sufficient attention, he would rattle the latch 
of the kitchen door. If that was not noticed, as his 
horns developed, he would rake the door with one of his 
horns. Nov. 21, t8p8, Mr. Hoadley wrote: "Mac is 
still one of the family. He is in fine condition. His 
first and only antlers are a foot long, and there are three 
points on each." This rather explodes the theory that 
deer haA^e only spike horns the first year. ' 
During the stages Avhen this animal was being nursed 
so carefully night and day, its rescuer wrote: "What 
was at first a work of charity has become a work of love." 
Since the accession of the horns, however, McKinley has 
not been a plaything for children, although he still has 
the run of the house. Yielding to an urgent request and 
Hospitable invitation, I visited McKinley during the Feb- 
ruary blizzard. He was all that had been represented, - 
three pointed horns and all. He entered the house and 
sitting room, shoAved no fear of the visitor, and, in 
fact, began to nmimage in my pockets. A handful of fine 
cut smoking tobacco was the result of his search, and he 
immediately proceeded to eat it, as if it had been some 
sweetmeat. T had wondered hoAV so large an animal could 
be alloAved the run of a Avell-kept house (and surely I 
never visited a neater one), but discovered that the deer 
was house broken, and as clean as any dog or cat. There 
was not the slightest odor about his body, either. In- 
quiring about his food, 1 learned that he, had an assort- 
ment of grain in his Avigwam, as well as a good supply of 
hay. He prefers the diet of the rest of the family, how- 
ever, and this is his menu, or a list of what he regards 
as delicacies: Apple, apricot and mince pies, cucumber, 
pickles, soap, crackers, cooked meat, fried pork rinds, lard 
and tobacco. He has oatmeal for breakfast nearly every 
morning. If not watched he will go to the pantry and 
steal lard, soap or any other food which may present it- 
self. • He will lie down on the rug in the sitting room and 
when asleep will snore to beat any human being on 
record. 
I have just received a letter ttnder date of March 4, which 
reads as follows: "Mac shed his right antler Sunday, 
Feb. 26. He was in the house at the time. Mrs, Hoad- 
ley was feeding him apples, when, much to the surprise of 
us all, it tumbled off on to the floor. He carried the left 
one until March i. and we found it in his 'eating' house. 
There Avas not a drop of blood nor any visible pain — 
just a dry and dead bone that had got ripe and'was ready 
to fall. He is meek and gentle, and seems to Icnow 
that some of his AA^eapons are gone, aijd he is much less on 
the offensive." 
Here is a wild herbivorous animal, eating meat and all 
the-luxuries of a good table, and thoroughly house broken. 
Who says Ave 'cannot domesticate the Philipinos? 
St. JoHNsru'fty, Vi., Maicli T. JOHN W. TiTCOMB. 
A Hot Water Lake in Alaska. 
. FATHEfe To?x, a Jesuit missionary among the native 
Alaskans on the upper Y'ukon, gives to the Catholic 
Columbian religious journal a description of a warm 
Avater lake, which lies not far from Dawson, as he says. 
"It is sixty miles long and about fifteen miles in 
width. It has no CAddent communication with the ocean, 
yet when the ocean is at its high tide on the shores of 
Alaska, up goes the water of Lake Selawik, and Avhen 
the- tide of the ocean goes out down conies the height of 
the waters of the lake," 
This statement, if scientifically verified, would be of the 
utmost importance to hydrography, as it would help to 
solve abstruse problems, regarding fish distribtttion and 
other natural i^lienoinena. Avhich could be intelligently 
accounted for were tliis underground communication with 
the ocean positively knoAvn to exist. 
The re\ erend father goes on to say that, "notwithstand- 
ing this sympathy with ocean waters, the water of Lake 
SalaAvik is fresli at all times. The most remarkable 
feature of the lake is that it ncA'er freezes oret in the 
coldest weather, and the colder the atmosphere in its 
neighl)orhood. the Avarmer its waters seem. For this 
reason Lake Selawik becomes a kind of Mecca in winter 
•for all kinds of fish and water animals, which are found 
in the variotts rivers that pour into the lake during sum- 
mer. The waters of the lakes swarm with fish, and the 
improvident goldseeker from the United States who has 
failed to strike that "pile" he anticipated, and who, owing 
to the fabulous prices of eatables in Alaska, in winter, 
Avould otherwise starA^e to death, has onlj^ to borroAv a sled 
and a couple of dogs, and go over to Selawik, where, in a 
couple of hours he can kill with a boat hook more salmon 
than he can eat in a fortnight, for after the capture of the 
fish the excessivel}' cold climate keeps them frozen until 
they are ready to be eaten. Lake Selawik will also relieve 
the miners from the disagreeable necessity which they con- 
template at present of spending the whole winter without 
taking a bath. The water in winter is of just the right 
temperature to tjwke bathing both Avholesome and agree- 
able." ' 
I 
