FOREST AND STREAM. 
[March i8, 1899. 
to be of especial interest to Western shooters. Mr. 
Mackay writes: ' 
"I would again call attention to the shooting and ship- 
ment East in the spring of certain birds, and strongly 
appeal to our Western friends to make some endeavor to 
prevent it if possible, in the case of the American golden 
plovers, Eskimo curlews and Batramian sandpipers. 
These birds are permitted to be sold in Massachusetts 
during the closed season provided they have been taken 
out of the State. I have tried very hard to prevent 
such sale here, but without success. These birds are 
killed in the West and Southwest during the spring while 
on their way to the breeding grounds. It is a common 
occurrence to take eggs from the females when cleaning 
them. Unless protective laws are enacted in the West 
little can be hoped for in Massachusetts, and it will 
-Hot be long before these«birds will disappear on our 
. coast except as stragglers. In fact, jiidging from a 
number of years past in Massachusetts, such conditions' 
have already been reached. Nebraska, Missouri and 
Texas (Fort Worth) appear to be the principal shipping 
points." 
Our Western game bird are sliot at practically all 
seasons for the Massachusetts game market which is 
. open the year round. If Mr. Mackay can suggest and 
carry through a measure which will even partially re- 
strict the Boston game market, he will receive the thanks 
of every sportsman and bird lover who resides west of 
the Alleghenies. E. Hough. 
1200 BoYCE Building, Ghicago^ III. 
Maine Game Interests, 
Boston, March 13. — So far as it is possible to obtain 
' information at this writing, what may be termed the 
Maine Commissioiners' fish and game bill has passed the 
Legislature of that State. Its passage through the Sen- 
■ ate was unobstructed, while I am informed that it met 
with no serious change in the House. Doubtless it now 
only awaits the approval of the Governor, and this it will 
get without any doubt. The principal changes are that all 
ice-fishing will be illegal in the counties of Oxford, 
Franklin, Somerset and Kennebec, instead of tho inhabit- 
ants of the State being allowed to fish through the ice 
after Feb. i, as formerly. The open season will begin, 
under the new law. as soon as the lakes and ponds are 
clear of ice, instead of May i, as formerly. This change 
seems to have been necessary in order to take care of 
Sebago and other lakes and ponds in the soulherlj'- por- 
tions of the State, where the ice usually clears by the mid- 
dle of April, whereas, in the backwoods and northerly 
portions of the State, the clearing of the ice is not much 
before the middle of May. 
In the game laws the principal changes are in the 
• clauses which will permit of a deer being sent home by 
the lucky hunter without his accompanying it by paying 
$2 to the State for the privilege. For sending home a 
moose the State will require $4 and for a pair of game 
birds or lolbs. of fish a fee is also established, though I 
understand that some change has been made here since 
the first draught of the bill. The special change in the 
game laws providing that camp owners and campers may 
take one deer in September by paying a fee to the State 
of $6, if a non-resident, and $4 if a resident, has gone 
through. I have suggested to the commissioners that 
this will open shooting in September to everybody, from 
the fact that the taking of a deer is not so easy as it might 
seem, and while the camp proprietor is the holder of a 
license the whole party, guides and all, can be set to 
work after that deer. The commissioners say that as 
soon as they find that the privileges of the law are abused 
in any such a manner the}^ shall immediately take away 
the privilege from that camp proprietor, and he will get 
no more. Another important change is the closing of 
the open season on deer Dec. 15, instead of Jan. T. Cari- 
bou are put under complete protection of the law for six 
years. The punishment for illegal moose killing has been 
made fine or imprisonment, or both, at the option of the 
judge. Special. 
Spoftsmen^s Show of 1900, 
National Sportsmen's Association, 280 Broadway, 
New York City, March 11. — Editor Forest and Stream: 
Congratulations are still pouring in on the management 
of the Sportsmen's Show, now in progress, as being the 
best show ever held in the Madison Square Garden, and 
it is certainly most gratifying to those whose earnest ef- 
forts have brought to a successful issue this grand ex- 
hibition, and the management, having this opportunity, 
wish to extend their compliments to the exhibitors and 
those who have been in any way connected in bringing 
about this grand result. 
It is with pleasure that the management, in behalf of 
the National Sportsmen's Association, announce that the 
Sixth Annual Sportsmen's Show will open in Madison 
Square Garden, New York city, N. Y., March i, 1900. 
J. A. H. Dressel, Sec'y-Treas. and Gen. Mgr. 
New Hampshire Deer. 
Cape Vincent, N. Y., March 8. — Editor Forest and 
Stream: Perhaps some of j^our readers would be glad 
to know that the '*close season" law is beginning to bear 
fruit in New Hampshire. On a farm which I have the 
misfortune to own, in the town of Dublin, in that State, 
the deer are so tame that they come down in broad day- 
light to feed on the lilypads in a marshy meadow in 
front of the farmhouse. I use the word tame "advised- 
ly," for the deer have lost so much of what we have 
come to consider their natural shyness that they will let 
a person approach almost within a stone's throw and 
Watch them feeding for an hour or more at a time. The 
farmers are thinking now that their grain fields will be in 
danger if the deer get much tamer! 
Livingston Stone. 
The Old Trapper. 
Editor Forest and- Stream: 
Mr. James Buckham truly says, in his delightful sketch 
on the old trapper, published in last week's Forest and 
Stream, that "you will scarcely find a village or a town 
* * * that has not its representative old trapper." In 
my native village, Dansville, N. Y. there were a num- 
ber of such old characters that excited my admiration 
in boyhood days. Chief among these was Bob Nichoson, 
the old fox hunter. I well remember him as a man sonic- 
thing above the medium height, spare figure, long, c^lrly 
white hair, and blue eyes, with an indescribably sad 
expression. In youth he must have , been a handsome 
man, and his old age still preserA^ed those lineaments to 
a great extent. He was slow and dignified of step, and 
always seemed to be absorbed in deep thought. Shy and 
taciturn, in many respects he was a mystery to us boys, 
all efforts to draw out some of his boundless store of 
reminiscences proving Unsuccessful. But, oh, how we 
envied his freedom from all restraint, especially when 
we contemplated that while we were obliged to be ab- 
sorbed in irksome studies in school, he, on the other 
hand, could range the hills in pursuit of the wild creat- 
tures! Just to see the old hunter start out for a day's 
hunt, with his rifle under his arm, and accompanied by 
his sad-faced old hound, was a sight that haunted us for 
many a day. How often have I heard the crack of his 
rifle and the music of his hound echoing among the pines 
on East Hill! While fox-hunting seemed to be his 
greatest delight, still, all seasons had special charm for 
him. I have often met him returning from trouting ex- 
peditions, and on one occasion, when I was in pursuit 
of trailing arbutus, and nearing a favorite haunt of the 
fragrant wood blooms, I found the old hunter there be- 
fore me gathering the choicest pink clusters. When na- 
ture finally called him to her bosom, we all recognized 
that the village had lost a most picturesque figure. 
^ T. M. S. 
Springfield, III., March 5. 
Shootmgf from the Hip, 
St, Augustine, Fla. — Editor Forest and Stream: One 
swallow doesn't make a summer, and if my friend Jacob- 
staff knovvs not only one, but one hundred cases of men 
who violate all orthodox rules of sportsmanship, it would 
not be proof that I am wrong in my assertion that shoot- 
ing from the hip is not the proper thing. 
If it is, our old world is inconceivably stupid in not 
having found it out before. 
I don't assert that the thing cannot be done, for there 
are wizards of the Carver stamp who can do almost any- 
thing — even to breaking glass balls over their shoulder 
with a rifle, but it would not be sportsmanlike, nor 
respectful to the bird to turn your back on him when he 
gets up, merely for the sake of spotting him in that way. 
I started out in opposition to a Southern writer, who 
expressed surprise that Northern shooters did not general- 
ly adopt a thing that not one in a thousand could even 
acquire. If our pigeon slaughterers ever succumb to my 
good friends pow'ful arguments, and get up a hip match 
"may I be there to see," and if I feel disposed to gamble 
I shall go with a pocket full of rocks. "But why should 
I run on so garrulouslj^ on so palpable a thing." If my 
friend will pardon me this time. I'll try in future to 
write on subjects on which I'm "better posted." 
DiDYMUS. 
Philadelphia. — Editor Forest and Stream: I have 
been interested in the notes on hip-shooting; and I would 
like to ask Didymus (who does not believe in the hip 
aim) if this is not a style commonly adopted by the 
Seminoles. I remember seeing some of the Indians shoot 
from the hip, when I was in south Florida in '95, and 
I then was told, or got the notion, that it was a quite 
common mode with them. L. A. Childress. 
Reason, Instinct, or What? 
While reading Mr. Fred Mather's article entitled 
"Reason and Instinct," which appeared in a recent issue 
of Forest and Stream, I was reminded of an interesting 
experience of my own, which happened only a few years 
ago — an experience which led me to wonder whether 
animal action could always be accounted for on the 
ground of instinct or even reason. Rat stories are by 
no means rare, and one never hesitates to contribute 
one's own private tale to the common pile, but in view 
of what Mr. Mather has to say on the subject of animal 
intelligence, I can't refrain from relating my little yarn, 
in the hope that Mr. Mather or perhaps some one else 
who knows more about the subject than I do, will be 
able to enlighten me as to the brain processes which 
controlled the strange actions of my particular rat. 
It was in the spring of '95. While returning late one 
night to my room in the school where I was then en- 
gaged as a teacher, I noticed a large brown rat sitting 
quietly at the head of the stairway, just outside of my 
door. He appeared quite tame, for it was not until I 
had almost reached the top stair that he dropped on to 
his four feet and jogged leisurely into the room, where 
he disappeared down a hole beneath the set basin in the 
corner. I gave the creature no second thought, and 
turned in for the night. My sleep had not been of long 
duration when I was awakened by a racket in the room. 
At first I was unable to make out just what it was." As 
my sleep-befogged mind began to regain its reason- 
ing powers I discovered that my friend of the earlier 
evening had returned and was evidently playing "tag" 
with himself all over my room. First he went tearing 
across the floor, as though trying a looyds. dash. Then 
he indulged in some high jumping, at which he proved 
an expert, for he had no difficulty in landing on the high- 
est point of every article of furniture in the room. Oc- 
casionally he wovfld miss his mark and come down on 
the floor or bureau with a thud that fairly startled nte. 
But the next moment he was up and at it again. Finally, 
from the sounds that reached me, I judged that he had 
improvised some hurdles and was making record-break- 
ing time in that scientific and exciting sport. I was now 
thoroughly awake, and was beginning to get deeply in- 
terested in the proceedings, when' there came a lull. For 
•several moments I could hear no sound of my visitor. 
Evidently his training hours were over for that day. Just 
at that moment a rustle among the papers on the table 
at the foot of my bed caught my ear. I turned my eyes 
in the direction of the sound. A patch of light from 
the are light across the street h\l on the table, and grad- 
ually i detected the form of my athletic friend seated 
on the table, apparently resting from his exertions. 
While I was wondering what he would do next, he set 
my mind at rest by trying a broad jump, which landed 
him squarely on the spread at the foot of the bed. That 
was getting a little too familiar, and a vigorous kick 
from my "No. g" foot sent him hustling to the shelter 
of his hole by the water pipes. 
Once njore I felt myself sinking into sleep, when a 
now familiar noise startled me. My friend had returned. 
I opened my eyes and listened. The same programme 
as before was repeated. Up and down the room he 
dashed, banging his head against the wall so hard at 
times that I was sure I could find the dents there in the 
morning. The next moment he had mounted a tall old- 
fashioned clock, and from the sound that followed, he 
must have made the floor in one leap. Se he went on 
for at least ten minutes, and then, followed as before a 
period of rest. The last sounds that came from him were 
down near the wash-stand, on the further side of the 
room; but he had no,t yet appeared on the table. While 
I lay wondering what would be his next move, I heard 
him get under way again. He started leisurely from 
the wash-stand, foUoAving the_ wall on the other side of 
the room. I could hear him under my desk, then under 
the clock, then the bureau, then he turned the corner, 
and passing beneath the radiator near the head of my 
bed, proceeded to wind his way beneath me till he 
reached his old location. I watched him climb leisurely 
up on to the table, though the hazy light prcA'-ented mc 
from following his movements for the next few moments. 
Evidently he was forming his. plans lor the next move. 
This came suddenly, in the form of another jump, which, 
as before, landed him on the foot of my bed. Again my 
feet got in some rapid and effective work, and after a stay 
only a little more-prolonged than the first one, he slipped 
off on to the floor and disappeared in his old retreat. 
By this time, I was indeed getting interested, and hav- 
ing made up my mind from his antics that the creature 
was either starved or crazy, I decided that I would 1;e 
justified in an attempt to get rid of him. Procuring a 
few crackers from my bureau drawer, I spread them on 
the floor at the side of the bed, where I could get a good 
view of my visitor, should he attempt to make away 
with them. Then I secured a heavy cane, which I placed 
on the spread beside mc. Thus prepared, I got liack 
into bed and "awaited developments. 
A longer period of quiet ensued this time, but at 
length the well-known sounds began again. As usual, 
all the events that appear in ordinarj-- track and field 
athletics, were indulged in, and so far as I could judge, 
a few also with which I was not familiar. Before my 
reckless acrobat had finished his repertoire, I had fully 
decided that he was either afflicted with a violent type of 
insanity or else, like "Micky Brannigan's Pup," " 'twas 
the Divil himself in disguise." So I kept a firm grasp on 
my cane, and strained my eyes as hard as I could in 
rr, efforts to follow '.im in his mad career. But as 
before, his wind at length gave out, and the usual period 
of tranquility followed. I kept my eyes strained on the 
table at the foot of the bed, but no sign of my friend cuuld 
I see. The crackers too remained unmolested, and I 
grew anxious. If my weird visitor was planning another 
assault on my bed I at least wanted to know from what 
<iuarter the assault was to come. While I was thu.> 
.speculating as to his whereabouts, I happened to glance 
in the direction of the clock across the room, and as I di(! 
so I spied the object of my search. In front of the 
clock was a rocking-chair, on wdiich I always piled at 
night several sofa pillows that by day adorned the bed. 
Resting calmly on top of these cushions sat my friend, 
watching me all the tiiiie, and gathering strength and 
courage for his next move. For several moments we 
eyed each other. Then without warning he leaped for 
the bed. He landed near the foot, but the warm reception 
that met him in the shape of vigorous kicks and cane 
whacks was evidently unexpected. For a moment he 
hesitated, then turned and fled. 
Now I am not by nature superstitious, but the thing 
was beginning to get a little uncanny, and 1 didn't relish 
it. If the creature was hungry, why did he not partake 
of the repast I had prepared for him? On the other 
hand, what possible motive could he have for tearing 
around the room in such a reckless and insane fashion if 
he was sound in his upper story? Only two possible 
solutions of the mystery presented themselves to my 
mind. Either he was acitually unbalanced mentally or else 
he was a "spook" of some kind with designs on my 
life. His next move led me to believe that the latter 
explanation was the correct one. 
Fiflly an hour elapsed before any further developments 
occurred. I had almost deluded myself into believing 
that I was at last to be left to a peaceful time of rest 
before morning appeared. But how vain are mans 
hopes! Scratch, scratch, came from beneath the wash- 
stand. Instantly all thoughts of sleep left me, and I 
grasped my weapon of defense more firmly and waited 
for the usual performance to begin. But I was disap- 
pointed. My assailant had more important business on 
hand this time. I heard him start on his journey around 
the room, following the same old path. He scurried 
along the floor under my bed, and in the dim morning 
light, which was just beginning to stream in through 
my window. I could make out his gaunt form as he 
climbed up on to the table once more. Thepe he sat 
watching me, as before, and planning for the coming 
attack. Through the iron bars of the beadstead we 
eyed each other in silence, and measured our chances 
of success. Darkness was his strongest ally, and he 
could not afford to delay. Calculating his distance well 
he sprang for the bed. Kicks and blo*'s rained about 
and on him as he landed, but he had sized up the situa- 
tion beforehand, and the next instant jiad dashed up 
the bed straight for my head," where kicks and blow.s 
could not reach him. Discoverfng his game, I dropped 
my cane and began a fierce hand-to-hand conflict with 
the foe. Over my chest, neck, shoulders and head he 
ran, while I pounded, slapped and squirmed in my 
endeavors to shake him off. But he did not propose to 
be beaten this time. It was to be a fight to the finish. 
The next moment my blood turned cold as_I felt him 
down under the sheet and on my chest. I made one 
wild, desperate grab lof him, and fortune directed my 
aim. I felt my fingers *rovind his warm body, avi4 *U 
