884 
FOREST ANO STREAM. 
[Kov. iij i8c 
these there are mud turtles, snappers, leatherbacks and 
other turtles in goodly numbers. 
The batrachians are not represented by frogs and toads 
alone, but there are mud puppies with their bright red 
gills, an axolotl {Anibly stoma) of the white form from 
Mexico, and at least one specimen of Amphiuma, or two- 
toed Congo snake, a curious creature which is of especial 
interest for its snakelike form with its rudimentary limbs. 
Adjoining the main hall of the reptile house is a green- 
house fitted up with tropical plants, brought from Flor- 
ida for this purpose, in which certain heat loving species 
will be confined. We believe that the reptile house for 
many visitors will be the prime center of attraction. 
The visitors to the opening went to the park on trains 
leaving the Grand Central station over the Harlem Rail- 
road at 1:35 and 2:15 P. M., and reached the ground 
half an hour later. 
The energy with which the labor of raising the neces- 
sary money and of pushing the construction work in the 
park has been carried on gives a guarantee of the earnest- 
ness of the managers of the Zoological Society, and espe- 
cially of their executive cdmmittee. This is no mere 
temporary effort, but is a serious and well considered 
plan to give to the first city in America the greatest 
zoological garden in the world. In this attempt the so- 
ciety is entitled to the support of public opinion, for the 
garden is for the benefit of the whole public ^nd is not 
for gain. For five days in each week and on all hoH- 
HOW TO GET THERE, 
days it will be open to all who may care to visit it, and it 
is not too much to say that as its existence becomes more 
generally known it will be visited by millions of people, to 
many of whom it will reveal glimpses of a new and hith- 
erto unimagined world. Since it is for the benefit of 
the whole people and is free alike to the well-to-do, to 
those in moderate circumstances, and to the verj' poor, 
whose pleasures are few, it should appeal especially to the 
wealthy and to those whose circumstances place them 
above the need of such a pleasure ^'.round. The society 
has collected, as stated, a large amount of money, but it 
has spent all this in the work already done in the park, 
the results of which to-day are visible to all beholders. 
It greatly needs more money, and it appeals to the 
wealthy to give this money, pointing to its purposes — as 
expressed in its charter and its by-law.s — and to what it 
has already done as guarantees that this money will be 
wisely expended — that is to say, for the general good and 
not for any selfish end. 
Besides this, the society needs active annual members. 
The fee for such membership being but $10. and carrying 
with it certain privileges, it should appeal to many citi- , 
zens and the roll of active membership of the society 
ought to be greatly increased. 
Furthermore the society desires to obtain additional 
specimens of quadrupeds, birds or reptiles for its collec- 
tion. The numbers of wild animals secured from time to 
time by persons who should be sufficiently interested in, 
the New York Zoological Park to be willing to con- 
tribute to its success must be each year considerable, and 
such specimens confined in the park would lead a more 
natural and healthful existence than they ever could in 
private hands, and besides, would give pleasure to a great 
number of people. 
The opportunity thus presented to citizens of New 
York and others to help on the good work which has 
been so splendidly inaugurated by the New York Zoolog- 
ical Society is a great one, and we may fairly hope that 
among^ these there are many who, by gifts — whether of 
money or of specimens — and by interest actively ex- 
pressed in the work, will strive to push forward an under- 
taking which cannot fail to do good in a thousand ways. 
The Forest and Stream is put to press each week on Tuesday. 
Correspondence intended for publication should reach us at the 
latest by Monday and as mucli earlier ai practicable. 
ZOOLOGICAL PARK-? NEW YORK CITY 
SOUTH B^ONX PARK 
NEW YORK ZOOIOCICAL SOCIETY 
- / ('^^ ,,..<w <.!• ^ 'I' 
rThe California Mountain Quail 
Editor Forest and Stream: 
As far as my reading reaches, it seems to me that in 
California we have a bird that has received much less 
notice than it deserves, i refer to what is known as 
the California mountain quail. I do not know that the 
bird is found elsewhere than upon the Pacific coast, and 
here it is only found well up in the foothills and moun- 
tains. 
The mountain quail of California is about as large 
again as our more common bird, the valley quail, and 
is. in my opinion, the most beautiful of American birds. 
Its plumage is made up of the richest combinations of 
browns imaginable, with ribbed or checkered dashes 
upon its breast nearly crimson. From the very top of 
its head a cluster of minute and glossy black feathers 
spring into a graceful crest about 3 inches high, drooping 
at the top forward, like the smaller crest of the valley 
ouail. It is of trimmer figure and better plumage than 
the latter, though the valley quail is itself a beautiful bird. 
Its flesh is a's white as that of the domestic chicken, in 
this respect- differing from any other bird with which 
I am familiar. 
The mountain quail is much more musical in its 
notes than any game bird known to me, its regular call 
being a round mellow whistle, that varies so greatly in 
scope and tone that the bird is a rare ventriloquist, and 
one not easily located in its native haunts. Besides the 
regular call, the bird has a great variety of trills, chirps 
and clucks that it makes use of upon occasion. It is 
naturally much tamer than the valley quail, but when 
disturbed a few times it becomes much more difficult 
to approach, as it is a rapid runner, and takes to brush 
ravines and the roughest ground. In the same coA^er 
it would, I believe, be a better bird to shoot over dogs 
than the valley quail, or the Eastern Bob White. 
Probablv efforts have been made to propagate the 
California'mountain quail in other parts of the country, 
and it would be interesting to hear from him in other 
places. Merely as "a thing of beauty and a joy forever," 
aside from his game qualities, he is worthy of great at- 
tention anywhere. Charles L. Paige. 
California. 
NOTICE. 
The New York Clearing House has adopted new regulations 
governing the collection of checks and drafts on banks outside of 
the city. This entails a collection expense on those who receive 
such checks. Our patrons are requested, therefore, in making 
their remittances to send postal or express money order, postage 
sumps, or check or dra£s on a York city banK or other New 
York currwt 
The Adirondack Deer Law* 
CoL. Wm. F. Fox, Superintendent of Forests, has 
at times mentioned as the author of the present . 
York law which forbids the use of dogs in hunting « 
Col. Fox was seen at his office in Albany by a rt 
sentative of Forest and Stream last week and rema 
that he was not the author of the law, and, furthern 
he thought it was not framed so as to produce the 
results. " 
"The thing that needed correction in the deer l&y 
my opinion," said the Colonel, "was the time of 0 
ing the season rather than the method of hunting, i 
early deer shooting should have been stopped. 
'•No man who has the interest of the deer at heart 
advance any tenable argument for having the seasor' 
gin in August. The venison is not in fit condtion t 
eaten, the meat is sure to become fly-blown and spi 
before all of it can be used, and the old evils of the j 
ing system still apply. The deer are shot around 
lakes and ponds just as they were when jacking wj 
vogue, and the same undue proportion of does are kl 
"The does have their fawns with them, and the moti 
death too often involves that of the young, who havf 
yet learned to care for themselves. This is a violatiG, 
all the principles of game protection and sportsmani 
The State might as well pass a law permitting the rol 
of spawning beds as to permit the shooting of niu 
does in August. Through the escape of wounded 
and starvation of fawns, it is not unreasonable to estr 
that for every animal killed at this time of the year orl 
more perish of which no record is known." 
Col. Fox cited the fact that no other State or C 
dian Province opens the deer season as early as I 
York, and intimated that the law as it stands was fr£i 
in the interests of the summer people instead of foJ 
protection of the deer. He stated that Oct. i was 
enough, in his opinion, for the season to commence, 
that six weeks— reaching into the first tracking sm 
instead of twelve, as at present, was long enough. 
Fox's father and grandfather before him lived and hfi 
in the Adirondacks. He is a good sportsman himself, 
there are few men living who know the region bette 
fact, taking the entire Adirondack forest, no one ki 
it so well. In concluding he said: 
"Personally, I should like to see deer shooting sto 1 
altogether for five years; since that is not likely to I 
want to see a more intelligent law as to the opening | 
duration of the hunting season. But if the deer ai 1 
be killed, I see no great objection to the use of ho I 
under certain restrictions, provided the season is s | 
