Nov. 3, jQoo.J 
FOREST - AND . STREAM. 
takes me to write this even in shorthand. In the mean- 
time the other load carried off the blankets, and poor 
Tom had to shiver into town on foot, though it was only 
about one mile away. The next day he was lying in the 
stubble sunning himself, and in taking up his gun got 
his finger on the trigger instead of on the guard. Well, 
j'ou know what that means — the gun went of?. He was 
struck in the heel, the luckiest shot he ever made in his 
life, for if it had gone half an inch to one side he would 
have been a cripple for life. As it was it only tore his 
rubber boot and blistered his heel, and put two shot holes 
in it, but luckily the shot did not go in. We fixed him up 
in good shape, ■ and before we came home he was able 
to get out and sit on a stool and bang away at ducks, but 
he was so gun shy he couldn't hit anything, until finally 
one lorie white goose came along and he punctured him. 
"The railroad people Avere not verv swift about side- 
tracking us at the proper point, and three days were 
wasted before we did induce them to take us to a station 
five miles nearer our shooting. It proved to be an ideal 
spots, lots of white geese, quite a good man3'- ducks. 
The Aveather was absolutely fine, not a cloud or a breath 
of wind stirring, Avhich, of course, means no duck shoot- 
ing, or goose shooting for that matter, except by chance, 
but we had a lazy crowd. Ten o'clock in the morning 
was as early as any of us could get our traps together 
and get started, but we bad to our credit when we 
started for home something OA'er 80 geese, and "■^^/re than 
that number of ducks. We concluded that w . . Tiime 
enough, and had had a bully good time." 
Minnesota Deer Crop. 
It is now but a few days till the openmg of the Minne- 
sota deer season, and all deer hunters who are disposed 
to trv that State will be verj'' apt to have fine shooting 
this fall. Tn all the northern parts of the State, in Itasca. 
Beltrami, St. Louis. Hubbard and Ottertail counties the 
deer are reported verv numerous. Indians have killed 
'ess than usual this summer, and the supply is t\ best 
for some years, according to local estimates. 
The Dead and Dov/n Timber Act. 
Reference has been repeatedly made in these columns. 
'O the cotirse of reporting the progress of the mover^nt 
for the Minnesota National Park, to the dead and down 
timber act, which has been the cloak for so many shame- 
less thefts of the pine on the Indian reservations. "To 
make it brief, this Act of Con.gress makes it legal for a 
lumbermen to cut trpes that have been burned and to take 
away fallen trees. This has been construed, to make it 
mild, in the most liberal way imaginable. Anyone visit- 
incr that region would not think there w.ts the slightest 
restriction to the cutting of the pine. The lumberm.en 
have fonnd the act wide enough to give them all the 
nine they want, and so have not bothered about any- 
thing more at present. 
It has alwa-"'s been known to th^ men familiar 
with the upper Minnesota country that the pine trees on 
the reservations are burned, deliberately burned, so that 
the'' can be construed to be fair game under the terms 
of the act above referred to, This has be.en known, but 
nothing has ever been done to nunish the thieves who 
do : this sort of work, and no arrest was ever made until 
this fnll. : On Oct. TO, in '■he United States Court, at 
Duluth, two r>f thes" men who do the work for the lum- 
ben concern. C. E. S.el^e and Harry Shearer, were found 
guilty of deliberately firi"T timber in this way, and sen- 
tence is expected soon. The.v may bp sentenced to three 
vears' imorisonment or $5,000 fine. The wonder is that 
th«=;e thefts have not been punished oftener and long ago. 
This work of destroving treps or marking them to 
evade the law is brought to a high point of nerfec^^ion 
by the timeber thi'^vps. Sometimes a tree is slighthr 
scorched bv ? fire built at its roots, the fire b'°'ng nuf' 
out before it does more than blacken the bark. But this 
outside firing ^'as hard to control, and was ant to spread 
forest fires, which would be too much in earnest So 
the lumbermen devispd a lamp, which thej- put in under 
the roots of a tree, which will burn ou<- in a certain time, 
and cause th** tree to fall or be disfigured enoueh to 
c'aim U'ldi'r the act. Mrs. Lvdi? P. Wilh'pms. oresident 
of the Federation of Women's Clubs in Minnesota, '-he 
bodi' of women to whom helongs fir»;t credit for the idea 
of the nark, was this fall up in the country of Cass 
Lake pud Le«ch Lake reservations and she rot onlv 
saw miles of fiup timber which had been ViHed bv these 
lamns. but found one of th^ lamns herself, burred otit, 
under the roots of one of the big nines. She brought 
the lamo home as a souA^enir. and as a proof of the 
malici'^'-islv false methods of the men who ar° stealing- 
fr'-'m Minnei^ota her heritage of pine. E. Hotjgh. 
Hartford Btjilding. Chicagro. 111. 
Long: IsIan<I Deer, 
The Long Island deer season law reads : "Deer shall 
not be taken at any other time than between daylight and 
sunset on the first two Wednesdays and first two Fridays 
of November." 
The fact that this year the first Thursdav (Nov. i) 
comes before the first Wednesday (Nov. 7) 'has created 
some uncertainty as to the open Thursdavs ; but manifestly 
there is no room for doubt. The "first two Wednesdays" 
are Nov. 7 and 14; the "first two Thursdays" are Nov. i 
and 8. These are the four days on which deer hunting 
is lawful. The Long Island wardens announce that they 
so construe the law; and they hold that the possession 
of venison is lawful on and after Thursdav, Nov. i. 
Long: Island Dtjcfc Shootmgf. 
Sayville, Long Island. N. Y., Oct. 27.— The changing 
of the duck shooting opening date from Oct. i to Oct. 20 
this year had the efTect of giving excellent shooting on the 
.first days. The fowl began to come in soon after Oct. i, 
and being undisturbed, selected their feeding grounds and 
settled down to make themselves at home. The result was. 
that when the season opened on the 20th there was a great 
supply, and the gunners secured large bags. Our 'local 
shooters ha^^e killed over 500 within the "last few days. 
One hunter is credited with eighty-six in one da3^ 
'In Maine Woods* 
Boston, Oct. 27, — Now and then a moose is being 
taken in Maine, but the recerd is yet a good deal behind 
that of a year ago. Frank Hutchins, of Kingfield, shot 
a bull moose near the railroad station, in Carrabassett, 
on Monday. The animal was evidently about se-ven 
years of age and weighed 742 pounds. The antler spread 
is 4 feet and i inc,h. Mr. I. flarvey Young, of Faneuil Hall 
Market, Boston, has had more than his usual go6d luck 
hunting in the Maine woods. He first sent Wut two bears, 
that attracted a good deal of attention in the market, as 
well as bringing his friends to congratulations. A few 
days after he brought out a big bull moose, which was 
sho-v\m at the stall of Goodnough & Freeman; the first 
moose of the season in Faneuil Hall Market. Later it 
is reported that he has gone back and taken a couple of 
deer. ■ .< 
Mr. Ellery 'Stevens, of Waterville. Me., had a queer 
hunting experience in the vicinity of Monson Junction. 
After three days of very hard hunting he had secured a 
fine moose. A knock at the cabin door that night 
awakened Stevens and his guide, and they admitted a 
stranger. In the morning the man announced that he 
vas a guide, registered guide, with the powers of a game 
warden; that they had shot a moose in close time; that 
they must deliver the moose to him, and Stevens must 
go with him. to appear in court at Foxcroft, and ansAver 
for shooting the moose. Mr. Stevens protested that the 
moose was' shot on Thursday, after the legal season 
opened Qn Monday. But the man Avould not listen, and 
claimed that he had all the powers necessary to make 
an arrest and take Stevens out to the settlement. Mr. 
StCA^ens, finding that argurnent Avas of no avail, and feel- 
ing, sure that he could establish the fact that, he had taken 
the moose legally, finally agreed to go out to the settle- 
ment and answer before a , justice for the killing of the 
moose. At this the guide seemed to let up on his man, 
and told him that he looked honest, and that he would 
take his word for his appearance Saturday morning. 
About- this time another stranger , appeared whom the 
guide or Avar den seemed to know very well, and he was 
engaged to help get the moose out to the settlement. 
Stevens asked the wardeiT,,for his name, but he answed: 
"Oh, never mind about rS^iiame; you will find that out 
soon enough." The two irien then went off to get the 
moose out. which they did,' taking the. carcass along with 
them. Mr. Stevens, thoroughly disgusted with such 
luck, and knowing that he was not guilty of killing the 
m.oose in close time, concluded not to. go out that day, 
but to hunt deer instead, and let the warden Avait for him 
Avith the moose. He did- so, and succeeded in getting a 
fine deer.. With-this: he' started out to the settlement the 
next day. Arriving there, what was .his • surprise to find 
that neither man nor moose had appeared. - Later he 
found that two men answering the description he gave 
had gone another Avay. with a moose they pretended to 
have shot. ' "Got ' hirn mighty easy," they said. Mr. 
Stevens has not yet' been able-to - find his moose, and 
concludes. that he has been buncoed out of it by a smooth- 
tongued stranger. Now he- believes that had he asked 
for a badge or other insignia of authority, he might have 
brought home his moose. ' ■■ , 
NeAvs of fatal shooting accidents with Maine game 
seekers -are of terrible frequence. The last one is that 
Joseph Hubert, of Augusta. Me., has fatally shot and 
probably killed Harry Hillick&r, of LoAvell, Mass., with 
Avhom he Avas hunting for deer in the vicinity of the 
Katahdin Iron Works. In making a short cut for camp, 
across a thicket, Hubert's rifle, which was cocked, was 
discharged by the trigger catching in the brush, and a 
in Boston the other day, in the interest of a steam auto^ 
mobile that he has invented. He says that the deer are 
plenty around Andover and above. A number have been 
taken. He is going into the woods hunting this week; 
says that there is great duck shooting at Urabagog 
Lake. Others bear out his testimony that black ducks 
have been unusually plenty in that section this season. 
Bears are reportad to be unusually plenty at several hunt- 
ing resorts in Maine this fall. At Chain of Ponds,:above 
Stratton, three bears have been secured. At the Ledge 
House camp.s. Dead River, bears have come up into the 
very dooryard. Game Warden George W. Ross, of 
Vanceboro, is o-ut with the statement that there are more 
deer than ever in Washington county. A great deal of 
poaching used to be done in his county, but Warden 
Ross says that all that has been changed. Mr. Frank 
Witcher, who owns the camp at that point, from which he 
and Mr. Hildreth hunted, has shot a fine specimen of 
albino deer. 
Coot shooting along the shores of Massachusetts Bay 
is attracting attention. Chatham reports say that shoot- 
ing has been good all the week. From Chatham Bay 
to Monomoy the most of the shooting is had. Walter 
Woodman and Louis Boyden, of Brookline, wet'e at 
Chatham last week, and secured 40 coot, 6 black duck 
and a .string of shore birds. Russell A. Bearse, a local 
gunner, has shot within a week over 20 black duck and 
75 shore birds, at Inward Point. W. B. Cutter, of 
Boston, has been at Train's camp. Inward Point, for a 
week, and has had good shooting. Quail and partridge 
shooting on the Cape is reported to be very poor. It is 
claimed that the Sunday law, forbi(tding shooting on 
that day in this State, is to be rigidly enforced this 
fall. No arrests have yet been made, but the officers are 
reported to be keeping strict Avatch. 
Special. 
Roping an Elk. 
It was when we went to bring the branches off the 
mountain that we got the elk. We ran out of meat, so' 
decided to take a hunt. We had two guns between the 
four of us, so Brown and I went down the cailon, while 
Smith and the boy drove the timber above with dogs. 
The place where we settled ourselves was near the bottom, 
just opposite a bare point, which ran out, terminating in 
a cliff 100 feet high. 
Scarcely were we in our places, Avhen we heard the 
most awful noise coming from up the caiion— whoops 
that woulcl have put to shame an Indian, accompanied 
by the baying of a hound and the barking of the shepherd 
dogs. And suddenly on the point opposite appeared a 
big bull elk, running for the cliff, with Smith in full pur- 
suit, SAvinging his irope. Just as the elk reached the 
edge. Smith threw and caught him around the antlers. 
The elk ran_ar-ound on to a ledge 8 feet below and tried 
his best first to jump over the clift and then get up at 
Smith. For about five minutes he fought, the man and 
horse having all they could do to hold him, and be#?ig 
sometimes within 10 feet of the cliff. 
We ran down the canon and climbed the other side as 
quickly as possible, and when we arrived, the elk was 
standing quietly, so with our Winchesters we ad- 
ministered his coup de grace. The rope, Avhich had held 
so long, broke as he fell dead on the side of the cliff and 
he fell over, fortunately not injuring the head, which 
was fairly large, with eight points. 
When we began to skin him we heard the story.. It 
appeared that Avhen Smith and the boy Avent into the 
timber they heard the dogs barking, but they presently 
came back. Smith, thinking they had found a bear, Avent 
, - , , - in that direction and found a yearling elk track, which 
..10-30 buHet passed through Hillicker's body, entering the dogs got on to, and while folloAving it jumped the 
the back .mst beside the ^spinal column, and passing out old bull, which started off through the timber. How 
Smith ever kept up with him I can't imagine, but he 
did, and at the first open place roped him rotmd one horn 
and "busted" him. The rope, however, came off. The 
elk was undecided whether to make a fight or not, but 
finally he headed for the pines, with Avhat result you 
know. He was a fine, eight-point bull, dressing about 
600 pounds, I should think. It took five pack horses to 
get the meat and hide out of the canon where he fell. 
His remains served as bait for the bear trap. 
J. K. McK. 
Shell. Wyo. 
In West Virginia Mountains* 
MoRGANTOWN, W. Va., Oct. 26— Editor Forest and 
Stream: All who enjoy shooting are now having their 
"innings" and outings. The great majority of such are. 
like myself, so situated that business at this season of 
the year forbids an extended trip, with the joys of camp 
life and big game hunting, and must be content with a 
day out occasionally, after such gaine as we can find. 
A new railroad is being built from our town up 
through the heavily timbered mountains, where there are 
many thousands of acres of wooded land. They ^ now run 
traiiis ten miles, leaving here in the mornin.g, and- return- 
ing in the evening, which gives an excellent opportunity 
for persons to spend a day in the mountains. As a result 
of this convenience, I have been enabled to help pick the 
bones of eleven gray squirrels and two partridges this 
season, Avhich was a luxury denied me for several years. 
However, the luxury of picking the bones is small com- 
pared with that of climbing the mountains and securing 
the game by careful hunting. The squirrels are not what 
Avould be termed plentiful, but there being a large terri- 
tory for their range, and a good supply of chestnuts 
scattered all through the Avoods to keep them, there, 
makes the hunting good for any but the game-hog, who 
needs all he can carry to satisfy him. Five is the most 
I killed m any one day's hunt, Avhich should satisfy any 
sportsman, with the present condition of game. 
The season for quail opens Nov. i, and there will be 
some good shooting, as the law has protected them at all 
seasons for some years. . 
Last Aveek a man, visiting some friends here;, went up 
the ncAv railroad one morning for a hunt with his new 
rifle, which was a recent present from his wife. The daily 
oaper had a flattering account next day of how Mr. - 
had gone up the railroad and succeeded in bringing 
home with him a 20-nound wild turkev, which he had 
shot while (it was) flying^., Tlie tr^tH of the • ^^^X 
through the abdomen. Not striking a bone^ the bullet 
did not mushroom, and hence the wound was a very 
small one. Up to last accounts received the man was 
alive, although he had been brought out to Patten, 23 
m.iles, by relays of strong lumbermen, from a camp some 
fiA^e or six miles from Avhere the accident happened. 
Arrived at the settlement, Hillicker had strength enough 
to state that he Avished it understood that the shooting 
Avas purely accidental, and that Hubert was not in the 
least to blame. But Hubert can think while he lives 
upon the carelessness of carrying a gun at cock through 
the brush, especially with a companion near him. 
Under the head of Game Notes items like the follow- 
m.g are being found in the Maine papers: 
"The devil himself seems to be aiming some of those 
rifles m the Maine woods." "Mr. Bill Johnson has 
returned to town Avith a piece of big game. He mistook 
his hunting companion for a deer and killed him." "Mr. 
Peter Perkins brought doAvn a fine large man the other 
day. by his rifle trigger catching in the bushes." "The 
Maine Legislature Avill be asked this winter to frame 
some further laws concerning the carrying of guns into 
he Avoods, and nossibly concerning the responsibility 
)f the man Avho shoots another hunter." 
All the aboA'e is simply horrible. In the blackest of 
'apital letters it .«;hould be branded into the very brain 
of CA^ery hunter who goes into the Avoods: "Never shoot 
till you are dead sure that it is game and not a man that 
.vou are pointing at. Never fire at a mere motion in the 
bushes, not at a sound." "NeA^er carry a gun at cock 
through the brush, nor when there is an-vbody in possible 
range. 
Oct. 29.— A Bangor dispatch of Saturday says that 
great quantities of game have been coming in for the 
week, though the number of deer to date is far behind 
that of a year ago, and behind any season for three 
years. For the week the number of deer recorded by 
thei Avardens, Avho watch the trains at Bangor, Avas 423, 
and 43 moose. This is four more deer than for the sam'e 
w'eek a year ago, and two less moose. The total receipts 
of deer to Oct. 27 was i.ooo, and 56 moose— 
251 deer less than for the same time a year ago, 
and six moose. From the Kingfield re,gion more deer- 
are coming out, and a few moose. From the Rangeley 
region the reports are better, with more deer being 
taken and yet the record at the principal outlets. Bemis 
and Rangeley. is scarcely half that of a year ago. 
Mr. Tom French, of Andover; Me., whom the Rich- 
ardson Lake sportsmen will so Avell remember as build- 
iiig: and rtmpip.g ^ counlf of steamers on tha^ la.k?, was 
