Jan, ii,. 1902.] 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
29 
value, and the scattered remnants of the race inhabiting it 
do - not thrive as does the game, but are dwindling away, 
and even their songs are sadder than the poem of the 
"Deserted Village" or the story of the "Last of the 
Mohicans." 
The cabins and the clearings are mostly deserted and 
overgrown with weeds, but the American eagle screams 
as loud and is as proud there as on the cliffs of the gold- 
bordered Sierras. 
Let us preserve this area for posterity to prove that we 
were not fully bent on turning everything into our money 
bags or over to Mammon. 
With the Yellowstone Park in the Far West and the 
Appalachians on the Atlantic border, the great Central 
States are entitled to thi . It would be especially adapted 
to the preservation of the fast-disappearing elk of Amer- 
ica, which I have demonstrated, in a preserve here in 
Michigan, to be thrifty, to propagate and stay when not 
too much disturbed. My herd has increased satisfactorily 
and they are a great attraction to the people for many 
miles around. Joshua Hill. 
Pontiac, Mich., Dec. SO. 
In Rhode Island* 
Providence, P. I., Jan. 7. — Editor Forest and Stream : 
The Rhode Island open season for land game birds closed 
Dec. and the open season for rabbits ended Jan. 1, 
thus finishing the hunting season as looked upon by sports- 
men generally, although some fox hunting and duck 
shooting will be indulged in throughout the winter by 
those whose tastes run in these directions. 
The bird season just ended has been a most favorable 
one for the birds, having been, during the first weeks, so 
extremely dry as to give excellent protection to birds from 
the pursuit of dogs, the scent being very difficult to pick 
up or follow over ground covered with loose, dry leaves 
as was the case with all woodland during the greater part 
of this year's open season. This difficult condition was 
succeeded by a week of extreme cold and snow with a 
surface so slippery as to discourage all but the most 
persevering hunters. These stages of drought and cold, 
together with a good many days so warm as to be un- 
comfortable in the woods, made up a season of unusually 
light hunting, this being still further accomplished by 
the scarcity of the king of New England game birds, the 
ruffed grouse. These birds were found to be scarce at 
the opening of the season, and no material increase of 
number was discovered as the weeks went on, so that men 
who have in previous years found the pursuit of par- 
tridges remunerative during the hunting season, were 
obliged this year to give up the sport and return to their 
regular work for a day's pay. 
Quail have been very plentiful, and a flock of about 
twenty-five birds was seen but a day or two ago, before 
the close of the season, close by the side of one of the 
main thoroughfares leading out of this city, the quail 
being within the city limits when seen. One sports- 
man, who lives a short distance out, said he knew of 
seven flocks of quail not far from his home, and it will 
need only good winter weather to make large numbers of 
quail a reasonable certainty another year. Heavy snows 
are destructive to quail, far more than the most skillful 
hunters. 
Rabbits have been numerous and the two falls of snow 
within the season made the capture so easy that boys 
living on the outskirts of the city have been able to get 
several rabbits in a couple of hours upon more than 
one occasion without any dog. 
Water fowl are very numerous this winter in Narra- 
gansett Bay and its tributaries, but just now the cold 
weather is sending them nearer the shores for feeding 
grounds. In the waters adjacent to Pappoosesquaw Point 
large flocks of black ducks, white-wing coots, whistlers 
and old squaws can be seen every day. some feeding in 
the tide courses, while other large flocks seem to be 
continually on the wind. White- wing coots at present 
are more plentiful than black ducks, yet quantities of these 
birds have been shot by gunners. The gunners have used 
sailboats in getting within range of the ducks, but naphtha 
launches seem to be the best means of getting close to 
the flocks while feeding. W. H. M. 
Some Experiences with Deer. 
Revere., Me. — Editor Forest and Stream: Mr. John 
Brown and son Ernest were in the woods of Maine dur- 
ing the recent heavy snowfall, and found deer hunting 
very laborious sport. They remained two weeks, and se- 
cured four bucks that weighed 647 pounds. They hope 
to avoid a recurrence of similar conditions by going 
earlier next season. They do not employ a guide to pilot 
them about, preferring to reply upon a compass. Mr. 
Brown, Sr., is an old hand at hunting, and never hesitates 
to follow a wounded buck or doe. He knows that the 
tiny magnetic needle will guide him safely homeward out 
of the densest of swamps. 
He has some fine heads of caribou from Mt. Katahdin, 
which he secured on former trips. He is a persistent and 
dogged man in the woods, and always likes to start from 
camp before daybreak, while the deer are moving about. 
During the day they are usually hid away behind some 
dense growth of evergreens, and cannot be approached 
by the most sealthy of trailers. They always sleep with 
both eyes wide open. It is very nice, and gives one 
more courage to go deep into the woods with a com- 
panion. But you can get more shots and see more deer 
by playing a lone hand. 
One must not expect to obtain a very close view of a 
wary buck or doe while tramping about in dry leaves, 
snapping twigs and talking to a companion at intervals. 
Put a lunch into your pocket, don't forget your compass, 
find a commanding position on a good hardwood ridge, 
there sit down and wait. You then can detect the least 
sound made by anything within good shooting distance. 
Of course one gets chilled by remaining in one position 
a few hours, but by using a small amount of soothing 
syrup you can regain the proper temperature. 
That there are exceptions to almost every rule was 
proven upon our trip last month. We went over the 
hardwood ridge about 3 o'clock one afternoon. We were 
talking quite loudly, kicking up dry leaves, breaking 
bvrmrhep ?r;d making other noise, Upon reaching a high 
knoll, we saw a doe bounding away to the left of us. We 
did not fire at her on account of the distance. We were 
not expecting any deer in that exact locality, hence our 
lack of caution. 
Upon looking to the right of us, there we saw only 
about twenty yards away, a buck that had remained a 
silent watcher during all of the commotion. He made no 
attempt to get away. It was a sight long to be remem- 
bered. His proudly arched neck and defiant bearing in- 
dicated combativeness to the highest degree. We had 
invaded the solitude of his forest retreat, and broken up 
the tete-a-tete with his better half, and he was anxious 
to give battle to the intruders. It seemed like a sacrilege 
to harm him, but he fell with a tiny .30-30 through his 
. brain. And the youth who fired the lucky shot never had 
had a rifle in his hands previous to that trip. 
Thus one can see how difficult it is to lay down any- 
hard and fast rules in deer shooting. Deer are roaming 
about in all kinds of places, and you never can tell when 
you will blunder on to one. 
I was on the same ridge one day in November, 1000. 
I had been waiting about two hours and was thoroughly 
chilled. I had both hands in my pockets, and the rifle 
butt resting upon my boot. I had turned partly around 
for observation, when upon resuming a front position I 
was almost petrified by seeing a magnificent buck stolidly 
gazing at me. and only about twenty feet away. I experi- 
enced all the sensations of the real tenderfoot. My heart 
tried to get out of my mouth. I felt my hair leaving my 
head, and I thought I was going to choke. The buck 
keot his gaze upon me for all of three minutes. I was 
shivering all over, and knew, or felt, that if I made an 
attempt to get the rifle up, he would take some violent 
exercise, and quickly get beyond my trembling aim. I 
began, to hope that he would turn his.head, and thus 
afford me an opportunity of knocking him out. But he 
failed to meet my requirements. He was apparently satis- 
fied that I could not harm him, for he began to nibble 
very quietly. After he walked about fifty or sixty feet 
from me. feeding all the while, I did manage to get the 
rifle up. but his fine eye detected the movement, and'he 
instantly began to bound away, and was thoroughly safe 
from harm in about one minute. I had traveled about sso 
miles to get a shot at a deer, and he had walked right 
no to me. and "I never touched him." This was my 
first venture after deer, but I shall always feel childish 
over it. When I got back to the house that evening Al 
b"o-hed and said. "Whv didn't you up and let him have 
it?" 
On another occasion when out looking for aeer, a doa 
and her two lambs came up to within a few feet of me. 
They stopped short, gazed at me intentb/ for a few min- 
utes and proceeded to feed. I remained as steady as I 
could, although I know I was shaking badly. My rifle I 
had laid down beyond my reach. They made a beautiful 
picture as they stood, the doe in the center, and all three 
with necks craned, and their wondrously beautiful eyes 
sraziner upon the trembling object that wanted to shoot 
but did not have his rifle. I have always been pleased to 
think that I was not the one to break up such a loving 
group. 
A rifle report will not cause a deer to run. 1 nave seen 
one of our boys fire five times in succession at a buck that 
chiM not locate us. ' He remained motionless through 
the fusilade. and jumped only when the sixth shot grazed 
him. It is the moving object that startles them quicker 
than the rifle report. 
While drivinar along the banks of the East Branch, on 
our way from the depot to the bouse, we. saw a buck and 
doe on the opposite bank. Billy and Frank jumped from 
the buckboard. hastily slipped in a few shells, took aim in 
an excited manner and both fired. The deer raised their 
heads for to gaze at us, then proceeded to> feed. The 
boys failed to harm them. Billy, in his excitement, had 
put in some miniature cartridges that only carried half- 
way. They wanted to remain right there for the rest of 
the day; but Al told them thev might sit there for a year 
and not get such a chance again. 
Various times after that dav we took the canoe and 
paddled up river, moving with the dexterity and stealth of 
typical sons of the forest, but were never able to gaze 
upon even a white flag. 
Frank was very enthusiastic in his methods of hunting. 
He did not care how hard he worked, or how many 
miles he traveled. 
He started over the ridee one morning and kept on 
going till he found himself in a cedar swamp about five 
miles from the house. He neither saw nor heard a deer 
during his long trip. He climbed a lofty spruce tree to 
take observations. Directly ahead, "and about five hun- 
dred yards away, he located a hardwood growth. He 
descended, and worked cautiously toward the ridge. He 
heard some branches snapping, and he began to have hope. 
After a little careful reconnoitering he located a fine 
buck pawine; the leaves in his search for the toothsome 
beechnut. Frank whistled low, the buck raised his head, 
only to drcp it the next instant. The deer weighed 173 
pounds dressed. Frank feels proud over the fact that he 
raised the buck and left him hanging about four feet clear 
of the ground. . He says he could have raised him five 
feet higher just as easily. He was afraid of foxes 
molesting the carcass during the night. He is not out 
of his teens, and any one who has tried to lift a dead 
buck in the woods will agree that it is no child's play to 
elevate your deer. 
Four of us went out the next day, and we had a sample 
of toting out deer over a - swamp road that will long 
linger in our memories. Our path for two miles was over 
cedar stumps, windfalls, boulders, rocks, water holes, bog 
holes, tangled tops left by the swampers, and pitch dark- 
ness to cheer us on. After we had done this beautiful 
form of exercise for two hours, we bethought us of a 
torch. We stripped the bark from the white birch trees, 
rolled it into a compact mass and fastened it into a split 
sapling. Our torch would last about five minutes, when 
we would insert more bark. Thus we battled with difficul- 
ties for four hours in the darkness, until we finally 
reached the main road. We were a jaded quartet upon 
reaching home. But we got the buck out, and Frank, at 
least, was happy. 
Early next morning we started for the bog, five miles 
away. We took possession of a deserted logging, camp, 
and all hands proceeded to put it in shape. A famliy of 
hedgehogs were apparently the last ones that occupied the 
place, and had eaten evervthing. that had the least taste 
of food or grease on it. A fine spring near at hand was 
discovered, and added much to our pleasure. We soon 
had the bunks piled high with fragrant balsam boughs 
that would lull and soothe the most jaded of mortals. 
We had a stove, but no pipe for it. We soon had a- pipe, 
made of large apple cans, which were plentiful outdoors. 
It was not elegant to look at, but it filled the bill. 
It was refreshing to see the boys swing their axes in 
their efforts at felling trees foT firewood- We wanted 
heavy logs that would last during the night, and we soon 
had a good supply. We had snow the first night, and the 
heat from inside melted it as soon as it touched the roof. 
All night long the little streams poured into our bunks 
and kept us dodging about like chipmunks. The dry- 
cedar splits of our roof would catch fire every few min- 
utes, and we would take turns in throwing snowballs in 
our efforts to save our home. The fragrance of the 
balsam boughs did not soothe us very much that night. 
Upon going outdoors in the morning we were surprised 
to see all the deer tracks not more than ten feet from the 
camp. We did not think they would appproach so close 
to us while we were making so much noise. After a 
refreshing breakfast of bacon and eggs, with piping hot 
coffee, we felt ready for the chase; singled out some of 
the biggest tracks, and did not go very far before we 
sighted our game. 
Brown as usual got the first buck. It was not very 
large, but had a fine head. I contrived in some mys- 
terious way to get a good sized doe. but it was not owing 
to my steady nerve. Dudley followed on the track of a 
large buck, which led him across the bog, and into a 
cedar swamp. He had not gone very far before he 
noticed the tracks of a lucifee following close upon the 
deer trail. He followed cautiously for about half a_ mile 
through the swamp, then gave it up. Pie had no desire to 
get too close to an "Injun devil." When we tumbled into 
our bunks at nightfall we slept as we had not in many a 
year. 
The pure and bracing air of the woods had given tts 
voracious appetites, and our food supoly was soon 
diminished. But the folks at the house had not forgotten 
us. and sent in fresh supplies on the third day. Al and 
Seth had tramped the five miles, each with a sack of good 
things to eat. Al shot a doe while on his way in. and it 
certainly was refreshing to hear him tell of it in his cool 
and matter-of-fact way. 
When any of the boys shot a deer, we fledgling? felt it 
incumbent upon us to go into hysterics over the affair, 
but the eemr'ne son of the forest never becomes en- 
thused. He simply kills his deer and wastes no words 
in describing the event. 
We enioved every moment of our two weeks _ stay, and 
were loth to leave. The fragrant air of the pine woods 
is a most wonderful rejuvenator. causing one to move and 
net with renewed vigor and life. One can tramp from 
daylight till dark without a sen=e of weariness. Drinking 
deep of the sparkling waters from the woodland brooks 
adds in no small measure to one's health, 
"Only to him whose coat of rags 
Has pressed at night their royal feet, 
Shall come the secrets, strange and sweet. 
Of royal pines and beetling crags. _ . 
i 1 1 
"No greed of gold shall come to hire. 
Nor strong desire of earthly praise; 
But he shall love the silent ways 
Of forest aisles and arches dim." 
— Nessmuk. 
One of our most enthusiastic companions was W. Estev, 
of the Art Preservative of Boston, and as he . is an old- 
timer at hunting, he had no trouble in securing his legal 
quota of deer. 
We are already making plans for our trip next fall, and 
find fully as much pleasure in anticipation as in the ful- 
fillment. Freciuently communing with nature tends to 
elevate the mind, and build up and restore impaired 
vitality. Jay Pee. 
J Game* r Sale Out* of Season. 
1 ran interne,, with a New York Times reporter, Pres. 
i . V. Bootman, of the Arctic Freezer Co.. said : 
"The Governor's recommendation would give us pro- 
tection and prevent such seizures as that to which we 
were subjected last summer. Game comes to us in boxes 
and barrels, and we have no way of knowing that the 
boxes and barrels contain game except by breaking into 
them as the State's officers did. Under the law as it 
exists our business is liable to be overturned by State 
officers at any time. It is just as unreasonable for them 
to come in here and turn our place upside down looking 
for stolen game as it would be for them to go into a 
furniture store looking for stolen goods. We would wel- 
come a system which would provide for the bonding of 
game, for then we would get our money for storage, and 
not be in danger of being raided and hauled up in court, 
as we are now. 
"But I do not think the establishment of bonded 
warehouses for game would lessen the amount of game 
sold out of season. The people who want game out of 
season and who have the money to -pay for it, will get 
it despite any law that can be framed. It is a singular 
•fact that while it is the wealthy class who raise the howl 
about the game being destroyed, and hunting spoiled, it 
is they also who are indirectly the cause of the game 
laws being violated, because it is only the wealthy class 
that can afford to buy game out of season." 
"How much game is sold out of season in New York?" 
"More than is sold in season. The reason for that is 
that there is a bigger profit in selling it out of season than 
there is in selling it in season, and therefore the majority 
of dealers arrange to hold it until the time when they 
can secure advanced prices. 
"The trouble about the Governor's plan would be this: 
Men who deal in game would put a small amount only 
of their holdings in bond, and, having made this show 
of apparent good faith, would then proceed to dispose 
of the rest of their game illegally. There is no difficulty 
about getting an abundance of game in a number of 
States during the close season in New York." 
All communications intended for Fobbst and St** am should 
always be addressed to the Forest and Stream Publishing Co., and 
ijot to any individual connected w'tk the paper- 
