308 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
[April 19, 1902. 
CHICAGO AND THE WEST. 
Jack Snipe and the Indiana Law. 
Chicago, HI.; April 12. — All snipe shooters knoV that 
jacksnipe move on moonlit nights, and the fact that 
the moon does not lie just right on the calendar has no 
doubt been the reason that the snipe are a little- late this 
spring, as they certainly seem to be in view of the recent 
favorable weather which we have had in this part of the 
country. There has been no big flight in as yet, though 
for more than a week and a half scattered birds and an 
occasional bunch of them have been dropping in. Near 
Morris, 111., a week from to-day. one shooter killed ten 
birds and put up one bunch of about thirty, out of which 
he killed four jacksnipe at one shot, certainly a very 
unusual performance. The birds were -thin, scattered, 
uneasy, and, of course, wild, not having yet settled down 
to any regular feeding grounds. 
Similar reports come from the upper tier of counties in 
this State. Shooters who were out there last week killed 
a few snipe here and there, but discovered no consider- 
able body of the birds in on the regular feeding grounds. 
Thus far the prairie marshes west of this city, the Fox 
Lake meadows and the big marshes along the Illinois 
River have offered the best opportunities for a bag of 
early birds. The ground has been warm for more than a 
week and worms are certainly obtainable by the diligent 
seekers thereof, whether bird or human. 
Naturally, in view of the recent Indiana non-resident 
license law, the attention of our city shooters has been 
attracted to localities other than the long-time famous 
marshes of Indiana. We have not heard much about the 
State of affairs as to jacksnipe along the Kankakee, where 
the best of the grounds in this part of the world are to be 
•found, and upon which the Chicago shooters always used 
to depend for their sport with the longbills. 
Word is, however, at hand that the advance guard of 
jacksnipe is in along the Kankakee, and were it not for 
the non-resident license scare, there would be a good 
many of our shooters who would start for Indiana to-day. 
Perhaps one may be able to add a word which will set 
the minds of these at rest somewhat, or perhaps get them 
into worse trouble, as the event may prove. At any rate 
there is a report in town to-day that the Indiana law does 
not apply on jacksnipe (indeed this was reported to be 
the case by a correspondent in these columns at the time 
the law was passed). A prominent sportsman of this 
city states that a friend of his within- the past few days 
wrote to Dr. Sweeney, the State Game and Fish Com- 
missioner of Indiana, and asked him for a construction 
of the law on jacksnipe. The latter is stated to have re- 
plied that the latter bird was not protected in Indiana 
and could be shot wherever found in the State, but that 
only twenty-four birds could be brought out of the State. 
The advice was stated to be explicit, that there was no 
limit on the bag of jacksnipe which could be made, that 
there was no law protecting them at all, and that the ex- 
port clause of the law was the only one which applied to 
jacksnipe. There was also a rumor, I don't know how 
correct, to the effect that the State warden advised that 
the non-resident gun license did not apply to the pursuit 
of jacksnipe. As to this latter, I do not wish to be quoted 
explicitly, and do not quote the State Game Commissioner 
explicitly. There is not time at this writing to investigate 
the matter thoroughly before going to press. The only 
thing certain is that the jacksnipe is considered to be an 
outlaw in Indiana, the same as he has been so long in 
Illinois and many other States in the Union. 
This mix-up regarding one game bird shows into what 
beautiful complexities we can get ourselves with new 
game laws. It surely would seem that the whole gamut 
of blunders has been run in the manufacture of game 
statutes in this part of the world. Here are the quail 
and the woodcock left without protection in Illinois, and 
the jacksnipe placed in a similar condition in Indiana. 
Whether these things come from covert malice or from 
general ignorance, it is difficult to determine, but the re- 
sult is none the less confusing and deplorable. 
As to the Indiana law, there is a growing spirit of 
reconciliation in this neighborhood in regard to the non- 
resident license idea per se, though a great many shooters 
still insist that $25 is too high a license to charge for 
bird shooting, that it is prohibitory and not helpful, that 
it keeps money out of the State game protection fund, in- 
stead of bringing money into it. and so bettering the 
shooting and improving the protection offered to the 
game creatures of the commonwealth. In the belief ,of 
many the Indiana law should be. and in all likelihood 
may be, amended so that it shall read $10 instead of 
$25 for a non-resident license. 
Of course there still arises the old cry of unconstitu- 
tionality, some claiming that the citizen of one State shall 
be entitled to the privileges of another State. I do not 
hear of .any one trying to bring this question into the 
courts. The trend of popular approval among sportsmen 
here seems to be in favor of a non-resident license of a 
limited and reasonable extent. Twenty-five dollars is not 
apt ever to become popular here as a price for shooting, 
even for shooting along the once glorious snipe grounds 
of the Kankakee country. 
Still Some Ducks. 
There are still some ducks found upon the better 
grounds of Illinois, and there are still some shooters who 
are pursuing them. The flight now is mostly deep-water 
ducks, more especially the bluebills, and fine bags of the 
latter bird have been made by different Chicago shooters 
in the Fox Lake country north of here. As was suggested 
in these columns last week, some of the best sport has 
been found in the little lakes lying back from the main 
chain. A_ few of my friends, Mr. W. L. Wells, Mr. 
Robert Stites, etc., who have been talcing a little trip every 
week into that country, ran across a little lake back in 
the country to which they were guided by Charlie 
Muehrcke. Here they found bluebills coming in in scat- 
tered bunches and decoying very nicely, so that they killed 
a dozen without much difficulty. They thought that the 
best shooting around Fox Lake was to be had by hunting 
out some outlying district like this, and not by going out 
with the rest of the crowd of shooters in the more open 
waters ground Pistakee, Grass Lake, etc. 
Science and Quail in Iowa. 
On Wednesday, April 9, Judge Blair of the District 
Court of Waterloo, la., decided that under the present 
game laws of the State of Iowa a taxidermist may 'shoot 
and kill birds at any season of the year. This decision 
dismissed the case against Harry Fields, appealed to the 
District Court from Justice Hildebrand. It may be re- 
membered, as reported in these columns, that Harry Fields 
was charged with the killing of six quail on Jan. 22 of 
this year, the complaining witness being Victor Speers. 
The warrant charged him with violating Section 2551 of 
the statutes of Iowa, which says: "No person shall trap, 
shoot or kill any pinnated grouse or prairie chicken be- 
tween the first day of December and the first day of Sep- 
tember next following; any woodcock between the first 
day of January and the tenth day of July; any ruffed 
grouse or pheasant, wild turkey or quail between the 
first day of January and the first day of November." 
Fields admitted that he killed the quail and that he shot 
them with No. 7 shot, instead of the fine shot which 
taxidermists usually use on the birds which- they intend 
to mount. He claimed that he was a taxidermist and 
was engaged to secure specimens for the State Normal 
School. The defense set up Section 2561 of the law, which 
reads as below: 
"Protection of Birds.— No person shall destroy the nests or eggs 
of, or catch, take, kill or have in possession or tinder control for 
any purpose whatever, except specimens for use of taxidermists, at 
any time, any whippoorwill, nighthawk, bluebird, finch, thrush, 
linnet, lark, wren, martin, swallow, bobolink, robin, turtle dove, 
catbird, sandpiper t snowbird blackbird, or any other harmless 
birds, except bluejays and English sparrows, but nothing herein 
shall be construed to prevent the removal of nests from buildings, 
and the keeping of song birds in cages as domestic pets. Any 
person violating any of the provisions of this section shall be fined 
not less than one dollar nor more than twenty-five dollars and 
costs of prosecution, and may be committed to the county jail 
until such fine and costs are paid." 
The original trial was before Justice Hildebrand, where 
Fields was found guilty on six different counts and fined 
$120 and costs. This fine is now remitted by the decision 
of Judge Blair. The attorneys for the prosecution state 
they will take the case to the Supreme Court, as they 
fear the results of the decision of Judge Blair and believe 
that every pot-hunter in the State will feel himself free 
to shoot into flocks of quail on the snow, just as Fields 
admits that he did, and that such pot-hunters will also 
set up the claim that they are taxidermists. The sports- 
men of Waterloo are indignant at the decision and urge 
its being carried up. During the trial Fields was asked 
by the prosecuting attorney why he waited until January 
before killing quail for mounting, and why he did not 
use some of the quail which he had killed in December — 
it being well known that Fields is much accustomed to 
hunting. He replied that the. skins in December were too 
tender, and that the plumage was unsatisfactory. 
A Singular Double. 
Mr. Richard Merrill, while hunting in Texas this win- 
ter, made what I presume we may be permitted to call a 
singular double. He was out hunting for wild turkeys 
and was lucky enough to kill one with his right barrel as 
the bird rose close to him. Just as he was about to open 
his gun he heard a pattering on the leaves at no great 
distance, and looking that way saw a full-grown wildcat 
headed in the direction of the turkey. With a quick shot 
from his left barrel Mr. Merrill doubled the cat up in 
its tracks, and says that it then made the biggest yowling 
and scratching that he ever saw and heard in his life. 
A little more work at closer range finished the matter. I 
fancy that very few shooters ever bagged a wild turkey 
and a wildcat in the form of a double. 
E. Hough. 
Hartford Building, Chicago, 111. 
The Hunting Rifle. 
Editor Forest and Stream: 
I think Adam Moore made a great big mistake in his 
interesting and instructive article under the above head- 
ing, which appeared in Forest and Stream for April 5, 
when he classed himself with the small-bore cranks. It 
is true that smokeless rifles as a rule have smaller bores 
than black-powder rifles, yet a person can prefer the first 
type of gun and still be a big-bore man. On the other 
band, a person can prefer the black-powder rifles and at 
the same time be the rankest kind of a small-bore crank. 
Now, Mr. Moore tells us distinctly that Uncle Henry's 
.577 is a better gun than the .45, and lets us infer that 
he thinks the .45 is a better caliber for a moose gun 
than the .38, .32 or .22. Then he tells us that the .30-40 
is the best American-made gun on the market to-day, 
while he must be aware of the existence of the .25-35 and 
the famous .23, which are preferred by many genuine 
small-bore cranks. And mark this, he won't say the .30-40 
is the best that can be made, or the best that has been 
made, simply because he has heard that there is such a 
thing as a Blake .40-60. 
Really, Mr. Moore, I fear it is the small-bore cranks 
who will jump on you, and I advise you to quit their 
company as quickly as possible and hasten to the camp 
of your friends, the big-bore men. Mr. Moore is not only 
a man who has had a large experience with rifles on big 
game, but he is also evidently a man of intelligence and 
honesty, and it is safe to assume that the big-bore cause 
will never suffer much from what such men say. 
Every rifle has its place. The .30-30 is an excellent 
rifle in its place, so also is the .38-55, the .30-40 and the 
.45-00, but I must insist that they are all out of place 
when they are brought forward as moose guns. Like 
Mr. Moore, I prefer the smokeless rifle, because of its 
lighter weight and recoil, flatter trajectory, and absence 
of smoke. However, it has at least one serious fault, 
which is the tendency of its bullets to fly to pieces before 
they have done their perfect work. This happens oftenest 
when shooting at long range through a dry, heavy air, 
which leads me to think that it is caused by the bullets be- 
coming heated by friction, and that it could be prevented 
by tempering the bullets 50 they would stand a greater 
degree of heat. 
For Mr. Moore's benefit, I will say that I had a Blake 
.40-caliber built and sent to me for trial. This rifle 
weighed about 8^2 pounds, and was chambered for the 
regular .40-72 Winchester cartridge. The cartridge I 
tested it with was loaded with a 330-grain soft->oint 
bullet, and I think 65 grains of Wetterin powder. The 
200-yard trajectory of this bullet was considerably flatter 
than the trajectory of the .30-40 Winchester, the recoil 
only a very little greater, and the accuracy fully equal 
to the best match rifles I ever shot, and I have shot near- 
ly all of the best ones, and the havoc those 330-grain bul- 
lets wrought in pine boards was simply amazing. Any- 
where back of the seventh board it was mostly a mixture 
of kindling wood, splinters, chips and dust. The bul- 
lets showed no tendency to fly to pieces, which I at- 
tributed to their greater diameter. I have seen some 
of the work of the .30-40, having tested six .30-40 Win- 
chesters for my friends, and have also been a member 
of three hunting parties where these rifles were used on 
deer, caribou and moose, and they don't begin to be in it 
with this .40-caliber Blake. 
However, I think it is incumbent upon me to say that 
I regard the action and model of the Blake as somewhat 
fault}', and I say this with less hesitancy because I un- 
derstand that it is no longer made. But it thoroughly 
demonstrated to my mind the feasibility of a larger bore 
than the .30 for high-power rifles, and at the same time 
showed me that my ideal moose gun is a possibility. 
Jos. W. Shurter. 
Gansevoort, N. Y. 
Editor Forest and Stream: 
If a man wants to carry around 9 or 12 pounds of 
dead weight, simply because he thinks he can't kill big 
game unless he hits them with a quarter of a pound of 
to him. I used to do it, and for years thought there was 
to him. I use to do it, and for years thought there was 
nothing like a .45 or .50, but as I grew older, I turned 
to the small-bore and lighter gun. 
During the last seven or eight years I have used the 
.303 Savage, .30-30 and .30-40 Winchester, and have come 
to the conclusion the .30-40 is large and strong enough for 
any big game we -have between the two oceans. 
I find it is not so much the gun as it is the man be- 
hind it. Any one who knows how to hold a rifle can 
knock down the biggest moose in the New Brunswick 
woods in his tracks with one shot from a .30-40 if he 
looks through the sights before pulling the trigger. A 
good many so-called sportsmen who go for moose, hardly 
know how to load the rifle they have, and when they 
shoot, never look at the sights. This is the cause of 
so ma"ny wounded moose getting away. If they took more 
time they would kill more game. 
Of all the moose and caribou I have killed, only one 
went over 30 feet from where he stood when I shot, and 
he only went a short distance before he laid down. 
My guide, Charles Barker, of Riley Brook, New Bruns- 
wick, has told me that he has seen a good many moose 
get away that were shot with .45-70's and .45"9o's — one 
went off with four .45 balls in him, and he found him 
the next spring and set bear traps near his carcass. It 
took four .45 balls to drop the moose that carried the 
largest head of antlers that have come out of New Bruns- 
wick in the last five years. 
The gentleman who was with me last fall dropped a 
very large moose in his tracks with one shot from a .30-40 
— the old fellow did not move after he was shot. 
The new Mannlicher is a very powerful gun. Those 
used up to this year have been the 8 mm. ; the new one 
is 9 mm., .354; killing distance, 3,000 yards; point blank 
range. 300 yards. In this rifle the box magazine is done 
away with, which makes it a nicer gun to handle than 
the 8 mm. 
Shooting moose birds with a .30-30 is boy's play— true 
sportsmen don't kill birds or animals simply for the pleas- 
ure of killing. 
If every sportsman going to New Brunswick would see 
that the sunset and sunrise law was strictly enforced, 
there would not be so many dead moose found later in 
the season. 
I saw a fine large set of antlers at Perth last fall that 
came from a moose that was killed by a lady with a 
little .30-30. 
The principal claim of all the big-bore advocates is 
that the chance is greater to get big game with a small 
cannon than it is to get them with a small bore. Why? 
Because they trust to luck in hitting the game, knowing 
that if they do, there is more likelihood of the animal 
bleeding to death from the big slug than there is from the 
small bullet of the small bore. Good workmanship don't 
enter into it with them. It is all bull luck with nine out 
of ten of them. 
Of all the articles written about the large and. small 
bores during the last two months, the one by Adam 
Moore in last week's Forest and Stream is the best, He 
hits the nail on the head from start to finish. 
A man that will lug a big .45-90 or a still bigger double- 
barrel .577 around with him, has not much confidence in 
his marksmanship. W. W. King. 
Norfolk, Va., April 7. 
Report from"' Currituck* 
Editor Forest and Stream: 
March 31 closed the best season for ducks we have had 
at Currituck for many years. There were more mal- 
lards and broadbills (scaup) than I have seen in twenty 
years. There are still thousands and thousands of broad- 
bills and blackheads here to-day, April 10, and they are 
so tame they will hardly get out of the way when ap- 
proached by a sailboat. 
I am glad to say that the laws have been kept by the 
natives better than ever before, which should insure a 
larger crop of ducks next fall. 
Your Boston correspondent does not seem to understand 
how wild geese should reach Boston at about sunset. I 
think I can explain this satisfactorily. 
Canada geese in leaving Currituck for their northern 
flight always depart about sunrise in the morning, or 
just before sunset in the afternoon. I think there is little 
doubt that a goose is quite equal to making Boston from 
Currituck in twelve hours. I know they often fly several 
hundred miles without stopping; for about half of the 
geese that leave here go about west northwest, and there 
is no known place where they stop in large numbers until 
they reach the lakes. The other half head about north- 
east. These, of course, are the birds that pass over 
Boston and vicinity. 
Yellowhjgs and other shore birds are coming; in. IMfr 
