FOREST AND STREAM. 
the thickly curtained fall, have attained their Utmost 
verge after ldhg contention with the St. Lawrence's, fierce- 
ly rushing tide, they have ovefeome the dangers and hard- 
ships of the far-famed whirlpool rapids, where the drain- 
age of nearly half a continent is compressed Withih a 
Width of 300 yards, all this they have dorte, and more, 
only, at the last, to immolate themselves in the clutch of 
the world's mightiest cataract. It has been urged that 
the eels obtain access to Lake Ontario through the canals, 
but if so, their numbers must be inconsiderable, for no 
such migratory hordes have been observed as darken the 
flood gates of English rivers with a continuous layer of 
climbing fish. Not improbably Niagara River below the 
Falls is occupied by a large colony of eels, subsisting in 
great measure upon the fish that, swept over the cataract, 
are killed or disabled by its tremendous force. It may 
reasonably be presumed that the innumerable army of 
elvers is the progeny of the annual offshoots of this par- 
ticular colony, that, at the conclusion of their voyage, be- 
take themselves to the ancestral stream. 
The birthplace of the eels that attain the headwaters of 
Lake Ontario is probably in the depths of the Atlantic 
lying beyond the great island of Newfoundland. In the 
lower portion of the Gulf of St. Lawrence are several 
places where the water reaches a depth of from 250 to 300 
fathoms, but it is very doubtful if the far-wandering crea- 
tures resort to pools of such limited depth and area. The 
oceanic profound is easily accessible, a hundred leagues 
of marine voyaging is of little moment to travelers who 
have undergone the dangers and difficulties of turbulent 
river navigation. Abundant food and other conditions 
essential to the development of their offspring are prob- 
ably incident only to the great depth, and there, in all 
probability, their parental instinct impels them. It may 
even be that some of the erratic migrants resort to the 
mid-Atlantic. The headwater salmon of the Yukon and 
of the Amoor, in their conquest of the rapid currents of 
those mighty rivers, probably pass through six or seven 
thousand miles of water, in addition to a previous thou- 
sand miles traversed in the ocean. The accomplishment 
of but a small fraction of this distance would effect the 
eel's utmost removal from the land; it is a hardy and an 
enterprising voyager, and therefore the assumption is 
permissible that large colonies, seeking an isolated retire- 
ment, may disperse themselves over wide oceanic areas in 
some instances, very remote from the coast. 
The voyages that begin and end the life of the upper 
Ontario eel may not be so long as those which herald the 
birth and death of its brother of the North Baltic and of 
the Gulf of Bothnia. Probably 200 miles of lake, 800 of 
river and gulf, and 300 of ocean navigation is the ultimate 
accomplishment of both the adult and the infant pilgrims, 
the latter, tiny creatures, having but the length and thick- 
ness of three inches of ordinary fishing line. Traversing 
salt and fresh waters, the one in darkness, the other in 
light, contending with the seething rapid or thundering 
cataract, the end. of many weeks of toil and travel js, 
doubtless, the attainment of an allotted bourn, a definite 
goal; but the manner and the means of this wondrous 
achievement may perhaps be an abiding mystery of the 
most enigmatic and elusive of creatures. 
A. H. Gouraud. 
Brooklyn. 
The Birds of Guam. 
Ida M. Carter writes in the Springfield Republican: 
It is interesting to note that the Bernice Pauahi Museum 
in Honolulu sent out the first scientific expedition to 
Guam. Its record has been printed as No. 3 of the Occa- 
sional Papers of the museum. Alvin Seale, the collector 
for this institution, furnishes much interesting matter in 
his report. Guam is the largest of the twenty-one small 
volcanic islands of the Marianas or Ladrones group. We 
own this one only. For some reason we did not take in 
the others in our purchase from Spain. They extend in 
a group north and south for about 400 miles. Magalhaes 
(Magellan) discovered them in 1521. Since then their 
original population has been exterminated and has been 
replaced by another people. Guam is several times as 
large as New York Island, being thirty-two miles long 
and twelve miles broad. The coast line is bold and rocky, 
with high hills in the interior. The tops of the mountains 
are sometimes barren, sometimes covered with tall grass. 
They reach to an elevation of 1,800 feet in the northwest. 
The island is densely wooded— or was so until recently. 
It is from fifty to seventy-five feet above sea level ; there 
are a few small fresh-water ponds and marshes, and eight 
or ten small streams. 
Mr. Seale's list of the birds of Guam gives some fifty- 
eight species, a dozen being probably peculiar to the place. 
Wiglesworth (in "Aves Polynesia;," 1891), mentions 
thirty-two. Each writer has birds not occurring in the 
other's list, and Mr. Seale did not find all of Wigles- 
worth's birds. Some half of the number are sea birds or 
water birds. The former belong to wide-ranging species 
spread out over most of Polynesia, such as terns, gannets, 
tropic birds, frigate birds and the like. Mr. Seale did not 
find the gull or the albatross. The snow-white terns con- 
gregate in the jungles and contrast prettily with the green 
foliage. Aloft in the air sail the tropic birds, whose white 
wings glitter like silver in the bright sunlight. Peculiar 
to ^".island are two rails, a bittern and a wild duck, all 
There is a variety of shore birds, snipe and sand- 
Many of these merely stop over on Guam during 
grations between America and Asia. 
: '4 Capt. Pedro Duarty, of the Spanish army, in- 
j the pigmy quail from Manila. This is a small 
,y about five inches long. It is getting plenty and 
tHxrving. , Another East Indian bird, the handsome jungle 
fowl, is round wild here, and a species of brush turkey. 
There are no eagles, geese, cranes, pheasants or jays ; but 
a hawk is met with and a crow. This bird is at his old 
tricks; he is lively, noisy and destructive to young corn. 
"This Kubary's crow" does not "caw," but makes a sound 
like a "quack," somewhat like the Hawaiian crow, as I 
fancy. There is one peculiarity, his feathers are white or 
light gray underneath, "so that if the outer half or two- 
thirds of the feathers were worn off, we should have a 
white crow." Kingfishers abound, blue in color above 
and cinnamon underneath. They keep up a noise day and 
night, thereby tormenting the late governor, Leary, who 
tried to get those in the vicinity of the palace killed off. 
It seems, however, that he made little impression on 
them, and they still clatter away in the early morning as 
usual, Moreover, though lizards and grasshoppers form 
their Usual diet, they seek to feast on yoUilg Chickerts. 
These birds are genuine Guam natives. 
The island governor in the tale who desired to construct 
a color scheme illustrated by stuffed parrots could find no 
material here. No birds of the kind, nor jays, nor 
thrushes, nor the English sparrow, occur on Guam. There 
is, however, a goatsucker and a starling. Among the 
smaller birds are two flycatchers and a reed warbler, liv- 
ing in the swamps. "Early in the morning his liquid sweet 
song can be heard, reminding one very much of the mock- 
ingbird." Inasmuch as the haunts of the reed warbler are 
being turned into rice fields, it is likely that he will die 
out. Several "honey-eaters," small and pretty birds, red, 
green and yellow, complete the list of the birds of Guam. 
Seaboard Air Line. — VII. 
Rcpoit to May 15. 
I have to report a most satisfactory, in fact, I may say 
the most satisfactory, spring business that this reliable 
old road has done in years. 
Travel set in early, and was extremely heavy during, - 
the first week in May, when the number of travelers broke 
all records for many years past. Between the 3d and 7th 
inst. there was a veritable rush. In a short stroll of less 
than an hour, covering about three acres in extent, I saw 
on the 5th inst. several hundreds of our resident and 
transient guests that had arrived over night — for the 
same locality, save for a few residents, was deserted on' 
the 4th inst. The morning was overcast, wind light south- 
east, temperature 50 degrees between 8 and 9 o'clock (dur- 
ing my stroll), but in spite of east wind and dismal 
weather all the birds seemed jubilant, while their mingled 
chirps, calls and rollicking songs, were something to be 
remembered with a big red letter in the books. 
There was the usual variety, but with so very many 
more individuals of each, as to put the records of past 
few years to shame. 
Among this host there were some families that passed 
all bounds in this locality, in number of their representa- 
tives. Not counting twice for each bird, I counted 57 
chewinks, 17 golden-crowned thrush, 11 catbirds, 15 
swamp robins (Mnstelinus) , while the frowsy young 
blooms of the oaks were alive with agile vireos. I will 
not enumerate further, the above-mentioned being very 
prominent in point of numbers, I merely wish to mark the 
fact. Over 80 per cent, of the chewinks were dingy- 
plumaged females. 
The 5th inst. was evidently the culmination of the 
migration, for though the passing was continuous, both 
before and after, the great wave of birds surged over us 
on that date. * 
The last week in April brought us a fine male Virginia 
cardinal, who used his clear voice hereabout with great 
effect till about May 3. Baltimore orioles made amends 
for their late arrival of last year (May 12)- by putting in 
an appearance on the 7th inst., while whip-poor-wills were 
calling through the dusk on the 8th. 
Though a great host has passed, we rejoice to find our 
residents in greater numbers than in many, many years, 
Such an unusual state of affairs has led to correspond- 
ence with Mr. Wm. Dutcher, chairman of the National 
Committee of the Audubon Societies, and I am delighted 
to hear from him of a like invasion by the "feathered 
hordes" in the vicinity of Rochester, N. Y. I trust later 
reports will tell of like invasions "all along the line." 
In your issue of May 3 Mr. Dutcher makes an appeal to 
the sportsmen of the country to refrain from wanton de- 
struction of non-game birds. I am sure all sportsmen will 
heartily indorse this appeal, and have the courage to 
carry their convictions afield. 
In concluding this, my seventh report under the same 
caption, let me call attention to the fact that reference to 
previous reports will show that there has been a_ gradual 
increase of the passenger traffic on the "Air Line." It 
is in order, therefore, that with No. 7 (a complete num- 
ber), I am able to testify to the almost complete success 
of the effort of our Audubon societies to afford protec- 
tion to our helpless songsters, and their equally helpless 
kin. In no other way can I account for the increase of 
migrants during the past few years. They should receive 
full credit for the marked success of their labors, as evi- 
denced in the spring migration of 1902. 
WlLMOT TOWNSEND. 
wp> &%8 0*tn. 
Proprietors of shooting resorts will find it profitable to advertise 
them in Fokzst and Strsak. 
Free Ownership of Guns. 
Editor Forest and Stream: 
Considerable agitation seems to exist regarding the 
licensing of guns in this country. Some advocate the 
payment of a fee for the privilege of owning a gun — such 
a law^ in fact, as exists in European countries to-day. 
The strength and safety of a nation lies principally in 
its ability to fight. In these days the ability to fight' de- 
pends on the ability to shoot. Were China's people 
familiar with the handling of firearms, and good shots, 
avaricious Europe would not be snapping and snarling 
at her door to-day, and there would be no talk of dis- 
membering that country. Were we as unfamiliar with 
the use of firearms as China, the world would witness the 
same scenes enacted at our door as at the door of China. 
Well-disciplined troops are a difficult proposition for 
an enemy to overcome. But it has recently been demon- 
strated that an army not so well disciplined, but com- 
posed of better shots, proves far more formidable, num- 
bers equal, than the most perfectly disciplined troops who 
cannot shoot as accurately. This was proved when our 
23,000 comparatively raw recruits, armed for the most 
part with obsolete breechloaders, carried entrenchments 
and forts manned by 30,000 veterans, armed with modefii 
repeaters, at Santiago, 
Naturally we ate not a military nation, and in time of 
war we have always depended on our Volunteers; and 
history proves that our confidence has not been mis- 
placed. But history also proves that our soldiers have 
invariably done their good work principally through su- 
sttperior marksmanship. The Boers are riot considered 
military by nature, yet their ability to shoot straight has 
compelled England to send into the Transvaal an army 
which outnumbers the grown male population of that 
country. Could the Boers place an equal number of men 
in the field, and equally as good shots as those they are 
able to maintain there, who can doubt that British rule 
would cease in South Africa? And this is not owing to 
any superior courage of the Boers, for English soldiers 
have proved on many a bloody field that they are not 
excelled in courage and the ability to suffer with stolid 
fortitude. But dead men can neither fight nor suffer, and 
bullets sent true to the mark make dead men out of the 
most courageous and best disciplined — and it is necessary 
to make dead men in order to win battles. 
It has proved far easier for a few thousand modem 
soldiers to march to the walls of Pekin, through mil- 
lions of Chinamen, than for a splendid army of hundreds 
of thousands to .overcome a few thousand who know 
how to shoot. 
Then in the light of all tljis, would it not be far wiser 
to encourage all our citizens to own guns? Rather than 
create unfamiliarity, among the many, with firearms, 
would it not be better to agitate rifle shooting as a na- 
tional sport? Even our women should know how to 
shoot, and it is an encouraging indication of progress to 
know that many women are taking to shooting. Rather 
than breed ignorance of the handling of firearms through 
restricting laws, would it not be more in keeping with 
the times to legislate for the establishment of State and 
national shooting ranges, open to the free use of all the 
people? Grounds supplied with all modern improvements 
and a competent instructor to each range? To encourage 
universal interest prizes might be offered occasionally, and 
a healthful rivalry created. 
Most of the ability of our forefathers to shoot straight 
was gained in the pursuit of game, but as our game is 
fast disappearing, practice at inanimate targets should be 
encouraged, although it is a well-known fact that an 
animated mark is the more difficult to hit. Constant 
target practice, however, and an unlicensed ownership of 
firearms, would do more to cause the world to keep hands 
off us than any other remedy. It would also help to 
eliminate the expense of keeping a large standing army. 
Lincoln well understood the quality of our people as 
marksmen in his time, when he said, "All the armies' of 
Europe, backed by the military wealth of the world, could 
not strike a trail across the Alleghanies and take one sup 
from the Ohio River by force." This proves that a 
ration of dead- shots can always retain its independence. 
Then would it be wise in these times to cause universal 
ignorance of shooting, by imposing a tax which might 
cause thousands to lose all interest in firearms? Instead 
of a large expensive army and few good shots, would it 
not be wiser to have an ever-ready volunteer reserve con- 
sisting of millions of shooters? A reserve as invincible 
to overcome as it is impossible to fly to the sun. 
The piano is looked upon as an almost indispensable 
piece of household furniture in these days — better for our 
country could the rifle hold as important a place in every 
home. In fact, rifle practice and the manual of arms 
should form part of the training in the public schools. 
Some of the nonsensical nothing taught to-day could be 
dropped and rifle practice substituted to advantage, and 
ourNnation would be the gainer. Such teaching would 
also naturally inculcate in the learner a more careful 
handling of firearms, and the "didn't know it was loaded" 
fool would eventually disappear from the land. 
And all this need not necessarily interfere with improv- 
ing our game conditions. . The passing of stricter game 
laws and a rigid enforcement of the same; the estab- 
lishment of State and national game preserves; a tax on 
all game killed, or a tax to go afield after game, would 
amply protect our wild animal life. At the same time 
free ownership of guns would leave the sinews of war, the 
masses of the people, unfettered to maintain a familiarity 
with firearms which would cause a wholesome respect 
from other nations, ward off war, and secure a long and 
lasting peace. William H. Avis. 
Hichwood, Conn., May 9. 
Wolves. 
Sauk Center, Minn., April 26.— Editor Forest and 
Stream: Last Tuesday an old she wolf jumped on to 
my dog, and although she did not hurt him much, she 
nipped him quite freely until he got away from her. He 
could not get back to where I was fast enough. I knew 
what it meant, so went to look for the den, found it and 
dug out eight young ones. 
This means several more coveys of prairie chickens and 
more ducks and partridges in this section this coming 
season. The den was strewed, especially down in the 
hole, with old prairie chicken, duck and partridge feathers 
of last year. 
I made application for my money on them, and was 
informed that there was no bounty on wolves now, so the 
$40 I had seen in my dreams went glimmering. That is a 
real nice thing, too ; it will tend to encourage the hunting 
of wolves hereafter. 
Should a non-resident hunter drop off here for a few 
da3 r s' sport, the whole legislative body would jump on to 
him and ride him right up to some county auditor's office 
and then demand that he either take out a license, for 
which he is obliged to pay $25, or else leave the State. 
But in reality one old she wolf with a litter of young to 
feed, would destroy more birds (before and just after 
they are hatched) in ope night's foraging than this same 
man would probably kill in a hundred years. Our legis- 
lators are very far-seeing, indeed, in regard to protecting 
the game birds of this State. C. W. Virgin, 
Hertford, Mich. — The following was a strange experi- 
ence of a woodsman in Baraga county last March : A few 
miles south of the city of Skanee, Andrew Newman, a 
