Ian. 2S, i904.| 
Forest AND sTfi^Aiyf. 
68 
Stillwater Camp. 
This is a veracious and unvarnished account of a 
week's delightful sojourn in the wilds on the De Grasse 
River, St. Lawrence county, New York. 
At the invitation of Dr. Geo. J. Hornung, of Jersey 
City, a member of the club, afterwards most cordially 
seconded by Mr. John Bird, one of the proprietors of the 
30,000 acre game preserve and said camp, who was mak- 
ing a short visit to Jersey City, we took the 11 :30 train, 
N. Y. C. R. R., Tuesday evening, October 20, for a taste 
of Cabin life among the fir and the balsam. At Canton we 
Were met by Mr. Bird, our host, one of the most popular 
as well as energetic citizens of the county. Through him 
we were made acquainted with several of the many stren- 
uous citizens, Mr. James Spear, president of the St. Law- 
rence County Bank, and one of the partners with Mr. 
Bird and Mr. Wells, of the game preserve; also Messrs. 
John Milligan and Will Sherwin; all three of these we 
afterward met in camp for a day ; also Mr. Murry Ralf, 
who has the barge canal on the brain. T presume he is 
a happy man now the bill has been so largely indorsed. 
Right good fellows they all are; in fact the big heart 
(not big head) seems to be very prevalent in that section 
of the moral vineyard. As it was they were so profuse 
in their cordiality that we got off late for the trail. With 
a two horse team with baggage we drove 16 miles over 
a good road to Clare, Mr. Bird's farm, near where the 
trail begins- up the steepest and rockiest path we ever saw, 
equal to any in the early west. They call the trail three 
miles, but it is the longest league I want ever to encoun- 
ter. Dr. Hornung stood it like a veteran ; he had been 
there before ; but Jacobstaff, the last half mile in the darlc, 
came very near giving up. He told the boys to go on and 
he would appear in the morning, for his enthusiasm 
pretty much evaporated before the welcome light in the 
window of the private cabin threw out its rays of glory. 
We were royally welcomed by Mr. Ruben Wells and given 
the freedom of the camp at once. The sight of a couple 
of three-pronged bucks hanging outside added immensely 
to our resting capacity. A hot venison stew with mealy 
STILLWATER CAMP. 
potatoes, good camp-made bread, canned goods of all 
kinds, and as good coffee as anyone gets at home, fin- 
ished the rest, and all fatigue was forgotten. In fact, they 
sre a strenuous lot here in the woods, and while they do 
hj;rd work they believe in having the best of good things 
and plenty of them to keep the strain "as well as enjoy- 
ment, and when you realize that all of this except trout 
and venison has to be packed in on that confounded trail, 
you may know what a class of men these are. 
The Wells and Bird cabin is a substantial structure, 
20 by 16 feet, of trimmed or squared logs, with ample 
kitchen and a sleeping apartment adjoining, which is the 
sanctum of Mr. Arvin Eastman, the guide of the camp. 
The house with porch fronts fhe still water of the Grasse 
River, from which it takes its name. De Grasse River 
is farnous as a trout brook, the beauties running from 6 
to 16 inches, and being of fine flavor. There are two other 
log cabins close by, the property of the Stillwater Club, 
who lease the privilege of the 30,000 acre preserve. They 
are some score members of the best citizens of Canton 
and vicinity. The three camps use the same water from 
a bubbling spring, soft, ice cold and never failing of sup- 
ply. Of the guides, we have mentioned Mr. Eastman; the 
other, Mr. James O'Brien, is attached to the company's 
camp. Both men are examples of the true woodsman; 
keen of eye, rugged in build, unassuming in deportment, 
good shots, and knowing their business. It is a pleasure 
to be associated with such men. 
We were up betimes in the morning, but it was too 
noisy in the dry leaves and no one got a shot, though flags 
v/ere seen. Cervus was in a hurry and stopped not on the 
Jacobstaff. 
Dr. G. j. Hornung. 
order of his going. And now a word about a splendid 
character in the next camp— Doctor Manly. A Canton 
resident originally, a graduate of St. Lawrence Uni- 
versity,_ then Long Island Medical College, and now 
.settled in Brooklyn where he has a good practice, he came 
into the woods two years ago condemned by prominent 
physicians as a hopeless case of genuine consumption. 
A few weeks or months in this section of fir, balsam, 
and hemlock, with its splendid soft water, proved a charm 
and a cure. He comes up here now twice a year for trout 
and deer, and renewed life. He is a robust man, a thor- 
ough^ woodsman, a more than good shot. Retiring in dis- 
position, but practical in every way, he has been a boon 
to the camp, having himself killed the first two deer; 
and one of the party having been taken seriously ill the 
Doctor in his practical business way soon brought him 
around; in fact, he furnished the camp with both meat 
and medicine. 
Saturday evening brought in Mr. Spear with Mr. Kim- 
ball, Mr. Stanly, Elsworth Searfench, V. R. Stivers, of 
Fifth New York Infantry, now in the recruiting station 
at Canton : Messrs. John Mills and James Kahaly, who 
killed his first deer, in fact, it is said, the first deer he ever 
saw alive in the woods, and that only about a half mile 
from camp. "Some are born lucky, some have luck thrust 
upon them." We have been out several short trips and 
haven't seen a flag. 
Tuesday evening a two-pronged buck was brought in by 
Dr. Manly; he won't shoot at a doe or small deer of any 
kind; three does passed him and he would not shoot. 
Wednesday and Thursday non dies. Friday another 
buck for the other camp. 
Saturday Mr. Wells left for Canton to bring in three 
invited guests— three clergymen from New Jersey. On 
Monday they came in over the trail a little before dark- 
Father Roger McGinley, of the New Durham diocese, 
Father John Westerman, Crawford; and Father Wm. 
Broth ers, of Weehawken. Right good company they 
proved to be, rollicking good specimens of educated man- 
hood. They took to camp life as a duck to water, were 
full of good stories, and very ready at repartee, and made 
a most wholesome addition to our social party after ths 
cares and labors of the day. We inquired for Mr. Reuben 
Wells, their escort. "Well," said Father McGinley. "we 
struck a track crossing the trail about a mile back. ' Mr. 
Wells said it was fresh, dropped our bundles, told us to 
keep the trail for camp and he would be in later." Sure 
enough, in about half an hour after dark Mr. W. came 
in with a fat doe. Mr. Wells is strenuous in all he under- 
takes; he is president of the First National Bank of 
Canton, and is a large owser of the 30,000 acre preserve 
on which there are three pulp mills, logging camps, etc. 
I'he hospitality of Messrs. Bird and Wells keeps their 
camp full of the best class of men, and they are never 
more cheerful than when administering good cheer to their 
many guests. Mr. Wells' wife and daughter, with, I 
think, another fair one, tramped in on the trail last sum- 
mer in the very worst storm of the season ; and they got 
in long after dark wet as drowned rats, but as blythe and 
gay as from a ballroom waltz, bringing cheer and sunshine 
to all. Such are the folks around Canton. 
My gun was a take down (of '96 1 think), which Mr. 
Sanford of the Winchester Arms Company helped me 
select ; it. proved a darling, and did splendid execution, 
first at the targets, and then on Saturday it was duly- 
christened at a bounding straight away two-pronged buck 
going I don't know how many miles a minute, moi-e or 
less. The soft nosed bullet overtook him just below the 
tail, and passed out through thfe forfe shoulder. The while 
fiag dropped and the quarry was ours. It (the gun) has 
been greatly admired by those in camp, v/hefe there is A 
variety of shooting material — Daly, Piper, La Fevrfe, two 
other Winchesters, etc. 
Tuesday morning. Mr. Bird, Mr. Wells, Dr. Hornurtg, 
and Eastman the guide and the three jolly fathers are all 
out to-day. It is a good sight to see these sensible expo- 
nents of, the church having for the time being dropped 
their clerical habiliments and appeared in corduroys and 
canvas coats with big shooting boots ready for the woods, 
with all the earnest enthusiasm- of a free life in the moun- 
tain air. May they at least see a flag even if they don't 
get a shot. All of the other camp are also out. But 
poor Jacobstaff is laid up with a touch of his old com- 
plaint, rheumatic gout. 
It is very noisy in the woods, and unless they make a 
drive, as they call it, there is not much of a chance for 
success. At a drive the guides place their men at different 
runways, while they go away off a mile or two and en- 
deavor to drive the animals to or by you. A dog of any 
kind whatever is not allowed on the preserve, and will be 
shot sooner than a deer. It is tedious this sitting silently 
and alone on log ®r stone for hours, as the deer mostly 
go off somewhere ielse or come by you with the velocity 
of a young whirlwind. Doctor Hornung was the only one 
that succeeded in getting a shot. The game was a fine 
J«cobstaff. Father Westerman. R. Wells. Dr. Hornung. 
r. Father Brothers. 
THE RETURN. 
5-pronged buck. He would not have anything else. He 
would not take a shot at a fleeing deer yesterday because 
it did not have the embellishments of a he. Some folks 
are .very particular. (Jacobstaff was satisfied with a fat 
doe later on, and his friends of the "Sit Down Club," cf 
Jersey City, proclaimed it fine eating. So did Mrs. Jacob- 
staff.) All hands in about 12 for lunch; started six deer, 
too noisy, deer heard first. Out again. Started two but 
got nary shot, except that Eastman the guide got a long 
shot just before dark, found blood, but the deer swam the 
river and darkness coming on the hunter had to abandon 
the trail. 
Wednesday.— Mr. Wells and Eastman off by davbreak 
for scene of last evening, returned in time for bre'akfast 
with the big doe Mr. Eastman had wounded the evening 
before. At 8 A. M. all hands except I off for a three-mile 
tramp and to bring back Hornung's buck killed on Tues- 
day and left by the guide hanging in the woods. They arer 
accustomed he¥e in th'eee parts after bleeding and disem- 
boweling the deer to leave it hanging in the woods iot 
days ; and if they have meat enough rn camp, for weeks. 
In, fact they will not eat venison here before it is from 36 
to 48 hours old ; say it is not healthy. 
