Sept. 3, 1904.] 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
199 
The form of expression between — and (so cpmmon in 
the game laws fixing seasons) has received various inter- 
pretations. In Illinois it was held in 1853 that a contract 
to pay "$400 between now and the 1st day of September" 
was not fulfilled by a tender of payment on September 1. 
Similarly in a case arising in New York in 1867 a stipula- 
tion to deliver between certain dates was made to ex- 
clude the last day named. In a Nebraska case in 1895 the 
statement in a mechanics' lien claim that material was 
furnished "between August 21, 1890, and January 22, 
1891," was interpreted as excluding the first date. These 
cases were commercial in character, and so, perhaps, not 
strictly analogous to the question under consideration. A 
Rhode Island decision of 1897, however, had it been fuller, 
might have been more serviceable in the present connec- 
tion. In this case (State vs. Stone, 20 R. I., 269), the 
possessor of 19 partridges out of season undertook a de- 
fense based on the uncertainty of the law in its state- 
ment of seasons, and the court held that the expression 
"from the first day of January to the first day of October" 
was equivalent to "between the first day of January and 
the first day of October," and hence free from uncer- 
tainty. But as it is not stated whether the latter form 
of expression is inclusive or exclusive, the decision throws 
little light on the question of interpretation of the terms 
quoted. 
Official Interpretation of Terms. 
As courts are seldom called on to interpret these am- 
biguous terms as used in statements of open and close 
seasons, interpretation is left to the authorities charged 
with enforcing the game laws of the various States. 
Hence when such terms are used it is impossible to know 
Sthe exact dates of beginning and ending, except through 
familiarity with the practice of the State in each case. 
The extent of variety of interpretations is well shown by 
a few instances, brought out mainly by recent correspond- 
ence of the Department. In Minnesota the open season 
for deer, "between November 10 and November 30," is 
interpreted as including both the dates named, and thus 
permits hunting on each; while the Montana close season 
for deer, "between January 1 and September 1," is con- 
strued so as to include the first date and exclude the last, 
and thus allow deer hunting on September 1, but not on 
January 1. In Maine the close season for moose, "be- 
tween the first day of December and the fifteenth day of 
October," is interpreted, like Montana's deer season, as 
including the first day and excluding the last ; but that for 
deer, "between December 15 and October 1," is regarded 
as excluding both dates, and the immediate following 
^'statement of the open season for deer, "between October 
1 and December 15," is so read as to include both dates. 
Tn Delaware the open season for quail, "between the 15th 
day of November and the 31st day of December," is inter- 
preted as including both dates, thus permitting shooting 
on both November 15 and December 31; but in the close 
season for rails, "between the first day of February and 
the first day of September," the words used are regarded 
as exclusive, and rail shooting is allowed on both of the 
dates named ; while the Massachusetts close season for 
quail, "between the first day of December and the first 
day of October," is held to include the first date and ex- 
clude the last. 
Remedies. 
Three features characterize the statements of game 
seasons in existing laws: Variety, uncertainty, and incon- 
venience. Some laws state open seasons during which 
killing is permitted, others close seasons during which kill - 
, ing is prohibited, and a number of different terms are used 
in the statements. Of these terms between — and is used 
preferably by nearly thirty States and all the Provinces of 
Canada except British Columbia, and the form from — to 
(or from-until) is used exclusively or preferably by seven 
States — Arkansas (1903), Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Ohio, 
Tennessee, and Wyoming. J 
Sometimes ambiguity is obviated, especially when it is 
the open season that is given, by adding "inclusive," "both 
inclusive," or "both dates inclusive," as is the practice in 
Alabama, Alaska, Connecticut, Michigan, New Jersey, 
New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, British Columbia, 
Newfoundland, and Nova Scotia. The expression "dur- 
ing the month of," which appears in the game laws of 
New Mexico and is used to a limited extent by several 
States, removes uncertainty, but as many seasons include 
parts of months, it is available only in special instances. 
Such forms as "the season shall begin — - and end ," 
adopted by Colorado and Nebraska, or "shall open on 
I and close on — — ," employed by Louisiana in its 
game law for 1902, are nearly, if not entirely, free from 
ambiguity. 
All these statements, however, are open to the objection 
of inconvenience. It is, of course, perfectly clear to state 
the open season thus. "From September 1 to November 
30, both dates inclusive;" or, "between August 31 and 
December 1, both dates inclusive." But the much more 
common plan to include the first date and exclude the last 
is preferable, as the opposite season may be shown by a 
mere reversal of the dates. This method, which practi- 
cally amounts to giving the first date of the open and the 
first of the close season, has been adopted by the Depart- 
ment in its published tables of close seasons for game, 
for the sake of clearness and uniformity; and as many 
persons are directly interested in the game seasons of 
various States, its general adoption would be of much 
advantage. It could be employed and all ambiguity re- 
moved by making the form of statement "from September 
1 to December 1, first date inclusive ; or, "from September 
1, inclusive, to December 1, exclusive," but the un- 
familiarity of such forms of expression would make it 
difficult for legislators to retain them in mind in all cases. 
A much more convenient system, adopted by Vermont 
IS in 1892, New York in 1894, and New Brunswick and the 
Northwest Territories in 1903, is to include in the laws a 
definite rule of interpretation of seasons. Thus Vermont 
[^provides that "If an act is prohibited between two dates, 
the prohibition shall include the first but not the last 
date;" and the Northwest Territories provide that "The 
period of close seasons shall include the first date but not 
the last mentioned." New Brunswick's provision makes 
the dates exclusive, and hence, while obviating uncer- 
tainty, does not permit the use of a form by which they 
can be reversed to show the opposite season. 
The general adoption of the Vermont plan would secure 
I uniformity, certainty, and convenience, and has the addi- 
tional advantage of requiring the least change in the 
present form of statement and method of interpretation; 
for the words most commonly used in stating game 
seasons are between — and, and while there are differences 
of interpretation of these terms by different States, yet 
the custom of including the first date and excluding the 
last is more general than any other. The principle under- 
lying this plan has the support of several decisions of 
State courts in regard to computation of time under the 
laws. Thus in a New York decision it was stated that 
"As a general thing, in computing statute time, the first 
day is included and the last excluded." And, finally, it 
may be stated that the plan suggested is directly analo- 
gous to the rule of computation of time for other purposes 
found in many of the State codes, and also to the rules 
of construction of words and phrases, found in practically 
all codes and in several of the general game laws. 
Such a rule could easily be incorporated at the time a 
new game law for a State is adopted, and the new state- 
ments of seasons made to conform to it. With little 
trouble, therefore, existing annoyance could be obviated, 
and a system established that would be clear, consistent, 
and convenient. Henry Oldys, 
Assistant, Biological Survey. 
An Adventure With Caleb. 
Writing from the Mandan village on the upper Mis- 
souri, in 1852, Geo. Catlin tells this story of a morning ad- 
venture with the grizzly : 
In the morning, and just before sunrise, as usual, Bo- 
gard (who was a Yankee, and a "wide-awake fellow," 
just retiring from a ten years' siege of hunting and trap- 
ping in the Rocky Mountains), thrust his head out from 
under the robe, rubbing his eyes open, and exclaiming as 
he grasped for his gun, "By darn ! Look at old Cale, will 
you !" Ba'tiste, who was more 'fond of his dreams, snored 
away, muttering something that I could not understand, 
when Bogard seized him with a grip that instantly shook 
off his iron slumbers. I rose at the same time, and all 
eyes were turned at once upon Caleb (as the grizzly bear 
is familiarly called by the trappers in the Rocky 
Mountains— or more often "Cale," for brevity's sake), 
who was sitting up in the dignity and fury of her sex, 
within a few rods, and gazing upon us, with her two little 
cubs at her side! Flere was a fix and a subject for the 
painter ; but I had no time to sketch it. I turned my eyes 
to the canoe which had been fastened at the shore a few 
paces from us, and saw that everything had been pawed 
out of it, and all eatables had been without ceremony de- 
voured. My package of dresses and Indian curiosities 
had been drawn out upon the bank and deliberately 
opened and inspected. Everything had been scraped and 
pawed out to the bottom of the boat; and even the raw- 
hide thong with which it was tied to a stake had been 
chewed, and no doubt swallowed, as there was no trace of 
it remaining. Nor was this peep into the secrets of our" 
luggage enough for her insatiable curiosity; we saw by 
the prints of her huge paws that were left in the ground 
that she had been perambulating our humble mattresses, 
smelling at our toes and our noses, without choosing to 
molest us ; verifying a trite saying of the country, "That 
man lying down is medicine to the grizzly bear;" though 
it is a well-known ' fact that man and beast upon their 
feet are sure to be attacked when they cross the path of 
this grizzly and grim monster, which is the terror of all 
this country, often growing to the enormous size of eight 
hundred or one thousand pounds. 
Well, while we sat in the dilemma which I have just 
described, each one was hastily preparing his weapons for 
defense, when I proposed the mode of attack, by which 
means I was in hopes to destroy her, capture her young 
ones, and bring her skin home as a trophy. My plans, 
however, entirely failed, though we were well armed, for 
Bogard and Ba'tiste both remonstrated with a vehemence 
that was irresistible, saying that the standing rule in the 
mountains was "never to fight Caleb except in self- 
defense.'' I was almost induced, however, to attack her 
alone, with my rifle in hand and a pair of heavy pistols, 
with a tomahawk and scalping-knife in my belt, when 
Ba'tiste suddenly thrust his arm over my shoulder, and 
pointing in_ another direction, exclaimed in an emphatic 
tone : "Voila! voila un corps de reserve — Monsr. Cataline 
—voila sa man! Allans, allons! Descendons la riviere, 
toute de suite! toute de suite! Monsr.," to which Bogard 
added, "These darned animals are too much for us, and 
we had better be off;" at which my courage cooled, and 
we packed up and re-embarked as fast as possible, giving 
each one of them the contents of our rifles as we drifted 
off in the current, which brought the she monster, in alb 
her rage and fury, to the spot where we a few moments 
before had passed our most prudent resolve. 
Senator Vest's Famous Tribute to the Dog. 
One of the most eloquent tributes ever paid to the dog 
was delivered by Senator Vest, of Missouri, some years 
ago. Pie was attending court in a country town, and 
while waiting for the trial of a case in which he was in- 
terested, he was urged by the attorneys in a dog case to 
help them. Voluminous evidence was introduced to show 
that the defendant had shot the dog in malice, while 
other evidence went to show that the dog had attacked 
defendant. Vest took no part in the trial, and was not 
disposed to speak. The attorneys, however, urged upon 
him to make a speech, else their client would not think he 
had earned his fee. Being thus urged, he arose, scanned 
the face of each juryman for a moment, and said: 
"Gentlemen of the jury: The best friend a. man has in 
the world may turn against him and become his enemy. 
His son or daughter that he has reared with loving care 
may prove ungrateful. Those who are nearest and dear- 
est to us, those whom we trust with our happiness 
and our good name, may become traitors to their faith. 
The money that a man has he may lose. It flies away 
from him perhaps when he needs it most. A inan's reputa- 
tion may be sacrificed in a moment of ill-considered 
action. The people who are prone to fall on their knees 
to do us honor when success is with us may be the first 
to throw the stone of malice when failure settles its cloud 
upon our heads. The one absolutely unselfish friend that 
man can have in this selfish world, the one that never 
deserts him, the one that never proves ungrateful or 
treacherous, is his dog. A man's dog stands by him in 
prosperity and poverty, in health and in sickness. He will 
sleep on the cold ground, where the wintry winds blow 
and the snow drives fiercely, if only he may be near his 
master's side. He will kiss the hand that has no food to 
offer; he will lick the wounds and sores that come in 
encounter with the roughness of the world. He guards 
the sleep of his pauper master as if he were a prince. 
When all other friends desert he remains. When riches 
take wings and reputation falls to pieces, he is as con- 
stant in his love as the sun in its journeys through the 
heavens. If fortune drives the master forth an outcast 
in the world, friendless and homeless, the faithful dog 
asks no higher privilege than thkt of accompanying him, 
to guard against danger, to fight against his enemies. 
And when the last scene of all comes, and death takes the 
master in its embrace and his body is laid away in the 
cold ground, no matter if all other friends pursue their 
way, there by the graveside will the noble dog be found, 
his head between his paws, his eyes sad, but open in alert 
watchfulness, faithful and true even in death." 
Man Traps. 
We were reminded the other day of some of the in- 
cidents of country life of former years by the offering 
for sale at a London auction mart of a couple of man 
traps. These engines were, once upon a time, part of 
the chattels of well nigh every considerable landowner 
and every energetic gamekeeper. Another implement 
was the spring gun, which turned on a swivel and dis- 
charged itself as soon as one of the connecting wires 
was stumbled against, the muzzle of the gun turning 
in the direction of the trespasser as indicated by the 
wire, the guilty party generally receiving a coating of 
pitch, if of nothing worse. The man traps sold the 
other day were probably the first some of the at- 
tendants at the sale ever saw, and were of the old 
formidable pattern; that is to say, they resembled a 
glorified gin. They measured seventy-four inches long 
and were just about three feet in height, so they would 
catch a poacher well above the knee, and, once nipped, 
there he would remain till his cries or the ordinary round 
of the keepers led at once to his release and capture. 
The spring gun gave its alarm, and watchers were 
speedily in attendance. There was something very 
barbarous about the use of these engines, which were 
not so very long ago quite common; in fact, people 
need not be very old to have seen boards bearing the 
legent "Beware of man traps and spring guns," and it 
is only about thirty years since the 24th and 25th 
Victoria made their use illegal. — London Field. 
The Maine License Law. 
Dixfield, Me., — Our non-resident license law is work- 
ing finely. I would myself rather have seen the State 
give us the means to protect our game; but they would 
not do it; so we had to do the next best thing, and I 
must say it is doing better work even than we anticipated. 
The original objectors are growing fewer every day; the 
law is gaining friends, and, I think, has come to stay. 
We now have abundant means to keep good wardens on 
our borders, and they are doing good work. I think we 
have the best corps of wardens in the United States. We 
can now select good men, and have the means to pay them 
— something we never had before. H. O. S. 
Marriage Festivities in 1550. 
In the diary of King Edward VI. appears this entry: 
"i5SO, June 4. Sir Robert Dudley, eldest (surviving) 
son to the Earl of Warwick, married Sir John Robsart's 
daughter, Amy, after which marriage, there were certain 
gentlemen that did strive who should first take away a 
goose's head which was hanged alive on two cross posts." 
The noble sport of taking away a goose's head was 
transplanted to America, and lasted to the nineteenth 
century, if indeed it may not yet be practiced in some of 
the by-paths. One of the stories in the current number 
of the Woodcraft Magazine is Fred Mather's famous 
description of an Arkansaw gander pull, which occurred 
in the '70s. 
Another ico Sportsmen's Tinas. 
Some of the Queer Discoveries Made by Those Who Are 
Looking for Game or Fish. 
101 
East Wareham, Mass., July 12.— Late in the fall, 
some 85 years ago, my grandfather went down to Bar- 
negat for a little shooting. He was in the habit of mak- 
ing an annual trip for the ducks and geese. On this occa- 
sion he had put up over night at his usual stopping place, 
and in the morning went to the marsh where he intended 
shooting. Some time during the day he got a shot at a 
flock of geese and brought one down. On going up to 
his game he was surprised to find a watch on the ground 
by the dead gocse. To all appearance it must have be- 
longed to the bird and come down with it, but of course 
this was extremely improbable. 
The watch was going and could not have been lost 
very long. Grandfather had seen no one, and could not 
account for its being there. Supposing that some one 
had lost it, he took it to the hotel and turned it over to 
the landlord, and described the place where he found it. 
He left it there when he came away, and thought no 
more of it until his next trip the following year. On 
going to the same hotel he saw the watch hanging on 
the identical nail where his host had hung it the year be- 
fore. No one had called for it, and the landlord took it 
down and handed it to grandfather, who wore that watch 
the rest of his life. He died in 1861. The watch is still 
in evidence, but worn out. It is slightly larger than an 
ordinary timepiece, being a trifle over 2% inches across 
and % of an inch thick, open faced, winding from the 
face, no second hand. On the inside of back case is the 
number 1641, with initials "C. H. I." A round scroll 
protects the hair spring and balance, and there is no 
other attempt at ornament. The hours are marked on 
the dial with Arabic numerals, and the motion is con- 
veyed from the spring to the works by a tiny chain. 
Walter B. Savary. 
