Oct. i, 1904.] 
FOREST AND STREAM 
281 
Notes From the Game Fields. 
Pheasants in Massachusetts. 
Boston, Sept. 24. — Editor Forest ' and- Stream: At a 
gathering of a few officers of the State Association the 
past week Mr. Sylvester, president of the Wide-Awake 
Club, of North "Attleboro, reported that one of the 
members, 'Mr. L. Morse, has been successful in rear- 
ing quite a number of quail this season, which were 
hatched by one of his bantams and are now strong, 
hardy birds. The sportsmen are watching this experi- 
ment with high hopes. Mr. ■ A. B. F. Kinney also 
spoke of the live partridges raised in Worcester which 
have been mentioned in Forest and Stream. 
The solution of the problem how to raise our native 
game birds, especially quail and partridge, is worthy 
of the efforts of our sportsmen who have the facilities 
for making experiments in this line. I have knows 
several persons who have made similar attempts, but 
met with failure. Should any of your readers know 
of successful experiments in this country I shouM be 
much pleased to hear from them through -the medium 
of your paper. 
The opinion prevails among hunters of experience in 
our State that the results of liberating pheasants by the 
State for the past ten years has accomplished very 
meagre results and has demonstrated that these birds 
can never be made to take the place of our native birds. 
The opinion prevails generally among experienced 
shooters, who have hunted them, that, even if the 
covers contained a hundred fold more than there are 
now, an open season of two weeks would suffice to 
clear them all up.. All admit they are a handsome bird 
and enliven the landscape. As giving promise of future 
sport, very few look for anything of the sort. Some 
have gone so far as to tell me they "would as soon 
shoot barnyard fowl as phea-sants." 
In an educational point of view their rearing by the 
State may have been of some value. Again this effort 
on the part of the State may have had some tendency 
to stimulate owners of large estates to do something 
in the same line. So long as the money comes easy, 
and the legislators are so inclined, I do not propose 
to wage any warfare on those in. authority, but I do 
hope they will seek other means of replenishing our 
badly depleted covers. 
Mr. Andrews, of Hudson, who bought and liberated 
some quail last spring, suggests that an appeal be sent 
to all the "dog-and-gun" men of the State' to refrain 
from killing quail this season, so as to>-give them a 
chance to reproduce next year — or, if not abstaining 
wholly, to be content with small bags. Mr. Andrews 
has recently become a. member of the State Association 
for the sole purpose, as he says, of doing all he can 
for the preservation of our game and fish — more es- 
pecially the former. He has taken the trouble to get 
lists of all hunters in his place, the city of Marlboro, 
which, by the way, he characterizes as "the city of 
poachers," and several neighboring towns. His earn- 
estness is contagious, and if there were even a few such 
men in every town they would do much to leaven the 
masses. 
Mr. O. R. Dickey, on a recent trip to New Hampshire, 
saw eleven passenger pigeons a few miles out from the 
city of Manchester. As usual he and his companion 
got some birds on this trip. 
Looking through the market the other day I met 
a dealer who has handled game and has been active 
years gone by before legislative committees. He told 
me, with much apparent satisfaction, that only last 
week his wife saw three deer together on his farm in 
Natick, and one was a fawn. Reports have recently 
come to hand of deer seen in Newburyport and in 
Salem. 
Several of our hunters are preparing for an early 
trip to the Maine woods and others to New Brunswick, 
whither Dr. Heber Bishop has already gone. 
Mr. Davis, of Umbagog Lake, Me., says deer are as 
plenty as ever about his section, and he looks forward 
to a good fall business. As to the effect of flowing 
the Magalloway basin, as is proposed, he said the ad- 
dition of another lake could not be otherwise than bene- 
ficial to business. Naturally those having farms or 
camps in the valley would be loth to leave them even 
if assured of liberal damages for loss of their property. 
Central. 
The Pennsylvania Outlook. 
Harrisburg, Pa., Sept. 26.— Editor Forest and Stream: 
Indications point to a fair supply of game in this State 
at this time. Notwithstanding our very severe winter, 
quail seem to be fairly abundant. For many years it 
has been the belief of this office that, where coveys of 
quail were allowed to run intact, that is, a large covey 
permitted to run without being broken up, by shooting 
or in some other way, two or three or more hens 
would lav in the same nest, the cock birds would fight 
over them with the result that no young would be pro- 
duced; while, if the covey was shot down to say 
half a dozen or separated artificially, each pair of 
birds would produce a covey. This seems to be con- 
firmed anew. In many parts of this State last winter 
our quail were compelled to go it alone — that is, the 
birds, owing to the scarcity of food were compelled to 
separate, each bird taking care of itself, or a limited 
number going together. This spring cock birds seemed 
to be calling their Bob White everywhere, and we are 
getting reports of birds from many directions. We are 
so impressed with this additional evidence that we pro- 
pose to introduce a section in the new law that we 
hope to have passed this coming winter, permitting the 
trapping of quail at certain times for the purpose of 
separating a covey to increase the chances of propa- 
gation. I will send you a copy of the proposed bill 
before long, and hope you will find space to publish 
same in full. We are of opinion that the great majority 
of those who violate the game law, do it, not because 
they are vicious, but rather because of thoughtless- 
ness, or because it is the custom to do so in the com- 
munity in which they may reside. 
We desire to take the whole State and, I might say, 
the whole community of people who hunt game and 
who feel well disposed toward game and bird pro- 
tection, no matter where they may reside, into partner- 
ship in this matter, and have enacted a law that is fair 
and just to the people, as well as one that will give 
protection to our birds. We want to protect all our 
birds for the good they do while living, and the game 
bird, for the additional good, that cannot be expressed 
in words or figures, derived by a day afield with the 
gun. _ We want the people to understand the law be- 
fore it is passed, and to have as many as possible in 
each community join with us in seeing it is obeyed 
after it is passed. Joseph Kalbfus, 
Secretary of the Game Commission. 
In Vermont. 
Sheldon Junction, Sept. 26.— Editor Forest and 
Sti 'earn: In spite of the extremely cold and long, dreary 
winter of 1903 and 1904, the ruffed grouse wintered 
well, for they are very plentiful here in northwestern 
Vermont this season. While the coveys are not large, 
they are numerous. 
Woodcock are very scarce, a few scattering birds are 
occasionally found in the grouse covers. 
Gray squirrels should soon be abundant, as there is 
a great nut crop, both beechnuts and butternuts. 
We have noticed quite a number of deer signs, but 
no so many as in former years; and we have every 
reason to believe that they are being shot out of season 
by a class of fellows who are wondering about the 
woods with magazine rifles, and almost daily we hear 
of their being run by foxhounds. Evidently, the game 
wardens are not taking as much interest in enforcing 
the laws as they did in Commissioner Titcomb's time. 
Then it was a question of game and fish protection, now 
it seems to largely be a question of politics. 
There is a feeling among the largest farmers in this 
vicinity to have the open season on deer closed for at 
least five years; they look on deer as ornamental and 
not destructive to crops. It is only a few grumblers 
and a few pot-hunters that are anxious to "kill some- 
thing'' that make complaints about these beautiful 
animals being destructive to grain and other crops. 
The other day our setter started out from a small 
clump of pines a rare kind of fox. It was either a 
cross or a black fox. At this season of the year, when 
they are a little distance away, they look nearly alike. 
I, however, believe that when it is caught it will 
prove to be a "black." 
During the past two weeks the weather has either 
been very cold or extremely wet. 
During a trip along the north shores of Lake Erie 
recently, we were informed by the old duck-shooters 
there that the northern ducks were coming in a full 
month earlier than usual, which means a cold autumn 
and an early winter. Stansteab. 
Rhode Island's Restricted Variety. 
Providence, R. I., Sept. 25.— Editor Forest and Stream: 
In regard to the outlook for hunting in Rhode Island 
this year, we have a close season on quail, partridge 
and woodcock, and so our hunting will be limited to 
shore birds and wildfowl shooting. There has been 
a fair abundance of the former, while the season for 
the latter has not commenced as yet. Reports are that 
there are a goodly number of partridges this year; 
quail not so abundant, owing to the severe storms of 
last year, and it is a little bit early for woodcock flight. 
Very few pairs of these birds now remain to breed with 
us, and we have to rely for our supply upon the migra- 
tory birds from the north. Migration usually sets in 
about the first of October and lasts for three or four 
weeks. John H. Flanagan. 
Secr etfe i. 
The Loaded Gun n ne House. 
Bearing a woman in a critical condition from a gun- 
shot wound, Edward Morrison's naphtha launch raced in 
a gale across Jamaica Bay, early yesterday morning, 
while a doctor worked over her. Several times the frail 
craft was in danger of swamping and had to be bailed. 
The woman was Mrs. John Wiesbrod, of 128 Woodbine 
street, Brooklyn, who was accidentally shot in the breast. 
Ihe accident occurred at the summer home of Edward 
Morrison, on Black Hall Island, near the Rockaway In- 
let. Mrs. Wiesbrod was asleep shortly after midnight 
yesterday when the slamming of a door by a gust of 
wind threw a shotgun from a rack in an adjoining room. 
The weapon was discharged, and the full load of shot 
tore through a thin frame partition, lodging in the 
woman's side. — New York Times. 
An Exposition of Game Laws. 
The current number of the Game Laws in Brief is 
dated July. It contains the game laws of every State and 
Province from Newfoundland to New Mexico. The pro- 
visions are given plainly, and completely, so that with the 
Brief m his pocket the shooter may know precisely what 
the law is as to season, number, license, export, and all 
other details. 
Hints on Deer Shooting. 
Iiiere is not a finer animal to shoot than a white- 
tail buck weighing 200 pounds or more, when in the 
short blue coat, with a pair of pink, freshly peeled 
antlers surmounting his graceful head. The satisfac- 
tion in hunting and bagging such a deer, especially if 
a good, clean, creditable shot has been made, is of 
lasting duration. Aside from the actual pleasures of 
still-hunting, shooting on a pond or watching a favor- 
able ground where deer are likely to be seen early in 
the morning and toward sundown, the sportsman, if 
he kills one under these conditions, is well repaid for 
patience and perseverance in other ways. 
In the first place, he obtains a beautiful trophy in 
the shape of the buck's head when mounted; secondly, 
a soft, handsome skin that may be hung on the wall, 
used as a rug or made into gloves that will prove a 
comfort when hunting in cold weather; and thirdly, he 
supplies himself with a delicious game meat, none of 
which need or should be wasted. 
Various opinions are held as to which is the most 
noble, stately member of the deer family, and, in fact, 
every hunter of this branch of big game has his own. 
special favorite. Here is one who considers a rugged, 
lordly bull moose the king of all deer, the goal for his 
hunting ambitions, while again many experienced 
hunters maintain that a fine blacktail is unsurpassed. 
An eminent writer on big-game shooting affirms the 
wapiti deserves first place, and there are others who 
will travel to wild remote regions in order to hunt 
the caribou. _ And so we find a multitude differing 
widely in their opinions. 
The following, however, includes only the whitetail, 
or Virginia deer, those whose habitat is in the Adiron- 
dack Mountains. As everyone knows the range of this 
deer _ covers an enormous area, and that in different 
localities they vary both in size and habits. The south- 
ern deer is much smaller than the majority of the 
northern and western animals, while in weight Maine 
bucks, as a general rule, are heavier than those of the 
Adirondacks, although there are always exceptions in 
both cases. In certain, parts of the West the whitetail 
inhabits the low river bottoms and is more of a skulking 
bush deer, but where they are found in the woods or 
mountains this trait practically disappears, although 
they are always keen and on the alert. In some cases, if 
left undisturbed, they will become very tame, even old 
gray-faced bucks, and I remember seeing one evening 
in August three of these big fellows ravaging a side 
hill garden situated near well. populated summer camps 
that were within full sight of where the deer fed and 
people' continually moving around; but they ate on un- 
concerned, unless someone came too close to their 
vicinity, when they would canter easily off into the 
woods and return again at a later hour. 
Another instance of almost extraordinary tameness 
was that of a small doe, often seen along a certain 
stretch of a wood road, who became so accustomed 
to horses, wagons and people that she paid practically 
no heed to them, and would stand browsing by the road- 
side only a few yards distant while a party of onlookers 
in a wagon stopped to admire her. 
How deer contrive to live through an Adirondack 
winter is a puzzling question. During seasons more 
severe than others many perish, hundreds, one might 
say; and the decisive proof is the scarcity the follow- 
ing spring and fall. The worst condition for killing 
them is a moist, deep snow without a heavy crust, just 
so light that it fails to hold them up. They break 
through and, unable to move, those at all weakened die 
miserably, while, no doubt, the larger, stronger deer 
under certain circumstances succumb to the same fate. 
As a general rule deer will not suffer severely if they 
are able to get around and obtain the little nourishment 
the woods offer them and, with a deep but flaky snow 
or a hard crust, they fare very well. Let the former 
conditions prevail, however, and they are in a bad way. 
I have known as many as twentv-four carcases or re- 
mains of winter-killed deer to have been found within 
a comparatively small area, and myself have several 
times seen a pitiful bunch of hair with a few bleached 
bones that marked the spot where, perhaps, a fine buck 
or doe had perished. But, let us leave such sad results 
of bitter northern weather and return to a later, more 
f avorable period, for the sportsman can judge for him- 
self how the deer have wintered, by their scarcity or 
plentitude. 
In the spring the deer, in their long gray coats, do not 
appear as thin as they really are, but when during the 
j er u part ° f May and J une this oId hair has fallen out 
and been replaced by the summer red coat, one can 
detect with little difficulty the poor and well conditioned 
animals. The horns of the bucks by May are usually 
just commencing to show; soft, stubby prongs, like 
those of a yearling. Around the middle of that month 
I once saw a buck with a pair of small knobs on his 
head, and when seven or eight weeks later I happened 
to come across him again, I knew it was the same ani- 
mal from, his size and the locality he inhabited, he had 
a fine, well developed set of antlers. 
During the latter part of" June, July and August deer 
work a great deal around the ponds and lakes, feeding 
on the succulent water plants and endeavoring to rid 
themselves of the tormenting insects. It is an amusing 
as well as a pretty sight to see a long-eared doe or 
velvet-horned buck leisurely swimming about, picking 
off juicy green lily-pads in the cool water on some warm 
summer day, thus cleverly escaping from the flies 
Their red coat at this season shows very plainly es- 
pecially in the open or on a pond, and they can be seen 
a long distance if the sun is in a favorable position; but 
