FOREST AND STREAM. 
near the watchful grouse sounds the hsdmg call, and 
the little ones are at once invisible. Like magic tliey 
seem to melt into the landscape until the aerial terror 
has sailed away. Then the recall and once more the 
ground becomes peopled with the tmy grouse Where 
they come from is a mystery to the uninitiated, bo 
rapidly do the young grow, that by August they are 
no more dependent upon the- mother and are leit to 
shift for themselves. At this time they band and many 
thousands of them may be seen together feedmg I 
there is a wheat field near they at once repair to it and 
feed upon the ripening grain. If the wheat is already 
harvested they alight upon the cocks and simply gorge 
themselves. At this time they present an easy mark 
for the hunter, and thousands of them f^nd their way 
into the game-bag of the pot-hunter who creeps up 
behind a neighboring wheat cock and fires a handtul ot 
shot from an old muzzleloader into the mass and then 
rushes up exultantly and gobbles up the slaughtered 
^*wlth the rapid influx of settlement in the region of 
which I write, there was a decided decimation of these 
grouse. There is to be found here a small marmot that 
is practically the only pest with which the farmer has 
to contend. This animal is very destructive to crops 
His home is in a deep burrow in the ground, and it 
is and has been one of the problems that confronts the 
grain grower how best to rid the country of the pest. 
A constant and relentless warfare is waged to keep this 
prolific little fellow within anything like proper bounds. 
Every weapon known to science has been called into 
requisition and still he flourishes like a green bay tree. 
His merry chirp as he dives into his subterranean 
burrow with his cheeks full of growing gram is heard 
on every hand. It may seem strange to the uneducated 
that an animal so small should be so destructive to the 
wheat crops, but when you pause and consider that 
each marmot is capable of destroymg at_ least four 
bushels of grain, then the afifair assumes quite ditterent 
proportions. I have known a small colony of these 
rodents to establish themselves in the center of a forty- 
acre field and completely demolish it. . 
Experience has taught that the most effective means 
of ridding the ground of these animals is to strew 
poisoned grain at the mouths of the burrows early m 
the spring when they first awake from their winter 
somnolence. At this time, when there is scarcely any 
green food for them, they will greedily consume this 
poisoned grain and return to their burrows and die. 
The farmer gets up betimes of a morning and with a 
pail of this prepared wheat visits every burrow upon 
his farm and sunningly strews a portion of the gram 
about the burrow. The effect upon the _ feathered 
citizens has been awful. While the marmot is hungry, 
the grouse and other birds are no less so, and they con- 
sume the grain with avidity. 
It was at one time no unusual sight to travel along 
a half mile string of wire fence and count two dozen 
grouse lying dead. There is another very fruitful cause 
of their decrease. The grouse is very much attached to 
the place of his nativity. Year after year they will re- 
turn to the vicinage of their former nesting places and 
nest once more. The average western raHchman was 
in no sense a bird lover, so when he found _a nesting 
grouse in the way of his sod plow, he took little pams 
to protect her. The nest was ruthlessly turned under 
and the bird left to seek another home as best she 
might. If the set was complete and the bird was in- 
cubating, she did not build again that year; if not, 
possibly she sought a new site and finished the set and 
reared her brood. At best, however, it was but a part 
of a clutch that she laid, and consequently her family 
for that season was small. 
In this connection it may be interesting to mention 
the maternal instinct of the nesting bird. When the 
"hayseed" had finally conquered the "cow puncher" and 
had transformed the rolling bunch-grass hills into grain 
fields, I was perforce compelled to dofif the leather 
chaps and Stetson hat and don the blue ducking over- 
alls and jumper, exchange my seat m the saddle for 
that instrument of torture affixed to the back of a 
sulky plow, my faithful old pinto cow pony for a team 
of Percherons. Thus equipped, I arose long before 
the dew-drops sparkled like diamonds upon the grass 
and chased that plow around a 2000-acre field until the 
robins had long since caroled their vespers, and all 
nature had sunk to rest. When the festive coyote was 
serenading his mate in 234 different and distinct keys, 
we were permitted to turn the team barnward. While 
thus engaged, it was a daily occurrence to plow up 
nesting grouse in the summer fallow. They chose this 
ground from the fact that there was more or less wheat 
growing upon it which afforded a good hiding place for 
the nests. The sitting grouse would flutter from beneath 
the horse's feet and sit upon a furrov/ not thirty feet 
distant until you drove by. If perchance one of the 
animals had not trod in the nest and destroyed the 
eggs, it was my custom to dismount and take the eggs 
and construct a new nest for them out on the plowed 
ground. The next round generally found the bird upon 
the nest carrying on the duties of incubation as if the 
unceremonious plowing up of her home was an expected 
thing. " , , . , rn. 
That's about all I know about these birds. Ihere is 
one thing, however, that I do know and, that is, that it 
will be only a short time now until you vi^ill have to go 
into some museum in order to find one of these birds 
to study. Of course that will not be a great depriva- 
tion to the average ornithological writer, for that is 
the place that he goes to get his information now. 
Chas. S. Moody. 
What Covered the Deer } 
Saginaw, Mich., Dec. 28. — Editor Forest and Stream: 
Mr. Chas. Frueh, the well-known florist, was deer hunt- 
ing this fall in the upper part of the State. One afternoon 
he wounded a deer, but could not follow it on account of 
it being late and was getting dark. The next day he went 
out and found it. It was completely covered with sand; 
all that was visible was the horns. There were tracks 
around that resembled those of a fox. It would be inter- 
esting to know if any of your readers have ever heard 
of a similar occurrence. Wm. C. Held. 
(CJAN, 7, 1905- 
Rhode Island Bounty on Hawks* 
Robert O. Morris in the Springfield (Mass.) RepublieaK. 
Rhode Island was one of the thirteen onginal Slates; 
there has been for nearly 150 years a famous ealkge 
maintained within its borders, to one of its towns during 
the warmer months flock numerous Custodians of im- 
mense wealth, and generally the inhabitants are intelli- 
gent and in most matters well informed. It does not 
seem likely that the sentiment of such a people was 
properly reflected when the Legislature of that State 
passed a statute providing a bounty for the killing of 
useful species of hawks as well as tho8e_ that are bad and 
destructive of poultry, game and song birds, Sueh a law 
did go into effect in that State last April, proyidhlg that 
"every person who kills any wild hawk, except fishhawks, 
shall receive 25 cents for every animal so killed." 
That most kinds of game birds are disappearing from 
southern New England nobody will doubt. Various 
causes are assigned for bringing this condition about, 
Some lay it to hawks and owls, others to semi-wild and 
abandoned cats; some say that minks, rats, weasflsi, ;\n^ 
other vermin prevent game birds frorn breeding by inter- 
fering with therri at nesting time. 
The man that "shoots flying" is no longef a notable 
exception, but a generation" has grown up that, with the 
now common means of practice, speedily become skillful 
wing shots, and when one looks jntelligently for the true 
cause that is bringing about the vanishing of game birds, 
prominently above all others stands the man with the 
modern gun, 
If conditions are the same in Rhode Island as in this 
vicinity, there has grown up in that State a class of men 
who have found thgt simple larcenjr is not considered 
a serious prime, and you will find m most every town 
those that have learned that the contents of a chicken 
coop is an easy mark to satisfy their desire to profit by 
the industry of others, and who have become quite ex- 
pert, in that kind of larceny, and if they are once in a 
while caught, a night or two of work in this line will 
make up for the fines they have to pay. The situation 
may not be quite so bad in Rhode Island as here, but it is 
safe to say tnat many more chickens are taken there in 
this way by man than are killed by hawks. 
The most common of the so-called birds of prey in 
southern New England is the red-shouldered hawk, and 
this is the kind that wiU suffer most by reason of the 
passage of this law, Its food consists largely of rats, red 
squirrels, minks, weasels, and other small mammals, the 
very class that destroys the nest of birds and their 
young, so that it is highly probable that jf all the red- 
shouldered hawks were exterminated in Rhode Island by 
the operation of this law, the number of the natural ene- 
mies of game and other birds would so increase that the 
result would be the reverse of what was intended. 
An analysis of the contents of 322 stomachs of this 
kind of hawk has been made by competent authority, and 
in only one was any trace of a game bird found, and in 
this case probably the hawk ran across a dead : or 
wounded bird. Flesh with feathers on it is not the red- 
shouldered hawk's common or natural food. 
Even the casual observer will notice in the fields and 
orchards, after the disappearance of the snow in early 
spring, the havoc made by the meadow mice during the 
then preceding winter. The roots of the grasses usually 
furnish these rodents with all the food they desire, and 
the farmer loses many a ton of hay from his mowing in 
this way. The seasons that the ground is frozen hard 
and to a considerable depth, when the first snOw comes, 
the meadow mice find the grass roots hard to obtain and 
work under the snow in quest of food until they come to 
a tree, and then they feed upon the bark, often in a circle, 
completely around the tree- Young orchards are some- 
times ruined or greatly damaged in this way. To check 
the increase of these little animals, nature has provided 
the rough-legged hawk, which annually comes down from 
its northern home, and a portion of them spend the 
colder months in southern New England. During its stay 
here, it lives entirely upon small rodents, mostly meadow 
mice. Under the direction of the United States Depart- 
ment of Agriculture, a large number, of these hawks have 
been killed and the contents of their stomachs examined, 
taxidermists and trustworthy observers have been in- 
quired of. but no reliable evidence has been found that 
would indicate that the rough leg ever tasted birds of any 
kind. Some species of hawks eat poultry, game, and other 
birds bv choice, some as a last resort when their favorite 
food is" scarce, but the rough leg is without a fault in this 
respect. It stations itself on a tree watching for mice 
through the day, and in the dusk of a winter afternoon it 
may be seen skimming over the meadows in quest of the 
same food. The rough-legged hawk is one of the largest 
of the birds of prey^ and to sustain its big body each in- 
dividual must consume a thousand mice during that por- 
tion of the year it is with us. 
This Rhode Island bounty may be interpreted to pro- 
vide for a bounty for the destruction of the mghthawk. 
Recent scientific investigations have disclosed the fact 
that a certain kind of mosquito is responsible for carrying 
the germ of malaria from one person to another. The 
nighthawk is a bird that is entirely free from even the 
suspicion of killing a bird of any kind. Its diet_ consists 
entirely of insects, mostly of the night-flying kmd, and 
probably largely of the mosquito family. So we may 
have this exhibition of the wealthy and intelhgent State 
of Rhode Island paying out money for the destruction of 
a bird that may be the means of saving the lives of its 
citizens bv destroying the malaria-transferring insects. 
Before the fauna of New England had been interefered 
with to any great extent by the hands of man, we find 
that hawks were described to be common and fierce, still 
at the same time game was so plentiful that upon the 
plate of each farm hand for dinner was placed a whole 
wild duck, and in hiring out some did so only upon the 
liawks that^are destructive to wild birds and poultry. 
im goshawk when it comes down fxom the north U 
makg ioutherfi Kew England a visit, as it does an occal 
sionaj winter, constantly preys upon the ruffed grouse 
\ - A ,-*f.?P-«"inned hawk is a fierce little fellow, whosfl 
bird-killing propensities are well known, and worse thaij 
either of them, because more numerous, is the coopel 
hawk, that breeds here and in Rhode Island in considerl 
able numbers, and is responsible bv reason of its destrad 
tion oi poultry and wild birds for the had name giver 
to all members of the hawk family. ; 
. If some of the wild birds around us must be killed, if: 
IS better that it should be done with discretion. In these, 
later days we are witnes,*ing the vanishing of manjj 
species that are useful and interesting to man. The aver-i 
age legislator knows but little of the habits of birds of 
prey, and when ioJd that poultry and game are being 
killed by hawks, votes to involve the State in a war of 
extermination upon the snnocent and beneficial kinds asi 
well j^s the real guilty ones. 
con 
tabl 
dition "that grouse were not to be brought to the 
.cx^.e oftener than a few times in the week." In those 
days the flocks of wild pigeons were described to be so 
immense as to obscure the light, and the number of indi- 
viduals oi these birds seen in a day by a single , person 
was estimated in the millions. _ Instead of encouraging 
hunting for a living, as does this bfll, by paying for the 
destruction of valuable birds, a statute could have been 
framed providing lor the employment of competent per- 
sons to kill and break up the nests of those species of 
Animal Surgery. 
How They Doctor the Animals at tlie Bronx Zoo., 
Surgery and medicine as practiced on the animals; »i 
the N ew V ork Zoological Park in the Bronx would 
keep the staff of a small-sized hospital fairly busy 
A regular physician, with competent assistants,, look?:; 
after their health, feels their pulse, takes their temper] 
ature and makes out prescriptions for them. > 
In a corner of the office of the reptile house is, an] 
interesting assortment of hardware. Long, keen-bla.dedi 
lancets, saws, tweezers, forceps, needles, hypOideranie 
syringes and fifty other polished instruments make ia|! 
the collection. They are all in a case behind glass 
doors,_ and each shines like a mirror. 
"This is the park's set of surgical instruments,"" .?aid 
v.urator Ditmars. "Every instrument is sterilized and 
boiled at stated intervals, Before it is used, it is 
washed again in antiseptic fluids, as much precaution is 
taken to keep germs out of a crocodile's sore foot or 
a monkey's sore tooth as if he were a high-priced patient 
in a hospital." 
One of the sights at the park recently was a five-foot 
cqbra^ with its head swathed in bandages. Any snake 
with its neck done up in rags would be an odd sight; 
but a venomous, deadly, muscular cobra— such a con- 
dition, imagine it! Of all the poisonous reptiles in the 
world, the cobra di capello, or hooded cobra, is con- 
sidered the most fearful and deadly. Within a com- 
paratively few minutes his bite invariably proves fata' 
Imagine then, treating one for a sore throat or 
abscess! Imagine looking into his jaws in an effojfis to^ 
diagnose and locate his trouble! 
In India, more especially in the plains wV^e-re the 
cobra frequently comes upon one unawaws, he ia, 
dreaded infinitely more than we dread the smallpox:. 
Those living in the country are constantly in fear oi 
him. Attacked by one it would never occur to the: 
native to do anything but to lie down and die; no* 
wonder then that visitors to the reptile house at the 
Zoological Park stand awe-stricken at the sight of the 
bandaged cobra. His wound and its dressing were: 
primarily caused by a fierce battle, which was taken' 
part m by the three cobras, the only living specimens ini 
this country. They fought to a finish and to kill. The 
bandaged cobra was the most vicious of the lot. It 
expanded its hood, then it reared at least half it length 
off the ground, while the rest of its body remained 
wound in a tight spiral. His eyes shot sparks of light, 
like flames in little black coals, his narrow, forked 
tongue darted in and out with amazing rapidity. He 
curved his head, darted forward, and struck and- 
stabbed like a Hghtning flash. 1 
Low, hissing sounds filled the air, and finally sum- 
moned the keepers to the scene of battle. They saw« 
that each of the reptiles had received numerous small 
punctures, and decided at great risk to separate themj 
and place them in different cages. At the time they ; 
apprehended no serious results from the battle, as thei; 
cobra itself has always been considered immune froml 
cobra poison. Nevertheless the keepers watched the] 
wounds of their patients, and at length saw that the| 
finest, largest cobra of them all showed a swollen jaw^ij 
For a minute they were puzzled but only for a minute'1 
The next Mr. Ditmars had decided that the only things 
to be done was to take the snake from its cage, "it wa.^; 
too rare a specimen to be lost. Examination of its] 
wound might suggest a cure. ! 
The removal of the five-foot reptile from its cap-^ 
tivity was in itself exceedingly difficult. It was done 
however, by means of a bamboo stick. The cobra j 
coiled itself about this and was lifted to the stone floor. ' 
all the time rearing and making dangerous lightning- 
like darts, first to one side and then to the other. 
It fought desperately while human hands, anxious to 
save Its life, pressed its expanded, hood-shaped head 
down to the floor. This was done by means of the 
bamboo stick; then keeper Snyder grasped it firmly by 
the neck. 
Its mouth was forced open by means of forceps, and 
the cause of the swelling was at once evident. The 
cobra had been poisoned by one of its mates in the 
battle in which it had fought so furiously, and an abscess 1 
had formed. Its lower jaw had been pierced by fangs \ 
as poisonous as its own. To diagnose the case was i 
one thing; to apply a remedy was another. However,^ 
snake men have ways of their own. The abscess was 1 
opened a,nd carefully syringed. The fierce reptile wasi 
back in its cage, and the keepers once again breathed ' 
freely, for while doing their duty they had not alto- 
gether relished it. Handling five feet of, venomous , 
snake is not an enviable task. The keeper and the] 
curator congratulated themselves upon being through 
with it when they were called upon to treat it again. 
Again it was decided to take the terrible animal from 
its cage and submit it to another examination. It 
seemed to know what was contemplated. It hissed and 1 
darted and fought, but again its head was seized and : 
held. The jaw bone was found to be affected and a small 
portion of it was skilfully removed. After the wound 
