278 
FOREST AND STREAM 
May, 1920 
The Home Rifle 
An English-made air rifle , not 
an air-gun, made with care- 
fully rifled barrel by the great- 
est arms factory in England, 
shooting specially designed 
bullets as accurately as the 
finest of target “powder rifles.” 
No noise, no smoke, no odor, 
no cleaning after firing. De- 
signed to be used in the yard 
or in the house, low-power 
and entirely safe, but not a toy. 
Fitted with adjustable sights. 
Made in two calibres and three 
models, .177 bore recom- 
mended for target practice, the .22 
for small game. With special B.S.A. 
target holder and bullet catcher the 
whole family can enjoy target prac- 
tice indoors without disturbing the 
neighbors or attracting the police- 
man on the beat. 
Cost of ammunition for the .177 
bore, less than $ 1 .00 per thousand. 
PRODUCTION EQUIPMENT CO. 
Gun Dept. 20, 5-9 Union Square, New York 
Sole Agents for 
B.S.A. GUNS, Ltd., Birmingham, England 
Canadian Agents 
FRASER & COMPANY 
10 Hospital Street Montreal, Canada 
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Tenting Tonight 
More motorists are “tenting tonight" with Stoll Auto Beds than with all 
other makes combined, because it is the only outfit which sets up either 
from cr independent of car and is the only one so compact that a comfortable 
bed for two, a positively waterproof tent and all necessary bed- 
ding ride on the running board without blocking car doors. 
Write for dealer's name. 
THE STOLL MANUFACTURING CO. 
3255 Larimer Street Denver, Colo. 
Established Dealers 
— Write for our un- 
beatable proposition. 
Stall Auto Bed. And WalerjmofTent 
A MANUAL OF WILD- 
FOWL SHOOTING 
(CONTINUED FROM PAGE 241) 
deavored to get within range, and after 
paddling all over the lake until I was 
tired, I finally gave it up and decided 
that they would very likely die of old 
age only. 
I do not think the birds flew once, and 
it was evident that they considered them- 
selves safer under water than in the air. 
In fact, they were beneath the .surface 
most of the time, and just what to do 
was a question — to gun or to fish for 
them. 
In Florida, however, I was more suc- 
cessful with the hooded mergansers and 
bagged several of them on the little pools 
and ponds in the cypress swamp.s while 
turkey hunting. Here the dense cover 
permitted one to approach unseen to the 
water’s edge, and as their diving area 
was so restricted, the birds took wing 
upon seeing the danger and offered shots 
in the air. 
The hooded merganser often varies its 
usual diet of fish by eating seeds and 
grain and the roots of aquatic plants. 
Therefore its flesh is sometimes better 
than that of its larger relatives. It 
ranges throughout North America, from 
the Hudson Bay region to southern 
United States, also Cuba and Mexico. 
The American coot — This bird is 
familiar to duck-shooters as the mud-hen, 
crow duck and blue peter. It is often 
shot on the bays and sounds by the 
sportsman hunting ducks, and it may be 
said that it is more in the habit of flying 
past or over the duck decoys, and thus 
offering a shot, than in actually decoying. 
It is also bagged on the marshes by the 
rail-bird hunter. It flies slowly and is 
not a difficult mark. It is fairly good to 
eat. However, when there are canvas- 
back and crow duck on the table I would 
not hesitate in taking the former. 
Male and female: Plumage, slate or 
blue black, darkest above; edge of wing 
and under tail coverts, white; bill, which 
is narrow and pointed, white with a dark 
band ; legs and feet, grayish green. 
Length, about fifteen inches. Range: 
North America, from the Arctic south- 
ward to the West Indies and Central 
America. 
THE TREE-DUCKS 
T HERE are two peculiar birds known 
as the tree-ducks. But few sports- 
men have shot them, in fact, many 
are not even aware of their existence. 
They are, however, shot in the states 
adjoining Mexico and are good to eat. 
There are two varieties, the fulvous tree- 
duck and the black-bellied tree-duck. 
The fulvous tree-duck is found in 
Louisiana, Texas, California and Mexico, 
and is also an accidental visitor in Mis- 
souri and the Carolinas. It breeds in 
the California marshes. 
The male and female are alike in color. 
Head, yellowish brown, darker on top; 
throat, huffy white; neck, yellowish 
brown with band of black feathers hav- 
ing white centers; back, black, barred 
with cinnamon; under parts, cinnamon; 
upper parts of breast, yellowish brown; 
