AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST 
For the Farm, Garden, and FIousehold. 
"AGRICULTURE IS THE MOST HEALTHFUL, MOST USEFUL, AND MOST NOBLE EMPLOYMENT OF M A N. "—WASHINGTON. 
Volume XLL— No. 9. NEW YORK, SEPTEMBER, 1882. New Series— No. 428. 
AUTUMN 
SHOOTING. 
Drawn and Engraved for the American Agriculturist. 
“What has this to do with agriculture?” 
may be asked by some, as they look upon the 
above pleasing shooting scenes sketched by 
our artist. To answer this question, we may 
ask : Should any one take a few days of 
recreation with his gun ? Is it proper or bene¬ 
ficial for any one to shoot the Woodcock, the 
Partridge, the Snipe, or the Prairie Chicken, 
either for the healthful exercise it brings, or 
for the delicate food the day’s shooting may 
afford ? One view of the matter is : If the 
results of a day with the gun are buoyant 
spirits from a close interview with nature ; 
happier “state of mind” on account of free¬ 
dom from care; increased intelligence coming 
from a knowledge of the habits of our native 
birds; and, finally, if a full bag gives a wel¬ 
come variety upon the family table—if these 
results are desirable for any one, they are 
doubly so for the farmer. Shooting, like 
every other good thing, may be perverted, and 
the farmer who neglects his work for shoot¬ 
ing is just as likely to go to the bad as a 
merchant or a machinist, but no more so. But 
we do not advocate a devotion to the gun to 
the neglect of the plow. Some persons think 
the farmer should fatten Prairie Chickens and 
Quail upon his wheat stubble for some one 
else to shoot. The writer thinks the farmer has 
the first right to the game that he has fed. The 
farmer who shoots should make himself fa¬ 
miliar with the game laws of his State, and not 
only observe them himself, but make others 
do so. If he finds one shooting Woodcock in 
June, he should haul up the trespasser before 
the nearest Justice, and the same as to other 
birds. The farmer takes care to get the best 
plow and mower, and he should have the best 
gun. Even should a day of shooting re¬ 
quire an amount of exertion quite equal to 
that expended in ordinary farm work, it is 
for a different object. The mind is diverted 
to different thoughts, and the labor that may 
be involved is of an entirely different kind, 
and leads to re-creation in its best sense. 
Copyright, 1882, by Orange Judd Company. 
Entered at the Post Office at New York, N. Y., as Second Class Matter. 
