486 
FOREST AND STREAM 
Oct. 18, 1913. 
towed, well in shore, until a point half a mile 
to windward of the big pack of ducks was 
reached. Here the skiff used in towing was 
anchored, the blind cast loose and allowed to 
drift, the boys wading behind and guiding it. 
The water was of uniform depth, a trifle over 
four feet, and by stooping and resting their heads 
on decoys conveniently placed, it was possible to 
remain almost entirely out of sight. If the ducks 
heard splashing and looked, they saw only what 
appeared a flock of their own kind feeding to¬ 
ward them, and twenty-four canvashacks diving 
for celery will certaiidy splash as much as two 
careful boys when wading. 
The ducks paid no attention whatever—didn’t 
tracted for, and any weighing two and a half 
pounds passed as number one goods. Some of 
those shot over decoys would go as high as three 
and a half pounds each, but of the fourteen barn 
door ducks, one weighed five pounds, four tipped 
the scales at four and a half pounds each, and 
of the others only one was under four pounds. 
Why this was none could tell, but the fact re¬ 
mains. 
With barn door shooting tabooed, the boys 
put in their spare time snaring young alligators. 
An old ‘ hen” alligator had a brood and couldn’t 
count them, but like the negro woman in Florida 
who rented her numerous pickaninnies that their 
cries might lure hungry 'gators within range of 
Every warm day there were alligators galore 
sleeping in the sun on the sheltered shore. 
Familiarity certainly bred contempt of them. 
One big fellow stationed himself just out of 
gun shot from the box blind, and day after day 
dined and supped on canvasback worth two dol¬ 
lars each, until he became very bold and also 
more than a little annoying. A time of partial 
reckoning came, when one day he and Johnnie 
had a race for a plump drake that fell near him. 
The ’gator won out, but the boy was so close 
he was able to thump the reptile soundly with 
his push pole, force him to drop the duck and 
dive. Getting that canvasback was a lot of satis¬ 
faction and nothing more, for the duck was 
‘‘MOST OF THEM WERE SCATTERED BIRDS.” 
even edge away from the barn door. A single 
bird was passed within arm’s length, diving and 
bringing up quantities of the succulent celery, 
never even glancing at the boys. At forty yards 
they, shot. The ducks were well scattered, as 
feeding ducks usually are, and only eight were 
killed. The sneak was repeated and six more 
bagged, by which time no ducks except a few 
single ones remained on the lake; no flock, 
nothing worth going after, besides there was 
regular work to be done, so the boys concealed 
their door and decoys and came in with fourteen 
extra fine ducks. That night Bud, one of the 
locals, and a very decent fellow, protested against 
such work, but he was late, for orders already 
had been given, “No more of it,” and with one 
exception, on the sly, it wasn’t tried again. 
The size of ducks killed this way was notice¬ 
able. All canvasbacks killed on the trip were con- 
rifles in the hands of Northern sportsmen, she 
was mighty ’spicious and no doubt said, “Fore 
de Lawd, I believe some am missin’, but I kaint 
tell for sho’.” As the copper wire started one 
baby ’gator after another on its trip to Illinois, 
the mother became more and more uneasy and 
threatening. Experts say alligators are harm¬ 
less; that they will run from man. Perhaps, but 
it always takes exceptions to prove the rule. This 
one must have been the exception, for finally, 
with loud hissing and a very open countenance, 
she charged the skiff in which Charlie was play¬ 
ing a game of copper on, copper off. with her 
progeny. A load of No. 7 shot at twenty yards 
rather encouraged her, for she came all the 
faster. Five yards away she swallowed the con¬ 
tents of Charlie’s second barrel and died. Sunk, 
was recovered and her ten-foot hide formed one 
of the trophies of the trip. 
mouthed so he was soft as mush with every bone 
broken and not worth carrying to the schooner. 
After that there was much rivalry between 
the boys as to which should do the most fool¬ 
hardy thing. They w r ould sneak, in their light 
boats, close to a sleeping alligator, thump the 
side of his head with a charge of shot, jump 
straddle of him while stunned, cut his spinal 
cord with a pocket knife, and be back in the 
skiff with little or no delay. There was just 
one soft spot where head and body joined, and 
a quick stab there would end Mr. Alligator’s 
days forthwith. 
Charlie lassoed a six-foot one and tried to 
bring it to the schooner in his boat. His cap¬ 
tive turned tables on him and for a while was 
master, mate and crew of that hunting skiff 
until much to the boy's relief he chewed the 
line in two and escaped. 
