Nov. 30, 1912 
FOREST AND STREAM 
689 
Rabbits, or varying hares, as the big white 
fellows are called, are very plentiful throughout 
the swamps of the Adirondacks. There is no 
law against hunting them with a dog provided 
it is not on land known to be inhabited by deer. 
John Dence, of Temple street, returned 
Thursday evening from a hunting trip to Gus 
Avery’s camp at Arietta, bringing with him a 
180-pound buck. He said he had seen no less 
than five dead does rotting in the woods. One 
of them had been partly eaten by an animal 
which a guide told him was a bear. J. G. W. 
Woodcock Migration. 
Brattleboro, Vt., Nov. 13.— Editor Forest 
and Stream: I would like the opinion of the 
gunners who read Forest and Stream regard¬ 
ing the time woodcock migrate. There seems 
to be a great variety of opinion. Some claim 
there are two flights; an early and a late one. 
A friend in a letter speaks of flight woodcock 
as a “different breed of cats from a native.” 
When one brings in a bag of birds, how often 
it is that someone picks out all the large and 
full plumaged birds as flight birds. 
I have hunted woodcock for forty years and 
have spent much time in the closed season roam¬ 
ing about with the old pointer, prospecting, and 
I must say, I do not agree with many of our 
gunners. My opinion is that the woodcock is 
governed by conditions in his flight. If the 
weather is warm and the feeding ground wet, 
the woodcock stays on contented, but in case 
the particular swamp he is feeding in becomes 
dry, then he is forced to look for a new feed¬ 
ing ground, and his flight begins, naturally to 
the south, and I cannot see why a woodcock one 
mile on his way south isn't a flight bird to that 
extent as much as one that has come one hun¬ 
dred. In fact, I believe the food supply governs 
the time of the flight. Take this season: Our 
swamps were very dry here in Southern Vermont 
in August and September, and as early as Sept. 
28 I found birds very plenty in strictly flight 
covers, and I fully believe there were more wood¬ 
cock in the covers on that date than at any time 
this season. I have never believed in a late sea¬ 
son for gunning. If I had my way I would open 
the season Sept. 1 and close Nov. x in all States 
like Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont. 
G. F. Barber. 
The Baltimore Coon Hunting Club. 
Baltimore, Md., Nov. 21.— Editor Forest and 
Stream: The organization of a raccoon hunting- 
club has met with great success in this city. 
Weekly excursions into the immediate country 
have been greatly enjoyed by its members. 
This is the first organization of its kind in 
the monumental city. The club boasts of one 
of the finest packs of hounds in the State, and 
to date has captured ten raccoons and thirty 
opossums. The members and officers are: Allen 
Jackson, President; Hugh Bell, Vice-President; 
Alfred Mobra, Treasurer; Wm. Lauterbach, Ad¬ 
vertising Secretary; Harry A. Jackson, Wm. 
Dunnington, Wm. Gorsuch, M. Smith, S. Martin 
and Josh Wells (colored) climber. 
Thomas R. Lauterbach, Sec’y. 
Forest and Stream is a specially invited 
guest in the homes of many sportsmen each 
week. 
High Cost of License. 
New York City, Nov. 16.— Editor Forest 
and Stream: I read in your issue of Nov. 16 
what you say in reference to the high cost of 
license, and I think you are correct in your idea, 
except that I must admit that in some localities 
it certainly robs some good Americans and sports¬ 
men of the privilege of hunting, because they 
cannot afford to pay the high price, and in this 
case it certainly works hardship and in some 
cases makes poachers of men who will hunt in 
spite of the license, which would not happen if 
within their reach. Another thing I think you 
ought to take up in your valuable paper for the 
benefit of all sportsmen is this: A man hunt¬ 
ing outside of New York State should certainly 
be allowed to bring his limit of game into the 
State, no matter what the law here, as long as 
a man can prove that it was legally taken, and 
this he can do and must do by presenting his 
license and tags before any express agent will 
take them for shipment. Now, for instance, I 
just returned from a hunt in Maine with several 
friends, and we were not able to bring out any 
does or small bucks on account of the law in 
New York State, except if we purchased a special 
license for $5 to prove it was legally taken. 
Now, why should $5 prove anything more than 
hiring a licensed guide, paying $15 for a license, 
being identified by express agent before accept¬ 
ing our game? I think this the worst law I ever 
heard of and certainly does not encourage 
sportsmen to hunt, but discourages the decent, 
healthful sport. Of course, if a man is caught 
doing anything illegal, I am certainly in favor 
of punishing him to the full extent of the law, 
because I am a great believer in the correct pro¬ 
tection of game and sensible laws. 
There are quite a few people I know of 
being fined for bringing in does who didn’t know 
anything about the interference of the New York 
State law. It is the same with the New York 
State law prohibiting the killing of does and 
small bucks. This law hasn’t helped in the 
least to protect deer. On the contrary it has 
been the means of, I should judge by reports, 
killing just as many does and spike bucks which 
were left in the woods to rot. If deer are and 
must be protected in New York State, it will 
take a different and more stringent law to do 
it. I would like as a constant reader of your 
valuable paper to hear your idea on this matter, 
as it will be interesting to others. 
Fred. Sauter. 
“Warning” Signs. 
Capitola, Cal., Nov. 7.— Editor Forest and 
Stream: I note with great interest the cut 
representing the warning sign pasted by J. A. 
Vequesney, Forest, Game and Fish Warden of 
the State of West Virginia, which appears on 
page 561 of the Nov. 2, 1912, issue of Forest 
and Stream. Thinking you may be interested 
I send you under separate cover copies of such 
warning signs I post as county fish, game and 
fire warden of Santa Cruz county, California. 
These cloth signs I post on trees and in con¬ 
spicuous places while I am patrolling the fields 
and streams. Inclosed herewith you will find 
copies of leaflets, one of which I inclose with 
each brush or rubbish burning permit I issue. 
I find by posting these warning signs and dis¬ 
tributing copies of the leaflets the people both 
old and young become familiar with the fish, 
game and forestry laws, and in consequence 
these laws are understood, their necessity appreci¬ 
ated, and that the laws are better observed. 
Walter R. Welch, 
Fish, Game and Fire Warden. 
One of the leaflets is ordinance 240, relating 
to brush burning and forest fires. Its cover 
reads as follows. It is a capital idea: 
Do your best to prevent forest fires by 
strictly observing the State forestry laws. 
Cut brush, slashings and rubbish allowed to 
remain on the ground during the summer months 
are a dangerous forest fire hazard. 
Timber burned up pays no wages, and means 
high prices for lumber and wood. 
Forests burned means drouth and floods. 
Forest protected means water supply, fish 
and game conserved. 
Moral.—Protect the forests, fish and game 
by removing forest fire hazards between Nov. 
15 and April 15, as required by the within ordi¬ 
nance. 
The Game Breeders’ Association. 
The following resolution was adopted by the 
Game Breeders’ Association on Tuesday, Nov. 12: 
Whereas, one of our members was arrested 
for taking two pheasants to his home in New 
Jersey, said pheasants having been bred by the 
Game Breeders’ Association and legally shot in 
New York, 
Be it Resolved, that we deplore this occur¬ 
rence and that we call this to the attention of 
the game commissioner of New Jersey with the 
request that the law be amended so as to permit 
game breders to take their game home when 
properly identified, and that a copy of this reso¬ 
lution be sent to the American Game Protective 
and Propagation Association and the Sporting 
Press. 
Missouri Game Notes. 
Warrensburg, Mo., Nov. 13. — Editor Forest 
and Stream: The scarcity of game in this local¬ 
ity is the topic of much comment by hunters. 
Last winter proved very disastrous to the bob- 
white, many coveys being reported frozen. The 
birds that came through the severe weather 
surely have had a successful breeding season, but 
their numbers were so few, the shooting is very 
poor. Squirrels and rabbits also are scarce, the 
latter ordinarily being quite common. Water- 
fowl shooting has been a failure owing to the 
bayous being dry. A. F. Smithson. 
New Brunswick. 
Game conditions are better than last year. 
Moose, caribou, deer, bear, wildcat, beaver, otter, 
mink, fisher, fox, muskrat, wild goose, duck, 
brant, teal, snipe, partridge and woodcock are 
found here, with moose and deer most abund¬ 
ant. Shooting is good in nearly every part of 
the Province. The interior and northern part 
is probably the best. 
