792 
Published Weekly by the 
Forest and Stream Publishing Company 
Chas. A. Hazen, President Charles L. Wise, Treasurer 
W. G. Beecroft, Secretary 
22 Thames Street, New York. 
CORRESPONDENCE:—Forest and Stream is the re¬ 
cognized medium of entertainment, instruction and in¬ 
formation between American sportsmen. The editors 
invite communications on the subjects to which its pages 
are devoted, but, of course, are not responsible for the 
views of correspondents. Anonymous communications 
cannot be regarded. 
SUBSCRIPTIONS: $3 a year; $1.50 for six months; 
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This paper may be obtained of newsdealers throughout 
the United States, Canada and Great Britain. Foreign 
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1 Finch Lane; Sampson, Low & Co. Paris: Brentano’s. 
Entered in New York Post Office as Second class matter. 
THE FOOL AND THE GUN. 
One hundred and eleven dead and one hundred 
and sixty-two injured is the “hunting toll” as 
the Chicago Tribune calls it, in seventeen states 
of the Union and one province of Canada for 
the season ending with November. This seems 
like a ghastly total, and if we are f o judge from 
the sensational manner in which the story is 
played up in the daily press, the moral and warn¬ 
ing are that people should not go hunting. 
We will not defend or attempt to excuse the 
blind carelessness which brought about this 
sacrifice of human life, if indeed the total is cor¬ 
rect, foir killing is killing, no matter under what 
circumstances 'the deed is accomplished. But it 
is not amiss to say that of the deaths in the 
hunting field this fall, the greater part should not 
'have occurred, and were entirely unnecessary. 
It is the easiest thing in the world to obtain 
a gun license and the fool is just as much at 
liberty to fire off his weapon as the decent, care¬ 
ful citizen who seeks the woods for pleasure 
and recreation,- and exercises every precaution to 
avoid doing injury to his fellow-hunter. To say 
that hunting is unsafe, because a very small frac¬ 
tional percentage of those who follow this sport 
are killed or injured, is rather beside the mark. 
In the same way we might argue that bathing 
should be avoided, that people should not ride in 
street cars or travel for pleasure- We do insist, 
however, that the fools who obtain licenses to 
practice a sport or follow a recreation with 
which they are not familiar, should be held to 
strictest accountability for the consequences of 
their acts. 
In this particular the state laws are lax, al¬ 
though public opinion is coming around to the 
point where the responsibility of the common¬ 
wealth in the matter of putting the lives of 
citizens in jeopardy is being recognized through 
the enactment of a law here and there designed 
to deal severely with the fool with a gun. But 
let us not condemn the weapon or punish care¬ 
ful men using it. 
WINTER IS HERE—PROTECT THE GAME. 
Winter came in earnest this week, reports from 
all the northern and middle states having told 
of low temperature and heavy falls of snow. The 
FOREST AND STREAM 
fall and early winter season was one of excep¬ 
tional mildness, or at least was unaccompanied 
by bad weather, so that game has not suffered 
much and ought to be able to withstand the 
ordinary vicissitudes that attend the departure of 
the sun to the south. It is not too early, how¬ 
ever, to give some thought to the feathered 
game of the northern states, and in every locality 
where quail and other birds exist, we trust that 
steps will be taken now to prepare for worse 
weather and fiercer storms that may come later. 
A few bushels of grain judiciously placed, a few 
spots cleared here and -there in the snow, and an 
occasional brush shelter will do much toward 
helping the feathered game through the rigors 
of sleet, blizzard and storm. 
PHEASANT FARMING. ' 
“Pheasant Farming” by Gene M. Simpson, Cor¬ 
vallis, Oregon, is one of the handsomest and 
most interesting pamphlets which have come to 
Forest and Stream within the last few months. 
The subject is handled not only from the stand¬ 
point of propogation, but from all other angles 
as well and the advice given as to equipment, 
breeding, food, etc., is extremely valuable. Not 
the least important part of this little book of 
about fifty pages is the chapter “Enemies of the 
Game Breeder,” a topic that must concern the 
sportsmen of this country more in the future than 
in the past- In the “Rogues’ Gallery” of enemies 
we notice the familiar picture of our faithful 
tabby friend the house cat, the crow in the act 
of eating eggs and the rat making away with the 
young pheasant. 
No price is given on this little book, which is 
scheduled as “Bulletin 2” of the Oregon Fish 
and Game Commission, but the pamphlet which 
contains any number of handsome illustrations, 
one or more of them in color, is well worth a 
quarter, and if any Forest and Stream reader 
wants one, we suggest that some small coin en¬ 
closure be made, if only as an act of courtesy. 
BIRDS AND LIGHT-HOUSES. 
It is a familiar fact that each spring and fall 
great numbers of migrating birds are destroyed 
by striking against the glass of light-houses, or 
perhaps merely by being exhausted through their 
inability to get away from the lure of the light. 
On the edge of wide waters over which birds 
migrate, dead birds, which no doubt have perished 
from exhaustion, are from time to time picked up. 
The destruction of birds by light-houses is 
great, and numbers of interesting bird records 
have been obtained by ornithologists who watch 
light-houses, or by keepers who have reported 
their finds to ornithologists. 
Recognizing all this, Heer J. P. Thijsse has 
devised a method which he believes will protect 
migrating birds at lighthouses. He concludes 
that death to these birds results not so much 
from their striking the light, as from their flying 
“dazed and weary, round and round the incom¬ 
prehensible gleam until they dropped down ex¬ 
hausted,” into the sea, onto the ground below 
or the light-house gallery. Heer Thijsse pur¬ 
poses to remedy this by placing below the light 
a number of perches on which the tired birds 
may rest. The device was tried at the great 
Terschelling Light for three years and proved 
very successful. The loss of bird life at night, 
through the application to the light-house of 
these rest places, was greatly reduced, it is said, 
“from thousands in a night to something like 
a hundred in the whole migrating season.” 
The British Royal Society for the Protection 
of Birds is so satisfied that these rests are help¬ 
ful that it has installed similar ones at two 
British light-houses, St. Catherine’s, on the Isle 
of Wight, and the Caskets, off Alderney. These 
also are reported very successful. It is said that 
the birds crowd the perches on dark or misty 
nights and pass on their way in the morning. 
The results have been so satisfactory that the 
society intends to extend its scheme to a num¬ 
ber of other light-houses where many birds 
perish. It is said that the first cost of installing 
these rests is from $300 to $500, and the running- 
expenses from $50 to $75 a year. It is evident 
that perches would have to be renewed from time 
to time, and from their situation they are not 
easily accessible. 
No one knows or can estimate the number of 
birds annually destroyed in this way, but it cer¬ 
tainly seems that here is a method which might 
fitly be employed on many American light-houses. 
The saving each year of a few thousand in¬ 
sectivorous -birds would be likely to pay a large 
return for the expense involved. 
DEATH OF COL. ROBT. WILLIAMS, JR. 
We regret to announce the death of Col. Rob¬ 
ert Williams, Jr., whose name is a household 
word to all archers. 
Col. Williams died last week in Washington, 
where he had lived for many years, and had a 
prominent connection in the Revenue Depart¬ 
ment- He was about seventy-three years old. 
All archers, especially those whose connection 
with this sport goes back ten years or more, will 
receive this news with the keenest regret. Col. 
Williams in many respects was the greatest 
archer than this country has ever produced. In 
fact, Phil Bryant two years ago at Boston said 
to the writer that he considered him in all re¬ 
spects the greatest archer of this country. He 
won the national championship many times, and 
until Harry Richardson’s sensational score at 
Chicago in 1910, Col. Williams’ was the record 
tournament score of this country. Only by Rich¬ 
ardson on the occasion mentioned and by Phil 
Bryant in Boston in 1912, has a higher score 
been made at a tournament. 
Of late years Col. Williams had not been able 
to attend the tournaments regularly on account 
of failing health. He was, however, a regular 
participant to and including the Chicago meet in 
1908; thereafter, he was not able to attend until 
last summer at Philadelphia. Col. Williams was 
a native of Chambersburg, Pa. 
’TWAS EVER THUS. 
Here’s to the chap from the City, 
Who thinks, when he takes the train, 
He’s going to sit in a nice big boat 
And catch all the fish in Maine. 
And he thinks, when he goes a-hunting, 
He’ll stand in the buckboard road, 
^And bring down birds, and deer in herds 
As fast as he can load. 
BUT—Here’s to the chap from the City, 
When he hits the homeward route, 
With two small fish, and a dead ripe bird, 
And a couple of hundred out. 
C. F. Haven. 
