212 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
[Feb. 6, igog. 
An Unconscious Nature Fakir. 
West Park, N. Y., Feb. i. — Editor Forest and 
Stream: As illustrative of the untrustworthi¬ 
ness of the great mass of nature stories by un¬ 
trained observers, allow me to repeat two nature 
observations told me by two men, each an eye 
witness to the same incident. One of them is 
a man who likes to tell yarns, and good ones 
too; and like the school of sentimentalists and 
others who believe that animals reason, likes to 
interpret nature. The other is a man, not only 
well read, but a life-long student of nature, a 
close and accurate observer. Now note the dif¬ 
ferent ways they saw the same thing, each hav¬ 
ing the same point of view. 
Said the first: “Wish you had been with me 
the other day. Just as S. and I were coming 
from Pangyang and got to the Shadakee bridge 
we saw a phoebe after a wren. The phoebe has 
a nest under the bridge and he did not want 
the wren around, so he tried to drown him. 
COUES" DEER—SONORA, MEXICO. 
First, we saw the phoebe grab the wren by the 
neck and fly down to the water and stick him 
under. The wren got away, when the phoebe 
caught him again and shoved him under. This 
happened three times, until the wren got under 
a stone where the phoebe could not get him.” 
Now see what this simple yarn involves! 
First, an attempt at deliberate murder, one ani¬ 
mal trying to kill another, not its natural prey, 
something very rare in nature; secondly, a pre¬ 
supposed knowledge .of death by drowning, a 
knowledge we are not warranted in supposing 
a phoebe possesses. 
Here is the true story as told by S.: “Saw 
an amusing incident the other day over by the 
Shadakee bridge. You know how phoebes, blue¬ 
birds, song sparrows, etc., all chase a wren away 
from the vicinity of their nests. Well, a phoebe 
has a nest under the bridge and just as we came 
along we saw him dart at ,.a wren. He over¬ 
took the wren and in their tussle both birds fell 
into the creek. As soon as they got out and 
able to fly, they went at it again, the phoebe 
attacking, and again they fell into the water. 
Of course as soon as they found themselves in 
the current the phoebe let go. This happened 
three times or until the wren escaped under a 
stone.” 
We do not need any further evidence as to 
which is the correct interpretation. The first 
is a true “animal-reason” “school-of-the-woods” 
yarn, the second a much more interesting ac¬ 
count of a fact. 
Some months since in McClure’s Magazine, W. 
T. Hornaday made the statement that minks and 
weasels are the only animals that will kill wan¬ 
tonly for the mere lust of killing. A wildcat, 
however, will do the same thing. One got in a 
neighbor’s hen house and killed forty hens with¬ 
out stopping to eat any, though he was on the 
verge of starvation. It would have been in¬ 
teresting—but expensive—to have had an un¬ 
limited number of hens and let him go on kill¬ 
ing them to see how far the killing instinct 
would over-reach. Had this one been content 
with seizing one hen and making off with 
it, he could have had a winter's food supply be¬ 
sides keeping his hide intact. 
.A gray fox, on the other hand, will enter a 
chicken coop, seize one bird and make off with 
SHEEP HEAD WITH WIDESPREADING HORNS. 
HEADS IN MR. PHILLIPS’ COLLECTION. 
it at top speed, not stopping an instant until safe 
in cover. If undisturbed, however, he may re¬ 
peat the process several times during the night. 
Some time ago a writer for Forest and 
Stre.vm told a story of having seen a skunk 
catch and eat yellow jackets, his method of pro¬ 
cedure being to wave his tail over the nest— 
which was in the ground—and then to eat the 
hornets that clung to the long tail hairs. I was 
much surprised to see such an absurd state¬ 
ment pass unchallenged. Every old skunk hun¬ 
ter to whom I have told 'this howls with ridicule. 
As one trapper said, “A skunk may be an ignor¬ 
ant animal, but not such a fool as that.” 
Julian Burroughs. 
Groundhog Day. 
There w^as bright sunlight and a clear sky 
on Candlemas day, at least in the vicinity of 
New York city. If the prophetic groundhog 
was late in making his appearance, there was 
light enough to cast a strong shadow, though 
the early morning was cloudy. Whether or not 
six weeks more of winter will follow, the legend 
should prompt bird lovers to provide food for 
them in shelters that will remain free from 
snow. 
Notable Deer and Sheep Heads. 
Boston, Mass., Feb. i.— Editor Forest and 
Stream: I inclose photographs and measure¬ 
ments of three heads in my possession which I 
think are of some interest and worth reporting. 
The first is that of a Virginia deer, which 
came into the Boston market in October, igo6, 
from Maine, somewhere east of Bangor. I can 
find no record of as good a normal head as this, 
though others of course may exist. Below are 
detailed measurements: 
Circumference at base, 5% inches. 
Circumference 10 inches above base, 5% inches. 
Length along outer curve, base to tip, 29 inches. 
Tip to tip, 17 inches. 
M'idest spread of points, 29% inches. 
Widest inside beam measurement, 22 inches. 
Number of points — right side, 7; left, 6. 
Number of knobs—right side, 7, left, 2. 
The next photograph is that of a Sonoran or 
Cones’ whitetail deer which exceeds the few 
measurements I have seen of this species. The 
VIRGINIA DEER FROM MAINE. 
deer (No. i) w^as killed in Mexico about lool 
miles west of Casas Grandes on the SonoranT 
border by A. iM. Tenney. I also give measure-^ 
ments of another smaller Sonoran deer (No. 2)^ 
shot by myself near Nacori, Sonora, in igo/iS* 
No. 1. 
No. 2. 
Inches. 
inches. 
Outside curve . 
. 18% 
11 % 
Tip to tip . 
. 9% 
7 
IVidest outside . 
17 
16 
Points . 
. 5—4 
4-4 
These are larger than the measurements in' 
Rowland Ward’s records, but there may be later 
figures than this. ^ 
The sheep head is noteworthy in one respect 
only, that of spread. It is an ordinary head as 
to other measurements. I find only two records 
which equal or exceed it in this respect. The 
largest of these is thirty-one inches, from Wyo¬ 
ming. The head here figured in the photograph’ 
was taken by myself in ./Wyoming in i8gg. 
Measurements as follow.s: 
Circumference, 14% inches. 
Length, -curve,^,^^I^j,jinches. 
Spre.id, 25 inches. 
Age, 8 year’s;' 
J. C. Phillips. 
The Forest and Stream may he obtained from \ 
any neivsdealer on order. Ask your dealer to 
supply you regularly. 
