988 
FOREST AND STREAM 
A Mammoth Wild Turkey. 
Photograph of 34-Pound Turkey After Having Been Carefully Mounted. 
Editor Forest and Stream: 
You may wish to publish an account of killing 
one of the largest wild turkeys that has ever 
been shot- in eastern United States. This big 
gobbler was killed on the property of the Wood- 
mont Rod and Gun Club in western Maryland on 
the 18th of last December by Mr. Henry P. 
Bridges, the secretary of the club. He had called 
the turkey to him in the open woods. I know of 
no one who can call wild turkeys with such skill 
as Mr. Bridges. His imitation of their different 
calls is really wonderful. He can literally “talk 
to them.” 
When the bird was brought in he was care¬ 
fully weighed and measured by Mr. Bridges, 
Mr. Charles M. Lea of Philadelphia, Mr. L. 
Wethered Barroll of Baltimore, and myself. His 
measurements were 5 feet 4V2 inches from tip 
of bill to tip of tail and between 36 and 37 inches 
around the body. He weighed slightly over 34 
pounds. As might be expected, the legs and 
feet of the turkey were almost abnormally large. 
Several of the toes, which were almost as large 
as my thumb, had great corns on them, undoubt¬ 
edly due to the weight of the bird. Compared 
with the wild turkey of the eastern United States, 
the legs of this gobbler seemed rather short- Cu¬ 
riously enough, we all agreed that the turkey, 
judging from his spurs and general appearance, 
was not a very old bird. 
Mr. Bridges presented the bird to me and I 
have had him mounted by Mr. D. McCadden, of 
the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadel¬ 
phia. This great turkey has the exact markings 
of Merriam’s turkey of the Cordillera of Mexico, 
a form named after the distinguished biologist, 
Dr. C. Hart Merriam, of Washington, D. C. The 
reason that the turkey has not the usual markings 
of the common wild turkey of Pennsylvania, 
Maryland and the eastern United States is be¬ 
cause Mr. Bridges purchased a number of years 
ago six or eight turkeys from Mexico and turned 
them loose on the club property. It would seem 
that while we find them in the flocks with other 
wild turkeys they have yet bred true, an interest¬ 
ing ornithological fact. Mr. Bridges informed me 
that about one-half of the turkeys killed on the 
property have the markings and plumage of the 
Merriam type and the other half have the mark¬ 
ings and plumage of the wild turkey of the east¬ 
ern United States. The irridescence of the plu¬ 
mage of this turkey, killed by Mr. Bridges last 
December, is remarkable, especially in the light 
given by the evening sun when it shines directly 
upon the breast or sides of the mounted bird. 
It is my intention to present this fine specimen 
to the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadel¬ 
phia so that it may be preserved for the admira¬ 
tion of men yet to be born. Dr. Whitmer Stone, 
of the Academy, one of the leading ornithologists 
of America, if not of the world, tells me that 
he had never seen a turkey which approached 
this gobbler in size. Fortunately he carefully ex¬ 
amined him before he was skinned, and brought 
down from the .museum a skin of one of Mer¬ 
riam’s turkeys in order that we might compare 
the two birds, feather for feather. It was soon 
seen that there was practically no variation ex¬ 
cepting that of size, the turkey which was killed 
by Mr. Bridges being enormously larger than the 
Mexican specimen. Dr. Stone told me there 
could be no doubt that this big bird was descend¬ 
ed from this particular variety of Mexican tur¬ 
key. He told me at the time that there are three 
varieties of Mexican turkey. One inhabits the 
low lands near Vera Cruz, from which he told 
me all of the domestic turkeys of the world are 
descended, since this was the turkey that the 
early Spanish explorers took back to Spain. 
Second, a turkey which is found in northern 
Mexico along the Rio Grande, and third, Mer¬ 
riam’s turkey which is found in the Cordillera 
and ranges into New Mexico and Arizona. 
I take pleasure in sending you herewith for 
reproduction in your paper a photograph of the 
bird as mounted, but it can give you no idea of 
the beauty of his plumage or of his great size. 
Daniel Moreau Barringer. 
THE EVOLUTION OF BAIT ANGLING. 
(Continued from page 987,) 
will consider the writer has for thirty years made 
it his exclusive business to study at first hand 
the varied modes of capture of all game fishes, 
marine and fresh water, he will perceive his 
knowledge must be greater than that of the aver¬ 
age angler with but a few weeks’ annual vaca¬ 
tion at his disposal for his favorite recreation. 
One makes it a business and life study; the other 
a short recreative pastime, not of study, but sole¬ 
ly to capture fish. 
The erratic nature of the black bass is a diffi¬ 
cult problem yet to be solved. Every angler that 
is intimate with this game fish knows, as I do, 
that it is very often disinclined to respond to any 
artificial line, and its habits vary a great deal in 
different waters. The reason why we do not 
know. Many times we go where bass are known 
to be, both in lake and stream, to find them un¬ 
responsive. Why is it? The answer is, aside 
from live bait, the universal perfect lure has not 
been made—a lure so good as to get a strike, at 
any time of day, in any weather or season, and 
equally good in lake or stream. I venture to 
predict this lure, to attain such a desired result, 
will prove to be an artificial minnow. If among 
the different artificial minnows I have made, 
there are none that demonstrate the perfection 
required, I shall go on working till I get one that 
does. If exact imitations of live minnows will 
not give the result, then we must try till they 
will. I really believe, with a true imitation na¬ 
ture minnow, the trouble is not using the right 
method of playing it, and we shall soon find out 
the best method when thousands of anglers make 
a determined effort to gain the success we so 
much wish. 
ANOTHER CASE OF ALBINOISM. 
The cut above illustrates what is, strictly 
speaking a perfect albino deer. Forest and 
Stream has published in previous numbers sev¬ 
eral other illustrations and the one herewith is 
particularly interesting. It was mounted by 
R. H. Rockwell of the Brooklyn Museum. The 
deer was shot in Wisconsin several years ago. 
