58 
{Jan. 12, 1907. 
The Dog Went Along. 
Sullivan County, N. Y., Dec. 31. —Editor 
Forest and Stream: The wood moths must be 
very hardy. I saw a small one on Dec. 15 after 
intensely cold weather, four to ten degrees be¬ 
low zero. In late November they were oc¬ 
casionally very numerous. I have seen them 
hatching when the ground was covered with 
melting snow. On Nov. 3° I saw one of those 
rare birds, the log cock or cock of the woods 
(pileated woodpecker), the largest of the wood¬ 
peckers. This bird is about the size of a teal 
duck. It much resembles the ivory bill wood¬ 
pecker in coloring, having the crimson crest, 
black body and black and white wings. 
I have observed several specimens of the ' 
varying hare, the big fellow who, when cold 
weather begins, puts on a fur overcoat of spot¬ 
less white, to match the snow. Close to the 
skin the fur is still blue. This hare has the 
speed of a racehorse when well aroused and 
followed by hounds. He will shoot off for a 
mile or more nearly straight away, then circle 
round and come tearing back to the very cover 
from which he was started. This hare always 
sits out in all weathers, never going to ground 
as the common American hare or rabbit does; 
in fact, in many parts of the country the latter 
spends much of its time in burrows, hollow logs 
or other, safe retreats, coming forth at night 
to feed and play. It is said to be a true hare 
and often sits in form, particularly where it is 
not disturbed or pursued. If followed by dogs, 
it will sometimes seek shelter in stone piles, 
hollow trees or old walls. 
No record, is kept of the number of deer 
killed in Sullivan county during the open season 
of fifteen days .in November, but I should esti¬ 
mate the total to be about 75 or 80. No dogs 
are allowed and the dense cover makes still¬ 
hunting difficult. The most successful hunters 
were those, I fancy, who joined a large party. 
Then two or three men would drive toward the 
others on stands. Owing to the brushy nature 
of the country where most of the deer were 
found, the shotgun was preferred to the rifle by 
many men. The finest buck I saw, said to 
weigh 265 pounds, had been struck by three 
large buckshot, two of which had entered the 
animal’s body directly behind the shoulder; the 
third was in the ribs. 
From all the reports I have had from four 
or five counties in New York, ruffed grouse have 
been remarkably abundant during the past sea¬ 
son. Nothing like it has been known for many 
years. The flight of woodcock was unusually 
heavy also. For several years I have thought 
that this beautiful game bird was increasing 
in numbers, and now I am quite confident that 
this is true. The habits of the woodcock are 
so peculiar. It breeds in so many odd, out-of- 
the-way places, that we know comparatively 
little about its numbers. Then, too, in the 
winter months, the immense, and often inac¬ 
cessible, swamps and canebrakes of our South¬ 
ern States welcome the bird, and in ordinary 
seasons it is distributed through these retreats 
over a great extent of territory. It is only when 
a cold wave of exceptional severity swoops sud¬ 
denly upon them that they are driven into more 
exposed situations. If forced far to the south¬ 
ward in January, they soon begin to work back 
again. I remember seeing evidences of a heavy 
flight of woodcock in a swamp not many miles 
from Cedar Keys, Florida, after unusually cold 
weather in that month. The ground was 
riddled with borings, but I thought at the time 
that the woodcock remained only one or two 
nights. I had been shooting in this swamp a 
few days previously, as the quail usually flew 
into it for cover. I never saw a woodcock in 
Florida; probably they are not often driven 
there in numbers. There is so much good 
ground for them, so many safe retreats further 
north, and which they would not leave unless 
compelled to. Many woodcock winter in 
Louisiana, and we have heard of them in 
Mexico. I have had what I considered good 
testimony to the fact that woodcock occasionally 
breed at the south, and about the first of 
September shot half a dozen of the fattest Eng¬ 
lish (Wilson) snipe I ever saw, on a river plan- 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
tation. in Georgia. I saw one woodcock on 
the first day of! March near the same place. 
This was remarkable, as not many birds are seen 
after the early days of February in that 
latitude. _ 
To return to our noble friend, the ruffed 
grouse. This bird takes excellent care of his. 
precious person and the proportion of birds 
bagged to the number flushed is usually smaller 
than any* other upland game. Some years ago 
three good sportsmen said that on the previous 
day they had flushed fifty-three ruffed grouse, 
and of this large number they had killed just 
four. The birds were very wild, and they had 
not had any shots at short range. Now and 
then one is lucky enough to own or have the 
use of a wise old dog who knows all about 
ruffed grouse, their ways and wiles and how. to 
handle them. With such a dog it is astonish¬ 
ing how many shots one gets over dea'd points. 
We must never hurry such a dog. He knows 
just how fast he dares to road the old ’cock 
whose scent is in his nostrils. . He creeps along, 
stopping now and again when the bird would 
spring. The old boy glances back at you oc¬ 
casionally just to see if you are following with 
due circumspection. What influence he has on 
the bird I do not know, but the latter probably 
becomes enamored of the old cuss who trails 
him s.o deferentially, and, at last, lays up and 
allows him to establish his point. In that case 
the man behind the gun usually has a shot at 
short range, whereas, with an ordinary every¬ 
day dog, that old grouse would have whirled 
away at forty yards rise, or more. 
During the past open season I always carried 
a gun, even when out for a short but brisk con¬ 
stitutional. Late one afternoon I was tramping 
out of town when a very sad-looking pointer 
pup, with its tail between its legs, sneaked up 
behind me. She sniffed the ambrosial odors 
issuing from the game pockets of my dis¬ 
reputable old coat and then came along. When 
well outside the town and sure that she could 
really .go, the pup gradually developed con¬ 
fidence! Her tail straightened out and after 
a time began to wag. Then she trotted on in 
advance. Coming to some timber, she leaped 
the fence and raced to the end. I entered the 
field on the. other side and began to climb the 
hill. In a moment she was a hundred yards 
beyond. At last we entered the woods on top 
of the high ridge and away she went, one minute 
out of sight on the right hand, the next I 
heard a crashing far to the left. 
We were passing through a bit of open woods 
when the pup flushed a grouse on a hillside 
where there were a few bushes. It flew, and 
she really thought she could catch it. A long 
tramp and then she flushed three birds in a 
timber slashing, again far out of shot. Up to 
this time I had not spoken to the dog. Now 
I called her 'in and we had a serious conversa¬ 
tion. Two of the grouse had, I thought, gone 
into some thick second growth, thirty feet, 
possibly, in height. I circled this first, then 
worked around where the birds were. Both 
flushed well within range, but the first flew low. 
I had but a glimpse of it and missed. The 
second was high in the air and going fast when 
the full choke stopped him, stone dead—a fine 
old ’cock. The pup was perfectly crazy. over 
that, bird. 
We proceeded to hunt for the third grouse, 
which had crossed a wide clearing into the 
woods. It was delightful to see how quickly 
the dog was finding out things. She was really 
beating her ground now. She knew what she 
was after and just how it was scented. It was 
a long search, but at last I saw the pup crouch 
a little arid begin to creep forward toward the 
edge of the bluff. There was no cover, nothing 
but big trees and dead leaves. The grouse was 
just under the bank and flushed rather wild; 
otherwise, I think the pup could have made a 
full point. I encouraged her to hunt for the 
dead bird, as she seemed to fear that some¬ 
thing was wrong. She found the game and 
stopped on it; I picked it up and allowed her 
to smell it and nose it a little. 
Coming down the mountain she hunted and 
covered the ground as if she knew all about it. 
Unfortunately, there were no more birds to be 
found, but that dog will be a grand one, if she 
has half a chance. I know that she afforded me 
a great deal of amusement, and that I have 
seldom put in two hours more agreeably. The 
view from the ridge alone is reward enough for 
the climb. It is very extensive, covering all the 
country to the east and south, and includes the 
Shawangunks and the Catskills, thirty miles 
away. How hard it must be for men who have 
grown up in the high- hills and open places, to 
settle down for life in the narrow streets of a 
great city. Theodore Gordon. 
The Late Thomas A. Logan. 
Thomas A. Logan, who was one of the few 
remaining old-time sportsmen, passed to his 
reward at his residence, West Ninth street, 
Cincinnati, Dec. 29. He was nearly seventy- 
eight years old, and had been in very poor 
health for nearly two years. In the fall of 1904 
he visited Duck Islandj Illinois, on his annual 
duck hunt, and on his return was seriously ill. 
He recovered partially from the attack, and was 
able to get about, until early in the spring of 
1906, when he was suddenly taken ill and never 
recovered, though able at times to get about, 
and* visiting the club on several pleasant Satur¬ 
days. 
He was a member of the Cosmopolitan Gun 
Club, and for some time after the organization 
of the present Cincinnati Gun Club was chiefly 
instrumental in keeping the club alive, until 
it finally merged with the latter club. He was 
one of the early members of the Cincinnati Gun 
Club and always took an active part in its 
shoots. 
In June, 1871, he was one of a number of 
sportsmen who organized the Ohio State So¬ 
ciety for the Protection of Game and Fish.’ This 
society was renamed the Cuvier Club in 1874. 
and incorporated in 1881, Mr. Logan being one 
of the incorporators, and for several years was 
recording secretary. He was an enthusiastic 
student of ichthyology and belonged to many 
State associations for the protection of game 
and fish, and did good work in this direction. Under 
the nom de plume of “Gloan,” he. wrote the 
first book on the breechloader published in 
America, the chapter on Field Ethics being an 
especially fine piece.of work, and breathing in 
every line the spirit of kindliness, which was a 
distinguishing feature of his character. He also 
wrote many delightful sketches and articles on 
field sports for the various sportsmen’s journals. 
At one time he used to spend the season at 
Lake Koshkonong, Wis., as the guest of Mr. 
Ed. Bingham, when that lake was to the West 
what Chesapeake Bay is to the East, as a resort^ 
for canvasback ducks. Many of his winters 
were spent in Florida, and the summers at the 
Soo, where he enjoyed the fishing, being as 
ardent a lover of angling as of shooting. He 
was thoroughly familiar with the Great Lakes, 
and all the waters in the North. . 
As a lawyer he was one of the best known 
members of the Hamilton county bar, and had 
practiced law in Cincinnati for nearly sixty years. 
Olive and Grace Logan, the well-known 
writers, are his sisters. He leaves one son, 
Lieut. Commander George W. Logan, U. S. N., 
who recently completed a survey of the Panama 
coast for the Government, and is now stationed 
in Washington. He was born in Philadelphia. 
He retired from active business about ten years 
ago and devoted much of his time to his 
favorite sports of hunting and fishing. 
Quail Shipment Seized. 
Enid, Okla., Dec. 31.— Editor Forest and 
Stream: -In the case of the Territory of Okla¬ 
homa vs. Paris N. Rupert for shipping 30,000 
quail from Okeene, Okla., and consigned -to 
Coyne Bros., of Chicago, which were seized by 
State Warden Watrous at .Enid, Okla., a plea 
of guilty was entered by the defendant who was 
fined $350 and costs in the Probate Court. This 
shipment was valued at $8,000 had it reached 
Chicago, which is a total loss to Mr. Rupert, be¬ 
sides the fine and “trimmings.” 
Eugene Watrous, Warden. 
