NsiYtmvuomfsua no a jomm 
8P8 
FOREST AND STREAM 
[Dec. 4, 1909. 
Now what does this drumming in the fall 
mean? What is the motive of the bird that 
responds to the call? Is it the same in the old 
and the young birds? In the spring the drum¬ 
ming of the cock is undoubtedly a call to the 
tryst. Hammond says the fall drumming is 
“imitative merely.” Heretofore I have always 
thought the fall drumming was confined to the 
young cocks and was by way of practice for the 
spring entanglements, for I have caught the 
young birds at it, and sometimes a wretched 
fist of it they make. 
I am inclined now to think that fall drum 
niing by the old cocks is a fetching war cry, 
and that the responding bird comes in spoiling 
for a fight. If that is right, though, and the 
little she bird that was picked off my bonnet 
was responding, what moved her? Was it just 
feminine curiosity? Was it to witness a battle 
royal between gay gallants? or was she just 
seeking an opportunity to guy a younger 
brother at his first attempt to sing bass? I con¬ 
fess it is all one too many for 
A Duffer. 
Two Fine Elk Heads Wanted. 
New York Zoological Park, New York 
City, Nov. 29 .—Editor Forest and Stream: 
The National Collection of Heads and Horns, 
now being formed by the sportsmen of 
America, with some assistance from abroad, has 
already reached grand proportions. The new 
Administration Building in the Zoological Park 
will be ready for occupancy about Jan. 1, 1910, 
and when it is thrown open to the sportsmen of 
the world every specimen of the collection will 
be found in its own proper place and suitably 
labeled. 
In African, Alaskan, Asiatic and Arctic heads 
and horns the collection is already strong. To¬ 
day it is weakest in our own American elk, mule 
deer and white-tailed deer. Of each of those 
species we need from two to four extra fine 
specimens, such as will do credit to a national 
collection for the next 200 years. 
We specially need (in a hurry) two pairs of 
extra fine elk antlers, or mounted heads, that 
will “astonish the natives” by their length of 
beam and general grandeur. They should have 
a beam length of fifty-eight inches or over, and 
be sufficiently massive. In all probability there 
are in this country at least twenty-five heads 
that would fill our bill of particulars, if we could 
have some of them. 
No, we cannot buy them. We have not the 
money for that, and the things we want are in 
the collections of gentlemen sportsmen and can¬ 
not be bought with money, even if we had it. 
But we can pay express charges on them and 
will gladly do so. All the specimens in our col¬ 
lection of about 570 pieces have come to us as 
gifts, and the more that sportsmen come to see 
what has been accumulated thus far the more 
and the finer are their gifts. 
We need finer mule deer and white-tailed deer 
heads than any that we now have—big, massive 
specimens, with no end of points, such as will 
show what our deer can do in antlers when 
they try. 
And who will help us out? 
W. T. Hornaday. 
The Forest and Stream may be obtained from any 
newsdealer on order. Ask your dealer to supply you 
regularly. 
Effective Fire Fighting. 
In discussing the operation of the new fire¬ 
fighting system inaugurated in the Adirondack 
and Catskill counties this year and the results 
obtained, Commissioner Whipple believes that 
the figures so far available amply meet the ex¬ 
pectations of the conference of leading lumber¬ 
men, lawyers, philanthropists and railroad rep¬ 
resentatives, held in his office Dec. 29, 1908. 
The present law was the outcome of that con¬ 
ference, called by request of the commissioner 
for the purpose of devising a new fire protec¬ 
tive system which would ameliorate conditions 
that caused the devastation of. great forest 
tracts in this State and for a long time had 
threatened to destroy the entire timber growth 
in the Adirondacks and Catskill parks. 
For this year the danger season has now 
passed, and up to Nov. 5, the total damage 
amounts to about $25,101; 11,967 acres burned 
over mostly in old burnings. Of this area, 
11,769 acres are private holdings and 198 acres 
are State land. Over 250 fires have been re¬ 
ported. In the Adirondacks the damage 
amounted to $10,251; in the Catskills, $12,875. 
These figures show a total fire loss for each 
of the sixteen counties in the forest preserve 
approximating $1,618.18, as against an average 
loss for each county of $40,249 last year. In 
1908, there were 177,000 acres burned; this- year 
11,967, nearly all old burnings. In 1908 each 
fire represented 252.8 acres. Figuring on the 
present basis of efficiency under the new law, 
3,766 fires would have had to occur this year 
to burn the number of acres 700 fires burned in 
1908. In other words, the new system of fire 
fighting has confined the burned area to forty- 
seven acres per fire. The average loss in each 
forest preserve town this year is only $5.76; 
last year it was $4,915.77 per town. 
New System, 
1909—with 281 
Old System, 
towns, more 
1908—with only 
than twice as 
131 towns. 
much territory. 
Loss . 
$25,101 
Acres burned . 
. 177,000 
11,967 
Fires . 
. 700 
250 
Increase in 
efficiency 
based on 
number 
of fires... 
180% 
Increase in 
efficiency based on 
number 
of acres 
burned.. 
1,303% 
The actual result has to some extent been 
affected by different weather conditions in the 
two years. Owing to the observation stations 
and a paid fire fighting force this year, the fires 
were gotten at immediately and extinguished, 
in nearly every case, quickly. They were not 
allowed to gather headway and burn large areas. 
On the other hand, it has not been so dry as 
last year, yet fires burned much later this fall 
than last. Many times, if the old system had 
been in use, large conflagrations would have 
ensued. The point is to get at the fire when it 
starts. 
There has been expended during 1909, up to 
and including Nov. 5, $40,175.41. This ex¬ 
penditure was divided as follows: $15,224.57 
for salaries of superintendents and patrolmen; 
$8,407.46, expenses of above named employes; 
$1,199.27, office expenses; $5,958.46, permanent 
telephone construction and mountain observa¬ 
tion stations; $837.19, tools; $135.48, special 
work making trails; $8,412.53, pay and keeping 
of laborers and others actually fighting fire; 
$40,175.41, total money expended. 
There should be deducted from this amount 
one-half of last item, or $4,206.26, charged to 
towns and to be rebated to State, leaving the 
State's total expense to Nov. 5, including cost 
of telephone lines, observation stations, tools, 
etc., which arc permanent and will not have to 
be again provided for, $35,969.15. All told, a 
fine result, justifying the commissioner’s plan 
and the judgment of the conference of Dec. 29, 
1908. In addition, every fire superintendent and 
patrolman has assisted in enforcing the top¬ 
lopping law and the forest, fish and game laws 
generally, bringing about a much better con¬ 
dition in the forest preserve counties. 
On the Suwannee River, 
Jacksonville, Fla., Nov. 2 6 .—Editor Forest 
and Stream: For the third or fourth year in 
succession the opening of the shooting season 
was attended by unfavorable weather conditions. 
For several weeks prior to Nov. 1 but little rain 
had fallen, and the weather was too warm for 
hard hunting by man or dog. 
I have been out twice with my old shooting 
companion, W. P. Gilreath. On the opening 
day we got an early start and drove out about 
fourteen miles to the edge of a hammock to get 
a little squirrel shooting about sunup. Our bag 
was eleven squirrels and twelve quail. Our sec¬ 
ond trip was made about two weeks later, and 
this time we killed twenty-four quail. 
There are undoubtedly more birds this sea¬ 
son than for some years past, and with rain 
enough to fill the ponds and bays and a touch 
of frost in the air, the sportsmen will enjoy 
some fine shooting. 
i he other day I met J. D. McCallman, who-, 
in company with Hal Lorraine, M. Gardner and 
Charles Morgan, had recently returned from a 
ten days • camp hunt down in the Gulf Ham¬ 
mock. From here the party went by rail to 
Cedar Key, on the gulf, thence by launch to the 
mouth of the Suwannee River, and up that 
stream to Shingle Creek, where they transferred 
to a team and drove about seven miles to the 
edge of California swamp, where the perma- , 
nent camp was made. Mr. McCallman, who is 
somewhat of a bear hunter, said it was a source 
of regret to them that they did not have a bear 
dog along, for not far from camp the cabbage 
palmetto trees showed that bruin had been busy, 
the tuft-like tops being mashed down and the 
buds pulled. One day two bucks were jumped 
within a few minutes of each other, both being 
killed by members of the party. There was an 
abundance of game in that section, and besides 
the deer hunting they had all the small game 
shooting desired. Geo. A. Irwin. 
Old-Time Shooting Grounds. 
Perth Amboy, N. J.. Nov. 28. —Editor Forest 
and Stream: It is seldom that I use the New- | 
ark and New York branch of the New Jersey 
Central Railroad without noticing the long, nar¬ 
row point of marsh that projects westwardly 
into the upper part of Newark Bay a few hun¬ 
dred yards south of the confluence of the Passaic 
and Hackensack rivers. 
Never do I see it without thinking what glori¬ 
ous duck shooting that point must have afforded 
in old times, say fifty or sixty years ago-. 
Are there no gray-headed Newark sportsmen 
on your mailing list who will tell us in the 
columns of Forest and Stream about their luck 
with the decoys while lying on that point in 
bygone days? J. L. Kearney. 
