ii 
JUSTICE TO WOLVES 
D URING the cold winter from which we are now 
emerging, a most interesting story was printed in 
i many American newspapers, telling of wolves de¬ 
vouring three men in northern Ontario. The story con¬ 
densed follows: 
An old trapper from the Sturgeon River region failed 
to come in from the bush for his Christmas mail, as he 
had promised. The postmaster at Ignace sent two In¬ 
dians in search of him. Only two miles from the settle¬ 
ment, they found a circle of trampled snow, with wolf 
tracks, blood, human bones and other evidences of a 
gruesome tragedy. The Indians huried back to report 
what they had found; then, lured by the bounty on 
wolves, they took to the trail again with dog-sleds, 
rifles and plenty of ammunition. They waved good-by 
I at the edge of the bush, and they never returned. A 
search party trailed them and found, just beyond the 
scene of the old trapper’s death, another circle of crim¬ 
soned snow and a few gory remains of the two Indians. 
Around this tragedy the carcasses of sixteen wolves, 
some half eaten, gave mute testimony to the desperate 
struggle waged by the doomed hunters. 
It isn’t pleasant to cast gloom on a good story but 
in the interest of truth, William J. Long of Stamford, 
Connecticut, who has written most entertainingly on 
the out-of-doors and whose books are familiar to sports¬ 
men, wrote for information to Port Arthur, where the 
dispatch came from and to Ignace, whither the old 
trapper was heading. The investigation gave one an¬ 
swer: “There is no truth whatever in the story.” 
It might not be uninteresting to give the testimony 
of Tom Saville, a trapper at Gogama, in the Sudbury 
district, who once met a pack of about twenty wolves, 
face to face in a blinding snowstorm. This is what hap¬ 
pened : 
“The leader, a big grizzled, long-legged old chap, 
looked me over from a distance of about twenty feet; 
the rest of the pack ranged alongside of him, their tails 
straight out for just about as long as it takes to stiffen 
them with fear. Then they broke; they just flattened 
out on the ice and flew—twenty-one of them.” 
It isn’t pleasant to kill a good story but truth and 
justice to a very intelligent wild beast demand it. 
T 
NATIONAL RIFLE PROGRAM 
HE earnest desire of the National Rifle Associa¬ 
tion to get in touch with the great number of 
riflemen throughout the United States who are 
lot at the present time familiar with the activities of 
he association, is very jflainly in evidence in the Out- 
loor Small Bore Program for 1923. The program has 
ust been issued, and its entire tone is one of desire to 
'ring into contact with the organized riflemen, the men 
»vho have either never heard of the NRA, or who are 
mder the impresion that only dyed-in-the-wool target 
shooters are desired or can derive any benefit through 
iffiliation. 
Idle beginner’s matches are run under the title of 
‘Newcomer’s Matches.” In view of the large number 
if riflemen who are not really beginners, but who will 
)e newcomers to the organized rifle shooting fraternitv, 
t has been felt that the new title is preferable to that 
if beginner. The newcomer’s matcn will be fired at fifty 
/ards and divided into two classes. In one class, men 
ising the regular Sporting Type .22’s will compete, and 
n the other class, men who possess the longer barrel, 
leavier target guns. Identical medals are awarded in 
:ach class, a silver medal to the winner, and bronze 
nedals to the next nine. In addition, very attractive 
'age 247 
bronze percentage medals are awarded to every man 
making a score, ninety per cent or over. 
For the old-timer a series of free rifle matches at 100 
yards have been introduced. 
these matches are fired under the identical condi¬ 
tions governing the international free rifle matches, the 
target being an exact reduction of the official three hun¬ 
dred meter international target. Not only will these 
matches jrrove of interest to the Schutzen riflemen, who 
during the past few years have felt somewhat out in the 
cold, but they will serve as splendid training for 
the younger generation, who have visions of making 
the American International Rifle Team, which goes 
abroad annually to compete in these matches. 
Still another event with a particular ajjpeal to the 
man who has not jrreviously fired in recognized com¬ 
petitions, is the qualification course. This course, fired 
at fifty and one hundred yards, slow fire and rajfid fire, 
and in all four jmsitions, will enable every comj^etitor 
to obtain an official, nationally recognized rank as ex¬ 
pert rifleman, sharpshooter, or marksman. A special 
series of qualification medals has been designed for 
this match. They will be awarded in addition to the 
bowl qualification insignia, which will be awarded to 
the winner. 
The program goes into considerable detail concern¬ 
ing the various outdoor small bore events at fifty, one 
hundred, and two hundred yards, and outlines the Na¬ 
tional Small Bore Military Rifle and Free Rifle events 
to be held at Camp Perry in September. The entrance 
fee for the beginners match must be in the hands of 
the Secretary of the National Rifle Association by May 
12, the various other matches following at the rate of 
one match a week. Programs may be obtained through 
the Secretary of the National Rifle Association, 1108 
Woodward Building, Washington, D. C. 
TOP-NOTCH CONDITION 
K EEPING ill top-notch condition should be the 
aim of every man and woman, and it will be, as 
the rising generation grows up, for, in our public 
schools, children are being taught and are practicing 
simple rules of health. 
In the cities with the thawing and freezing winter 
weather when it is difficult for the Street Cleaning De¬ 
partment to remove the rubbish and garbage, there is 
a great accumulation of germs, which on the first dry, 
windy day, will be scattered, entering homes and bodies. 
1 hen it is that the resisting power of the individual 
shows what it is worth. Then it is that those who 
have exercised regularly and avoided excesses have the 
best chance against disease. Those who keej} out in 
the open as much as possible, build up vigorous health. 
To keej’) fit should be the duty of every one and there 
is no better time to begin spending as much time as 
possible in the outdoors than now. 
’COON HUNTING 
A CRISP, frosty night, with possibly a hunter’s moon 
and a section of swamp or woodland where the 
hounds will have a fair chance of picking up the 
trail of a wily raccoon, provide the proper setting for one 
of the most thrilling of sports. 
’Coon hunting has been growing in popularity among 
sportsmen in parts of the country where these animals 
are found and numerous trained ’coon dogs have been 
imported to work with native hounds. With a closed 
season during most of the year, the raccoon, which was 
threatened with extermination, is now increasing in 
numbers 
