
i Bod mice 
Photo—W. Abdiel Thompson 
THE TROUT BROOK 
In Winter—tinou art clad in mantle rich, 
Of ice and snowy cloth; 
In Summer—rippling pools 
With dimples of foaming froth. 
—Harry Irwin. 

It is a well known fact that bright 
flashes of light during the night 
frighten waterfowl to such an extent 
that they will remain away from their 
feeding ground for days after having 
been frightened in this manner. When 
we consider the countless number of 
automobiles traversing the Willamette 
Valley at night with their bright head- 
lights illuminating the entire country- 
side, it is not at all difficult to realize 
that birds will continue their flight 
rather than attempt a landing under 
these conditions. 
The few localities which remain 
favorable for duck shooting have been 
taken up by private clubs, and at 
present the only opportunity the or- 
dinary hunter has to get a mess of 
ducks is along the coast or along some 
flyway during a storm. 
A recent visit along the waters of 
Puget Sound indicated the same con- 
dition to exist on all favorably located 
sections of the Puget Sound country. 
The Agricultural Bureau, through 
the Biological Department is promul- 
gating a measure known as the “Pub- 
lic Shooting Grounds Bill” with a view 
of establishing public shooting grounds 
that will be open to the public under 
the necessary restrictions, thus allow- 
ing some shooting for Mr. Average 
Man. 
The present bag limit on ducks is 
considered by many sportsmen to be 
excessive, and many recommendations 
are made to the Game Department that | 
the limit be cut to 15 birds in any one 
day. 
While many sportsmen advocate the 
taxing of private hunting clubs $25 
_or $50 per year, said fund to be ex- | 
. Page-27 
pended in the purchase of public 
shooting grounds, the proposed Public 
Shooting Grounds Bill provides for a 
federal license of $1.00 for the priv- 
ilege of hunting wild waterfowl. 
Forty-five per cent of this fund would 
be expended for the purchase and 
maintenance of public shooting 
grounds for waterfowl. 
The average hunter who is _ not 
financially able to lease and feed shoot- 
ing grounds and thus secure some duck 
shooting feels that he has a kick com- 
ing against the more fortunate hunter 
who has annexed or holds an interest 
in a duck reserve, and cannot figure 
out why the state should not so regu- 
late migratory bird shooting that 
every purchaser of a license will have 
equal opportunity to secure some 
migratory bird shooting. His cause is 
a just one, and our various Game De- 
partments will eventually have to 
inaugurate some system whereby duck 
shooting may become a pastime of the 
many instead of the few. 
Capt. A. E. BURGHDUFF, 
Oregon State Game Warden. 
LA PREMIERE 
DEAR FOREST AND STREAM: 
FEW years ago it was my good 
fortune to witness a first appear- 
ance that was, in the approved theatri- 
cal vernacular, “a riot.” As an exam- 
ple of mother love and discipline it 
scored a great hit with the appreciative 
audience. 
In the little park across the way, 
Mrs. Red Squirrel had her home in an 
old elm tree. One .bright day in the 
early June, the most daring member of 
her young family of eight decided it 
was time to make their bow to the pub- 
lic; so out came this leader, soon fol- 
lowed by venturesome brothers and sis-: 
ters. - Then it became evident that Mrs. 
Squirrel was of the opinion that home 
rule was not yet in order, and she pro- 
ceeded to illustrate her argument by 
putting in force her authority: this be- 
ing a swift attack on the left flank and 
a hurried return to the home, propelled 
by “mother.” As the entire eight suc- 
ceeded in getting out, their return by 
this forceful method consumed at least 
an hour’s time. 
The little disciplinarian worked fran- 
tically, but as rapidly as she could de- 
posit one wayward child in the nest, an- 
other would pop out. But eventually 
this apparently endless task was com- 
pleted amid shrill little squeaks of pro- 
test at an extra hard nip, and a shove 
perhaps upside down—it seemed to 
make no difference. 
As the last small rebel was crowded 
in, Mrs. R. Squirrel wearily crawled 
up to the first fork above the nest—the 
strategic point from which she could 
command the troublesome situation— 
and a very determined and threatening 
parent met the gaze of the most daring 
little heads which, still hopeful, peeped 
out. Gradually these futile attempts 
ceased and it was easy to imagine eight 
furry little balls, sighing and whimper- 
ing resignedly, as they attempted to 
ease their smarting reminders of this 
premature debut. 1 ed is 2 
A CHANGE OF SENTIMENT 
DEAR FOREST AND STREAM: 
N my last letter to your valuable 
magazine on this subject, we left off 
at the buzzard. Up to a few years ago 
they were protected and no one dared 
to destroy one. Now we are asked to 
kill the last one of them. Their chief 
sins are that they distribute hog 
cholera and as scavengers are “nil.” 
The large gull family are also a 
nuisance in many ways besides destroy- 
ing our food fish while they are young, 
which we all know are growing scarce. 
They are a nuisance in other ways. A 
short time since, I was invited to go for 
a sail on a yacht belonging to a friend 
of mine at Norfolk, Virginia. When 
we stepped aboard, we found the yacht 
chalked from stem to stern, and our 
sail had to be abandoned. It probably 
took two men at least one day to clean 
it up, and unless a man was left on 
board to watch, the same thing would 
have happened the next day . 
A friend of mine who is interested in 
your magazine visited my preserve last 
season for duck and goose shooting. He 
shot in a battery and before the ducks 
could be retrieved, many of them were 
destroyed by the large gulls. These 
ducks were mostly Redheads and Can- 
vasbacks. 
