WiSchaldng-24 = = 
HE advent of no open season is 
T heralded with the same unfeigned 
joy as that which permits the 
sport lover to follow a good dog over 
the farms of a bit of rugged upland 
in pursuit of the gaily colored pheasant. 
The toothsome quality of the flesh, the 
excitement of the chase and the brac- 
ing weather provided in autumn all 
summon the hunter to the open places. 
There is an irresistible lure about it all. 
A few years ago there were no 
pheasants on the Twin Falls 
tract. Some quail were there 
and jackrabbits scampered 
hither and thither. But aside 
from these no wild life of any 
importance existed on the plains. 
But passing years saw the in- 
troduction of the pheasant. 
Grain, weed seeds and other 
suitable food were present in 
abundance, and friend pheasant, 
grown on the fat of the land, 
was before many months a com- 
mon luxury. The winters are 
mild, the farmers friendly, and, 
all in all, it is small wonder this 
bird has multiplied with such 
startling rapidity. To-day the 
pheasant is plentiful, often strutting 
into a farmyard to share the evening 
meal with the domestic fowl. One 
frequently sees them along the roadside 
eating wheat or drinking from one of 
the many ditches which checkerboard 
the country. 
ICTURE if you can the following 
scene: golden stubblefields glisten- 
ing in the bright autumn sun; hunters 
trailing dogs through “likely country”; 
a continual shotgun bombardment from 
daylight to dark; the swift flight of a 
feathered fugitive followed by a rock- 
like descent to earth. 
There you have what we would term 
an accurate description of the opening 

game birds. 
day on the Twin Falls tract. Hundreds 
of men arise before daybreak those 
chilly mornings and steal softly out 
into the fields for a try at pheasants. 
They will arrive at their starting point 
before the farmer has done his chores 
and proceed to rouse the sleepy birds 
from their roosting places. From that 
time until the sun has set the sport 
continues. 
If these male Dianas are persistent, 
MAU 
Introduced into the United States some 
decades ago, the Mongolian pheasant holds 
an important place on our list of upland 
One of the best ways to con- 
serve our supply of native game is to give 
sportsmen an exotic bird to hunt. 
hardly comparable to the ruffed grouse, the 
pheasant is sturdy and prolific and has 
extended its range throughout the country. 
LUAU 
deadly of aim and carry a rabbit’s foot 
in their rear pocket, they will return 
home adequately rewarded for their 
efforts. But they will have walked a 
great distance over different types of 
country and they will have earned their 
game. They will have paralleled 
ditches for miles; they will have trav- 
ersed fields of corn; they will have had 
both joy and disappointment. 
[* will be a long time before I forget 
the glorious sport indulged in last 
fall. Days before the law removes the 
ban on pheasant killing, my farmer 
friends had extended a kind invitation 
to visit their places, and take back some 
quarry as soon as the law permitted 
Though 
Pheasant Time in 
Idaho 
Hunting This Colorful Game Bird in 
Autumn Fields is an Exhilarating Sport 
By HENRY H. GRAHAM 
it. It was an offer which did permit 
abuse. Some Nimrods who responded to 
an initial invitation were never asked 
again. 
RIENDS are not made among the 
farmers by tearing down fences, 
plugging sheep and cattle with mis- 
directed shots or mistaking chickens for 
wild game. Permission to trespass 
upon the farmers’ fields deserves con- 
duct of a most careful sort. 
Privileges should not be abused! 
Opening day, each and every 
pheasant had a price on his 
head. The price decreased 
rapidly, however, as the novelty 
wore off and appetites wearied 
of the flesh. Opening day found 
the pheasants driven from the 
stubbles to the highways and to 
the very borders of civilization. 
They were unafraid that frosty 
autumn morning and they fell. 
in numbers. But it was not so 
during the closing days cf the 
first week. Sharp vigil was 
continually maintained and 
fewer feathered targets an- 
swered the call. 
I did not go out the first day, prefer- 
ing to wait until things had quieted 
down a bit. One morning is about as 
choice as another and no material dif- 
ference in the amount of game expected 
was anticipated. 
WH a novice as a companion I 
motored to the country and came 
to a halt in the heart of the farming 
district. Corn fields, the best of pheas- 
ant cover, dotted with community, and 
fields shorn of their waving grain 
greeted the eye upon every hand. 
On the way we had seen several shy 
birds, but they skipped out of range 
before we could shove on the brakes 
and approach to anything like gunshot. 
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