APRIL 28, 1906.] 

A Winter Trip to Alabama. 
Azovut midnight, after a long and eventful 
journey, we reached Summer’s Hotel, our real 
stopping place. Mrs. Summers gave us a warm 
supper, and we were glad to retire. The beds 
were good, and we dropped out. No one knew 
how he slept. 
Next morning, as soon as our excellent break- 
fast was over, we started to take inventory of 
our prospects. On going outside, we found a 
delightfully warm atmosphere, roses and japon- 
icas in bloom from last fall; and pansies in 
bloom, and mulberry trees bursting into foliage 
for next spring. The two seasons are so close 
together here that they overlap. A little further 
on, we found the garden with onions, radishes, 
etc., ready to be harvested, and also others of 
only a few weeks’ growth for early spring mar- 
kets. Next was a thirty-acre peach orchard in 
the pink of condition, with buds almost ready 
to blow. All of these things were in as high a 
state of cultivation as I have ever seen in the 
north. The fences were all of boards or plain 
wire; no weeds were allowed to grow, and all 
the trees and shrubs were carefully pruned. On 
further investigation, we found the next farm 
was just as good, and the next, etc. In short, 
we discovered that in the night we had been 
transferred into an entirely new world. On 
every side were neat looking farm houses, well 
kept peach and pecan orchards, all arranged in 
perfect squares, and in the healthiest and best 
condition I have ever seen. There were also 
fine fields of sugar cane, cotton and corn. 
The farms contain each forty acres, and are 
perfectly square, with roads laid out as regu- 
larly as streets in a modern town; the country 
is nearly level, and the magnificent display of 
civilization, industry and thrift was certainly 
very pleasing to a party of tired and, hereto- 
fore, disgusted hunters. The complete change 
from a feeling of disgust and disappointment, to 
one of interest and pleasure made us give up 
all thoughts of leaving, and even enhanced our 
enjoyment of present conditions. We had gone 
to sleep the night before, believing that here 
in Southern Alabama we were in a country 
where laziness, lack of energy, or some other 
cause, made the earth look as if it was a mistake 
to make it; and we awoke to find ourselves in 
the heart of as industrious a farming center as 
it has been my lot to see. 
You may wonder how this complete trans- 
formation came about, and I confess it was as 
much of a surprise to us as it may be to you; 
but on investigation it is easily explained. 
The Southern Plantation Land Company, of 
which Mr. Summers is manager, purchased 165,- 
ooo acres of land, and are colonizing it. They 
have agents all over the country who seek out 
industrious poor people and sell them, on easy 
terms, forty-acre farms. The company also 
helps them to build a home, plant a garden and 
peach orchard, and takes its pay as the farmer 
realizes on his crops. The land is very pro- 
ductive, and with energy and frugality it can 
soon be paid for. I met one man who stated 
that he formerly lived with his family in two 
rooms in Chicago. He had no money, and Mr. 
Summers paid the fare south for himself and 
family, sold him a farm, built him a house, 
planted an orchard and fenced it, and bought 
him some stock and farm implements. In a 
little over three years he paid it all back, and 
now has his home clear. 
Social conditions are also well looked after. 
Five years ago there was not a school in this 
country. Now there are eighteen, all well at- 
tended. There are a number of churches, a 
lodge room, and other evidences of civilization. 
The people have plenty of social entertainment 
L 
and are happy. ‘ 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
GAMIE RAG 

We immediately decided to stay, and got shells 
from the local store. They were loaded with 
black powder, and made as much smoke as a 
forest fire. When a covey of birds got up, we 
had to wait until the smoke of battle cleared 
away before we could tell what damage was 
done. About the peach orchards and corn fields 
are excellent places for quail, and while they 
are not as plentiful here as in some parts of the 
south, there are plenty of them for good sport. 
We separated into two parties, Walker, Dono- 
van and Harper going one way, and Mont- 
gomery and I another. Montgomery had a 
couple of modern shells in his hunting suit. 
He gave me one, which he said he had charmed 
for my first bird. We had Van with us, and the 
other party had the other two dogs. We had 
not gone far when Van straightened out on as 
pretty a point as you could wish to see. We put 
up the birds and I shot the charmed shell, and 
a bird fell. I was so much surprised I did not 
shoot the other barrel. Montgomery called out, 
“Watch the birds down,” and I said, “Watch 
them down yourself, I am watching the one that 
is down.” I was quite conceited, and figured out 
how I would get two birds from each covey 
hereafter; but was disappointed when two more 
coveys had gotten up and I had shot both bar- 
rels at each without getting a feather, while Mont- 
gomery had three birds from four shots. Of 
course, I blamed it on the black powder shells. 
While it was easy to convince myself that the 
powder was to blame, I do not suppose other 
people would believe it. 
After lunch we all five went together, taking 
the three dogs. Bess found the first covey, and 
if you could have seen Sam respecting that 
point, you would have felt like hugging him. 
He was perhaps twelve feet behind Bess when 
she made the point and was crossing a log. The 
instant she stopped, he stopped, with his front 
feet over the log and his hind feet on it. He 
did not move until,she did, and then he would 
only move as far as she did, keeping the full 
twelve feet behind her. Van had been hunting 
apart from the others, and after they had crept 
up some distance he discovered they were on 
a point, and ran in ahead of both of them. This 
spoiled a beautiful picture, and I am sure you 
would not have hugged Van at that time. This 
break of etiquette on his part, though, was be- 
cause he was not used to hunting with other 
dogs, and his sense of honor had not been cul- 
tivated. 
After a few persuasions from Montgomery, 
he was as respectful as either of the other dogs. 
We hunted all day and finished with thirty odd 
birds. I only had three, and was tail-ender, 
but I was glad of the three, and had enjoyed 
a splendid day’s sport. 
On Friday, I shot just as much as anybody, 
but am sorry to admit that the quail did not 
know it. I do not wish you to think I had no 
success. I did, but the others had better suc- 
cess than I had. On Saturday, we all fished. 
Our fishing trip was most enjoyable. Mr. 
Moore, one of the colonists here, who is in 
good circumstances, and who resides here part- 
ly on account of his health, was our guide. He 
is a great fisherman, and never misses a chance 
to go. We drove to Marlow and rowed down 
the river in two boats. Mr. Moore, Dr. Walker 
and I went in one, and Montgomery and Harper 
in the other, (Donovan did not go). 
We had not gone far when we saw a school 
of fish with their heels out of the water snap- 
ping their jaws together as though they were 
striking at something. We could plainly hear 
them snapping. The negroes call it “popping.” 
We rowed through them several times and 
caught four of them. Then they suddenly dis- 
appeared. Whenever we would locate them 
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and catch a few they would disappear, and we 
would again start a search. 
We had all brought lunch and we got out on 
the bank where there was a spring, in as wild 
a place as you ever saw. We did not drink the- 
spring water immediately. Mr. Moore had 
brought along a “monkey jug,’ made of'a 
special clay, filled with water. The water here 
is all warm, but when it is in a monkey jug for 
several hours, even in the sun, it becomes quite 
cool. We ate our lunch and drank the monkey 
jug water, and spent a pleasant hour. We filled 
the monkey jug from the spring and resumed 
our fishing. 
On Sabbath afternoon, we went to Union 
Sabbath School in the school house, and found 
the building packed with children, plainly dres- 
sed, but as bright and clean as you will find 
anywhere. When you compare these children 
and their surroundings with lots of poor chil- 
dren in the slums of large cities, you certainly 
feel that this colony business has a good side 
to it; and that while it is pushed to make money, 
still it is accomplishing a lot for these growing 
children. This colony is certainly clean. No 
encouragement is given people who are not 
clean; no liquor is allowed to be sold, and vice 
is a stranger to the place. All the environment 
is such as will make men and women. 
After Sabbath School Mr. Montgomery 
preached, and he thoroughly convinced these 
people that he can shoot as well from the pulpit 
as in the woods; and that quail are not the only 
game he takes while passing. 
On Monday morning we had our own smoke- 
less powder shells, and we prepared to hunt in 
real earnest. We started early with the three 
dogs, Van, Sam and Bess, in fine form, as were 
the men. 
Three better dogs than those never nosed a 
bird. I many times wished I had brought a 
camera. When you see three fine dogs stand- 
ing a covey in a row, or from different points, 
all of them perfectly still, except that you can 
see by their muscles quivering that the tension 
is almost at the breaking point, you hesitate 
about putting up the birds because it will spoil 
the picture. We carried our lunch and expected 
to remain out all day, but our luck was _ bet- 
ter than we anticipated, and at noon we were 
out of shells, and had to go home for more. 
After lunch we started again, and this is where 
I break off hunting. We had not gone far when 
the dogs stood a covey of quail on the opposite 
side of a swamp from where we were. The 
water was not working much in this swamp, 
and we crossed it by jumping from one tuft of 
grass to another. While I was making a spring, 
I sprained the muscles in my right leg and I 
doubled up like a jack-knife. I was so badly 
damaged that I could go no further. I was 
about a quarter of a mile from home and I 
made it in a little over an hour. In the even- 
ing the doctor put me in the repair shop and 
bandaged my injury so that with the aid of a 
cane I can do pretty well. Of course I could 
not hunt any more. 
Mr. Moore came to see me, and took pity 
on me. He arranged for Mrs. Harris, himself 
and me to go fishing the next day. The next 
morning was cold, however, and Mr. Moore 
was afraid to go. I was sorry on his account, 
for he dearly loves to fish, but it did not spoil 
Mrs. Harris is a very bright and 
entertaining woman, and our day on the river 
was quite pleasant. 
The fish in line now are speckled trout and 
red snappers. There are plenty of black bass in 
season, but they are not biting now. The speck- 
led trout go principally in schools, and they 
have to be sought for. When you find a school, 
however, and hear them popping all around, 
and you know that the only reason you do not 
