712 
ber enough together to put up a house. He 
will not need to bother about buying land or 
worry about taxes. 
There is quite a number of what are called 
wild horses there, but they have but little value. 
Any one who takes the trouble to round up the 
herd and can find one unbranded, if he puts 
his brand on it, it is his. They live and breed 
there year after year and are not bothered much. 
There is no way of getting them to the main- 
land other than by boat, and a boat large enough 
to carry any number of them could not be 
landed within two miles of shore, so I think 
they will be safe for some time. There are also 
cattle which are called wild, and they certainly 
look it. I saw seven head offered for $75 with 
no takers. They were a scrawny lot. They 
have to get their living, summer and winter, out 
of the marshes. 
In the month of August, in the year 1889, 
Portsmouth was visited by a high tide that 
swept about everything there into the ocean. 
Since then, on different occasions, all but the 
high spots have been under water. Each of 
these high tides has caused great destruction to 
property and loss of life. 
It was explained to me that on the occasions 
of these high tides, the wind blows the water 
from the ocean through the inlets into the 
Sound; and if it blows hard for several days from 
the ocean it will fill the Sound full; then, should 
the wind shift around to the opposite direction 
and start it back, it goes right over the bar, 
taking everything with it. 
Still, people go there to live, knowing this 
destruction is liable to happen at any time. 
As we were getting ready to leave the harbor, 
a schooner came in loaded with lumber, dogs, 
chickens and children. One of my men hailed 
the owner, whom he knew, and asked him if he 
was going to locate at Portsmouth. He said 
he was; that he would rather drown on Ports- 
mouth’s sands than starve to death at Bay River. 
It seems he was at Portsmouth during one of 
the big tides and lost everything but his boat. 
By getting on board of it, he saved his family. 
After the water went down, he moved to Bay 
River, on the mainland, but there were too many 
attractions at Portsmouth, so he returned and 
made the statement that at Portsmouth he could 
fish it in the summer, oyster it in the winter, 
and there were plenty of fowl to shoot if the 
weather was too rough to oyster it. 
On leaving Portsmouth we took a cut-off used 
by the mail boat going to Ocrocoke. We were 
soon in sight of that town, but to get there we 
had to cross an inlet close to the ocean. After 
turning the can buoy at the mouth of the inlet, 
we followed the spar buoy up to what is called 
Doxie’s Wharf. The Doxies came from Long 
Island and built this place some years ago, and 
now have a very fine hotel connected with the 
clam juice plant. They can furnish outfits such 
as live decoys, batteries, and guides to put them 
out, There is also another smaller hotel there. 
Mr. W. D. Gaskell, one of the leading merchants 
and one of the best hunters about there, would 
probably be pleased to give any information 
desired regarding the shooting in that vicinity. 
The. possibilities for goose shooting, I be- 
lieve, are better at Ocrocoke than at Ports- 
mouth. The very best place of all is between 
Ocrocoke and Hatteras inlet, as that is a place 
seldom visited by non-residents. It is a wild 
piece of country, no houses and no signs of life 
of any kind in sight, except geese, brant and 
‘ducks. 
The market hunters about this place don’t 
care to shoot geese, as they get but from forty 
to fifty cents a piece for them from the local 
buyers, while they can always get $1.25 for a 
pair of redhead ducks. : 
There is a channel called the inside way to 
Hatteras from Ocrocoke, but it is very shallow 
in places, less than three feet. of water, and as 
my men were not familiar with it, we decided 
to take the outside course to Pamlico Sound. 
We saw very few birds after we got out in the 
seemed to be 
Sound, except coots, which 
plentiful. : 
After reaching. Washington, N. C., and 
settling with the crew, I prepared to return 
[May .5, ‘1906. 

FOREST AND STREAM. 
home. Taking the trip as a whole, I enjoyed 
it very much, although there were many un- 
pleasant things to contend with. 
For the information of any one that might 
want to make a trip of this kind through the 
inland water of Virginia and North Carolina 
either as a cruise or a shooting trip, I would 
suggest that they do not start with a boat that 
draws more than three feet of water, and by all 
means to have a power boat and a good compass 
and chart. 
Currituck Sound is probably the worst to get 
through. There is but one place that I would 
consider it necessary to have a pilot, that is 
going through what is called the Little Narrows, 
between Poplar Branch and Jarvisburg. There 
is generally some one at the Narrows Island Gun 
Club, which is situated at the mouth of the 
Narrows, that will show the way. 
From Point Harbor to Manteo is clear sail- 
ing. At Manteo the channel is buoyed out. From 
Manteo to Pea Island the chart must be consulted 
frequently. The channels are wide, and there is 
but little danger. 
From Pea Island to Hatteras, it is mecessary 
to go out in Pamlico Sound and if ome has a 
small boat it is well to pick good weather. It 
is a bad place in which to be caught in bad 
weather. 
At Portsmouth it is rather difficult to get in 
the slough that is called the harbor. The charts 
show how it lays. There are usually several 
boats anchored in it. 
There is another bad place going in to Core 
Sound where there are only about three feet of 
water at times, and the channel is very marrow; 
but boats are continually passing back and forth, 
and one could hardly go wrong. Once through, 
it will be no trouble to make Beaufort. 
Now, regarding the shooting, I would say that 
for non-residents who do not belong to any 
club, Poplar Branch will furnish the best shoot- 
ing on Currituck Sound, although there is very 
fair shooting near Currituck Court House, N. 
C., at times; but the feeding ground is at least 
six miles from the town. Mr. E, W. Ansell, at 
Currituck Court House, can give information 
regarding the game supply about there. 
At Poplar Branch, Mr. W. Corbell, or Mr. 
John Doxie can furnish any information desired 
regarding the shooting about that place. 
The next good place is Englehard, Hyde 
county, N. C. This town is close to Matta- 
muskeet Lake, and there are several good stands 
of live wild geese obtainable. There is also a 
fine harbor. This lake can be reached from 
Swan Quarter, but I believe Englehard the best 
place to start from. Mr. Clayton will be pleased 
to furnish information regarding the shooting 
on the lake. At times, when the weather con- 
ditions are favorable, good shooting can be had 
there. 
Years ago, Swan Quarter and Rose Bay had 
a great reputation as a feeding ground for wild- 
fowl, but neither is gunned much now, and it 
would hardly pay to go there for that purpose. 
After Englehard, I would suggest Manteo, 
concerning which, information regarding the 
shooting could probably be obtained from the 
W. J. Griffin Co., at Manteo. From Manteo to 
the mouth of Core Sound there is plenty of good 
shooting on the ocean side of Pamlico Sound. 
Good accommodations, guides and outfit can be 
had at Doxie’s Hotel, Ocrocoke. 
At Portsmouth information can be had from 
Mr. John Wallace Salter, or Mr. Joseph Dixon. 
At all these places there are good outfits. It 
would not pay to take one along unless pre- 
pared to stay for some time in one locality. In 
that case, between Hatteras Inlet and Ocrocoke 
would be the place I would pick out. I never 
expect to make the trip again, but I do hope 
to be able to spend a week at Poplar Branch 
and Portsmouth, at some future time. 
ONESIMUS. 
LAWYER—You say you left home on the toth? 
Witness—Yes, sir. Lawyer—And came back on 
the 25th? Witness—Yes, sir. Lawyer (severely) 
—What were you doing in the interim? Witness 
—Never was in such a place——Green Bag. 
Newfoundland Notes. 
AS A RESULT of the Newfoundland exhibit at 
the Sportsmen’s Show in Boston and New. York, 
the number of visiting sportsmen to the island 
will be greater the coming season than ever be- 
fore. Judging by the numerous inquiries received 
by the R. N. Co. at the Department of Fisheries, 
it 1s apparent that Newfoundland as a sports- 
men’s resort has at last been discovered by the 
outside world. ya 
_ We have about 30,000 lakes, rivers and streams 
in the island, and scarcely oné of them but con- 
tains fish. Some of the larger rivers are, without 
doubt, the very best salmon and sea trout rivers 
in the world. Take the Humber, for instance. 
General Dashwood’s guide told me that when the 
general fished it three years ago, in a couple of 
weeks he killed, with his rod and flies, 300 sal- 
mon ranging from 5 to 25 pounds. At one time, 
last season, at the Willowsteady, on the Hum- 
ber, there were twenty-one rods fishing together. 
At times the whole twenty-one rods had hold of 
a salmon each at the same time. One party of 
three rods landed seventy-seven salmon in a few 
days, and lost nearly as many more. 
As for sea trout, one American sportsman 
landed 100 one day, ranging from % pound to 4 
pounds. These are not isolated cases, but when 
the season is favorable the same is true of many 
other rivers, such as the Gander, Exploits, the 
Codroys, Bottom Brook, Harry’s Brook. 
So much for anglers.. It has been asserted by 
a merchant of the south coast, who seems to 
know whereof he affirms, that for over 100 miles 
along the coast vast herds of caribou were seen 
in January and February. These were not in a 
thin line but extended back for over forty miles. 
I give these figures for what they are worth. The 
hunters and trappers near Burgeo estimate the 
number of caribou at about a quarter of a million, 
and assert that they are increasing rapidly, not- 
withstanding the increase in hunters. It is a 
most remarkable sight when they come out to the 
coast line in thousands and offer some enterpris- 
ing sportsman with his camera a chance to get a 
picture of caribou of a kind that cannot be dupli- 
cated on earth. I wish particularly to draw at- 
tention of sportsmen who hunt with cameras to 
the above fact. 
In the summer these herds go north, and thou- 
sands of them cross the railway track. It is then 
easy to get a head, but as they recede from the 
water line they enter an area of about 40,000 
miles that has searcely ever been traversed by 
white men. Here the sportsman can stalk his 
deer and enjoy true sport. 
The above statements have been made before, 
but I repeat them more for the information of 
Forest AND STREAM readers as well as for that 
of several sportsmen from whom I have had in- 
quiries during the winter. 
I wish to repeat here, with your permission, 
that I have no pecuniary interest whatever in the 
coming or going of sportsmen. I have no inter- 
est in any railway, hotel, guide or outfitting es- 
tablishment, and. I make and have made no money 
whatever, in connection with these notes, or vis- 
iting sportsmen. The information has been sup- 
plied as a labor of love to brother anglers, and 
I am more than repaid by several warm friend- 
ships that have resulted. I am very anxious to 
make this clear, as certain “sportsmen” in New 
York have on their own authority made asser- 
tions to the contrary. 
There was great rejoicing all over the island 
recently. The Bloodhound, the first arrival from 
the seal fishery, came in last night. She reports 
for 18,000 seals, and further reports the rest of 
the fleet with a number aggregating 300,000. The 
ships sailed March to and struck the seals on the 
16th. The whole ocean for miles was covered 
with seals. The ships steamed in and the slaugh- 
ter began. This promises to be the most suc- 
cessful voyage for many years. A successful seal 
fishery means everything to Newfoundland. It 
puts heart into the business men and buoyancy 
into business.. 
The output for the cod fishery will be much 
larger as a result of a good seal fishery. It lubri- 
cates the wheels of business, encourages the mer- 
chant and puts the fisherman in an independent 
condition to prosecute the cod fishery. 
