May 12, 1906.] 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
749 


house, and on looking that way I saw a large 
‘weasel attacking the hens. They were good-sized 
fowls, and although he repeatedly sprang at their 
throats, they manaced to prevent him from gain- 
ing a fair hold. In those days that was a new 
country, and our firearms were always loaded. I 
sprang for the house, caught down a shotgun 
from its hooks, and rushed to the scene of action. 
The weasel had apparently been alarmed by my 
movements, and by the time that I was within 
range, it has left the hens, and was darting into 
a pile of brushwood which had been thrown upon 
a rock several rods away. I took a snapshot at 
the weasel, just as he was disappearing into the 
brush, and when this had been removed, I found 
that he was just at the entrance of his burrow 
when the charge struck him. This it must have 
done, for, although I looked in vain for blood, 
he never came out of that hole. I never saw 
another on that farm. KELPIE. 

Killer and Swordfish. 
A REPRESENTATIVE of the Forest AND STREAM 
inquired of Mr, C. H. Townsend, Director of the 
New York Aquarium, as to the reported battle 
between killer. and swordfish, an account of 
which was printed in the Forest AND STREAM of 
April 14. Mr. Townsend’s experience on the sea 
is probably not equalled by that of any other 
American naturalist, and his observations on sea 
life are very valuable. Mr. Townsend said: “‘I 
am somewhat skeptical as to the reported sword- 
fish and killer battle. Killer whales are notort- 
ous fighters and eaters, and we know that the 
swordfish is pugnacious when harpooned, but I 
doubt the accuracy of most observers in regard to 
alleged attacks on whales or killers by swordfish. 
“The swordfish is merely a big mackerel feed- 
ing on small fishes which run in schools. It kills 
them by thrashing with the sword from side to 
side. It could not possibly take a bite out of 
either killer or whale if it wanted to. Its mouth 
has no teeth and is so placed as to prevent its 
biting any large animal. There is no reason why 
it should fight with killers. The latter could not 
catch it since it has greater speed than they, and 
they certainly could and would bite it at close 
quarters. The killer is the aggressor in these sea 
fights and can undoubtedly destroy the larger 
whale, There is no evidence that the swordfish 
attacks larger animals which it could not use.” 
Is the Eagle a Common Robber? 
GLoucester, Mass., May 2.—Editor Forest and 
Stream: Years ago I remember reading in 
ForEST AND STREAM a report of an eagle robbing a 
fish hawk. I think the narrator’s account was, 
that the hawk had just risen from the lake with 
his capture, when the eagle attacked him, and 
forced him to drop his fish, which the eagle in 
turn caught in the air before it could strike the 
water. 
I have observed a proceeding bearing on the 
eagle’s proclivities as a robber—which appears to 
me—and I think your readers will agree with me 
—more extraordinary than robbing a hawk, for 
in this case the bird robbed a seal, which is 
known to be—while in the water—possessed of 
rapid motion to a remarkable degree. 
Our schooner at the time was lying at anchor 
in Bradford's Cove, Grand Manan, at a distance 
of about two hundred yards from shore. An 
eagle was perched upon a projection about half 
way up a two hundred foot cliff directly opposite 
the vessel. While we were enjoying our after 
supper smoke, a seal with a fish in his mouth 
came to the surface, about half way between the 
vessel and the shore. 
The eagle just then was seen scaling in the air 
above the seal. When he had reached a short dis- 
tance beyond the seal, he suddenly turned, and 
like a flash passed over the seal, taking the fish 
as he went. 
The seal with great commotion dove at the 
flash. The eagle took the fish to his perch, and 
in plain sight of us all, tore it apart and devoured 
ne, ‘ 
In the light of this testimony I would ask— 
should we call the eagle a common robber, or 
shall we just say that he is entitled to that 
which he can take from so smart an opponent. 
There may be some among the many readers 
of Forest AND STREAM who—if their patriotism 
deter them not—will give their evidence of some 
instance, wherein they may have seen the eagle 
doing the highway act. CyaWae sEURDY: 
Dog Nursing Kittens. 
THE sight of a dog nursing a lot of kittens is 
no more unusual, perhaps, than that of a cat 

DOG NURSING KITTENS, 
nursing coyote pups or fox cubs, yet it is inter- 
esting enough’‘to be worth reproducing. 
New York Audubon Society. 
THE annual meeting of the Audubon Society 
of the State of New York for the protection of 
birds was held March 16 last at the American 
Museum of Natural History, and the annual re- 
port has just been issued. 
This report shows a gain during the year of 
1,82t new members, making a total membership 
of 7,222. The treasurer's report shows a cash 
balance on hand of $753.69. Besides awakening 
interest by sending out its leaflets and law post- 
ers, of which 34,000 have been distributed, the 
Society possesses a traveling lantern and _ slide 
outfit for the illustration of lectures, which is 
almost constantly employed and arouses interest 
and enthusiasm. The use of the outfit may be 
had by any adult member of the Society who will 
comply with the conditions that no entrance fee 
is to be charged at any exhibition, and that the 
express charges to the next point of destination 
will be paid. No other expense attaches to the 
use of the outfit. 
The report urges the support of the Federal 
bill for the protection of animals, birds and fish . 
in the forest reserves, and general observance of 
bird day. 
The Prong Buck’s Horn Shedding. 
New York, April 23—Editor Forest and 
Stream: Can any of your readers tell me when 
and where may be found the first printed men- 
tion of the shedding of the antelope’s horns. 
That these horn sheaths are regularly shed 
was well known to hunters for many years before 
it was known to science. In his second volume 
of the quadrupeds of America, Audubon men- 
tions that the hunters of the Missouri River told 
him of it during his expedition to Fort Union 
in 1843, and relates how he proved the men at 
the fort to be in the wrong. Notice of the shed- 
ding of these horn sheaths was sent to Prof. 
Baird of the Smithsonian Institution by Dr. C. 
A. Canfield of Monterey, Cal., but the statement 
seemed to Prof. Baird so extraordinary that it 
was not published. Finally in 1865 came the paper 
by Mr. Bartlett published in the Proceedings of 
the Zoological Society of London, which made 
public this extraordinary process, though for 
some years afterward it was not generally credit- 
ed. Prof. Baird published Dr. Canfield’s letter, 
which was dated Sept. 10, 1858, in the Proceed- 
ings of the Zoological Society, London, 1866, p. 105. 
The other day while reading an old volume 
printed in 1846, “By a New Englander’’—Rufus 
B, Sage—I came across a mention of this habit. 
After saying—p. 32, that the female antelope is 
usually hornless, but sometimes bears small horns 
attached to the skin, the author adds: “The 
male, however, is equipped with hook-shaped 
antlers, ebony colored, and six or eight inches 
in length, which it sheds annually in the months 
of November and December.’”’ A complete state- 
ment of fact, except that he does not explain 
that it is the sheath that is shed, and that he 
calls the horns antlers. 
The work quoted from, is entitled “Scenes in 
the Rocky Mountains and in Oregon, California, 
New Mexico and the Grand Prairies; or Notes 
by the Way, During an excursion of Three Years, 
with a description of the Countries © passed 
Through &c., By a New, Englander.” As stated 
it is from the pen of Rufus B. Sage, and was 
printed in Philadelphia by Cary & Hart in 1846, 
G:; B.G. 
Spring in Florida. 
Editor Forest and Stream: 
The first of our purple martens came back, 
perhaps from Cuba, on the eighth of February. 
They were succeeded by others, until their house, 
which I think contains sixty-four compartments, 
was apparently quite full, and we noticed that 
a few of the birds were seated at times upon the 
roof. A friend of mine, who used to own this 
place, now lives perhaps eighty rods away, and 
he last year erected a small marten house on his 
premises. This spring, he put up another, and 
some of his neighbors were helping him to raise 
the mast on which it was placed, when, as we 
suppose, our superfluous martens discovered that 
there would soon be room for them. At any rate, 
they scarcely waited for the house to be in pos- 
ition before they occupied the building, and they 
have been there ever since. 
We saw our first hummingbird on April 14. 
I do not know what kind it was, as it quickly 
disappeared. I have not seen as many of these 
birds here as in California, where they seemed 
quite numerous. When sitting down to rest, 
after a ramble on the mountains of Santa Cata- 
lina, I have had them examining carefully the 
large bouquet of wild flowers which I carried. 
I noticed that they seemed quite fond of the blos- 
soms of the Chilian tobacco, which is now very 
common on the island. When I was on the island 
of San Miguel, I observed that vegetation was 
comparatively scarce, and when Captain Waters, 
who owns that island, came to see me at Santa 
Catalina, I suggested that he should take back 
some of the seeds of this tree, and as he did so, 
I think it likely that it is now growing on his 
island. : 
There is a yellow jessamine growing about our 
front piazza, and we yesterday found ‘that a red- 
bird had set up housekeeping among its branches, 
How the birds managed to build their nest with- 
out our knowledge, I cannot say, but there they 
are, and we are very glad to welcome them. 
We keep food and water for the birds in a tree 
near one of our windows, and at certain seasons 
they come there quite regularly, but during the 
season of mating and nesting, they scarcely touch 
the food. KE PIE. 
TARPON Sprinos, Fla., April 30. 
Our sincere sympathy is extended to our 
esteemed contemporary, the Breeder and 
Sportsman, of San Francisco, which met 
grievous disaster in the general and over- 
whelming calamity consequent to the recent 
earthquake and fire. However great the ma- 
terial loss of the Breeder and Sportsman, its 
courage remains unimpaired. Its publisher, Mr. 
F. W. Kelley (P. O. Drawer 447, San Fran- 
cisco), announces that the publication of it will 
be resumed as soon as possible to make the 
necessary arrangements for typesetting, press- 
work, etc. Our hearty good wishes are ex- 
tended to the Breeder and Sportsman for its 
speedy recovery and for the full share of pros- 
perity and greatness which should come to it 
with the prosperity of the new and’ beautiful 
San Francisco now building. 
