The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1876-08-06
HAUNTS OF THE HUNTERS.
the ExCELLENT SPORT THAT MAY
ne nan on LONG ISLAND.


An old Residents Experience in shooting
Quail. PIover, Duck and Other Birds = lie
Use Of n battery -Charmin with "a Red
Doc New Workers. at Shinneeock Bay.
Decidedly the best sport left on the
eastern shore 81 Long Island Ia the shooting,
anu II one may Judge by the annual exDei iences
OF sportsmen resortins thithcr, there Ia every
prospect of Its continuing good. The long line
OF hays ana marsh lands there are the resorts Of
snipe. plover ducks. brsnt and geese, and ex-
cepting from about the 10Th ofJuns to the 10th Of
July, aud from the 10Th Of September until The
10th Of October, there is abundance OF game, all
along this shore, at all seasons to satisfy the de-
mands OF the most exactins sportsman. Just
at present snipe aud plover shooting are attract
Ing there most Of the crack shots OF the East.
They come from Us far north as Boston, as far
south ~ WASHINGTON, and even from such re-
mote western points as Pittsburgh AMI Detroit.
And there is game enough for all.
Dir. II. l.. Wells Of Quoeue. who has been q
sportsman for thirtv-three wears and 10 still en-
thusiastic on the subject, knows intimately all
these varieties OF sDipe aud piover.
Our sHpe shooting cummences ABOUT the
18th of Auril, IL nest about the middle OF May.
and continues until the 10Th OF June. Then
there is a little lu!l, while tue birds are Away
breeding. until about the 10Th OF July, when
good again until anout the fOth OF September.
When the birds nrst arrive in the spring, they
way to some place far north, ! don't know
whore, to breed. I've heard Of them az far up
s Cape Ann stu going nOrthward; but where
they NO to hatch sucn coun, less lcks as return
here. going south In the late summer ana fab,
don't know, and don't believe snyoody else
THE HABITS OF THE BIRDS.
MAYBE they 20 as far 40 the ducks and geese
90, for all | know he continued, - but guess
No. .o@s Of th.@ Of the ,o dhsy ps 40 MAKE
their meets and hatch their young right on this
island, OF on GardDer's, or some other island up
shat way. But the best, the game birds. all 90
further north. When they return, the old
some back ABOUT month before the young;
put what has always seemed queer to me Is thit
those Young ones follow the old route and 20 to
the old feeding places, Just as II they had been
over the same ground hundred times before.
naybe they've got teachers among them, old
snipss that stay with them snd keep them back,
until they are educated IN the GEOGRAPHY Of the
sountry. bus don't know tnat az a fact. so YOU
need mt put IL down. only know that they
mighty well posted by the time they get here"
How many Kinds are there2'
We'll, I'll give YOU the list. Let me see. First,
We will commence with the smallest. and work
along up until we get To the kings OF all the
snipes. give the local names, you know. The
little o1sye Ia the smallest OF all. lie has dark
legs and brown predomnates In his feathers.
II he was scarce he wouldn't be worth hunting,
Tor bic BODY isn't much. n any. bigger than your
thuno, but he IL very sweet and delicate eating
Put peck or two " oxeyes into a nicely mate
stew and no hungry man Is gongto run away from
them after the nrst bite, without he 10 a fool. At
nrst. when he's hungry, can Just chump them
aowu. bones aud all, ~ you would ssrdins
out whep ne beRfns to Nil up he may become 4
ilttle more particular. and PICK out a few OF the
largest bones once In a while. The sapdpipsr Ia
just about the same size as the oxeye. but Is Of
. more reddish brown color, Is rather longer
built, and has a shade more biil. He Is "A good
bird, too. Down on the Jersey coast bslievs
they have some other name Tor hun, but dou't
remember now what II 10. Then comes the
rna-necked plover. thar ciass with the snipes,
where he properly belongs, because he's bay
and beach bird. He takes his name from his
peculiar bright white ring around his neck. The
beeters. or steelyard birds, as some cali them
next IN order ana tine StDueruauers follow
Both these lay their eggs here Tney are poor
saung. Dut are often snot for aintisement when
better birds not ia sight. The stonerunuer
10 white, with a black ring around the neck. he
strand or surf snige are stiii little larger and
along the beach, where the waves break. Their
legs are black and their feathers u ngnt array,
almost white Then come the leadbacks, which
are pretty near like the DOOR, because we nave
them always with US. as Scripture tells us They
They are of dark-orown color, ave a little round
black spot ON tue breast. from which some cal!
them black breasts. and tbelr backs are load
nDted, a. their proper name IMPLIES.
WHAT THE DowIr SAYS.
1.-THE dowits are next in increasing size. and
take their name from their call or whistle,
when SOUNDS Ike do-wtt. Just pliin "a a qu all
Ban say Bob White. In familiar parlance about
here, people call them dowiches.' They are
lust about AZ big rohin red-oreasts, dark
brown IN color. and are easily mistaken for Eng
tsh snipe for which they are fen sold in the
mites. and not one out u ten OF those who buy
lhem would know OUT what they are, either be-
Tore or after they are cooked. They In 10 ks,
Ind are PROBABLY the most numerous Of any Of
Doe many varieties we have among the larger
sized snipe. The little ox.yss and leadbsc ks
eutDumber them. You wouldn't believe IL II l
told you how thick they really are sometimes.
why. | have killed, with only two barrels,
Bighty-three leadb cks-tnat Is gilled dead and
not cOuuting toe wounded thai | got besides
anu know Of a man Who late In the foil, crept
on "A flock Of leadoacks wuen they we're numbed
with the cold, and, win three barrels only,
killed enough ~ them 20 pack full a common
lVO-pound Daii KEY. | know that's true, because
~ a a. fn ma mir
upward, are what We know as the oastards, ne
cause they seem 70 he cross between dOwits
among the inferior Dirds | have named, but
lhey are not worth mentioning Inese, how
aver, are large BIRDS ana appear IN tocks In
treat numbers. Tue frost bird comes next. He
arrives la's in the fall, and lives more IN tue
nelus than on the nhOre. though he hunts MS
gruo wherever he can. lie Is OF frosted color,
white with httle dark spots, and Is good for the
table Lhsn we have ne i tie yrilow-legs lg Z,
mt predonlnattng, yellow legs aud long snipe
bill They rank among the best for eating. / no
rooin-snipe. next IN the ascending scale, takes
bis name from red patch nis breast, ike
the bird he Is called after But he does not get
that until he II year old, and when young Is
sometimes mixed 40 with other varieties anu
puzzles amateur hunters TO tell what ne is.
Now We have got up to the yelper. or large
yellow-iess, than which but one Kind OF ali too
snIpes IA more delicious eating. About the only
apparent din srences between aim aud tho nttis
yeilow-ieas are that he n two sizss larRer and
has different call which you'd readily recos-
nize I; you heard It, put which cannot de-
scribe"
WINGED OUNCES.
THE willet astupid bird. that you can almost
walk up TO aud knock over with a stick-pTetty
good eatin., thOugh-is stlll a little larger He
Ia of bluisn-blac color a. you loOk at him
little way %, and has back legs. the ring
tailed IN .rn-so called because OF white ring
around toe tail, at the butt, the feathers beyond
being black while the body ID dark DrOwn-is the
finest game bird VI the whole lot. He Is very
wild, aud the sportsman who gets him not only
has puze 1T fIr the D ilate II the king Of rour-
mAnd-, bLt proves that he is a shot worthy Of
such prize Then come the Jack cuTlews.
Some call Them flutes, nut they aIe not. What
the flutes really are IN tell you when we come
20 plOver. Jack curlew has lowed Oil four or
i've inches long, body "a little bigger than "A
pigeon, and II Of light brown color. About Of
the same size ~ the red marin, which has q
ddlsh-brOwn color and long, straight bill.
Tho biggest Of all the snipe- ID the sickle niled
curlew, which Is almost AS large a. a hen aud
has uill ABOUT six Inches long, curved lust
about the same as Jack curew."
TO feed on tie small snails, sand hras. and long
red worms which they pull out with their big
bills from tue sand, near the water. With he
few exceptions nave noted they ale all hne birds
to eat, ana good shooting. And you've no idea
what numbers Of them we nave. Why, snOt
and sent to Washington Market, IN one season,
over 800 worth, ana whatever prices YOU city
folks have to pay for game, the amount the
dealers paw vs. Is always small. But that lucky
Ief ~ "A