Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1881-11-19
THE GAME SEASON HERE.

THE DUCKING sPORTSMEN IN LUCK-THE "BIG
GUM ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS DECOY
DEvICES-SOMETHING ABOUT DUCKS, THEIR
HAUNTS, HABITS. &c.
The game season in the Washington markets,
especially for ducks, is now fairly open, and
great activity, both among the gunners and
dealers i'm wild game, is apparent. Large num-
bers of ducks are being brought up the river
on steamboats, daily. and those not consumed
here are shipped by the dealers to other markets
north and west. Most of the ducks quail
wOodcOck and plOyer come from the Potomac
river and Chesapeake bay, the venisOn from the
mountains of Virginia and the grouse and
peasants from the western states although
much of the small game is brought in by local
gunners and cOuntrymen.
FLUSH TINES FOR sPORTSMEN
Thus far this year ducks and other river birds
have been unusually plentiful, and the sports
men have held high carnival. The shooting sea-
son, under the present game laws of Virginia.
Maryland, and the District of Columbia. COM
mences the LIST day of September and runs TO the
LIST day of April and the laws are quite strin-
gent. One of the radical changes made is the
adjustment Of the "big" or lOng-range guns.
used on this river for more than half century
10y the old gunners, who made permanent bus
mess Of this and fishing sports.
ill-feeling between the old sports and the new
trash" as the old ones call them the mOderps
all using the dOuble-barrel breech-lOading shot
gun. and shooting from the shoulder entirely.
DECOY DEVICES.
To great extent, decoy ducks and other de-
vices. such as "boxes." ''sneak boats and
'bushwhackers'' have been dispensed with. such
as were considered indispensable in the Olden
time The 'bOx'' is sort of raft, with a
sunken cOffn-shaped box i'm the center, in which
the gunner lies at full length and out of view,
picking off the birds as they come in range.
Near these boxes from 100 to 500 decoy ducks
float on the water some being on the raft itself
The sneak boat or bushwhacker is a batteau i'm
which the gunner cOnceals himself from the
ducks by bushes and approaches them by eau
tiousiy sculling. These also use the decOys,
which are placed at convenient distance from
the boat.
A VETERAN SPORTSMAN.
The oldest and probably the most successful
river sportsman is Mr.. David Davis. No. 525 NJ
street southwest, who is past seyenty-five years
old, and until the recent game laws went into
effect had followed game shooting all his life.
The old gentleman is as hardy and gamey as
ever, and can wing his bird now at every shot
and can tell fat from lean duck when within
range by his flight and never miss it, Mr.. Davis
says when he was boy he used to
SHOOT CANVAS BACKS UP TIBER creek =
where the Botanical gardens now Are and all
the way down to 17th-street wharf, where he
has seen the air so full Of them as to hide the
sun and make complete shadow. He says this
continual Changing away" with small shot-guns
Dy these latter-day gunners Is what is driving
the ducks away
The game dealers In the market here do not
care much for the squabbling 80 that the game
IL caught and they can fill the orders.
SUPPLIES AND PRICES
Washington IL good market for ducks, and |
m uch' game b consumed here. Ducks are now
especially abundant and the supply IL increas-
Ing daily. Mr. James 6ktdmore, one OF the
principal dealers, gives Tan Fran man the re- |
I'll price ust nov prevailng, - foIlowR Can |