The daily gazette. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1874-1883, 1881-11-08
SHOOTING WILD FOWL.
The Opening ofthe Backing season
On the Susqueha anna Flats.

The Opening ofthe Backing season
On the susquehanna Flats.
Special Correspondence OF THE TINES
HAvRE DE GRACE, Nov. 2.
At this point are gathered TO-DAY
many well known triggerlsts who have
expended thousands of dollars in
ducking outfits and who disburse
many hundreds on this, the opening
gay, when the legal season commences
for duck shooting on the Havre dc
Grace fats.
THE BUsHwHAcKERs.
1t has been a better day for the
"bushwhackers" than for the "box''
smoothing or for the users of regular
craft fitted out for shooting from
sink boxes" The "bush hackers, u
VINO number over one hundred, resi-.
dent in. Cecil and Hartford counties,
own large cunning skiffs, with an
outfit Of twenty to thirty decoy ducks
70 each boat, which they anchor on
the shoals and then, after placing the
decoys, retire to some distance. When
the wild fowl stool the bushwhacker
either drifts or paddles his bush-coy-
cred craft within shooting range.
They pay license of S20.85. The
latter consists of slooped-rigged
scow" or square ender, ranging from
nifty to sixty feet in length and about
fifteen in breadth of beam, with cabin
bunked for six or eight persons. Each
OF these scows have one or more ''sink'
boxes, with an outfit of decoys that
number three to four hundred. Before
the early hours of daylight end often
on the afternoon previous to opening
day these craft sail down to a position
ON the flats, stake out their claim, and
before the first CLEAN of day place out
their decoys around the "box," in
which the shooter lies fat on his back
awaiting the flight of ducks. A "sink
box" may be briefly described as OBJ
long, with canvas wings, sunk nearly
to the level Of the water.
SHOOTING THAT is REMUNERATIyE.
A word or two about the charges made
by box owners aud sneak boats for a
days shooting. The latter charge ten
dollars day, which includes the use OF
decoys and man to do the sculling and
furnish the necessary information as to
when and where to 90. The former, or
box owners, get from twenty five TO fifty
dollars day, which includes the SER
vices OF three or more men, with at least
three hundred and fifty deceys and a
small boat to place them out. The re-
suit of favorable days shooting is by
no means poor return for the outlay
as the money value of the ducks, If sold
at wholesale prices in Havre de Grace,
will reach beyond the outlay for the
men, boats and decoys. On favorable
day the reports from the discharges Of
the guns come 80 thick and fast that 1t
is impossible to count them. This is
not the case to day, although towards
dusk quite a breeze lifted the hazs from
the southwark and eastward and the
shooting was much improved. Last
year the opening days score is said to
have been ten thousand; that OF TO day
will probably fall short of three, as the
few scores that we called out of many
improbable floating ones will indicate.
Under private ownership are the fol-
lowing boats: First, the Reckless, the
largest and most deliberately fitted out
owned by Messrs. Charles Osbourne,
John Dumotl, Polhelmus-all of New
York city. The Reckless is about sixty
feet In length and fifteen feet beam, with
q saloon thirty four feet long, finished IN
hardwood with berths for eight persons.
She has one double and one single "sink
box" with about five hundred decoys,
with an additional four hundred brant
decoys soon to be on board. Her crew
consists of five-a captain, steward and
three deck hands. The number Of
ducks killed from the boxes Of the Reck-
less can only be approximated-2O0
would seem to be q fair estimate.
The Carrie, owned by Mr.. d. G.
Wharton Smith, the stock broker of
South Third street, with Captain John
Poplar In charge, was also in service,
and ran up score of about $50 ducks.
Captain Poplar said that the floating
grass interfered materially with the
decoys. The grass, or rather the tops
of the wild celery, has been torn up
by the roots by the feeding ducks, and
drifting among the decoys gather in
great punches and often completely
covers the stools.
Perhaps the most astonishing and
exceptional performance was that OF
William Ii. Dobson, who killed sol
ducks with one gun on the opening
day-his second or auxiliary CUR
bursting at the first discharge.
SOME OF THE OTHER BOATS.
The Jno. A. Russell, In which wert
Judge Gildersleeve and friends, o.
New York, was stationed on the lowe
end of the flats and scored few duck
over two hundred.
Among the other craft owned b,
private sportsmen were the Widgeon
owned by Joseph Earl and Mr.. Flint
of New York, Captain Charles Moor
| in charge the Lille, owned by VIII
liam d. Windsor, Philadelphia, of tn
Boston Steamship Line, Capt. William
A. Myers in charge; the Mignon,
steam yacht, owned by Colonel Stuck
ney, of the Arm of A. Hilles, Jr., 4
Co., coal miners; the Mischief, til
steam yacht owned by Hamilton Diss
ton, of Philadelphia. The shooting
from the boxes of the Mischief wa
done at the mouth of the North Eas
river, and from the constant reports c
the guns we judge their score to b
| anita a fine one. She did not land a