, 1889-02-24
PELICAN
A Big Bag of Those BIrds-Kining n
Quarter of n Ton ut Five Shots

A Big Bag of Those BIrds-KInIng n
Quarter Of n Ton ut Five Shots
Probably the biggest bag of fenthered
game, or rather birds, ever mnde In this
country was made at a lake in Dakota two
years ago by two sportsmen, who killed over
q quarter OF a ton Of pelicans at five shots.
The shooters were Frank r Eshelmnn, of
Wooster, o., and Elan Wagner, son Of a
Dakota settler, with whom Mr.. Eshelmhn
was stopping while on a hunting trip IN the
northwest Early one September afternoon
Mr.. Eshelman and young Wagner werv
crossing tho prairie from n mornings sport
with prairie chickens, and when about -four
miles from al Alice, southeast Of
tho Sisseton Indian reservation, where
the Wagner homestead WINS located,
their attention was attracted by white
objects apparently dropping from the
sky over Lake Alice. The sun WINS shining
brightly and Its rays partially reelected by
tho moving objects In mid air, and thoy
looked from that distance like largo fakes Of
snow dropping earthward. Young Wagner
understood the situation at a glance, know
Ing that the objects were animate ones, and
thnt the circling. settling flight downward,
unlike the sweeping flight Of geese or swan,
showed them 20 DO p~elicans, and the season
for the southern flight OF geese and swan was
n little enrly. Pelicans breed somewhere up
In Manitoba, and their fall flight TO the south
occasionally takes In eastern Dakota, where
thcy generally drop of for n day or so on the
lakes In the territory.
1t appeared TO Eshclman and his companion
rs though tho blue sky over the lake was
alive with the white objects, and from a rise
Of ground they watched the down pour OF
pclcans, and gradually saw a long line of
white stretching ncruss the surface of the
lala Will f..aliutr naticana swim efDg1e fila
the rear ones continually flying over the ones
ahead, leap frog fashion, as the head ones
gobble up nearly all the food obtainhble, 50
that tho rear ones would find poor picking.
Young Wagner had had some experience
with pelicans on lake Alice, and knew thai
when through feeding they would congre-
gate on n sand bar known as 1.-The Point, u on
tho south side Of the lake. Such was the
case, and an hour or so Inter the bar, from
shore TO terminus, about 100 feet out Of the
water, was covered with the big birds.
Then the two hunters, having reached home
and having anxiously waited for the pelicans
10 gather on the sand bar, started for them.
The bar was difficult OF nccess, tho country
around being bare, and for several hundred
yards Eshelmnn and Wagner crawlcd snake
fashion through the grass. Wagner had an
old double barreled muzzlc loader, and Eshel-
man Ind a twelve gauge brooch loader. Hnv-
ing discarded their hunting coats and vests IT,
make crawling oasier. Wagner had only two
londs in his gun and Esholman had two shots
In his, besides two sholls In tho pocket of his
flannel shirt, all loads being BIB shot. When
within about sixty yards of the point they
rose up. The pelicans were sitting motion
les and In mnplsh attitudes. Fully 800 were
together ON the bar, and four loads OF BBAs
were cmptied into them. Eshelman fired tho
fifth shot as the pelicnns attempted TO raise
and turned over i've, having lost one of the
shells from his shirt pocket while "wurming"
it through the grass. Pelicnns set 50 close to
gcther that It Is with difficulty that they can
raise whom suddenly surprised, and they were
slow in getting away, their long wings, with
SPECIAL OF eight feet or more, striking each
otter.
Just twcnty-nne Of tho flock stayed in the
har, two c~ripplcs attempting To swim off,
ono succeeding. The other was caught by
tho wing and pulled back by young Wagner,
who rushed into the water waist deep to haul
him back, making twenty-five pelicans
brought to bag by five shots. Tho birds
weighed from fifteen TO thirty pounds, their
combined weight being about a quarter Of a
ton. It required a wagon to haul them to
the house. Among the lot were several old
males, with horns" on their bills. The old
ones arc easily distinguished from young
ones Tho lattor have paio greenish feet, and
the skin around the eyes boars II similar color.
Legs Of old ones arc more OF nm orange or
pinkish huoi also tho skin about the eyes.
Tho large skin sacks ON tho lower mandible
were empty, except marked here and there
with live lee;hes.
As palican meat is not considered palatable,
the feathers were taken for bedding, and
several Of tho finest birds were preserved for
D'ounting. Cor. Cincinnati Enquirer.