Mexico weekly ledger. (Mexico, Mo.) 1855-1956, 1891-10-29
THE PRAIRIE CHICKEN.
HOW TO HUNT 1T, AND THE KIND
OF DOG AND GUN TO USE.
The Haunts Of the Bird, and Some.
thing Of Its Habits In the
Hunting Season.
A Delightful Sport That Was Once Nor,
Common in the West.

1
| Common in the West.
James Newton Basket, of Mexico, No., in til
| Cleveland Leader.
To us Of these latter days VIII
know the pinnated grouse by th
name Of prairie chicken, it seem
strange that it should ever hav
been an inhabitant of the Easter
wooded States, and had its haunt
described, in the older books. as 'sil
the scrub" Its old name was heat
hen in the vernacular, and in scien
tific circles it was known by varie
ty Of terms. If now you wish t,
speak of him learnedly you are ex
pected to call him Cupidonia cupid,
in italics of course-a name quit
English, you know" if it is Latil
and affixed to bird as purely Amer
lean as any that ever futtered. To
day its range is confined largely t.
the region of the Mississippi Valley
with gradual tendency northwart
and westward, eneroaching upol
the haunts of its sharp-tailed broth
er, Pedioeeetes phasianellus, which
it so closely resembles, both in plum
age and habit, as to deceive the un
observant hunter. Persons shoot
ing in Minnesota, Nebraska, South
Dakota, and even portions of Hi
nois, are apt to have a mixed bag
if much luck, and not know thai
they are enjoying two kinds Of sport
Still, the species are easily distin.
guished-roughly by the sharp tail
and white underwear of the ped
ioecetes
AND OTHER PLUMAGE DISTINCTIONS
There is a noticeable advance OF
the pinnated, and recession of the
sharptail throughout the exclusive
habitat of the latter, said to be in
direct proportion to the advance OF
the wheat field, tor our pinnated
grouse, like the quail, is more Of a
home bird than the other, and likes
the cultivated farm with its cereals
grown to his taste. Let US glance
for moment at such of his habits
as may interest the hunter.
He is hatched out in the early
summer, usually in prairie pasture
and by July is able to 60 into the
oat fields, and after the harvesting
of these is apt to fall an easy prey
to the farmers boy, who heeds the
game law very lightly. At this
time the birds are fine broilers but
fly so slowly as to be poor sport fol
the marksman. By the 18th oi
August, however, they have attained
to vigorous flight and certain war;
ness born of age and experience
that makes them we'll worthy of the
hunters Damascus twist.''
Early morn and dewy eve are the
times they like to feed, strolling
from out Of the high corn, or grass
or even the densely weeded fallow
into the oat stubble-for in the
Southwest the wheat stubble is toe
old and we'll CLEANED to attract them
Later on as the sun is setting q
favorite walk is out of the corn OF
to the closely cut meadow, where
grasshoppers are the attraction, and
if you are compelled to hunt at o.
near noon, they are apt to be neal
some watering place whittier daily
they
TAKE A TRAMP TO DRINK.
That the dewdrops, as is sometime:
asserted, may at times supply then
[ cannot deny, but every old hunter
has noted the frequency of grouse
tracks in the mud of ponds ant
streams and 1 have repeatedly beel
rewarded by resorting to thes'
places when getting out too late t.
find them in their feeding places
Again we may "beard the hon in hi
den,' though our chance for goo,
sport is poor at this. Still | hav'
followed them into low grown corr
fields with fair suecess-especiall.
if the grass was high enough t.
furnish cover.
Again if out too late beat up
neighboring ragweed patch or grass.
pasture, and by looking closely yo,
may see where they have walke'
through the tangle Of fine weeds o
soft "wool grass" You may oftel
supplement a poor dog by this au'
a keen lookout for feathers, dus
wallows, and other signs. if in th
early morn you find a last nights
roosting place be assured that th
birds are not far away, for ofteI
they simply march from their couch
and begin to feed near by, or ap
proach the nearest stubble. The,
do not like to sleep upon the feedini
ground unless it be large and no othe
cover near, but the pinnated grous
| almost invariably walks to its break
| fast (while the sharp fiies) and ca
| L. k...I.l l. nc g. -az,