The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1902-11-16
A GREAT HAUNT OF BIRD GAME
CtRRTTtfK SOUND 4 PARADISE
FOR GtNNERS.

Even Called the Dcst Wild.Fo~iins Ground
| In the SOuntr, Most OF the shooting
| Preserved, Though A Score of
| clubs OF Northern Men on It's shores
WASH IN iToS. Nov. l6--Tlere il good
, ground ioi the general cor iction among
sportsmen IN the central Atlantic coast
zone that the best ll-rour.d water fowl
shooting in the United S, lies is found
among the ihlets and alon the hnumcra bic
small bays. n.l-is and chaI.nels in Currituck
Sound, urd extending therce down into
Pamiico a. far rs Ocracokc Inlet.
The Ole drawback il that nearly the
entire shooting area of Curituck from
Said Bridge down to kitty Hawk is leesed
and reserved for private shooting If Il
mail happened 10 b. President. an Admiral
IT. the navy. General In the army or a
United States Senator With knowledge of
a gun and e desire 70 kill sor1et hing. he
! can shoot or Currituck Sound. but plain,
everyday srorsmen seldom Obtain. the
| privilege.
Ii. straight ire north and south tho
Sound is abou fifty miles long. In it's
WIDEST part Il IL not ter miles across, the
averaR e berg rorhPps Ave n.ilcp
| Not les thar twenty-five shooting clul
are situated along these water or marh
! froIhs They arc the essees. IN some cases
the ownei>'. Of N" shores ard islands ard
related righ'' i, tho GGiecert writer's.
! Thcs" cluhmen are New Yorkcn, Phia-
! cclphnfs nrd some oi them hail from IA
away Bc"ton. Spcrtsnen from Rhode
| Island. Conrecticnt and New Jersey have
! 'onC had footholds on Ctirrituck Sound
| Their clubho'lsss and athouses dot the
shores OF the sotr.! end its islar ds Some
! or the buiidin q, are very pretentious Affairs
/ Their shooting grounds ere guarded with
| Jealous care by nIerintendpnts who live
' permanently at the chIh Headquarters,
! ha'-rg !. some casee several as starts
! he sound IA constantly patrolled
! Throughout The day and ofteutimes late
into the night bv the watch boats 90 those
guardians OF the wat.rfowls They are
ever on tho alert for roschers Md there
| are many poaohers to be war; 1 OF
No English nohleman keeps q more
| jealous watch md ward over his game
preserve than do these Northern clubmen.
, Their superintendents OF stewards are
| generally natives, with full knowledge Of
all the watersidc, laws and customs Of the
| country. This enables them TO protect
every interest of their employers, and they
generally do II faithful,' and successfully
Currit uo! has long been n spoitsman's
paradise The leader Of the first Eng lsh
| expedition to those corsts. nnarly 400 years
age, noted the extraordinary flight If
| waterfowls up what RfterNali became
known "a Curri,uck S'urd Before the
! Introduction Of tho destructive modern
firearms their numbers must have been
astounding.
4 hundred Year. ago there was probably
not n leased shooting place IN the Atl;,r'ic
coast from Maine 10 Florida H. those
DAYS there was free shooting for every
| body.
About fifty years ago a gradual change
| act in. Gunners found II advantageous
to own or control eligible shooting de
tricts and TO shut out Pot hunters. This
| movement began ?. ar The denseiy popu-
lated centres, but gradually ey'ended
to the moro remote shores of the hcsa-
| pcalc Ray and Currituck Sound. whcrc
! the shooting was h"st Thus began the
| Sporting club svstNm a. II isnov de ,elored
. There were few forna, local orcaiIlza,
| tions with vague rights on Currituck Sound
some Years prior 70 the civil War. but they
| lacked the cohesive olemrnts which charac-
terize the later organizations. Then there
/ were 10 Northern men on the sound; they
Sxer" strongly objected to BY The slave;
virrini1 While still few Of tho members
4 of tho modern clubs are Nirgirinns. Bati-
moreans and Washing, onians, the great
mass Of the membership j. from the far
North, and much Of II from original Yankee
\ land itself.
After the war new spirit was speedily
manifested on Currituck Sound. backed
by greater means md moro definite
| purpose About $50 the business Of socur-
int ehootinR RIGHTS md erecting clubhouscs,
| shooting stations and stocking the sound
| with sailing craft for sporting PURPOSES
began IN earnest BY 1870 tho best shoutin2
was all taken, either 10y purchase OF lease.
In ,hs thhty.Ave mics Of upper. Curri:
tuck Sound tl,er REMAINS not a foot If
fro"-shoo''ng water. In i's lower reaches
! there are n few pon'7 whore a. QUIZ '"r
| can 10 some shoe ing wi bout being run In
| for trcsrass or summariiy driven on !"
| club wnt"h-len.
After "a >ing out az Curri'uck by Coling-
| ton lar 60 the southwRrd hero are 81
| to be found many very good shooting
| stands. though around Roanoke Islaud
| several clubs arr already established Water
| In Curri,uck' S, md, but the general topo-.
raphy l. not So fa"orah.N for gm.ning
| Sout Inward the shooting again Improves,
and very little Of It has been purchased or
! loL ID
From Duck Island, at the sout crn point
, bars ara refers swarm with waterfowl
They vibrgta | tween tho ocean and tho
shallow BAYS AID limits OF Dare anf Fly de
cou tics on the main North Cniol,a shore
Gull Island in the Sound, the shooting il
en'ial TO anything in Curri,uck. Most ~
It il still free shooting, too,
No ordinary mp shows tho aquatic con-
ditions pieysi'!ng in turrituck and tho
lower sounds, ESPECIALLY alono 'hoir OCEAN
frontA They are all very shallow. They
ave sep,rated 'ro-' tho '.hnti" hv q M -
thread OF generally low and hare sand,
averaging perhaps mile wide but In mnny |
places no more than few rods separates |