The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1902-02-15
KILLING THE RUFFED GROUSE.

contrast, but elsewhere they stand
draped in the sheet of white.
Back of them the trees of the wood
ed country are bare. Save where a
clump of frs or balsam pines shows
greenly, there is scarcely a leaf be-
tween ground and sky.
The ruffe1 grouse, royal bird of the
northland, is robbed of the blessing of
his protective coloration. There are
no browns with which he may blend
to whir up almost from under the
foot of the hunter or woodchopper.
Over the snow his coat shows almost
as if he were crow and he can not
turn white like the northern part
ridge.
r1nd1ng seeus unuer unree inches OF
cold covering is hard matter. Even
the sumachs and hazel brush and lit
tie oaks have lost their leaves, and
good hiding places are at premium.
These are perilous times with the
ruffed grouse, or partridge, or pleas
ant, as he is misnamed.
Because ground food is scarce the
birds are forced to ironwood buds,
which are good and sweet all winter.
Because they are pursued by one
form of foe or another through the
day they venture to feed only near
sunset.
Because the ironwood, which is de-
ciduous and never more than thirty
feet high, affords them no cover at
all, they prefer to feed most actively
at dusk. They will remain in the
tree until black dark if undisturbed,
then fly softly down and find their
way to roosting place in some mys-
terious fashion of their own.
The noise of their shipping as they
wrench the buds off may be heard
200 yards away of a still winter even
ing when the frozen air is strong
conductor of sound. Often the sound
will cease sharply and dead silence
will reign for minute or so.
The cessation is caused by some
one of the covey's fancying that it
has herd or seen danger and giving an
almost inaudible signal to the others.
When this happens each bird will re-
verse his hiding practice when on the
ground.
Instead of crouching and endeavor-
ing to blend with surrounding leaves
he will rear to his utmost height and
stretch his neck and glance apprehen-
sively in every direction. He knows
that the ironwood is no place in which
to hide and his object is to locate the
danger as soon as possible and flee.
He does not cackle when alarmed,
as the chicken does, nor chirp plain
lively like quail. AS a well-train-
ed sentinel, he does his watching in
silence.
He is aware that in Strengthening
his legs and elongating his neck he
exposes himself, but he is aware also
that he has no other recourse and
being a highly courageous bird, he
acts instantly. If he is able to see
the danger he departs within the fif
tieth part of second, but, if he can
not see, he is apt to permit his appe
tite to overcome his caution and &c
on feeding.
Some mistaken individuals have as
sumed that the grouse is foolish bird
because he is often shot from trees a
this season, but there is no foolishnes.
about it. He must be satisfied tha
there is peril and he must know the
point at which it is.
Moreover, the chances are that ht
has had nothing to eat for twenty
four hours and starving fowl, like
a starving man, will run desperate
risks for the sake of food. 1t offer
happens that if flock of grouse il
discovered in an ironwood and th'
hunter is securely hidden forty yard
away he can kill half of them by
shooting first the bird on the loves
branch and so working his way to-
ward the top.
The object in shooting the loves
bird, is of course, to prevent the fal
of the body through the branches from
disturbing the others. Because thi
has been done often by the conscience
less and will be done again, reflections
upon the grouse's intellect have beef
cast, but it is to be questioned if ;
bunch Of human beings so hungerec
would show any more sense.
The weapon used in this kind O
murder is not often the shotgun, be
cause shotgun, no matter how light
ly loaded, makes good deal of noise
The rifle is the thing and the 22-cali
bre at that.
Some of these apparent toys ar
cheap to the verge of absurdity ant
amazingly accurate. One American
firm turns out single-shot rifle whicl
carries either the 22-short or ~ Ion;
cartridge. The stock cost probabl.
IS cents to manufacture; the barre
itself is as finely modelled and groov
ed as skilled workmanship can max
it. The whole costs S3.75.
This thing, which weighs only tw
and three-quarter pounds, will kill
man at seventy-fve yards provided
vital part is touched. At fifty yard
it will shoot through an inch-planl
of pine. 1t is finely sighted. If tin,
smokeless powder shells are used it
effectiveness is increased and the ex
plosion makes not half so much nois
as an old-fashioned percussion cap.
Standing at thirty yards and usin
a weapon of this kind a hunter ma
slay every grouse in the covey. Th
birds see their companions tumbl
from the branches below them an
fall upon the snow, but have n
means of knowing that they are dead
or how they were killed.
Making a bag of ruffed grouse /
this way is comparatively an eas
thing. The shooter must be prepal
ed to stand the cold, to climb up an
dor,r tba sides of SteeD hills wit