The Washington herald., 1907-11-03
HUNTING GOBBLERS
How to Get Wild Turkey for
Thanksgiving Dinner.
ABOUND NEAR THE CAPITAL
Knowing NimrOds May Find Them
Not Very Far from Washington.
Advice for the Initiato-Are War
lest of Game, and Tax the Hunter.
BY EDWIN NJ. HAsnRoucK.

by EDWIN VI. HASBROUCk.
Looking back over many years of hunt
ing experiences, the writer recalls with
! keeneat pleasure the days spent IN pur-
suit Of wild turkeys. and the thrill Of
supreme delight when. after d hard morn
ing's work. he held at arms length his
first gobbler
1t takes high degree Of skill and
cunning to hunt turkeys, ami the man
who spends several days In vain pursuit
and finally bags one has a right 10 be
proud and should feel wei satisfied with
his hunt. for the game is getting scarcer-
and what is more. is exceedingly shy and
war;, a wild turkey being about the
widest thing that ever grew
1t seems strange that here in the East,
within a short distance Of the nations
Capital. one can go out with fair de-
gree Of certainty of running into bunch.
but X is nevertheless true. The explana-
ton Of this is the fact that In certain
! directions some very wild stretches of
country come nearly up to the city's
find wild turkies within ten miles of
Washington. and In sufficient numbers.
/ too. 10 make their pursuit worth while.
a few are killed near Washington every
year
! Several years ago "A flock even strayed
so close as the hills opposite -Four
| Mile Run. but they were ami
hiIated or driven away in short or
/ der. At present. one can go TO Falls
Church. and about four miles back you
viii see as fine a virgin wilderness as
could be found anywhere. stretching back
10 the bottom lands Of Accotunk Creek
| and westward 20 Herndon and beyond are
excellent turkey grounds. and the writer
ran into some while fishing along Difficult
Run last spring.
some Around Mount Vernon.
South Of us they are fairly numerous. at
| Manassas, Occcquau. and Aqua Creek.
while within a mile Of Mount Vernon.
/ back on the ridge. one can find turkeys
almost any time in the fall and one OF
| the men at the mansion told me he had
| frequently heard them calling in the sur
| rounding woods. few have been found
! every year on the Virginia side an Great
Falls. but they hay probably vanished
10 less frequented fields - this time.
Farther away. good shooting is 10 be had
IN the northern neck Of Virginia In King
| George County, and thence back % the
| Rappahannock. This region is reached
by our own river steamers. while still
farther away are the wilderness and the
forests Of the Upper Shenandoah. all Of
(which contain plenty of birds, and AFFORD
fine sport
A .l2-bore gun, with BIB shot. is the
best armament. and one wants. In addl-
ton. a good turkey cali, with the knowl-
edge and skill TO use IT, Given these. the
next thing is 20 find your turkey.
Various methods are used in this form
/ of sport, all Of which have their entbu-
siastic supporters, and all of which are
successful al one time or another. Bait
ing to blind, calling. trailing TO roosi.
stalking, and hunting with turkey dog
are the most generally used and most
worthy of mention
Ike hunting everything else. one must
kne~ something Of the habits Of turkeys
1 IN order 10 be successful To begin with
/ a given flock has usually a certain rang
ing territory, over which II wanders and
upon which it may be found somewhere
| II careful search be made. / say care
ful. because a novice NAV. travel for do,s
through the very best turkey country.
with birds fairly abundant. and never see
one. To determine the proximity Of a
bock Is, therefore. the first task that
/ confronts the shooter on arriving I'm the
hunting fields, and this is comparatively
an easy matter
How to Find the Quarry.
Did you ever notice an old hen or a
rooster scratching in the barn yard. max
ing little bare patches in the dirt or
grass? Well, that is exactly what q
turkey does when feeding. and a searcher
through the woods will find these bare
spots wherever a flock has been at work.
Unlike the barn yard fowl. a turkey
scratches only in one direction. and niles
up the leaves behind him, therefore. the
direction in which the flock has gone Is
easily told; and, furthermore. the ap-
pearance Of things viii tell how recently
the birds were at that particular spot
II the earth is damp and not yet dried.
the leaves ditto. you have probably
scared them away yourself, or at most
they are not far away; and vice versa.
Having determined that yOu are within
reach Of your game decide how you are
going 10 hunt It. But first a word about
the call" This is made in various wavs
lone man makes It from the wing bone
Of the turkey. another from q chicken
wing still another uses penny CLAW
nj fba yt-~f+ar r,,r7e+ 90, fre-.- -
see little difference in them The peculiar
/ peet-peet-peet' Of the hen turkey is
made by sucking In the air through one
end of the instrument, and covering the
other more or less until the desired pitch
is reached. My advice would be 10 prac-
tice a long time before attempting to use
it, as a single false note will upset the
whole days work
Batting is a favorite method OF hunt
ing in many localities. After having To-
Gated the range Of a flock in a general
way, construct a blind, as incOnspiCuOus-
ly as possible. somewhere near the center
of it. and. If possible, near an open place
in the woods. Arrange this precisely as
you intend il shall be when you OCCUPY
H. The birds are supposed to become ac-
customed 10 il, and any alteration. even
to the addition or removal Of a bunch of
leaves, may arouse suspicion and spoil
everything Now, with a bag Of corn,
start trail through the woods. dropping
: as you go-keep going for mile Make
several of these trails. all radiating in
different directions. and put plenty of
: feed in front Of the blind
Early Rising IA Requirement.
In a day or two repeat your trails and
then again. When you notice that the
corn is disappearing and the scratchings
show that the birds are feeding at the
blind success is assured. Bait them once
J more. and be in the blind by daylight