Northern Peninsula
returning in September and October to their winter quarters. At that time an enormous proportion of the caribou killed in Newfoundland were shot on their migration while crossing the line of railway near Howley Station. During the period that this annual battue lasted, the sportsmen camped about the station, and it often happened that when one individual took up his position on a likely "lead" or natural avenue to wait for the migratory deer, he met with no success, owing to the fact that another man with a rifle was ensconced unseen in the same lead some distance above him. Although Howley is still visited by numbers of shooters, the tendency of the hunters is to follow the example, set by Mr. F. C.
Selous, of going to look for the caribou instead of waiting for the caribou to come and look for them. One result STAG SWIMMING ACROSS A LAKE. of these observations made further afield is that it is now conclusively proved that vast numbers of caribou do not any longer cross the railway, but spend the whole year in the woods and upon the barrens of the interior. It is probable that deer moving in this way travel over much the same ground every year. This is borne out by the fact that the writer identified a stag recognisable by a single malformed horn two consecutive seasons about the same spot. The caribou of Newfoundland may be roughly divided into three divisions, the first two of which intermingle during migration. The best known is that already alluded to as crossing the line of railway in its migration; the second herd inhabits the vast interior south of the railway, and appears to migrate between the railway line to the north and the south coast, and is the one hunted by the Micmac Indians; the third is a small body of deer, the survivals of a herd that once occupied the Avalon peninsula south of St. John's, and these do not migrate at all.
EE Game Laws. There are two seasons, divided by a close time of three weeks, during which caribou may be hunted. The first lasts from August Ist to September 30th inclusive; the second begins on October 21st, but as the deer drop their horns in the beginning of November, only the early part of this season is of value to the sportsman in search of trophies. During the September season (the horns are not clear of velvet until the first days of that month) the stags keep much in the shelter of the thick woods, only emerging at dawn or dusk or by chance. At this time the hunter must be prepared for a good deal of watching by lakes and sandy reaches and at certain marshes, and the number of stags seen is sure to be comparatively few; but, on the other hand, the caribou is unquestionably a more difficult beast to secure in September than later in the year, when, if the hunter hits upon the migration, he will naturally see many more animals, and also find them in more open ground. The rutting season commences in the last days of September, and continues throughout October. During this time the stag-meat is almost uneatable, so that except for their horns the animals killed in the second season are often wasted.
The licence to shoot caribou, which costs $50, permits the hunter to shoot three stags only. The number has recently been reduced, as under the old licence law five stags and two does made the limit. Residents of the island may kill five caribou annually, but as long as a Newfoundlander is acting as guide to a non-resident, he is, very wisely, prohibited from exercising his right. All guides must be certificated, and non-resident guides must take out a licence for the season costing $50.
The greater part of the interior of the island in the neighbourhood of Middle Ridge is divided into hunting-grounds by the Micmac Indians, a branch of the Nova Scotian tribe who transferred themselves from the mainland about the middle of the eighteenth century. They do not resent the killing of caribou on their grounds, but if trappers worked over the same districts, they might resent the invasion.
H. HESKETH PRICHARD.
CARP (Cyprinus carpio). — ANGLING (COARSE FISH.)] [Sec MEASUREMENTS, &c. -Length of head 4 to 43, of caudal fin 5 to 6, height of body 3 to 4 in the total length. Eyes-small, situated a little before the middle of the length of the head, 2½ diameters from the end of the snout, and 3 apart (in an ex- [CARIBOU ample nearly 17 in. long). Opercle strongly striated. The proportions of the various parts of the fish are exceedingly diverse, dependent upon age, sex, and locality.
Barbels of moderate length, those at the maxilla the longest, and almost equalling one diameter of the orbit. Lips thick and leathery. The maxilla reaches to beneath the front edge of the orbit. Fins-dorsal commences rather nearer to the snout than to the base of the caudal, its first two or three, or rarely four, rays are bony, the last being serrated posteriorly, while the anterior portion of the fin, which is the highest, equals about two-fifths of the CARP. rows height of the body below it. Pectoral situated low down; its length equals about that of the head without the snout, and it does not extend to above the ventral, which latter reaches half-way to the anal. First two or three anal rays osseous, the last being serrated posteriorly. Caudal deeply forked. Scales-large, 5 to 6 between the lateral line and the base of the ventral fin. Colours-vary, usually brownish or with a bluish tinge along the back, with golden or coppery reflections along the sides. Some have been described of a whitish tint, due, perhaps, to age, others as having black spots caused, perhaps occasionally, by parasites. Day, Fishes of Great Britain and Ireland, vol. ii., p. 158.
CATAPULT SHOOTING. - Ever since the Romans used it as their great engine of war, a series of weapons of great accuracy and greater shock have gradually ousted the catapult from its first stage of importance, until it has degenerated to the mere plaything of schoolboys. In the big schools of England, France, Germany, and America, the catapult is still From an original painting by E. Calawell.
From an original painting by E. Calawell.
CARIBOU.
THE TATE CENTRAL LIBRARY BRIXTON, S.W.
CHAMOIS] as popular as it was with our grandfathers.
For the most part, a coarse inaccurate weapon, used in hurling small stones, and combining economy and inaccuracy, is in favour.
In a large public school, probably twenty per cent. of the boys have at one time or another used catapults; and though probably only two or three ever really master the science, yet the little weapon is, when properly made and used, and taking into consideration the rough materials of its construction, capable of a wonderful degree of accuracy.
If the history of many of the very best sportsmen and shots could be written, it would be found that the foundations of their skill with gun and rifle were laid in early days by the use of this insignificant weapon. To youths who have not yet attained to the use of large weapons, there is no finer training for judging distances on a small scale than shooting with the 66 tweeker," the small catapult to which I shall presently allude. Every shot fired can be seen by the shooter to the top of its parabolic curve, and even when it has begun to drop.
What, it may be asked, has the catapult got to do with the sportsman who has arrived at years of maturity? And of what practical use is it? None, certainly, to anyone who only begins to shoot with it in days when the muscles of the arm have become rigid, for there is a certain knack about its use not to be acquired in after years. But to the big-game shooter who may find himself in some out-of-the-way corner of the earth, such as Western America, Newfoundland, Iceland, Spitzbergen, and other places, where the various species of grouse and ptarmigan are plentiful and tame, it is of every use. There is not a big-game hunter in search of large animals, who has not, at some time and in such a country, been confronted with the difficulty of supplying his pot with fresh meat without having to bang off his gun or rifle at the risk of disturbing the whole neighbourhood and his particular quarry.
A man who knows how to use a catapult, even though he may not be a first-class shot with it, will find the little weapon of immense help under such circumstances. The various species of grouse, particularly the blue Rocky Mountain grouse (Dendragapus obscurus), will, with care, readily allow a man to approach to within eight or ten yards, a distance at which, after a few shots, the catapulter ought easily to be able to strike a blow effectively in either the head or neck. It is not difficult to avoid GANTRAL LIBRARY BRIXTON, S.. striking the bird in the body, as the necessary elevation can quickly be obtained against the clear sky. Every shot can be seen, and the shooting is practically noiseless, so that it does not disturb the birds, who only raise their heads and look about, even when a pellet may have touched the feathers in their neck. During a trip to the Rocky Mountains in 1886, I found the blue grouse very plentiful in the Big Horn Mountains, and could generally manage to supply the pot for the day when bigger game was scarce. For this purpose I used elastic about 7/8 inch in thickness, which is nearly double that of "tweeker" calibre, and gives a greater shock without perhaps the same degree of accuracy.
Materials. Catapults are like rifles in one respect: the thinner the elastic, or the smaller the bore, as one would say, the greater the accuracy. But then, again, range is curtailed by too thin an elastic. Although not giving sufficient shock to kill outright so large a bird as a grouse, the best elastic for all-round use, combining accuracy and shock, is 16 inch thick, and used in lengths of 9 inches, with a single No. I shot, dog-skin pouch, and fork of privet, which should be peeled, dried, and hardened in the smoke of a candle. With such a weapon properly made, it is not difficult for an expert to put ten pellets in a three inch circle at ten yards. Nearly the whole art of shooting properly with so delicate a weapon is to get the force required. This can only be done by the shooter finding out for himself exactly how to give the pull back of the left hand, holding the shot in the pouch, and letting go as the right hand gives the forward jerk to the fork. But no man can be taught to shoot with a catapult, or any other weapon, by means of a book, though certain hints may be of use, and accuracy is obtained only by constant practice.
The elastic should never be used cold as it is bought. The best plan is to carry it in the breeches pocket two days before using, or steam it for an hour or two in hot water to make it soft and pliable. The writer knows of one boy who was so devoted to his sport that he always carried a strand or two of the elastic in his mouth, ready for immediate use.
J. G. MILLAIS.
CHAMOIS (Rupicapra tragus). - Chamois stalking is with the Austrians what fox-hunting is in England. It is the favourite sport of the Austrian Kaiser, and of all who can indulge in it. But the number who follow the Alpine goat is small EE2 compared to the number who follow the stag, partly on account of the expense incurred, and partly on account of the dangerous and fatiguing nature of the work. The first question the huntsman asks the stranger is whether he is schwindlig (giddy). If the latter can fearlessly answer in the negative, and proves on his first essay that he is possessed of the necessary nerve in negotiating dangerous places, the Jäger is satisfied and beyond giving a hand in places where only a son of the Alps could manage to progress at all-will confine his attention to the game.
The chamois is hunted by the Birsch method, or stalked, both in summer and [Photo. by W. S. Berridge, F.Z.S.
CHAMOIS. winter. In the warm weather he keeps to the highest summits of the Alps, but the deep snow brings him down almost to the valleys in search of food, and those who can stand the cold and the fatigue prefer to stalk him in winter. When the snow is very deep, however, stalking is out of the question, and one is reduced to driving.
Habits. He is a very peculiar animal in his movements. The stag will hurry from place to place, only stopping to feed, and thus traverse miles in a day and night; but the chamois will often remain feeding for days together in an area as confined as that of an ordinary dwelling-house. Yet it [CHAMOIS for a minute together, but is continually imbued with an unconquerable restlessness that prompts him to take little quick jumps between almost every nibble at the herbage.
He is ever on the alert for a foe, and this wariness makes stalking very difficult. His scent is keener than that of the stag, which again enhances the difficulty. In the deepest snow, with a wild wind raging, the chamois will spring unhesitatingly at the face of an apparently perpendicular wall of rock. He makes for the patches of snow visible on the face of the rock, for either instinct or experience has taught him that where there is room for snow to catch he can find footing.
Local Knowledge, &c. -There is no sport that requires such perfect and unerring local knowledge as chamois stalking. In many places during one day a sportsman's life is absolutely in the hands of the Jäger who conducts him. The Jäger must know every inch of the track, for one false step may mean almost instantaneous death. Consequently, only picked men of undoubted local knowledge are chosen, generally those who have served a long apprenticeship as beaters or drivers.
I may here mention, as it is not generally known, that the Jäger is a servant of the State, for, although paid privately by the gentleman who employs him, he is bound to pass a qualifying examination, and take an oath, before his licence is granted him.
Moreover, there are regiments recruited from the ranks of these Jäger, similar to the Chasseurs of France.
Buck and "Geiss." - One of the principal difficulties in chamois shooting is to distinguish between the buck and the Geiss, or female. The general contour of their forms is alike; they are much the same size, and the horns are very similar in male and female. The only, or at least the main, difference is that in the buck the horns are wider apart at the tips and thicker at the base than in the female. In the Jägersprache, or hunting slang, which is very elaborate in that country, the word Geiss has come to be applied only to a female without young, although it really only means goat." 66 Clothing. The sportsmen and Jäger wear short breeches made of the skin of the chamois, preferable to cloth or leather, for the former gets wet and the latter is generally too stiff to be manageable. The Jäger's dress is very quaint, but very practical, which is everything. The breeches, as just mentioned, are of chamois skin, barely reaching to the knee, in order to leave the leg free for climbing, and prettily decorated CHAMOIS] must not be supposed that he remains quiescent. On the contrary, he is never still with designs worked in thread of emerald green. In summer bright green stockings are worn, not quite as high as the knee; but in winter many pairs of long thick stockings are worn right up to the thigh.
The coat is of dark green cloth, with many pockets, and buttons of horn. The more pockets one has when chamois stalking, and the more one manages to get into them, the better one is satisfied. Thick, heavily-shod mountain boots, and a hat decorated with trophies of the chase, generally the feathers equivalent, are given for a fair trophy of this description, and considerably more if the specimen be a really fine one. In addition to this trophy, the Jäger generally extracts the two front teeth, and these are worn in scarf-pins. It is no uncommon sight to see a Jäger, or even a peasant landholder, wearing as trophies all that remains of several stags, chamois, and Auerhahn, or capercailzie.
On account of the glaciers to be crossed, slippery rocks to be traversed, and similar obstacles, the huntsman must have his feet shod with climbing irons, bound firmly to [Copyright by Underwood and Underwood.
A CHAMOIS IN ITS NATURAL HAUNTS. of the capercailzie, or a chamois "beard," complete the costume. the foot with stout leathern thongs, and furnished with sharp spikes to grip the ice or rock. He also carries a Bergstock, or mountain stick, a long pole with a spike at the end, which is really and truly as necessary in some places as the man's own legs. a This chamois "beard," as it is called, is the trophy of the chamois chase. The name is given to the hair which grows along the spine, and which is exceedingly long and handsome. In winter it is a rich dark brown colour, tipped with silver-grey points, but in summer it turns to a greyish tint.
The huntsmen pull it out most carefully, and arrange it in the shape of a plume, binding the root ends very firmly together with a green thread. This plume is worn in the hat, generally fixed with a silver brooch stamped with the figure of a chamois. The task of picking, arranging, and binding the hairs is a slow and tedious one, and makes these trophies very valuable. Between three and four pounds sterling, or their Chamois Ground. To show that the chamois requires some room, I may mention that my chamois ground, by no means a very large one, covers an area equal to fifty English square miles. A little lumbering is done on the ground, and some of it is given over to peasant holdings, but the bulk of it is virgin Alp land, roamed over by the chamois, my Jäger, and poachers.
Poachers. These are very numerous, and form a powerfully antagonistic element to sport. Poaching as they do from sport and not from want, they are very hard to deal with, and as it is an easy matter for them to find out in what part of the country you will be shooting at a certain time, it is no uncommon thing for them to be enjoying themselves simultaneously at a conveniently remote distance. They do not even stop at human bloodshed when pursuing their illegal sport, but will open fire on the Jäger if molested, and many are the reports that come in from the more remote and lawless districts of Jäger being tortured or murdered whilst endeavouring to do their duty. On one of the last occasions that I was out stalking, we heard rifle shots not very far from our position, in consequence of which my Jäger had to leave me and go and prospect. He was away that day and night, returning next day at noon, but could discover nothing.
Dangers of the Sport. One of the greatest dangers encountered in chamois stalking arises from the frequency and suddenness of the Lavine, or whirlwind, accompanied generally by an avalanche of snow, which will come upon the huntsman suddenly and without warning in deep gorges of the Alps, roaring down the mountain side with terrific force, or catching him as he breasts some steep bluff. Such is the force of the wind, accompanied by blinding snow, that the sportsmen are often in danger of being whirled bodily away by the strength of it, and from generations of experience and sad fatalities have learnt to throw themselves face downwards on the ground when it is heard approaching.
A Day's Sport. - To give an idea of what a day's chamois stalking means, I will briefly describe a day on one of my last outings.
We rose hours before the dawn on a December morning, with a world of snow around us such as is only seen in Alpine and Northern lands. Breakfast was the first consideration, and full justice we did to the meal. The very prospect of going through a fatiguing day's work in such cold induces one to eat, if only from motives of physical economy. Then, the Jäger having bound on our irons, and our Rucksacks loaded, we put on our strong leathern gauntlets, and, climbing pole in hand, followed our Jäger bearing the rifle slung at his back, and carrying a collapsible lantern to light the way till such time as it should brighten. The snow was half-way up our thighs even in the valley (if the gorge round our hut, three or four hours' march from the nearest hamlet, and high up among a chain of Alps, can be called a valley), and we speculated curiously as to what it would [CHAMOIS be like higher up. Meanwhile, all we had to do was to tread in the Jäger's capacious footsteps, and take care not to slip or fall into some unseen cavity. Four hours' stiff climbing, during which our clothes were saturated with perspiration, brought us to a point that we could easily reach in one hour in summer. The lantern had long been extinguished and packed away, and a cold white glare hung over the peaks. We were now half-way up one side of a vast gorge, scalloped out of the mountains by centuries of recurring winter snows and spring floods. On a perilous-looking bluff on the opposite slope, just below the line of the eternal snow, is a substantial hut of pine logs, reared by an adventurous Englishman who had come prospecting in the rugged gorges around for precious stones, and, what is more, had found them. we The Jäger drew his long Hirschfänger ("stag-catcher") and proceeded to chop off some pine boughs with it for me to sit on.
This knife is very powerful, with a heavy horn handle, and is carried bayonet-wise in a belt around the waist. It is used for despatching the game, gralloching, and pioneering through the undergrowth. He removed my climbing irons, produced from the depths of his haversack my felt overboots, and made my lower man comfortable. My air cushion was inflated, and having donned my thick fur coat, I sat and enjoyed a second breakfast, with the strongest of schnapps, a brand called Slivovitz, introduced from Turkey. It is really astonishing how much coarse fat and raw spirits a man can consume when chamois stalking.
Breakfast was nearly over when sighted a herd of chamois at some considerable distance. I raked them with my glasses, and could make out several fine bucks, jumping every few seconds, as they fed, in their jerky, nervous manner. We packed up and started stalking, but it was no good. We could not get anywhere near them. Later on we sighted a solitary old buck with a fine pair of horns on the wrong side of a rather dangerous glacier. To reach it we must scale flight after flight of escaliers built of rough pine logs, and clamped to the face of the rock with iron.
It is a beautiful but a terrible pathway.
One looks down seemingly miles to the gorge below, and speculates on the results of a false step. In the crevices the Edelweiss blooms gaily, raising its little white star in emulation of the white around. We crossed the glacier, bending nearly double, feeling our way inch by inch, and taking care to get a good grip with our irons before making a single step. The chamois was CHAR] feeding in a patch of cover near the farther edge. The wind suddenly changed, veering towards him. He became suspicious instantly, although he could see nothing, and came down towards us. While he paused after a run, as is the custom of the animal, I took aim, although he was nearly four hundred paces away, for I knew my only chance had come, as the path he was striking would take him further from me. Simultaneously with the report, and to my intense chagrin and mortification, he went down the slope, skirting the glacier as fast as he could.
We ascended the gorge above the glacier with dampened spirits, when suddenly around a bend came a herd of some fifteen or sixteen, bucking along in a straggling line. I fell upon my knees and waited.
Fortunately the wind held good, and they came within range all unsuspecting. I singled out, as I thought, two fine bucks, and fired, succeeding in dropping both. The rest turned, sprang at the rocks and disappeared. On investigation one turned out to be a good buck, the other a very welldeveloped Geiss; but we were not undeceived regarding the latter till we had it in the skinning-house.
To show what skill a veteran Jäger can acquire, I may mention that on one occasion his Majesty the Emperor of Austria shot twenty-seven chamois in one day, of which nineteen were bucks. To anybody who can appreciate the difficulty of distinction, this record. To the late Count Meran, son of the Archduke John, belonged the honour of having dropped two thouconstitutes sand. a In conclusion, I can thoroughly recommend chamois stalking as a sport that brings out all the true qualities of a sportsman, and to any of my readers who may chance to embark on it I wish most heartily Waidmannsheil!
SCHLICK.
CHAR (from the Gaelic ceara--red or blood-coloured), Salmo alpinus, S. salvelinus, S. willughbii, S. cambricus, Welsh torgoch. This, the rarest of our nonmigratory Salmonidæ, has been very much subdivided by naturalists without sufficient cause. The char which inhabit various waters in England and Wales, Ireland, and Scotland are all of the same species, slightly altered by the different surroundings under which each has lived. Those from Windermere and Coniston (Westmorland and Lancashire) are without doubt the finest in the British Isles, not only in size, but in flavour. When transferred from these larger lakes to smaller sheets of water, such as Hawes Water and Goats Water, the char have changed in outward appearance very much. In these latter places they fail to find the same food, larvæ, water beetles, &c., upon which they thrive in what may be called the parent waters; they therefore degenerate in size, and rise more or less freely to the fly, both natural and artificial.
In such places it is to the char of Windermere just about what the brown and yellow tiny burn trout is to the lusty trout of larger rivers and lakes. Notwithstanding what has been said to the contrary and its nomenclature, "alpinus," it is indigenous to this CHAR. country, and there is no proof of its naturalisation with us. As a sporting fish it does not rank high, rising most freely to the fly in the smaller lakes. In those of Cumberland, Westmorland, and Lancashire, where it is found in greatest abundance, it is mostly taken by nets, which are drawn in deep waters on to the shallows. It is also commonly caught by means of "plumb lines," which were invented in order that the artificial baits-spoons or pieces of metal, bright on one side, coloured on the other, cut out in the shape of a fish--used on them, might be spun steadily at varying depths. Two lines are used from each boat, one on each side, and each line has from four to six baits on it. To keep them down, a sinker of about 1/2 lb. weight is used, so adjusted that it will not spin round and entangle the line. Each line is fastened to a somewhat stiff rod of about ten or eleven feet long, which is fixed upright in the boat, and to which a bell is attached. When a bait is struck the "tinkle-tinkle " warns the fisherman, who is slowly plying his oars, of the fact. In the English lakes char are seldom nowadays taken with fly or worm.
In Llanberis Lake they have occasionally been taken in large quantities with the worm at night. In the Irish lakes, Loughs Conn and Inagh to wit, char are occasionally taken with fly when trout fishing. They used to be so taken on Ulleswater (Westmorland), on Loch Leven, and on Lough Neagh, but from all these places they appear to have disappeared, no doubt exterminated by pike, by destruction during spawning time, and by pollutions. Char vary in weight from six to the pound to a pound and a half each, although fish over 2 lb. have occasionally been caught in this country. An ordinary trout fly, rather bright in colour, will take it best, but the char is an uncertain riser. Some time ago a gentleman was trout fishing in Loch Lubnaig, in Perthshire, and saw a number of fish rising in a curious way close to the bank. He threw over them, and in a short time caught, mostly with a teal and red body, a dozen fish, which he failed to recognise. They were char, and the natives had not known one taken with fly for many years previously. In Lapland and Norway the char grows to a larger size than with us, 2 lb. and 3 lb. fish not being rare, and they take fly freely. It is also more or less plentiful in European rivers and most of the European lakes, especially such as are situate at a high altitude. It is found in America and in Canada.
The char spawns at the same periods as trout, sometimes on the shores of the lakes, sometimes in the adjoining streams. It comes under the same law as trout as to close season. Where a licence is required its cost is usually 2s. 6d.; the charge for a "plumb line" licence is 5s. The char may not be taken in Windermere and Coniston between October 2nd and March 31st. In Scotland there is no close time. In Ireland it is from November Ist to January 31st.
During the season char is considered a great dainty, and potted char" is one of the luxuries to be obtained at the English Lakes.
The char, owing to its delicacy, is not a useful fish for the pisciculturist, and seldom becomes thoroughly acclimatised in waters where it has been artificially introduced.
R. B. LEE. 66 MEASUREMENTS, &c. -Length of head 4 to 51, of caudal fin 6 to 61, height of body 4 to 5 in total length. Eyes-size depends much upon age, sex, and locality from whence procured: usually situated just in front of the middle of the length of the head, from 1 to 2 diameters from the end of the snout and the same distance apart.
In some the comparative height of the body is much greater than in others, and dependent on food, health, and the breeding season, the kelts becoming emaciated. The maxilla in some extends to beneath the last third of the orbit, in others to beyond the vertical from its hind margin, while it is [CHAR likewise slightly more strongly developed in some than in others. The lower jaw in some varieties, as in the torgoch of Wales, may be longer anteriorly than the upper jaw. The opercular pieces are of as diverse shape in the char as the trout, and frequently are dissimilar in the opposite sides of the head. Teeth-present in the jaws and in a line across the vomer near its anterior extremity, and opposite the teeth of the palatine arch, none along the body of the vomer. Fins-dorsal usually commences about midway between the end of the snout and the base of the caudal fin, in some examples a little nearer the snout.
The pectoral and other fins are of varying lengths according to locality, sex, and other varying conditions. Scales-small, and a much larger number of rows descending from the back of the lateral-line than there are of pierced rows along its whole extent.
Coecal appendages-these vary considerably, in Loch Inch 38 (Thompson): L. Rannoch 28: the Lakes 28 to 44, Dr.
Gunther detected from 36 to 52, and the smallest number in those from Windermere, 36. From the same locality I possess an example with 28. They are as inconsistent as in the trout.
Colours. These again vary, but as a general rule the belly, prior to spawning, becomes of a crimson or claret colour, while there are generally some light-coloured orange or black spots on the body and head. The front edge of the dorsal, ventral, and caudal, as well as the upper edge of the pectoral, are often of a pure white or orange colour. The variation in tints and shades is not so great as in the trout.
In some, the ventral, anal, lower portion of the pectoral, and hind edge of the caudal partake of the scarlet colour of the abdomen.-Day's Fishes of Great Britain and Ireland, vol. ii., p. 114.
CHEETA (Cynælurus jubatus, Hindustani, Chita).- The Cheeta, or Hunting Leopard, is a member of the great Catfamily (Felidæ), allied to the common Leopard, but differing from it in so many essential points that it is now regarded as generically distinct. It stands higher on its legs than an ordinary Leopard, and has relatively a more slender body and a longer tail; ears short and rounded; the face shorter and the crown more elevated than in the Leopard. The upper flesh-tooth is without the cusp on the inner side which is characteristic of the true cats, while the claws are shorter and only partially retractile.
The length of an adult Cheeta is about CHEETA] 7 ft., including the tail, which measures about 2/2 ft. The height at the shoulder will vary from 2 ft. 5 in. to 2 ft. 7 in.
The Cheeta occurs throughout Africa and South-Western Asia from Persia to the countries east of the Caspian, but not further east than India, where it is most common in Jeypur and Hyderabad. It has not been met with north of the Ganges nor in Ceylon. Its usual haunts are the low rocky hills bordering the plains on which are found the Antelopes which form its chief prey, although, like the Caracal or Desert Lynx, it will likewise capture hares and game birds.
The employment of this animal for the chase seems to have been known in the East from a very early period. It is figured on to Gesner (Hist. Anim.), were of two kinds. From his description the smaller kind must have been a Lynx. They must have been very docile, for, he says, the keeper scarcely mounted his horse before the beast jumped up after him, and seated itself on a cushion behind the saddle.
Henri II., the successor of Frances I., in 1547 continued this kind of sport, and it appears to have been patronised at the French Court until the days of Henry IV., when the last trained Leopards seen in France were those brought by Marie de Medici from Florence in 1601. After that date, says Baron de Noirmont, they were no longer to be seen either in France or Italy, although in Germany the sport was revived by Leopold I., who died in 1705.
Average height at shoulder, 2 ft. 7 in.
CHEETA.
Faldwell 1897 Average length from head to root oj tail, 4 ft. 6 in. Assyrian bas-reliefs in the act of seizing an Antelope, and is represented also on Egyptian monuments about 1700 B.C.
Amongst the animals brought in by way of tribute to the Kings of Thebes by the black tribes of the Upper Nile is a Cheeta led in a slip with a very ornamental collar.
We learn from Baron de Noirmont (Histoire de la Chasse) that both Charles VIII. and Louis XII. of France kept trained animals of this kind, with which they killed hares and roedeer.
After a kill, the Cheeta, on being shown a little blood in a tin bowl, would leave its prey and jump on the horse's crupper behind its master. One would imagine that the horse would require as much training as the Cheeta to stand quiet in such very trying circumstances. Frances I., who ascended the throne of France in 1515, also had his Hunting Leopards which, according There is no record of the successful use of the Hunting Leopard in England. Even James I., great sportsman as he was, drew the line there. But an experiment was once made in this direction by the Duke of Cumberland, brother of George IV., with one of two Cheetas belonging to Tippoo Sahib, which were brought to Windsor in 1799.
The Duke made a large enclosure in the park with strong netting 15 ft. high, into which he turned a stag from Windsor forest. The Cheeta was then brought in by two Indian attendants and unhooded.
The stag showed fight, lowering his horns; and the Cheeta, disliking the look of his opponent, bounded over the nets, and, dashing through the terrified crowd of spectators, pursued and killed a fallow deer at no great distance; and so ended what was probably the first and last attempt at hunting with the Cheeta in this country.
The sport as practised in India at the present day is conducted somewhat as follows:-The Cheeta, hooded like a falcon, and held by a stout collar and cord, is carried to the field on a bullock cart, on which he sits side by side with the native keeper who has charge of him, and who pats and caresses him from time to time. The cart proceeds across country, until deer or antelope are seen. The driver then advances circuitously, gradually narrowing his circle until he gets within one or two hundred yards of the nearest antelope, which, accustomed to see the native carts of the country, does not at first take much notice of that which carries the Cheeta. As soon as he is near enough, the driver stops, and the keeper removes the hood of the Cheeta, which springs lightly from the cart, and commences his stalk, availing himself of every bush and hillock between himself and his prey as he stealthily approaches it.
When within forty or fifty yards he jumps up, and in a series of magnificent bounds dashes at the nearest antelope, and generally brings it down, fastening at once upon its throat and killing it. It sometimes happens, however, that the intended victim gets too good a start, and the Cheeta, failing to overtake it within a reasonable distance, gives up the chase and returns sulkily to his keeper, who feeds and rehoods him. In the event of a kill, the keeper runs up with a tin bowl, and, cutting the deer's throat, fills the bowl with the blood, which he allows the Cheeta to lap up, until, watching a favourable opportunity, he slips on the hood, and leads the animal back to the cart.
The sportsmen who go out on these occasions are either mounted on horseback, or go in pairs, in bullock carts like that which carries the Cheeta.
J. E. HARTING.
CHEETA, AFRICAN. -The African Cheeta (Felis jubata), Leñau of the Bechuanas, Luipaard of the Boers, is a shy, nocturnal beast, which seldom falls to the rifle of the white sportsman. It figures very rarely indeed in the records of English hunters in South Africa. Many Europeans spend years in the country without setting eyes on this animal. Yet, from the Cape Colony northwards, the Cheeta is not an altogether uncommon beast of prey. In Bechuanaland the natives snare annually a considerable number of these animals, and hunt them with dogs. Karosses or rugs made from the handsome skins of the Leñau are well known at the up-country stores, where they are taken in barter. The Cheeta is nothing like so dangerous a beast [CHEETAH to tackle as the leopard, and is killed even by the natives with their knob-kerries, or club-sticks. The African Cheeta much resembles its Asiatic congener. It stands high upon the leg, and has the dog-like foot and non-retractile claws, which distinguish it at once from the true leopard. Its high skull, somewhat woolly fur, a slight mane, and the differences in marking, which may at once be noted on comparing its skin with that of the leopard, serve further to accentuate the dissimilarity between the two animals.
It feeds on the smaller antelopes, hares, game birds, and occasionally sheep and goats, and is extremely devoted to the springbuck, of which it kills a good many.
A peculiar local variety of Cheeta (Felis lanea), known to naturalists as the Woolly Cheeta, has been found in the Karroo district of Cape Colony, in the neighbourhood of Beaufort West. In this varietyan example of which was formerly exhibited in the Zoological Gardens-the fur is extremely dense, and the markings are tawny instead of black.
H. A. BRYDEN.
CHEETAL OR CHEETUL (Cervus axis).This deer is commonly known as the Spotted Deer of India. It much resembles the Fallow Deer of Europe, except as regards its horns, which are never palmated like those of the Fallow. Its colour, too, a light reddish-brown, is darker, and the white spots along its back and sides are more distinctly defined. The stag has three distinct points on each gracefully curved horn, often with one or two short snags just above the brow antler. The ordinary length of horn is about 30 inches, and the circumference of beam about 3/2 inches, but the writer has shot a Cheetul with horns over 36 inches, and as they were in velvet and their points quite soft, they would probably have grown an inch or two longer. The span within the bend was 30 inches, but such width is exceptional. In height the Cheetul stands from about 30 to 34 inches, its size varying in different localities.
Habitat. It is usually abundant in large tracts of dense forest, interspersed with glades of high grass, where water is fairly plentiful (such as the Terai, for instance), or on the extremities of the forest-clad spurs of the Himalayas, which run down into that tract. It is very common in the Dehra Dún Valley, and on the Sewalik range of low-wooded hills which flank it on the west. In fact, it is more or less common in almost all the level or low- CHICKARA] hilled jungles it affects, from the foot of the Himalayas to Cape Comorin, and even to Ceylon, but never where deep shade, long grass, and water are absent.
Characteristics. In habits the Cheetul is timid and shy, and it seldom, if ever, attempts to show fight, even if approached when wounded. Yet it may frequently be found quite close to small hamlets where patches of ground in heavy jungles have been cleared for cultivation, especially when the cereals are young and green. Its cry of alarm, a short high-pitched sort of bark, is more often heard at night when the animal is alarmed by some prowling beast cigMillais 1896 CHEETUL.
Height at shoulder, 32 in. Av. horn meas. 30 in.; max. horn meas. 38 in. of prey. Where its haunts are in more or less level localities it is almost invariably shot from elephant back, but the most sportsmanlike way of hunting it is, where possible, to follow it on foot in broken or low-hilly ground.
Cheetul sometimes congregate in large numbers, but they are mostly found in herds of from five or six to a dozen or more, and usually with a good stag or two in a herd.
A singular characteristic of this deer is the irregularity with which it sheds its horns. The writer has hunted Cheetul at many different times of year and found them with horns in every stage of growth.
But the best time for hunting them is from December to March, when the jungles are more free from malaria and the heat is not too oppressive. Moreover, some of their favourite resorts are now strictly closed from April to October by the Government Forest Department.
Armament. A double Express rifle of from 450 to 500 bore, carrying a projectile of soft lead about an inch long, hollowed to not more than half its length, the hollow plugged with a bit of wood, is about the most suitable implement for Cheetul-shooting. The cartridge should be loaded with the strongest charge of powder the rifle can stand. Many a wounded wild animal is lost in dense jungle from want of smashing power and a flat trajectory in the weapon used for shooting at it.
DONALD MACINTYRE.
CHICKARA. - The Chickara, Chinkara, Ravine Deer, or Indian Gazelle (G. bennettii), is found throughout the plains of India, with the exception of some parts of Lower Bengal and the Malabar District, and while preferring low rocky hills intersected by ravines, and clothed with scrub jungle, or tracts of the medium forest type containing glades, or open savannahs suitable for grazing, it is also numerous on some of the large plains of Southern and Central India, and on the confines of the sandy deserts of Rajputana and Scinde.
The buck is about 28 inches in height; colour above, deep fawn, white on the sides, buttocks, and lower parts generally; tail 8 inches long and black in colour; horns 10 to 13 inches according to locality. They occur in herds of from six to twenty individuals, but solitary bucks are not uncommon. Whether standing or moving, they have a habit of wagging their tails vigorously, the movement often betraying their presence, when they would otherwise escape notice. Being small and active, they are difficult to hit; the vital spot, moreover, is but a few square inches in size, and for this reason I preferred a small Express rifle fitted with telescopic sights, which facilitated accuracy of aim up to 180 yards, whereas with the ordinary bead-foresight the body would be greatly obscured at half that distance. The Chickara can exist for more than two days without water, being in this respect only equalled by the Nilgai.
On the verge of the Bikaneer desert the country is sandy, flat, and devoid of cover, and although both Blackbuck and Chickara are abundant, they are almost unapproachable.
In the month of February, small patches of Chenna (pulse) are dotted here and there, near which one may sight an occasional herd, numbering some fifteen twenty animals. Dismounting from his camel, and keeping close to it, the sportsman or [Photo. by W. S. Berridge, F.Z.S.
CHICKARA. should direct the driver to shape his course so as to pass diagonally ahead of the herd, on the chance of their massing, as is their custom, and giving a broadside shot at a good buck. On gaining any suitable cover, the sportsman halts out of sight of the herd, directing the camel-man to move on, circling gradually.
I recollect on one occasion getting in this way within 150 yards of a herd, which moved off, watching the camel intently, without giving the chance of a shot. The best buck was always on the move, but I managed to gain the cover of a large bunch of weeds and peeped through the leaves.
The camel was 500 yards away, circling slowly round, and about midway between us were some does the rear-guard of the herd-conforming to the camel's s movements, but watching it suspiciously the while. Thus I was the centre of a circle on the diameter of which moved the Chickara, and utilising the principle of interior lines, I soon gained a position within a short distance of their probable line of retreat. Manœuvring in this manner, I soon saw an old doe within 80 yards pioneering a big buck straight towards me, but they vanished in a fold of the ground not 50 yards distant, without giving a favourable opportunity for a shot. Being un- [CHUB certain whether they might not reappear at any moment and discover me, I decided not to stir. Immediately afterwards another doe suddenly appeared on some open ground to the left and would have seen me had I moved. She was the leader of the herd, and was followed by several does and a young buck, moving in file across the open, about 90 yards distant. I began to wonder what had become of the big buck, when he suddenly dashed forward and routed the youngster by butting him in the haunches, and while he stood triumphant I pressed the trigger. He trotted forward 20 yards wagging his tail furiously, then wheeling round, galloped back a few paces, halted for a second, and fell dead. The bullet had grazed the heart. His horns measured 13 inches, the best I ever got.
The morning's sport was not yet over, for I shot another buck on the way to camp, but while occupied in stalking a flock of eight bustards, a wandering camel-man found my Chickara, annexed it, and ran like the wind towards a village nearly a mile away, where pursuit would have been useless.
ARTHUR POLLOCK. [Note. The name Chickara or Chinkara is also erroneously applied to the Four-horn (Tetraceros quadricornis), an Indian waterloving antelope (see Antelopes).] CHUB (Leuciscus cephalus). - [See ANGLING (COARSE FISH).] MEASUREMENTS, &c. -Length of head 4+ to 5, of caudal fin 51, height of body 4 in the total length. Eye-diameter of each 5 [Photo. by W. B. and C. C. Johnson.
CHUB. to 6 times in the length of the head, 2 diameters from the end of the snout, and 3 to 4 apart. Snout obtuse. Mouth rather deep, the upper jaw slightly overlapping the lower, and the posterior extremity of the maxilla reaching to beneath the front edge of the eye. The hindermost COD] bone of the suborbital ring the largest.
Teeth - pharyngeal teeth pointed and hooked at their extremities (in some slightly denticulated), 5, 2-2, 5. Fins-the dorsal commences midway between the end of the snout and the base of the caudal fin, its height exceeds by one-third the extent of its base. Pectoral as long as the head, excluding the snout. Ventral inserted on a line slightly anterior to the origin of the dorsal fin, its length equalling about half that of the head. Lateral-line-slightly concave, three rows between it and the base of the ventral fin. Colours-Muddy bluish or greenish colour along the upper surface of the head and body, becoming lighter on the sides and beneath. Dorsal and caudal fins dusky or greenish and externally dark; ventrals and anals bluish-white tinged with red. Cheeks dashed with red and gold.
Day, Fishes of Great Britain and Ireland, vol. ii., p. 179.
CLOSE SEASONS. - Angling, FENCE MONTHS. Shooting, see GAME LAWS.
COACHING. - See DRIVING.
COALFISH, or GREEN COD, or GREEN POLLACK (Gadus virens).— [See SEA-FISHING.] MEASUREMENTS, &c.-Length of head, 41 to 44, of caudal fin 6, height of body 44 to 44 in the total length. Eye-diameters 3+ in the length of the head, I diameter from the end of the snout, and to I diameter apart. Lower jaw prominent. The maxilla reaches to below to first third of the eye.
A rudimentary barbel beneath the chin.
Teeth-cardiform in the jaws, present on the vomer, absent from the palatines and tongue. Fins-the first dorsal triangular, its third ray the longest and equals the extent of its base; a distinct interspace between the first and second dorsal fins, the highest ray of which last equals half the length of its base; an interspace between the second and third dorsal fins, the latter not extending on to the caudal. Anal commences below the last rays of the first dorsal, and terminates below the end of the second dorsal; second anal similar to the second dorsal. Ventral on the throat inserted anterior to the base of the pectoral, which rather exceeds half the length of the head. Caudal slightly forked or truncated.
Vent situated on a vertical line beneath the last rays of the first dorsal fin. Colourssuperiorly gray, becoming silvery on the sides and beneath. Fins gray, the dorsal and caudal dark-edged. Usually a black spot at the axil of the pectoral fins, by which it is mostly concealed. As they get older the dark colour deepens. Lateral-linewhite, which at once distinguishes it from the haddock, where it is black. Day's Fishes of Great Britain and Ireland, vol. i., p. 294.
COCKFIGHTING.-(See SPORT, OBSO- LETE.) COD (Gadus morhua).-[See SEA-FISH- ING.] MEASUREMENTS, &c. -Length of head 3 to 41, of caudal fin 61, height of body 4 to 5, or even more in the young, in the total length. Eyes-diameter 41 in the young to 7 in the adult in the length of the head; ½ diameters in the young to 2 in the adult from the end of the snout, and 14 in the COD. young to 2 in the adult apart. Body much thickest anteriorly. Nostrils nearer to the eye than to the end of the snout. Snout conical. Mouth wide, with a deep cleft.
Upper jaw the longer; the posterior extremity of the maxilla reaches to beneath the first third or middle of the eye. A barbel, generally as long as the eye, but sometimes shorter, is situated below the chin. Teeth-cardiform with an outer and much enlarged row in the upper jaw, in a V-shaped patch on the vomer, absent from the palatines and tongue. Fins-the first dorsal somewhat triangular; it commences over or slightly posterior to the base of the pectoral, its fourth ray being the longest and about equal to the extent of the base of the fin; from it they diminish in height to the last, which is very short. There exists a very short interspace between the bases of the two first dorsal fins, the fourth ray being somewhat the longest, but not quite equal to half the length of the base of the fin. They decrease in height to the three last, which are short. A very short interspace exists between the second and third dorsal fins, and a longer or shorter interspace occurs between its termination and the base of the outermost caudal rays.
The anterior anal fin commences on a vertical line below the fourth or fifth ray a of the second dorsal, and a short interspace exists between it and the origin of the second anal, which is similar to the third dorsal. Caudal slightly emarginate, or square, at its extremity. Ventrals small, inserted rather before the base of the pectorals, which are as long as the postorbital portion of head. Vent situated on vertical line beneath the first rays of the second dorsal fin. Scales-small and cycloid. Lateral-line-passes backwards from opposite the upper edge of the orbit, attaining below the centre of the second dorsal fin nearly the middle of the depth of the body, from whence it is continued straight to the centre of the base of the caudal. Coecal appendages-numerous and short. Colours-greenish or grayish, or olive, and occasionally covered with yellow or brown spots along the back and upper two-thirds of the body, its lower portion pure white. Lateral-line white, especially in its lower half. Fins gray, darkest towards their outer edges.-Day's Fishes of Great Britain and Ireland, vol. i., p. 277.
CONGER (Conger vulgaris). - [See SEA-FISHING.] MEASUREMENTS, &c. -Length of head 7 to 8, height of body 16 to 20 in the total length. Body anteriorly rounded, becoming compressed in its posterior portion. Head depressed. Mouth wide, the upper jaw very slightly the longer, its cleft extending to below the middle of the orbit. The posterior nostril patent, the anterior tubular. Teeth-cardiform in the upper jaw, one regular row of teeth of the same size and placed close together form a cutting edge; a short band on the vomer; cardiform likewise in the lower jaw similar to those in the upper. Fins-the dorsal commences above the last quarter or end of the pectoral: the anal in the middle of the total length. Colours-generally grayish, becoming lighter or even white beneath. A row of white spots marks the openings from the lateral line. The margins of the vertical fins black.-Day's Fishes of Great Britain and Ireland, vol. ii., p. 251.
CONSERVANCY OF RIVERS. -The United Kingdom is to a large extent mapped out into Fishery Districts, both as regards the sea-coast and inland portions of the country, and Boards or Committees have been formed to administer the law.
As regards fresh waters, however, there are not many districts in which it can be said that the Boards have worked much or any improvement, and in not a few cases the majority of seats upon them have been [CONSERVANCY OF RIVERS obtained by men who represent the netting or commercial interest, and not only totally neglect the interests of sport, but have laid themselves open to the charge of allowing the netsmen to kill an excessive quantity of fish.
We propose to give a few suggestions as to the best means of increasing the stock of fish in rivers, &c., suggestions which we trust will be taken to heart not only by riparian owners, but also by the members of Fishery Boards. It should be stated at once, however, that as regards sea-fishery districts not a few committees have acted most wisely and beneficially in putting a stop to inshore trawling, a course which will, it is hoped, work great things for the sea fisheries adjoining our coasts. England does not stand alone in this action. The Government of Denmark owns valuable fisheries in territorial waters adjoining the Faröe Islands, which are now frequented by English fishermen who have, thanks mainly to the steam trawler, fished out the formerly prolific banks of the North Sea.
In these Faröe fisheries Denmark has strictly prohibited trawling of every kind and description, and has made it an offence to be in possession of a trawl while in those waters. As a matter of fact, Continental and English fishermen have lost nothing by this salutary legislation, for they find themselves able to make immense takes of fish by means of long lines, whereas, had steam trawling been allowed, those fisheries might have been worked out in the course of a few years.
Netting. As regards salmon rivers, netting is prohibited by law for a short period once a week, with the object of enabling the fish to ascend to the upper waters. But where rivers are long, and nets are used for a considerable distance above the tideway, the only result of this arrangement is that the fish which are missed during the weekly close time by the fishermen of the estuary get caught on Monday, when the close time ends, by the netsmen higher up. In such rivers it would be most beneficial to make different weekly close times for different portions of the river, for instance, making Saturday and Sunday a close time for the tidal portions, and Monday and Tuesday for a certain number of miles above the tidal portions.
Or the weekly close time could be lengthened on all rivers, a proposed change which found favour with a recent Fishery Commission.
In cases where Fishery Boards derive an income from the sale of licences to netsmen and sportsmen, a large portion of the CONSERVANCY OF RIVERS] THE ENCYCLOPÆDIA OF SPORT money so raised should be devoted to the artificial culture of salmon in salmon rivers, trout in trout streams, and coarse fish in other waters. River pollution, which is a standing disgrace to England and Scotland, should be most sternly dealt with, not so much as regards mere household sewage, but as regards the destructive chemical waste products which flow from mills and manufactories of all kinds. Nor must the upper portions of salmon rivers, which are the breeding grounds of the river, be neglected. These require to be made accessible by the removal of obstructions, the shallows in which the eggs are deposited kept clean, and the fish protected from poachers when spawning.
Steam Traffic. Another point to which too little attention is given is the disturbance of fish by steam traffic in estuaries. It may be that the law would be required to deal with this matter, but it would be highly desirable in the interests of salmon and other fisheries that a limit of speed should be placed on big steamers entering those of our ports into which flow important salmon rivers. As the steam traffic increases in any any river estuary, or other inlet of the sea, fish of all kinds, which are very shy creatures, as certainly decrease, and having regard to the importance of the fishing in dustry and the large rents paid by sportsmen for fishing rights, it only seems reasonable that restrictions of this kind should be placed upon the steamship owners.
Pisciculture. With regard to trout streams, given a suitable extent of water and not too severe a climate, almost anything can be done within fair limits, thanks to fish culture. In some waters the stock is maintained by making a rather high weight or size-limit and returning everything beneath that weight or length, as the case may be, and most certainly the stock of fish can be maintained by this means, provided other conditions are favourable. But one result of this method is that the fish, being caught several times over during their youth, become, when over the size-limit, so exceedingly cautious and difficult to capture that all but first-class fishermen sometimes despair of making a reasonable basket.
We have more than once suggested that the stock could be equally well maintained by having a much smaller size-limit, and making it the rule to turn into the stream one or two yearlings or two-year-olds for every fish taken out. The fish would then rise more freely and better bags could be obtained (for, after all, the object of fish ing is to catch fish), and by the continuous introduction of new blood the breed of fish would probably be improved. Yearling trout can be purchased at as low a rate as £10 a thousand, SO that the outlay is inconsiderable. A man who gives £100 or more for his fishing rights should not hesitate to spend an extra £10 in restocking. Given suitable water, there is, as a matter of fact, no reason why he should even buy his fish, for they are very easily bred, as will be gathered from the article on PISCI- CULTURE (q.v.).
Where some suitable pond is available, fishery owners can hardly do better than stock it with yearlings and net it at the end of one or two years for the benefit of the main stream. But it should be a pond which can be run dry, for unless it can be emptied of water a certain number of trout will inevitably be left in, and these, on its being restocked with yearlings, will levy a heavy toll upon the new arrivals. Other details in connection with the preservation of trout are the prevention of pollution; the netting of all coarse fish, particularly pike and chub; the removal of mud if it collects in too large quantities on gravelly shallows, and the judicious cutting of weeds. When streams are very bare of cover they can be greatly improved by placing "hides" for the fish, such as drain-pipes, rocks, and the like. Very shallow streams can easily be deepened by means of dams, or can be widened out here and there into lakes.
Ponds, moreover, containing only coarse fish can be emptied, cleared of mud, and stocked with trout. Many reservoirs have been stocked with great success.
Coarse Fish Streams. - As regards these, such as the Thames, the Trent, the Bedfordshire Ouse, the Welland, the rivers of the Broads, &c., much can be done to maintain a head of fish and provide a certain quantity for annual destruction by anglers, without going to much expense. In navigable rivers the stream traffic is perhaps the deadliest enemy of the fish, which, in the egg and early stages of fryhood, are destroyed in millions by the wash caused by launches or other steamers. Where it is possible, and the fisheries are valuable, steam traffic should be altogether prohibited, but where that course cannot be followed it should at least be prohibited during the spring months when coarse fish are spawning, or a rule could be made that no steamer should then be allowed to navigate the water at more than a certain number of miles an hour, or, as an alternative, that anyone in command of such a vessel driving it at a speed which creates any swell be liable to a penalty. There is certainly or wash should be guilty of an offence and no river in England in which the speed of the steam traffic might not without difficulty be limited during the spawning season.
The next greatest enemies to coarse fish are probably swans and ducks, the latter no less than the former. It is of the greatest importance that these be kept off the water from the Ist of March to the Ist of June. The amount of eggs which are picked off the weeds by half a dozen ducks in the course of a day is something astounding. I have seen a small brood of ducks work the side of a river for a mile or more in the course of an afternoon, and, so far as I could see, eat up every grain of the perch spawn which had been deposited there in considerable quantities. If these birds cannot be debarred from swimming in the river during the spawning months, the next best plan is to afford some protection to the spawn, and in the case of perch this is easily effected.
Men who are acquainted with the river know the spawning grounds, and after the perch eggs have been deposited, it is not difficult to cover them up with wire netting.
But perch are accommodating creatures, and if open hurdles, within which withy wands or other twigs have been interlaced, are staked down in water about five to seven feet in depth, and surrounded by wire netting, the breeding fish will usually deposit their spawn upon the twigs, and there it will hatch out safe from swans and ducks.
This has been done many times with great success in the Thames, in the Reading and Henley districts. Perch can be introduced without difficulty into any water by collecting perch eggs from rivers or canals where these fish abound, and placing them on hurdles in their new abode and protecting them as before explained.
Standard. In coarse fish streams the standard of size, beneath which all caught must be returned to the water, is allimportant. An excellent standard is in existence on the Thames, and it might be followed in any south country river. In the north, where the fish run rather smaller, it would have to be modified.
Thames Standard.
Pike or Jack 18 in.
Perch 8 Chub IO Roach 7 6 16 Dace Barbel Trout دو دو دو دو دو دو Grayling 12 in.
Bream IO Carp IO Tench 8 Rudd 6 Gudgeon 4 دو دو دو وو وو Pike. To preserve pike it is most desirable to prohibit trimmers and fishing either with live or dead gorge, methods which destroy every fish caught. In all [CONSERVANCY OF RIVERS streams, to defeat the pot-hunter, it is desirable to enact that no person may fish with more than two rods at one and the same time. Before this excellent rule, for which we were responsible, came into force on the Thames, we have known as many as ten rods to be used at one time by one fisherman, all laid out from the bank, and have seen five rods used from a punt by a person who was live-baiting for pike.
Food. There is a phase of this subject which does not obtain the attention it deserves. It is the question of food. In rocky trout streams and in many a Highland loch there is insufficient food, and the result is a race of pigmy trout or other fish. Freshwater snails, weeds which are prolific in insect life, fresh-water shrimps, and other fish food, may all be introduced. But the natural conditions of lake and river have to be considered in each particular case, and the would-be improver of his fishery should take skilled advice before tampering with his water. One thing should be borne in mind, that there are very few streams or lakes which will produce a large number of large fish; it is generally a choice between a few large fish or many small ones.
JOHN BICKERDYKE. a CORACLES. - The osier-woven, skincovered basket of the Ancient Britons still survives on the Welsh rivers, more particularly on the Dee, in the shape of the Coracle, the fisherman's boat of those rapid streams. With slight variations of shape, even in modern times it may yet be described as a square basket with a seat across it, and at a little distance its occupant looks as if he had gone afloat in a washing tub. But no other kind of craft would so well suit the solitary angler on the rapids of the Dee or Severn as this odd-shaped vessel. With one hand wielding the paddle and the other his fly-rod, he drifts down the rippling shallows, shoots the boiling rapids, and paddles gently along the still deeps. Then, when his fishing is over, he claps the Coracle upside down on his head and shoulders, and stalks back.
As a Coracle is so easily transported, either by manual power or on a donkey or pony cart, it is somewhat surprising that its use has not spread to Scottish moorland lochs and the smaller rivers. One man can propel it and fish from it at the same time, which is not usually the case with any other type of boat, and if it rains heavily he can land and use it as an umbrella. Its use is not confined to trout-fishing. It is constantly used for salmon-fishing, but in such cases it is advisable to land to play a fish, CORMORANT] for a Coracle, having four sides instead of two, has four ways of capsizing instead of the two ways of the ordinary row boat. A Coracle may be made in a day, except for the drying of the tar or paint, and it would not be difficult to carry the necessary laths and a square of canvas already waterproofed to any outlandish place where a boat might be needed.
The dimensions of a Coracle are about as follows:-The square on the floor or water-line is four feet, and the sides tumble in six inches, so that the square at the gunwale is three feet. The depth is thirteen inches; the square has of course rounded corners. rs. Older Coracles had straight sides or a flare out on the front side, but the tumble-in type gives the most stability, having a wider floor. The width of the gunwale square is limited by the fact that the occupant must sit in the middle and be able to ply his paddle over the side without leaning over. The bottom is flat and the draught only two or three inches. 10 10 10 10 To make the frame, get twenty long, clean laths, say eight feet long, by one inch and a half wide by three-sixteenths of an inch thick. Interlace ten across the other ten so as to form a lattice nearly four feet square, with the ends of the laths projecting about two feet.
Bend these ends up to meet the previously prepared frame of the gunwale and fasten. Place a seat across from one side to the other and have some light floor-boards, and the frame of the boat is complete. Cover with canvas, and coat with boiling tar and pitch or, as in my own experience I prefer, good white lead paint made gray or brown in colour to match the boulders in the river. The single paddle is like the lower half of a flatbladed scull, but very much lighter in make, and is about four feet long. It is held in the hand midway, with the shaft braced against the outer side of the upper arm; the palm of the hand is towards the boat, and preferably the shaft should be grasped between the first and second fingers. The stroke follows the shape of a figure of eight, propelling the Coracle sideways, and is not easy to acquire at first. The efforts of the Sassenach to guide his Coracle, and prevent it from doing nothing but spin round have formed the subject of much amusing caricature in Wales..
In the shallows, of course, the Coracle may be stopped, retarded, or guided by pressing the paddle on the stones, and if the current is not too strong it may be worked from side to side of the river as it floats down, so that every part may be fished. It is essentially a craft which must go with the current on a river and with the wind on a lake, but it is so light that it is easily carried back to the starting point.
I have known a fisherman who thought nothing of walking ten miles up stream, with his Coracle on his back, for the purpose of fishing down.
Sometimes two persons use the Coracle, one paddling and the other fishing, usually a professional and a visitor; but to enjoy CORACLE. 10 0 10 the true sport of Coracle-fishing, one should be alone.
G. CHRISTOPHER DAVIES. are CORACLES, INDIAN. – These made umbrella-shaped, 8 ft. across, 2 ft. deep, being a convenient size for fishing purposes. They are of split bamboo basket-work, covered with sewn ox-hide and without seat of any kind. Such a coracle, which can be easily carried by one man, and will comfortably hold two, is propelled by a paddle; and as it draws but a couple of inches of water, and will bear hard bumps against rocks, is invaluable for descending rocky rivers, floating buoyantly down many a rapid, apparently impossible of navigation. Large coracles of this description have been used for ferrying troops.
CORMORANT (Phalacrocorax carbo). -The Cormorant is a large sea fowl of dark green colour, looking uniformly black FF at a distance, weighing from seven to eight pounds, and characterised by a long straight beak strongly decurved at the extremity, a stiff rudder-like tail of fourteen feathers, and feet with all four toes united by a membrane. In this respect it agrees with another species of the same genus, which also inhabits the rocky portions of our coast, namely, the Crested Cormorant, or Shag (P. cristatus), a small bird, without the white patch on the thigh, and with only twelve instead of fourteen tail feathers.
Both species breed gregariously in sea cliffs, CORMORANT. on rocky islands, and occasionally in trees, after the manner of herons and spoonbills, forming a large clumsy nest of sticks and seaweed, in which are deposited four or five chalky-looking eggs. When taken young from the nest or captured soon after it has quitted it, by means presently to be described, the Cormorant is easily tamed, and may be taught to exercise its natural aptitude in taking fish for the pleasure of its owner.
The earliest description which the writer has met with of the sport as observed in China by a European occurs in an English translation by R. Willes (from the Italian version first printed at Venice) of a Portuguese MS. by one Galotti Pereira, who, about the middle of the sixteenth century, [CORMORANT was with others of his countrymen a prisoner in China. It occurs under the heading "Reportes of the Province China" in a small and rare quarto volume entitled The History of Trauayle in the West and East Indies and other countreys lying eyther way towards the fruitfull and ryche Moluccaes. By Richarde Eden, 1577. At page 253 we read :-" At the houre appoynted to fyshe, all the barges are brought togeather in a circle where the ryver is shalowe, and the crowes, tyed togeather under the wynges, are let leape downe into the water, some under, some above, worth the lookying uppon; eche one as he hath filled his bagge, goeth to his own barge and emptieth it, whiche done, he retourneth to fyshe agayne."
This was at Pekin, where the travellers in question saw no fewer than twenty barges so employed. A more satisfactory account of the practice may be found in Milne's Life in China, 1857 (p. 307).
It is most likely that the sport was first made known in Europe towards the end of the sixteenth century by the Dutch, who, besides being enterprising navigators and traders in the East, have in all ages been known as skilful falconers and great birdfanciers. In 1609 Louis XIII., then a youth, witnessed this sport in the grounds at Fontainebleau, and in I6II our own James I. had appointed "a master of Cormorants" in England. An entry in the "Issues of the Exchequer" of that reign shows that in April 1611 John Ward was paid £30 "for his trouble in bringing up and training of certain fowls called Cormorants, and making of them fit for the use of fishing." In May of the following year he was appointed "to travel into some of the further parts of this realm for young Cormorants, which afterwards are to be made fit for his Majesty's sport and recreation," for which he received another £30. In 1618 the King had become so fascinated with the sport, that he decided to build a house and make some ponds for his Cormorants, ospreys, and otters at Westminster, and for this purpose he leased of Lord Danvers a piece of meadow ground, about an acre and a quarter, lying in the Vine Garden near Westminster Abbey, at the yearly rent of £7. A brick building was erected on this ground, at a cost of £100, and nine fish-ponds were dug, costing altogether another £40. These ponds were stored with carp, tench, barbel, roach, and dace (100 of each), and a sluice of elm planking was made to bring the water from the Thames. The total outlay incurred upon this, the first Westminster Aquarium, COURSING] was £268, for which amount, in August, 1618, the King gave an order upon the Treasury.
At Theobalds, also, his favourite hunting seat in Hertfordshire, and also at Thetford, in Norfolk, these birds were employed in fishing for the King's pleasure.
Of late years the sport has been revived both in England and France, thanks to the efforts of Captain F. H. Salvin and the late John Barr in this country, and to the Comte le Couteulx, M. Pichot, and M. de la Rue in France.
Cormorants are not difficult to train, and do not require nearly so much care as hawks. They may be taken from the nest when they are ready to fly, or may be caught later in the year when fully feathered. The latter plan is preferable, for the birds have then had some experience in fishing, and are sure to be in good condition.
To catch them, it is only necessary to visit some tidal harbour wherein there are large posts set (to mark the river channel), on which Cormorants are fond of resting.
A few strong gins, having the teeth bound with list to prevent injury, may then be set, unbaited, on the square tops of two or three of the favourite posts, each gin being attached to the post by a line with a float. It is easy to arrange with a fisherman to keep watch in a boat at a little distance; and as soon as the Cormorant alights and is trapped, it will come off at once into the water, and should be taken up as soon as possible. A cloth should be thrown over the back and wings, two corners being tied securely under the chin, and the other two corners under the tail behind the legs. The bird may then be tethered by the legs until brought ashore.
While this operation is being performed, it should be held firmly, yet gently, by grasping first the back of the head and then the closed beak, care, of course, being taken to avoid a bite, which would be a very sharp one.
On getting ashore with two or three captures, the flight feathers of the left wing should be cut neatly with a large pair of scissors, and the birds turned into a loose box, or any outhouse from which they cannot escape, care being taken to lay down straw, tan, or sawdust, to prevent the breakage of the stiff tail feathers, which form so useful a rudder when in the water. Here they may be fed on fish, until such time as they can be forwarded to their ultimate destination. The training is commenced by putting soft leather straps, or "jesses,” on one or both legs, as with a hawk, to which a line is attached when the bird is first allowed in the water.
It is taught (like a hawk) to come to "the lure"-a tin box containing its food, which is rattled every time the bird is fed -and may even be carried on the gloved hand like a falcon. A small leather strap being buckled round the lower part of the neck before the bird is allowed to enter the water, it is unable to do more than pouch any fish that it may catch, and has to come ashore to be relieved of its burden by its master, who rewards it every time for its obedience. After a little practice the line is dispensed with, and the bird soon becomes very docile, seeming fully to understand all that is required of it.
The Chinese method of fishing with Cormorants differs but little from that employed by English and French amateurs at [Photo. by W. S. Berridge.
CORMORANTS.
Phalacrocorax the present day. In China, however, the birds, smaller than our carbo, and of a different species (Phalacrocorax sinensis, called by the Chinese Leu-tze), are carried on light shallow punts or rafts, and are commonly employed, not, as here, for amusement, but as a matter of business to supply the markets with fish.
J. E. HARTING.
COURSING is one of the most ancient of field sports. King Solomon speaks of the greyhound as an example of what ،، goes well, and is comely in going." From the Greek historian, warrior, and philosopher, Arrian, who flourished in the second century of the present era, we gather everything worth knowing of coursing as practised by the people of his time. Many of the forms and methods of those days are still adhered to, though it is singular to note in Arrian's writings on the subject an entire absence of any code of rules or FF2 laws for gauging the merits of the competing greyhounds. Although coursing was an undoubtedly popular pastime in the British Isles during the Middle Ages, it is some centuries later ere one discovers evidence of its being carried on with a due regard to the system and regularity that characterise the coursing of the present day. 66 The first authenticated code of rules for judging the work done by a brace of greyhounds in pursuit of a hare was compiled in the days of Queen Elizabeth. The title runs (probably a revised version):
The Laws of the Leash or Coursing, as they were commanded, allowed, and subscribed by Thomas, late Duke of Norfolk, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth." These rules governed coursing until about the third quarter of the last century, when the sport, which hitherto had been confined to matches between braces of greyhounds, underwent a complete revolution.