Chapter XVI: Part I (5)

~One~ of the largest tennis tournaments of the season was given September 26th, on the grounds of the Highlands Country Club, about five miles from Washington. The winner, Mr. Mansfield, now holds the championship of the Southern States. Remarkably good tennis, fine weather, and a large and fashionable attendance were the features of the week. Space forbids giving the score in full; suffice it to say that Fred. Mansfield, of the Longwood Club, Boston, carried off the honors in the gentlemen’s singles by defeating D. Miller in the final round, 6-1, 6-4, 6-2. In the gentlemen’s doubles, Mansfield was again successful, and with his partner, F. V. Hoppin, easily defeated, in the final round, Davidson and Metcalf, 6-2, 6-2, 3-6, 6-2.

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~The~ Clifton Lawn Tennis Club held its annual tournament at Fort Wadsworth, Staten Island, September 27th. As the tournament was open to all Staten Island clubs, the Ladies’ Out-Door Sporting Club and the Staten Island Athletic Club were well represented. Miss Austin won in the final round of the ladies’ singles, defeating Miss Gertrude Williams, 6-3, 1-6, 6-4, 6-1. E. W. Gould carried off the honors among the gentlemen by defeating J. B. Johnson in the final, 6-2, 1-6, 6-1, 6-1. Very handsome prizes were given to the winners.

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~Not~ long ago an association was formed comprising all the lawn tennis clubs on the Hudson River, from Yonkers to Albany. The name by which it was to be known was the Hudson River Lawn Tennis Association. The first tournament was held on the grounds of the “Far and Near,” at Hastings-on-the-Hudson, Sept. 25th, and proved, for a beginning, a great success. Mr. V. G. Hall, of the Edgwood Club, won the handsome silver pitcher, valued at $200, which will become his property by winning it twice. In the gentlemen’s doubles, V. G. Hall and his brother, E. L. Hall, were winners, defeating C. E. and R. C. Sands in the finals score, 6-4, 2-6, 3-6, 6-5, 6-3. Miss E. C. Roosevelt won the ladies’ singles, and with her sister Grace, the doubles also. The mixed doubles were won by Mr. C. E. Sands and Miss E. Roosevelt. In all probability, the next meeting, which is to take place some time in June, 1889, will be on the Newburgh courts.

QUOITS.

~A match~ was played at Montreal, September 22, for the championship of the Dominion, on the Montreal Quoiting Club’s grounds, and resulted in a victory for the home club over the Dominion Club by 65 points. The following are the teams, with the individual scores:

DOMINION CLUB. MONTREAL CLUB.

1. G. Fleet 23 A. McIntyre 31
2. J. Ganley 5 J. Graham 31
3. J. Briggs 10 J. J. Elliott 31
4. X. Desrochers 31 J. Williams 27
5. L. E. Farrar 26 G. Sibley 31
6. A. Tattersall 31 J. Leduc 12
7. M. Bannan 7 A. Lindsay 31
8. A. Weir 26 W. Renshaw 31
9. H. Oram 31 W. Ogilvie 20
10. R. Waugh 28 H. Trepannier 31
11. J. Cuthbert 31 A. Loiseau 15
12. W. J. Stewart 8 J. J. Adams 31
--- ---
257 322

ROWING.

~The~ Atalanta Boat Club held its fortieth annual regatta on the Harlem, September 15. It was also Ladies’ Day. The club-house at One Hundred and Fifty-third Street was crowded with guests. No time was kept of the different contests, which were very exciting. The following is the result of the races, and the names of the men who took part in them:

Junior single shells--Entries: George B. Weed, William D. Bourne, William C. Dilger, Edward W. Tanner and Alexander Woods. William D. Bourne won.

Senior single gigs, for gold medal given by Captain Theodore Van Raden; distance, one mile--Entries: Max Lau, William Lau, George R. Storms and Benjamin A. Jackson. Max Lau won.

Four-oared shells--Entries: No. 1, W. E. Cody, bow; S. B. Marks, P. B. Reyhmer, J. A. Garland, stroke. No. 2, W. C. Doscher, bow; A. G. Roemer, C. A. Hawley, W. Content, stroke. No. 3, E. J. Stewart, bow; D. Van Holland, W. Dittmar, Jr., H. A. McLean, stroke. No. 2 won.

Eight-oared barge race--Entries were, No. 1, married, William C. Dilger, bow; G. M. Young, William Dittmar, D. Van Holland, E. J. Cullen, H. M. Williams, T. McAdam, W. Dittmar, Jr., stroke, and H. Hazard, coxswain. No. 2, single, C. F. Beyer, bow; E. McCormack, F. H. S. Cooley, F. A. Merrill, W. J. Davenport, A. J. Wallace, S. A. Saffard, E. Fuchs, stroke, and H. Moody, coxswain. The race was a close, pretty and interesting one, and resulted in a victory for the married men.

Eight-oared shells--Entries: No. 1, F. McElroy, bow; E. J. Allen, E. D. McMurray, D. Brown, H. D. Clapp, W. B. Merrall, L. F. Roediger, B. A. Jackson, stroke; E. P. K. Coffin, coxswain. No. 2, W. H. Chandler, bow; T. G. Smith, E. J. Ranhoffer, I. D. Fairchild, F. Pullman, W. J. Winter, J. A. Miller, O. Fuchs, stroke; J. E. Silliman, coxswain. No. 3, C. Renner, bow; W. J. Hutchinson, E. R. Bunce, W. F. Mohr, G. R. Pasco, G. Radley, W. D. Stewart, E. H. Patterson, stroke, and E. J. Byrne, coxswain. This race differed from the others in that it was over a straightaway mile course. No. 1 won.

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~The~ fourth annual regatta of the Nautilus Boat Club took place September 15. The course was from the Sea Beach dock, at Bay Ridge, toward the Atlantic Yacht Club basin. Distance, with a turn, about three-fourths of a mile.

The junior single-gig race, class A, with five entries, was rowed in two trial heats. Johnson won first heat--time, 5m. 24s. Olsen, second heat, 5m. 29s. The final heat was won by Olsen; time, 5m. 6s.

The junior single-gig race, class B. Nine entries. First trial heat won by W. Reid; time, 5m. 21s. Second trial heat, S. H. Ayres; time, 5m. 27s. Third trial heat, S. Manley; time, 5m. 44s. The final heat was won by Ayres in 5m. 24s.; Manley second.

The junior double-scull gig was won by Oswald and Peterson; time, 5m.

The senior double-scull gig was won by F. Olsen and M. Donally; time, 4m. 45s. Their only competitors, the two Hillmans, were only a half length behind at the finish.

The single-gig match, between W. A. Merrick and T. F. Crean, was won by the latter. Time, 5m. 41s.

Two crews entered for the junior four-oared gig race. The crew composed by W. Charnley, T. F. Crean, A. T. Morro and A. Ribas, with W. Whitner as coxswain, won by a boat’s length, in 4m. 5s.

The eight-oared barge race was won by Captain Donnelly’s crew, made up as follows: Fred Olsen, bow; J. O’Conner, second; J. D. Phillips, third; A. N. Peterson, fourth; S. Manley, fifth; M. W. Mullany, sixth; R. Hillmon, seventh; M. Donaly, stroke, and C. W. Parmlee, coxswain, were the winning crew by two boat-lengths; time, 4m. 54s.

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~A popular~ subscription has been started by the Cornell _Era_ to raise money to put an eight-oar crew on the water next season. A Cornell crew in the seventies showed all the college crews the way to victory.

SHOOTING.

~The~ annual contest for State trophies of the Massachusetts Volunteer Militia took place at South Framingham, Sept. 25. The contests were open to teams of seven men each from each county, and the staff teams were five each. There were two prizes for staff officers, three for line officers, and three for enlisted men, besides the three team prizes. Two scores of seven shots each, contestants shooting in teams count that score and then shoot an additional one.

Staff Team Prize--Staff 2d Brigade, 1st, 136; Staff 5th Infantry, 2d, 136; Staff 1st Brigade, 3d, 135.

Staff Officers--Capt. J. B. Osborne, 1st Brigade, 60; Lieut. R. B. Edes, 5th Infantry, 60.

Line Officers--Lieut. E. B. C. Erickson, 5th Infantry, 61; Lieut. C. N. Edgell, 2d Infantry, 60; Capt. Williamson, 1st Infantry, 58.

Company Team Match--Compy. B, 2d Infantry, 200; Compy. C, 2d Cadets, 198; Compy. F, 2d Infantry, 194.

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~The~ National Rifle Association of America held their annual meeting at Creedmoor in September. The attendance was smaller than last year--in fact, it seems to grow smaller every year. The shooting was, on the whole, good. Sergt. T. J. Dolan, 12th N. Y., made the fine score of 50 points at 200 and 500 yards, 5 shots at each range, making the possible 25 points at both, a feat that has never before been equaled on the range. Both his scores were made on the same day. Capt. Barnard Walther, of the renowned Zettler Club, of New York City, again carried off the first prize in the Tiffany Match, this being the second consecutive year he has won the cup. The Massachusetts State Team again won the Inter-state and Hilton trophies, being the third consecutive year that they have accomplished this. Major C. W. Hinman, of Boston, won the Governor’s Match at 50 yards. Sergt.-Major W. M. Merrill, of Boston, won the Wimbledon Cup at 1,000 yards. Sergt. Geo. Doyle, Corps of Engineers, U. S. A., won the President’s Match, which carries with it the title of Champion Military Rifle Shot of the U. S. A. for the coming year. Sergt. Fred. Wells, 22d N. Y., made the same number of points, but was outranked. Sergt. Wells won the first stage and prize of $20. The Zettler Rifle Club, of New York City, won the Short Range Team Match. The winners and matches were as follows:

Director’s Match (5 shots, 200 yards)--James Duane, 23.

Wimbledon Cup (30 shots, 1,000 yards)--Sergt. W. M. Merrill, 134; F. H. Holton, 125; W. F. Mayer, 117; I. F. McNevin, 116; C. H. Gaus, 103; T. J. Dolan, 79.

Judd Match (at 200 yards--two scores of five shots each to count for first five prizes. For remainder of prizes, one single score; each contestant to shoot six strings, three each day. Twenty-five prizes)--T. J. Dolan, 1st; T. G. Austen, 2d; D. H. Ogden, 3d; W. G. Hussey, 4th; W. C. Johnston, 5th. The first three prizes were won with the Remington 50 cal. rifle, which received two points allowance on ten shots.

The Long Range Military Match (10 shots at 800, 900 and 1,000 yards)--Jas. McNevins, 114; C. W. Hinman, 112; W. M. Merrill, 111; A. B. Van Heusen, 110.

President’s Match (first stage at 200 and 500 yards)--F. A. Wells, 1st, 67. The 22 men who won prizes in the first stage were eligible to shoot at 600 yards, 10 shots each, and the man making the highest total at 200, 500 and 600, won the prize of $25 and the title of Military Champion. Sergt. Doyle (total of both stages), 109; F. A. Wells, 109; T. J. Dolan, 107. T. J. Dolan was the winner last year.

Short Range Team Match (American standard target, 200 yards off-hand)--Zettler Rifle Club--B. Walther, 84; M. Dorrler, 83; L. Flack, 73; C. S. Zettler, 52--total, 292.

Second Regiment Team, Massachusetts Volunteer Militia--W. M. Farrow, 77; M. W. Bull, 70; S. S. Bumstead, 65; F. R. Bull, 59; allowance, 16--total, 287. This team used military rifles and received 4 points allowance per man.

Lynn Rifle Association, Lynn, Mass.--W. G. Hussey, 73; W. C. Johnston, 70; C. W. Hinman, 67; R. B. Eades, 55; allowance, 12--total, 277. All used military rifles except Hinman.

Nyack Rifle Club, Nyack, N. Y.--J. J. Sydecker, 64; G. McAucliffe, 59; D. Shakespear, 59; J. O. Davidson, 53--total, 245.

New York State National Guard Match--Regimental Team Match (at 200 and 500 yards)--23d Regiment Team, 1st, 521; 12th Regiment Team, 482; 7th, 495; 13th, 484; 22d, 451. 1st Brigade, National Guard Match--7th Regiment Team, 572; 12th, 485; 2d, 441. 2d Brigade--23d Regiment Team, 509; 13th, 457.

The Inter-State Match had only New York and Massachusetts State teams entered (12 men, 10 shots each, at 200 and 500 yards)--Massachusetts State Team, 1,047; New York State Team, 1,015.

Hilton Trophy--open to State teams and teams from the divisions of the regular army (7 shots each at 200, 500 and 600 yards, 12 men each team)--Massachusetts Team, 1,080; Division of the Atlantic Team, 1,057; New York Team, 1,057.

Governor’s Match (three scores to count at 500 yards each, shooter to shoot as many entries as he pleases)--Major C. W. Hinman, Boston, 1st; Capt. J. B. Osborn, Boston, 2d.

Tiffany Match (200 yards)--B. Walther, 1st; T. J. Dolan, 2d; W. M. Farrow, 3d.

Stewart Match (200 yards, standing, sitting or kneeling)--J. F. Klein, 1st; Geo. Doyle, 2d; W. M. Farrow, 3d; W. G. Hussey, 4th; C. L. Potter, 5th; J. S. Shepherd, 6th; C. H. Gaus, 7th; C. A. Jones, 8th; J. D. Foot, 9th.

All Comers and Marksman Badge (25 at 200 and 25 at 500)--T. J. Dolan, 1st.

Revolver Match--Ira A. Paine, 140; A. Brennor, 132; J. G. Newbury, 123; G. L. Garrigues, 122; W. E. Petty, 120; W. C. Johnston, Jr., 119; F. J. H. Merrill, 114; C. H. Gaus, 113; W. M. Merrill, 113; J. E. Winslow, 111. Among the noted visitors present during the week were Herr Josef Schuloff, the inventor of the magazine rifle and revolver, Col. Bodine, Col. Miller, Major Shorkley, and other well-known rifle-shots.

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~The~ eighth annual tournament of the Western Rifle Association was held recently at Fort Snelling, Minn. It was successful as far as shooting is concerned. The following are the summaries:

THE CHICAGO MATCH (10 SHOTS).

200 YDS. 300 YDS. 600 YDS. TOTAL.
E. W. Bird 45 43 48 136
C. Mandlin 46 47 43 136
C. W. Skinner 48 42 43 133

DEER HUNTER MATCH (10 SHOTS, AMERICAN FIELD TARGET).

100 YDS. 200 YDS. TOTAL.
John Marshall 81 65 146
E. W. Bird 70 71 141

Pistol or Revolver Match (15 shots at 30 yards)--C. M. Skinner, 135; A. E. Chantler, 117; S. M. Tyrrell, 105.

Minneapolis _Tribune_ Match (15 shots at 200, 500 and 600 yards)--C. W. Weeks, 275; John Marshall, 272.

Minneapolis Match (shot on new decimal target adopted by Minneapolis Rifle Club--15 shots at 500 and 600 yards)--E. W. Bird, gold badge, 225; A. F. Elliott, deer’s head, 224; John Marshall, silver card-tray, 216.

Police Revolver Match (50 yards, 20 shots each)--C. M. Skinner, 151; S. M. Tyrrell, 127; E. W. Bird, 126; A. S. Chantler, 118; C. W. Weeks, 117. This was shot on the American field target. C. Mandlin, of Minneapolis, won the Continuous Match at 200 yards off-hand.

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~Mr. Fred. E. Bennett~, of Boston, the champion revolver shot of America, has been doing some fine shooting at 50 yards, using a 22 calibre pistol. In 100 consecutive shots he made the following fine totals: 97, 95, 90, 85, 89, 91, 93, 89, 86, 91--total, 906, out of a possible 1,000. Mr. Bennett has issued a challenge to shoot a revolver match with Ira Paine for $1,000 a side, either in France, England, or America.

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~The~ experts at the National Armory, at Springfield, Mass., are trying a new ammunition with a view to the adoption of a small calibre rifle. The experiments made so far demonstrate that the Swiss rifle, which is of a small calibre (about .30), has a very flat trajectory at 500 yards, and is accurate; while the Springfield, or U. S. Government rifle has a very high trajectory. Further experiments will be made before anything definite is done.

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~A new~ rifle club has been organized in Newark, N. J. Its officers are William Dennenger, president; F. Kraus, vice-president; William Doull, secretary; K. Kopf, treasurer; F. Siegman, sergeant-at-arms.

YACHTING.

~A dozen~ pretty cat-rigged yachts, manned by jolly crews from Brooklyn, Canarsie and Ruffle Bar, sailed a very exciting race on Jamaica Bay, Saturday, September 23. It was the second of the series inaugurated by the Windward Club of Ruffle Bar, and the result has decided that Mr. Hatch’s pretty _Julita_, built three years ago by Dick Wallin, of South Brooklyn, is the fastest boat in the first class, for she has won both races, and so takes the prize of the Windward Cup, offered by the club.

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~The~ Yorkville Yacht Club had its twice postponed fall races September 23. There was a lack of wind in the forenoon. In the afternoon the yachts started from Oak Point against a light wind and with a strong flood tide. Both wind and tide were with them on the return. Classes A, B and C sailed around the gangway buoy and return, a distance of twenty miles. The other classes rounded the Stepping Stones Lighthouse, making fifteen miles. In class A, for cabin sloops more than 30 feet, D. McGlynn’s _Emma and Alice_ was the only entry. She made the distance in 5 hours 15 minutes 15 seconds. _Maud M._, manned by Sergeant McManus and a crew of 14 men from Fort Schuyler, had a walk over in the class for cabin boats under 30 feet. Her time was 5 hours 18 minutes 45 seconds. She broke her spinnaker on the return. J. Thomson’s _Bessie R._ was the only catboat between 17 and 22 feet, and she sailed the 15 miles in 5 hours 3 minutes 30 seconds. The _Jessie_ was successful in her class, and the _Happy Thought_ won handily in the race for smaller catboats. The _Peerless_, the _Jennie V._, and the _Helen_ did not finish.

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~The~ Fall Regatta of the New York Yacht Club took place September 20. The day was all that could be desired by the most ardent yachtsman.

At 11h. 32m. the Blue Peter was lowered on the _Electra’s_ foremast and the signal gun started the racers. _Fannie_, under mainsail and jib, with the wind on the starboard quarter, rushed for the line, with the _Dauntless_ a little to windward and the _Katrina_ almost bow and bow. As they darted past the flagship the _Dauntless_ hauled a little closer by the wind and shot ahead of the other two yachts, the _Katrina_ passing within a few feet of the _Electra’s_ lee side. The three went over almost in line and made one of the handsomest marine pictures ever seen in New York harbor. The _Dauntless_ held the lead for a short distance, but the _Katrina_ soon forged ahead. After these three the _Alarm_ came slowly by as stiff as a house, but a little faster. Then followed the _Shamrock_, with her baby jibtopsail in stops, which were broken as she crossed the line, and the _Adelaide_, heeling well to leeward. The _Grayling_, with every sail set and as full as a balloon, rushed across in her dashing style. The _Wizard_ followed after her with a handicap of 3 minutes, and then the _Magic_, also handicapped 12m. 57s.

The yachts had a beat to the lightship and were forced to make a long and short leg to weather the buoys, which had to be passed on the port hand. The _Katrina_ and _Shamrock_ seemed to point about the same and were both pinched very closely. The former was the first to go on port tack, at 12h. 35m., followed by the _Shamrock_ one minute after. The _Grayling_ held to the starboard tack longer than either of the sloops and gained very much in so doing, for she rounded the Sandy Hook Lightship almost the same moment as the _Shamrock_. Following are the times:

H. M. S.
Katrina 12 40 05
Shamrock 12 45 30
Grayling 12 45 35

In the run from the start to the lightship the _Katrina_ gained 1m. 13s. on the _Shamrock_. That from the lightship to the stake boat was a reach by the wind on the port tack. When the yachts reached the _Haviland_ the _Katrina_ was still in the lead, though she had lost 45 seconds to the _Shamrock_, who had in turn gained 2 minutes on the _Grayling_. The _Dauntless_ was leading the _Fanny_ at this point, and the _Adelaide_ the _Wizard_. At the stake-boat the following times were taken:

H. M. S.
Katrina 1 26 40
Shamrock 1 32 60
Grayling 1 34 55

The yachts passed the _Haviland_ on the port hand, easing off sheets and running again for the lightship with the wind on the starboard quarter. They rounded the lightship a second time as follows:

H. M. S.
Katrina 2 10 05
Shamrock 2 15 08
Grayling 2 15 42

In this run the _Katrina_ lost 22 seconds to the _Shamrock_, who gained 1 minute on the _Grayling_.

From Sandy Hook Lightship it was a run with the wind on the port beam to the finish. The sloops set their club topsails over working ones and made a fast run home. The _Katrina_ held the lead to the end, but lost on time allowance. The wind was a steady wholesale breeze from the south-southwest, and remained so throughout the day.

The following is the elapsed and corrected time:

KEEL SCHOONERS.

_Elapsed._ _Corr’d_
_Start._ _Finish._ _Time._ _Time._

H. M. S. H. M. S. H. M. S. H. M. S.

Dauntless 11 34 14 3 22 24 3 48 10 3 48 10
Alarm 11 35 22 3 45 26 4 10 04 [*]

CLASS 3--SCHOONERS.

Grayling 11 40 55 3 10 35 3 29 40 3 29 40
Magic 11 42 00 3 42 03 4 02 03 3 59 22

CLASS 2--SLOOPS.

Shamrock 11 38 35 3 11 44 3 33 09 3 31 59
Katrina 11 34 23 3 08 13 3 33 50 3 33 50
Fanny 11 34 14 3 36 00 3 57 09 3 54 10

CLASS 4--SLOOPS.

Adelaide 11 40 06 3 55 38 4 15 32[*]
Wizard 11 42 00 Did not finish.

[*] Not measured.

Thus in the keel schooner class the _Dauntless_ beats the _Alarm_. In class 3 the _Grayling_ beats the _Magic_ 29m. 42s. and makes the quickest time over the course. In the second class sloops the _Shamrock_ beats the _Katrina_ 1m. 51s., and the _Adelaide_ has a walk over in class 4, the _Wizard_ having carried away her topmast.

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~A new~ yacht club was recently organized in this city. It will be known as the Rockaway Yacht Club. The certificate of incorporation was signed Sept. 17.

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~Can~ any of our readers inform us what has become of the following clubs, and what are their present addresses?

~Cycling~--Weston Wheelmen, Weston, Ohio; Worcester Bicycle
Club, Worcester, Mass.; Wayside Wheelmen, Brooklyn, L. I.

~Canoe~--Mystic Canoe Club, Winchester, Conn.; Stillwater
Canoe Club, Stillwater, Ohio.

~Rowing~--New England Amateur Rowing Association, Boston,
Mass.; Long Island Amateur Rowing Association, Brooklyn.

~Shooting~--Memphis Gun Club, Shell Lake, Ark.; Jacksonville
Gun Club, Jacksonville, Ky.; Frelinghuysen Rifle Club, New York
City; Krutland Ionia Hunting Club, Grand Rapids, Mich.

~Yachting~--Bohemian Yacht Club, San Francisco, Cal.

ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS.

[_This department of_ ~Outing~ _is devoted to answers to
correspondents seeking information on subjects appertaining to all
sports._]

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_Yachtsman, Chesapeake Bay Y. C._--You cannot do better than have your boat furnished by Messrs. Warren, Ward & Co., 6 and 8 East 20th St., N. Y. City. Commodore Gerry had his steam yacht _Electra_ fitted by this firm, and the results are admirable. The best refrigerator for a yacht is made by W. Law, 324 East 122d Street, City.

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_J. Dixon, New York City._--We are able to give you the information you require as to your proposed cycling trip from West Troy to Buffalo. (1) You would be allowed to ride on the tow-path of the canal. (2) The road is not good. (3) The distance is about 325 miles. (4) On the road you should average from forty to sixty miles, but on the tow-path you would not do more than about twenty-five miles a day. You would also have to dismount often on account of mule teams, etc. These animals have been known to jump into the canal at the sight of a bicycle, thereby causing trouble between canal boat men and cycler, much to the disadvantage of the latter. We should strongly advise you to take the main road, and follow the route in the New York Road Book. (5) As to your last question, we think that you had better use your own judgment.

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_Observer._--The best position in which to place a registering thermometer is over an open grass-plot. If this cannot be done, a wall may be used, care being taken that it is a garden-wall, and not the wall of a house; also that the screen in which the thermometer is placed hangs at some distance from the wall, so as to admit of the free passage of air behind it. In all cases the thermometer should be placed in a screen not less than four feet from the ground, and facing to the north (in the northern hemisphere) and sheltered from the sun at all hours, but exposed to a free circulation of the air.

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_Drag-Hunter, Boston, Mass._--The best drag for hounds is generally supposed to be a common red herring. Assafœtida is sometimes used, and also aniseed. Many people suppose, however, that the last is detrimental to hounds, but drag-hunting of any description will spoil a pack for fox, so that that question does not matter much.

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_T. G. F., Portland, Oregon._--Your description and sketch of the fish caught on a branch of the Columbia River, in Washington Territory, and which you supposed to be a “grayling,” was so imperfect that it was hard to give you an answer. We referred it to Dr. Tarleton H. Bean, of the Smithsonian Institution, one of the highest authorities on ichthyology in the country. It would have been a matter of great interest had the grayling been found in that region. It seems, however, that it is only another instance of the confusion which arises from local nomenclatures. Dr. Bean’s reply sets the matter at rest, and is so interesting that we publish it in full. He writes: “The sketch sent is intended to represent Williamson’s whitefish (_Coregonus Williamsoni_), which is called ‘grayling’ in some parts of the West. I do not know of the existence of a grayling west of Montana, until British America is reached. Williamson’s whitefish is common in the region west of the Rocky Mountains, particularly so in the Sierra Nevada, and is often styled ‘grayling.’”

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_B. J. W., Albany, N. Y._--Yes. An amateur athlete may compete with a professional, provided that it is a genuinely friendly contest, but not for money or prizes, or at a public meeting.

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_Scott, Montreal, Canada._--The best way to preserve gut leaders is to wrap them up in wash-leather, tightly bound with string. If they are in good condition, they will keep well like this for years.

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_J. S. M., East 56th Street, N. Y. City._--What you heard is quite true, although you appear to doubt it so much. The “King of Dudes,” Berry Wall, was at one time quite an athlete, and about seven or eight years ago was one of the fastest amateur walkers in the country. His record for a mile was 7m. 20s.

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_J. A. I., Phila._--E. Waters & Sons, of Troy, New York, are builders of paper boats. The name was incorrectly given in the September ~Outing~.

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_Duck Hunter, Charles City, Va._--You can obtain such rubber goods as you mention from the Hodgman Rubber Company, 459 and 461, Broadway, New York.

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_Jock, Dayton, Ohio._--The race called “The Oaks” is run on the Friday following Derby Day. It is for three-year-old fillies, and the distance is about a mile and a half, over the same course as the Derby. Both races were founded by the twelfth Earl of Derby--the first Oaks being run on May 14, 1779, and being named after his residence at Woodman Sterne, while the first Derby was run in the next year. The Derby course was at first a mile, but has since been altered.

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_Double Team, Albany, N. Y._--To the best of our knowledge there is no better treatment for thrush in horses than the old method of frequently dressing the affected feet with tar, spread on tow. This should be well thrust into the cleft of the frog. Carbolic acid is also used in the same way, while in severe cases, where lameness is occasioned, it becomes necessary to use poultices.

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_Pointer, Lynchburg, Va._--The question whether or not to remove a puppy’s dew-claws, is more a matter of fashion and opinion than anything else. As a matter of fact, the presence of dew-claws seems very seldom to lead to any inconvenience to a dog. There does not, however, seem to be any real objection to the removal of them, for the attachment is usually only ligamentous; or, if bone does exist, it is so slight that the operation of cutting them does not amount to anything.

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_Sportsman, Brooklyn._--President Cleveland’s bluefishing trip was not the first angling expedition he had made during his presidential career, for last year he went up to the Adirondacks for trout-fishing. It will be remembered that his predecessor, President Arthur, was also an enthusiastic angler.

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_Whip, Fifty-ninth Street, N. Y._--What you say is quite true as to the difficulty in procuring good, lasting gloves for rough work like driving. There is, however, a capital article for your purpose, or, indeed, for any purpose, manufactured by J. C. Hutchinson, Johnstown, N. Y. This maker’s gloves will, we think, give you satisfaction.

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_H. S. P., Newark, N. J._--If the horse has completely “broken down,” the fetlock joint will actually touch the ground. From your description this does not seem to be the case, and so the accident probably only amounts to a partial breakdown, due to the rupture of the flexor tendon and some of its ligamentous fibres. As to treatment, you had better consult a veterinary surgeon, but after the first severity of the inflammation has subsided, it is generally thought best to fire the leg.

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_Housewife, Baltimore, Md._--Truly your questions are hardly in ~Outing’s~ line, but we can answer them. It is very hard to beat that most reliable article, the Royal Baking Powder; you will see from the company’s advertisement what testimonials it receives from sources absolutely trustworthy. As to your second question, we cannot do better than refer you to the Quarterly published by Messrs. Strawbridge & Clothier, Eighth and Market Streets, Philadelphia. In this useful publication you will find on page 148 just the information you want.

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_Racquet, Toronto._--You are quite right in supposing that tennis proper, or court tennis, has seen much palmier days. It is said that in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries there were a couple of hundred courts in England, of which fourteen were in London, while Henry VIII. built one at Hampton Court Palace. No revival of this aristocratic game took place till this century. In 1838 one was built at Lord’s Cricket Ground, London. Now there are, we believe, three in London, one each at Oxford and Cambridge, while there are five other public or club courts in England, at Manchester, Brighton, Leamington, Crayley near Winchester, and Hampton Court. Besides these there are about as many private ones.

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_Capt. C., Minneapolis._--In England linseed oil is never used in hunting stables, except as a purgative, or, mixed with tobacco dust (about three-quarters of an ounce of the latter to three-quarters of a pint of the former) as a drench for worms. To hacks and harness horses linseed oil is sometimes given in small quantities to make their coats look better. The seed itself is given to hunters after a day’s work, either in the form of linseed tea (a substitute for oatmeal gruel), or when boiled to a jelly and mixed with a bran mash. About two pounds of linseed is the quantity for either preparation. Linseed jelly is often mixed with oats when it is desired to put flesh on horses in poor condition, or when getting them up for sale. It is a demulcent, and slightly laxative.

~Outing.~

~Vol. XIII.~ DECEMBER, 1888. ~No. 3.~

SPORT--PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE.

BY ALEXANDER HUNTER.

It may be a pleasant task for the sporting antiquary or the historian of some future period to trace the rise and fall of shooting in the section where the Potomac bursts foaming through its narrow bed at the Great Falls to Point Lookout, where the wide, majestic river mixes its fresh waters with the brine of Chesapeake Bay. But retrospection only brings sadness and regret to the sportsman of to-day, who sees the finest shooting-ground for wild fowl on the American continent now denuded of its game, except in scantiest quantities.

_Potomac_ in the Indian dialect signifies “The River of Swans.” A pleasure or health seeker as he passes down the bay _en route_ to Old Point, or a tourist on a pilgrimage to Mount Vernon, admires from the steamer’s deck the fine scenery, the bold headlands, the sweeping curves of the shore, and the ever-shifting scenes of the beautiful river, but he will never catch a glimpse, in a lifetime’s travel, of the stately birds that were so plentiful that the river was named after them.

All the observant traveler now sees is the settling of, perhaps, a dozen broad-bills in the water, or the alighting of a solitary shuffler or mallard. He will learn with surprise that not many years back the steamer literally ploughed its way through vast flocks of ducks, who only took wing when the sharp prow was within a few yards of them, while every creek, stream and run that poured its waters into the river was alive with waterfowl of a dozen different species, scurrying to and fro, circling high into the air, or striking into their native element with an explosive splash. On a windy day the river was so black with them that the bosom of the deep seemed to have been changed into an undulating, many-hued meadow.

Across the river from Mount Vernon was one of the most famous ducking blinds on the Potomac. The steamboat passengers notice with curiosity what appears to be a small island directly in the centre of the river, which at this point is about two miles wide. It is a miniature Loch Leven Castle, and the ruins of a small stone edifice makes it a romantic picture in the varied panorama that unfolds as one passes down the “River of Swans.” Right across on the Maryland side is one of those old colonial brick houses that tell of days when his Majesty was “prayed for” by fox-hunting parsons, and where the King’s health was drunk before each toast by the cocked-hat gentry. The house, which stands on a high hill, and faces Mount Vernon across the river, is the manor-seat of the Chapmans, a family whose name is connected with every public enterprise or “high emprise” from the conversion of the colony of Maryland into a commonwealth.

Ox Eyes]

General John Chapman was a great lover of both rod and gun, and some thirty years ago he conceived the idea of making comfort and sport go hand in hand. Having made his soundings, he kept his slaves steadily at work, during odd days and off hours, hauling rocks in flat-boats, and dumping them into the rolling river. He kept his own counsel, and his neighbors began to fear he was going crazy. At last his island was completed. Like the Old Point “Rip-Raps,” it arose sheer from the water, and was composed entirely of loose rock. Chapman Island, as it was called, had an area of about a quarter of an acre, and was shaped like a cigar--the smaller end gradually decreasing in height and breadth until the narrowing ledge disappeared in the water. At this point the decoys--rarely under a hundred, often double that number--were placed. At the large end of the island was the hunting-lodge, at a distance of about seventy-five yards. It was built low, but the walls were thick, and a coal stove kept it comfortable in the stormiest, coldest days. It is doubtful whether there ever was a blind in all America that surpassed in attractions this artificial island.

Ducks, as a general thing, when moving in great numbers, choose the middle of a river, and seeing a large flock (the decoys) floating near the point, they would invariably swirl aside and join them. At a time when the river was full of waterfowl, some idea may be had of the royal sport, without any terrible exposure and endurance; a warm fire, refreshments of all kinds within a minute’s walk, and the ducks raining down in a ceaseless stream from the sky--that was the very poetry of sporting.

In the fall and winter months General Chapman had his house filled with the men whose names are household words in America, and his oyster roasts, canvasback and terrapin stews were as widely known then as were the dinners of the great lobbyist and gourmand, Sam Ward, a quarter of a century afterwards.

From the traditions handed down, it is known that General Washington was an enthusiastic rider after hounds, and it was at one of the meets that he first met Mistress Betty Custis; but he never was a devotee of the gun. There are several letters written by him to his patron, Lord Fairfax, of Greenway Court, which are, or were a few years ago, in the possession of Mrs. Custis, of Williamsburg, Virginia. In them the young surveyor tells in glowing language of the fine runs he has had and the brushes he has taken.

Opportunity makes the right man; but for the Revolution, George Washington, of Mount Vernon, Virginia, would have been a hard-riding fox-hunter, a shrewd bargainer at a horse-trade, and a vestryman of the Pohick church.

Washington’s nearest neighbor was famous George Mason, whose statue adorns Capitol Square in Richmond, Va. He lived a few miles down the river at Gunston Hall, which, next to Greenway Court, was in its day the most celebrated hunting resort in Virginia, and was the scene of many a glorious meet long after girder, rafter and roof of Greenway Court had mouldered in the dust.

Gunston Hall of to-day is the same building as that of over a century ago. It was built for comfort and not for show, for the walls are very thick, making the rooms warm in winter and cool in summer. It was erected in 1739, and every brick was brought from England as ballast. The plantation originally comprised 5,000 acres, and was, without exception, the finest game preserve in the country. Colonel Mason was an ardent sportsman, and cherished and protected the game on his land. At his river front the wild celery grew in the greatest profusion. If those old walls of Gunston Hall could talk, what entrancing tales they could tell of men of iron mould and giant minds, and maidens “passing faire”! There is a porch around the ancient mansion, religiously preserved, though it is in the last stages of dilapidation, where on the south side of the hall Washington and Mason were wont to sit during the long summer evenings, their senses lulled by the fairy-like scene, their eyes ranging over the grand, circling sweep of the river, and their conversation freshened by many a decoction of pounded ice, fresh mint, and Jamaica brandy. By the way, there are comparatively few people who ever tasted a real Virginia mint julep. The decoction, hastily mixed and as hastily drunk, is called a julep. Bacchus, save the mark! It is as different from the royal mint julep as corn whisky from the imperial cognac. It does not take five minutes, an hour, or a day to properly brew this wonderful drink, but a year at the very least. Here is the way Colonel Bob Allen, of Curl’s Neck, on the James River, used to prepare the julep. In the early spring, gather the young and tender mint, have your demijohn three-quarters full of the best whisky, and into its mouth drop the mint, rolled into little balls, and well bruised--about a quarter of a peck, loosely heaped up, to each gallon of liquor. Next, enough loaf sugar is saturated in water to melt it, and sweeten the whisky _ad lib_. This fills the demijohn, which is then sealed tight, and kept for the future, being rarely opened for at least two years.

The preparation of the drink is simple, and yet artistic. First, a julep ought never to be mixed but in a silver flagon--there is such a thing as a “perfect accord.” The demijohn being opened, the fragrant liquor is poured into the mug, with a double handful of _crushed_ ice--not pounded, but crushed until it is like hail or snow ice--(a stout towel and a few blows against a brick wall will accomplish this result); add a few sprigs of fresh mint, a few strawberries, a tablespoonful of Jamaica rum, and you will have an elixir worthy of Jove to drink and Ganymede to bear.

But the swans from whom the Potomac takes its name, what of them?

In my boyhood I have often heard the septuagenarians and octogenarians of the lowlands speak of the vast migratory flocks of swans and geese that would whiten the river for miles. So many were they that in the spring-time, when the imprisoned frost was released from the ground and the surface of the earth became soft, vast numbers would swoop upon the fields of winter-wheat, and ruin the crop in a single day. It was a common thing for the farmers to employ every supernumerary on the place to guard the young and tender wheat.

But when the steamboat appeared on the scene, both swan and wild geese vanished, never to return.

Memory carries me back to my old ancestral home on the Virginia side of the Potomac, directly opposite the Washington Navy Yard.

In those days, a planter was an epicure by blood, a gourmand by breeding, and as long as his digestion remained unimpaired he could revel in the best of living on the choicest viands; and were he a devotee of the gun, he could amuse himself by killing a variety of game in such quantities that satiety would be apt to ensue.

Yes, the noble river furnished an unfailing supply of succulent food to the dwellers on its banks. The number of fish that swam in the clear waters of the Potomac would seem incredible in these times of purse-ponds and gill-nets. Our overseer used to devote one week in the spring to hauling a small seine, and would catch an abundance of fish to last the plantation the ensuing year, and there were enough herrings salted in barrels, and smoked shad in kits, to half fill our huge cellar that ran underground the whole length of the house. Fresh fish was on every table of the plantation nine months out of the year as a matter of course. The troll lines, set a short distance from the shore, yielded a steady supply of catfish, eels, perch, tobacco-boxes and fresh-water terrapin, or “tarrapin,” as they are called--a luxury only second to their cousin the “diamond-back.” As for the ducks and geese that made their home during winter on the flats between Washington and Alexandria, their number was simply astounding. I have hunted in the last decade from Havre de Grace to Tampa Bay, but never have seen such apparently limitless numbers of ducks as circled in the very sight of the Capitol’s dome some thirty years ago.

The channel was on the Maryland side. It varied from one hundred to one hundred and fifty yards across. For a mile and a half the water was rarely over two feet on the flats at low tide, and not over a fathom at the high-water mark. On these shallow bottoms there grew in the greatest luxuriance a peculiar quality of indigenous plant, called celery-grass, which wild fowl preferred to any other food. About the middle of November the birds began to congregate in such huge flocks that on a clear morning, when suddenly disturbed they took to wing, they made a noise like rolling thunder.

There were sportsmen, of course, at that time in the two cities of Washington and Alexandria, but they confined themselves to the laziest mode of shooting, and followed the creeks and streams that bordered or led into the river. Here the wild fowl afforded fine sport, with but little hardship.

As a general rule, the family on the plantation soon became tired of eating wild ducks; even the incomparable canvas-back palls at length upon the palate, as much as the partridges that are devoured on a wager, one each day for a month. The products of the poultry yard in the end were always preferred to the spoils of the river. Frequently, when company were coming to dinner, it was desirable to have a plentiful supply of game on the table; so my aunt, a famous housewife, would call up Sandy, who, being lame in one leg, was the general utility man of the plantation, one who could turn his hand to anything except regular labor, which he hated as a galley slave his oar, or as much as Rip Van Winkle did to earn an honest living. Sandy resembled Rip in more ways than one, though, fortunately for him, he had no sable Gretchen.

“Take Brother Bush’s gun, Sandy,” my aunt would say, “and go down and bring me some ducks.”

“How many does you want, Miss Jane?”

A mental calculation, and the number was given; then Sandy hobbled off with a matter-of-fact air, as if he were merely bound to the barnyard to slaughter half a dozen chickens. It was just as easy an undertaking, and one infinitely more to his taste. Calling one of the house-boys, he would go with him to the shore, a couple of hundred yards or so distant. Then the couple would walk in single file for some large tree bordering the river. The ducks feeding on the wild celery close to the shore would on their approach swim lazily from the banks out of gun-shot. Sandy would take his position behind the trunk of the tree and lie close. His companion would leisurely walk back to the house. The wild fowl, seeing the cause of their alarm disappear, would slowly circle back, and Sandy, waiting till they were well bunched, would let go both barrels; then, denuding himself of his breeches, he would wade in and bring out his game. The ducks never seemed to “catch on” to this dodge, and Sandy rarely failed to fill his orders, as the drummers say, “with promptness and dispatch.”

There was only one pot-hunter in the neighborhood of Washington thirty years ago--an old, grizzled, weather-beaten man, named Jerry, who anchored his little schooner in a snug cove on our shore every winter, and such was the unfailing supply of wild ducks that Jerry was rarely forced to up-anchor, set his sails and speed farther down the river. Old Jerry was assisted by his son, young Jerry, a chip of the old block. Every Saturday these two would put their game in canvas bags and carry them to their regular customers in Washington.

I became a fast friend of these two pot-hunters, as much, indeed, as a boy of twelve years could with matured men. I suppose I imbibed from them that overmastering love of sport that has made me a wanderer for a score of years. I was of practical use to them; the sentiment and the benefits were all on my side, for I made the gardener give them regular rations of turnips and cabbages. In return, I was allowed the run of their cabin, a little cuddy at which the meanest, poorest slave on the plantation would have turned up his nose.

Jerry was one of the few pot-hunters who possessed a swivel--a monster ducking gun, with a solid, uncouth stock, fastened to a barrel some ten or twelve feet long, with a bore as large as an old twelve-pounder Napoleon. This “thunderer” was loaded with twenty or twenty-five drachms of powder, and between thirty and forty ounces of shot.

Old Jerry would be in his skiff at the earliest dawn of day, and would cruise from Washington to Alexandria, closely followed by his son and heir, some hundred yards in the rear.

As soon as old Jerry saw a closely bunched flock of ducks, he would lie flat in the bottom of the skiff, and take his creeping paddles, which were about two feet long, two inches wide by a quarter of an inch thick, made of the best hickory, and painted a neutral color. With his arms hanging over the sides of his skiff, and a paddle in each hand, he could make his way evenly along, hardly raising a ripple. As he would approach closer the ducks would get more and more restless, swimming backward and forward, and gazing with alarm at what seemed a log with a queer, indescribable motion on each side. At last, when the woolen cap of a man could be seen, and underneath it the glittering eyes could be detected, then it was that the flock would rise from the water and take wing. That was the moment old Jerry was waiting for, with the stock resting against his shoulder, which was protected by a bag or pillow stuffed tight with feathers to break the recoil, and his eye ranging along the black barrel just as an artilleryman sights his piece before giving the word. A quick jerk of the trigger, the click of the flint striking the pan, the flash of the priming powder, then the deafening roar of the swivel, followed by a flash of flame, an encircling volume of smoke, the swirl of the water as the skiff was rocked by the kicking gun, and the deed was done. Old Jerry would rise up, grasp his double paddle, and make for the shore to reload, while the younger Jerry would come up in hot haste to pick up the dead, and dispatch with his double-barrel the crippled ducks.

Many a day have I played truant, and half the darkies on the plantation would be searching for me, while I, in the seventh heaven of delight, was with Jerry in his skiff following up the diving ducks whose wings were broken. I had a little single barrel that would make the water splash, and that was about all.

It was my one thought by day and dream by night to possess a gun big enough to kill the ducks at a fair distance--not a swivel by any manner of means--I had not the slightest desire to be behind that huge piece of ordnance when it went off. I wanted one that could strike a flock at eighty and a hundred yards. I never divulged my thoughts at home. I was that unfortunate “ne’er do weel,” known as the only son, and such an intimation would have raised hysterics at the female end of the house, and something worse at the male end of the mansion, for my paternal ancestor was a retired officer of the navy, and when he was excited his speech savored of the forecastle more than the cabin, and his actions became alarming.

A kind fate threw into my hands just such a weapon as my soul longed for, and I look back to it now with the same affection that a man of many _affaires de cœur_ recalls the memory of his first love.

To make a long, rambling story short, my father bought, as a curiosity, a long Dutch ducking gun, that was intended to be fired from the shoulder by a man of stalwart build. Loading it carefully, the captain told the overseer, named Robinson, to fire it. This individual was a tall, ungainly lopsided man, who got sideways over the ground like a crab. He had a slatternly wife, with the most vivid, burning red hair I ever saw, and a large, callow brood of vividly headed children.

I suppose Robinson fired the gun, for it was brought back by his eldest hope, who said something about “Dad’s laid up; somethin’ or nuther kicked him;” but no attention was paid to what he said.