Newspaper Page Text
HUNTING THE REDHEAD. Studying the Ducks With Camera, Gun and Notebook. :-: :-: x I was much amused ono day while examining the ducks that hung !n front ot tlio stalls of Fulton Market, Now York. "What are the redheads worth a pair?" I asked the clerk. "Klve dollars," he calmly an swered. "And those?" I continued, point ing to a pair of fish-eating suwbllls. "Oh, those are river redheads; only a dollar a pair, air." I think that same clerk nniRt be In Toronto, for as I walk oar principal streets I see numerous pairs of these same "river redheads." It Is worse than cruelty to animals to offer these evil-tasting mergansers to the public; They only resemble the redheads in a crown that is somewhat of that color, but of a hairy rather than a feathery texture. Now, Innoer nt housekeepers, avoid any duck that has a pronounced Fnwbill, a serrated bill, even If you have to pass the hooded merganser, u Rood eat ins bird. We were studying the redhead with camera and .nun. notebook and sharp appetite. Tin re Is n fearful contest in these nature-study trips ol ours. There is the strong merciful dcir to let all the f-athep d game- pa.-s with out giving toll to the hunter. Hut, then, one cannot, with ,'iny relish or benefit live on the beautiful pictures, we obtain of the wob-fcot, so a few find their way to the catnp table. Sine" we lost sight of the northern migration early in May we had not seen a redhead. They had none far north, by the rr.nrrhy shores and on the tufted prairies that, edge the Great Hear and Great Slave I.nkes, by the lonely Providence and Wnlius ley Lakes, where only thu semi-annual passages of the Hudson's Hay men or the rude canoe of the Indian trappers disturb the scene. Most of the birds were mated ere they left these southern lakes. They had lin gered on the migration, held by the Immense submarine beds of wild cel ery that carpet man yof our frontier lakes. To them the springtime in Canada must be a season or beauty. All the old familiar lakes and rivers, ponds and bays, untenanted by that fearful Rnlmal that each fall breathes forth fire nn I smoke nnd stinpln:,' wounds and broken limbs from every clump of flims. marshy point, and thick rice beds. I wonder what these birds must think of man. I have seen them feeding ?almly on the lakp when the deer came In to drink. I have watched them edge slowly away when cattle suddenly emerged from the cover, but let a man step Into the scene nnd the silky gray wings soon bear the bright red heads nnd snowy canvasliacks of the birds far off into safety. Hawk, the Mlsslssau.san guide, al ways confused this breed with the real canvaslmck. I had to point out to him one day the different forma tion of the head. The latter bird's has a lung, sharp curve from head crest, to point of bill, whereas the redhead has what you might call a high forehead. It was late In September before the first of th 's" lordly birds arrived on our southern tier of lakes. Our camp had already pictured and shot the early blue-bills, and my cameras were set and tny canoe couci; tiled awaiting their return. High overhead I heard a mighty rushing, tearing sound, as it a great flame were surging above me, then the noise took on a rum bling, rntlllng note that made me think of distant trains or farmers' wagons passing over rough roads. Again It rushed and whistled, surged and fell. Finally I located them with the telescope a flock of about two hundred redheads falling down to the lake from tho height of their migra tory flight. It is almoKt Inconceiv able the wondrous sound this cUrllng, pitching flock made. -A spiral of a hundred yards on stiffly set wings gave out a wild, siren note as clear as a bell and as loud as a locomotive whistle. There were eight great curves yet to do, and 'I'watched the white silk of the wings and glorious mahogany of the long necks' and beads kaleidoscope in the big glass. They fell past the lens a shower of resplendent game, full as though poured from some beneficent goddess horn of plenty, fell after tbelr thou sand mile spin within a gunshot of where your humble servant was en deavoring to keep his eyes from un timely popping out. I forgot to mention that the incu bus of the trio, Fritz, was asleep in the bow, Tho day had been very hot and the overfed lad wilted end dozed beneath the direct rays of the Sep tember sun. We lay as quiet as mice 1 had poured a trickle of water from u pnddle onto his upturned face to moisten Fritz's snore, and the Inun dation bad worked like a charm The birds sat on the calm lake mo tionless as the languid water Itself. Occasionally one of them threw Its bill up full of water and quenched Us thirst. Within ten minuter the en tire flock was asleep save the sen tries. About six ducHcs In all this brilliantly tinted mass kept their long necks straight up and watched with their bright eyes for an enemy. An hour rested them and nearly broiled us. Then they began to dive for wild celery, and many of them eyed the tempting w ild rice teds, but the thick yellow cover might conceal an enemy, j so they were duly cautious. Finally, a few of them, swam Into the rice. One big. glorious drake came right alongside the "hide" that held the enno'. Then he passed out to where a few lily pads floated on the surface and Just as he was rolling his body over to scratch his head with his webbed foot a very common habit I pressed the bull), and the migrant was ours, photographically. T.rtst spring while the migration was going north, I found a spot, a aiidy be acli In a little bay, where the bis, handsome birds came to gravel, 1 was there first the next morning, in fact, I beat the sun a couple of hours, but I had to build a sort of fort on that low-lying shore to hide me, and to erect a place of conceal ment for the cameras, All was done ere the light was cleur enough to see the margin of the lake. I could hear the birds arriving and settling far out. I knew their habits. They Intended to swim slowly in. Then when they were certain that no ene my lingered near they would bask In happy content on that sun-parched and strip. The mass of birds did not like my brush heap. They all swam slowly past me and tipped up aud dived for the tiny particles of sand they use for aid to digestion. The whole bunch either squatted on the shore or slept on the calm water within a hundred yards of me. Patience always brings Its own reward. One great drake, with bis red head fairly aflame, under the brilliant rays of the April sun, his canvas back glittering like a snow patch, his eyes shining like yellow points of Jewels, took a modest po sition almost out of focus; once when he raised his hend in alarm I shot the machine. His haste to leave that sunny shore was neither graceful nor becoming. Once the seemingly insatiable maw of the camera Is satisfied the guns and our Interior departments call loudly for wild ducks, and there Is no family among the twenty-four that visit this province that offers better sport han the big redheads. At the first of the season they are unuBually foolish, decoying to anything. I have seen them curve down to several black pieces of wood that were current-swept from the river bog, but as the shooting days shorten there is no bird more wary. That rich call of theirs, "Ki-yak, kl-yak," the low pur ring notes they use when In close comradeship, tho wonderful diving power they possess this is uncannily strengthened when the bird Is THE STUDY It is Now Recognized op Advanced Life. Many skeptical and "practical" per- e sons are prone to scoff at the alleged irogivss in medical science. They admit that the average span of life has been lengthened, and that the fearful Infant mortality of the last and previous centuries bas been ma terially reduced; but this, they Bay, Is the result of the Improvement In hy- lene effected as .'much by sanitary engineers and sociologists as by med ical Investigators. They cast up against medicine the fact, admitted by all, that cancer Is on the increase, forgetting that this may be due In part to the saving of life In the early year's, the result of which Is that more live to reach the cancer age. Cancer Is a' disease of middle or advanced life; and If more people live to the time when they ape liable to suffer from cancer, it Is 'evident that more will suffer from the dis ease.. Medical science has discovered tho cause of the mode of propagation of malaria and yellow fever, and has freed, or made-It possible to free, the tropical .regions of tho world from' these terrible scourges. It has dis covered a remedy which bas robbed diphtheria of most of Its terrors, and another which has red need the mor tality of cerebrospinal-' melngltis from eighty to twenty-five per cent., aud promises to reduce it even fur ther, and to do away with the terrible sequels of the disease which formerly made recovery almost worse than death. It has not yet conquered tu berculosis, but It Is In a fair way to do so, and, what Is more, It Is teach ing the public how to avoid the dis ease. . It has not yet solved the problem of cancer. That it will do sc. how wounded. Of all the water Bnakes to chase, a wounded redhead bears the palm. The legend of them clinging to the weeds below and drowning themselves Is all rot. When the wounded bird, In its Intense desire to escape Its pursuers, dives beneath the surface. It opens Its wings, and, aided by these, used almost as in flight, swims rapidly along. The hooking of the wings In this subma rine work offers a fine place for weeds to lodge on. The passing bird drags these from their moist rootage if she can. If not, she endeavors to shake them off. If the poor bird is unable to do this, Bhe drowns there weed entangled. Frits brought In a very choice bag, nine redheads, a big enough day s work for anv man but fHncy that the natural height of the lake was raised by tho outjourlng of Bhot, as I would hardly dare to tell you how many shells the fat boy took to kill (n ese nine. Five shells to a bird Is a hunter's rule. Tho noise from his "hide" reminded me of a steady bat tle, lie admits he used eighty shells; In fact, the word Bhell has a rankling effect on Mb happy nature. Once, In days gone by, when he was greener than he Is now, I had secured a lucky point, and had some very fair Bhoot ing, but as I was just about out of ammunition, I signalled for Fritz, lie came with nil the caution of tho amateur hunter, making u noise like a devastating wind In the brush. Then 1 called for a couple of hand fuls of shells nnd waved him back Into cover, as 1 saw the next flock ap proaching. Fifteen minutes later, Just as I had rammed the list two shells Into my gun, I heard his fat voice gasping, "Here they are, sir!" I put my hand back out of the "rough house," anj as I am a living human being I reeclved a handful of wet, sandy clam shells! Bonnycastls Dale, In Toronto Globe. South U Ilufld Roads. Eight hundred miles of Improved roads are to be undertaken by the Southern Appalachian Good Roads Association. Of these 300 miles are to be In North Carolina. Poor roads are Bald to cost that State $10,000, 000 a year. An enormous number of tourists go to the Southern Appalachian re gion, but because ot the poorness of tho highways In general they see but a small portion of It. The great sys tem of roadways now proposed Is planned to make that wonderful re gion one of the most attractive in all the world. Manufacturers' Record. Hell Ringer For Seventy Years." Sir. John Skinner, aged eighty-six, assisted In the ringing of two peals on Broadtiyst bells last week In cele bration of his birthday. He has rung at all the principal event of the pe riod at Exeter Cathedral for upward of seventy years. Including Queen Victoria's coronation In 1838, her wedding In 1839, both her Jubilees and King Edward's birth and coro nation. He is believed to be the old est ringer la the country. London Standard. Barometers were Torrlcelll In 1643. first made by OF CANCER. as a Disease of Middle ever. Is not doubted by those in formed of the strenuous efforts being made In every country by earnest and trained Investigators. All over tho world Institutions have been estab lished for cancer search. One of this sort has existed in Buffalo, New York, for over ten years; the disease is being studied by a commission In Massachusetts, by another In Eng land; there are also institutes for the study of cancer in Berlin, Frank fort and Heidelberg In Germany, and an International society has" been es tablished and meets regularly for the comparing of results. The results thus far, from the'polnt of view of the layman, have not been found, a great deal has been learned about the nature of ' cancer. The cause of It has not yet been definitely established. But the study has been systematically ' prosecuted --for .only, a decade, and despite the paucity of re sults, the outlook is promising. ' ' Twenty years ago a man who pro phesied the freeing of Havana from yellow fever would have been laughed, at. , Ten years from now, we may hope and 'believe, the problem of can cer will also have been solved. Youth's Companion. ' Undeserved Boost. Butcher (subscribing to local char ity) "Well, put me and the missis down for a guinea." Tout "I see a Joint gift." Butcher "Joint gift! What d'yer mean? We're going to give money, not meat." London Opinion. Venezuela has a large English tele phone company, .but that company does not hold any time concessions or monopoly from the Government. Tn field is opn to tempetifcan. . WOMEN; THEIR FADS, aBi 'THElORT;' "M) WONDERFUL BLUE COSTUME. A lovely evening dress Is muda In shimmering moonlight bluo tones, suggestive of a moonlight night off the Southern coast. It is built ot shot satin arranged with soft, clinging draperleB, over which Is worn a long tunic of silk net, bordered with embroidery of green and silver threads and cabochons which Is artistically swathed and crossed at the back, terminating In motifs of lingerie. The corsage Is fashioned of satin and pale green chiffon and silver lace, while the tlght-flttlng tucked sleeves are en suite. With this dress is affected a large blark hat decorated with shaded feathers and an evening mantle of bronze-green velours sou pie with a collar and capuchon of satin In the same shade bordered round the hem with a flounce-of richly-embroidered satin. Philadelphia Record. QUEEN OF CHES3. Mrs. Balrd, who has been called "the queen of chess," has published 1200 chess problems nnd no woman has eclipsed Die position which she holds in the chess world. She pos sesses about fifty prizes secured in open competition, and of them she has said: "These are tho product of a combination of labor and recrea tion. I say labor, because I am not such a chebs enthusiast as to believe that problems to stand the public test can be produced without per sistent application, partaking of the nature of work, and recreation, be cause the work has been a pleasure how great a pleasure only a problem composer can fully realize." Mrs. Ealrd's father, mother and two broth ers share her enthusiasm for chess. She has other recreations, including archery, tennis and cycling; while she has always been very fond of design ing illuminations. London Tit-Bits. CAUSE OF CERTAIN DREAMS. "Every dream, like every laugh or tear, bas Its cause," said the psychol ogist. "Every well known type of dream has a cause equally well known. "You dream, for Instance, that yon are In church, or at the theatre, or on the street, with hardly any clothes on you, and you nearly die of shame The bed coverings falling off U the cause of the dream, "You dream that a dog has bitten you or an enemy hus given you a stab with a knife. Some slight pain a cramp, a touch of rheumatism is be hind all such dreams. "Innumerable persons dream of flying. Time and again they dream this dream. It Is because the respira tion of sleep, the great, deep, billowy breaths, rising aud falling rhythmic ally, are so akin to flying that they bring visions of It to the sleeper's mind. "Au uncomfortable position In the bed causes dreams of painful effort, of unendurably hard work, like moun- tain climbing or the lifting of heavy weights. "1 say nothing of the mental causes of dreams, slnco we all know well enough that the things we talk or think about awake aro apt to be talked and thought about that night in sleep." Iew York Press. THE NAMING OF GIRLS. Undoubtedly there are dollies fully consecrated to the Important business of naming girls, "bo happily Is that task accomplished'. Gladys Is a child of the spirit of mischief. Josephine wears a sweet gravity, and Mary, too, discourses of serious matters. Nora In some incarnation, has seen fairies scampering over moor and hall, and the remembrance o'f them teases her memory. KatherUie Is not so faith less as her ways'fnlght lead' you' to .Detieve. Laura wttnout ' datk eyes would be Impossible, and her pre destined Petrarch would never deliver his soanets. Helen may be seen only a'gatnst.a background of Trojan wall. Gertrude must be- tall and fair, ,and ready with ballads(-ia the winter twi light. Julia's reserve and discretion cumnisnu ner co you; DUt Bno has a heart of laughter. Anne is to be found In the rose- gardpn with clip ping shears and. a basket. Hilda is a capable person; there is no ignor ing her militant character; the battles of Saxon kings are tlll In her blood. Marjorle has scribbled verses In se cret, and Celia is the-quietest auditor at the symphony. And you may have observed that there is no button on Elizabeth's foil; you do well not to clash wits with her. ' Do ou say thnt these ascriptions are no square with your experience? Then verily there must htj,ve been a snd mixture of in fant candidates for the font In your parish. Shirley in such case will mean nothing to you. It Is a wasbf of Um to tell you that' the nam; may become audlblo without being uttered; you cannot be made to un derstand that the r and 1 Blip Into each other as ripples glide over peb bles In a brook. Aud from the name to the girl may you be forever de nied a glimpse of Shirley Claiborne's pretty head, her brown hair, and dream haunted eyes, if you do not first murmur the name with honest liking. The Reader. TO DANCE THE "AERONETTE." The "Aeronette" or aeroplane dance Is the up-to-date dance this season. It originated lu France, and some of the American dancing masters are teaching it to their pupils. Here Is the correct method oi danc ing the aeronette, as described by the Inventor: 1. The aeroplane goes quickly over the ground while gaining speed for tho ascent. The dancers, with arms out stretched, bend slightly forward and gallop six times. 2. The aeroplane pauses lightly and goes off into the air. The dancers raise the arms first on one side, then on the other, while raising and bending the knees and taking two steps; this Is the balance of the plants; now make six turns ("Bostonstep") , then balance for two steps and tako six turns of the "Bos ton" again. Repeat this six times. The movements should be very smooth, suggesting the skimming through the air, and balanco of body, arms and feet In perfect unison. A single Jerk will spoil tho whole Il lusion. 3. Descent of the aeroplane. The last movement of the dance is a slow gliding forward, the bodies bent forward, the hands unclasped pointing toward the ground In front and raised at the back. Six steps are taken in this position and the dance Is over, It Is the second move ment which, like the flight of the aeroplane, can bo continued as long as desired. New York Journal. VCAfU Many double veils of contrasting colors aro offered. Some of the new veils sent over from Paris have very large dots. Puffs are still worm, but are small and soft and Irregular in shape. Velvet and satin are the materials most used in the new millinery. Red Is a brilliant exception to the rule that makes for dull-hued colors. The scarab Is a leader among dec orations for pins nnd dainty buckles. For children's ha.ts nothing Is more) lovely tbaa tho popular panne rib bons. Browns, in the khaki and leather order, are promised for out-of-door wear. Lynx, black fox and pointed fox are best In small furs for general wear. Velvet is again In flourishing Btyle, both in millinery and in coats and dresses. A newcomer among hatpins has A big hend ot wood carved in bird or insect shape. The military coat, simply bloused and belted, will ' be prominent In tailored suitings. Gold bands' are now much more fashionable for the hair ' than the erstwhile ribbon ones. With the return of the long waist lines, short-walsted frocks and gowns are being lengthened by deep belts of peasant: bodice fashion, from which there usually drop sash ends. ' Some of the smartest of linen coats are sleeveless, and are made up. In short and long panels, the short ones edged with deep fringe. Such coats are almost' always elaborately em broidered or braided". Shawl-like draped capes or cloaks have been turned out by soma of the best Parisian designers, and some of the smartest of them are constructed of exquisitely embroidered , Canton crepe with fringe for trimming. Delicate hues with metallic' notes In the neck flulsti are dainty and at tractive over summer frocks, and are usually chosen by youthful Wear ers, but some of the smartest capes seen have been in neutral and deep tones. The Clean-Up. "That fellow has Just cleaned up a million bones.", , "A newly rich, eh?" ' "No; he prepares the skeletons of the RonSeVAlt anma trr nnnelnn In I tbe museum." Kansas City Times.