Wild Pigeons Netted in Columbia County Pennsylvania

Samuel Kline, of Benton, Columbia County, has "netted" 250 wild pigeons this spring.

May 2, 1862. [Wild pigeons netted in Columbia county.] Union County Star and Lewisburg Chronicle, page 1.

Sportsmens Harvest - Professional Pigeon Catchers at Wisconsin Roost

Scores of our sportsmen are having rare fun, bringing down pigeons, a few miles east of town, where a pigeon roost is in full blast. Several professional "pigeon catchers" from other States are on the ground, with all of the appliances for entrapping the unsuspecting birds. Several barrels have already been shipped to eastern markets.

April 21, 1871. Sportsmen's harvest. Sparta Eagle 10(39): 3.

Big Pigeon Hunt by Professional Hunters in Tennessee

Big Pigeon Hunt by Professional Hunters

Three gentlemen of Philipsburg, Pennsylvania, Messrs. Charles Copelin, Frank Chickering and John J. Swartz, professional pigeon hunters, arrived in this city yesterday from Michigan, having followed a large body of wild pigeons from Grand Rapids, through Indiana and Kentucky to this State. They came by way of Cumberland Gap and are, we believe, the first professional pigeon hunters who ever came South in pursuit of their game.

Mr. Copelin remained in the city last night while the other two gentlemen went down the road to Ooltewah, a short distance from Chattanooga, in two miles of which place the pigeons are said to be roosting in large numbers.

The birds are taken in an enormous net, into which they are decoyed by a stool-pigeon, fastened there for the purpose. When caught, they are sent to New York for market, where they bring, on an average, $2.00 per dozen. It is a paying business in the Northwest, where they are caught in immense numbers. Sixty dozens are sometimes caught at one spring of the net. On an extraordinary occasion a train carried nine tons of these pigeons from Michigan to New York, which so flooded the market as to reduce the price to 75 cents per dozen.

October 26, 1871. Big pigeon hunt. Knoxville Daily Chronicle 2(148): 4.

Wild Pigeons at Bellefontaine in Ohio

The multitude of these feathered esculents that has visited our country this Spring, has provided quite an unexpected source of revenue, to the people in the southern part of the county — the birds being snared and shot by the thousands of dozens and shipped to New York and other points. Parties from N.Y. , and Michigan are here to capture and buy — and thousands of dollars have already been realized by our citizens. One of the New York men snare sixty-five dozens in one forenoon.

April 10, 1873. Wild pigeons. Tiffin Tribune 25(26): 3. From the Bellefontaine Republican.

Pigeon Catching - Trappers Work in Maine

Long and Patient Labors

From the Lewiston (Me.) Journal.

Benjamin C. and Reuben P. Allen (father and son) are thrifty, well-to-do farmers of Turner. They also have the reputation of being skillful and successful pigeon catchers, taking each season from $100 to $200 worth of birds. Benjamin, the elder Allen, has had a large experience in pigeon-netting, he having sprung his first trap forty years ago. It was in the State of New Hampshire, and the birds were more plenty than they are now in this country, or any part of the State. One shilling per dozen was what the Concord dealers thought about right for them in those days. Now they sell readily for twelve shillings, and sometimes more. The Allens have two beds, distant from each other about one mile. The necessity, or advantage rather, of two is, that when the birds are driven from one, by netting or from any other cause, they fly to the other, and so loss is prevented. Our reporter visited one of these beds a few days since. He found it situated in the centre of a clearing of about two acres in extent. Upon its sides was the "stand," which is made by stripping small trees of their foliage and smaller limbs, and setting them into the ground. In these limbs the birds light, and remain until they are ready to descend upon the bed for the purpose of feeding. The bed is simply the feeding ground cleared for the purpose of working the net with which the birds are taken. This one is about twenty by twenty-three feet. The turf has been removed and it is as smooth and hard as the cabin floor of a western pioneer. Along one edge of the bed the grain — corn and buckwheat — is scattered, twelve or fourteen inches in width. There is also grain in a shallow trough that is supported by small poles about six feet in length. At once upon the disappearance of the snow in the spring the beds are visited, very carefully cleared of fallen leaves or other foreign substances, and the birds baited by leaving grain; and throughout the spring and summer they are visited and kept constantly supplied with food. But usually it is not until the Allens have harvested their hay crop that they make any attempt to capture them. After haying they devote their time largely to them. Almost as soon as it is light the beds are visited and replenished with grain, and again at noon the birds are fed; while at nearly all hours of the day the men, gun in hand, are hunting their localities to see that no outsiders trespass upon their property, and to shoot the predatory hawks which are the great scourge to pigeons and discouragement to pigeon catchers.

When the birds have gathered a sufficient number, and it is decided to catch them, the net, with boxes for holding the birds, is placed upon the wheelbarrow, and the whole trundled to the edge of the clearing. Here the boxes are left until wanted, and the net taken to the bed. The nets used by the Allens are of their own make, the meshes being about an inch square. They vary in size from twenty to twenty-five feet. One side of the net is attached to a rope a hundred feet or more in length. The ends are gathered upon a smaller and shorter cord, say eighty feet in length, which gives a slack which forms a large bag. In setting the net upon the bed one end of the long rope, as it is termed, is fastened to a little pole five feet high and forty or fifty feet distant from the bed. The other end is attached to a similar pole in the "bough house," which is located about thirty feet from the bed, and directly opposite the first pole. The bough house is just what its name indicates, a small house made of boughs, from which the birds are watched and the net sprung. When the rope is fastened on these poles it is stretched directly across the bed, the length of the net being just the length of the bed. The outside of the net is then pinned across the outside of the bed where the grain is scattered. The inside of the net, or the one to which the rope is fastened, in then carried or pushed back over the grain to the outside, the poles to which the rope is attached being thereby considerably bent. It is prevented from flying back over the bed by two short sticks, called "fly staffs," so arranged that they can be displaced by a quick, sharp pull upon the rope from the bough house. This is done at the proper moment, and the net flies forward over about one-half the bed, and all that portion where the grain is scattered, and where, of course, the birds are feeding. When the inside of the net is carried back over the grain to the outer edge of the bed, it is folded down in as small a compass as possible, and earth or dust sprinkled lightly over to hide it from the sharp eyes of the birds. After the net is arranged the grain from the trough is put upon the bed, which is carefully swept and all scattered grains of corn picked up and placed along the edge behind which the net lies concealed. When every thing is in readiness the bird catcher retires to the bough house, where he has nothing to do but wait for the arrival of the game.

They come by twos, threes, and frequently flocks of a dozen or more. They frequently seem loth to leave the stand behind and go upon the bed, but when one ventures the majority commonly follow at once. When on the bed they are easily frightened, the snapping of a twig in the bough-house, the arrival of more birds, or particularly the appearance of a hawk will create the greatest consternation and scatter them in the wildest manner. The bird catcher, with his eye at an opening in the bough house, closely watches their movements, and when they commence to go down grasps the rope with both hands. He waits until the most of them are upon the bed, or until he fears they will flush, and then giving the rope a short hard pull dashes out from the cover and rushes upon the net. One, two, and even three hundred birds are sometimes taken at one time with a net not larger that the one of which we have spoken, and any one can imagine what an exciting scene it presents. The struggling birds are taken one by one from under the snare and placed in the boxes, the net again prepared, all the feathers carefully picked from the bed, and the same scene enacted. The Allens have already taken from their two beds nearly one thousand birds. After catching, they convey them to their homes, where in one corner of the stable they have a place prepared for them. Here they receive the same food as when being baited upon the beds. They have the best of appetites, and after a fortnight's confinement, will be as fat as seems possible for a bird to be.

Some attribute the success of the Allens to their experience and superior skill; but they claim it is owing largely to the use of what they term "pigeon scent." All pigeon-catchers use, we believe, something which they put upon their grain for the purpose of attracting the birds, and rum, anise, and other articles are among the ones employed, but the Allens have a mixture of their own, which they claim is superior to all others, and which when the birds have once tasted, they will not willingly leave. Whether that be a whim or not it certainly is a fact, and they capture birds by the score where no one else can.

October 3, 1874. Auburn Daily Bulletin 9(1347): 3.

Manner of Catching Wild Pigeons in Connecticut

For Dwight's Am. Magazine. By a young man of Connecticut.

In order to enter into the spirit of this interesting pursuit, the reader must imagine himself to have taken his seat in a one-horse wagon, without springs of any kind, and to have set out to travel, over a rough, uneven road, to some retired spot, generally a clearing in the midst of the woods, far removed from the bustle and din of busy men; at least so far that none of it can be heard.

Before the time for pigeons to appear, either in the spring or in the fall, to place is selected in some spot peculiarly haunted by them. It is an excellent thing to have a few tall, old, dead dried-up trees not far off, as these are the favorite stopping places. The spot having been pitched upon, a piece of ground, a little larger than the net to be used, is carefully smoothed over, every blade of grass is dug up and the whole made to look like a newly-made bed in a garden. This is called the pigeon bed. On one side of it are then placed three or four dry trees, twenty or thirty feet high, which are called the pigeon-trees, or lighters. When things have proceeded thus far, the work is generally stopped, and the whole left for a week or two; a quantity of grain having been sprinkled on the bed. When it is ascertained that any number of pigeons hove got baited, and come there regularly to eat the grain, it is time to proceed with further preparations.

On the opposite side to that on which the pigeon-trees are placed, at the distance of about thirty feet from the corner enough to contain two or three persons, made of pine or cedar boughs. This house is built by degrees, so as not to alarm the pigeons. and is called the bush-house. Inside of it is firmly planted in the ground a still walnut sapling; and, in a line with it, at the same distance from the other corner, another of the same description is placed. They are called fly-ups or spring-poles. The net, which is light but strong, is fastened by loops to two sticks, down into the ground at the corners, under the lighters. It is then laid fiat upon the ground, covering the whole bed. A long rope, run through the farther side, from the trees, is then tied at each end to the fly-up, and stretched by them.

It will now be readily perceived, that, by forcing this rope, with the net attached, to the pig on-trees, the spring poles will be bent over, and held like a bent bow. The rope, being carried there, is fastened in such a manner that, on a sudden and strong pull, it is released, and of course the poles fly up and regain an erect position, throwing the net instantly over the bed, and capturing whatever is therein.

When a sufficient number of pigeons are baited, it is time to commence catching. An old pigeoner rarely takes more than one companion, sometimes two. If there should happen to be more, they are posted at a great distance from the bed, so as not to terrify the pigeons. Those admitted into the bush-house must be persons of a taciturn disposition : or, if not, those who have the faculty of holding their tongues when necessary. The first step is the setting of the net, as has been before described. It is folded into a compact roll, extending the whole length of the bed under the trees, and covered entirely, yet lightly, with very fine dust. There must be no stick or twig intermingled with it, as a small one might delay the sudden spring of the net, and allow all or part of the prey to escape. All tracks of footsteps are now carefully raked over; and a fresh supply of bait is put into the bed. Almost every pigeoner has something which be mixes with the wheat, to render it more attractive to the pigeons The composition of these mixtures is kept a profound secret, and he must be an intimate friend indeed who shall be favored with even a hint of it.

All being ready, the sportsmen take their places in the bush-house, and sit, talking in low whispers. Even this conversation is almost entirely suspended, as soon as the pigeons begin to arrive. There are left loop-holes among the cedar boughs, so as to enable those inside of the bush-house to command a view of the bed and the lighters. They are however so small as to defy the keenest sight from without. From about two in the afternoon, if that is the time chosen, or, if in the morning, immediately after daylight, the pigeons begin to arrive : singly, in pairs or in flocks. Perhaps the inexperienced may suppose that they immediately descend into the bed and are caught; but, if so, they are much mistaken. The pigeons generally sit nearly an hour on the trees, before they begin to make any demonstrations towards the bait. At length, if all is still, one or two, more hungry than the rest, begin to stretch out their long necks, turn their heads sideways, and perform other evolutions, plainly evincing their ardent desire for their meal. Apparently, hunger and decorum are arguing the case: one argues for the wheat, the other for waiting the pleasure of the majority. At length hunger prevails; and one hops upon a branch somewhat nearer to the ground, and again ogles the wheat, with longing eyes; then peers suspiciously around, above and below, to see if he can espy any hidden foe. Poor fellow, do you not know that under yon green bush, as it seems to you, are concealed your blood-thirsty enemies, with their fingers itching to have hold of your innocent neck, and their hearts beating high with excitement, as they witness your preparations to enter the toils, so subtly spread for you! He sees none of this, however; and at length summons courage to fly down to the bed and commence eating. The whole flock generally follow the first. Sometimes, however, only a part go down, and the person in the bush-house, wishing to catch the whole, frightens those in the bed up to the trees again, by snapping a twig, not bigger than a pipe-stem. When all has gone right, and the pigeons are all busily feasting upon the grain, the man in the bush-house, stealthily and noiselessly rising to his feet, pulls the rope suddenly and strongly : the net is disengaged, the spring-poles throw it over the bed, and the whole body of pigeons are caught under it in an instant.

If intended to be kept alive, they are preserved by putting them into bags or baskets. If otherwise, they are killed before being taken out of the net, by simply pressing on the top of the skull. This kills them instantly, and without pain. If there are enough pigeons left to justify a second haul, the net is set as before. The feathers must be carefully picked from it and from the bed, and buried at some distance. If any blood should have fallen on the ground, even a drop, it must be carefully scraped up and buried. It is not however generally advisable to make a second haul immediately, but to leave the spot until the next day, when those not caught will bring more with them, to share the fate of their predecessors. When pigeons are in plenty, and the bed well managed one or two hauls are made everyday.

J. P. N.

August 6, 1847. Dwights American Magazine, and Family Newspaper, for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge and Moral and Religious Principles 3(32): 502-503.

Pigeon Trade in New York

From the Plattsburgh (Clinton Co.) Republican.

About the middle of April last, these remarkable birds began to make their appearance in flocks flying from the south in incalculable numbers — flock succeeding flock, covering some four or five miles in length and breadth, a continued succession, surpassing any accurate description. A calculation was made by a good mathematician of the number that passed into the town of Beekmantown, in this county, in two days, (allowing two feet square for each pigeon,) and the amount was nearly one million.

The pigeons encamped and nested on "Rand Hill" in said town, in vast numbers, occupying the forest some six miles in length and from one to two miles in width; and by careful inspection it was ascertained that there were from twenty to eighty nests in a tree. They soon began to fly east from their encampment a few miles to the lake for water, and in such flocks as almost to obscure the sun — the males always flying in the morning and the females in the afternoon. They totally refused grain for some time, subsisting on beech nuts, which were abundant in the vicinity of their nests.

The news of this congregation of "birds of the right sort," soon reached the ears of old pigeons catchers in different parts of the country, and about the first of May a company came from Massachusetts and commenced "baiting." They continued to bait until the pigeons would eat from 4 to 6 bushels of grain per day, and in the mean time other companies came on and commenced business. All persons engaged in netting or shooting these birds were successful beyond precedent. It would be almost impossible to give an accurate account of the whole number taken, but four companies engaged in catching and purchasing, the writer known, forwarded to the different markets not less than one hundred and fifty thousand dozens. The writer was an eye witness to the number caught and dressed by the first company and forwarded to market (the Harris Co., from Massachusetts,) which amounted to four thousand dozens! The companies continued to take them in large numbers until about the 17th July, when in the course of a week not a pigeon could be seen — they flew in a body from their encampment to the northeast, through Henryville, in Canada, and to the forests of the state of Maine.

Large quantities of grain were purchased and fed out — such as cracked corn and buckwheat; the writer had not the means of ascertaining the exact amount, but presumes, from the best information he can obtain, that not less than seven hundred bushels were used in this way.

Purchasers paid from 25 to 50 cents per dozen for live pigeons.

August 11, 1851. The pigeon trade. Buffalo Courier 17(2288): 12.

Wild Pigeon Business in Massachusetts

In the county of Essex large numbers are annually captured. The value of pigeons taken here yearly is estimated at $20,000. In the town of Boxford it is teckoned that three thousand dozen are taken every season; and in Andover, Methuen, Tewksbury, and other towns in that section, still larger numbers are trapped. Cartis, the well-known hunter and trapper of Boxford, takes about 709 annually, and has been known to capture over 100 dozen in a single day. The general market value is about one dollar per dozen, and hence the estimate that $20,000 are taken in Essex county annually supposes that 20,000 dozen, or nearly 250,000 pigeons are captured per year.

The pigeons, in this vicinity are attracted to particular parts of the woods by the strewing ot grain in open spaces cleared of brushwood for the purpose. In this way they are not only tolled around the spot where traps are to be set and familiarized with the ground, but are well fattened before being taken. They are fed for some time before the spreading of the nets. When a sufficient number have congregated to make it worth while to entrap them, their grain is saturated with whiskey, which steals away their silly brains, as it does silly men's brains, and they become willingly stupefied victims of the trapper. The net is set in such a way that by the use of young saplings for drawing-springs, it is made to jump over the dense flock of fuddled pigeons gathered in front of it; and then they attempt to rise they are entangled in the meshes. The pigeons, we are told, when enticed by the grain and whiskey will huddle together in a compact mass, as if for the special convenience and gratification of the trapper. When once caught in the net they thrust their head through the meshes, and the trapper, by a certain pressure upon the neck, kills them one after another, with great rapidity, and with more dexterity of touch than tenderness of feeling. They are then taken out, picked, and packed for the market.

May 11, 1859. The wild pigeon business. Farmer's Cabinet 57(41): 2.

Millions of Wild Pigeons - Immense Roost in Indian Territory

The Arrival of 8,500 Pigeons in Time for the Coney Island Tournament - How they were Trapped and Transported to this Market.

There arrived on Saturday night, at a place near Jersey City, a car containing 8,500 wild pigeons that had been shipped from Atoka, Indian Territory. They are the first installment of 20,000 which W.F. Thomas of Phillipsburg, N.J. contracted to supply the New York State Sportsmen's Association. The pigeons were placed in pens, from which they will be taken as wanted. These pens are simply low, clean sheds. An inclined plane of slatted framework in each pen furnishes the pigeons with a roost. They are very shy. A slight noise on the outside of a pen produces a loud whir on the inside. When the trap door of a pen was cautiously opened yesterday to allow the reporter to peer inside, the twitter and rustle made up a strong volume of sound.

"They make a good deal of noise," said Mr. Thomas, "but it is nothing to the din at the pigeon roost where these were trapped. I have heard the cackling of the pigeons, as they were setting on their nests in the evening, fully a mile away."

Mr. Thomas makes a business of trapping pigeons for field sport. He will get four more car loads from the Indian territory, making a total of 20,000 pigeons.

"The business will not be a profitable one this year," he said, "because we have had to go so far to get them. Heretofore the pigeons have roosted in Pennsylvania or Michigan. But this year, owing to the late, cold spring, they did not come as far north as usual, and they made a roost in the Pottawattomie reservation of the Indian Territory, 110 miles away from the nearest railroad station. I had to transport all my lumber and supplied from Atoka, and the pigeons had to be hauled there for shipment. At one time I had fifteen wagons on the road. There are several streams to be crossed, but most of the way the road is pretty level. It took a wagon about three days to make the trip from the roost to Atoka.

"The roost is the largest I have ever seen. The country there is thickly grown over with what they call post oak timber, from the fact, I suppose, that tree trunks are just about post size. The acorns are so abundant that it is a splendid feeding ground for them. I went into the roost for about ten miles without finding any signs of an end. Every tree was thick with pigeons, the branches bending down with their weight. When the birds have been coming home from the feeding grounds in the evening I have seen a stream about a mile broad flow through the air for two hours thick enough to hide the sun, and making a noise like thunder. I should judge the roost to be about twenty miles long and fifteen broad.

"There has been little or no shooting, and that has been a good thing for us, as shooting makes the birds scary and harder to trap. There is plenty of deer and turkeys on the reservation, and the Pottawattomies do not care for pigeons, so they do not hunt in the roost. The Indians were very friendly, and some of them are working for a St. Louis firm that are catching squabs and shipping them to market. Men go about with poles punching the squabs out of their nests. They are packed in barrels with ice, and sent to all the large cities as far north as Boston. My business was altogether with the live pigeons, which we caught in nets."

Mr. Thomas explained the methods of the trappers. The nets used will cover a space of 40 feet by 30. One end of the net is fastened to a rope, which is drawn taut, so that when let go the net is thrown out like an arrow, falling upon the pigeons that have gathered in front of it. The pigeons are generally caught on their feeding grounds of their water beds. When a good feeding ground is located the nets are set, and the trapper puts himself in a hut of boughs at one end of the net line. Pigeons are saved from one season to another for use as decoys. When a flock of pigeons is seen coming, a pigeon is thrown up into the air to attract the attention of the flock, the bird being pulled down again with a string. This bird is called the flyer. Another decoy called the stool pigeon is made use of at the same time. He is tied to a perch on the free end of a strip of iron band about four feet long. As the flock approaches a string is pulled which makes the spring bounce him up and down, and he flaps his wings to keep his balance. He presents the appearance to the approaching flock of a bird hovering over a feeding ground, and they settle down around him.

"How many pigeons have you caught at one time?" the reporter asked.

"I once saw sixty-seven dozen caught at one cast of the net," said Mr. Thomas, "but thirty or forty dozen is an average big catch. Sometimes there will only be a dozen or so. I have seen the net lifted up on the wings of the pigeons until it bellied out like a balloon. A number of pigeons toward the edge are apt to get out, but the men are quick, and work around the edges, stowing the birds in crates as fast as they can get them out, and rolling the net up as they work in, until they have got all the pigeons, when the net is set again for another cast."

The pigeons are caught on water beds as well as on the feeding grounds. A water bed is made by filling an excavation with water. The pigeons on their way home from feeding will stop to drink, and are caught under the nets. Sometimes salt is used. "This season," said Mr. Thomas, "the acorns were so plentiful that the birds did not have to search for feeding grounds and they did not decoy well. The water beds did not draw well, either, as they had the Canada River, the water of which is alkaline, so that salt also had no attraction for them. We caught the most on gravel beds along the river as they would settle down for stones to put in their crops to grind up the acorns."

Pigeons are methodical in their habits in these great roosts. Early in the morning the Tom flight occurs. This is composed of the male birds on their way to the feeding grounds. When they have fed and drunk, they return to the nests, and the female birds go to feed. The hen flight takes place between 8 and 9 o'clock. In the afternoon there is another Tom flight, and toward evening another hen flight. The bird stop for gravel or water on their way home from feeding.

The crates in which the birds are put when caught are simply large flat coops. The netters are spread over an area of twelve or fourteen miles. Every evening teams make a round and collect all the crates. It is now necessary to get the birds "on their feed," or else they will die. They are put in pens and given corn to eat, with plenty of water to drink. For several days after they are captured they will hardly eat at all, and it is only after they have become accustomed to the change that they can be again crated and shipped. Two men travel in the car, and the pigeons are regularly fed and watered. The car load which arrived on Saturday night was shipped on Thursday morning, and the birds were fed and watered four times while en route.

Pigeons nest four times a season, having one egg to a nest. "One result of the inaccessible nature of this year's roost," said Mr. Thomas, "is that the increase is larger than ever known before. The number of squabs killed and pigeons netted is insignificant in comparison with the number hatched out. There are millions of them there."

These wild pigeons are smaller than the domestic pigeon. Their plumage is a mixture of slate and gray. They have long tail feathers, and are birds of far quicker and stronger flight than ordinary pigeons. The pigeons now penned near Jersey City will be used in the pigeon shooting tournament at Coney Island next week.

June 14, 1881. New York Sun 48(287): 3.

The following graphics were not included in the newspaper article, but are secondary items that are pertinent.

Map of a portion of the Indian Territory in Oklahoma, 1879.

A General Land Office map showing the setting along the Canadian River, including depictions of the "post-oak" woods. Although this map was prepared in August 1899, it is helpful in depicting the landscape of the era.

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Showing both the original version and the reprinted version allows a comparison between the two.

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Wild Pigeons - An Immense Roost in the Indian Territory

Pigeons for Coney Island - How They Were Trapped and Transported

One night last week a car arrived at Jersey city from the Indian territory, containing 8,500 wild pigeons, the first installment of 20,000 contracted as supply to the New York sportsmen association. The pigeons were in pens like low, close sheds. An incline plane of slatted framework in each pen furnishes the pigeons with a roost. A slight noise on the outside of the pen produces a loud whir on the inside. Then the trap door of a pen was cautiously opened to allow the reporter to peer inside, the twitter and rustle made up a strong volume of sound. "They make a good deal of noise," said Mr. Thomas, "but it is nothing to the din at the pigeon roost,

Where These were Trapped.

I have heard the cackling of the pigeons, as they were settling on their nests in the evening, fully a mile away. Mr. Thomas makes a business of trapping pigeons for field sport. He will get four more car loads from the Indian territory, making a total of 40,000 pigeons. "The business will not be a profitable one this year," he said, "because we have to go so far to get them. Heretofore the pigeons have nested in Pennsylvania or Michigan. But this year, owing to the late, cold spring, they did not come as far north as usual, and they made a roost in Pottwattomie reservation of the Indian territory, one hundred and ten miles from the nearest railroad station. I had to transport all my lumber and supplies from Atoka, and the pigeons had to be hauled there for shipment. At one time I had fifteen wagons on the road. It took a wagon about three days to make the roost to Atoka. The roost is the largest I have ever seen. The country there is thickly grown over with what they call post oak timber, from the fact, I suppose, that tree trunks are just about post size. The acorns are so abundant that it is a

Splendid Feeding Ground

For them. I went into the roost for about ten miles without finding any signs of an end. Every tree was thick with pigeons, the branches bending down with their weight. When the birds have been coming home from the feeding grounds in the evening I have seen a stream about a mile broad flow through the air for two hours, thick enough to hide the sun, and making a noise like thunder. I should judge the roost to be about twenty miles long and fifteen broad. There has been little or no shooting, and that has been a good thing for us, as shooting makes the birds scary and harder to trap. There is plenty of deer and turkeys on the reservations, and the Pottawattomies do not care for pigeons, so they do not hunt in the roost. The Indians are very friendly. Men go about with poles punching the squabs out of their nests. They are packed in barrels with ice, and sent to all the large cities as far north as Boston. My business was altogether with the live pigeon, which we caught in nets." Mr. Thomas explained the methods of the trappers. The nets used will cover a space of forty feet by thirty. One end of the net is fastened to a rope, which is drawn taut, so that when let go

The Net is Thrown Out Like an Arrow,

Falling upon the pigeons that have gathered in front of it. The pigeons are caught on their feeding grounds or water beds. When a good ground is located the nets are set, and the trapper puts himself on a hut of boughs at one end of the net line. When a flock of pigeons is seen coming, a pigeon is thrown up in the air to attract the attention of the flock, the bird being pulled down again with a string. The bird is called the flyer. Another decoy bird called the stool pigeon is made use of at the same time. He is tied to a perch on the free end of a strip of iron band about four feet long. As the flock approaches a string is pulled, which makes the spring bounce him up and down, and he flaps his wings to keep his balance. He presents the appearance to the approaching flock of a bird hovering over a feeding ground, and they settle down around him. "I once saw sixty-seven dozen caught at one cast of the net," said Mr. Thomas, "but thirty or forty dozen is an average big catch. Sometimes there will be only a dozen or so. I have seen the net lifted up on the wings of the pigeons until it

Settled Out Like a Balloon.

A number of pigeons toward the edge are apt to get out, but the men are quick, and work around the edges, stowing the birds in crates as fast as they get them out, and rolling the net up as they work in, until they have got all the pigeons, when the net is set again for another cast. The pigeons are caught on water beds as well as on feeding grounds. A water bed is made by filling an excavation with water. The pigeons on their way home from feeding will stop to drink, and are caught under the nets. Sometimes salt is used. "This season," said Mr. Thomas, "the acorns were so plentiful that the birds did not have to search for feeding grounds and did not decoy well. The water beds did not draw well, either, as they had the Canada river, the water of which is alkaline, so that salt also had no attraction for them. We caught the most on gravel beds along the river as they would settle down for stones to put in their crops to grind up the acorns." Pigeons are unethical in their habits in these great roosts. Early in the morning the Tom flight occurs. This is composed of the male birds on their way to the feeding grounds. When they have fed and drank, they return to the nests, and the female birds go to feed. The hen flight takes place between 8 and 9 o'clock. In the afternoon there is another Tom flight, and towards the evening another hen flight. The

Birds Stop for Gravel or Water

On their way home from feeding. The crates in which the birds are put when caught are simply large flat coops. The netters are spread over an area of twelve or fourteen miles. Every evening the teams make a round and collect all the crates. It is now necessary to get the birds on their feed, or else they will dye. They are put in pens and given corn to eat, with plenty of water to drink. For several days after they are captured they will hardly eat at all, and it is only after they have become accustomed to the change that they can be again crated and shipped. Two men travel in the car, and the pigeons are regularly fed and watered. The car loads which arrived on Saturday are shipped on Thursday morning, and the birds were fed and watered four times while en route. Pigeons nest four times a season, having one egg to a nest. "One result of the inaccessible nature of the locality of this years roost," said Mr. Thomas, "is that the increase is larger than ever known before. The number of squabs killed and pigeons netted is insignificant in comparison with the number hatched out. There are millions of them there. These wild pigeons are smaller than the domestic pigeon. Their plumage is a mixture of slate and gray. They have long tail feathers, and are birds of far quicker and stronger flight than ordinary pigeons. The pigeons are now penned near Jersey city will be used in the pigeon shooting tournament at Coney island.

June 24, 1881. Ouachita Telegraph 16(42): 1. June 29th in the Clearfield Republican. July 1, 1881, Daily Astorian 15(53): 1; and, August 3, 1881 in the Red Bank Register 4(6): 3.