Wildfowl

STOCKTON, Md., Feb. 3. -- I have watched the movements of our wildfowl for years, and I often think that I have it down pretty close, yet every now and then they break away and do something very different to the law that I have laid down. The first week in January, with the weather moderate and plenty of feed, the fowl suddenly left, and that, too, in one day. There was no apparent cause for this, as the bay did not freeze over for at least ten days later. After it set in cold, a few ducks and brant stayed with us among the drifting ice. Now, last week it was as warm as spring, and up to Saturday hardly a duck to be seen. Monday the whole bay was alive with them, thousands and thousands, more than I have ever seen here at one time, and, something unusual with us, lots of canvasbacks among them. This week the shooting is fine, the fowl decoy well like fall birds. Now, where all these birds come from I cannot say. It is too early for the northern flight to move in such numbers, and there has been no storm below to drive them up, or if they were north of us there has been no storm to the north to drive them back. The movement is a mystery to me, as we never look for the biggest flight until the latter part of February. It may be we will have a warm spring, and the fowl are moving earlier; yet, even then, why should they come suddenly in such numbers?

O. D. FOULKS.