NEBRASKAland

JUNE Vol. 44, No. 6 1966 JUNE ROUNDUP 5 A GREAT NATURAL CURIOSITY 10 Warren Spencer AFTER-HOURS SAUGER 14 Bill Vogt CRACKLES FOR GRACKLES 16 NEBR ASK Aland DAYS 18 BUZZ-TAILED BOLOS 28 Anoma Hoffmeister STONES OF TIME 30 A SAND HILLS VACATION 36 Dennis Galyardt WALLEYE OBSTETRICS 38 Bob Thomas NOTES ON NEBRASKA FAUNA 42 Bill Schoenecker THE TOOTH'S THE THING 44 Dr. Harvey L. Gunderson BAITING BAITS 46 THE COVER: A big indoor rodeo is on schedule for NEBRASKAland Days. Do not miss it. Photo by Lou Ell SELLING NEBRASKAland IS OUR BUSINESS EDITOR, DICK H. SCHAFFER Editorial Consultant, Gene Hornbeck Managing Editor, Fred Nelson Associate Editors: Bill Vogt, Don Eversoll Art Director, Jack Curran Art Associate, C. G. "Bud" Pritchard Photography, Lou Ell, Chief; Charles Armstrong, Dave Becki, Steve Katula Advertising Manager, Jay Azimzadeh Eastern Advertising Representative: Whiteman Associates, 257 Mamaroneck Ave., Phone 914-698-5130, Mamaroneck, N. Y. Midwestern Advertising Representative: Harley L. Ward, Inc., 360 North Michigan Ave., Chicago 1, III. DIRECTOR: M. O. Steen NEBRASKA GAME, FORESTATION AND PARKS COMMISSION: W. N. Neff, Fremont, Chairman; Rex Stotts, Cody, Vice Chairman; A. H. Story, Plainview; Martin Gable, Scottsbluff; W. C. Kemptar, Ravenna; Charles E. Wright, McCook; M. M. Muncie, Plattsmouth. OUTDOOR NEBRASKAland, published monthly by the Nebraska Game, Forestation and Parks Commission, 50 cents per copy. Subscription rates: $3 for one year, $5 for two years. Send subscriptions to OUTDOOR NEBRASKAland, State Capitol, Lincoln, Nebraska 68509. Copyright Nebraska Game, Forestation and Parks Commission, 1965. All rights reserved. Second-class postage paid at Lincoln, Nebraska and at additional mailing offices NEBRASKAland

JUNE Roundup

This month's like a good steed-you can trust it for a whirlwind of western action

JUNE IS the month when all NEBRASKAland is on parade. From Omaha to Scottsbluff everyone across the state is donning party duds for the festive times ahead.

Lincoln kicks off the shebang with eight jam-packed NEBRASKAland Days, June 12 through 19. Miss NEBRASKAland of 1966 will be chosen at the second annual Miss NEBRASKAland Pageant, June 10 and 11, to reign over the celebration in the capital city.

While the settlers parade down Lincoln's paved trails and stare wide-eyed at a Wild West Show, shoot it out in fast draw competition, and shovel it in at a Buffalo Bill banquet and free pancake feed, the "Indians" will be getting restless at Camp Minis Kuya on the outskirts of the city. Young bucks and winsome maidens, 300 boys and girls from an eight-state area, will compete in individual and group Indian dancing. The "warriors" will leave their powwow grounds for a raid on the whites during the National Paleface Powwow Parade.

University of Nebraska graduates have their own powwow mapped out for Lincoln on Alumni Roundup Day, June 4. Many new names will be added to the alumni roster that same day when the University of Nebraska holds its Spring Commencement at Pershing Auditorium. Omaha University schedules Commencement exercises June 6.

A number of Beatrice menfolk are itching to get on with Homesteader Days, June 12 through 19, particularly if they are sprouting bushy chins for the beard contest. Wild Bill Hickok prowls again when his trial, following the McCanles gang showdown at nearby Rock Creek Pony Express Station, is recreated amid rip-roaring fun. Men will compete in a big rodeo during the day and join the women folk in a fiddler's stomp at night.

Home talent takes the spotlight at Scotia during the Homecoming Celebration, June 13 and 14. After an afternoon of baseball, celebrators will heel and toe it at a carnival dance. A barbecue winds up the last evening.

Old World ancestries will show through at two Czech Festivals scheduled for June. One at Schuyler on June 19 through 25 is set for Laurel's June 24 through 26. Not to be outdone by the Czechs are the Swedes, holding their Swedish Festival June 17 and 18 in the Swede capital of Nebraska, Stromsburg.

Governor Morrison will be on hand for Polk County Old Times Day on June 1 at Osceola, which starts off with a 2 p.m., parade. Accordion music will entertain the "sitters" before square dance music beckons everyone to their feet. Breathers include a look- see at hobby, photo, and historical displays.

Deshler, the "Broom Capital of Nebraska", shows off her wares on June 17 and 18 during Broom Days. June 19 through 25 is set for Laurel's Annual Harvest Celebration.

The Buffalo Bill Blowout, four rip-roaring rodeo days in North Platte, June 23 through 26, will follow the pattern set by Buffalo Bill Cody, when he planned the "Old Glory Blowout" in 1882. Bill felt it was "downright unpatriotic" not to have a real Fourth of July celebration. The present Buffalo Bill Blowout was born because North Platte feels it is "downright unpatriotic" to let any memory of Buffalo Bill fade.

When a sheriff of the Wild West buckled on his six-shooters and mounted his bronc, it meant trouble. But when South Sioux City's modern-day star toters get ready to round up the outlaws in their police cars, it means fun for everyone. The outlaws could be any out-state tourists who meander into town during Tourist Arrest Days, scheduled every Friday. The car-load of "outlaws" get a pleasant fine—free hotel room for the night, five gallons of free gas, a free golf game, and drive-in movie for the family. "Prison food" means steak dinners.

Hereford owners at Waverly are planning a party for more than 1,000 boys and girls plus their parents and dignitaries from all over the nation. Nebraska's Fifth Annual Junior Hereford Association Field Day on June 25 attracts young cattlemen and cattle girls for a go at more than 30 prizes in various events.

Animals of another breed are in the spotlight at Omaha where Ak-Sar-Ben horse races, regarded as the finest between Chicago and the Pacific Coast, continue their outstanding program. The Garden County Quarter Horse Show, sponsored by the Western Saddle Club, is scheduled for June 17 and 18 at Oshkosh.

Sharpshooters will get their chance to "powder the clay" at the State Trap Shoot in Doniphan. At Fremont, 125 entrants will toe the marks at the State Target Archery Tournament. Trophies and medals will be awarded.

June in NEBRASKAland offers something special for the ladies. "Spring in Orbit" is the theme of Garden County's Garden Club Flower Show at Oshkosh, June 9.

Girls' State and Boys' State in Lincoln, June 11 through 17, will be attended by 400 boys and 375 girls who have just completed their junior year of high school. These programs, started in 1938 and 1939, acquaint boys and girls with the fundamental principles of American government through actual practice on state, county, and local levels.

High school students interested in the arts will study under University professors during the all-state high school course in art, journalism, music, and speech at the University of Nebraska, June 12 through 30.

Lincoln's amateur actors will stage melodramas at The Gas Light during June, July and August. The acts, performed Tuesday through Saturday, start at 8 p.m.

While some viewers enjoy the entertainment of a live stage, others delight in star-gazing. The clear and unobscured night skies of the Nebraska plains are on view at the summer sky show at Ralph Mueller Planetarium. June is "busting out all over" and with much hustle-bustle in NEBRASKAland. THE END

6 NEBRASKAland

WHAT TO DO

June 1—Lincoln Pro-Wrestling, Pershing Auditorium 1—Osceola—Old Times Day 2-3—Lincoln—Alumni College, University of Nebraska 2-4—Lincoln—FHA Officer Workshop, Nebraska Center 3-5—Alliance—Lions Club State Convention 4—Broken Bow—Junior Rodeo 4—Omaha—Pro-Wrestling, Civic Auditorium 4—Lincoln—University of Nebraska Spring Commencement, Pershing Auditorium, Alumni Roundup Day, University of Nebraska. State Dog Show, State Fairgrounds 4-5—Potter—Potter Rodeo 4_6—Omaha—Midwest Coin Club Meeting 5—Auburn—Nemaha County Hospital Auxiliary Antique Walk 5—Lincoln—Lincoln High Schools Combined Baccalaureate, Pershing Auditorium 5—Fremont—State Target Archery Tournament 5-6—Omaha—Annual C. Y. O. Convention 5—September 4—Alliance—Alliance Roping Club Instruction and Contests, Wednesdays, Sundays 6—Omaha—Omaha University Commencement 6-11—4-H Club Week 7—Lincoln—Northeast High School Graduation, Pershing Auditorium 7-9—Omaha—Nebraska Home Extension Council, Omaha University 8—Omaha—Omaha Symphony Pops Concert, Peony Park 9—Lincoln—Southeast High School Graduation, Pershing Auditorium 9—Oshkosh—Flower Show, Garden County Garden Club 9-11—Alliance—Nebraska Stock Growers Convention 9-12—Doniphan—State Trap Shoot 10—Lincoln—Lincoln High School Graduation, Pershing Auditorium 10-11—Lincoln—Miss NEBRASKAland Pageant 10-11—Omaha—American Association of University Women Conference 10-12—Lincoln—National Paleface Powwow 10-26—Omaha—"Never Too Late," Omaha Playhouse 11-17—Lincoln—Boys' State and Girls' State 12—Chappell—Invitational 4-H Trail Blazers Horse Show 12-19—Lincoln—NEBRASKAland Days 12-19—Beatrice—Homesteader Days 12-30—Lincoln—All-State Arts Sessions, University of Nebraska 12-July 17—Omaha—Katherine Nash Sculpture Exhibit, Joslyn Art Museum 13-14—Scotia—Homecoming Celebration 13-18—Omaha—College World Series, Rosenblatt Stadium 15—Omaha—Omaha Symphony Pops Concert, Peony Park 15—Lincoln—Old Time Fiddlers* Concert, Pinewood Bowl 16-19—Lincoln—Lincoln Jaycees Rodeo, Pershing Auditorium 16-19—York—Miss Nebraska Pageant 17-18—Deshler—Broom Days 17-18—Oshkosh—Garden County Quarter Horse Show 17-18—Stromsburg—Swedish Festival 17-19—Lexington—Lexington Jaycees Rodeo 17-August 8—Macy—Indian Dancing, Sundays 18—Wilber—Ninth Annual Brown Swiss Cattle Show 18-19—Merriman—Merriman Rodeo 19—Schuyler—Czech Festival 19-25—Laurel—Annual Harvest Celebration 20—Lincoln—Remedial Reading Workshop, Nebraska Center 22—Omaha—Omaha Symphony Pops Concert, Peony Park 23-24—Lincoln—Business Education Conference, U. of N. 23-26—Harrison—Nebraska High School Championship Rodeo 23-26—North Platte—Buffalo Bill Blowout 24-26—Clarkson—Czech Festival 25—Waverly—Junior Hereford Association Field Day 25-26—Gordon—Quarter Horse Show 26—Kimball—Water Ski Show 26—St. Paul—Open Golf Tournament (Continued on Page 8)

WHAT TO DO

(Continued from Page 7) 27-29-August—Lincoln—"Nebraska Nights" Sky Show, Ralph Mueller Planetarium 29—Omaha—Emme Kemp in Concert, University of Omaha 29—Omaha—Omaha Symphony Pops Concert, Peony Park 29—Lincoln—All-State Night with Gershwin, Pershing Auditorium 30—Lincoln—All-State Final Concert, Pershing Auditorium No Date Set—Alliance—Cattle Capital NSCA Sports Car Sprints No Date Set—O'Neill—Annual Rodeo, Golf Tournament June-July 8—Omaha—Omaha Public School Art Exhibit, Joslyn Museum June-July 26—Lincoln—University of Nebraska Student Art Show, Sheldon Art Gallery, "The Frozen Giants" Sky Show, Mueller Planetarium June-July 4—Omaha—Horse Racing, Ak-Sar-Ben Track June-August—Columbus—Car Racing, Sundays and Holidays June-August—Lincoln—Melodramas, The Gas Light, Tuesday through Saturday June-August—South Sioux City—Tourist Arrest, Fridays June-September 5—Kearney—Boys Training School Indian Dancing, Sundays and Labor Day June-September 15—Gothenburg— Pony Express Station open June-September—Alliance—Stock Car Racing, Alliance Speedway, Sundays

SPEAK UP

OFF TO THE WARS—"I am now serving with the Army in Dong Batin, Viet Nam, attached to the Second Korean Marine Brigade.

"I am receiving all the past and present copies of NEBRASKAland from my folks back in the United States. It really is great to know what's happening in my home state.

"When I get through with the magazine, I pass it on to others who also enjoy it just as much, even if they aren't from Nebraska. "Keep up the good work and I'll be looking for more issues of your magazine from home." —Sp/4 Roland W. Placek, Viet Nam.

TREASURE SEEKER—"Would you please advise me as to the source of the metal detectors shown in the article 'Treasure Trail' in the December NEBRASKAland?

"I have subscribed to the magazine for many years and enjoy it very much."— L. Robert Johnson, Las Vegas, Nevada.

For information concerning the equipment used in the article, contact Fred Crouter, 5022 Hamilton Street, Omaha, Nebraska.—Editor.

SOLD—"We must admit we're those odd folks sold on Nebraska without a written word. However, for the past seven years we always purchased gift subscriptions for other folks so they would know and feel what a nice home state we have.

"This year our friends finally sent us a gift subscription all our own, and it is surely nice being able to keep the issues.

"The past two issues of NEBRASKAland are just wonderful. And our people who received gift issues agree that it is a great magazine." —Mrs. Duane Clark, Columbus.

SATISFIED—"I wanted to share the humor of this clipping with you. It appeared in the Norfolk Daily News on January 19, 1966. The clipping is titled, "Formality Is Fashion Note for Hunting":

"Before dawn one day this week, several Omaha hunters who make regular trips to Norfolk were waiting for their morning breakfast —and the arrival xof several other companions—at the Lazy L.

"The two late arrivals finally showed updressed in tuxedos.

"After the laughter died down, they explained to their friends. 'Well, you told us to dress to go hunting.'

"Which gives you an idea of what's game in Omaha, or maybe what happens when you open a season on hens."

"The January issue of NEBRASKAland was superb. Your photography work is always a special delight to me. One page was especially familiar to my husband: The picture on page 37. In times past, he has been the farmer on the tractor with the gulls feeding on the newly-turned earth. Though he works in town now, we live in the country. We feel there is no greater place than rural Nebraska to raise our three youngsters.

"Keep up the good work in your magazine. Our whole family enjoys it thoroughly."—Mrs. Lowell Nygren, Norfolk.

PRAIRIE CHICKEN—"I was born and raised in Ainsworth, Nebraska but moved farther west over 50 years ago.

"In your hunting stories in the January issue, what has become of the prairie chicken? That was about all you heard of in my time.

"I remember passing the meat market when I was a child. On the floor in one corner was a great pile of dead prairie chickens. There were hundreds of them, all to be sent to city markets such as Omaha, I suppose.

"Shortly after that they passed laws against such slaughter. For a short time I lived in another Sand Hills' community and boarded at a hotel. For dinner one time they were rather indecisive about our orders, and when they came, we knew it was prairie chicken. The management kept very quiet about it. "I did enjoy Nebraska very much."—Mrs. Lilly M. Phelps, Seattle, Washington.

Prairie chickens staged a dramatic increase in numbers in the eastern part of the state when farming was first introduced. The birds found the mixture of cropland and grassland to their 8 NEBRASKAland liking. Market hunters took large numbers of birds during the peak population years. However, more intensified farming rather than market hunting was the major factor which drove the prairie chicken westward to the eastern edge of the Sand Hills. Here there was and still is a favorable mixture of grass cover and cropland for the birds to sustain themselves.

Dry years of the 1930's severely reduced the Nebraska population of prairie chickens, but the birds increased again in the 1940's. Nebraska now has prairie chickens in good numbers on the eastern edge of the Sand Hills, where they are hunted in season along with the sharp-tailed grouse. Small flocks still live in the southeast corner of the state, where there is sufficient native grass to support them. No open season on prairie chickens is held in this area.—Editor.

GREAT GRANDDADDY—"NEBRASKAland is a pleasure for us to read, and I think you might be interested in this information about the introduction of the ringneck pheasant in Nebraska.

"I am enclosing a picture which I took in 1897 of Mr. Aaron Wall of Loup City. It is my understanding that Mr. Wall was the first in our area to raise ringneck pheasants which are so much in the news today.

"Raising pheasants was a hobby with Mr." Wall and he continued it until about 1905.

"My own hobby has been hunting and I have many pictures of the early-day hunting of ducks and prairie chickens. In more recent years, there was prairie dog shooting but now they are hard to find. I came to Loup City in 1897."—Dr. Harry M. Eisner, Loup City. Our thanks to Dr. Eisner for the picture and his letter about Nebraska's early introduction to the ringneck pheasant. We welcome pictures and letters at any time and will print as many of them as we possibly can in Speak Up.—Editor.

WRONG IMPRESSION—"In regards to taking the bounty off of coyotes it looks to me as if the Game Commission would have fought against this bill.

"In the past, they have spent thousands of dollars to stock pheasants and other game and then let the coyotes run free. Don't make much sense.

"They spend thousands of dollars each year to pick up beer bottles and cans and whiskey bottles. This could easily be stopped.

"Pass a law, no more throwing away bottles and cans."—Melvin Hawkins, Deshler.

Reader Hawkins is a little confused. Nebraska never did have a bounty on coyotes. Bounties were and are paid by certain Nebraska counties but the state itself never did to the best of our knowledge. As for laws against littering, they are on the books and are stringently enforced by the Game Commission's Conservation Officers. Perhaps, a bounty on litterbugs would be more effective than a bounty on coyotes whose predation is microscopically small compared to man's greediness.—Editor.

GOOD GIFTS—"I like NEBRASKAland very much. In fact I like it so much that I have been sending subscriptions from time to time as presents to friends whom I think would enjoy it. I would like to take this opportunity to tell you of a most enjoyable hobby my wife and I have discovered, and to ask you to help promote it. This is square dancing. I am including some posters and material so you may become familiar with our festivals and events."—Bill "Pappy" Schroeder, Sweetwater.

We attempt to include as many events and activities as possible each month in the "What To Do" column. However, we must have at least three months notice prior to the event in order to meet our printing schedule.—Editor.

MOM, POP, KIDS—"We certainly do want to renew our NEBRASKAland subscription. Our whole family enjoys this magazine. Some pictures and cartoons are usually clipped out and used on our home bulletin board — like to. change the pictures with the season. The man of the house loves to hunt and fish and we all enjoy camping. Then, too, the historical and nature articles have supplied our 7th grader with much reference material for reports and essays.

"We wouldn't want you to change a thing in this grand magazine."—Mrs. LeRoy Staehr, York.

LIKED VISIT—"I enjoy receiving your NEBRASKAland magazine each month. Through this magazine and Mrs. Harold Fenwick of Brule, I was able to find a nice place to stay at Johnson while hunting pheasant and quail last October and November. I hope to go again next fall.

"My family and neighbors enjoyed seeing Phil Harris on TV hunting pheasants up near Norfolk. Keep up the fine work with your magazine and continue to let us know where there are good farm families to stay with." —William Fowler, Hendersonville, North Carolina.

10 NEBRASKAland

A GREAT NATURAL CURIOSITY

Time made it, time will destroy it but D-day is 300 years away by Warren Spencer

IT IS A tourist attraction, pure and simple. Yet Chimney Rock lacks the usual tinsel of some tourist attractions. It stands alone in the middle of the broad, rolling North Platte River Valley in Nebraska's Panhandle. There are no pottery stands, souvenir hawkers, or high-pressure salesman to kindle interest in this mound of clay, sandstone, and volcanic ash. instead there is just a simple bronze tablet and a wealth of history as rich as any in the world to attract visitors from the far corners of the country.

No one saw Chimney Rock being built, and no one attended the grand opening. It took centuries for nature to carve this gigantic spire from the soft Brule Clay but its unveiling was not heralded by blaring brass bands. Indians in the area were the first to see Chimney Rock. To see them it resembled their JUNE, 1966 11   wigwams, so they called it just that. For centuring The Wigwam stood unmolested. Its ground was not fertile and its face was sheer so it was of no use to anyone except to look at and wonder from whence it came.

Then the white men began their westward invasion. At first they paid little or no attention to the towering rock. Robert Stuart and his band of Astorian trappers passed it in 1813, but didn't boter to mention it to those they met. Then others came and their imaginations ran wild. Some saw an inverted funnel cast in rock. Others thought it looked like a lighthouse, and still others found it much like the trunk of a gigantic tree. But it was not until 1827 that a lasting name was given to the formation. It was Joshua Pilcher passing on his way to Salt Lake City, Utah, who gave it a permanent name. To Pilcher it looked like a chimney and he said so. The name stuck.

In the yeras that followed, the Oregon and Mormon Trails became super highways for the westward movement. In time, word of Chimney Rock spread and each wagon master and pioneer traveler watched the horizon for the towering spire that signaled the half-way mark of their trek. As the peak came into view it looked as though it were only about 15 or 20 miles ahead. But as hours passed into days and the point still lay beyond their wagons, the immigrants discovered that it was 30 or 40 miles away, two full days of hard travel. A clear atmosphere and the inability of most immigrants to gauge distances on the rolling prarie accounted for their inaccurate guesses.

Wrong about how far it was ahead of them, travelers were even more wrong about the heights of Chimney Rock. Estimates ranged from 500 to 700 feet for the tower alone. Few of the newcomers included the base in their calculations. Even the early surveyors disagreed. An 1895 survey stated that the entire formation was 4,242 feet above sea level. The Camp Clarke Quadrangle of the U.S. Geological Survey of that same year set it at 800 feet. Today, Chimney Rock stands 500 feet above the valley floor.

But even with incorrect estimates of distance and size, these early travelers couldn't resist a ride to the base of the rock. Side-trips ahead of the plodding trains became almost standard practice. The rock was located on the south or Oregon Trail side of the North Platte River, affording those on the southern route excellent access. But travelers on the Mormon Trail on the other side of the river were not to be outdone. Literally thousands swam the river to stand at the foot of the rock and gaze in admiration at nature's handiwork. Those who were not satisfied with just looking, clambered up the base to inscribe their names in the soft clay. Nature provided an excellent eraser, and thousands of trail-weary immigrants were robbed of their chance of immortality by rain and wind.

Even though a traveler might not journey to the rock, he always found time from everyday chores to make an entry in a journal. Nearly every diary kept on the long westward movement contains some mention of Chimney Rock. All record its size and distance to the best of the writers' knowledge, and many go into intricate detail concerning not only the rock, but its surroundings. Perhaps one of the most concise reports comes from Father DeSmet's journal of 1840.

"On the 31st of May we camped two miles and a half from one of the most remarkable curiosities of this savage region. It is a cone-shaped eminence of not far from a league in circumference, gashed by many ravines and standing upon a smooth plain. From the summit of this hill rises a square shaft, 30 to 40 feet through 12 by 150 feet in height; the form of this column has given it the name of the Chimney; it is 175 yards above the plain, and may be perceived from 30 miles away ... a few years more and this great natural curiosity will crumble away and make only a little heap on the plains; for when it is examined near at hand, an enormous crack appears in its top."

Father De Smet's fear that the monument would crumble on the prairie was common among early travelers and even today many viewers are concerned about its durability. The crack near the top of the tower is a constant source of speculation for the formation's longevity. In the mid-1800's Reverend Samuel Parker climbed to the base of the rock. Whether on the spur of the moment or not, he decided that the name Chimney Rock did not fit and proposed renaming it Beacon Hill. When his suggestion was ignored, he took one look at the crack and predicted that the rock would be gone within 50 years. The rest of the day he spent with his fellow-travelers shooting away small outcroppings near the top of the spire.

Nebraska State Historical Society photo

Possibly in an attempt to fulfill Reverend Parker's prediction, a command of artillery troopers found the rock ideal for target practice as they made their way to Fort Laramie, Wyoming. Evidently they needed the practice for they inflicted little damage on the formation.

Today many people think that Chimney Rock is not long for this world. One individual even went so far as to propose casing the monument with cement to preserve it for posterity. Nothing has come of the proposal. Scientists say that the rock is as firmly based today as it was when it was formed. Despite wind, weather, man, and animals they predict that it will last for at least another three centuries, though it will become less spectacular with time.

Chimney Rock has also been used for amateur theatrics during its reign over the river valley. The City of Bayard used it as a prime" symbol in its pageant, "The Gift of God", which was produced during the 1930's. A portrayal of the Nativity, the production was climaxed with Chimney Rock bathed in glaring floodlights as "The finger of God pointing to the heavens".

It was August 9, 1956, before Chimney Rock gained any official national acclaim. It was then designated as a National Historic Site. The monument's 83-acre tract is owned by the State of Nebraska, but it is administered by the city of Bayard, the Nebraska State Historical Society, and the National Park Service.

Chimney Rock has survived sharpshooters, immigrants in search of immortality, cannoneers, and homespun theatrics. But there is one element that it cannot escape—nature. Year by year she is wearing down this monument. In 1954, a 25-foot segment toppled from atop the spire. Then in 1958, further crumbling split the top into two peaks. Nature struck again in 1962 when she sheared away the smaller of the peaks with lightning.

Chimney Rock will not last forever. In time it will crumble and be lost. But long after it is gone from the eyes of men, it will live in their hearts. THE END

AFTER-HOURS SAUGER

Sprint to Gavins Point proves more than a stab in the dark by Bill Vogt

A CASUAL OBSERVER might have been amused at the sight of Lyle Sawatzke putting his rod » down so gently after a cast. But I was far from amused as I watched this sauger angler, for in the racing Missouri River below Gavins Point Dam, the sauger is not a conventional fish and you have to use unorthodox methods to catch him.

"It's just as important how you put the rod down as how you pick it up," Lyle said, easing the level-wind bait-casting outfit into position against the back railing of his houseboat. "You don't want to jar the weight loose from the rock ledge." He turned to bait a second line. The weight was lighter than I'd expected for river fishing, with two No. 6 hooks tethered to drop lines.

I made a mental note of this, and again marveled at this man's skill. At each cast, he would retrieve slowly, feeling for the rocky bottom where sauger lurked. When the weight had settled to his satisfaction, Lyle eased the rod down and awaited developments.

I glanced at my bait to make sure it was secure, then flipped out my own rig. I had come here to try something new for me, sauger at the start of their spring run. I had snapped at the chance when Lyle offered to share his houseboat with me for an after-dark go at the toothy members of the perch clan.

Fishing is serious business to this carpenter from Crofton. And to him, sauger fishing is the most serious business of all. He is something of a legendary figure among the area's hook-and-line set. Others had told me of seeing Lyle fishing serenely from the high training dike in a driving snow, with a canvas windbreak and a beehive-shaped gasoline heater for warmth. He holds the state paddlefish record with a 72-pounder he 14 NEBRASKAland snagged in the tailwaters in 1961. Two weeks before our early April fishing trip, Lyle was trying for sauger off the same wall when he yanked in an 18-pound northern pike who happened to get in the way.

So far, our score was pretty good: six fish on the stringer, but all of them were Lyle's, and none were very large.

My host quipped, "It's an old saying, but you should have been here a week ago. Right up to a couple of days back, we've been getting some mighty big sauger. A quick cold snap like this holds them down a lot, but it'll make the run last longer."

The 26° weather had iced down the little dip net, that we used to scoop up minnows to the deck, so I pulled it free and placed it in the bucket. The offer of hot chili from an old friend of Lyle's in another houseboat was getting harder and harder to pass up. I watched Lyle haul in a small sauger and throw him back, then "volunteered" to run down to Postmaster Don Swift's boat for some hot chow.

Swift's craft was a short walk up the bank from Lyle's. The odors of coffee and chili greeted me as I made my way over the shaky gangplank and inside. A tile floor, stove, and kitchen counter illuminated by an overhead gas light greeted my unbelieving, blinking stare. It was quite a contrast to Lyle's simple arrangement of a bench and bottled gas two-burner.

"Thought I'd take you up on that chili, and maybe tote a bowl over to Lyle," I ventured, wondering if I were missing any action back at Sawatzke's. But I had not reckoned on the jovial, talkative Crofton postmaster, who began filling me in on the facts of a sauger fisherman's life.

"We are more like a community here than anything else," Don beamed. "One man needs some help with his houseboat, and we all pitch in. There are all kinds of professions represented here from a school superintendent to an oil distributor to just about any one you want to name. It's a real democratic society on the river. All of us are here to Rave fun and enjoy the river and its fellowship. We manage to catch a lot of sauger off these 70-plus boats, and have a whale of a time doing it. I have a couple of rods in now, but I don't believe in making any more work out of fishing than you have to. There is a bell on one rod and I'll hear it if I get a good fish on."

I peered dubiously out the window at the two rods gleaming in the light of an outside gasoline lantern. One of them moved a bit. "You've got a bite," I advised, as the rod began a slow dance.

Don moved unhurriedly'through the door. "No rush," he laughed, stepping into the cold. The rod gave a lurch, then the line went slack. Don hauled it in, rebaited, and dropped the rig over the side. "Another one will come along, sooner or later. I've already caught a couple, anyway." He turned to watch a neighbor wrestling with what appeared to be a sizeable fish.

"Just a minute!" Don hollered, running inside. He darted back with a net at the ready. With a cautious swoop, Don raised a struggling fish and extended the net to the waiting angler. "He'll go a couple of pounds," he grinned, as pleased as though he'd caught the fish himself.

We stepped inside Don's boat where another neighbor's wife waited, bowl in hand, for some chili to take back to her family. "Yes sir," the (Continued on Page 54)

CRACKLES FOR GRACKLES

Score tactics give way to birdshot in war on black pests

AN IRATE FARMER jabbed at the telephone dial and waited impatiently for the Game Commission's Norfolk District Office to answer. "It's about these blackbirds," he seethed into the mouthpiece. "There are thousands of them. They have been here about a week, and the dog won't come out of his house, the hens aren't laying, and the wife is not easy to live with. Could the Game Commission do anything?

Assured by District Enforcement Supervisor Bob Downing that action of some kind would be taken, the farmer agreed to await developments. Downing added that the nuisances were probably grackles. Action came a few days later when District Game Manager Bob Havel brought in some crackers to frighten the huge flocks from their roosting areas. Basically, a cracker is a 12-gauge shotgun shell loaded with an extra bang. When the gun is fired, there is an initial report as the primer explodes. In a few seconds, a delayed-action explosion occurs many yards from the shooter.

Each time Havel fired at the birds, they rose with loud complaints. The second harmless blast stirred them to a still higher altitude, but they soon settled back, brazen as ever.

Havel conceded that the shells were useless against the birds. He confirmed that the troublemakers were bronzed grackles, along with flocks of starlings. Each-fall, thousands of the grackles flock into the state to join the resident members of their clan. A few hundred 16 NEBRASKAland European starlings get into the act, and together they become a very undesirable group at times.

The bronzed grackles are recognized by their iridescent bronze markings on head and back, and their keel-shaped tails. They are distinguishable from purple grackles, whose markings lean toward a shimmering purplish-black. European starlings are chunky, square-tailed birds.

They are smaller than the grackles and are much swifter in flight. Bothersome flocks of the migrants are not easily discouraged once they take a liking to a place.

After two tries with the crackers, Havel concluded the only recourse was to try killing some of the birds. Bob Downing concurred, and a shoot was set up at the Frank Reed residence ab6ut three miles south of Norfolk.

Grackles are not protected by state law in Nebraska, but they are covered by a federal statute. However, there is a stipulation in the federal regulation that grackles may be killed without a special permit when they are committing serious depredations on crops, property, or other interests. The depredation must be so substantial that it can be stopped only by killing some or all of the offending birds. It was evident that the birds were meeting the depredation requirement on the Reed farm.

Late one afternoon, Havel met the farmer and the two surveyed a shelterbelt behind the house. An hour before sunset the birds were conspicuous by their absence. But it wasn't hard to tell that thousands of birds were using the area. Droppings covered the ground and the landscape was littered with pieces of branches.

"Just wait another 15 or 20 minutes," Reed explained. "You'll see more of those black rascals than we can kill in a month of shooting."

The sun was slipping toward the west when the first black thread appeared, heading out of the north. Closer and closer the flock swept, its discordant noise growing.

Havel cracked open a box of 20-gauge No. 7% trap loads. He pushed three shells into his autoloader as about 50 grackles swirled above the tops of the big cottonwoods, 100 feet above. The 20 barked three times in rapid succession, birds flaring at each shot.

"Guess I was flock shooting," Bob smiled. "Next time I'll pick my bird."

Next time was not long in coming as nearly a hundred grackles swooped in across the trees, their raucous calls filling the air. Bob swung the 20 again, missed his first shot, then scored on the second and third.

Birds were coming in faster than the shooting could scare them away. First in bunches of 50, the flock began to build in numbers as the shadows lengthened. Hun- dreds of birds rose at each volley, only to circle overhead like a black veil in the evening sky. Frank caught the fever and made a quick trip to his house for a 12-gauge and a couple of boxes of shells.

A small flock of starlings streaked toward the gunners. Swifter than grackles, they zoomed in like miniature jets. Frank's 12 boomed and was joined by Bob's as both men opened up. A bird fell from the rear of the flock. Swinging again to regain his lead, Bob dropped another before the birds flared out of range.

"Sure have to lead them," Frank quipped. "If they keep coming I'll be out of shells in another 10 minutes." "Me, too," his companion replied with a grin. "I've shot over a box now. The ones I'm missing are those who flare and then dive to gain speed."

"Same here," Frank chuckled. "Those who circle right overhead aren't easy, either. I'm shooting to the outside of an arc and behind them."

Ten minutes went by as the flock became more numerous. The chorus swelled until the milling birds numbered well over 5,000. An endless line stretched far to the north as still more of the dusky grackles headed toward the roosting area.

The guns were booming steadily as the pair worked on the black hordes, while the sun dropped beneath the horizon.

"This old smoke pole is hotter than a firecracker," Havel remarked, running a finger over the warm barrel. "We've been hitting about one out of three." Oh, oh! there is a small bunch coming in from the north, and look how low they are." He shoved two fresh shells into the autoloader.

The grackles came straight for the waiting guns, but none dropped as the birds recoiled in unison at the racket of the shots.

Both gunners shrugged and reached for some fresh ammunition. Havel turned to his partner with a grin. "If those birds die, it will be from old age."

About a hundred shots later, the light drew dimmer. Thousands of birds milled over the trees, nervous from the continuous barrage. Frank's two boxes of shells were exhausted, and the two shooters called the game on account of darkness.

"I think this will help the problem," Frank said when it was over. "I know one thing, I'm going to pick up some more shells. Might as well get some shooting fun to reimburse me for the trouble these critters have been giving me."

Both men agreed that the pesky birds were no snap and that they provided some interesting sport. The weaving, circling flock presented every type of target imaginable, from straighaways to broadsides. The small targets are a bit easier with No. 7% to 9 shot. A 20-gauge or .410 is suitable for grackle shooting since the birds are not very tough to kill. Fall is the time the grackles cause the greatest number of complaints from besieged landowners. There is one note of caution, though. No matter how dense the flock, there is always more air than birds, and flock shooting won't pay the freight for eliminating the nuisances. Like all wing shooting you have to pick out an individual bird and zero in on him.

Identification is important, because certain protected birds can be confused with bronzed grackles or starlings. The Brewer's blackbird, for (Continued on Page 50)

NEBRASKAland Days

All the state will hit the trail for the June 12-19 shindig in Lincoln, where fun and frolic run rampant

HANG ON TO your Stetsons, grab your six-guns, and jump on the bandwagon. The Wild West lives again. It's June, and that means NEBRASKAland Days.

Eight big days, plus two, and they are jam-packed with pageantry, pretty gals, cowboys, Indians, shootdowns, parades, pancake feeds, barbecues, carnivals, rodeao, and on and on and on. NEBRASKAland goes all out to prove once again it is truly "where the WEST begins."

Cannons roar a welcome on each of the eight days, beginning Sunday, June 12. But, things really start popping two days before, when the National Paleface Powwow and the second annual Miss NEBRASKAland Pageant open the way for more to come.

Headquarters for the whole sheband is the Capital City of Lincoln, but NEBRASKAland Days is observed state-wide. It was conceived by the Game Commission, the state's official tourist agency, as a prime way to show off Nebraska's vacation, tourist, and recreation wares. It all began back in '64, 1964 that is, when the first NEBRASKAland on Parade swept though Lincoln. So successful was the endeavor that the first NEBRASKAland Days took shape last year.

18 NEBRASKAland  

Every community is urged to participate in any way it can to help make Nebraska a memorable place to visit again and again.

Each and every day is dedicated to some part of Nebraska's historic past or vibrant present. Homesteaders are remembered on opening day. Succeeding days honor the Pony Soldier, Buffalo Bill, the Oregon Trail, Rodeo Cowboys, the Pony Express, and Western Kids. The last day commemorates the state's religious and cultural inheritance with Heritage Sunday. Sunday through Sunday, all Nebraska will throb with the gala events, designed to entice visitors to the state, "where the WEST begins."

JUNE, 1966   Tentative NEBRASKAland DAYS SCHEDULE June 12 through 19 PRELIMINARY ACTIVITIES Friday, June 10 All day, set up National Paleface Powwow (Tipisa Wapiya) 8 p.m., Miss NEBRASKAland Pageant Preliminaries Saturday, June 11 10 a.m., National Paleface Powwow Parade 2 p.m., National Paleface Powwow Dancing Contests 8 p.m., Miss NEBRASKAland Finals NEBRASKALAND DAYS June 12 through 19, daily 8 a.m., Flag-raising at State Capitol 8 a.m., to 5 p.m., Nebraskana Art Exhibit on display in State Capitol rotunda NEBRASKAland Conestoga Camp Out (begins June 13) 10 a.m. to 12 midnight, carnival Sunday, June 12—Homestead Day 2 p.m., National Paleface Powwow Finals 8 p.m., Strategic Air Command Band Concert Monday, June 13—Pony Soldier Day 8 p.m., Military Band Concert Tuesday, June 14—Buffalo Bill Day 11 a.m., Yessir-Sower parade 12 noon, Buffalo Bill banquet 8pm, Free Wild West Show at State Capitol Wednesday, June 15—Oregon Trail Day 8:30 a.m., Pancake feed (Gateway Shopping Center) 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Vacation Booths open downtown 12 noon, wagon train arrival 2 p.m., NEBRASKAland Muzzle-loading Rifle Championships 6'30 p.m., NEBRASKAland on Parade 8:45 p.m., Free Wild West Show and presentation of Buffalo Bill Award Winner Thursday, June 16—Rodeo Cowboy Day 12 noon, High Noon shootdown 5 p m„ NEBRASKAland Rodeo Barbecue 8 p.m.! NEBRASKAland Championship Rodeo Friday, June 17—Pony Express Day 12 noon, Pony Express run 2pm, NEBRASKAland Fast Draw Championships 5pm NEBRASKAland Rodeo Barbecue 8 p.m.', NEBRASKAland Championship Rodeo Saturday, June 18—Western Kids Day Lincoln-area Best Western Dressed Kids Parade NEBRASKAland Rodeo Barbecue NEBRASKAland Championship Rodeo Sunday, June 19—Heritage Sunday Morning Camp Meetings and free pancake feed 8 a.m., Protestant 9 a.m., Catholic 10 a.m 5 p.m 8 p.m NEBRASKAland Championship Rodeo Finals Sundown, closing flag ceremony at State Capitol 22 NEBRASKAland

NEBRASKAland on Parade, a huge, 90-minute extravaganza, is a major highlight of the celebration again this year. Towns and attractions from all over the state will beat the drums for their areas. Again, the Wild West parade will be aired on state-wide television.

There are a number of "firsts" this year. The "Paleface Powwow" and a gigantic NEBRASKAland Days Conestoga Camp Out are among the biggest. Palefaces will dance old Indian tribal rites for fun and competition   with finals on June 12. Campers from across the nation have been invited to join the festivities for the whole show or a weekend.

The new Miss NEBRASKAland will be crowned on Saturday, June 11, after preliminaries on June 10. Colleges and universities across the state are sending their "best girl" to compete in this "queen of queens" pageant. The lucky lass will reign over all NEBRASKAland Days activities.

A prominent movie or television star will be on hand to accept the second annual Buffalo Bill Award at the Wild West Show scheduled for the evening of June 15. The giant trophy is presented to the personality who has done the most to promote the real West through quality family entertainment.

Rodeo erupts the final four days with the NEBRASKAland Rodeo Championships. The rough-and-tumble show is sanctioned by the Rodeo Cowboys Association, and top cowpokes from across the country will ride in for a crack at big money and RCA points.

The kids have their day on Saturday, with the Best Western-Dressed Kids Parade and Contest, sponsored by the Elks. Old-time rifles will roar once again in the NEBRASKAland Muzzle-loading Championships, and gast draw experts, too, will shoot it out in competition

 

There will be plenty of rocking and stomping on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings, when the wild "Wild West Show" busts loose. Performers will sing, dance, crack the bull whip, and do trick roping. Even a dancing horse named Judy will get in the act.

Nearly all activities are centered at the State Capitol. However, the rodeo will raise the rafters at Pershing Auditorium in Lincoln. Wagon trains will arrive, the Pony Express will ride again, and, in general, all heck will break loose in NEBRASKAland this June. Be sure to join the fun. THE END

BUZZ-TAILED BOLOS

Rattlesnakes go high fashion when this hobbyist from Imperial performs plastic wizardry by Anoma Hoffmeister

TO L. P. KRAMER of Imperial, Nebraska, happiness is a rattlesnake. The 70-year-old retired pool-hall operator gets his kicks out of making ornaments from the hides and rattles of ornery prairie rattlesnakes. Women who quake at the mere sight of any reptile are more than happy to dangle the patterned pieces of hide from their ears. Even men who would shudder at the ominous buzz enjoy wearing the plastic-encased rattles on the string bolo ties that Kramer turns out. Perhaps the satisfaction comes with the knowledge that the warning buzz is forever stilled. L. P. feels the same way about it. Some people like to hunt rattlers and capture them unharmed. Others milk the snakes for the venom, which is used in medicine. He can think of better things to do than handle live snakes. He would rather have them in plastic.

Even so, it takes a man of sturdy stock to go after the raw materials for such a hobby, and Kramer's 100-rattler-a-year average is recommendation enough. He started the unique hobby in 1955, after a year's recuperation from a heart attack. Kramer found his forced retirement a bit dull.

He reasons, "I had to have something to do, so I took up hunting rattlesnakes and making them into jewelry. It all started one day when a woman gave me a diamondback hide. I had been fooling around with molds for different types of plastic jewelry, so I made her some earrings. I stretched little circles of hide over some old buttons, then mounted them on clips. She liked the things so well that I started making more. It is still a hobby with me, because I could never compete with commercial jewelry outfits. But I have sold the bolos and earrings to stores, conventions, organizations, and to individuals looking for unique gifts."

Most of the work involved is in the getting. The Imperial hobbyist splits the snake along the belly and peels off the hide. Once he has secured a hide, Kramer simply selects one of the many drinking glasses he uses for forms. He pours a mixture of plastic and hardener in, lets it set, then drops in a rattle or hide section. More plastic, colored or clear, completes the job. Fittings from a jewelers' supply house are used for the setting.

Purses and hatbands are by-products of Kramer's basement shop. A 56-inch diamondback the one-time poolhall operator nabbed at Okeene, Oklahoma, on a visit to the 23rd Annual Rattlesnake Roundup of 1962 caught his wife, Ann's eye. She wanted a coin purse from that hide. Her husband obliged, and an assortment of other leatherwork followed.

The Oklahoma trip grew out of several years' reading about the event. But in practice the bring-'em-back-alive aspect of the hunt was not this snake hunter's cup of tea. "I just wanted to see what it was like," he muses. "I've seen it and done it now, and don't have any particular desire to go back. When I hunt for snakes around here, I carry a straightened-out hoe and just cut their heads off on the spot. Occasionally rattler's jaws will open and close for some time, even after the head is off. I just wait a bit, until the venom is spent. I have never had a rattler even come close to striking me but I'm always careful and wear high boots. Come to think of it, I've never even had one hit my boots. I do remember one hunt that did give me a bit of a start, though."

"Three big rattlers were sunning outside a prairie dog hole, and all came toward me at once. I waited until the first one got to where I wanted him, nailed that one, and then got the other two. I could see more snakes down in the hole, so I used gasoline to flush them out. Four came right up, I got those, then here came a little one who had been holding back. Eight snakes from one spot. That's about as many as I have ever found in one place," he continued.

Hunting is a little slow right around Imperial, as many area residents seek the prairie rattlers just to get rid of them. The areas north of Imperial and south in Dundy County are prime hunting grounds for Kramer. He says prairie dog towns are the best places to look, after the snakes have started denning up in the fall.

Kramer carries a garden hose and finds it a useful gimmick for getting reluctant snakes out of their dens. The hunter wriggles the hose as far into the hole as he can, then pours a half-pint of gasoline into it. He blows on the hose, forcing the fumes downward. High octane has little appeal for snakes, so they come up for a breath of air and Kramer's waiting hoe. He also carries a lifter, much like the long-handled clamp used by the old-time grocers for reaching high shelves. This comes in handy for jockeying a snake into a better position for the kill. Sometimes a mace-like affair made from a number of small spikes and a handle is useful for the coup de grace, though the straightened hoe is the hobbyist's standby.

Always on the lookout for the unusual, Kramer once killed a rattler bearing two fangs on one side. He was quick to realize nature's goof and promptly preserved the head in plastic.

"One big fellow had a lump in his middle," Kramer recalls. "I thought sure I had killed a female snake about to have young, but when I skinned 'her' out, there was a big rat he had just taken in. A snake can unhinge his jaws and swallow quite a mouthful when he is hungry enough to try."

The snake hunter acquaints children with the looks of Nebraska's most dangerous snake by means of a small live one in a glass jar. Whenever he's hunting, he looks for little ones to be used for that purpose. When surrounded with peering faces, the snake obligingly waggles his tongue and shakes his tail, giving his exhibitor a chance to point out the fangs and their danger.

"People around here see quite a few snakes," Kramer notes. But incidents of bites are not common. The best prevention is a little extra caution in snake country. Though I never carry a snake bite kit with me when I go out after rattlers, I have a lot of respect for those fangs. Sometimes a rattler will strike at my hoe, and I'll egg him on a bit. It seems that three strikes and they are out. At least, I have yet to see one hit four times, running. It's been my experience that a rattler can't strike more than 15 inches or so. They don't have to be coiled to strike, but they operate best from that position. A little "S" is enough for a strike."

One snake can furnish a lot of jewelry, so Kramer never lacks for materials. He has a number of dried hides and a big box chock-full of rattles on hand all year. A hatband or belt takes a big hunk of hide, so the hunter-craftsman does not make a great number of these. The process is fairly simple; the hide is stretched on a form, held in place with clothespins and left to set.

Proof of the durability of the products turned out in the basement shop lies in the articles Kramer and his wife have worn and used for years. Much of the money the accessories bring in goes toward more casting plastic, and the thousand odd screws and clips used in mounting the jewelry. Though the market for the results of Kramer's efforts is small, it is a demanding one. Whatever it is that brings a man out with snake collecting gear in hand must be contagious. Perhaps it is in the beauty of the geometric hide patterns, or maybe it is the lure of something different; a bit of nature trapped in plastic. THE END

STONES OF TIME

Nebraska monuments, ornate or simple, mirror joys and sorrows of state's past. They recall rise from unclaimed wilderness

MAN IS A paradox. He often derides his past and yet harbors a burning desire to immortalize it. Nebraskans are no exceptions. From Omaha to Scottsbluff, from Brownville to Crawford, stone and wooden markers dot the landscape, proclaiming the names and deeds of those who have passed that way. Some markers are ornate, others simple, yet regardless of their design they are a vital part of Nebraska's past and present.

Our monuments vary in size and location. Some are large and prominently located. Others are small and grace out-of-the-way places that challenge natives and tourists alike to find them. But no matter what their size or where they are, Nebraska's monu- ments add a colorful page to the state's history.

This method of preserving the past is the responsibility of many organizations. The State of Nebraska, State Historical Society, Nebraska Game Commission, and the Daughters of the American Revolution are among the most active in these various projects. Federal and local governments as well as many civic organizations also contribute time and money to the effort.

The campaign to inform the public and preserve Nebraska's past has brought about many inspiring monuments. Among the best known are Massacre Canyon Monument, located three miles east of Trenton in southwest Nebraska, and the Mormon Monument in Omaha.

A towering 35-foot obelisk of pink granite, Massacre Canyon Monument overlooks the site of the state's last great Indian battle. In 1873, a Pawnee hunting party, under government supervision, was badly defeated by the Sioux war party that though the Pawnees were trespassing on their hunting grounds. Retreating Pawnee ran across a scouting expedition from Fort McPherson, but by the time the troopers arrived, the Sioux were gone. The battle broke the Pawnee's spirit, and they never recovered. Congress appropriated funds for construction of the monument in 1930.

30  

Nebraska's early days were filled with death and hardship. Life on the plains was often so rugged that death was almost a blessing. Nearly 600 pioneers lie in Omaha's Pioneer Mormon Cemetery at State Street and North Ridge Drive. Here a huge bronze statue watches over them. Cast by Arvard Fairbanks, the statue depicts a mourning mother and father standing over their child's fresh grave. Honoring the nearly 6,000 pioneers who perished on the Plains between 1846-1869, the monument was dedicated in 1936.

Though sorrow often haunted the early pioneers, many of their triumphs are also preserved in bronze and stone. Even Indians, who often plagued the settlers, are honored in Nebraska. Among the most prominent monuments commemorating these first inhabitants are Logan Fontenelle markers and Fort Robinson's tribute to Crazy Horse.

Located at the corner of Svoboda Road and Bellevue Boulevard in Sarpy County, a monument to Logan Fontenelle recalls the gallant stand he made for his Omaha people. Through his efforts, a lasting bond between Nebraska's white settlers and the Omaha Indians was forged. This particular monument, which is just one among many, is constructed of stones taken from the foundation of the chief's home.

Long feared and respected for his fight to preserve his people's native land, Crazy Horse, Oglala Sioux War Chief, is immortalized at Fort Robinson near Crawford. A pyramid-shaped monument stands on the fort's parade ground where the knife-armed chief fell before a trooper's bayonet in 1877.

Man's conquests and triumphs are an integral part of Nebraska's monuments, too. His insatiable desire to conquer the mysteries of a vast continent are depicted in markers tracing the routes of the Oregon and Mormon trails, the Pony Express, and the transcontinental Union 32 NEBRASKAland Pacific Railroad. All were vital links between east and west.

Thousands of white-topped Conestogas rolled across the jump-off points and forged new trails across Nebraska into the trackless West. Their heavily-laden wheels cut ruts into the state's virgin soil which remain today. In order that this memory will be preserved long after the ruts are gone, markers trace the trails across the state. One of the most scenic of these monument sites is at Ash Hollow near Lewellen. Here the rugged terrain forced Oregon Trail immigrants to lower their wagons over steep canyon walls. Many found the trek too grueling at this point and stayed forever to make Ash Hollow Cemetery one of the oldest in the state. Others found the valley a good camp site because of its ample forage and water. Located on U. S. Highway 26, a stone monument marks this site.

Another of the most interesting markers along the Oregon Trail is at the point joining Gage and Jefferson counties and the Kansas-Nebraska line. A three-faced stone monument marks the spot where travelers on the southern route entered Nebraska. Unique because of its position alone, the stone was set in 1913.

In time the pioneer's plodding oxen gave way to speeding Pony Express ponies. In its short life, the Pony Express blazed a page into Nebraska's history that will remain forever. Markers near Big Springs in Deuel County, 15 miles southeast of Lexington in Phelps JUNE, 1966 33   County, and 3 miles west of Scottsbluff in Scotts Bluff County, to name but a few, pay homage to the men and boys who risked their lives to bring a new mode of communication to the Plains.

The growing Union Pacific Railroad soon pushed its way across the continent to replace the stately Conestogas. With its arrival, Nebraskans began erecting monuments to record its progress and later its misfortunes. A plaque on the south wall of the Union Station in Omaha tells the story of the U. P. from beginning to end in a minimum of words. Of course, a few of the details were deleted.

Dawson County also boasts a monument to the railroad, though its subject is more on the grim side. A marker three miles east of Lexington on U. S. Highway 30 recalls an attack on the "great iron horse" by a band of rampaging Cheyenne. In 1867, Chief Turkey Leg and a party of braves wrecked a west-bound U. P. freight train and hand car. The engineer and fireman were killed and the train looted and burned. One of the hand car's crew was killed, another wounded, and the third scalped alive. The incident became one of the most controversial of the day. A granite boulder was later donated by the railroad and the monument was erected by a Lexington chapter of the Daughters of American Revolution in 1940.

There is little that won't stir man's imagination when it comes to monuments. His military prowess ranks high on the list. During the early days of Nebraska's frontier military posts sprang up across the state. Forts like Sidney, Kearny, Omaha, Robinson, and McPherson stood between the terrors of the Plains and the fringes of civilization. Many of these posts disappeared as peace crept across the prairies, but some remained to shelter later soldiers. Today at Fort Sidney the powder magazine remains while restoration of other buildings is under way. A stone and bronze marker on U. S. Highway 30 recalls an untamed frontier. Fort Omaha, on the other hand, is still an active military installation. Nebraska has always sent its sons and daughters to this nation's wars. Nearly every city and village in the state displays memorial monuments to their veterans.

As a vital part of a vast republic, Nebraska keeps a close record of its political development from unclaimed wilderness to a powerful state. An engraved plaque at 20th and Dodge Streets in Omaha marks the site where the first Nebraska State Constitution was signed. Another marker at 21st Street and Capitol Avenue in the same city identifies the location of the first Territorial Capitol.

Our monuments, be they ornate or austere, tell the story of NEBRASKAland. They are permanent milestones on the long and sometimes joyful, sometimes sorrowful road that brought this state from unclaimed wilderness to present-day greatness. Some are obscure and require diligent searching to find while others are well known. But, all are equally important. In their faces is mirrored the saga of America. THE END

34 NEBRASKAland

A SAND HILLS VACATION

Fishing family from Omaha goes where the scenery is by Dennis Galyardt

Our travel trailer makes settting up camp a snap, but chores come first THREE TIMES the silvery rainbow trout thrashed the surface of Merritt Reservoir, trying to free the hook that was buried in his jaw. In a fury of foam he landed flat-sided in the choppy water and was off on another burning run. Slowly the pumping action of my 5 1/2-foot ultra-light spinning rod sapped his strength and I readied my landing net in the water. With a quick swoop the battle was over and a fat 14-incher lay flopping on the sloping face of Merritt Dam.

"That makes my seven", I shouted to my father who had just finished out his limit with a 16 1/2-incher

"Yup", he yelled back over the roar of the wind, "the fun is over for today."

"Yes, but we still have six days to go," I answered. Our annual NEBRASKAland fishing vacation had commenced almost six months earlier when I received a letter from the Nebraska Game Commission. I had written for information about the fishing and camping facilities in the Sand Hills' region around Valentine. A prompt reply told me all I needed to know. I learned that the Sand Hills have great concentrations of fish at the Valentine National Migratory Waterfowl Refuge and at the new Merritt Reservoir. Camping is easy because state-owned camping areas are close by. Armed with this information our family decided that come the middle of June 1965 we would start our trip toward the Sand Hills.

These trips have been a yearly ritual with my parents and myself for the past several years. Since fishing 36 NEBRASKAland is our big major pastime we would rather spend our annual vacation going after the finny fighters than anything else. We love sight-seeing in Nebraska and fishing, too, so we try to find a good spot to fish and have plenty of scenery at the same time. For many years the Sand Hills have been our goal and this was the year for it. Since two weeks were available, we decided to spend the first week on the Refuge lakes and the second at Merritt Reservoir.

Eventually vacation time came and we rolled out of Omaha dragging our 15-foot travel trailer. In no time at all we covered the slightly more than 300 miles to the Valentine Refuge and set up camp in the State Area on Big Alkali Lake. Camping, boating, and swimming were the major sports on this lake since fishing was not too good pending a renovation job. But we didn't worry about the lack of fish in Big Alkali, for there were plenty in the Refuge lakes located only a few miles away.

For the next week we fished in these shallow, reed-filled lakes and caught all the bass, pike, and bluegill we could eat. These fertile lakes are natural spawning grounds for warm-water fish and provide excellent angling throughout the year.

Our fish were not spectacularly big but they were plentiful and always willing to strike a well-placed teaser. Pike are the most popular fish in these natural lakes because of their free strikes and riotous fighting ability. The average size we hooked was about 2% pounds, but 4 and 5-pounders are plentiful and a fisherman from Kearney landed an 11-pound whopper while we were there. Bass often hit the three-pound mark and bluegill come in profusion. Because of the reeds and moss in these lakes boats or chest waders are almost necessities. We took only hip boots and in many places these were not sufficient. Rental boats are available at the concession on Big Alkali, however.

We found weedless spoons, shallow-running plugs, and spinners, fished along the edge of the weeds, the best for these lakes. Bait minnows are out, but worms and crayfish bring many hits. No matter what type of fish-getter we used it would bring in fish.

After battling the warm-water species for a week in those bountiful lakes we wanted to try the trout of Merritt Reservoir and the Snake River. Soon we were rolling towards the big lake.

On the way from the Refuge lakes to Valentine we noticed that the hills were gradually leveling out and forming the deep, rugged valley of the Niobrara River. Suddenly the pine-studded bluffs were in view, a pleasant and inspiring sight after the treeless roll of the Sand Hills. This area along the river is probably one of the most scenic areas in Nebraska and it is worth the trip to see it.

After gassing up and getting some of the latest fishing news at a service station along U. S. Highway 20 we hit the road again for Merritt Reservoir. For 27 miles the new blacktop wound its way across the rich pastureland to the impounded Snake River. After about 45 minutes of driving we spotted the earthen dam and pulled into a pleasant camp site. I could hardly restrain my urge to cast into the trout-packed waters for long enough to put the jacks under the trailer.

Merritt Reservoir is an irrigation project of the U. S. Bureau of Reclamation on the Snake River, southwest of Valentine. The 2,800-acre reservoir was completed in 1963 and after renovation of the lake and stream, trout were stocked. Three hundred thousand rainbow trout between four and six inches long were released in the initial stocking. The abundant (Continued on page 50)

WALLEYE OBSTRETRICS

Fish technicians become midwives to give gamesters a population boost by Bob Thomas Section Chief, Fishery Management

FISHERMEN AND walleyes have always gotten along famously. A fine food fish and as scrappy as they come, this toothy predator of the lakes and rivers is right up there on the angler's list of favorites. In fact, most Nebraska fishermen want more of him so the Game Commission is doing all it can to stock the walleye in suitable natural lakes and artificial impoundments. This match up of walleye and water isn't as simple as it seems for there is a lot more to it than just dumping fish in a lake and letting nature take its course.

This fascinating operation by the Nebraska Fishery Division starts early in the spring and centers around the spawn taking, hatching, rearing, and subsequent stocking of walleye. The natural spawning period for walleye in Nebraska waters extends from late March into April. It varies with the location and water temperature NEBRASKAland but the spawning activities and type of areas used are generally similar.

Sexually mature walleye congregate in large numbers near the spawning site as the time approaches, with the actual spawning occurring in the early evening till near midnight. Spawning activities in a particular lake will usually extend over a period of three to four weeks with the peak of activity occurring sometime in the middle of this period. Spawning takes place along rocky shoreline areas in relatively shallow waters. The eggs are scattered randomly by the female and fertilized by the males. Actively spawning females are in a "ripe" condition. "Ripe" means that eggs flow freely from the female when light pressure is applied to her abdomen. For successful artificial spawn taking operations, ripe females and males must be captured by the field crew.

Capturing of ripe fish is accomplished by setting frame trap nets in the spawning area. These nets are usually set each day in late afternoon and lifted the following morning. At Lake McConaughy, where most spawners are taken, nets are set along the rocky face of the dam. In the morning the nets are lifted and the fish are removed. These fish are transported by boat to a spawning barge and placed in holding nets which are attached to the bigger craft. When all of the fish from the night's catch are moved to the barge, the artificial egg taking and fertilizing techniques are carried out.

Eggs are stripped from the female into a pan which has been rinsed with water. Sperm is stripped from male fish and mixed with the eggs. All fish are returned to the lake as soon as they are stripped. When a pan is about % to % full, a little water is added and the eggs allowed to set for a few minutes. A mixture of very fine clay and water, called muck, is then mixed thoroughly with the eggs which are kept in the mixture for 5 to 10 minutes. The muck keeps the eggs from sticking together. Walleye eggs are very adhesive and very delicate until they are "water hardened". After the egg is fertilized, the water hardening process starts JUNE, 1966 39   and results from water moving into the egg through the shell until the egg itself becomes quite firm. Eggs lose their adhesiveness when they are water hardened. The muck prevents sticking during this hardening process.

When the eggs in the muck solution have become quite firm, they are transferred to a washing basket. In the washing basket the muck is washed from the eggs by swishing the basket gently back and forth in the lake. The eggs are then placed in tubs.

When spawn taking is complete for the day, the tubs of eggs are moved to the truck where they are siphoned into a tank. From here the eggs are transported to the North Platte hatchery, where they are siphoned into hatching jars and placed on the hatching battery. About two quarts of eggs are placed in each jar. There are approximately 125,000 eggs per quart.

A total of 15 to 20 million eggs are usually taken each year. About 130 to 200 ripe females are stripped to obtain this number..This is only a very small percentage of the walleye in Lake McConaughy so there is no danger of curtailing natural production.

Hatching jars are designed so that water is introduced through a tube at the top and released at the bottom with overflow occurring through a spout at the top of the jar. Regulating the water flow keeps the eggs in gentle motion. Eggs at the North Platte hatchery are normally hatched in about 10 to 14 days.

The newly hatched fry swim actively and in the process go out through the spout at the top of the jar into the holding tank below. Fry are collected from the holding tank and stocked in one acre rearing ponds at the rate of 90,000 to 100,000 per pond. The rearing ponds are fertilized with an inorganic fertilizer to stimulate the growth of tiny crustaceans upon which the fry feed.

Ponds are drained when the young walleye are about 1 1/4 inches long. The fish usually reach this size in about 30 to 35 days. This size walleye can be reared 40 NEBRASKAland in relatively large numbers and can be stocked successfully in new lakes and reservoirs and in other suitable waters where undesirable fish populations have been removed with rotenone. When stocked in these situations, good fishing usually results from the initial stocking. Among new waters to get walleyes in 1966 are recently renovated Box Butte Reservoir north of Hemingford and two of the newer Salt Valley impoundments near Lincoln. If the habitat is favorable the fishery in succeeding years will usually be maintained by natural reproduction. Studies from past years have shown that when the iy4 inch walleye is stocked into a lake containing an old established fish population, little or no improvement in fishing can be expected. Walleyes are tolerant of water temperatures but the lakes and reservoirs must be reasonably clear and free of pollution.

At the present time, the stocking of larger fingerling walleye from 4 to 6 inches in length is being evaluated. Production of this size walleye is also carried out at the North Platte hatchery. To produce these larger fish the small fingerling walleye are restocked in rearing ponds at rates of 2,000 to 10,000 per acre and held in the ponds for approximately 90 days longer. The lower stocking rates are necessary in order to stay within the carrying capacity of the pond.

The results of stocking larger fingerling walleye will not be known for several years, since the stockings in selected waters are scheduled for three successive years. A minimum of three years following each stocking is needed for sampling and evaluation.

Walleye are sort of half and half Nebraskans. They did occupy certain streams and rivers in the early days but were absent from the- lakes until they were introduced back in the 1930's and 40's. After man gave them an assist, they lost no time in reproducing. Anglers aren't sorry about the success. THE END

RAINBOW TROUT

Brilliant color of this wily creature pays zenith tribute to arc in sky. For sport he's tops NOTES ON NEBRASKA FAUNA.. . by Bill Schoeftecker District Fisheries Supervisor

SHIMMERING IN the sun, the dry fly drifts gently downstream toward the fisherman. As the gaudy bit of tinsel and feather draws closer, the hip-booted angler gathers in slackening line, ready to set the hook should fate smile. There is a sudden eruption of water and the line goes taut. A silvery flash arcs through the air and the battle is on. An experienced fisherman knows he must keep the line tight and rod ready for he is matching skill and tackle with the sportiest trout of them all—the flashing rainbow.

This spring, similar tableaus will be staged hundreds of times in NEBRASKAland for rainbow trout have provided fishing thrills here since first being brought in from California about 1885.

Initially, it was thought there were many different varieties and species of rainbow but study has lumped them all together into one genus and species, Salmo gairdneri. Hence the rainbow, the ocean-run steelhead, and the Kamloop are all referred to as rainbow trout.

Originally the rainbow was confined to the Pacific Coast streams but about 1880 they were transplanted to different sections of the country. They are a favorite hatchery fish due to their ease of handling, rapid growth and popular acceptance. Wide transplanting and mixing in hatcheries has largely done away with the original races.

Three genera make up the family Salmonidae. There are the salmon, Oncorhynchus; chars, Salvelinus; and trout, Salmo. There is a wide variety of salmon. Chars include brook, lake, and Dolly Varden. The trout include rainbow, brown, cutthroat, and golden. In Nebraska rainbow, brook, and brown trout are present.

The rainbow's color varies widely with his surroundings, but typically it is olive to greenish-blue above with silvery belly. A pinkish lateral band running the length of the fish and extending over the gill covers and cheeks gave the rainbow his name. There is a wide variation in spotting with some individuals being profusely marked with small black spots on the sides, back, dorsal, and caudal fins. On others the spotting is sparse along the sides and is absent from the white underbody. As spawning time approaches, the rainbow becomes darker with the male developing a hooked lower jaw and a more pronounced pinkish band.

Rainbow can be distinguished from brown and brook trout by coloration. The brown usually has a more brownish or yellowish tinge. Relatively large spots are brown to black and only slightly developed on the 42 NEBRASKAland caudal fin. There are a few red spots on the side often surrounded with blue.

The brook is dark olive to almost black on the back. There are no spots but wavy lines of lighter color give him a marbled appearance. Red spots with blue borders are present on the sides, and the forward edge of the ventral fins have white margins. Observations are that the rainbow travels further than either the brook or brown trout to spawn. Generally the rainbow spawns in the Spring. When ready to spawn the female will build the nest or redd in a gravel riffle of a stream, at the end of a pool, or in an area that will be free of silt. She makes a depression by turning on her side and using powerful thrusts of her tail to fan the bottom. It may take four hours or more to construct the nest. The size is governed by the size of the female and range from a few inches to as much as a foot in depth and up to four or five feet in width.

The male lingers nearby, chasing away intruders, occasionally giving the female a courting nudge. When the nest is completed the pair of trout lie in it depositing the female's eggs and the male's milt simultaneously. The eggs, being heavier than water, sink to the bottom. The female then moves upstream where she commences digging another depression which results in covering the eggs below. One female may build several nests before completing spawning and pair off with different males during that time. The number of eggs varies with the size of the female but will range from a few hundred to as many as 5,000.

The percentage of eggs fertilized is quite high but the fry are faced with many hazards from hatching to maturity. Hatching period depends on water temperature but at 52° eggs will hatch in about 28 days. After hatching the fry remain in the gravel until the yolk sack is absorbed. They then work their way up through the gravel, but remain close to the bottom until strong enough to move to quiet areas of the stream.

Small trout feed on minute aquatic insects and as the trout grow the type of food changes to include larger insects, worms, and minnows. The rainbow typically is an insect feeder but larger rainbow shift back and forth from fish to insects depending on availability. Best growth and survival of trout is found where they exist with no competition from other species.

Of all the imported fish introduced in Nebraska the rainbow has perhaps been the most popular with anglers, winning a special place in their hearts for his fighting spirit and excellent table qualities. THE END

THE TOOTH'S THE THING

Read this treatise on teeth and you'll agree that the wolf gave Red Riding Hood the right dope by Harvey L. Gunderson Curator of Mammalogy, University of Nebraska

A HYPODERMIC needle, a stiletto, and a mortar and pestle may sound like the tools of a shady character, and they could be. They can also be teeth. If this sounds farfetched, just remember that teeth serve all these functions and many more besides.

Teeth of some kind are found in most of the back-boned animals. Those lacking true teeth, have reasonable facsimiles. For instance the eel-like lamprey has horny tubercles, some frogs and toads may have bony projections on their lower jaws, while others have true teeth, and turtles have serrations on their beaks which serve the same purpose.

True teeth are separate structures, and not a part of a bone. The outer layer of a tooth is enamel. It is the very hardest tissue in the mammalian body but not all teeth have it. The armadillo, a southern mammal who is barely getting far enough north to reach Nebraska, has no enamel on his teeth. Enamel is nearly all inorganic material and contains no living matter. The tooth covering below the gum line is called cement, and in some plant-eating mammals it can cover the whole tooth.

Underneath the enamel is a thicker layer of bone-like material, the dentine, which contains about the same proportion of inorganic and organic matter as does bone. The dentine also contains living material and thus registers pain. Those who have had dental work done know this only too well. The central and living part of the tooth is the pulp. It contains connective tissue, blood vessels, and nerves. In older teeth it is usually pinched off as growth ceases. Such teeth are called rooted. In rootless teeth, which continue growing while the animal is living, this pulp is never pinched off.

Primitive teeth were conical, but extensive modification has taken place through the ages. Most modifications are reflections of the owners' diets, with the exception of highly specialized teeth such as the fangs, the hypodermic needles, of the rattlesnakes. Crushing types of teeth are found in some sharks and reptiles; grinding types, the mortar and pestle, are found in some mammals; the slashing types, stilettos, called canines are present in some reptiles and many mammals, and the shearing teeth called carnasials are present in the carnivores or meat eaters.

Through the ages there have been three ways in which teeth have been anchored to the jaws but none of them ever included a well-advertised solution for slipping dentures. The most primitive anchorage was along the inside of the jaw, as in the present-day shark, which has a series of replacement teeth. Fossil shark teeth are often found in Nebraska quarries.

Two other anchorages have developed from the primitive type. In the acrodont type, the teeth are attached at the crest of the jawbone as in snakes and some fish. The thecodont type, where the roots, often multiple, are attached in sockets, is well represented by human teeth.

Frequency of replacement teeth vary from many, as with shark, to only two sets, as in mammals. The first set in mammals is called deciduous or milk teeth. The second set is the permanent or adult set. This reduction in number of replacements is a trend clearly illustrated in mammals, some of which have no teeth. In humans the last molar or wisdom tooth often fails to erupt.

All deciduous teeth possess a root and crown as do adult teeth. However, the root of the deciduous tooth is gradually resorbed leaving little more than the crown when it is shed. Sometimes, as in some of the rodents, the milk teeth are already resorbed before birth and the first set to appear after birth is permanent. For example, moles have only one set of teeth.

Occurrence of several kinds of teeth in the same individual is called heterodonty and reaches its extreme in mammals. The several kinds of teeth are named, from front to rear, incisors, canines, premolars, and molars. The last two are sometimes lumped together and called cheek teeth.

These four types in mammals are easy to tell apart except for the cheek teeth. The canines or "fangs" in blood-and-thunder stories are single in each jaw, pointed, have a single root, and usually project above the level or the adjacent root. Incisors are usually smaller, are flattened front to back, and also have a single root. The cheek teeth are easy to distinguish in some species, difficult in others. Shape is a poor criterion, as is the number of roots. The only characteristic that always distin- guishes them, and this is not a sight difference, is that premolars are molted once, molars never. The number of teeth is expressed as a formula in fraction form, the numerator representing one side only of the upper jaw, the denominator one side only of the lower jaw.

For humans this would be 2/2, 1/1, 2/2, 3/3 x 2 or 32. For a rabbit it is 2/1, 0/0, 3/3, 3/3 x 2 or 28. The 0/0 shows that the rabbit has no canines. The cheek teeth of mammals are often classified as to function and given names. The primitive molar crown pattern was called tubercular, and low-crowned, brachydont. The sectorial type of cheek tooth is a modification for cutting. This modification is found in the cheek teeth of cats, whether it be a pet tabby or the bobcat roaming the Pine Ridge area of western Nebraska.

Mammals who eat a great variety of food are called omnivorous. For this kind of a diet the teeth are both brachydont, low-crowned, and bunodont, that is, square in shape with low, rounded cusps for crushing. This is the mortar and pestle kind. Good examples of this are human teeth, as well as, of all things, those of pigs.

With the great variety and variations of teeth, what about the animals who use them? Among fish, teeth are found on the jaws and on several other bones in the mouths of the northern pike, walleye, catfish, and sunfish. The suckers and minnows including the carp, which belongs to the minnow family, have soft mouth parts. Their teeth are found farther back, on the fifth gill arch in the throat. These are called "pharyngeal teeth", and in minnows are so small a hand lens is (Continued on page 51)

BAITING BAITS

Ins and outs of hooking know-how will help any angler get point across

ANGLING PURIST! Read no further. This isn't for you. Stick to your artificial lures and good luck. Bait fishermen, pull up a minnow bucket and give a listen for this will interest you. Consider if you will the many and varied ways of attaching fresh meat or in the case of catfish and bullheads not so fresh meat to a hook for the subsequent enticement of a fish.

Queen of the live bait plenitudes is the minnow. But, there are minnows and minnows. Some of them are mere slivers with eyes, others are husky chubs, big enough to gag a starving northern. Which size to use depends upon where you fish, the size of the anticipated catch, water conditions, and a lot of other pros and cons. How the impaled minnow acts on the hook depends to a certain extent on what part of his anatomy gets stuck. Inserting the barb under the dorsal fin or through the tail are popular and effective methods for still fishing. The minnow will live for a long time and do an underwater ballet that bigger fish can't resist. Some anglers prefer to hook a minnow through both eyes.

Some bass fishermen like to cast their minnows out and retrieve them like an artificial lure with a slow reel in. It works well, especially with a spinning outfit. Actually, the fisherman and his reel are imparting the action to the bait. For this type of casting and trolling, too, the minnow should be attached parallel to the line. One way to do this is with a long shank hook threaded through the mouth and gills of the minnow without piercing him. The barb is then pushed through the tail so the minnow is stretched along the hook. The bait fish will have a slight bend in him which creates a tempting spinning action when he is drawn through the water. One of the simplest methods of hooking a minnow is through the head. Hook him and start casting.

An assortment of minnow harnesses is available for those who insist on having the minnow positioned in a straight line. Some rigs employ wire ties, others use a rigid wire which penetrates the minnow from mouth to vent. A little collar is provided to hold the bait's head in position.

Equal to the minnow in popularity is the worm, traditional favorite of the bait fisherman since the days of the barefoot boy and his willow pole. Worms range all the way from nightcrawlers that are almost as big as young garter snakes to the familiar garden hackle. Even smaller are the squirming red worms. Many a catfish and bullhead has fallen for a wad of these wriggling creatures cleverly draped around a hook. Impaled through the collar, an earthworm is hard to beat for fast water trout, while usually cagey bass are often pushovers for a nightcrawler hooked the same way. Bluegill and sunfish love worms but they have to be securely hooked for these half-pint brawlers are expert pilferers. Some   fly fishermen have been known to sweeten their feathery offerings with just a pinch of worm over the barb.

BAITING BAITS continued

Some worm dunkers use two hooks, one penetrating the worm's collar, the other pinned through farther back. This tandem set up is well adapted for nightcrawlers and the larger earthworms. A rig like this permits the bait to stretch and wriggle its whole length. Plastic worms and eels are a natural for this outfit. Commercial jobs are available which are adjustable for any size crawler.

Frogs rate a variety of patented gear. Most of these allow the croaker to kick at will without the soon fatal discomfort of a hook through his innards. Lacking one of these elaborate rigs, the angler can have right good luck by hooking the frog through both lips and giving him a heave into the drink. Bobber dunkers often hook a frog through the leg or back.

Moving on to less appetizing baits, from the human standpoint only, are such unusual baits as crawdads, cockroaches, crickets, grasshoppers, hellgrammites, various kinds of grubs, and that old standby of the catfisherman, chicken guts.

Crayfish or crawdads, sometimes called "crabs", are excellent tidbits for a good many different kinds of fish but bass seem to find them irresistible. Most anglers hook the crawdad through the tail or back. Some even remove the back shell from the bait while others harvest soft shells before they head for the bass ponds. A strand of fine wire or thread can be used to bind the crawdad to the hook.

To hook cockroaches or other beetle-like insects, impale them through the tough wing coverings over the back. Casting calls for finesse since these "bugs" can be easily snapped off the hook. Crickets and grasshoppers should be hooked behind the head and arranged on the hook to look as natural as possible. A hellgrammite is another segmented critter that should be hooked in the same manner. Grubs should be threaded on the hook. They are excellent ice fishing come-ons. Some anglers believe the greatest bluegill and crappie bait in the world is a catalpa worm turned inside out. In addition to fishing skill, these anglers have strong stomachs. Catalpa 48 worms can be purchased through bait supply houses or harvested from Catalpa trees in May.

Not all baits are live and wriggling. Many ice fishermen swear by the eye of a perch. For best results jig the orb up and down. Since perch are school fish, once they start hitting the supply of eyes can be limitless. A strip from the belly of a perch is also a good attractor. Cut it roughly in the shape of a minnow but make sure that such a bait is legal. Some states restrict the use of fish or any part of them as bait.

Salmon eggs are an old favorite of trout fishermen. Some anglers impale them on a specially curved hook and fish them singly. Others string them on a bait-saver hook and await developments. Hunters for big trout often make a bag of eggs or a "strawberry" by wrapping several eggs in a nylon or mesh sack. This can be tied on the hook or held on by threading the bag on the hook and concealing the barb inside the mesh. In the fall and winter, many Nebraska fishermen go after big rainbows in the tributary streams of the Platte River in western Nebraska by catching a roe-laden female, removing the eggs and wrapping them in a small nylon swatch tied into a sack. Salmon eggs of various colors as well as egg clusters can be bought at bait and tackle shops. Even plastic replicas of salmon eggs can be used to good advantage.

Dough balls are often used for bullheads, carp, and catfish. If the dough ball is firm enough, it will stay on a single hook surprisingly well but a small treble hook is better. A specially made hook with a spring coiled around the shank is probably the best of all for holding this bait in relatively swift water.

Chicken guts are about at the bottom of the list as far as human tolerance goes, but catfish consider them a dining delight. Suspending a section on a hook is easy. Start with a single hook, thread it through a foot of entrail taking care not to pierce the side walls of the gut. Tie a sinker about six inches above the top of the entrail, and put a half hitch in the whole shebang. This deadly catfish lure whips around the water and trails a stream of enticing odors. Fished around snags and other fishy hideouts, these innards of a chicken often tempt big channel cats when all other lures fail.

A successful catfisherman can't be squeamish about his baits, so some real doozies have been dreamed up. Some of these semi-fluid stinkers can gag a maggot, but they will catch fish. Since many of them can't be fastened to a hook, ingenious anglers cut sponges into little squares and swish them around in the concoctions. The pores of the sponge soak up the dope and after the square is fastened to the steel, emit a slick that tickles the taste buds of catfish and bullheads. Chicken or beef blood, mixed with a binding compound like flour or cornmeal, are common ingredients of these bizarre fish getters that often work surprisingly well.

Chunks of soap, green peas, and canned whole kernel corn are other items on the endless list of catfish baits. Corn strung on a hook is also a fine carp getter. Such softies whip free easily, so cast them with care.

Baits are matters of preference, but basically all of them have one thing in common. They will take fish, and in the final analysis that's the only reason why most of us go fishing. There are certain species like largemouth bass, northern pike, and white bass that take artificials better but over the long haul, the angler who knows how to use bait and presents it in a half-way effective manner will catch his rightful share of keepers. Fortunately in Nebraska, there's more than enough fish to keep both baiter and purist happy. THE END

JUNE, 1966 49  

CRACKLES FOR GRACKLES

(continued from page 17)

example, has a shorter tail than the grackle. Males have white or gray eyes, and females have gray plumage. Male red-winged blackbirds sport red shoulders, and females are brownish with horizontal stripes. Cowbirds are, distinguishable by their short bills and in the case of males, brown heads. Yellow-headed blackbirds have the characteristic yellow markings for both sexes. Binoculars will be a real help for the novice who has trouble distinguishing these birds from bronzed grackles or starlings.

A flock of bronzed grackles and starlings not only disturbs the peace, but the birds can damage trees by breaking the branches through sheer weight of numbers. Droppings blanket the ground and any houses or equipment in the area when the bird concentration is heavy. Crop depredation is often serious. Persons who want to pitch some shot at the pests should keep in mind the federal regulation stipulating that the flock must be creating a real problem before they can be shot. Before heading out on a hunt, be sure you have official approval. A big bunch of these birds can be a certifiable, 100 per cent nuisance. Just ask Frank Reed. THE END

SAND HILLS VACATION

(continued from page 37)

food supply of the flooded grassland pushed these youngsters up to the 14 to 16-inch class in a little over a year. The .waters were opened to public fishing in January, 1965.

Our first day on the new lake was spent exploring the waters and gathering information on the best spots to fish. Along toward evening my father and I decided to try the face of the dam. Only a few anglers were fishing along the dam and their luck was zero so it looked like a challenging situation.

Mosquitoes hummed near my ears as I strung the four-pound-test line through the guides of my limber spinning rod. As I rigged up, a trout dimpled the calm surface of the lake. I hung a fat nightcrawler on my No. 10 hook. In about a half an hour a couple of pink-fleshed trout were flopping in the creel. They were enough for a meal so we called it a night and went back to camp.

The next morning brought a change in the weather as low, winter-like clouds blotted out the sun and an east wind whipped across the lake. This seemed to be a signal for the trout to begin feeding as never before. Two hours after my father and I started our fishing on the dam, using tiny crayfish and juicy nightcrawlers, we had our limits of seven trout each. The 14 fish weighed a little over 14 pounds.

When we returned to our camp with our catch my mother, who rarely fishes, immediately wanted a license of her own. This called for another trip to town, but it was a pleasure to drive that beautiful route again.

With plenty of fresh trout to eat daily we fished mainly on a catch and release basis for the remaining time. Using artificial lures of the spinner type, we were able to have the sport of playing a fish and the satisfaction of releasing him to fight again another day. We saved 21 trout and had them frozen at Valentine for our trip home. They provided several fine meals and some pleasant memories long after our two week's vacation was over.

Ours was not the only action on the big lake, for limit catches were brought in daily. But those who fished for the trout with bullhead techniques seldom scored. Light line, small terminal tackle, and a good deal of knowledge about trout habits made it a simple matter to limit out. The fish we hooked in the lake averaged 14 inches, with many going up to 16 1/2 inches. The biggest we landed was a silvery beauty of 17 1/2 inches.

For the angler who enjoys wading swift, icy trout streams, the Snake River is hard to beat. It is a perfect fly-fishing water with long riffles, deep pools, and enough over-hanging trees to block a careless cast. The average size is about 10 inches, but what the fish lack in size they make up in numbers. I caught and released more than 25 lip-hooked trout in one afternoon. I seldom touched the fish, letting them release themselves.

Wet flies, nymphs, and streamers produced the most fish but all of them had to be fished with a long leader because of the clear water. Live bait did not do well in the river and it was just as well for a fish hooked deep in his gullet seldom lives after being released.

Fishing is not the only attraction in the Valentine area. For the nature lover there are wild birds and ducks galore, antelope, deer, jackrabbits, and a large assortment of reptiles just a few steps off the highway. The Snake River Falls, Fort Niobrara National Wildlife Refuge and a nearby Indian reservation helped to make our two weeks one of the most scenic, enjoyable, and relaxing NEBRASKAland vacations our family has ever spent. THE END

THE TOOTH'S THE THING

(continued from page 45)

needed to see them. In a large carp these teeth are almost as large as man's. The hardness of teeth preserves them for long periods of time, sometimes millions of years. Often the pharyngeal teeth of carp are picked up along a lake shore. These can be a puzzler, for the teeth certainly resemble teeth, but the bone in which they are embedded does not look like the jawbone of any mammal.

Present day turtles lack true teeth. There are several lizards, none of them JUNE, 1966 51   Poisonous in Nebraska, and these usually have many teeth. The horned toad, found in the western fifth of the state, is not an amphibian, but a lizard.

Snakes also have teeth. Most dramatic of these are the fangs of rattlesnakes and vipers. The fangs are hollow and connected to a poison gland. It was once believed that the snake clamped both jaws on his prey and squeezed the poison out. While this may be a part of the action, high-speed electronic photographs show that the fangs extend forward rather than down, and the action more like the quick jab of a hypodermic needle. There are three kinds of rattlesnakes in Nebraska —the prairie rattler, the timber rattler, and the massasauga — and one viper, the copperhead.

As far as birds are concerned "scarce as hen's teeth" give a good clue. Although some fossil birds had teeth, none of the modern ones do, at least as adults. Some do have teeth in the embryonic stage.

Since teeth are such a prominent part of mammalian anatomy, it is reasonable to assume that all mammals have them. But there are always exceptions. The duck-billed platypus, spiny anteater, and some other mammals do not have teeth. In Nebraska, however, there are no mammals without teeth. As a matter of fact one species found in Nebraska, the opossum, has a great many, 50 in all. The opossum is omnivorous, eating almost anything and everything. The shrews, bats, and moles all have the four kinds of teeth that mammals usually have. But not the hares, rabbits, and rodents. They have only three kinds. The canines are missing. But they do have ever-growing incisors or "gnawing teeth". For such an animal as the beaver who is one of the many rodents, this is fortunate. Were it not for continuous growth of the incisors, the beaver would soon have them worn down to stubs with his almost insistent cutting of trees. Rodents are able to shift their lower jaw forward and backward, thus using only the front teeth or only the back teeth, but never both at the same time.

Flesh-eating mammals like the fox, coyote, skunks, and weasels cannot move their lower jaws backward and forward but only up and down. Thus all their teeth are used at the same time. But in this case their teeth serve only to grasp or hold meat to cut it in pieces. Carnivores do not chew their food. Instead they cut it into small chunks and swallow them whole.

The most spectacular in the tooth department are the large game mammals which are herbivorous or plant eaters, and usually lack both upper incisors and canines. The elk is an exception and does have an upper canine — why, no one knows. The use of teeth as an indicator of age is a widely used technique, especially for deer. The sequence of tooth replacement and wear gives an accurate method of determination, except for the very oldest individuals. Antlers are poor indicators of age, since trophy antlers (continued on page 54)

OUTDOOR ELSEWHERE

Lone Star Yarn. A Texas fisherman who was outfished by a snake figures the fish probably had the last laugh when a large water moccasin tried to swallow it. The snake started at the tail end of the 12-inch catfish, but ran into trouble when it got to the fins. The moccasin finally slithered away into a drift of logs, and the fisherman could only assume the struggle ended in a tie.—Texas

Insects 'Bugged'. Engineers are recording wing sounds of female mosquitoes and using them to attract male mosquitoes to electric grids and a high-voltage death. Bat squeaks are being used to scare away moths. Future hit sounds may include "Flight of the Bumble Bee" and "Mosquito Music to Relax By."—Michigan

Possum Honker. A hunter obligingly loaned a downed goose he had shot to his hunting friend so that he could get a picture of his dog retrieving the bird from among the decoys. When everything was set and the camera ready to grind away, the goose was thrown out among the decoys. It never touched the ground—just flapped its wings and flew away#—Pennsylvania

Bang, Bang. It was opening day of the season when several over-anxious hunters and 14 ring-necked pheasants collided at short range. After a barrage of 30 shots the total kill was one rooster.—Pennsylvania

Dear Little Deer. Road builders working on a brand-new stretch of interstate highway recently had to add a night watchman to the staff. Deer were racing across fresh sections of concrete, leaving their hoofprints behind. The watchman's job was to follow along, patching up the prints.—Washington

James Bond Bit. England plans to send a mobile car crusher roaming the country to smash old carcasses of abandoned automobiles. The machine is capable of reducing an entire car into a block 11 x 22 x 24 inches within three minutes.—AAA

Congestion Ahead. In the next 40 years, land space consumed by urban uses will double. By the year 2000 the population will nearly double, and the overall demand for outdoor recreation will triple.—Parks and Recreation

Pro-Gun Law. The Pennsylvania legislature has been asked to repeal a 1751 law that prohibits firing a gun in that state without a special license from the governor. Historians say the law was passed to give the Commonwealth tighter controls over pioneers who fired shotguns up chimneys to clean them out.—Wyoming

Clean Pots. Open fire cooking is great until it comes to cleaning the pots. The thing to do is to rub the bottom of the pots with soap before putting them on the fire.—Ontario

Screeching Catch. One fisherman who was sure he had a "record" catch while battling away one dark night threw his catch away when he discovered that he had hooked a big horned owl.—Oklahoma

Gullible Gull. Motorists traveling on the Outer Banks of North Carolina see some unusual road markings. In certain areas the road is painted with white, life-sized silhouettes of seagulls in flight, spaced 50 feet apart. The idea is to keep real gulls from dropping clamshells—a gull technique for opening clams. The theory is they won't drop clams on members of the tribe.—AAA

Heavy Users. In ancient times, total daily water requirements per person for all purposes — including drinking, food preparation, bathing, and washing clothes, averaged no more than 3 to 5 gallons. Today each person in urban areas of the United States uses as much as 60 to 70 gallons per day for household and lawn-watering purposes. —National Wildlife Federation

JUNE, 1966 53  

(continued from page 52)

are usually carried by deer in the prime of life which occurs between 3 1/2 to 5 1/2 years of age.

Teeth can reveal an amazing amount of information about their owners but like any other fairly complex science, they require considerable study and observation. Getting a good book on the subject and "chewing" on it is a big help. THE END

AFTER-HOURS SAUGER

(continued from page 15)

Postmaster expounded, ladling out the steaming food, "This area has the potential of becoming one of the best of its kind in the nation. People come here from all over the country for the fishing, camping, and boating. Take these houseboats, for example. Whole families come down to fish, and that includes the wives. My own wife, Dorothy, has caught more sauger here than most men."

I was reluctant to leave the warm comfort of the tiny houseboat and Don's hospitality, but heavy footfalls on the shakey wooden ramp to shore heralded the arrival of more guests. Besides, the sauger were waiting.

My juggling act along the darkened shore dumped about half the chili from Lyle's bowl. The back door was open, and Lyle stood on the rear deck, silhouetted in the light of his camp lantern. He turned slowly, as though reluctant to leave his vigil, even for a moment, but he went inside the cabin to wolf down the chili with obvious relish. As he ate he pointed to my spinning rod. The tip bounced a couple of times, then stood still. I eased the rod up, remembering the veteran sauger man's advice to take my time.

"They're not taking very hard tonight," my companion's voice echoed from the slightly warmer recesses of the houseboat. "You've got to get the feel of the fish before you try him."

Apparently I didn't get the "feel", for I reeled in a slack line. I checked the two minnows for signs of life. One was hooked through the back, the other through the eyes. Lyle said it often makes a difference and to try both ways. I was beginning to realize that the carpenter from Crofton has a disarming habit of usually being right. My 50-foot cast plunged upstream from the boat. The weight swept downstream, then bounced along the bottom. After it settled, I felt for rocks—and they were there! By cautiously tightening the line, I could feel the weight slip along, catch, then slip again. Gently I eased back as some rocky depression caught the lead and held it against the current. I set the rod down carefully, with that sense of accomplishment which comes from mastering even a minor skill.

Immediately the rod. bounced again. I picked it up, careful not to move the weight. Another series of bounces seemed a little more earnest, so I snapped the rod and connected. The 54 NEBRASKAland fight was not spectacular, but I knew it was a fairly hefty fish. The current pulled at my prize, but I finally hoisted him over the railing.

"A good pound and a half," Lyle grinned, lifting the stringer. "I got these four while you were gone. One was really too small to keep, but he was hooked too deeply to throw back." He raised the string of flopping fish for me to see. Most of them ran a pound or less, but I figured that if they taste anything like walleye, they should be mighty fine eating.

"I usually catch enough to keep myself and my relatives in fish," Lyle grunted. "These aren't exactly whoppers, but they are as good as any fish you'd care to eat."

I strung my. lone fish and went back to the business of fishing, cocking an ear to my companion's commentary.

"Lots of people can't tell sauger from walleye," Lyle continued. "I think we may have some hybrids here. At least the ones I see now have a different coloration than the fish we had a few years back. Of course, this might be a result of changes in the water. Normally, they're pretty easy to tell apart. A sauger has black spots on the dorsal fin, and another spot on the pectoral, or side fin. From the side view, a walleye tends to be more rounded."

"There is one sure way, though, which I've never known to fail," he went on. "Just cut the fish open. In a walleye, you'll find three or four little fingers on the stomach. A sauger will have five or six. Biologists call these the pyloric caeca."

My tutor's thoughts were interrupted by a twitching rod tip. With his usual finesse, Lyle stuck with it until he was satisfied that the fish meant business. The rod bowed sharply as Sawatzke fought to gain line against the current and the natural cussedness of his finny opponent.

"That's more like it," the veteran angler grinned. "This one has some weight to him."

Again, the battle was not spectacular, but Lyle's efforts were met with dogged resistance. After a fair amount of splashing and tearing around, the fish slowed his pace. A dark shape slid toward the boat and soon a two-pound sauger was flopping on the deck.

But I had no time to admire the catch. My own line was in business again, and I slowly raised the rod, keeping the line taught. Tense, I waited for some sign that the critter was ready. An occasional peck kept things interesting, but I sweated it out. Then came a fast series of gentle tugs. Somehow, I just knew that this was it. I set the hook and worked the line in. The fish turned out to be only a little heavier than a pound. That didn't seem important, somehow. It was just that I had arrived. Now I could hold my own in this topsy-turvy sort of fishing, though I'd probably never be able to come close to Lyle's instinctive ability.

"See that rod on the boat next to us," the carpenter commented. "It's got a JUNE, 1966 55   mooneye on it and he is real unhappy about the whole deal."

I looked at the springing rod and ventured to ask how Lyle knew this. It was black night and the water was murky and deep. I wondered how anyone could identify a catch under these conditions.

"A sauger will run downstream when he's hooked, but a mooneye will tear back and forth both ways. There are a lot of little things to know about sauger fishing and they can add up to the difference between success and failure. Take odor, for instance. When I go out in a motorboat, or fool around with a gasoline lantern, I rub my hands with a piece of orange to cut the gassy smell," he explained.

I asked if a passing motorboat or similar disturbance could disrupt sauger fishing. Lyle conceded that it often seems to help because the wake agitates the bait.

"You see, when it's all boiled down, the most foolproof way to take sauger is to fish for them as often as you can," my companion offered. "A guy picks up a lot of things which works for him. Maybe they wouldn't work for anybody else. Also, sauger are moody fish. Sometimes, they will bite like crazy, just tearing into the bait, and other times, like tonight, they will mouth the minnow and fool around a lot. Sometimes, a lead jig will bring them in better than anything else. I think they travel in schools, because it's been my experience that when someone pulls one in, everybody down the line will catch them for a while. I don't know everything about them, but I do know what works for me. I have got a little advantage over most guys, too. When this dam was built and the water had not been diverted, I used to drive my car right where we're fishing. Don and I ran many a throw line in the old channel, before people thought much about sauger fishing at all."

"A lot of times, the only way I can catch them is to take a motorboat up to the dam. It's easy to locate the various holes. I just count the gates and check which overhead cable I'm under when I find a good spot Other times, I'll try the wall. Just across from us there is a long bar just below another line of houseboats. Beyond that is a good hole where I've caught many a sauger," he continued, pointing into the darkness.

It was pushing 1 a.m., so we decided to call it a day or rather a night. Lyle agreed to meet me at his houseboat in the morning for a look at the place in daylight.

''Tomorrow is Saturday," Lyle grinned. "That day I reserve exclusively for fishing. If you can stay over, You're welcome to give it another try from my houseboat."

I looked at him for the first time in open disbelief. That was before I found out he has been clocked at 300 days per year, fishing. To top it off, before I left, his neighbor yelled over that he had caught some nice sauger, along with one mooneye. THE END

NEBRASKAland TRADING POST

Classified Ads: 15 cents a word, minimum order $3.00. September '66 closing date, July 1 BOATING

KAYAKS—One-man $19.50; two-man $24 50-Sailboat $42. Exciting Sitka Kayak Kits known world wide for speed and safety Assemble in one afternoon. Free pictorial literature. Box 78-N, Brecksville, Ohio 44141

DOGS

CULP'S HOUND FARM offers AKC black and tan and Basset hound puppies, Route 3 Box 869, Millington, Tennessee. 38053.

VIZSLA puppies and started dogs available Soni Brook Selle at stud. Free brochure Graff's Weedy Creek Kennels, Route 3' Seward, Nebraska.

HUNTING DOGS: German Shorthairs English Pointers, Weimaraners, English Irish and Gorden Setters, Chesapeakes, Labradors ' and Golden Retrievers. Registered pups all 'ages $50 each. Robert Stevenson, Orleans, Nebraska!

CHESAPEAKES. Excellent hunting stock Puppies or trained dogs. Dean Henry 437 Airline Highway, Waterloo, Iowa.

VIZSLA PUPS for sale. AKC and FDSB Registration. Best bloodlines available Albert Rowley, 518 Beverly, Sidney, Nebraska Phone 254-5780.

ENGLISH POINTER males, ten months old-Labrador males, seven months old- Irish Setter males, three months old, all' registered, $35 each. Roland Everett, Atkinson Nebraska.

BRITTANY SPANIELS, registered Dual Champion breeding, puppies and older dogs May Gale, Route 1, St. James, Missouri 65559

TRAINING GUN DOG and field trial Retrievers and all pointing breeds. Boarding year-round, clean concrete runs; best of feed and care. Labrador stud service Well bred puppies for sale. Platte Valley Kennels, Route 1, Box 61, Grand Island, Nebraska

BRITTANIES, Champion sired puppies from choice hunting stock. Both colors Polaroid photos, papers. Reasonable. Satisfaction guaranteed. Rev. Busby, Lamont, Kansas 66855

FISH LURES & BAITS

FISHERMEN. Catch lunker size Carp, Catfish, with old reliable (Copyrighted) "Drydo" for Carp, or "Hy-Po" for Catfish. Both highly concentrated dry baits with Aromatic Scents of Fruit Emulsions, and Animal Matters. Orders shipped daily to fishermen everywhere, $1 each, both $1.75 Postpaid. "SPORTSMAN'S EXCHANGE", 3508 North Belt, St. Joseph, Missouri.

FISHERMEN: Catch all the white bass you want and your limits of sauger, walleye and northern. Use a white or yellow SKITTER JIG. Send $1 and receive two 1/4-oz. jigs postpaid. SKITTER PRODUCTS, 205 South 15th Street, Norfolk, Nebraska.

AMAZING Fishing Secrets! Catch any fish including catfish. 20 minutes. Guaranteed. Information $1.98. Frank Lacy, 626C North Newlin, Whlttier, California.

MARIBOU FISHING Jigs. Assorted colors. 5 for $1. For crappies, bass, and bluegills. Miss Marion Teeters, Walthill, Nebraska. 68067.

REDWORMS: Handpicked Bait Size. 1,000, $3.50; 5,000, $15. Postpaid. Satisfaction guaranteed. Craigs Worms, 3424 North 67th Street, Lincoln, Nebraska 68507.

FISHERMEN: Be the first in NEBRASKAland to fish with the successful new "HUSTLER Wobbler". Field test this sensational lure with "Crazy Action". Hustler's GETS 'EM ALL! $2 brings you an assortment of 3 different Hustler Wobblers plus catalog of other successful NEBRASKAland lures. Write: DEPT. NC, GLEN L. EVANS, INC., Caldwell, Idaho. Manufacturers of fine fishing tackle for over 44 years.

ASSEMBLE yourself products information and sample, 250. Also No-Pack Synthetic Worm Bedding Information, 250. Sample $1. Quality Products, 268 BB Lot D-8, Route 5, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73128.

GUNS

ATTENTION RELOADERS—We don't sell catalogs. We just sell quality and service. We are jobbers for and carry a complete stock of these lines: Alcan, Bushnell, C. C. I., Dupont, Eagle, Hodgdon, Hornady, Hercules, Lee Loaders, Lyman, Lawrence Shot, Norma, Redfield, Remington, RCBS, Shur-X, Speer and Texan. Walter H. Craig, Box 927, Selma, Alabama. Phone 872-1040.

NEW, USED AND ANTIQUE GUNS. Send long addressed 100-stamped envelope for list, or stop in. Bedlan's Sporting Goods, Fairbury', Nebraska.

SEND 25 cents for illustrated catalog of modern, military and antique firearms Freedland Arms Company, 34-03 Broadway, Route 4, Fair Lawn, New Jersey.

PRECISION European Pellet Rifles for Adults. Advanced recoilless designs; no pumping or C02 required. Free Literature. ARH, Grantsville, West Virginia.

MISCELLANEOUS

MODERN GAME BREEDING, a monthly magazine devoted to the interests of breeders of pheasants, wild waterfowl, quail, other birds, and animals. Many illustrations. Subscribe today. Sample, 500. One year, $5; two years, $9. Modern Game Breeding, Jack Kiracofe, Publisher, Dept. NEB, Boiling Springs, Pennsylvania 17007.

MAKE BIG MONEY raising Guinea pigs, Rabbits, Mink, Pigeons, or Chinchillas for us! Free information. Kenney Brothers, New Freedom, Pennsylvania.

BOOK HUNTING is our business. Our specialty—personal service we would want if we were customers. D-J Books, Box 335N, San Bernardino, California. 92404.

COLLAPSIBLE Farm-Pond Fish-Traps: Animal Traps, postpaid. Free information, pictures, Shawnee, 3934-AX Buena Vista, Dallas 4, Texas.

STONEGROUND CORNMEAL. Most complete line Health Foods. Many processed daily. Come see us or write. Brownville Mills, Brownville, Nebraska.

FOR SALE—Chain link portable dog kennels, For more information phone 466-6968 or write Arthur Maronde, 3325 North 70, Lincoln, Nebraska.

LOSING HAIR? Balding? Dandruff? Free copyrighted booklet. Dr. Shiffer Laboratories, 583 Euclid Arcade, Cleveland, Ohio. 44115.

SCUBA EQUIPMENT

BOB-K'S AQUA SUPPLY, Nebraska's largest Scuba dealer. U.S. Divers, Sportsways, Voit Swimmaster, Scubrapro. Air Station, Regulator Repair, Telephone 553-0777, 5051 Leavenworth Street, Omaha, Nebraska.

OUTDOOR NEBRASKAland of the Air SUNDAY KGFW, Kearney (1340 kcF 7,05 a.m. KTTT, Columbus (1510 kc) 7:30 a.m. KRGI, Grand Island (1430 kc) 7:40a.m. WOW, Omaha (590 kc) 7:40a.m. KMMJ, Grand Island (750 kc) 7:40 a.m. KVSH, Valentine (940 kc) 8:00a.m. KXXX, Colby, Kan. (790 kc) 8:00 a.m. KBRL, McCook (1300 kc) 9:45 a.m. KAMI, Cozad (1580 kc) 9:45 a.m. KM A, Shenandoah, la. (960 kc) 10:00 a.m. KODY, North Platte (1240 kc) 10:45 a.m. KLMS, Lincoln (1480 kc) 11:00 a.m. KIMB, Kimball (1260 kc) 11:15a.m. KOGA, Ogallaia (930 kc) 12:30 p.m. KFOR, Lincoln (1240 kc) 12:45 p.m. KCNI, Broken Bow 1280 kc) 1:15 p.m. KUVR, Holdrege (1380 kc) 2:45 p.m. KNCY, Nebraska City (1600 kc) 5:00 p.m. KRVN, Lexington (1010 kc) 5:40 p.m. KTNC, Falls City (1230 kc) 5:45 p.m. KFAB (Mon.-Fri.) Nightly MONDAY KGMT, Fairbury (1310 kc) 1:00 p.m. KSID, Sidney (1340 kc) 6:30 p.m. WEDNESDAY KJSK, Columbus (900 kc) 1:30 p.m. KCOW, Alliance (1400 kc) 4:30 p.m. FRIDAY KHUB, Fremont (1340 kc) 5:15 p.m. WMG, Norfolk (780 kc) 5:30 p.m. SATURDAY KCSR, Chadron (610 kc) 6:00 a.m. KCOW, Alliance (1400 kc) 9:30a.m. KOLT, Scottsbluff (1320 kc) 11:45 a.m. KAWL, York (1370 kc) 12:45 p.m. KHAS, Hastings (1230 kc) 1:00 p.m. KRFS, Superior (1600 kc) 1:00p.m. KWRV, McCook (1360 kc) 1:45 p.m. KBRX, O'Neill (1350 kc) 4:30p.m. KMNS, Sioux City, la. (620 kc) 6:10p.m. DIVISION CHIEFS Willard R. Barbee, assistant director Glen R. Foster, fisheries Dick H. Schaffer, information and tourism Richard J. Spady, land management Jack D. Strain, state pafcks Lloyd P. Vance, game CONSERVATION OFFICERS Chief, Carl E. Gettmann, Lincoln Ainsworth—Max Showalter, 387-1960 Albion—Gary L. Baltz Alliance—Richard Furley, 762-2024 Alliance—Leonard Spoering, 762-1547 Alma—William F. Bonsall, 928-2313 Arapahoe—Don Schaepler, 962-7818 Benkelman—H. Lee Bowers, 423-2893 Bridgeport—Joe Ulrich, 100 Broken Bow—Gene Jeffries, 872-5953 Columbus—Lyman Wilkinson, 564-4375 Crawford—Cecil Avey, 228 Crete—Roy E. Owen, 826-2772 Crofton—John Schuckman, 388-4421 David City—Lester H. Johnson, 367-4037 Fairbury—Larry Bauman, 1293 Falls City—Raymond Frandsen, 2817 Fremont—Andy Nielsen, 721-2482 Gering—Jim McCole, 436-2686 Grand Island—Fred Salak, 384-0582 Hastings—Bruce Wiebe, 2-8317 Hay Springs—Larry D. Elston, 638-4051 Kearney—Ed Grevmg, 237-5753 Kimball—Marvin Bussinger, 235-3905 Lexington—Robert D. Patrick, 324-2138 Lincoln—Leroy Orvis, 488-1663 Lincoln—Norbert Kampsnider, 466-0971 Lincoln—Dale Bruha, 477-4258 Long Pine—William O. Anderson, 203-4406 Nebraska City—Mick Gray, 873-5890 Norfolk—Robert Downing, 371-2675 North Platte—Samuel Grasmick, 532-9546 North Platte—Roger A. Guenther, 532-2220 Ogallaia—Jack Morgan, 284-3425 Omaha—Dwight Allbery, 558-2910 O'Neill—Gordon Nelsen, 336-2061 Ord—Gerald Woodgate, 728-5060 Oshkosh—Donald D. Hunt, 772-3697 Ponca—Richard D. Turpin, 2521 Tekamah—Richard Elston, 374-1698 Thedford—John Henderson, 645-5351 Valentine—Elvin Zimmerman, 376-3674 Valley—Daryl Earnest, 359-2332 Wayne—Marion Schafer York—Gail Woodside, 362-4120

WHERE-TO-GO

Gretna Fish Hatchery, Newman's Guest Ranch

THERE'S NOTHING quite so enjoyable in early Summer as watching nature at work. Especially when the workshop is a state fish hatchery, complete with waiting picnic tables, lots of open space, and free admission. For an extra pinch of fun, throw in the educational and inspirational, and you've got a very popular attraction with appeal to the entire family.

The Gretna Fish Hatchery, located eight miles south of Gretna on state highway 31, plays host to thousands of visitors each year. The 53-acre site can be reached easily by driving south five miles from the Ashland and Fish Hatchery Interchange on Interstate 80, or two miles north and six west of Louisville. From the north, the highway cuts into timbered land, hugs winding creek bottoms, and finally breaks into an opening just before reaching the hatchery. From the south, the road enters the hatchery after a scenic drive past an abandoned stone quarry. Either way you enter the valley, it's a showcase of natural wonders.

The hatchery is Nebraska's oldest and was purchased in 1882 from the Santee Fisheries of South Bend, a private owner. Santee supplied stocking-size fish for the state under a special contract until the Game Commission bought the riverside facility.

During the first few years of operation at the hatchery, landlocked salmon, brook trout, and lake whitefish were imported and introduced into the state's waters. Not long after 1882, the first shipments of rainbow trout arrived at the hatchery, along with largemouth bass, black bullhead, pumpkinseed, and bluegill.

Although the hatchery is for "dreamers only", the nearby Platte River is an anecdote for the fishing fever caught by those who gaze too long at the lunkers that Hatchery Superintendent Gerhard Lenz has on display. Featured from early Spring to late Fall is an aquarium exhibiting the major species of fish found throughout Nebraska. On weekends wide-eyed children are double-rowed around the glass tanks, watching northern pike, crappie, walleye, channel catfish, yellow catfish, perch, rainbow trout, flathead catfish, and largemouth bass. Other species on display are rock bass, bluegill, sunfish, sucker, and bullhead.

The fish house and surroundings are landscaped on the split level design to provide an enticing measure of fun and surprises for visitors. The catfish hatching unit, complete with mechanical nurse, is a major point of interest to visitors during the July hatching season. Here, thousands of catfish are hatched in open trays and later transferred to raceways where they grow to stocking size.

Although the large brood trout held in spring-water ponds can be observed throughout the year, the primary function of the hatchery is to produce and hold catchable size trout for the Two Rivers Recreation Area near Venice. Each year, the unit produces and stocks thousands of fingerlings, largemouth bass, redear sunfish, and channel catfish in state waters. Over 1,400,000 fish were handled at the hatchery in 1965.

To accommodate the steady parade of summertime picnic goers to the park, a string of fireplaces is provided, complete with picnic tables and benches. The picnic area is located directly north of the hatchery, atop a steep ridge. Swings and playground equipment there give parents a break in babysitting when it's time to relax.

Shading the picnic ground are tall pines that scent the area with a sweet fragrance and provide shelter for small birds and animals.

Fascination is many things to many people, and just as a fish hatchery attracts some, others are fascinated by a guest ranch. Whether big city dude or amateur cowpoke, visitors to Newman's Guest Ranch near Stuart are always welcome. Here the excitement of the ranch life mixes with the beauty of the Sand Hills to spell hospitality—western style. A family can ride horses, put up hay, tend farm pets, milk cows, and fish in a private pond, all in a single day on the same spread.

Newman's does not stress the elaborate, but rather the advantages of a rustic retreat where the vacationer or weekend visitor can relax, throw his cares to the wind, and enjoy, the out-of-doors. A stay at Newman's includes open-fire cook outs, hayrack rides, and western sing alongs. These are typical of the activities offered at all 31 NEBRASKAland ranch and farm vacation sites. There's plenty of exciting recreation awaiting all travelers to Nebraska, ready to be served up any way they want it. THE END

Decorate

your home, office and place of business with Color Prints and Murals from NEBRASKAland magazine

Capture the beauty of NEBRASKAland with this wide assortment of photographic masterpieces. New from the cameras of NEBRASKAland magazine photographers. Select the scenes that match your decor from giant 381/2" x 58" murals, 16"x20" "G" series, and 20" x 24" "P" series prints in living color. Makes the perfect gift, too! Each size features four different NEBRASKAland scenes. Mural series "M" only $7.95 each, "G" prints 75 cents each or set of 4 for $2.50, and "P" series prints $1 each or set of 4 for $3.50 postpaid. Order by number today.

M-l M-2 M-3 M-4 P-l P-2 P-3 P-4 G-l G-2 G-3 G-4 "Pine Ridge Reflections" "Beeves in the Sand Hills" "Butte Country" "NEBRASKAland Ringnecks" "The Deer Hunters" "The Big Country" "Platte of Plenty" "The Quiet Way" "Snake Falls" "The Tall Pines" "Down in the Valley" "Smith Falls" NEBRASKAland State Capitol Lincoln, Nebraska 68509 Enclosed is $ check or money order for the prints or murals circled: NAME. ADDRESS. CITY STATE ZIP. NEBRASKAland (Dealers: ask for special wholesale rates)

THE LINCOLN JAYCEES PRESENT: NEBEASKAland CHAMPIONSHIP RODEO

JUNE 16-17-18-19 PERSHING AUDITORIUM LINCOLN, NEBRASKA

Chuck wagons, lots of cowboys and pretty gals, and clowns will be on hand for this four-day RCA Championship Rodeo. Veteran wranglers will compete for a guaranteed purse of $3,000 plus entry fees. They'll all be roping, riding, and wrestling some of the toughest critters in the nation.

This action-packed event is recognized by the Rodeo Cowboy Association. Every dollar earned is a point toward the national championship and that's a goal sure to attract many of the top pros of the circuit.

The performances are at 8 p.m. June 16, 17 and 18, and will be preceded by an old-time barbecue at 6 p.m. The Sunday afternoon performance on June 19 will begin at 2:00 p.m. Then reserved seats are $3, $2.50, and $2. Children under 13 are admitted at half price.

Each thrilling performance includes Bareback Riding, Steer Wrestling, Calf Roping, Saddle Bronc Riding, and Bull Riding. So saddle up pardner and head for Lincoln for this Wild West spectacle. Bring the entire family for one week of action-packed excitement during the NEBRASKAland Days, featuring the NEBRASKAland CHAMPIONSHIP RODEO.

For reservations please send a self-addressed stamped envelope to: NEBRASKAland Rodeo 208 North 11th Lincoln, Nebraska Prices: $3.00 No. required ... $2.50 No. required ... $2.00 No. required ... ... GO WESTERN NEBRASKAland Rodeo