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1 1 HOW MUCH DOES A" WILD GOOSE WEtGH Great Bird Not So Heavy as Nonilrivestjffators Would Guess It to Be. "How much does a wild goose weigh?" asks R. P. Holland- of the American Game Protective Association. "The goose in question,-we take it, is the Canada goose, known to gunners as honker, big gray goose, sandy-footer, bay goose and many other localisms, depending, upon the name applied to him by the shooters in the different sections of the country. The task has not been simplified to any great extent by settling oh orie" species, "as the variation in weight is great. "Few of the available books about game birds mention weights. This subject seems to be shunned-by both writers of sportsmens books and scientific publications. From a scientific .point ofiview, the weight of birds may have little or no value, but we feel sure that this is not the. case with the shooier. "To hiin the length of the tarsus or the number of tail feathers in a Canada, goose is a matter of no interest whatever, but . ask. him about the. heaviest goose he ever killed and then make about the same allowances you would if the same man was telling you about that big blackbass he pnee caught. ORNITHOLOGISTS FAR APART. . "In the few cases where ornithologists note the weights of different birds they are far apart. Audubon gives the weight of the Canada goose as five and three-quarters pounds and the gander as - " - seven pounds. "Grinnell, Bryant and Storer, in a recent publication, say he weighs- from eight to- twelve pounds, while Wilson,, who comes " nearer "to satisfying tlie. gunner of today, says the wild goose, when in good order, weighs from tun to twelve, :and. sometimes fourteen pounds. "However, none of these weights will satisfy the man who has killed a big goose, because as lie looks back on the cverit he is sHtisfied that they grow much larger. I have so far been unsuccessful in killing a really big goose, judging by the weights, of geese killed by my friends, but I still live in hopes. "Years ago. I formed the habit of weighing every big goose I killed and likewise all large specimens killed by other sportsmen whenever- they camp to my notice. Soon after starting this" practice I was quick to realize that a 10 or 11 pound goose was a dandy, and that the majority of the big Canadas weighed between "S and 10 pounds. "In spite of this fact, practically every goose hunter of experience that have talked with had killed many 13 and 14 pound geese, and occasionally the 15-pound and even lG-pound man would be found. "Men whose -word we couldnt,louljt have told me. that a 13-pound goose was nothing unusual and that heavier ones were often taken. Men whose word I have no good reason, to doubt have gone even higher. " -" " - "Last fall three unusually large geese were taken from" one flock, one of- these birds was noticeably larger than the others and I felt sure that the 1G-pound goose was mine. - j , , -;tf , "These three geese weighed 31 pounds and tlie largest one, which measured close to G feet in wing spread, and which was tlie fattest: -wild goose I ever saw, weighed only 12 pounds and 14 ounces. .... , , ; , , . - GEORGE A. LAWYER KILLED BIG GOOSE. "In the, fall -of 1917 I saw; ah .unusually large goose that was killed by "Mr. George A. Lawyer, United States chief game warden. Several. old -time market hunters commented uporithe size of this bird and one man who I know has killed many more geese than his share felt sure that it would weigh 14 pounds. This goose weighed exactly 12 pounds. "Recently I met an old-time goose hunter, who I was assured was a careful observer1 and a truthful man. As usual, I put the goose weight question to him. Well, sir, he replied, I have always been interested ; in1 the weights of geese, but tlie largest goose I ever killed I neglected to weiijl until ho was picked ana cleaned, ready forcooking." This "bird, when ready for the dressing, before being put in the oven, weighed exactly thirteen pounds.. "Since this instance I have firmly resolved to keep on weighing big geese, but to ask no more questions."
