Waterfowl hunting from hunting cars; commercial shipping of waterfowl before 1918?

From: "Chuck Berry" cberry@brookings.net

Waterfowl hunting from hunting cars; commercial shipping of waterfowl before 1918?

I see reference to railroad cars that brought hunters to the prairies as the tracks progressed westward. I have heard that Pullman had special cars; and that rich men could hook their own car on the end of the train to be dropped off anywhere, also heard that a side track could be built for a hunting car to stay for a while. I would like to know more about how railroads shipped game, especially waterfowl from the prairies to eastern cities before 1918 when interstate transport of migratory waterfowl was outlawed. Is there some record of shipments of barrels of waterfowl? I understand that refrigeration cars helped this quite a bit – did these cars have ice or actual refrigeration? I wonder if waterfowl were served on the dining cars – any menus? Could you refer me to articles or books on these subjects? ...

—Chuck Berry, Brookings, SD

"Bear River Canal has 150-plus year history"

"Bear River Canal has 150-plus year history: Sections of canal still formed by china walls alone" by Nancy Hagman, © Colfax Record, May 12, 2011. (Newspaper Article)

"... As river gold 'panned out' in just a few years, miners turned to hydraulic mining that required huge amounts of water fed to the large monitors – very big hose nozzles. These would blast away hillsides and reveal gold located in ancient riverbeds deep in the hillsides. Enterprising men organized the South Yuba Water Company to supply this demand. They built arterial systems of hand-dug ditches and wooden flumes diverting water from its natural course. After completion of the Central Pacific Railroad in 1869, many skilled Chinese laborers went to work for the ditch company. They constructed new and improved older structures with their knowledge of building dry-stack rock walls. Known as 'china walls,' there are many examples around Colfax. They still stand today as a testament to the capability of the builders. ... " [More]

[Courtesy Google Alerts.]