Official PtrblicaTionMontana State Fish &.Game Dept. WM "Of 1 1 Today A Western Miner Talks Old yesterday hain't no more use Than rubber boots are to a goose; So saddle up and ride away From that there wuthless yesterday. Hook your spurs in the broncho Hope And hit a high and swinging lope Across the "Range of "Things That Are;" Leave that old past so blessed far Behind that you can't even view It through a glass if you try to. Your failures? Shucks! forgit 'em all; Don't let 'em know you hear 'em call. Look up and see the rainbow smile; Today's the only time wuth while. To worry is to show your hand To every fellow in the land; To ivorry is to let folks know You think you hain't a fighting show. You can't win fame or even pelf Unless you sort o' bluff yourself Into believin' that you be Plumb failure-proof ; and then, by Gee, You ivant to size things up correct, Just as they be, and don't select A pile of dirt xvhere gophers sit And make a mountain out of it. And don't forgit the say in' s true There's ■millions far worse off than you. Page Two MONTANA WILD LIFE The Official Publication of The State Fish and Game Commission VOL. IV. HELENA, MONTANA, MARCH, 1932. NO. 10 Mootaima Sets Paee le Highway BuMldioj By Sid J. Coffee of Missoula, President of the Montana Automobile Association ONTANA, though some- what late in initiating her program of high- way construction, can no longer be called a laggard state. Last year's accomplishments — 633 miles of new graded and graveled highways, 9S2 miles of new surfacing, and 290 miles of oiling — placed Montana second in 1931 mileage of highway construction among the states. Texas, with larger federal aid appropriations, led by a small margin. This 1931 highway construction, were it devoted entirely to one route, would have built a modern surfaced road east and west across the state.. However, as our highway laws ' provide for division of the state into 12 highway dis- tricts, each of which district obtains a certain percentage of the construction funds available; every section of the state on important roads re- ceived some portion of this improvement. The program has progressed to the completion of the Roosevelt Highway (U.S. No. 2) from the North Dakota line to Glacier Park with only one small 15-mile contract unfinished. The Yellowstone Trail (U.S. No. 10), except for a change in route east of Hysham, is completed from the Dakota line to Billings. Also from Billings to Three Forks and Helena with the exception of one contract between Colum- bus and Big Timber. United States • No. 10. com- pletely graveled or oiled, is continued west from Butte to Missoula and west to the Idaho state line with few re- maining sections of state or forest construction to be com- pleted. From Missoula north skirt- ing the west shores of Flat- head lake, is a wonderful graveled road, and various completed sections west of Kalispell and Whitefish care for the most difficult portions of the through routes west of the mountains. In 1932, construction now contemplated will complete United States No. 10 west of Missoula. South of Missoula the com- pleted highway extends within a short distance of the Idaho state line. The unfinished portions in the east should be completed in time for the 1932 tourist. With the elimination of the numerous detours of 1930-31 that were responsible for much loss of tra- vel, the tourist business of 1932 should show an appreciable increase. One gratifying result of our com- pleted highway construction has been increased use of our travel facilities by our own people. This was most pro- nouncedly evident during the big game hunting season last fall. Many a sportsman, who because of the expense and time consumed and because of the Sid J. Coffee of Missoula President of The Montana Automobile Associati seemingly increasing remoteness of available shooting, had not hunted for years, tried out the new highways. The opening of the new road over Marias Pass south of Glacier Park for the first time, afforded many eastern Montana sportsmen an opportunity to hunt the favored sections to the west of the Rockies. That they were surprised and delighted at the speed and economy with which they reached their hunting destinations, goes without saying. Any- one traveling at that time and recall- ing the cars he met with deer or elk the nimrods were taking home, knows that their trips were happy. Already they and many who have heard their stories are planning to do it over again this coming fall. But there is the other side to this picture. The records of big game killed last fall in Montana as shown by the incomplete returns published in MONTANA WILD LIFE, gives us cause for reflection. The new highways took hun- dreds of new hunters to our forest areas last year. The kill of game was correspond- ingly larger. This drain on our wild life supply will in- crease for years to come. What is to be the answer? The answer must be the same as to the problem presented by the increase of disastrous forest fires due to the en- larged use of the forests In motorists — greater care and protection. No sportsman, if he is a sportsman, objects to forest regulations as to camp fires. smoking, and autoists enter- ing the forests carrying shovel, axe and bucket. In fact any real sportsman would carry these fire protection tools in any event. But what about the preservation of our wild life? The automobile over the improved roads of our mountain passes can pour 10 hunters into our noted game areas where there was but one before. The hunting grounds to the west of the range are now only a few (hi; s drive from populous cen- ters to the east. The State Fish and Game Commission may well be alarmed for the future of their forest wards. Sportsmen of the state are Page Three already giving the situation serious thought and additional rules and regu- lations for the preservation of our deer and elk may soon be suggested. Highway development has brought about a similar condition in most of our sister states. It is a much more involved situation than that presented for the preservation of our fishing. In western Montana it can only be worked out on the basis of an accord with the Province of British Columbia. Deer, elk, and moose recognize no interna- tional boundary in their wanderings. There must also be some understand- ing with Idaho and Washington. Our highway construction is imposing new and serious responsibilities upon those we have charged with the safety and preservation of our National Parks, our Forests, and our Wild Life. The Montana Automobile Association has a vital interest in all phases of forest and wild life conservation. With the completion of our comprehensive highway system by 1934, which pro- gram has been the outstanding effort of this Association since its inception, only half our work is undertaken. As an Association, we will not be satisfied until every dollar of our cost for state highway construction is returned to us. Other western states are receiving this repayment from touring business at the rate of from twenty-five to ninety mil- linns of dollars per year. With our two great National Parks and our wonderful mountain and for- est recreational areas lying between, Montana has tourist advantages pos- sessed by no other state. Fifty millions a year is a low esti- mate of the outside money that should soon roll into Montana on rubber tires. To keep this money coming we must preserve to the utmost our wild life and scenic attractions. This will be to the benefit of every citizen. All will share in the profit of entertain- ing our hundreds of thousands of visi- tors. We shall also benefit by truer national estimates and by the advertis- ing of the natural resources and pro- ductive possibilities of Montana. Every member of the Montana Automobile Association is assisting in developing for our state a destiny of future great- ness impossible to foretell. The forethought and effort necessary to insure this result is only that fore- thought and effort necessary to pre- serve our recreational resources. What- soever changes her new highways may bring, with the sportsmen of the state volunteering to assist and support any w.-ll directed efforts, there need be lit- tle fear but that Montana's scenic and recreational heritage — her mountains, lakes, streams and forests — will be safeguarded and preserved for future generations. Whopper Trout Is Hooked in Flathead A Tribute to Montana PUT OUT THE FIRE A Montana school girl's essay ran as follows: "When we go camping, we must keep the place neat, we must be very careful to put out our fire. This is God's country. Don't burn it up and make it look like hell." J. A. MAHOOD AND THE PRIZE THIS Dolly Varden trout, cannibal of Montana waters, was caught on the east shore of Flathead lake. December 27, 1931, near the Station creek fish hatchery operated by the State Fish and Game Department. J. A. Mahood of Poison, veteran Montana sportsman, is shown holding the big fellow. He's as long as a wagon track and his species is capable of devouring thousands of small trout to keep his digestive organs functioning. Sports- ment generally have declared war on the bull or Dolly Varden. FORM HUNT PARTNERSHIP A farmer-hunter partnership recently set up in Ingham count.', Michigan, which will provide a program of game bird production and hunting over the greater part of 23,000 acres, including about 71 farms, is operated as follows: No attempt is made to restrict the usual number of hunters who visit the area. Four tickets a day are issued to hunters on all farms. Hunters who have tickets help enforce the rules. No one may hunt without a ticket, thus assuring farmers against trespassers and pot- hunters. There is no charge for a hunting ticket. NO STATE in the Union has shown greater progress, in the last two years, in road-building than Mon- tana, says the Pacific Builder and En- gineer in its February issue. "Last year." the publication states, "Montana built SSS miles of new roads, ranking first among the 48 states in the mile- age of new grades. "Four years ago," the Builder and Engineer continues, "the Treasure state was apparently hopelessly in the mud. Then she passed her original gas tax bill and later raised the ante. Now she possesses two graveled roads, almost completed, from east to west, at least one excellent graveled highway north and south, and a substantial mileage of improved connecting roads." In an editorial comment on the ef- forts in opposition to the original pro- posal to carry out a state highway program financed by a gas tax tin- periodical states that as a result of the tax "Montana stands fourth among the tn states in the number of miles of road under construction. "This year's program includes r>00 miles of new grade, 800 miles of gravel surfacing, 275 miles of oiling and 144 bridges. Contracts last year probably exceeded $12,000,000. A similar sum will be spent this year. Montana will soon be out of the mud." The Builder and Engineer devotes two pages, with pictures of Montana road-building projects. Particular at- tention is given to the construction of the Shelby-Conrad cut-off, which is said to be a piece of exceptionally fine road building and to be typical of the char- acter of road construction in this state. The estimate of the Pacific Builder and Engineer, which is published at Seattle by Walter A. Averill, is op- timistic regarding the expenditures for road building this year, according to the recent statement of O. S. Warden of Great Falls, chairman of the state highway commission. After stating that the letting of new contracts during the first part of this year would not be large on account of unfinished contracts carried over from 1931, Mr. Warden said that this year's expenditures might be limited to $5,000,- 000 — unless the U. S. budget commis- sioner receded from his plan to reduce forest road expenditures by $3,000,000 and also unless a market was found for the gas anticipation warrants which were authorized by the voters. Highway enthusiasts are pleased at the high place accorded Montana in the list of states engaged in progressive work. The standing of Montana in the ranks of road-building commonwealths is an endorsement of both the highway commission and the people as well, engineers declare. TRUE TO FORM "Oh, mama, look!" cried the little girl on her visit to the country. "There's a duck! And it walks like it had just got out of a rumble seat!" Page Four Montana Accomplishes Modern Miracle In Highway Building MONTANA'S highway progress map, shown above as of Janu been accomplished in pulling the Treasure State out of the m faced roads. A small portion is county grading. The light g are numbered. The percentage figures are also indicated. The ne on the map. This is a scenic, graveled route from Bozeman to W lines are either under contract, or to be improved. The highw the election of May, 1931, provides for the practical completion o totaled 633 miles of new grading with culverts, bridges and guar miles of oil surface. Construction was done in each of the 12 h monies at percentage indicated for each district. Apportionment w in each district. ary 1, 1932. strikingly illustrates at a glance the work that has ud. The heavy black lines indicate completed gravel and oil sur- ray lines indicate the boundaries of the highway districts, which w Gallatin Gateway entrance to Yellowstone park is not indicated est Yellowstone. The lighter shaded sections marked by parallel ay program made possible by the approval of Referendum 35 in f the entire state-federal system by 1934. The 1931 construction d rails; 982 miles of new gravel surfacing or re-surfacing, and 306 ghway districts of the state as per the division of gasoline tax as made by the 1927 legislature on a basis of uncompleted mileage Idaho Drives Deer to Winter Feed A ROUNDUP to drive hungry deer to eat hay at regular feeding places was recently started up the Boise river in Idaho, and resulted in a stampede that amazed spectators along the highway. Men afoot and horseback rounded up the deer from an area of several square miles, driv- ing them along the hillside toward a feeding station maintained by the State Came Department and the Ada County Fish and Game League. Two hundred or more deer are re- ported passing one point in the course of an hour. Like tired sheep, they trailed along, stopping periodically to rest or contemplate the long string of automobiles parked along the highway within 200 yards of the nearest of them. Frequently they traveled by great leaps. but mostly strolled or trotted along. Some spectators were within a few yards of the deer as they filed past. They were obviously in poor condi- tion from shortage of feed on the hill- sides. But experienced livestock men said this was not an entirely unusual condition at this time of year. The roundup of the deer was de- scribed by Idaho game department of- ficials as an effort of ranchers to move the deer off their cattle range to specified feeding places where feeding grounds have been established. The de- partment has been feeding the deer tor several weeks to save them from starving. Several thousand have been driven from their usual feeding grounds in the high country by deep snow. BIGGER, BETTEK BUNNIES William H. Reinhart, game commis- sioner of Ohio, has recommended the establishment of a "super-game" ranch in Ohio. The proposed ranch would produce for liberation in the wild larger and better conditioned cotton- tails by crossing the native rabbits with Belgian hares. It would also pro- duce gray raccoons, a type which Mr. Reinhart believes would improve the native variety. BUCK HAS SIX LEGS A six-legged buck deer was shot by James Libby, of Laurelton State Vil- lage, in Pennsylvania. The buck had an extra pair of hind legs growing directly back of the ordinary legs and all six were used in running and jumping. The four rear legs were alike in size and development. Pnge Five Glen A. Smith THERE has been conside rable laying of cards on the table between Montana sportsmen and stockmen dur- ing the last several months and out of the series of square- shooting conferences being conducted throughout the state, "indications point to remedial steps in- tended to alleviate complaints arising from both sides. Sportsmen complain that forest areas properly belonging to elk and deer have been leased for sheep grazing. Stock- men on the other hand complain that big game has descended on their hay- stacks and devoured their feed. Thous- ands of reports made to the State Fish and Game Department by big game hunters in returning their license report cards reflect prevailing sentiments. Out of the maze of misdirected criticisms has come the wholesome action of hold- ing round-table conferences with repre- sentatives invited from the forest serv- ice, the State Fish and Game Commis- sion, dude ranchers, sportsmen's or- ganizations, sheep and cattlemen, and others interested in the welfare of both wild and domestic animals. On February 27, Glen A. Smith of the forest service, has called another of these conferences at Lewistown. The first was held at Anaconda, January 30, and a clarified atmosphere resulted. These conferences are the outgrowth of action taken at the last annual meet- ing of the Montana Sportsmen's Asso- ciation at Helena. At that time David Madsen, superintendent of wild life re- sources in the national parks and for- mer game commissioner of Utah, ex- plained the necessity for this business of laying the cards on the table and urged that a series of get-together meetings be held. In keeping with the suggestion, invitations have been ex- tended to all interested to attend. Robert H. Hill, state fish and game warden, has been delegated by the com- mission to represent the department at the Lewistown gathering. Matters per- taining to destruction of range by sheep, the denuding of watersheds in the for- est areas, the possibility of exchanging grazing districts so that sheep may be taken from the big game range, and al- lied subjects will be discussed. Figures tabulated by the State Fish and Game Department show that the elk and deer kill during the 1931 season has passed the 10,000 mark. Of this to- tal about one-fourth was killed outside forest reserve boundaries and the re- maining three-fourths within the for- ests where sheep are permitted to graze. Following the constructive conference at Anaconda, a committee of four was selected by Glen A. Smith to investigate conditions. Members of the committee are Guy Stambaugh, stockman of Deer Lodge; Dr. "W. L. Beal, dude rancher of Anaconda; Walter J. Roy, represent- ing the Anaconda Anglers' Club and P. F. Ferguson of Butte, represent- ing the forest service. Sportsmen of the Anaconda Anglers' club are work- ing toward securing 15,000 to 25,000 acres as a grazing reserve for big game in the Deer Lodge county area, with livestock excluded. This rule applies especially to sheep, which are blamed by sportsmen for denuding the ranges and destroying feed necessary for con- tinued growth of big game herds. Glen Smith was nominated as chair- man by Dave Morgan, veteran sports- man. Mr. Morgan explained the pur- pose of the meeting as a cooperative round table discussion looking toward securing suitable winter and summer Buck Law Benefits HUNDREDS of Montana sportsmen who enjoyed days afield during the deer and elk season, have become converts to the cause of the buck law. Many of them have not been hesitant in communicating with the department. Sheafs of letters have been received from big game hunters when returning their report cards. The following letter from L. T. Taylor of the Electric Shop at Dillon, one of Beaverhead county's outstanding sports- men, is self-explanatory: "In returning my big game license report card, I cannot resist the temp- tation to say that I am heartily in favor of the present buck law. I have hunted deer in Beaverhead county for the past 35 years, and believe that I know something of conditions here. About 15 years ago the deer were threatened with extinction, but with the shortening of the season and lower- ing of the bag limit, the deer began to hold their own, so that since 1920 I have noticed a gradual increase in the number of deer in the hills where I have hunted. "The present season (Oct. 15 to Nov. 15) is especially favorable to the deer, and one like the season just closed, has allowed the deer to get through without any great slaughter. "Most of the hunters who are com- plaining about the buck law are sim- ply out for meat. Anyone knows that it is much easier to trail a bunch of deer and shoot the closest one. To pick out a buck is another story." range for 100 to 150 elk and 300 to 400 deer. Chairman Smith discussed big game utilization and scientific game manage- ment. He asserted that changes should be made in the dates of certain open and closed seasons and likewise regard- ing killing of deer of either sex. He said that sportsmen should be looking toward the future rather than attempt to correct past errors regarding over- grazing of any certain area. He esti- mated that about half the area desired set aside for big game grazing is now utilized by the Deer Lodge Valley Farms Company for sheep pasturage and suggested that a committee be named to select more suitable range or another pasture for the sheep so that an exchange might be affected. Chair- man Smith pointed out that there are many thousands of acres of state land which is worthless for agricultural pur- poses which could be used for grazing and recreational areas. Guy Stambaugh of the Deer Lodge Valley Farms explained what it would mean to his company to be forced to give up the grazing permit on short notice unless he was given the privi- lege of an equitable exchange of pas- tures. Three bands of sheep have been grazed there with the use of one camp- tender for the three flocks. Mr. Stam- baugh offered to cooperate with sports- men in any way possible so that a mutually satisfactory agreement may be arranged. Dr. W. L. Beal of Anaconda discussed the question from the standpoint of the sportsmen and the dude rancher. Following adjournment of the confer- ence, visitors were guests of the Ana- conda Anglers' Club at a turkey din- ner served at the Montana Hotel. Prom- inent among those present were Glen Smith of Missoula, P. Ferguson of Butte. Dr. John A. Donovan of Butte, J. L. Boardman, secretary of the Butte Anglers' Club; Ed Calvert of Big Hole, Guy Stambaugh of Deer Lodge, J. F. Hendricks, superintendent of the State Game farm at Warm Springs; Ray- Wells of the State Game farm; Dave Morgan, toastmaster at the dinner; Dr. W. L. Beal of Anaconda, Dr. Tur- ton, J. J. Harper, George DesLauries, George C. Jackson, O. J. Christensen, Walter J. Roy, Bob Henley, Charles Sparrow, Ed Meyers, William G. Schmidt, George Tyron, Commissioner J. L. Kelly of the State Fish and Game Department, T. T. Malee, Charles Wal- lace, Ed Wenger and Mr. Ecklund of Anaconda. Dr. Donovan of Butte was introduced as "the dean of Montana sportsmen" and presented an interesting discussion of past activities and his resolve to lay aside shooting irons to do his hunting hereafter with a camera. Thousands of pictures of wild life have been taken by Dr. Donovan and make up his in- teresting collection. Page Six MONTANA K^'WHIL© LIF ONTANA sportsmen who are keenly interested in activities of national law making bodies on matters pertaining to fish and game, will find interesting material in a survey of game leg- islation, its present status and pre- dicted fate, which has just been an- nounced by the American Game Asso- ciation for the information of affiliated groups. The survey stresses the indicated fu- tility of expecting congress to appro- priate funds that would benefit mainly sportsmen, or to increase desirable items in the short budget. This state- inciit is directed particularly to the Norbeck-Andresen Migratory Bird Ref- uge program, enacted in 1929 with an authorized expenditure of $8,000,000 in 10 years, which the budget leaves $SSO,000 short. The prospect is said to be encourag- ing, however, for a favorable reaction toward any feasible plan in which the sportsmen themselves agree to finance waterfowl restoration, augmenting the Xorbeck-Andresen program. Such a plan now being prepared by the special Ways and Means committee, appointed upon the recommendation of the Eigh- teenth American Game conference, will be based largely on advice obtained from leaders in congress. The survey forecasts that determined action toward a sportsmanlike water- fowl program may change the status of the suggested cut of $23,000 from the operating funds of the Division of Biological Investigations, the unit of the Biological Survey which is expected to study waterfowl conditions. This cut would seriously hamper preparatory work necessary for any restoration pro- gram. While the report urges every organi- zation to convey its views on measures to its senators and representatives, it strongly recommends against letter campaigns in which all the members of large organizations are urged to participate. A flood of individual let- ters is more confusing than helpful. The association, in its survey of con- gress, points out that the federal game fish hatcheries program will remain •at a standstill if the recommended budget is adopted. It would be $400,000 short of the amount authorized in 1928 under the White Five-Year Plan. It urges further efforts to assure the retention in the budget of $20,000 for enforcement of the Hawes Black Bass law, prohibiting interstate ship- ment and sale of this game fish con- trary to law. Two important wild life measures have been passed by the senate. Nine others are pending. Correlation of wild life conservation activities of the several federal depart- ments is provided in Senate Bill 263, Sportsmen Apply for Documents of Honor DESPITE the fact that the 1932 hunting and fishing licenses are not yet off the press, applica- tions have been received at head- quarters of the State Fish and Game Department at Helena for early numbers of the new edition of the 1932 Sportsmen's License, which sells at $5. Checks have been re- ceived from several enthusiastic sportsmen with the request that the Document of Honor authorized by the last legislative assembly, bearing .the same number as that issued in 1931, be set aside and reserved for them this year. Approximately 2,000 of these $5 licenses were issued in 1931. Automobile windshield stickers signifying that the owner has pur- chased a Sportsmen's License were issued in 1931. introduced by Senators Frederic C. Wal- cott of Connecticut and Harry B. Hawes of Missouri on December 9, and passed on December 17. This was re- ferred to the House Committee on Agri- culture, of which Representative Marvin Jones of Texas is chairman. Senate Bill S. 475, to establish a na- tional park in the Everglades section of Florida, endorsed by most of the leading national organizations because a national park in the only tropics of the country will be unique and will pro- tect the varied bird, animal and plant life of the region, passed the senate on January 19. It was sponsored by Senator Duncan U. Fletcher of Florida. The House Committee on Public Lands reported it favorably on January 12, as House Bill 5063, sponsored there by Representative Ruth Bryan Owen of Florida. The bill is now on the Union Calendar and likely to pass if friends of the measure can overcome opposi- tion. A federal conservation department, consolidating the Biological Survey, the Bureau of Fisheries, the Forest Service and the National Park Service, is sug- gested in Senate Bill 306, introduced by Senator Hawes on December 9, and now in the hands of the Senate Com- mittee on Wild Life, of which Senator Walcott is chairman. Considerable op- position to creating another department has been evident. The report holds that the same purpose may be accom- plished under the President's recom- mendation for a consolidation of simi- lar activities in one of the present de- partments. Senator Charles L. McNary of Ore- gon introduced Senate Bill 768 to fix the daily bag and possession limits for waterfowl by act of congress. The bill is now before the Senate Commit- tee on Agriculture, of which Senator McNary is chairman. The survey fore- casts strong opposition to this measure from sportsmen's organizations as a dangerous precedent. Such regulation is now directed by the Advisory Board and the Department of Agriculture after consultation with state officials. Senator McNary also introduced two other bills now before his committee affecting wild life. Bill 3259 gives of- ficers of the Department of Agriculture proper protection from interference while discharging their duties, and in- cludes game protectors. Bill 3261 would amend the Lacey Act. which con- trols interstate shipments of wild lite. to enable enforcement officers to seize illegal shipments of game and furs. A national game and fish demonstra- tion station near Washington is pro- vided by Senate Bill 2162, jointly spon- sored by Senators Walcott and Hawes of the wild life committee. The sta- tion would experiment in game and fish raising and train experts to co- operate with states, educational insti- tutions, etc. Senate Bill 2326, introduced by Sena- tor Robinson of Arkansas on Dec. 19, authorizing the President to establish refuges for game and fish on any of the national forests wherever the states have indicated their willingness to have such areas set aside, was reported fa- vorably by the wild life committee on January 7. It was referred to the Com- mittee on Judiciary, of which Senator George W. Norris is chairman, for ad- justment of possible conflicts in en- forcement authority. To prevent the dumping of oil and wastes into any of the navigable wa- ters is the purpose of House Bill 163, introduced by Representative Joe Crail of California. It was referred to the Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries, Representative Ewin L. Da- vis, chairman. Oil pollution is consid- ered to be a tremendous cause of fish and waterfowl mortality. House Bill 460S, sponsored by Rep- resentative Scott Leavitt of Montana, would amend the Sweeney-McNary For- est Research Act to authorize the forest and range experiment stations to con- duct studies for determining the effec- tive use of forest, chaparral and grass cover in regulating stream flow, con- trolling erosion, preventing floods, etc. It authorizes annual appropriations of $500,000 in future years as part of the general forest and wild life research program. The bill is now before the House Committee on Agriculture, Rep- resentative Marvin Jones, chairman. Other house bills concern predatory animal control in California, fisheries stations in Wisconsin and Long Island. and wild life refuges in Ouachita Na- tional Forest, Arkansas, and Wichita National Forest, Oklahoma. A number of bills provide for addi- tions to national forests to include pub- lic domain lands in order that graz- ing and erosion may be controlled, and there are five flood control bills in the house and two in the senate. Page Seven Mootaima Fish amid & W. A. Brown, Great Falls.. Commissioner Jos. L. Kelly, Anaconda.. ..Commissioner Game Cominiiissioe W. K. Moore, Billings.. ..Commissioner E.A.Wilson, Livingston. .Commissioner T. N. Marlowe, Missoula, Chairman R. H. Hill, Helena, State Fish and Game Warden, Secretary Official Publication of the State Fish and Game Department. Published Monthly at Helena, Montana Floyd L. Smith, Editor Subscription Rate $1 per Tear — 15 cents per Copy Advertising Rates on Application Copy for advertisements subject to approval of State Commis- sion and must be in the hands of the editor at the State Capitol building, Helena, on the 15th day of the month preceding pub- lication date. VOL. IV. MARCH, 1932 NO. 10 (STUDY THE FIGURES SHOWING THE BIG GAME KILL STATISTICS compiled for the information of Montana sportsmen at headquarters of the State Fish and Game Department and presented on the back page of this edition of MONTANA WILD LIFE tell a significant story. They merit close study and analysis and reveal facts that never before have been made available for the guidance of members of the commission and conservationists gen- erally. Totals are mounting higher with each passing day as dilatory sportsmen return report cards torn from big game licenses. Indications are that the total kill of deer will soon reach the 10,000 mark. Figures completed accord- ing to cards received to February 23 already show a total kill of 9,006 deer and 1,717 elk for the 1931 season or a grand total of big game killed of 10,723. Cards have been returned by 8,051 sportsmen reporting no game killed. In Lincoln county alone, hunters report killing 2,021 deer, or 1,343 bucks and 678 does. The little county ad- joining the Canadian border in the extreme northwestern portion of the state, saw an unusual kill during the clos- ing days of the season when a heavy snowfall meant meat. More female deer were killed in Flathead county than bucks, the total showing 677 males and 712 females. Six counties are open to the killing of does, Flathead, Lake, Lincoln, Mineral, Ravalli, and Sanders and the kill of 2,298 female deer in 1931 in these counties has given sports- ment something to think about. Range conditions reported in the tabulation, as taken from cards where kills were reported, show excellent con- ditions despite the dry season. Complete figures on range and forest are impossible because of the fact that many hunters overlooked making a report of conditions and were at times puzzled as to whether the deer or elk had been killed on forest reserves. For this reason, a recheck of the statistics shows them off balance in several cases. The total reports, however, serve as a cross-sectional view from which conclusions may be drawn. Reports from 534 hunters indicate that the range where they killed big game had been sheeped off. The figures indicate that 2,830 deer and elk were killed off the forest reserves while 6,869 were taken on the forests. Here's the big question: If approximately 24,000 li- cens'ed hunters have already reported taking 10,723 deer and elk during a single season, what is the ratio of the kill to the number remaining and what steps must be taken to guard elk and deer that escaped in such manner that an ample supply will remain for the future? "The angler follows the fish and the hunter follows the If the world knows you have fish and game in your State, the world will be your guest. And the world is ready and willing to pay good money to enjoy that sort of honest sport." —Moiris Ackerman, president, Outdoor Writers of America. PRESERVE THE UNTRAMMELED PLACES MONTANA sportsmen who are alert to the inroads be- ing made by anglers and hunters of the nation, sportsmen who are foresighted enough to realize the necessity for the preservation of remaining places of soli- tude, are giving thought to the years to come. In the re- gion tributary to the South Fork of the Flathead river, Montana possesses practically virgin ground. Undefiled by highways, railroads and other avenues of transportation, this vast area abounds with fish and game. During recent years it has been penetrated by airplanes, the ships mak- ing the round trip from cities to the fishing waters in a day and returning laden with limit catches. It is Mon- tana's last remaining untrammeled territory. The ques- tion as to preservation in its native state is puzzling. A quotation from President Herbert Hoover, the fisher- man, which might well apply to the South Fork, has hov- ered pensively around and finally come to rest over the lakeland region of the Minnesota-Ontario border as the guiding slogan of organizations now struggling to protect the primitive areas from further encroachment of roads and highways. "The day is coming." Mr. Hoover is quoted as saying, "when there is going to be a premium on solitude. If a man can find a piece of land anywhere in this country where he can't hear a bell ring or a whistle blow that's the piece he will want for a home." Ernest C. Oberholtzer, president of the Quetico-Superior Council, which was formed in Minnesota to preserve the large wilderness area in its natural state, has adopted the slogan as being especially true of men's future preference in places to rest. Hundreds of lakes and streams in the area have been the natural highways for centuries. Travel has been lim- ited to boat and canoe in summer and dog-team and snow- shoe in winter. But to forestall a contemplated network of roads through part of the region, organizations are seek- ing to encourage air travel along the waterways, which fur- nish natural landing fields. The Minnesota Game Protective League recently went on record against highway construction in the territory. Conservationists hope that some day it may be maintained in its primeval condition as a national park. It is the largest accessible primitive forest remaining in the coun- try. The destiny of nations is dependent upon the morals of its citizens. The morals of individuals are determined largely by their actions during their leisure time. Dr. William J. Cooper. 0. S. Commissioner of Education, recently said: "We have centered our thoughts too much on the dollar and not enough on the human being. The educational system that must be developed to meet the requirements of this age is one that will give more attention to leisure time. It is much more important that you learn to live than to be able to earn a few dollars be- cause of a vocational education." POLLUTION DESTROYS FISH IN EAST PENNSYLVANIA, the state which is generally considered to have among the oldest as well as most active and successful conservation agencies, was estimated re- cently by the State Sanitary Water Board to have 35,000 miles of waterways which are so polluted by industrial wastes or sewage that they will not support fish life. Forty thousand miles of the state's waterways are polluted but not to a degree that entirely spoils fishing. Of a total of 100,000 miles of waterways, 25,000 are considered to be pure. The object of the board is to stamp out pollution. M. M. Ellis, of the Bureau of Fisheries of the U. S. Depart- ment of Commerce, recently stated that "industrialization and resulting stream pollution in the eastern half of the country have placed an intolerable strain on the fish sup- ply." Compare these facts with conditions enjoyed by Montana anglers. Page Eight DEPARTMENT HEADQUARTERS BUST PLACE HEADQUARTERS of Montana's Fish and Game Depart- ment at Helena have been the busiest in the State Capitol for weeks following the close of the calendar year, and indications are that before moving the mountain of tabular work, which includes checking of licenses, com- pilation of the big game kill, checking licenses against dealers' stubs to ascertain what hunters are dilatory in sending in report cards, and the maze of other duties at- tendant upon the close of the year, the rush of the 1932 fishing season will be near. Because of the variety of hunting and fishing licenses authorized by the last legislature and the necessity for the adoption and installation of new systems, the entire head- quarters staff has been called into emergency action to conquer details. Tabulation of licenses sold by counties, which is an im- portant budget of information, is now taking precedence over the tabulation of the big game kill, which is well in hand. All of the 900 license dealers in the state are re- quired to clean up their license business for the year, make their remittances and return unused licenses. These must be checked back, counted, filed and receipts issued. Tabulation of the number of arrests made and fines levied throughout the state during the year, as well as segregation of violations by counties, has been completed. Under direction of Robert H. Hill, state fish and game warden, this mass of work is being accomplished without the employment of additional assistance. "Pishing is the greatest character building activity under the sun for human hearts and souls." — James Oliver Curwood. DELAWARE DOG TAX TO GAME FUND IT IS the duty of every person in Delaware outside of the corporate limits of Wilmington, owning or having under control, or on premises upon which said person resides, any dog over four months of age, to pay on or before the first day of March of each calendar year, a li- cense tax of one dollar to the Board of Game and Fish Commissioners of the State of Delaware. On account of a mad dog having been found in the neighborhood of Rock- land, all of Brandywine Hundred and that portion of Chris- tiana Hundred, east of the Kennett Pike, has been quaran- tined until further notice and all dogs in this area must be securely tied or confined on owner's premises. Any dogs running at large, unless accompanied by the owner or cus- todian, shall be killed. Don't keep your dog in a warm room all day and then tur him out in the cold at night. FIRE A SALUTE AT TRAMP CATS LICENSE laws for cats, similar to those now in force for dogs, have been announced as the 1932 objective of the International Cat Society, as its first active move toward abolishing stray cats in the cities and country. The society is pointing out that experts of the U. S. De- partment of Agriculture and state conservation departments have branded straying and night-hunting cats as one of the greatest obstacles in the way of efforts to increasing bird life in urban and suburban communities. Game authorities have outlawed the abandoned and straying cats found in the fields and woods as a serious menace to game birds. Officials have warned that in addition to their destruc- tion of bird life, which is economically invaluable, cats are "subject to a more virulent form of hydrophobia than the dig. and to the human form of tuberculosis, diptheria. ringworm, anthrax and scarlet fever, and are especially undesirable when infesting city filth." AROUND THE WORLD IN JIG TIME THE luckless hunter who, missing a flock of ducks zooming straight over his blind, shouted after them, "Go it, you idiots! The world is round and you'll be back in five minutes anyhow!" was slightly exaggerating the speed of waterfowl according to statistics compiled by the U. S. Biological Survey. Earlier estimates of the swiftness of ducks credited these birds with phenomenal speeds, but airplanes and automobiles have made possible an accurate check on the speed of their flight under vary- ing conditions. The survey has concluded from its collec- tion of reports that ducks and geese do not ordinarily fly more than 40 miles an hour, although they are capable of increasing their speed greatly for a short time when frightened. The survey places the high speed of mallards, spoonbills and black ducks at 50 miles an hour; pintail and wood duck at 60; widgeon and gadwall at 70; redhead at 90; bluewinged and green-winged teal and canvasbacks at 100. The Canada goose can lfy around SO miles an hour. The fastest bird timed was a duck hawk in California, which is said to have darted at the rate of 165 to 180 miles an hour while chasing its prey. There's still a lot of old fashioned fellers who prefer a well- formed woman to a well informed one. FARMERS FIGHT HUNGRY DUCKS IN GRAIN CALIFORNIA'S Division of Fish and Game "has the sit- uation well in hand," according to officials, after the story went over the country recently that farmers in the northern Imperial Valley section near Brawley had risen in "armed rebellion" against wild ducks from the Salton sea sanctuaries. Thousands of hungry waterfowl were said to have invaded grain and vegetable fields, arous- ing the ire of farmers and ranchers. A federal game pro- tector and several state wardens were dispatched to in- vestigate and to aid in remedying the situation. E. L. Macaulay, chief of patrol of the state division, an- nounced that since every effort is being made to increase the depleted duck population, irreparable losses can occur at this time unless protective laws are strictly observed. He said the division is willing and able to cooperate in handling all such problems. Wild fowl have been forced to concentrate upon sanctuaries because of unfavorable water and living condi- tions existing for them elsewhere today. Methods will be devised to keep the ducks off adjacent fields. A pelt taken in December is worth three taken pre-season. LOOK OVER YOUR FISHING TACKLE MONTANA'S spring fishing season opens -in May, hence now is the time for all good fishermen to come to the aid of their tackle. Tackle should be carefully in- spected now and put in readiness for use so that disap- pointment will not come later, when on the spur of the moment, one decides to go fishing and find his tackle in bad shape. Hooks should be sharpened, flies adjusted, and all tackle not in the best of shape discarded. With few exceptions it will be necessary for anglers to lay in a new supply of gut leaders and line. This material is not al- ways properly preserved from season to season. Give wild life creatures a chance on the highways. RUSSIA RAISING RABBITS SOVIET RUSSIA has included rabbit raising in their five-year plan, and when the end of this has been reached, some 45 million pelts can be counted OB The breeds receiving the most attention are Blues, Whites, i Flemish and New Zealands), Spotted Whites and Greys. Chinchillas are not being raised on the general plan, bin recieve more or less special attentions on limited rabbitries which have been established. Never point a gun at anything that you don't want to kill. It is always the "unloaded" gun that causes serious accidents. If you are thirsty and have no water, place a small pebble in your mouth. Page Nine MONTANA j^jWSIUP LIF! • Buillhe^dg audi Reform Schools Doe9t Mix By Floyd L. Smith RISTOCRATIC disposi- tions of the majority of Montana's game fish which require an array of tackle and angling gear, are being given a shock by activ- ities of the State Fish and Game Department in making possi- ble the planting of thousands of hum- ble catfish, bullheads, crappie and sun- fish which delight freckle-faced young- sters who enjoy watching the bobber go down. Through the cooperative agreement between the state fish and game department and the U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, these warm water fish are being produced at the great pond cul- tural station at Fort Keogh, near Miles City, and' distributed to reservoirs, streams, lakes and sloughs in eastern Montana where the temperature of the water forbids the propagation of trout and grayling. Total distribution of these warm water fish from the Fort Keogh station in 1931 shows the libera- tion of 224, 4S2 large-mouth bass, 402,- 475 sunfish, 27,825 crappies, 50,155 perch, 7,325 catfish and 15,000 unsorted sun- fish and crappies. Montana sportsmen are devotees of the belief that dads should make pals of their lads. Ethics of angling, inculcated during the formative years of the plas- tic mind of the boy, take root and thrive. Minds of men are prone to turn backward to the happiest days of their lives spent in forest, field and stream, hiking alongside Dad. In the words of Eddie Guest — "A feller can't be thinkin' mean when he's a-fishin'." Refreshing memories continue green among veterans of the rod and creel, of dough-bait dropped through the logs in the mill-pond among the sunfish. They picture bare-footed lads stretched full length on the bridge, intently gazing into placid waters, breathlessly watch- ing the approach of the humble bull- head. In the haze of midsummer, with a mop of tousled hair askew through the hole in the battered straw hat, the sportsman of tomorrow gleans whole- some ethics through the fishing of to- day. Hence, Montana's State Fish and Game Department is putting forth in- cessant efforts to provide dads and lads of eastern Montana with the piscatorial sport their waters warrant. Writing in "Outdoor Nebraska," Wil- liam Lytle recently penned a master- piece in his dissertation entitled "Boys and Bullheads." The conclusion may well be applied to Montana. He writes in part: "Some of our game fish have an aris- tocratic disposition and it requires more tackle to catch them than the average fisherman can possess without mort- gaging his house and lot. A man must have a hand painted book of expensive flies, a nine-dollar bamboo or steel rod, wear golf trousers, a pair of hip boots and have a high-speed motorboat be- fore they can be persuaded to bite. They give you the once over with a critical eye and unless you are listed in "Who's Who" they pass you up like the average tourist passes up a hobo on a dusty highway. "There is a fish that never high hats you or looks at the clothes of the man or boy who throws in the bait. A fish that takes whatever is thrown to it and when once hold of the hook, never tries to shake a friend, but submits to the inevitable, crosses its legs and says, 'Now I lay me' and comes out on the bank and seems to enjoy being taken. . This is a fish that is a friend to the poor and one that will sacrifice itself in the interest of humanity and one that our state has cultivated friendly rela- tions with. I allude to the bullhead. "The bullhead never turned a friend down, and to catch him it is not neces- sary to tempt his appetite with a T- bone steak or to display an expensive lot of fishing tackle. Any ordinary hook, a piece of liver or an angle-worm and a willow pole is all the equipment necessary to catch a bullhead. He lies upon the bottom of the stream or pond in the mud, thinking. There is no fish does more thinking or has a bigger head for grasping great questions, or chunks of liver, than the bullhead. His mouth is large and his heart beats for humanity and he is a strong believer in farm relief. If he can't get a piece of liver, most anything you have to of- fer will make a meal for him. "Did you ever watch a boy fishing for bullheads? If you haven't, you have missed something for it is an interest- ing study to watch a boy catch a bull- head. If the boy's shirt is sleeveless, his hair sticking out through the top of his hat and his anatomy exposed to the elements, the bullhead will bite just the same as though he was clothed in golf breeches and plaid stockings. The bullhead seems to be dozing on the muddy bottom and one not familiar with the habits of the bullhead would say that he would not bite. But wait! There is a movement and his cowcatcher moves slowly toward the piece of liver. He does not wait to smell of it and canvass in his mind whether it is fresh or not. It makes no difference, liver is liver; and he argues that here is a fam- ily out of meat. 'My country calls, and I must go' says the bullhead to him- self and he opens his mouth and the liver disappears. "The boy may be building air castles or picking sand burrs out of his bare feet and does not think of his bait for half an hour, but the bullhead is in no hurry. He has responded to his coun- try's call and proceeds to digest the liver. He realizes that his days will not be long in the land, or water, more properly speaking, and he argues that if he swallows the bait and digests it before the boy pulls him out, he will be just that much ahead. Finally the boy comes to himself and thinks of the bait, pulls it out with a wild jerk and the bullhead is suspended from the branch of a nearby tree. After consid- erable effort the bullhead is dislodged and the boy proceeds to cut him open to get the hook out. Some fish only take the bait in a polite way, and are only caught around the selvage of the mouth, and they are comparatively easy to dislodge. Not so with the bullhead. He says if liver is a good thing, the bet- ter it tastes all the way down. When the boy gets the hook out of the hid- den recesses of the bullhead he feels like the nigger preacher who took up a collection and didn't get a cent so he expressed his thanks for getting his hat back. "There is one drawback to the bull- head and that is his horns. We doubt 0 2 4 6 INCHES THE SQUARE-TAIL CATFISH This member of the catfish family (Ameiuridae) is also known by the unauthorized names of bullhead, horned pout, yellow catfish, small catfish and black catfish. It is the typical "boy fish" now being provided for the sport of youngsters of Montana. The fish is marked by the smooth skin, absence of scales, two dorsal fins, the stout spine on the pectoral fin. several barbels about the mouth and nostrils and the square tail. He attains a length of 15 inches at times. Page Ten MONTANA WEIL© of: if a boy ever descended into the in- nards of a bullhead to search tor his book, that did not before his work was complete run a horn into his vital parts. But the boy seems to expect it and the bullhead enjoys it. We have seen a bull- head lie on the bank and become dry, and to all appearances dead to all that was going on, and when a boy sat down on him and got a horn in buttock and yelled bloody murder, the bullhead would grin from ear to ear, and wag his tail as though applauding for an en- core. The bullhead never complains; we have seen a boy take a dull knife and proceed to follow a fish line down a bullhead from head to the end of his anatomy, and all the time there would be an expression of sweet peace on the countenance of the bullhead, as though he enjoyed it. "If we were preparing a picture rep- resenting 'Resignation' and wished to represent a scene of suffering in which the sufferer was lighthearted, seeming to recognize that all was for the best and that he was fulfilling his mission here on earth, we should take for the subject, a bullhead, with a boy search- ing with a dull knife for a swallowed fish hook. "The boy who spends his spare time on the banks of a stream or pond, with a willow pole in his hand, fishing for bullheads, has a better chance of mak- ing good in his life's work than the boy that spends his spare time around the poolhalls and on our city streets. Mother Nature seems to instill a vision of greatness in the heart of a boy dur- ing the hours he spends with her in our great outdoors. A vision that will go with him the rest of his life and have a tendency to keep him from evil. Let us have more bullheads and places to put them and then encourage our boys to spend as much of their spare time, as possible, in the open country, and the future of our younger generation will be assured. Bullheads and reform schools don't mix. so let's have more bullheads." ALL SEVEN OF THEM A newspaper man called on a famous politician at the close of a very busy day. When the reporter had been ad- mitted the politician said: "You ought to feel highly honored, young man. Do you know that I have refused to see seven of your compatriots already today?" "I know," replied the reporter, "I'm them." — Weekly Scotsman. Old Man Ground Hog Sees His Shadow OTHER THAN THAT, SHE'S ALL BIGHT East Texas Waitress: I have stewed kidneys, boiled tongue, fried liver, and pig's feet. Oil Scout: Don't tell me your trou- bles, sister, bring me a steak. GAME CARRIES SCRIPTURE A Canada goose killed by Howard Greenawalt of Kutztown had a ring on one leg, upon which was inscribed, "Jack Miner, Kingsville, Ontario, Can- ada," and a Biblical passage from Mark 11:22, "Have Faith in God." MONTANA weather guessers were given another chore on February 2 when the ground hog made his theoretical trip into the open, glimpsed about him, and then made up his mind whether to permit six weeks of winter to continue, or to call it off for the year and declare spring's arrival. In practically all portions of the state the ground hog was presumed to have emerged into the sunshine, saw his shadow and then holed up. But who- ever picked February 2 for ground hog Old Man Ground Hog day must have gotten his dates mixed. On that day, says Arthur H. Howell of the Bureau of Biological Survey, U. S. Department of Agriculture, who is an authority on ground hogs, every sensible ground hog is sleeping soundly in his underground burrow. The popular notion of the ground hog as an indicator of weather condi- tions is a superstition that today has only a whimsical foundation, accord- ing to the biologist. Its origin is un- known, though there are various ex- planations. It may have been im- ported from Europe, where there is a similar long-standing superstition about the significance of hedge hog's appear- ance on Candlemas Day (February 2) ; early settlers may have transferred this belief to the ground hog — a distinctly different animal. Because the name is "ground hog" day, Mr. Howell be- lieves that the superstition must have originated in southern states. There the animal is called a ground hog: in the northern states it is called a wood- chuck. Another naturalist has traced the beginning of the belief to the ne- groes of the "eastern middle states." As a matter of fact, however, there are no grounds at all on which to base the ground hog's reputation as a weath- er prophet, says Mr. Howell. The no- tion lives today merely because it is picturesque. If there were a day on which the woodchuck forejudges the winter's dura- tion, it could not be February 2 any- where in the United States. Actual records indicate that the sleeper does not rouse himself until the latter half of February and often not until the early days of March. The earliest date on record for the ground hog's appear- ance, says Mr. Howell, is February 7, and this occurred down in North Caro- lina where the winters are not so long as in the northern states. So the tradition that the ground hog rouses from its winter's sleep on Febru- ary 2, that it comes out of its burrow and ends its hibernation if it sees no shadow, and that its actions have meteorological significance has no value in itself. It should be classed with prophecies like these: "As the first of January is, so will be all the rest of the month," and "The second of January determines the weather of February and also that of September." As the weather bureau of the U. S. De- partment of Agriculture pointed out on ground hog day of 1929, the best way to tell what the weather is going to be on any number of days is to go on each of these days to one's daily news- paper. Last Heath Hen Shows Up Again THE last heath hen on earth, be- lieved to have been dead, as it had not been seen for nine months, has again been sighted near the tra- ditional booming field of the last heath hen tribe on Martha's Vineyard Island, Massachusetts, according to Dr. Alfred O. Gross, ornithologist of Bow- doin College, Brunswick, Maine, offi- cially in charge of heath hen surveys for a number of years. Apparently in perfect health, this cock bird, sole survivor since 192S of a species which formerly ranged New- England states in greater numbers than any other bird, returned to the farm of James Green near West Tisbury on February 9. It was observed by .Mr Green and others. Warm weather of early spring, usu- ally in March, has always sent the bird from its seclusion in the scrub oaks of the island, back to a meadow on the Green farm where for many years the only remaining flock of heath hens were wont to gather for their courtship antics. Although tourists still line the highway bordering the meadow to watch the last bird during his spring visits, he has not strutted, boomed and inflated the orange sacs on either side of his head since his disappointment in 1929. At that time he boomed almost daily until May 11, and finally retired to the scrub oaks sadly crestfallen. No fe- males had come to the trysting ground to admire him. A second attempt was under way by Oklahoma game officials to provide the last bird with the companionship of five prairie chickens, near relatives of the heath hen, when Dr. Gross an- nounced the probability that the species was finally extinct. His reappearance may cause this plan to be carried through. Page Eleven JVLONTANA WHIUD lif: /*&- Conservation Verses Progress Will We Continue to Rob Future Generations? By Martin R. Goshorn, Member Indiana Conservation Commission EST we forget." These words, when immortal- ized by the poet lau- reate of England were intended more particu- larly to arouse the peo- ple of a great nation to a sense of the dan- gers and hazards of war. A surer and more terrible calamity confronts every nation than even the evils of war. While war takes its toll of life and property, and jeopardizes the peace and tranquility of every home for a time, its effects are tem- porary, and the wound it makes soon heals and the race moves on. That humanity may happily perpet- uate itself, the question of conserva- tion and restoration of earth's natural resources is the all-important one. When God created the earth he made it a huge storehouse for men. The command was, "Subdue and have do- minion over." Man was to be the "dresser and keeper." He was never given the authority to destroy. The gifts were for the race and not for a generation. If properly cared for they were am- ple and sufficient for all time. Many of them were in themselves, under proper conditions, recreative, and i£ man had used his energies in dressing and keeping instead of selfishly de- stroying them there would be no dim- inishing of the supply. But greed and .■selfishness have apparently ruled. The trail of what we call progress is lit- tered with ruins and destruction. We may rob nature but we will bring upon ourselves and our posterity the inevitable punishment. Both the crime and the penalty move stealthily and almost unnoticed. Generations must pass before the climax is reached. Yet before we are aware — as individuals, as communities and as nations — we find ourselves the victims of our own incorn- petenl stewardship. Man may be termed as originally a sportsman. In primitive times he sup- ported himself by taking of the wlid life, animal and vegetable, which was necessary for his sustenance. To this he gradually added the occupation of agriculture. To both the huntsman and the agriculturist the virgin forests were of utmost importance. For the hunter it was the habitat for the quarry. It was his sanctuary from the elements and it provided the logs for his cabin. From it the pioneer farmer took the timber for his build- ings, the rails for his fences, the logs and puncheon for his bridges. It fur- nished him with his fuel and the wood from which he made the pristine furni- ture and household utensils. Besides these it broke the storms, tempered Great Falls Club Sets State Example MEMBERS of the Great Falls Wild Life Association, of which Mar- tin C. Grinde is president and George M . Bates secretary , have taken significant steps to keep its mem- bership informed regarding activities of the State Fish and Game Depart- ment. At the recent annual meet- ing it was decided that a subscrip- tion to MONTANA WILD LIFE, of- ficial monthly publication of the de- partment, will be included in each membership fee of $3 per year. As the result of this action taken by the foresighted association. additional subscriptions are being submitted regularly to the department and af- filiated members of the association are deriving the benefits. The ex- ample of the Great Falls Wild Life Association may well be emulated by other sportsmen's clubs of the state. the climate and provided for him a rich humous soil, built up of roots and leaf mold, upon which to grow his crops. He was surrounded by all that was necessary for a comfortable and happy subsistence. But like all other peoples, he had the natural craving for gold, and thoughtlessly exchanged his inheritance for that which in itself cannot sustain life. The experiences of the older Asiatic and African civilizations show us in a conclusive manner how by robbing na- ture man brings upon himself the most dire consequences. And today the newer countries, like our own, are called upon to furnish food and cloth- ing for the millions of sick and starv- ing people of ravished, depleted coun- tries. If these people had conserved and judiciously kept and developed the primeval wealth of their lands, the present state of affairs would not ex- ist. They wasted their heritage. They transgressed against the laws of nature and brought upon themselves the in- evitable, namely starvation, which is the most horrible of temporal punish- entirely too far. We have already wan- ments. In America we are following them tonly destroyed one of the most prodigi- ous treasures of wild life, we have wasted an inestimable wealth of prim- itive forests, and now we are continu- ing our open principle of rapine to the soil itself. The virgin soil of millions of our once productive acres is so completely plundered that it faces us as an eyesore to our community, and a hideous monument to a nation's lack of conservation. Worse than this we are not only rob- bing the treasure-house of its visible supplies, but we are tampering with the natural order of things to the extent that we destroy or delay for ages the possibility for their restoration. Nature works slowly in her reconstructive program. The great humous sponge of roots and leaf mold hold a most important place in the harmonious relationship of life and matter. Through its ab- sorbitive and evaporative proclivities it becomes the dispenser of the water that falls upon it in the form of rain and snow. In its natural state it governs the runoff regulating the surface drain- age, the stream flow, the substratum water supply, and to a degree the hu- midity of the atmosphere. For many ages nature has been de- veloping this great sponge blanket for the earth. It is the fat of the earth like the cream that rises to the sur- face of the milk. To destroy it is sui- cide to the race. Nature had thrown about it a safeguard of vegetable life. When we unscrupulously remove the timber, shrubs and native grasses, and their accompanying influences, we im- mediately lose the most important fac- tor of natural control and throw every- thing into a state of chaos. The accumulated wealth of the soil washes to the sea. The subsoil be- comes an impervious watershed. Floods spread havoc in their trail, and the periodic droughts leave death and devas- tation in their wake. Atmospheric conditions and tempera- ture changes becoming extreme and se- vere. Heat and cold, freezing and thawing, floods and droughts, erosion and sedimentation, all work in quick succession and the result comes. When we consider the horrible re- sults of destroying the riches of na- ture we are made to feel with Kipling that people should be aroused to a sense of their possible doom unless principles of conservation are recog- nized and adopted. "Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet Lest we forget — lest we forget." ANYTHING TO OBLIGE Employe: "I've been here for 10 years and doing three meu's work for one man's pay. Now I want a raise." Boss: "I'm sorry. I can't give you a raise now, but tell me who the other two men are, and I'll fire them." CONVENIENT AFFLICTION "Delighted to have met you. Come over some evening soon, and bring your husband." "Thank j ou so much, but we never go anywhere; you see my husband is paralyzed — " "Don't mind that, dear; my husband's that way half the time, himself." Page Twelve MONTANA WEIL® of: S J. A. Weaver TRENUOUS ef- forts put forth by the Montana State Fish and Game Department in pro- tecting and preserv- ing the antelope, are bringing results, ac- cording to reports from herds scattered throughout the state. Perhaps the great- est increase noted has been in the herd on the Sullivan Game preserve in the Square Butte- re- gion in southern Chouteau county, where the little denizens of the prai- ries have grown from a group of a few in 1925 to between 500 and 600 at the present time. The question of equitable distribution and an adequate supply of feed has now become a problem, ac- cording to representatives of the State Fish and Game Department who have investigated conditions. When pioneers headed their prairie schooners westward, antelope herds dotted the plains by hundreds. They were slaughtered, however, to provide food for frontiersmen, for meat for the railway and lumber camps, and they threatened to go the way of the buf- falo. Timely intervention by the State Fish and Game Department has checked losses and prevented extermination de- spite the fact that poaching still con- tinues and the ever-present Indian res- ervation problem is unabated. Antelope that stray to Indian reservations, where state enforcement officers have no jur- isdiction, are for some strange reason considered logical meat for redskins who regard themselves as government wards. They observe no state game laws, scoff at closed seasons and con- tinue depredations under the assumed Sportsmen Join War on Predators MONTANA'S State Fish and Game Commission has extended a general invitation to clubs of sportsmen throughout the state to join the 1932 common enemy contest and participate in the drive against predatory birds and animals. Cash prizes of $500 annually are distrib- uted by the department to winning clubs. Complete information regard- ing the contest has been prepared ready to be transmitted to inquiring clubs. In winning first prize in 1931 the Izaak Walton League chap- ter of Plentywood was instrumental in destroying 549.038 gophers as well as 133 coyotes. 57 crow eggs, 15 hawk eggs. 150 magpies and 152 magpie eggs. The value of the con- test may be estimated from these figures. The damage that might have been caused by more than half a million gophers is far in excess of the cash involved in the contest. Clubs of sportsmen are due to hold their annual meetings during spring months and entrance in the common enemy contest should be acted upon at these gatherings. protection of the government. Efforts are being made to correct the situation. Wyoming was recently taught a severe lesson when an open season was de- clared on these little animals. Slaugh- ter resulted. They were reported run down and shot from automobiles. Sports- manship was forgotten in the lust to kill. Non-resident hunters seized the opportunity to collect trophies and confusion and dismay resulted. James A. Weaver, deputy game war- den stationed at Lewistown. was re- cently sent to the Sullivan Game Pre- serve near Square Butte to investigate a complaint from ranchers that dam- age was being done to their feed sup- ply by antelope. The following ex- cerpts are taken from Warden Weaver's report: "In company with W. P. Sullivan. rancher and stockman, I rode over tin range and found a great increase in the number of antelope since the cri i tion of the Sullivan game preserve in 1!I25. "I was called to Square Butte in 1925 to investigate a report of antelope having been shot. At that time we counted between 100 and 125 antelope. "We discussed the advisability of creating a game preserve out of some of the Sullivan pasture land, approxi- mately 7,600 acres under one fence, and Mr. Sullivan was very much in favor of this. The matter was then taken up with the department and the Sullivan game preserve was created soon afterward. "I will venture to say there are now between 500 and 600 antelope on and near that game preserve. This shows how antelope, when properly protected, will multiply. Mr. Sullivan deserves unstinted credit, for he has certainly protected them. They have eaten a lot of feed which he could well have used for pasture. "None of the people in the vicinity of the game preserve wish to see the season opened on the antelope. I talked to quite a number of them, stockmen and grain farmers, and they all want to have antelope around but when it comes to seeing from 100 to 200 an- telope at one time in their grain fields they feel there must be something done. All of these antelope are not on the Sullivan game preserve all of the time but they make that their home." ACCURACY Mother: "When that naughty boy threw stones at you, why did you not come and tell me. instead of throwing them back at him?" Willie: "What good would it do to tell you? You couldn't hit the side of a barn." Antelope present an impressive picture on the Montana skyline. P.-ige Thirteen ,M.©NTANA WEILD LIFE IN a large middle-western city there was a grocer who worked hard and saved his money so that his old age would be provided for. For 50 years he stuck to his grocery store. He worked and saved too hard to have much pleasure, but he was looking tor- ward to the day when he could retire. Then he would have his fun. He would have money and leisure, and he would make up for the years of hard work. Well, he finally retired — money in the bank, an assured income, a nice home, everything he needed. "Now!" he told his friends, "I am going to enjoy life." And just 24 hours after he had retired he dropped dead. If a novelist put that in a book we wouldn't believe it. We would say that things don't really happen that way, and we would accuse the novelist of straining too hard for an ironic effect. But life takes queer twists that are not permitted to good fiction. It all hap- pened, precisely as it is described here; and all we can do is admit that there are times when wisdom and prudence are horribly confounded. As a matter of fact, this sort of thing happens fairly often — in a little differ- ent way. Not many people who have prepared for a care-free and leisurely old age die just as they begin to taste their reward, of course; but. they get cheated out of their dues, just the same. They find that leisure, after a lifetime of hard work, is boredom. They find that they have forgotten how to play. They find that the empty hours are de- pressing because they do not know what to do with them. They find them- selves feeling that they have been put upon the shelf, and they grow ten years older in twelve months. Perhaps we aren't meant to be cau- tious. Deferring one's happiness to the end, when one will have time and means to take it, is risky. For most of us that gilded tomorrow will never dawn. If we don't get our happiness along the way we shall never get it at all. The real Joy of living is not some- thing that can be banked and drawn on at some future date. It has to be taken from day to day. It is compounded usually of many little experiences. The haze of an autumn afternoon over a flaming woodland; the confiding smile of a child, nestling in one's arms for a fairy tale; the smell of a clear wind as one trudges along a beach by blue water; the sudden revelation of ten- derness in the eyes of a loved one; the brief vanishing strain of a bit of music — of such things is a satisfying life fabricated. You cannot postpone them, you cannot wait for them. You must get them as you go along, or you will miss them entirely. Sportsmen have learned this lesson. They have learned that it pays to slip away from the toil of the day or the week and spend a few hours in the Sunset On the Prairies 1 REMEMBER in the sixties, when as far as I could see, It had never lord or ruler but the buffalo and me; Ere the blight of man was on it, and the endless acres lay Just as God Almighty left them on the restful seventh day; When no sound rose from the vastness but a murmured hum and din, Like the echoed voice of silence in an unheard prairie hymn; And I lay at night and rested in my bed of blankets curled Much alone as if I was the only man in all the world. But the prairie's passed, or passing, with the passing of the years, 'Til there is no West worth knowing, and there are no pioneers; They have riddled it with railroads, throbbing on, and on, and on, They have ridded it of danger, 'til the zest of it is gone, And I've saddled up my pony, for I'm dull and lonesome here, To go westward, westward, westward, 'til we find a new frontier; To get back to God's own wildness and the skies we used to know — But there is no West — it's conquered — and I don't know where to go. out-of-doors re-creating themselves in mind and body. It adds to the joy of living and it increases the length of life. Further, sportsmen have learned that it isn't the game or fish taken which counts, but the innumerable pleasures which form part of the trip. In short, the pursuit is the excuse, the trip is the thing desired, though game or fish must be taken on the trip to make it complete. Hunting and fishing no longer find their greatest value in the food they produce, but in helping us guard against ennui and stagnation, and in enticing us into the woods and fields — in short, in adding to the joy of liv- ing for the hundreds of thousands who have discovered that pleasure must be taken day by day. — The Standard, Ex- celsior Springs, Missouri. PLAN NEW COMMISSION Mississippi will not long be the only commonwealth in the nation without a game and fish department. A commit- tee composed of representatives from the three largest organizations within that state, including the American Le- gion, Izaak Walton League and the Mississippi Association, are studying systems used in other states and a pro- posed measure will soon be submitted to the governor. MUSKRAT IS IN BAD What may prove healthy for one country may prove poisonous for an- other. The British House of Lords re- cently passed a • "destructive foreign animal bill" which imposes a penalty of 20 pounds on any person turning muskrats loose or allowing them to es- cape from any enclosure. Except for the states, only Russia and Finland want anything to do with the muskrat. OF COURSE Curious: Why do they call sail boats "she?" Cautious: Because they make a bet- ter showing in the wind. Better Taxidermy allows you to be just as proud of your trophy after it is mounted as when you bagged it. Lentfer Bros. Succesors to Jonas Bros. Taxidermists 215 W. Park St. Livingston, Mont. Phone 337-W INTERMOUNTAIN KENNELS 313 Pine Street, Helena, Mont. ENGLISH SETTERS AND LABRADOR RETRIEVERS Registered Stock Only BEST OF BLOOD LINES PUPPIES AND BREEDING STOCK FOR SALE Correspondence Invited I>R. B. C. SHEARER Helena GUY F. SAUNDERS Bozeman GEORGE L. GRUNER Helena Page Fourteen MONTANA wild lif: Holt Is Named To Direct Sanctuaries ERNEST G. HOLT, internationally known naturalist and explorer, has been appointed director of sanct- uaries for the National Association of Audubon Societies, according to an- nouncement by Dr. T. Gilbert Pearson, president of that organization. Mr. Holt, recognized as one of the leading ornithologists in the United States, has led many scientific expeditions, or con- ducted surveys, particularly through the tropics, for a number of institu- tions, including the American Museum of Natural History and Carnegie Mu- seum of Pittsburgh. His most recent expedition, conducted under the aus- pices of the National Geographic So- ciety, took him up the Orinoco river for hundreds of miles. The National Association of Audu- bon Societies owns, guards and protects about 70 different areas, consisting of sanctuaries for birds and mammals, or nesting colonies of sea and other water birds, in various parts of the country. One of those owned by the association is the Roosevelt Bird Sanctuary at Oy- ster Bay, Long Island, surrounding on three sides the little cemetery where Theodore Roosevelt is buried. On this 12-acre tract, by the grave of America's great naturalist President, many species of song birds are protected throughout the year. Alarm Clocks Rescue Fishes THE indispensible (and utterly con- temptible) common bedside variety of alarm clock has ascended to a scientific station of honor in the con- trol of natural wild life. Recently an emergency appeal informed officials of the California Division of Fish and Game that a colony of black-crowned night herons were making merry with goldfish in the public squares of Alameda. Dispatched to investigate, E. L. Sum- ner, Jr., assistant bird and mammal zoologist, reported himself in a quand- ary. Potatoes and whatnot hurled at the herons failed to dampen their ar- dor for night fishing inside the city limits. The use of guns was not ad- visable. Sumner slept on the question of sav- ing the goldfish of Alameda. In fact he overslept on it — and got an idea. He strung four healthy alarm clocks in the tall "'heron tree," where the birds napped all day after each night of dodg- ing missiles and gulping the prized gold- fish. The alarms were set to go off at half-hour intervals. After a sleepless week the herons disappeared from their strangely ser- enaded retreat, and haven't shown up again. The Hermit Some hanker for home and a family; Some travel near and far; Some eat their grub at a snobbish club With a name like a Pullman car. Some cherish the boon of a furnished room Or eat at a chop house vile, While some retreat to a quiet street, Where "boarding" is the style, Some spend their wealth in search of health, While some seek naught but pleasure. And others swear that love alone Is this world's greatest treasure. Some seek the filthy lucre; some the bubble, Fame, But whether it's gold or the passion old, It's all life's fickle game. I crave not these; I'm easy to please — My wants are very few. I jes' want a shack with a spring at the back A settin' among some trees. A pipe an' a gun, my ole dog, "Chum," A fishin' line or two; A couple o' hooks, a few good books, An' nothin' but fishin' to do. GOATS REVERT TO WILD Among the game species listed by the Tennessee Game Commission as flour- ishing in a 35,000-acre tract of wood- land recently acquired as a game pre- serve is a herd of goats reverted to the wild, and scores of hogs which also have turned wild after years of roaming the hills. THE IDEA! "You were crazy to marry your boss and now I hear you are suing him for divorce," said an old friend, meeting the former stenog. "Yeh!" she admitted, "the big boob seemed to think he could go right on dictating to me after we were married." SUBSCRIPTION COMBINATION American Game Protective Association, 2273 Woolworth Building, New York City, N. Y. Herewith find remittance of $2.00 for membership in the Association Including subscription to "AMERI- CAN GAME" and "MONTANA WILD LIFE." Combination Price Membership In American Game Protective Assn. Subscription to "American Game" MONTANA WILD LIFE If you are already a subscriber to "MONTANA WILD LIFE" and wish to renew for one year from the ex- piration at your subscription please mention that fact. Add 50 cents for Canadian postage; $1.00 for foreign postage. $2.00 Name .... Address Date Help the Cause! Subscribe Now ! To the Editor, MONTANA WILD LIFE, State Capitol Building, Helena, Montana. Please send MONTANA WILD LIFE to the following addresses for one year, beginning with the next issue after re- ceipt of this order. Check is enclosed to cover these subscriptions at $1 each: NAME Address NAME Address NAME Address NAME Address NAME Address MONTANA WILDLIFE Official Monthly Publication of the State Fish and Game Department Remarkable Wew Arms Catalog !j Fully Illustrated Large*, Stack In U. S. American & Imported Arms & Ammunition A. F. STOEGER, Inc Oldest Exclusive Curt House in America 509 Fifth Ave. (at 42nd St.), New York Page Fifteen u. a. ruaiAiit PAID Helena, Montana Permit No. 27 WHIMD 3LSFB -J ^W"S. Montana's Big Game Kill Passes 109000 Mark MONTANA'S big game kill during the 1931 season, as reported to the State Fish and Game Depart- ment by hunters who have returned the report cards from their licenses, has already passed the 10,000 mark and the cards continue to roll into headquarters at Helena despite the pro- vision o£ law which insists that they be returned before January 1, 1932. Figures that are complete for all cards turned into headquarters as of Febru- ary 23 show that 10,723 deer and elk were killed during the season in 28 open counties. A total of 8,051 hunters have re- turned cards reporting no luck. These DEER figures signify that approximately 18,- 000 hunters have been heard from, many reporting the kill of an elk and a deer on the same card. By the time the count is completed it is expected that the deer kill will near 10,000, the present figure showing 6.70S bucks and 2.29S does with a total of 9,006 deer. The elk kill thus far shows a total of 1,717 head or 935 bulls and 7S2 cows. Few foresighted sportsmen would have ventured the wild guess at the close of the season that the kill had been as heavy. Lincoln county, in the extreme north- western corner of the state, maintains ELK its lead with 1,343 bucks and 67S does or a total of 2,021 deer killed in that one county during the last open season. In Flathead county the kill of female deer was greater than that of bucks, the count showing 677 males and 712 female deer in addition to 225 bull elk and 184 cow elk. Lewis and Clark county reports the amazing total of 501 buck deer, 137 bull elk and 100 cows. Veteran sports- men credit the plentiful number of deer to the operation of the buck law, which forbids the killing of female deer in all except six counties. The tabulation by counties, which is complete to February 23, follows: Bucks Beaverhead 106 Big Horn 8 Broadwater 155 Cascade 175 Deer Lodge 64 Flathead 677 Gallatin 185 Granite 224 Jefferson 148 Judith Basin . 242 Lake 206 Lewis and Clark .. 501 Lincoln — . 1,343 Madison 136 Meagher 334 Mineral 457 Missoula 476 Park 157 Powell 214 Ravalli 236 Sanders 470 Does Bulls Cows 712 225 128 33 184 78 45 146 678 137 100 571 134 257 9 3 9 20 162 62 71 37 14 13 11 19 129 50 52 44 Silver Bow Stillwater Sweet Grass ... Teton Wheatland Glacier Golden Valley 37 48 72 31 3 3 39 43 Good 61 O O 69 64 22 1,541 244 138 57 91 229 255 1,197 87 157 452 309 139 175 192 407 22 36 42 15 17 2 RANGE FOREST Fair 30 2 27 36 18 377 56 76 44 72 64 195 370 34 94 151 127 101 59 132 172 9 11 12 19 8 Poor 7 O O 23 39 10 159 46 52 33 48 22 170 142 23 55 51 45 43 54 83 106 5 3 13 37 1 1 Sheeped 5 o 15 1 49 7 11 5 24 5 61 56 10 35 35 19 12 21 64 76 1 5 2 10 2 On 82 1 124 101 48 1,184 318 224 102 197 167 446 1,178 120 271 353 271 301 216 386 546 29 43 55 74 28 2 2 Off 18 7 29 55 7 833 27 195 31 22 129 179 531 26 35 142 166 78 79 68 146 3 5 12 3 2 1 1 Totals 6,708 2,298 935 782 Total cards reporting no game killed — 8,051. 6,013 2,299 1,274 534 6,869 2,830 Page Sixteen • -