Page 293 - Our Vanishing Wild Life

Sunk Lands, in your northeastern corner along the St. Francis River, are the greatest wild-fowl refuge anywhere in the Mississippi Valley between the Gulf Coast of Louisiana and the breeding-grounds of Minnesota. A duty to the nation devolves upon you, to protect the migratory water- fowl that visit your great bird refuge from the automatic and pump guns of the pothunters who shoot for northern markets, and kill all that they can kill. Protect those Sunken Lands! Confer a boon on all the people of the Mississippi Valley by making that region a bird refuge in fact as well as in name.
Heretofore, you have permitted hired market gunners from outside }'our borders to slaughter the wild-fowl of your Sunk Lands literally by millions, and ship them to northern markets, with very little benefit to your people. It is time for that slaughter to cease. Don't maintain a duck and goose shambles in Mississippi County, year after year, as North Carolina does ! Do unto other states as you would have other states do
unto you. Do not be afraid to pass nine good laws in one act. Clear your record in the Family of States, and save your fauna before it is too late. It is not fair for you to permit the slaughter of the insectivorous birds that are like the blood of life to the farmer and fruit grower.
California:
The sale of all wild game should be forever prohibited.
The use of automatic and pump shotguns, in hunting, should be prohibited.
The kihing of pigeons and doves as "game" and "food" should be stopped.
The sage grouse and every other species of bird threatened with extinction should
be given ten year close seasons.
The mule deer (if any remain) and the Columbian black-tailed deer in the southern counties should be accorded a ten-year close season.
A large state game preserve should be created immediately, on or near Mount Shasta and abundantly stocked with nucleus herds of antelope, black-tailed deer, bison and elk.
A suitable preserve in the southern part of the state should be set aside for the dwarf elk.
As game laws are generally regarded, California has on her books a series that look rather good to the e3^e, but which are capable of consider- able improvement. All along the line, the birds and quadrupeds of the Golden State are vanishing! Under that heading, a vigorous chapter could be written; but space forbids its development here. Just fancy laws that permit gunning and hunting with dogs, from August until January—one-half the entire year ! Think of the nesting birds that are disturbed or killed by dogs and gunners after other birds
California's wild ducks and geese have been slaughtered to an extent almost beyond belief. The splendid sage grouse and the sharp-tailed grousearegreatlyreducedinnumbers. Ofherhundredsofthousands of antelope, once the cheapest game in the market, scarcely "a trace" remains. Hermountainsheepandmuledeerarealmostextinct. grizzly bears are gone!
Her The most terrible slaughter ever recorded for automatic guns occurred
!
STATE ROLL-CALL FOR NEW LAWS
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