REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE. 55 



THE LACEY ACT. 



The Lacey Act (sees. 242 and 243 of the Penal Code), which 

 relates to the interstate shipment by common carriers of wild ani- 

 mals or birds, should be amended so as to cover the transportation 

 not only by common carriers but by any means whatever of live as 

 well as dead animals and birds, and so as to require that pack- 

 ages containing game be clearly and plainly marked with a state- 

 ment of the number and kinds of animals or birds therein. Provi- 

 sion should be made also for the more effective enforcement of the 

 act, and duly designated employees of the department should be 

 authorized to make arrests for violations committed in their 

 presence, to serve warrants issued by the courts, and to seize wild 

 animals and birds which are being illegally transported. 



ADMINISTRATION OF WILD-LIFE RESERVATIONS. 



From time to time, by act of Congress and Executive orders, 

 large tracts of land have been reserved as breeding grounds, 

 ranges, and refuges for wild animals and birds. The admin- 

 istration of these reservations is committed to the Department 

 of Agriculture. Section 84 of the Penal Code forbids hunting on 

 the bird reservations, except in accordance with regulations pre- 

 scribed by the Secretary of Agriculture. There is no statute, how- 

 ever, making it an offense to trespass on the refuges for wild 

 animals, and no law which authorizes the department to administer 

 the reservations for purposes other than the protection of the birds 

 and animals. Neither is there any authority "conferred by law upon 

 the wardens of the reservations to arrest persons trespassing upon 

 them. Authority similar to that contained in the act of June 4, 

 1897, with reference to the administration of the national forests, 

 should be given the department to regulate the occupancy and use 

 of the reservations, so that they may be devoted to all proper and 

 lawful purposes consistent with the preservation and protection of 

 the birds and animals thereon, and power to properly police them 

 should be vested in the wardens. 



PROTECTION OF OFFICERS FROM VIOLENCE. 



There is now no provision for the punishment of persons who 

 oppose, resist, or assault employees of the Forest Service and the 

 Bureau of Biological Survey in the performance of their duties 

 relating to the administration of the national forests and wild-life 

 reservations and the protection of migratory birds. These em- 

 ployees frequently discharge their duties under hazardous conditions. 

 The lack of any Federal law for their protection is generally 

 known and, in several instances, has encouraged or provoked wholly 



