364 The Ruffed Grouse 



have a good root-top ratio, that is, roots about equal to top in 

 development. Stock may be laiger than the dimensions given as 

 long as the plant is small enough to be easily handled in planting. 



CONTROL OF THE HARVEST 



Proper and Flexible Laws. Any sound system of game manage- 

 ment requires a framework of good, workable laws in which to 

 function. Since the grouse is a very dynamic resource, the laws 

 pertaining to it should be flexible enough to provide for quick ad- 

 justments when needed. Fundamental is the centering of discretion- 

 ary authority for harvest limitations in the executive of the conserva- 

 tion agency of the state. This requires the delegation of this author- 

 ity by the state legislative body. And to be successful it requues an 

 intelligent, responsible, and independent executive branch backed 

 by an able staff of technical men. 



Most state legislative bodies up to the present have been unwill- 

 ing to release this authority. But it is manifestly impossible for a 

 large pohtical body to gather the necessary facts that bear upon 

 hunting restrictions, seasons, bag hmits, and the like, or to take 

 timely action. When changes are needed they may be required 

 quickly and often at times when legislative action is out of the 

 question. The only sensible system is to place the responsibility 

 where it can be used with speed and be guided by impartial atten- 

 tion to the biological facts. 



The histoiy of grouse laws, as with all game laws, is one of grad- 

 ually increasing restrictions on the freedom of the individual to 

 hunt. Changing conditions of habitat and human populations made 

 these laws a necessity if the sport and species were to be preserved. 



However, it should be borne in mind that the purpose of game 

 laws is fundamentally to protect a living resource and to provide 

 for an equitable harvest of the annual crop. Both objectives are of 

 the utmost importance, but it is also true that they tend in opposite 

 directions. The greater the protection the smaller is likely to be the 

 harvest; and the bigger the harvest the more likelihood of endan- 

 gering the safety of the species. Game laws are therefore a compro- 

 mise. They should be designed to permit the greatest possible sus- 

 tained harvest without endangering the status of the breeding stock. 



In states having adequate grouse range, there should be an open 



