A SPORTSMAN'S EDEN 39 



never to return, five or six years ago. No elk 

 and no signs of elk have been seen here within 

 that period, according to reputable native ob- 

 servers. 



And what a shame this is! Here lie thou- 

 sands of square miles of country admirably 

 adapted to elk, in addition to other game ani- 

 mals, capable of maintaining large herds, and 

 yet unutilized. This is an example of our 

 thoughtless waste in the past and our heedless- 

 ness of the future. Had the government taken 

 moderate care to preserve the animals, there 

 might still have been here a permanent herd suf- 

 ficiently large to supply an annual increase that 

 would permit a reasonable open hunting sea- 

 son each year. 



Even yet it would not seem too great a task to 

 restock these ranges with a small nucleus herd, 

 but it would be quite useless to do so unless 

 the government were to establish a stricter sur- 

 veillance than at present. There is practically 

 no restraint upon poaching in Arizona. Ani- 

 mals and birds are killed out of season, and 

 those who kill them have little or no fear of 

 punishment and rarely are punished. 



It was particularly gratifying to discover un- 

 mistakable evidence that a small band of moun- 

 tain sheep still inhabits Baldy. I was also as- 



