DUTY AND POWER OF THE CITIZEN 169 



sions never take the initiative in securing strong 

 measures. Far from it. Very many of the best 

 measures now on the statute books were placed 

 there through their initiative. Among the fighting 

 game commissions of my close acquaintance I men- 

 tion particularly, with pride and satisfaction, that 

 of Pennsylvania, headed by Dr. Kalbfus and Com- 

 missioner John M. Phillips ; the New Jersey Com- 

 mission, headed by Mr. Ernest Napier; the Massa- 

 chusetts Commission, headed by Dr. George W. 

 Field, and the California Commission, led by Mr. 

 Ernest Schaeffle, secretary. At this very hour, the 

 California Commission and its thousands of sup- 

 porters are engaged in a bitter struggle against 

 the largest and most shameless body of wild-life 

 destroyers to be found in any one state. The 

 destroyers, to the number of 30,000 or more, are 

 determined to drain the blood of the wild birds of 

 California down to the very last drop, regardless 

 of the rights of future Californians, regardless of 

 precedents set by other states and in defiance of 

 the wishes of the vast majority of the people of 

 the state. A band of alien-born game-dealers is 

 attempting to ride roughshod over the decent peo- 

 ple of California, and at the same time destroy one 

 of the best state game-laws in the United States. 



Without the active and constant support of 

 private citizens, the California Game and Fish 

 Commission would long ago have been utterly 

 vanquished ; but with that support, it will continue. 



