280 ANIMAL COMPETITORS 



In selecting herd-bucks an intelligent owner 

 will naturally seek the best in all respects ; and 

 if this were carried out generally a greatly im- 

 proved breed of deer would presently be de- 

 veloped. 



The great hindrance in the way of instituting 

 profitable enterprises in this much-to-be de- 

 sired direction is the present condition of the 

 laws relating to deer and venison, which have 

 been made wholly with reference to sportsmen 

 and pot-hunters. These laws vary locally, but 

 in every state, probably, must be modified to 

 admit of deer-farming and the sale of its prod- 

 ucts. Such modifications will probably take 

 the form of licensing private deer-parks and 

 breeding-farms, with a method of tagging the 

 venison so that it can be easily identified. 

 Some progress in this direction has already 

 been made, and more will follow as the industry 

 grows. 



A pest of wild horses. In some parts of the 

 West bands of wild horses, derived from es- 

 caped stock, roam over the thinly settled plains 

 and hills, and threaten to become a serious nui- 

 sance. The United States Forest Service re- 



