526 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Pub. Doc. 



with certain special conditions which have recently arisen. 

 The remedy for present conditions is clear, but difficult to 

 apply ; namely, to prohibit spring shooting, to restrict the 

 sale of game birds, and to prevent market hunting and 

 indiscriminate slaughter of game and small birds. The 

 destruction of birds by foreigners has thus far assumed a 

 serious aspect in only a few States. The most successful 

 means of dealing with it thus far suggested is a ten-dollar 

 hunting license required of all foreign-born unnaturalized 

 residents of the State. Such a law has been adopted in 

 both Louisiana and Pennsylvania, and has thus far proved 

 quite satisfactory." 



Bounty Laws. — Sufficient protection will be given to 

 birds against their natural enemies by the shooters them- 

 selves, when they learn what protection is needed. All 

 gunners will shoot the Cooper and sharp-shinned hawks at 

 sight, when they know them and know their character. 

 They will also shoot cats, foxes, crows, squirrels and all the 

 enemies of birds indiscriminately, whenever they recognize 

 them as enemies. Hence, so long as we allow the shooting 

 of game, the shooters are likely to keep the enemies of 

 birds within reasonable limits. Crows, foxes and bird- 

 hawks may increase in some cases, owing to their well- 

 known ability to take care of themselves ; but the law does . 

 not protect any of these creatures, and they may be kept in 

 subjection without the stimulus of bounty laws. Bounty 

 laws may have been wise and even necessary in the early 

 history of this Commonwealth, when there were Avolves, 

 bears, panthers and rattlesnakes to be exterminated ; now, 

 however, they are in general unwise, unnecessary, uncalled 

 for, and in eifect positively injurious. 



We must admit that such laws operate to reduce the num- 

 bers of the animals proscribed by them, provided the bounty 

 is made sufficiently large. It is perfectly clear that any 

 animal, the destruction of which will put much money into 

 some one's pocket, is doomed to the same kind of persecu- 

 tion as was the game before it was protected by law. The 

 result of this kind of persecution is })atent to all ; and if a 

 heavy uniform bounty on any one animal could be paid 



