1912 GAME AND FISHERIES. 45 



iiig liis very busy time last November and part of December, he has to thank the 

 agent and other officials of the Canadian Express Co. there for the kind assistance 

 they gave him at all times to aid him in making his inspections without additional 

 difficulties. Of course they receive the goods, and it is the duty of the officers of 

 the Department to detect them passing through, and, if illegal, seize and hold. 



There is a considerable traffic in ducks, shipped by game dealers at Port 

 llowan and other points on Lake Erie. He was obliged to make several seizures, 

 and had some trouble with certain dealers in impressing upon their minds the ad- 

 visability of obeying the law by not indiscriminately shipping tlieir ducks all over 

 the Province to those who are not game dealers. He also found that the non- 

 resident shooters were shipping more ducks home in each box than the coupon 

 allowed. But the only remedy is to seize all illegal shipments, according to law. 



He says that the deer-shooting license should be the deer-shipping tag or 

 coupon, as the law now says one deer to each man. He also had in view the best 

 places to place men, so that the best results could be obtained. He would say 

 from experience this traffic should be controlled by an Inspector at Hamilton (the 

 Niagara frontier), as he finds Hamilton is a strategic point, and the other prin- 

 cipal point is Toronto. There are also other places where men might be placed 

 to advantage. If tbe Toronto and Hamilton men have solicitous proclivities, 

 which all officers of the Department should have more or less, even if there are 

 not men at other points they ought to clean up a considerable amount of contra- 

 band shipped fish, furs and game. Although the present system is giving satis- 

 faction to some extent, he thinks by going over the matter carefully with those 

 engaged in this particular work they miglit arrive at a much better and more 

 satisfactory policy. 



Illegal acts. His duty, when the deer season started on the 1st November, was 

 at the railway stations watching for illegally shipped deer, and while looking after 

 deer, the shipping of fur, ducks, squirrels, i-abbits, partridge, quail and other game 

 was going on at the same time, and a lot of these were going to the United States, 

 so to do this work he had to work from 7.30 a.m. to 10 p. m. and keep up his other 

 work as well between times. 



During the close season for white fish and trout he found a lot of illegal goods 

 going through, and of course a great deal of seizing and holding up was done by 

 liim. 



The first case of fines and forfeitures was where two fish dealers tried to sell 

 illegally caught pike in Burlington Bay. They were caught with the goods on 

 tliem, and a fine of $10 each was imposed. The next case was when a man was 

 shooting after hours and in the vicinity where wild ducks frequented. This case 

 required a great deal of skill on his part, as the defendant secured the ablest 

 counsel in the city to try to get him free, but he succeeded in having this party 

 fined $5 and costs. The other cases were two foreigners who were shooting out 

 of season and on the Lord's Day. He had them fined $10 each and costs, and con- 

 fiscated tbeir guns and boats. Also two others went out for a day's sport out of 

 season and shot seven cotton tail rabbits. He also had them fined $10 each and 

 costs. 



Taxidermists. He also finds some of the duck sportsmen who shoot for a liv- 

 ing during the duck season, and are taxidermists as well, must shoot bitterns and 

 other protected birds and sell them after they are set up. If not, why, he asks, are 

 such birds found by him in some barber shops in that city from time to time, and 

 when it is known to him that the Department has not issued any license to any 



