276 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Pub. Doc. 



so complete that poaching and trespassing were nearly eliminated. 

 Notwithstanding the shooting done, jjrairie chickens and quail in- 

 creased in numbers, while insect-eating birds became abundant.* 



A somewhat similar system is in operation in North Carolina. 

 Exclusive shooting privileges over farm lands are secured by the 

 sportsman either by paying the owner a certain sum per acre, or by 

 paying all taxes on his real and personal property. The sportsman 

 or the sportsmen's club may thus lease several farms. The lease does 

 not interfere in any way with the rights of the owner to cultivate the 

 land, or with his residence thereon. Planting is encouraged. Many 

 of the lessees furnish the farmers with cow peas or grain for planting, 

 that the quail may have better food and cover, and this planting is 

 often carried out on a large scale. Some of these lessees employ game 

 keepers to destroy the natural enemies of the game and to keep watch 

 for law breakers. Thus the farmer is relieved from some of the trouble 

 and annoyance of guarding his property and prosecuting poachers. 

 This system has become very popular among the southern farmers, 

 and the game is regarded as one of the assets of the farm. In Guilford 

 County more than 150,000 acres have been leased out in this manner, 

 and there are in the State some large preserves, varying in size from 

 9,000 to more than 18,000 acres. This system, as applied in the south, 

 has a tendency to better the condition of the agricultural population, 

 and to give the children of the farmers better educational facilities. 

 Under the laws of North Carolina special taxes are imposed for the 

 support of the school system, and the farmers, realizing that their 

 taxes are paid by the sportsmen, are more likely to vote additional 

 funds for school purposes. Thus the game helps to educate the 

 children.^ This system has brought additional prosperity to the 

 region, and has increased the numbers of game and birds. It gives 

 the farmer opportunities to furnish boats and teams to the hunters, 

 and he and his boys receive some employment as guides and helpers. 



This system has not made much headway in Massachusetts, but 

 farmers who have given it a trial are well satisfied with the result. A 

 number of farmers in southeastern Massachusetts, who have learned 

 the value of the bob-white, find that they can maintain a good stock 

 of these birds by combining, and leasing the shooting rights. Their 

 lands are not much wooded, and are more easily guarded against 

 poachers and trespassers than the wooded lands in some other parts 

 of the State. This may account, in a measure, for their success. 



The principal difficulty in finding lessees for shooting rights lies in 

 the scarcity of the game, but this drawback can be remedied. Wherever 

 the game is protected against excessive shooting, and where such 



* Palmer, Theodore S. Some Benefits the Farmer may derive from Game Protection. 

 Year Book, United States Department of Agriculture. 1904, p. 518. 



' Some of the South Carolina lands are poor and rather barren, and where the rights 

 are taken by the acre the annual rental averages only about 6 cents per acre, — a 

 sum which would look small to Massachusetts farmers. 



