REPORT OP THE PISH AND GAME COMMISSION. 93 



to make up the loss. The public can rest assured that every effort will 

 be made to bring back the streams to normal conditions. 



On account of the greater niiinl)cr of fisliermen it will be necessary to 

 shorten the open season on trout so that the fry will have a better 

 chance to develop. Tlie season at present, 'when tlie great tnutibcr of 

 fishermen is considered, is entirely too long. The young fisli that are 

 planted from year to year are caught out almost as fast as tliey are put 

 in. Under such conditions it is impossible to build up a stream. The 

 only remedy is to shorten the season so that the j'oung fish will have 

 some chance to get by the first season at least. 



]\rany years ago black l)ass were hi-ought from the East by the Com- 

 mission and planted in various parts of the State. Nearly 30 years ago 

 one o£ these plants was inad(> in Clear Lake, in Tjakc; County. Bass 

 have increased so that we now have good fishing practically throughout 

 the State. Nowhere, however, is fishing l)etter than in Clear Lake. As 

 yet it is not commonly known to tlic fishing fraternity that fish weigh- 

 ing nearly ten pounds are frequently taken. Baas fishing in Clear Lake 

 is better in the spring and early fall tlian at otlier seasons of the year 

 wh(Mi the fish are in deeper water. 



Dui'ing the past two years trappers of fur-bearing animals have 

 secured excellent prices for their furs. The good prices have stimulated 

 trapping so that many more trappers have been working. This heavy 

 trapping has of course reduced the number of fur-bearing aniiii;il-; and 

 it is more essential than ever that those that are left be protected at the 

 season of the year when the fur is of small value. A statement made in 

 Bulletin No. 1165 of the United States Department of Agriculture is 

 very pertinent : 



"American trappers receive yearly in the aggregate many millions 

 of dollars for their fur harvest whicli up to the moment they set out to 

 gather it. does not cost them a single effort. Recently, the supply of 

 peltries has been decreasing at an alarming rate. Raw-fur buyers 

 representing all parts of the country place the decrease at from 25 to 

 50 per cent during the last 10 years. There are no longer any virgin 

 trapping grounds. Even in Alaska the two most important fur-bearing 

 animals, the beaver and the marten, have become so nearly exterminated 

 that they are now being protected by a closed period. 



"Laws protecting fur-bearing animals are dasigned to keep a steady 

 flow of peltries coming to market year after year, thereby bringing 

 trappers a reliable income and giving regular employment to thousands 

 of people engaged in dressing skins, manufacturing garments, and dis- 

 triimting them through tlic various avenues of trade. 



"A general protest comes from raw-fur buj'crs against traffic in un- 

 prime skins. The losses caused by killing fur animals when their pelts 

 are not prime are enormous. An educational campaign is greatly 

 needed to prevent this waste and to perpetuate our fur-producing re- 

 sources." 



