AMERICA'S GREATEST PLAYGROUND 



Joe Smith the 2nd on the Madison 

 August, 1916 



Char Fishing, Clarke's Fork of the 

 Columbia River 



perity of our state, as to make even their prospective loss appear in 

 tlie light of a calamity, a condition that if once established will be 

 extremely hard, if not impossible, to overcome, and that will bring 

 serious, very serious results in its train. 



"How much better it would have been had the people of this state 

 and of this nation endorsed the idea of game and wild bird preserva- 

 tion and of fish protection and propagation years ago, instead of at 

 this time. 



"It has been said that the benefit derived by a day afield with rod 

 or gun by the tired or worn out indoor \i^orker is something that can 

 not be correctly expressed in words or figures. Physical exercise and 

 forgetfulness of daily worry and business care bring their reward in 

 return of health and there is no incentive in this direction. 



"Our idea is to make an open park of all the wild lands of this 

 state, a place in which our people of all classes can find pleasure and 

 maintain their strength, where the well and strong can enjoy an out- 

 ing that will keep them well and make them stronger; where those 

 who are starting on the road to shattered nerves and inability to meet 

 the demands they are called upon to face, can strengthen their hold 

 on all those things that fit men to meet the requirements of their 

 every day battle with the world. 



"The presence of game and fish is a lure to strenuous outdoor 

 exercise, that means better health to those who hunt or fish, and there- 

 fore better citizenship. To us, hunting, or the pursuit of game, does 

 not appear simply in the light of recreation, or pleasure, nor does it 

 appear as a waste of time, but instead is in every sense of the word 

 a national necessity. 



