44 FIRST BIENNIAL REPORT [W. VA. 



protection to their crops, afforded by these birds in destroying insects, 

 will respond most generously to this worthy cause. 



Permit Requirements. 



The permit requirements, under the law, have possibly caused more 

 comment and dissatisfaction than any other provision. 



Hunters, in the past, believing that universal custom which has pre- 

 vailed from time immemorial, gave them the absolute right to hunt 

 upon any and all property, without regard to w/homl it belonged, had be- 

 come careless, and a source of great annoyance to many property own- 

 ers. These hunters have, in the past, not hesitated to invade the fields 

 and orchards of the farmer, and by tramping out his 1 crops, leaving down 

 his fences, shooting among his stock, allowing dogs to chase his sheep, 

 tearing down his stone piles,- setting fires to his woodlands and appro- 

 priating to their own use such fowls and domestic animals as they could 

 capture and carry away, even shooting near his residence, isometimiesi 

 maiming members of his family, that it seemed right and proper, to givte 

 the land owner some protection from this annoyance, and the law, in 

 regard to the permit requirements, was made rather rigid. 



The great damage done to our forests, in the past, was chargeable, 

 to a great extent, to careless hunters who unthoughtedly left camp-fires 

 burning, and thus, in many cases, originated these fires. It is con- 

 tended by the hunters, that the permit requirement should only extend 

 to the enclosed lands, and that the unenclosed lands should be free for all 

 to hunt or fish upon, unless these lands are posted. 



From the standpoint of game protection, the law, as it now stands, is 

 a success, but from the stand-point of raising revenue by the sale of 

 hunters license, all must admit that many licenses would be sold, if 

 the pern-iit requirement only extended to enclosed lands. 



It is also true, that in many cases it is very difficult to obtain permits, 

 for the purpose of hunting on these unenclosed lands, for the reason 

 that many large tracts of these mountain lands, ane owned by non-resi- 

 dents and large corporations that are often hard to locate, and it is* 

 very troublesome to obtain a permit to hunt upon these lands*. 



As is stated elsewhere, we believe that the protection of our forests 

 from forest fires, is one of the best features of the law, and thait the 

 mo?iey raised from the sale of hunters' license, should be used in pro- 

 tecting the forests;, as well as protecting our game and fish. Nwv, if 

 the sportsman assist in this work, by contributing to this fund, we 

 can see no good reason why he should not be permitted to hunt in. 

 the forests that he helps to protect, if there is no serious objection by 

 the property owner, without being required to secure a written per- 

 mission. 



If the unenclosed lands are to be protected, under the permit pro- 

 vision, the owtoers should, at least, be required to survey their land 

 and plainly mark the lines, so that hunters can tell where and when they 

 are trespassing. It might be well to modify this requirement of the law, 



