immediately took the steps that ^\ ere necessary to secure 

 action bj^ Congress on both those matters. The appro- 

 priation of $3,000 was granted in an item attached as an 

 amendment to the General Deficiency bill, and authority 

 for the purchase of not to exceed 20,000 acres was secured 

 in the item for the Biological Suryey in the Agricultural 

 Appropriation bill. Both these measures became laws on 

 JNIarch 4th. 



It no^v remains for the yarious goyernment bureaus 

 that are specially interested to finally determine what shall 

 be the exact boundaries of the Montana National Bison 

 Range, after which it will be the duty of the Forest Ser- 

 yice to adyertise and aAvard a contract for the fence, gates, 

 corrals and other things necessary to the purpose in yiew. 



It is extremely desirable that in the near future a herd 

 of at least 25 prong-horned antelope should be colonized 

 in the bison range, as a measure toward the preseryation of 

 that unique and interesting species from complete disap- 

 pearance. The continued settlement and agricultural de- 

 yelopment of the states that now contain remnant herds of 

 antelope is absolutely certain to crowd that species out of 

 existence there within the next fifty years or less, just as 

 the range steer would haye crowded the bison off the great 

 pasture region, eyen had the hide-hunters spared him. I 

 belieye that a majority of the founders of the ^lontana 

 bison herd will liye to see the antelope disappear from 

 eyery portion of the United States except the absolute, 

 thoroughly-protected game preseryes, such as the Yellow- 

 stone Park, and the Wichita and ^lontana bison ranges. 



Respectfully submitted, 



WlLLIAINI T. HOEXADAY, 



President. 



New York Zooi.ogicai. Park, 

 March 20th, 1909. 



