in South Carolina 37 



F. M. Weston, Jr., Charleston, writes: "Dogs destroy a 

 number of Bob-white nests, but the destruction does not 

 seem to have any marked effect upon the numbers of 

 species." Mr. Orville Calhoun, Abbeville, says: "Poorly 

 fed dogs which live in summer by hunting eggs, etc. and 

 generally escape tax, are the most important cause of 

 decrease, especially to those which nest on the ground.' ' 

 Mr. H. C. Summers, Anderson, reports: "Considerable 

 damage is done by countless half- fed dogs which roam the 

 fields night and day, owned mostly by negroes.' ' Mr. R. 

 B. Belser, Sumter, writes: "Very considerable destruction 

 is done by roaming dogs of negroes, which suck the eggs 

 and break up the nests of ground-nesting birds." Mr. A. 

 R. Taylor, Lexington, believes: "Dogs belonging to 

 negroes and other irresponsible parties who let them roam 

 the fields to forage do immense damage." Mr. J. M. 

 Whitehead, Union writes: "Roaming dogs do as much 

 damage perhaps, as any two or three other destructive 

 agencies combined." Mr. W. C. Shaw, Anderson, reports: 

 "Bird dogs hunt the nests of biids and destroy hundreds 

 of them." Mr. W. R. Smith, St., Newberry, is of the 

 opinion that half-starved mongrel dogs owned by negroes 

 and irresponsible parties, by breaking up the nests and 

 destroying the young of birds, cause seventy-five per cent, 

 of the decrease." Mr. A. A. Coleman, Greenwood, 

 reports the following case as convincing evidence in his 

 opinion, of the harm which stray dogs do: "On a farm of 

 about six thousand acres where practically all the tenants 

 are negroes who own various kinds of dogs, there is a very 

 strict rule that all dogs running loose in summer shall be 

 shot. Altho there is about as much hunting on this place 

 as on adjoining places, with cleared land and cover about 

 the same, there is twice as much game." 



There seems to be no doubt that the State is full of worth- 

 less dogs which escape taxation. An interesting and 

 enlightening illustration has been furnished by the city of 

 Florence. Last September, a census was taken of the 

 Florence school district, as required under the compulsory 

 education law. To the one hundred and twenty dogs 



