﻿194 
  Sixteenth 
  Annual 
  Report 
  of 
  the 
  

  

  The 
  law 
  is 
  much 
  better 
  as 
  it 
  is. 
  If 
  any 
  change 
  is 
  to 
  be 
  made 
  I 
  

   would 
  recommend 
  that 
  the 
  season 
  be 
  extended 
  15 
  days 
  later 
  than 
  at 
  

   present, 
  with 
  the 
  proviso 
  that 
  no 
  deer 
  be 
  killed 
  except 
  bucks 
  with 
  

   horns 
  3 
  inches 
  or 
  more 
  in 
  length. 
  This 
  would 
  permit 
  still 
  hunt- 
  

   ing 
  on 
  the 
  snow 
  which 
  would 
  be 
  bad, 
  in 
  that 
  it 
  would 
  result 
  in 
  

   bringing 
  a 
  large 
  number 
  of 
  hunters 
  into 
  the 
  woods 
  at 
  this 
  time. 
  

   But 
  such 
  a 
  law 
  would 
  have 
  one 
  good 
  feature 
  to 
  recommend 
  it, 
  be- 
  

   cause 
  the 
  careless 
  hunter 
  would 
  hesitate 
  before 
  shooting 
  to 
  ascer- 
  

   tain 
  whether 
  the 
  object 
  of 
  his 
  aim 
  was 
  a 
  deer 
  with 
  horns. 
  There 
  

   would 
  be 
  little 
  danger 
  of 
  seriously 
  encroaching 
  on 
  the 
  breeding 
  

   stock 
  under 
  the 
  terms 
  of 
  such 
  a 
  law 
  as 
  the 
  does 
  would 
  be 
  pro- 
  

   tected. 
  The 
  experience 
  of 
  other 
  states 
  has 
  shown 
  that 
  it 
  benefits 
  

   the 
  stock 
  to 
  have 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  bucks 
  reduced. 
  Dr. 
  T. 
  S. 
  Palmer 
  

   of 
  the 
  Bureau 
  of 
  Biological 
  Survey 
  at 
  Washington 
  has 
  stated 
  

   that 
  the 
  heaviest 
  deer 
  come 
  from 
  states 
  permitting 
  the 
  killing 
  of 
  

   bucks 
  only, 
  and 
  his 
  statement 
  is 
  substantiated 
  by 
  the 
  record 
  of 
  

   weights 
  given 
  in 
  the 
  express 
  companies' 
  shipments. 
  

  

  Another 
  point 
  not 
  to 
  be 
  overlooked 
  when 
  considering 
  the 
  merits 
  

   of 
  the 
  two 
  methods 
  of 
  hunting 
  deer 
  is 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  the 
  area 
  in- 
  

   habitated 
  by 
  deer 
  in 
  this 
  State 
  has 
  very 
  materially 
  increased 
  since 
  

   the 
  prohibition 
  of 
  hounding. 
  When 
  hounding 
  was 
  permitted 
  the 
  

   deer 
  in 
  outlying 
  sections, 
  around 
  the 
  borders 
  of 
  the 
  main 
  forested 
  

   areas, 
  were 
  easily 
  driven 
  out 
  and 
  killed 
  and 
  there 
  were 
  few 
  deer 
  

   aside 
  from 
  the 
  supply 
  in 
  the 
  heart 
  of 
  the 
  wilderness. 
  Today 
  it 
  is 
  

   not 
  a 
  rash 
  statement 
  to 
  say 
  that 
  there 
  are 
  more 
  deer 
  as 
  a 
  rule 
  

   around 
  the 
  outskirts 
  of 
  the 
  woods 
  than 
  there 
  are 
  in 
  the 
  central 
  

   portions 
  and 
  these 
  deer 
  are 
  larger 
  and 
  better 
  nurtured. 
  It 
  is 
  prob- 
  

   able 
  that 
  the 
  range 
  of 
  deer 
  in 
  this 
  State 
  covers 
  a 
  greater 
  extent 
  

   of 
  territory 
  than 
  at 
  any 
  time 
  within 
  the 
  last 
  seventy-five 
  years. 
  

   This 
  is 
  important 
  from 
  the 
  sportsman's 
  standpoint, 
  in 
  that 
  it 
  gives 
  

   more 
  men 
  an 
  opportunity 
  of 
  killing 
  deer 
  and 
  also 
  keeps 
  the 
  hunt- 
  

   ing 
  parties 
  more 
  widely 
  separated. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  also 
  likely 
  that 
  under 
  the 
  present 
  law 
  we 
  have 
  more 
  deer 
  

   in 
  the 
  State 
  of 
  New 
  York 
  today 
  than, 
  possibly, 
  at 
  any 
  time 
  during 
  

  

  