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THE GAME BREEDER 



place in which we are interested we have 

 observed the ducks in the woods eating 

 ■acorns and upon one occasion we were 

 surprised when we repeatedly flushed 

 ducks among the oak trees far from any 

 wrater. 



Report From a Dealer. 



One of the largest dealers in game in 

 New York reports that he is now fairly 

 well supplied with wild ducks from game 

 farmers and preserves and believes the 

 prices must come down some before there 

 will be a big increase in the demand for 

 this food. 



Nonsense Rampant! 



The Game Conservation Society was 

 making arrangements to import some 

 quail from Mexico for experimental work 

 on its new breeding farm. It desired to 

 procure a few Mearns quail and a few 

 black-throated quail in addition to some 

 bob whites. The people who have an 

 abundance of stock birds wished to sell. 

 We wished to purchase. 



In answer to a letter addressed to the 

 Biological Survey at Washington, asking 

 for permission to bring in the birds, the 

 society was notified by one of the clerks 

 that no quail could be imported until next 

 March when, perhaps, permits would be 

 issued. No one, of course, should dis- 

 turb the birds as the breeding season ap- 

 proaches. We do not want spring birds. 

 This refusal was confirmed by the chief 

 in answer to another letter explaining 

 that the results of our proposed experi- 

 ment would be published in a book to be 

 issued by the society which was being 

 written by the editor of The Game Breed- 

 er. The society offered to make a special 

 report to the Survey of the results of the 

 work contemplated. We believe it would 

 result in increasing our food supply. 



Nothing doing ! WE say you can not 

 have the quail you want for breeding 

 purposes. That's all. Lovely public ser- 

 vants, these! 



In answer to a third letter asking the 

 Survey to kindly inform the society why 

 they would not let it have quail for breed- 

 ing purposes, the Survey wrote they were 

 afraid the quail would take cold. This 



excuse (although it is true there were 

 some losses last year which possibly were 

 due to the cold), does not appear to be 

 as good an excuse as the anti-breeding 

 survey had when we first proposed to 

 bring quail from Mexico a year or two 

 ago. ' The denial then was based on an 

 imaginary idea of the game law expert 

 of the Survey that wild birds might have 

 diseases therefore, etc., we could not have 

 any stock birds. 



Our readers will remember that we 

 suggested that wild birds were noted for 

 their health and the presumption was 

 that they were healthy and not that they 

 were diseased. At all events any loss 

 would fall on the purchaser. 



It was decided to inspect the birds, to 

 quarantine them and if found sound and 

 well to let the breeders have some during 

 a certain season when it pleased the Sur- 

 vey to be agreeable. A doctor (presum- 

 ably the most noted quail specialist), 

 was despatched to the border. The quail 

 in quarantine appeared very lively and 

 well, and fortunately they were not held 

 up long enough to becomediseased as we 

 feared they would be. Many birds came 

 in and were purchased by the Game Con- 

 servation, Society and others. There are 

 some bad reports, we are told, from some 

 State Departments which lost some birds. 

 Birds taken to the mountains of Penn- 

 sylvania are said to have perished from 

 the cold. It is our private opinion that 

 something entirely different was the mat- 

 ter and that the quail specialist would 

 have so reported had he been called in 

 again. Quail often do not do well if 

 improperly handled. We haye an ex- 

 pert who knows all about this matter and 

 he avoids losses. 



One of the things the Game Conserva- 

 tion Society is prepared to demonstrate is 

 that quail properly handled and not too 

 closely confined can be multiplied with 

 startling rapidity. That they will not 

 take cold as the game law expert depart- 

 ment imagines they will; that they can 

 be made an abundant food. 



But you can't do this says the Survey, 

 "for we ourselves have said it." That 

 settles it. No doubt, "you yourselves 

 have said it," but it's not "greatly to your 

 credit," is the opinion of the Game Con- 



