70 



THE GAME BREEDER 



The three-day limit at the opening of 

 the season evidently is intended to per- 

 mit the taking of "game for the market 

 before the opening date. The fifteen- 

 day limit at the close of the season per- 

 mits dealers to dispose of stock on hand 

 and unsold at the closing date. 



The old common law idea that game 

 legally taken is owned by the person tak- 

 ing it, because of his industry, is ex- 

 pressed in the law. If the person legal- 

 ly taking game owns it he should, of 

 course, have the right to give his proper- 

 ty away or to sell it under proper regu- 

 lations. The sale of game, undoubtedly, 

 will hasten its extermination, provided 

 there be no practical production of game, 

 but it long has been evident that the 

 shooting of game, even when its sale is 

 prohibited, produces the same result, for 

 the very good reason that game cannot 

 stand the loss due to shooting (which is 

 an extra or additional check to its in- 

 crease) unless some practical game pre- 

 serving be done and some of the natural 

 checks to its increase be controlled in 

 order to make a place for the shooting. 

 Since the people are said to own the 

 game, it seems fair that they should 

 have some of it to eat when the game is 

 legally taken, and the Quebec law is 

 founded on this idea, no. doubt. If the 

 game vanishes, as it will, if there be no 

 production the remedy is either to put 

 it on the song bird list, or to encourage 

 production by private enterprise in order 

 to keep up the food supply. There is 

 plenty of room in Quebec for game 

 farms and preserves and also for public 

 shooting, which should be as good as it 

 is on Long Island, New York, where 

 game shooting clubs are numerous. Mr. 

 Chambers, the special expert officer of 

 the Department of Mines and Fisheries 

 ■ — Fisheries and Game Branch — thor- 

 oughly understands the game and the 

 causes for its increase and decrease in 

 numbers. He is the secretary of the 

 North American Association, which was 

 among the first to indorse the "more 

 game and fewer game laws" movement 

 and to declare in favor of laws permit- 

 ting the profitable production of game. 



We have said often that we will not 

 oppose laws prohibiting the sale of game 



taken on public lands and waters ; that 

 we will not oppose laws creating short 

 open seasons and very small bags. We 

 will not oppose closed seasons and the 

 prohibition of shooting, provided these 

 laws contain a clause exempting game 

 breeders who may wish to have plenty of 

 game and good shooting. 



A Punch for Branding Young Ducks. 



In answer to inquiry as to where the 

 proper punch (to be used by game breed- 

 ers to brand the feet of their young 

 ducks) could be obtained, Dr. Nelson, 

 chief of the Biological Survey writes : 

 "We do not know where a punch ready 

 for use can be obtained but do not be- 

 lieve that any difficulty will be had in 

 having a common punch changed at any 

 locksmiths or other repair shop so it 

 would clip out a good sized "V" from the 

 web of the duckling's foot." 



We hope all good breeders will se- 

 cure a proper punch and live strictly up 

 to the regulation requiring the brand- 

 ing of young ducks. The commercial 

 game farmers will brand their ducks be- 

 fore they are shipped and they will be 

 ready for the shooting and later for the 

 market provided more ducks be shot than 

 can be used by the preserve owner or 

 members of game shooting clubs. Many 

 clubs which made a late start will rely 

 largely on branded ducks purchased from 

 our advertisers. 



Don't wait to be asked to advertise. 

 We are entirely too busy to solicit ad- 

 vertisements of game birds and eggs. 

 Send space advertisements if you have 

 many birds or eggs to sell. A few lines 

 of classified advertising will be suffi- 

 cient for small breeders. 



An advertisement sent by the year is 

 the cheapest and the best. It is always 

 before our readers and some say the 

 advertisements are the most interesting 

 part of the publication. 



Our advertisers do a great public serv- 

 ice in letting the people know where to 

 procure stock birds and eggs. 



Again "The Crow!" 



Do you know that Pennsylvania has 

 abolished its crow law? For a time the 



