102 



THE GAME BREEDER 



the wood-cock are fairly abundant every 

 season on some country estates where 

 the owners take an interest in wild birds 

 and prefer them to cats, dogs, rats,' and 

 wilder vermin and a lot of exterminat- 

 ing trespassers. With a bag limit of 

 three birds per season there are enough 

 gunners to exterminate the wood-cock 

 on the opening day on all the places re- 

 ferred to if they be permitted to do so. 

 When it is known how profitable game 

 can be made on many places where there 

 are worthless swamps and ponds the 

 wood-cock will respond nicely to the pro- 

 tection given to other game. We would 

 strongly urge the people who may be 

 getting ready to put the wood-cock on 

 the song bird list (he really is a good 

 singer), to use some of their intelU- 

 gence in working out plans to induce 

 more people to get into the "sport pro- 

 ducing." Mr. Jones hit it about right 

 when he said: let the game keeper look 

 after the vermin and the game will look 

 after itself. It is highly important that 

 the laws do not permit the employment 

 of keepers. Remember always that few 

 can be expected to spend much money on 

 any project unless it pays to do so. 

 Prohibit shooting, put the keepers out of 

 business and there will be enough rab- 

 bit shooters in populous regions to at- 

 tend to the wood-cock, "law or no law," 

 as some are heard to remark. 



Bre'r Fox in Michigan. 



The State Game Department of Mich- 

 igan says, "A closed season on fox with 

 its degree of protection to that animal 

 is anything but economic in principle, is 

 the unanimous opinion of the field force 

 of this department. 



"While it is conceded that the fox 

 furs bring a considerable percentage of 

 the total revenue which we derive from 

 pelts, it can hardly be contradicted that 

 this animal exacts a toll from our game 

 resources by the killing of partridges 

 (ruflfed grouse), quail and song birds, 

 which more than compensates for his 

 revenue qualities and his services as a 

 destroyer of mice and other rodents. 



"That a single adult fox will kill more 

 partridges in a season than a dozen aver- 



age hunters is attested by the feathered 

 evidence which strews the covert 

 grounds. This is especially noticeable 

 in • the wholesale killing of young 

 broods." 



"Near It, Very Near It." 



The Michigan report says further: 

 "Even in maturity the partridge seems 

 an easy prey for this wily carniverum. 

 Many observers attest the truth of the 

 old nursery assertion that the fox will 

 describe a rapid circle around the tree- 

 roost of the bird causing it to gro^y 

 dizzy and drop to the ground. Deputies 

 of this department have witnessed tac- 

 tics of the fox with a 'treed' partridge 

 which would tend to substantiate the ob- 

 servations cited." 



Possibly when it becomes necessary to 

 put the "partridge" on the song bird list, 

 he may be heard- to sing : "Although I 

 told my loving wife I ne'er was (dizzy) 

 tight in all my life, but I was near it, very 

 near it," etc. 



= ^ 4 



Market Prices. 



Reports coming to our game census 

 indicate that the prices for live pheas- 

 ants were much higher during the win- 

 ter and early spring than ever before. 

 Some reports of recent sales of these 

 birds at $5 and $6 for hens and $4 for 

 cocks are surprising since we believed 

 that as the end of the laying season ap- 

 proached the prices for old birds would 

 fall. We have heard, however, of re- 

 cent sales of extra cock birds for $3 

 and $4 each. The Game Breeder cer- 

 tainly has been proved to be of great 

 benefit to breeders who advertise in it. 

 We heard of some sales (by people who 

 did not advertise) at much lower prices. 

 In fact some of our readers informed 

 us they were able to secure small lots of 

 birds ■ at prices much below those they 

 were getting in answer to their adver- 

 tisements. 



Live deer sold fairly well and we be- 

 lieve they will sell much better this 

 year since venison nearly doubled in 

 price and all the meat offered was sold. 

 The game dinner of the Game Conser- 

 vation Society was held late and we 



