lU 



Tim GAME BREEDER 



We have heard recently of the death 

 of every bird . on several places where 

 attempts were 'made" to rear quail in con- 

 finement. We have heard of the sur- 

 vival of similar birds and their tremen- 

 dous multiplication in a single season 

 where the birds were properly looked 

 after, breeding in a wild or semi-wild 

 state, in fields made safe and attractive. 

 The most successful and experienced 

 breeders are aware that quail and grouse 

 should not be bred in cages where there 

 are fields which can be made safe and 

 attractive, and the same is true of wild 

 ducks. Many birds will go out from 

 such fields, as they do on Long Island, 

 N. Y., when the shooting is lively, and 

 these are a free gift to the public. 



The great incentive to breed game 

 properly is the excellent shooting which 

 is sure to occur. Since more game birds 

 will go out of preserves which are not 

 roofed over, when the shooting is lively, 

 than will enter, the state would seem. to 

 lose and not to gain by requiring game 

 shoots to have a roof. The incentive to 

 produce the food abundantly, of course, 

 is destroyed since no sportsmen will 

 care to shoot quail in wire enclosures 

 roofed over. 



It seems a peculiar hardship to re- 

 quire food producers to give a bond of 

 $500. Evil minded persons seem always 

 to proceed on the theory that practically 

 all sportsmen are dishonest, where as a 

 matter of fact the honesty and fairness 

 of producing sportsmen is proverbial. 

 They stand ready at all times to help 

 put any crook out of business who may 

 endeavor to sell the rare wild game said 

 to be owned by the people in common 

 but especially reserved for the sports- 

 men who do nothing to keep up the sup- 

 ply- 

 Let the law provide that the game 



farmers may shoot all the game they 

 may consider proper within the limits of 

 their farm and they will keep up a fa- 

 mous supply which will restock the 

 neighborhood. 



Few people will care to invest in 

 farms in Pennsylvania under the new 

 law since there are many, states where 

 the rural resident will findrmore freedom 



and where he will not be presumed to be 

 a crook and required to give a bond in 

 order to produce food. 



We once reared 2,500 wild ducks 

 about a small artificial pond. During 

 the shooting season we shot about 1,600 

 ducks and many people in the surround- 

 ing country shot mallards and some 

 thanked us for providing the free food. 

 There were more rnallards shot in that 

 neighborhood during the year we made 

 the experiment than were shot in the 

 preceding ten years on the same area. 

 As an ofifset to our losses we shot about 

 300 wild visitors but this was no more 

 than the law allowed a similar number 

 of people to take on public lands or 

 waters. We had over one hundred guns 

 in the producing syndicate and each, at 

 that time, was permitted to take 25 state 

 or public ducks per diem. All the birds 

 reared and all the wild birds shot were, 

 of course, -used as food and there now 

 are dozens of similar food producing 

 plants which are due to the experiment 

 referred to. These places produce many 

 tons of food im a year. 



We invite the attention of the Penn- 

 sylvania Commissioners to the fact that 

 every one of these food producing plants 

 would be closed could the new Pennsyl- 

 vania law be applied to them. It is most 

 fortunate that it cannot apply since it 

 would destroy not only the food produc- 

 tion and the sport, but also the value of 

 the ponds and swamps used for duck 

 breeding. It would exterminate the 

 ducks on the ponds referred to. . 



We can see no possible benefit for any 

 one in the Pennsylvania restrictions 

 which absolutely destroy the main incen- 

 tive to the production of highly desir- 

 able .foods and which undoubtedly 

 hamper sport, destroy land values and 

 undoubtedly will tend to send citizens to 

 seek a residence in states which have far 

 more freedom. 



There are many good duck shoots on 

 Long Island, N. Y. . We have seen land 

 used for these places show big increases 

 in value. The public shooting has been 

 greatly benefited and no good reason can 

 bet assigned why Pennsylvania should 

 not fprofit by the -example of thevLong 



