8 



THE GAME BREEDER 



German hares and ring-necked pheasants 

 raised and killed in captivity. Kentucky 

 seems to be proceeding on the theory 

 that no breeders laws are necessary. 

 Pheasants, wild ducks and other game 

 owned by individuals are sold, we be- 

 lieve. Game breeding is active in many 

 other States. 



Just in Time. 



Mr. A. A. Hill, Vice-President of the 

 Game Conservation Society, has invented 

 and patented a toaster. It is a simple 

 but remarkable, useful and valuable de- 

 vice which turns out toast quickly, beau- 

 tifully browned and far better than any 

 "mother used to make." 



Now that we are about to restore quail 

 on toast, and this delectable dish will be 

 common in every household, it would 

 seem that the new toaster is a most 

 timely invention. If 800,000,000 quail 

 are eaten every season and each quail 

 is served on a slice of toast turned out 

 by the Hill Toaster, and if the produc- 

 tion of quail increases with geometrical 

 rapidity, there is no telling what the size 

 of the fortune for the inventor will be. 

 Toast also is used with tea, and in many 

 other ways besides under quail, but the 

 invention interests us especially on ac- 

 count of the use of the product with the 

 hot bird which formerly went so well 

 with the cold bottle. 



A Serious Charge! Only Zoos and 

 Circuses ? 



Oscar S. Weed made a serious charge 

 against the New York Conservation 

 Commission in the July Forest and 

 Stream. He says: "A year ago my 

 brother and I wished to go into wild 

 duck breeding so as to let some 

 of _ our surplus wild ducks go wild 

 again, and thus help the shooting in 

 our vicinity. We applied to the 

 Conservation Commission for a license 

 so to do, but it was refused on the ground 

 that they were permitting only persons 

 who were operating amusement parks to 

 breed wild ducks. Now it seems to me 

 that they are foolish in trying to dis- 

 courage the farmer." 



We were surprised to learn that the 



Conservation Commission refused a 

 license to a breeder. The New York 

 laws permit the profitable breeding of 

 mallards and black ducks. Many people 

 are engaged in this industry for sport 

 and for profit. The writer produced 

 over 2,500 wild ducks in New York one 

 season for a club. Many were shot ; 

 many escaped and became migratory ; a 

 few hundred ducks and a few hundred 

 eggs were sold at excellent prices. 



We are surprised that Forest and 

 Stream should publish Mr. Weed's letter 

 without comment. Even if the magazine 

 is opposed to game breeding and the sale 

 of game, it should at least let a reader 

 know what he can do. If Mr. Weed 

 will apply again for a license it will be 

 issued, no doubt. 



A Mistake. 



It would seem that Forest and Stream 

 made a mistake in publishing the letter. 

 When we called for the correspondence 

 we learned that Mr. Weed's application 

 was for a permit to take protected birds 

 for propagation. Mr. Legge, Chief Pro- 

 tector of the Commission, informed Mr. 

 Weed that licenses were only issued to 

 duly chartered museums and societies in- 

 corporated for scientific or exhibition 

 purposes. We are of the opinion that 

 the Commission has the right to permit 

 the taking of game for propagation and 

 we have advised our readers, who own 

 game, to trap their birds and propagate 

 them without asking for permits a sec- 

 ond time when their applications are re- 

 fused. We doubt if any one will be ar- 

 rested for propagating game from stock 

 birds which he owns. If any one is, the 

 absurdity of the law will be made evi- 

 dent, provided the law denies the right to 

 take birds for propagation. We do not 

 believe it does. 



The increasing sales of our book on 

 wild duck breeding, "Our Wild Fowl and 

 Waters," indicates that we are to have 

 "more wild ducks." Many thousands of 

 birds are now owned by breeders and the 

 increase will be tremendous next season. 



