22\ 



RECREATION. 



hand, without which little success was to 

 be expected. Of the 21 who subscribed as 

 members, nearly all, excepting the several 

 professors, were from the class to which 

 I addressed the brief talk. The movement 

 was not even pushed in the class in orni- 

 thology, from which a number of members 

 could have been secured. Had a thorough 

 canvass been made a large chapter for 

 the League would have been formed from 

 the school. 



In view of this, what shall we say of the 

 statement that it is difficult to awaken in- 

 terest in the work of the L. A. S.? Why 

 should not the League have a chapter 

 among the school children in every town 

 of 1,000 population and among the stu- 

 dents of every college in the United 

 States? With attractive advertising, 

 strong support from individual members 

 and aggressive agents, it is quite feasible. 

 A new cigarette company would laugh at 

 difficulties such as the League would en- 

 counter in such a project. If they, why 

 not we? Only a small proportion of our 

 people are cigarette lovers. The majority 

 of them are interested in birds and game. 

 Where such interest is not found it must 

 be aroused. Bird protection appeals to 

 our sentiments and purses. Many men have 

 both. Few have neither. That is the rea- 

 son why the work must be universal. That, 

 too, is the reason it can be universal. 

 President Shields made a just and pointed 

 protest against the indifference of mem- 

 bers when he said, "Too many men want 

 to climb into the band wagon when the 

 parade begins. Too few are willing to 

 help start it." C. B. White. 



ILLEGAL KILLING IN NEW YORK. 



Rochester, N. Y. 

 G. O. Shields, President. 



I am in receipt of your letter notifying 

 me of my election to the position of rear 

 warden of the Rochester chapter, League 

 of American Sportsmen. This is a sur- 

 prise to me. I thank you and those who 

 have made me the choice for the office. 

 I regret I have not been more active in 

 this work. Now that a responsibility 

 has been placed on me, I shall try to ac- 

 complish satisfactory results. 



I am sorry to Jearn, as your letter 

 states, that Denver is the worst place in 

 the United States for the production of 

 game hogs; not because it is Denver, 

 but to think there are any worse places 

 than in our own State. We have enough 

 in New York State to clean out all the 

 game that is left, in a short time, if some 

 more rigid steps are not soon taken to 

 prevent. In my travels through this State 

 I frequently learn of violations that have 

 taken place, especially in the matter of 

 deer slaughter in the Adirondacks. We 



have some good laws in our State to pre- 

 vent hunters from killing more than their 

 reasonable share of deer, but these laws 

 have little or no effect on the game hogs 

 who slaughter over 80 per cent, of all the 

 deer killed here. Hounding has been 

 carried on extensively ever since the anti- 

 hounding law was passed. Jacking the 

 same; and, worse than that, if possible, 

 the lumbermen kill deer in great num- 

 bers when the snow is deep and the deer 

 have no chance of escape. 



The fishing law is being violated in 

 many parts of the State, as can plainly be 

 seen by anyone who is at all observing, 

 and it would seem that some steps, must 

 soon be taken or our deer, fish, birds and 

 all other game will become so nearly ex- 

 tinct that a day's sport with the rod or 

 gun, which gives pleasure and health to 

 thousands of our people, will all be for- 

 feited to the game hogs, who will make 

 the beautiful streams and picturesque 

 mountains a blank for all but themselves. 



C. H. McChesney. 



GOVERNOR OF MICHIGAN JOINS. 



Here is another example of the good 

 that may be done by keeping everlastingly 

 at it. I have been writing the Governors 

 of various States for 3 years past, urging 

 them to join this League and co-operate 

 with it. 



A number of these Governors have 

 joined the League — some of them in its 

 early days — but others have answered my 

 letters courteously, giving various reasons 

 why they could not consistently join. 

 Most of them give as a special reason that 

 they are too busy. I long ago learned that 

 it does not pay to take no for an an- 

 swer; so I am keeping at it, and in the 

 course of time we shall have nearly all the 

 Governors, as well as hundreds of thou- 

 sands of other good men in the League. 



Here is a letter just received from the 

 Governor of Michigan, through his private 

 secretary : 



June 28, 1901. 

 Mr. G. O. Shields, New York, N. Y. 



My dear Sir: At the direction of Gov- 

 ernor Bliss, I enclose you his application 

 for membership in the League of Ameri- 

 can Sportsmen. Also money order for 

 $1. The Governor says he can not stand 

 the fire of letters reaching him from mem- 

 bers of the organization, and will have to 

 surrender. At the same time, he stands 

 to his position that he has so many mat- 

 ters on hand it will not be possible for 

 him to further co-operate than by giving 

 the use of his name. 



Yours very truly, 



Herbert E. Johnson, 

 Secretary to the Governor. 



