THE LEAGUE OF AMERICAN SPORTSMEN. 



OFFICERS OF THE L. A. S. 



President, G. O. Shields, 19 W. 24th St., 

 New York. 



1st Vice-President, Dr. C. Hart Merriam, 

 Washington, D.C. 



2d Vice-President, E. S. Thompson, 144 

 Fifth Ave., New York. 



jd Vice-President, Hon. W. A. Richards, 

 Cheyenne, Wyo. 



4th Vice-President, W. T: Hornaday, 69 

 Wall St., New York. . 



3th Vice-President, A. A. Anderson, 93 

 Fifth Ave., New York. 



Secretary, Arthur F. Rice, 155 Pennington 

 Ave., Passaic, N. J. 



Treasurer, F. S. Hyatt, National Exchange 

 Bank, 90 West Broadway, New York. 



NEW YORK DIVISION. 

 A. E. Pond, Chief Warden, 124 5th Ave., 

 New York City. 



PENNSYLVANIA DIVISION. 

 Hon. J. O. H. Denny, Chief Warden, 

 Ligonier. 



NEW JERSEY DIVISION. 

 T. H. Keller, Chief Warden, Plainfield. 



MASSACHUSETTS DIVISION. 

 Dr. Heber Bishop, Chief Warden, No. 4 

 Post Office Square, Boston. 



CONNECTICUT DIVISION. 

 Ralph B. Lawton, Chief Warden, Bridge- 

 port. 



MICHIGAN DIVISION. 



J. Elmer Pratt, Chief Warden, Grand 

 Rapids. 



MONTANA DIVISION. 



Dr. E. F. Coyningham, Chief Warden, 

 Butte City. 



WASHINGTON DIVISION. 



J. S. Stangroom, Chief Warden, New 

 Whatcom. 



INDIANS AS GAME DESTROYERS. 



Missoula, Mont. 



Editor Recreation : I enclose a letter to 

 Mr. Eddy, who is deeply interested in the 

 work of the League, that you may see what 

 we have to do in this State. We have noth- 

 ing worse to contend with than the Indians. 

 They get permits to leave the reservation; 

 then go where there are few settlers, and 

 begin work. The settlers do not dare report 

 them, for the Indians are likely to burn 

 them out, or possibly to kill them. 



Every one familiar with the Indian knows 

 his favorite dish is the young unborn fawn. 

 The Indians here number less than 2,000, 

 and have over 2,000 square miles of land in 

 their reservation. They have some of the 

 finest hunting country in the world, and the 



finest valley in this State. They should not 

 be permitted to go off the reservation at all, 

 during the close season. 



What can we do about it? The State 

 •seems to have no jurisdiction over the Ind- 

 ians, and the agent may call them back 

 only to let them start out again. We must 

 bring pressure enough to bear on the head 

 of the Interior department to have an order 

 made as above suggested, or the big game 

 in the_ West will go fast. There is no use 

 in letting the Indian run rampant, the year 

 round, to do as he pleases, while the white 

 man is trying to save the game. 



M. J. Elrod. 



The letter referred to is as follows : 



Thompson, Mont., Aug. 2, 1898. 

 Mr. R. A. Eddy, Missoula, Mont. 



Dear Sir : I deem it my duty to inform 

 you relative to the Indians killing deer out 

 of season, as I notice you are taking an 

 active part in bringing game law violators 

 to justice. 'Last week a band of Indians 

 went through here. That is, the squaws 

 rode through town, and the bucks took to 

 the timber, back of town, thereby getting" 

 past unnoticed. I had a talk with a party 

 from the lower country, and learned they 

 met a band of bucks and squaws on the 

 trail to Bull river. They camped opposite 

 Noxon, on this side of the river, and left 

 their fire burning. I am told the whole 

 country is now on fire. I can prove that 

 the Indians left the fire burning, which 

 spread in the mountains. 



I am quite sure if you were to look the 

 matter up, they could be followed and no 

 doubt caught in the act of both leaving their 

 camp fires burning, and of killing deer. I 

 believe a reward is offered for the detection 

 of any person leaving a camp fire burning, 

 when abandoning camp. 



Hoping you will attend to this matter at 

 your earliest convenience, I am, 

 Respectfully, 



J. C. McGinnis. 



I referred this correspondence to the Sec- 

 retary of the Interior, who replies as fol- 

 lows : 



Dear Sir : I am in receipt of your favor 

 of the 16th instant, enclosing letters from 

 Mr. JT. C. McGinnis and Mr. M. J. Elrod, 

 referring to the destruction of game in Mon- 

 tana. 



The work of your League is certainly very 

 commendable, and it will always give me 

 pleasure, acting within the law applicable to 

 this department and the various Indian 

 reservations, to aid you in any way in my 

 power ; but I have to suggest that the 

 charges made by these gentlemen are in- 



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