THE LEAGUE OF AMERICAN SPORTSMEN. 



231 



No. 2 being sold as low as $2. Prairie 

 chickens usually sold at $4 to $6 a dozen, 

 and were well worth the money. During 

 the present season they have sold at $9 to 

 $10, with the supply extremely limited. 

 Ruffed grouse sold this year at $11* to $12 

 a dozen. Formerly they were held at about 

 the same price as were prairie chickens, and 

 few have been offered as compared with 

 former years. 



The stringency of the game laws of al- 

 most all the States has brought this 

 change and wrought havoc with the trade. 

 During the present season the combined 

 holdings of the game houses of the city 

 often did not amount to the stock formerly 

 carried by a single firm. To these laws, 

 do the dealers attribute the ruin of Chi- 

 cago's game market. The statute prevent- 

 ing the shipment beyond, the limit of the 

 State is especially blamed for the disaster 

 to the business. 



And the League did it. Verily the League 

 is great. Why not join the League and 

 invite your friends to do so? 



Send your application to Arthur F. Rice, 

 Sec'y, 23 West 24th Street, N. Y. 



A GOOD SUGGESTION. 

 Col. E. C. Farrington, Secretary of the 

 Maine Fish and Game Protective Associa- 

 tion, in his annual report says : 



"I desire to call your attention to the 

 great work being done by the League of 

 American Sportsmen, of which Mr. G. O. 

 Shields, editor of Recreation, is presi- 

 dent, and of which President Roosevelt is 

 a prominent member. It seems to be the 

 only organization to which we can look 

 for the saving of our birds and wild ani- 

 mals. It not only has, owing to the char- 

 acter of its organization, large influence 

 in our National councils, but its efforts in 

 the different States are proving of the 

 greatest benefit in suppressing the illegal 

 slaughter and illegal selling of fish and 

 game. This League ought to be sus- 

 tained, and Maine sportsmen and lovers 

 of the dumb creation should aid in every 

 possible way in its work. It costs but $1 

 to join the association, and thousands of 

 our citizens could, without feeling the 

 burden, help H, materially and in influ- 

 ence, by becoming members of that Na- 

 tional League. I suggest for your con- 

 sideration that it would be wise to so 

 modify our charter as to permit this as- 

 sociation to become members of that 

 body, and thus join our efforts with those 

 of the League of American Sportsmen." 



In my travels I have scarcely seen one. I 

 have seen a few gulls, or tern on the hats 

 of women who are not up to date. The 

 absence of bird plumage on hats is due 

 largely to the work of the League. The 

 Audubon Societies and the American Orni- 

 thological Union have also done good work 

 in this direction, but League members can 

 claim a large share of the honors. How- 

 ever, we do not care so much for this as 

 for the fact that the traffic in bird plumage 

 has been practically squelched, and as a re- 

 sult I hear from various portions of the 

 country that birds are rapidly increasing. 



When I was at my dear old home in 

 Brunswick county, Virginia, my sister and 

 I decided to join the League of American 

 Sportsmen. We believe in protecting the 

 game and the song birds. If we were 

 men we would be game wardens ; but we 

 are only 2 resolute women who want to do 

 what we can for an excellent and deserv- 

 ing cause, so I send herewith $2. Please 

 initiate us into membership with this noble 

 fraternity. 



Birds are not numerous in this section, 

 but I have never known them more abun- 

 dant in Brunswick county, Va. 



Jennie P. Buford, Winston Salem, N. C. 



The League is making a strong effort to 

 have the present Congress pass a bill to 

 stop the wholesale slaughter of game in 

 Alaska ; another, to make all the timber 

 reserves in the Western States national 

 parks, and to stop all hunting therein ; an- 

 other to extend the Yellowstone National 

 Park South and East to include adjacent 

 timber reserves and to provide adequate 

 winter range for the elk, whose home is in 

 the park. As soon as these bills are in 

 proper shape for effective work, a circular 

 letter will be sent to all League members 

 asking them to aid in securing the passage 

 thereof. 



I wonder if the sportsmen in general 

 notice how few women are wearing plum- 

 age of song birds on their hats this winter. 



The last form of this issue of Recrea- 

 tion goes to press a few days before the 

 annual meeting of the League in Indian- 

 apolis, so it is impossible to give any report 

 of the proceedings in the March number, 

 but I hope to have this ready for the April 

 number. At this writing there is a pros- 

 pect of a large attendance at the meeting 

 and there are a number of important meas- 

 ures to be acted on ; so the report of the 

 meeting will no doubt be full of interest for 

 all members. 



