THE LEAGUE OE AMERICAN SPORTSMEX. 



405 



that the New York law provides a penalty 

 of $200 for selling, or having in possession, 

 antelope meat at this time of year, while the 

 penalty for selling or having venison is 

 $100. This amount may be recovered by 

 civil action, and in addition you are liable to 

 prosecution in the police courts for a mis- 

 demeanor, for which you may be fined not 

 more than $50. 



I am surprised that you gentlemen should 

 have violated the game law, inasmuch as 

 your house is always the head-quarters of 

 the New York State Fish, Game and For- 

 estry League. 



I have no desire to involve you or any one 

 else in expensive or troublesome litigation, 

 but I should like to have an assurance from 

 yon, in writing, that hereafter you will ob- 

 serve the game laws, strictly. 



Awaiting your kind reply, I am, 

 Vours trulv, 



G. O. Shields, 

 President. 



ANSWER. 



My dear Mr. Shields : I am in receipt or 

 your favor of the 20th inst. addressed to our 

 firm, and the contents of same surprised 

 me very much. 



I am not aware that our steward has ever 

 had any game served out of season, for as 

 you well know, I am very much interested 

 and have always taken an active part in the 

 preservation and protection of fish and 

 game. I profess to be a sportsman myself, 

 and I fully realize the importance of protect- 

 ing all fish and game. As you know I have 

 always done everything I could for the An- 

 nual meeting, and toward supporting our 

 Local Protective Association. I know how 

 ardent you are in pursuing your work in 

 protecting fish and game ; and am very 

 much obliged to you for having written me; 

 but assure you that we do not knowingly 

 permit the violation of fish and game laws 

 in anything that we serve to our guests. 

 Yours very truly, 



C. S. Gregory. 



ANOTHER LAW-BREAKER CALLED TO 

 ACCOUNT. 



New York, March 11. '09. 

 Mr. Xavier Ritzer, Schenectady, N. Y. 



Dear Sir : I am informed that you and 

 several other men have been violating the 

 law by fishing through the ice, on Collins' 

 lake, and it is my duty to inform you that 

 having secured ample evidence against you, 

 unless you write me at once, promising 

 faithfully that you will not again violate the 

 laws, I shall have you arrested and prose- 

 cuted. 



The L. A. S. was organized primarily for 

 the purpose of entorcing game and fish laws, 

 and is doing so in all cases that can be 

 reached. We have 44 local wardens patroll- 

 ing the woods and waters of this state and 

 have already arrested and fined a number of 

 men for infractions of the law. 



I give you this frank and timely warn- 

 ing, before proceeding against you, in order 

 that you may have an opportunity to put 

 yourself on record as a law observing citi- 

 zen. 



Your kind reply will greatly oblige, 

 Yours trulv. 



G. O. Shields, 



President. 



ANSWER. 



Schenectady, N. Y., March 13, '99. 

 Dear Sir : I received your letter and I 

 hasten to respond. I am very sorry I have 

 violated the law. I did it unintentionally 

 as I did not know it was against the law to 

 fish through the ice. 



Thanking you kindly for your timely 

 warning, I promise you I will not violate the 

 game laws again. 



Yours respectfully. 



Xavier Ritzer. 



HOW ONE DIVISION WORKS. 



Kalispell, Mont., March 6. — The League of American 

 Sportsmen are making a vigorous war on all persons violat- 

 ing the game laws of the state. Already a number of ar- 

 rests have been made and more will follow. All the meat 

 markets of Kalispell have quit selling or offering for sale 

 any trout. Heretofore they have been bold in their efforts 

 to sell fish and game, but since the Kalispell branch of the 

 league was organized all this has ceased and no more game 

 or fresh fish can be had. The National league pays each 

 constable securing a conviction $10, and with his regular 

 fee added, from the county, there is a strong inducement to 

 hunt down these violators of the game laws. An Italian 

 named Mariano was fined $34 last week and sent to jail to 

 serve out his term for killing pheasants. We shall soon 

 have game plentiful as it was 8 years ago, when one could 

 drive over the country and see beautiful bunches of grouse 

 almost anywhere. It is to be hoped that all this illegal kill- 

 ing will be stopped. For the past 3 or 4 years the Indians 

 have been killing deer by the thousand for their hides alone, 

 and white men have been slaughtering them for hides and 

 selling the carcasses. We still have a few deer left, but they 

 will continue to grow less each year unless some means are 

 employed to prevent this unlawful killing. It is to be hoped 

 the day of absolute slaughter has passed. The league pro- 

 poses to arrest, regardless of person, all who wilfully kill 

 out of season. The one thought here is more power to the 

 League of American Sportsmen. — Anaconda, Mont., Stand- 

 ard. 



HE PROMISES TO WORK FOR IT. 

 I am in sympathy with the L. A. S. but 

 do not think it can do us much good in 

 this locality. Our game seems to have 

 been shot off or driven away. About 8 

 years ago our club bought 1.200 Southern 

 quails. They arrived in poor condition 

 and when it came time to liberate them in 

 the spring we had but about 700 left. For 

 2 years they did well, but they incidentally 

 raised a big crop of gunners and were soon 

 killed off. Now it is hard to find a bevy 

 in the fall. While shooting in December, 

 I found 5 birds. Thought I wouldn't shoot 

 them, as it was so late in the season, so 

 after working the dog on them awhile I 

 came away and left them. Later when I 

 went out to find and feed them, I found 

 only 2. I am going to try and pull them 

 through the winter, for they are the last 

 birds I know of around here. There is 

 only one way to save the game; have the 

 shooting season shortened and the laws en- 



