FROM THE GAME FIELDS. 



THE PASSING OF THE DEER. 



St. Ignace, Mich. 

 Editor Recreation: 



The "Antlered Monarch of the Woods" 

 still roams the forests of Michigan's up- 

 per peninsula in large numbers, but he is 

 growing annually less numerous. The 

 market hunter is effecting his extermina- 

 tion. Facts and figures substantiate this 

 statement. 



The city of St. Ignace, on the Straits of 

 Mackinac, is the upper peninsula transfer 

 point through which most of the all-rail 

 shipments of freight and express, as well 

 as all D. & C. steamboat shipments to 

 Southern points are made. There are 

 shipped through this place, by express, 

 every year, during the 3 weeks which com- 

 prise the open season, 1,000 to 1,200 deer. 

 In addition to the shipments by express 

 many go by freight. An estimate of 500 

 to 800 would, perhaps, be conservative. 

 It is safe to say that 1,500 to 2,000 deer 

 are annually shipped through this place. 

 All of these deer are killed in the upper 

 peninsula and are consigned to commission 

 merchants and meat handlers in the lower 

 peninsula. A few are taken by returning 

 hunters; yet I am informed by authorities 

 that practically all of the carcases go to 

 market dealers, the proportion going to 

 private parties being insignificant and im- 

 material to the consideration of the sub- 

 ject. 



I do not know that the shipments pass- 

 ing through this point represent the entire 

 contribution of the Northern woods to the 

 tables of Southern epicures, hotels and 

 eating houses. There may be other ave- 

 nues of transportation from other points. 



In addition to the Southern market, 

 there is the home market, which is largely 

 in excess of the former. Every market 

 dealer in every city, town, and hamlet in 

 this peninsula, sells one to 50 carcases of 

 deer every season. There are many sales, 

 also, which are made, not through markets 

 at all, but direct from hunter to consumer. 

 It is statistically estimated that the an- 

 nual kill of deer in this peninsula ranges 

 from 4,000 to 6,000. It is possible the 

 actual kill is much greater, for the reason 

 that our statisticians base their estimates 

 on the recorded sale of licenses, the ship- 

 ments of express companies, and such 

 other information as is to be found in 

 black and white evidence; whereas much 

 of the kill is not recorded. Whatever the 

 actual number may be, the conceded 

 slaughter is enormous, and four-fifths of it 

 is perpetrated by market hunters for a 

 price. 



Two prime causes have been assigned for 

 the passing of the deer. One is this yearly 

 slaughter; the other, forest denudation. If 

 we can not, as yet, prevent the destruction 

 of the forests, we can stop the slaughter by 

 enacting a statute prohibiting the sale of 

 deer. This should be done at once. It 

 would, of itself, preserve the animals in 

 this peninsula indefinitely; because, al- 

 though the merchantable timber is being 

 rapidly removed by lumbermen, yet the 

 cover is not appreciably diminished. There 

 are sufficient scrub timber, worthless bush 

 and new growths to afford hiding places 

 and feeding grounds for much vaster num- 

 bers of deer than we have at present. The 

 enemy of the deer is not so much the 

 lumberman or that other destroyer of the 

 forests, the farmer, as it is the market 

 hunter. Of course, as the agriculturist 

 more and more subdues the land we must 

 expect the large game to correspondingly 

 vanish. He cuts down the trees, burns 

 the brush and takes away their home. He 

 does a clean job. We can not stop the 

 farmer, however. In fact, we don't want 

 to. There is room enough for generations 

 to come for both him and the deer. The 

 market hunter is the fellow. 



I do not wish to attach any discredit, 

 censure or odium to market hunting or 

 the market hunter. He is not to blame. 

 The business is legitimate. Not long ago 

 it was considered commendable. But the 

 time has arrived when we must choose be- 

 tween the market hunter and the preser- 

 vation of our game. We must make the 

 business unlawful or we must make up our 

 minds to watch the deer follow the buffalo 

 into the land of nowhere. I would not 

 unnecessarily restrict the killing of game. 

 I would allow the sportsman and the set- 

 tler the largest liberty consistent with 

 game preservation. I would not tinker 

 the laws too much, but I would make the 

 amendment indicated, because it is essen- 

 tial; it is imperative. 



The market hunter must go. He must 

 be annihilated. His head must be chopped 

 off and the law is the ax to do it with. 

 Let every man, woman and child get after 

 the State Representative and the State 

 Senator from his district and make their 

 lives miserable until they make this new 

 law, prohibiting the sale of deer. 



E. H. Hotchkiss. 



And while you are at it include in thp 

 bill all other species of game animals and 

 birds. — Editor, 



284 



