handled and rubricated as to give it a smack 

 of an old-time legal document. The first 

 sheet gives the constitution, the signatures 

 of the Founder, the date, and the seal of the 

 Sons of Daniel Boone, while, on the second 

 under an appropriate heading, are spaces 

 for the signatures of the members of the 

 Fort to which the certificate is issued as its 

 charter. 



The Coming Year 



We intend, however, that our achievements 

 during 1905 shall prove to have been simply 

 an earnest of what we shall do during 1906. 

 So many excellent manuscripts have been 

 sent in, that we have been enabled to weigh 

 very carefully the merits of each, and to re- 

 ject all but the best. Hence, we start the new 

 year with a reserved stock of stories that will 

 meet with the approval of our readers. The 

 plan of the magazine will not change ; be- 

 cause we know by the success we have had 

 that we are on the right track, and that no 

 change is either needful or desirable. In the 

 future, as in the past. Recreation will stand 



a firm bulwark for the 



protection of our game 

 animals, birds and fish, 

 and as far as in us lies 

 we shall prevent the ex- 

 termination of every liv- 

 ing thing that is harm- 

 less to man. » 



TiECTlEATION'S 

 PLATFORM 



Frank Ford 



bids us say that if the great American public 

 will only refrain from asking questions for 

 twenty-four hours or so, he will take a much 

 needed rest, but as he sees no hope of such a 

 pleasant spell of relief he proposes to hire 

 half a dozen extra assistants by January first. 

 He would especially call the attention of 

 dog men to his department. After a careful 

 study of the situation for several months he 

 would like to have an opportunity of con- 

 vincing the breeders and dealers of this coun- 

 try of the extraordinary quality of Recrea- 

 tion as a medium for the sale of dogs. Just 

 write to him if you are a well-known breeder 

 and have a large kennel, and give him an op- 

 portunity to discuss this matter with you. 



Of course, it was to be expected that a cer- 

 tain small minority would abuse the great 

 privilege that Recreation offered them in 

 Frank Ford's services. We knew it would 

 be so, and we are happy to say that though 

 the former Alecks are not all dead, still there 

 must have been a heavy mortality among 

 them, for they now seem 

 to constitute a very in- 

 finitesimal proportion of 

 those who have access to 

 our pages. 



Our Xmas Cover 



Holly and mistletoe 

 are all right under cer- 

 tain conditions, especial- 

 ly the latter when the 

 proper people come to- 

 gether, but we have not 

 put either of these as a 

 decoration on our De- 

 cember, cover. On the 

 contrary, we have taken 

 a page from the book of 

 Nature, interpreted by 

 our good friend, Walter 



Stone King. This is a page that is never 

 seen by the city man, but they who live in 

 the northern forest will at once recognize its 

 truth. 



Between the Arctic ice and civilization there 

 is a vast stretch of silent land, much of it 

 forest covered, much of it open barren, and 

 all through this stillness the great hungry 

 wolf ever roams, ceaselessly looking for his 

 prey. 



It is Christmas Eve. An angry yellow sun is 

 setting. The great question now before Mr. 

 Lobo is not "What shall I have for my Christ- 

 mas dinner?" but "When shall I have 

 it?" 



' The problem is a serious one, and we re- 

 gret that we are not able to inform the 

 reader how it was solved. 



An uncompromising fight for 

 the protection, preservation and 

 propagation of all game; placing 

 a sane limit on the hag that can 

 he taken in a day or season; the 

 prevention of the shipment or 

 transportation of game, except 

 in limited quantities , and then 

 only when accompanied by the 

 party who killed it; the prohi- 

 bition of the sale of game. These 

 are ' Recreation's" slogans now 

 and forever. 



The Cost Thereof 



Have you ever stopped 

 to consider what the cost 

 of such a magazine as 

 Recreation is ? The sub- 

 scriber sends in his dol- 

 lar a year, and the cas- 

 ual reader pays his ten 

 cents to his newsdealer 

 per copy, and yet each 

 one of those copies has 

 cost more to produce 

 than either man pays for 

 it. If we were to put 

 out one copy, that copy 

 would cost us nearly 

 $10,000, and you buy this 

 product of twentieth century brains for a 

 dime. Moreover, we have not gone in for 

 special numbers, and, unlike some of our 

 competitors, have not made a splurge twice 

 a year with a couple of big splurges, but we 

 have given you a steadily improving maga- 

 zine, each issue of which many of you would 

 gladly pay a dollar for if you could not get 

 it on any other terms. If you agree with us, 

 as we believe you do, in our estimate of Rec- 

 reation, will you not kindly assist us to the 

 limit of your ability in increasing our circu- 

 lation among your friends? There is no 

 household in the land that Should be without 

 its copy of Recreation, because the younger 

 members of every family, as well as their 

 elders, could not but be benefited by a dose 

 of Recreation tonic taken once a month. 



