HAMLYN'S MENAGERIE MAGAZINE. 



Naturalist could never be understood by any one 

 outside the Trade. It may surprise my readers 

 to know that my expenses on the Indian con- 



signment now coming 



forward will total £750. 



Once more, the expenses alone up to date are 

 £750. The animals and birds coming forward 

 are 4 Elephants, Male and Female Tigers, Black 

 Leopard, 200 Monkeys, 22 Snakes, with Sha- 

 mahs, Thibet birds, and quantity of small birds, 

 with two Native attendants. Price and particu- 

 lars on application. 



I shall continue to receive consignments from 

 Calcutta throughout the year, particulars of which 

 will be duly announced. 



I am taking up the Brazilian trade which is 

 entirely a new departure so far as I am con- 

 cerned'. I have a reprtsentative leaving for the 

 Amazon River this week. The public may there 

 fore expect Parrots, Macaws, Marmozets, with 

 the general small stock belonging to that region. 



The sending out of three collectors is a 

 serious undertaking, but is necessitated by the 

 steppage of trading on the various steamship 

 lines. 



In less than six months I promise a plentiful 

 supply of all animals, birds, etc., with a return 

 to normal prices. The various arrivals will be 

 published monthly, so far as possible, and the 

 first list of arrivals is found on another page. 



CARIBOU HUNTING. 



PROTECTION OF WILD LIFE IN CANADA. 



The following interesting letter appeared in 

 "The Times" : — 



Sir, — In several English periodicals that have 

 recently reached me I find references to the corre- 

 spondence in the 'Times' concerning a suggestion 

 emanating from Toronto that our barren ground 

 caribou might be driven in large numbers into 

 carrals by means of aeroplanes and slaughtered 

 in order to increase the meat supply. Such a 

 suggestion has naturally created sume alarm in 

 the minds of many naturalists, sportsmen, and 

 others in England, and hopes have been ex- 

 pressed that no such scheme would be permitted. 



It is with a view to assuring zoologists in 

 England and all those who are interested in the 

 conservation of wild life that they need have no 

 fear that such a scheme would be sanctioned by 

 the Canadian Government, if it follows, as is 

 usual, the recommendations of its advisers, that 

 1 am taking the opportunity of presenting a few 

 of the facts concerning the subject. 



On the recommendation of the Commission of 

 Conservation and the Government's Advisory 

 Board on Wild Life Protection, an inter-depart- 

 mental Committee, the North-West Game Act 

 was completely revised two years ago. This Act 

 governs the protection of game, fur-bearing 

 animals, and wild life generally throughout the 

 North-West Territories, which region includes all 

 that portion of Canada north of latitude 60 (ex- 

 cluding Yukon territory, which is governed, how- 

 ever, by an ordinance generally similar in its 

 provision, and Quebec). The main reasons for 

 this revision were to give greater protection to 

 the bison, musk ox, caribou, and fur-bearing 

 animals. 



No person, other than a native, may hunt or 

 kill caribou or other game without a licence from 

 the Minister of the Interior. Such control is 

 exercised for the express purpose of preventing 

 harmful or excessive killing. 



The idea of hunting caribou with aeroplanes 

 is not new. Similar proposals have been made by 

 differest people at various times since the de- 

 velopment of the aeroplane and its use in the 

 war; some enthusiasts have added maxim guns 

 to their mean of offence. But to all such sug- 

 gestions a deaf ear has been turned. During the 

 war repeated efforts were made to secure a 

 general relaxation of the game laws to permit 

 the killing of game for food owing to the high 

 price of meat. The Canadian Government reso- 

 lutely opposed any such action, and a similar 

 firm stand was taken by the provincial govern- 

 ments. It was realized that any such relaxation 

 of the laws and the resulting excessive killing 

 would mean the desruction almost to the point 

 of extermination cf many species of our game 

 animals. The utilization under Government con- 

 trol of the enormous herds of barren ground cari- 

 bou as a means of supplementing the domestic 

 meat supply was very carefully considered by 

 the Advisory Board on Wild Life Protection, but 

 it was decided that the existing means of trans- 

 portation and storage rendered any scheme of 

 that nature impracticable at the present time. 

 There is no doubt that with adequate protection 

 it will be possible in the future to utilize the 

 carbou and, we hope, the musk ox, which are 

 the grazing animals most suited to that vast 

 territory. But at the present time a policy of 

 careful protection is being carried on by the 

 Canadian Government. 



All who are interested in the conservation of 

 wild life may rest assured that the Canadian 

 Government is carrying on a vigorous policy in 

 this matter. In February last the first National 

 Conference on Wild Life Protection was held in 

 Ottama and attended by officials and represen- 

 tatives from all the provinces of the Dominion. 



