is good game management in times of peace is also good game management 

 in times of war. Wildlife plays an important part in peace-time recrea- 

 tion, and should play an. important part in war-time recreation. Under 

 war conditions recreation is extremely important in keeping up the na- 

 tional morale. Furthermore, good game management includes the wise har- 

 vesting of a game crop which is renewable from year. to year, provided 

 sufficient "breeding stock is retained. In addition to furnishing recre- 

 ation, the proper harvesting of the game crop can and does supply valu- 

 able food. There are more than 900,000 hig game animals : including deer, 

 elk, moose, and antelope killed in the United States each year, which at 

 an average* of only 90 pounds each, dressed, represent about 81,000,000 

 pounds of meat. It is estimated that during the last year 15,000,000 

 waterfowl, 20,000,000 rabbits, 15,000.000 upland game birds, and more 

 than 4.000,000 other small game were killed, which, averaging only one 

 pound each dressed, would supply an additional 54,000,000 pounds of food. 

 This makes a total of 135,000,000 pounds of meat in game animals and 

 birdo, to which can be added the game fishes taken to replace meat needed 

 in our war effort. There are more than 12,000,000 sport fishermen in the 

 United States, and it is conservatively estimated that each of these will 

 catch on the average more than 25 pounds of fish per year. In fact, in- 

 formation availa.ble shows that the average catch is above 30 pounds in 

 many States; in California it is kno?7n to exceed 50 rounds. However, on 

 the basis of an average of only 25 porindfs of sport fish annually for each 

 fisherman, there is supplied in this country each year 300,000,000 pounds 

 of game fish. Altogether this adds up to 435,000,000 pounds of food 

 available from the annual harvest of gane animals, game birds, and game 

 fishes. According to the Quartermaster Corps of the United States Army, 

 the meat allowance per soldier each day is 16 ounces, bvit the full quan- 

 tity is not always supplied. Using this generous ration of meat a.s a 

 unit, the 435,000,000 pounds of wild game and game fish used in Americsxi 

 homes would replace enoiogh beef, perk, poultry, commercial fish, and 

 other meat to furnish each year sufficient of this food to an army of 

 5,000,000 men for more than 77 days. It is important to note also that 

 with proper management, this valuable contribution to our war effort can 

 be made annually without damage to the resource. 



The Pish and Wildlife Service does not advocate letting down the 

 bars so as to permit more killing of game to make a supply of meat immediately 

 available. We should protect the breeding stock a,nd harvest only the 

 siirplus that becomes available from year to year. Despite this reason- 

 able principle, officials entrusted with the welfare of the na,tion's 

 wildlife are urged by certain groups as a war measure to permit a raid 

 on our game so as to furnish an unusual and immediate supply of food and 

 to economize on the expenditures necessa.ry to protect and maintain our 

 wildlife resources. To the uninformed, some of these proposa~ls may be 

 very plausible; and to the game hog and the man who wants to profit fi.- 

 nancially on our game, the argument that we discard many of the ^rame laws, 

 discharge the game wardens, and. stop the salaries of game technicians and 

 administrators is like a message from heaven. During the first V/orld War 

 a very few States accepted such arguments, liberalized their laws, and 

 cut do"Wii enforcement activities in connection with certain wildlife spe- 

 cies. In so doing, a dependable source of food was immediately and 



