7. The Resident Hunter’s License Law was amended to provide 
for the wearing of the tag on the middle of the back instead of on 
the arm as previously, also to clarify various provisions concerning 
the carrying of the license and displaying the tag while hunting, 
and to give the Game Commission the power to revoke licenses for 
periods of one to five years. 
8 A new law protecting the mink, muskrat, opossum, otter, 
raccoon and skunk as fur-bearing animals, with an open season for 
all except the raccoon from November 1st to the end of February, 
and placing the enforcement of same under the jurisdiction of the 
Game Commission, also removing the mink from the list of animals 
on which bounty is paid. 
9. Reducing the bounty on weasels from $2.00 to $1.50. 
10. Two acts for the protection of human life, one controlling 
the shooting of bullets in game territory by prohibiting shooting 
at unprotected targets and live trees, the other imposing heavy 
penalties upon persons shooting others in mistake for wild creatures. 
With n few exceptions, the people of the State in general are very 
well pleased with the changes in the laws made by the 1921 Legisla¬ 
ture. While this report is being written renewed complaints are 
being received against extending the open season for rabbits into the 
large game season, and a number of complaints were received on the 
opening of the woodcock season prior to the open season for ruffed 
grouse, although such latter complaints were not so bitter as those 
relative to the yabbit season extending into the large game season. 
These are questions on which we may never be able to get ail classes 
of sportsmen to agree, largely because of our varied climatic con¬ 
ditions. The new bag limits seem to meet with the approval of 
everybody, and but few objections to the new requirements for camps 
while hunting big game have been received. 
Contrary to exceptions, many prominent sportsmen are already 
favorably commenting upon the change in the law on deer, and 
indications are that if the suggestion of the Game Commission to 
restrict the killing of deer to animals of two or more points to one 
antler, with a proviso that a deer with horns eight or more inches 
long without points should be considered legal, should again come 
up before the Legislature there will be no doubt about the large 
majority of sportsmen giving their hearty approval to such a pro¬ 
vision. Indications are that even under the present law but few 
“spike” bucks will be killed during the present season, and that the 
number of does and baby bucks killed will be materially reduced 
in many sections. Letters have lately been received from prominent 
sportsmen who bitterly opposed the change recommended by the 
Game Commission now giving their hearty approval to a change 
of this sort, because after the first few days, of the season they can 
readily see the value of such legislation. While a few camps during 
the 1920 season passed resolutions agreeing among themselves to 
12 
refrain from killing “spike” bucks, from information received a large 
majority of the camps in our deer territory will refrain from killing 
Cspike” bucks this year, because they realize that these animals .are 
needed for future breeding purposes, also that if left go until next 
year much better trophies will be the result. 
The changes made in the Resident Hunter’s License Law are meet¬ 
ing with general approbation among the sportsmen. Through 
slight changes in the arrangement of the license, as well as the tag, 
and the co-operation of the sportsmen in general, indications are 
that but comparatively few violations of this law occurred this year. 
The officers report that never before have they seen this law so uni¬ 
versally obeyed. The most important:, change, however, in the 
leu liter’s license law is that provision giving the Game Commission 
the power to revoke licenses , and from all directions comes, the in¬ 
formation that men who heretofore were disposed to disregard the 
game laws were particularly solicitous to obey strictly the present law 
for fear that any infractions might mean the revocation of their 
limiting license for periods of one to five years. In a number of 
cases license have already been taken away from persons who in¬ 
sisted on violating the law, and the publicity given in these instances 
has had a very wide-spread moral effect. This feature of the license 
law places our sportsmen of all classes on an equal basis, and even 
better results, may be expected in the future because of this provision. 
The two acts controlling and regulating- shooting, and especially 
the act imposing penalties upon persons shooting others in mistake 
for game, have so far proven far more valuable than the sponsors had 
hoped for. While the Representative from Huntingdon County had 
introduced a bill in the 1915 Session attempting to impose penalties 
upon persons shooting others in mistake for wild creatures, there 
seemed to be but little sentiment at that time for such legislation, 
with the result that the bill did not even get out of the Committee. 
From reports received up to this time, the sportsmen of the State 
would now protest most bitterly against the repeal of these two 
laws. Early reports indicate that shooting in large game territory 
will be reduced by at least seventy-five per cent., some claiming ninety 
per cent, over previous years, and that sportsmen who heretofor 
hesitated to participate in large game hunting will again feel free to 
enjoy their favorite sport. The first case under the new law im¬ 
posing penalties upon persons shooting others in mistake for wild 
creatures occurred in Lycoming County when Mr. George W. Sweelev 
of that county shot and killed Charles W. Carrol in mistake for a 
woodchuck. Mr. Sweeley was prosecuted by the County authorities, 
convicted and a heavy sentence imposed. A limited number of ad¬ 
ditional cases of this sort may develop before the close of the hunt¬ 
ing season, but the benefit of this act will become wide-spread as the 
result of such prosecutions becomes more generally known. 
13 
