Aug. io, 1912 
FOREST AND STREAM 
171 
IN THE HEART OF THE WILDERNESS. 
An actual moonlight photograph. 
with the ability of the protector to earn his 
salary that the public is chiefly concerned, and 
in discussing his duties the subject may be con¬ 
veniently considered under three heads: (1) 
The duty of the protector to the commission; 
(2) the duty of the protector to the State; and 
(3) the duty of the protector to himself. 
DUTY OF THE PROTECTOR TO THE COMMISSION. 
Under the a'ct to amend the conservation law 
in relation to fish and game, which went into 
effect April 15, 1912, the duties of protectors are 
briefly set forth somewhat as follows: Game 
protectors and fishery protectors are required to 
enforce all laws relating to fish, birds and quad¬ 
rupeds, and all laws of boards of supervisors 
relating to the same subject. Each protector 
shall keep a daily record of his official acts and 
report the same at the close of each week to 
the division chief of his division, and at the end 
of each month to the chief game protector. He 
cannot draw his salary or traveling expenses 
until he has filed his reports, and he is forbidden 
under any circumstances to compromise or settle 
any violation of the game or fish laws out of 
court without an order of the commission. 
It goes without saying that the warden is 
expected to perform his duties with reasonable 
activity, diligence and intelligence and with due 
loyalty to the commission. The act provides cer¬ 
tain powers in relation to search, seizure and 
making arrests to facilitate his work, offers as 
inducement for faithful service an increase in 
salary under certain conditions, but is silent on 
precisely how the officer is to perform the most 
important of all his duties, namely to enforce 
all laws relating to fish and game. To the in¬ 
genuity of the warden and the discipline main¬ 
tained by the commission is left this most im¬ 
portant factor of carrying out the intent of the 
law. A high degree of intelligence, efficiency 
and team work are necessary to perform prop¬ 
erly the duty briefly outlined in the above clause. 
The native fauna of New York includes 411 
species of birds, 81 species of mammals, 375 
species of fish and frogs, many species of turtles 
and shellfish. Most of these are protected by 
some provision of the conservation law. This 
act also fixes seasons for hunting, trapping and 
fishing, requires licenses for enjoyment of these 
privileges, limits the amount of fish or game that 
may be caught or killed, regulates methods of 
hunting and fishing, places restrictions on ship¬ 
ment and sale, requires all game sold in the 
State to be properly tagged, provides for public 
and private hatcheries, for posting lands and 
for a number of other matters of greater or 
less importance. Some familiarity with the com¬ 
mon and conspicuous mammals, birds and fish 
and their habits is absolutely essential; knowl¬ 
edge of the more important provisions of the 
law is equally essential and perhaps more easily 
acquired. Tt is also necessary that the warden 
should know something of procedure under the 
game law, the kind of evidence required for 
successful prosecution of his cases and a few 
of the decisions of the courts on important 
points. Obviously, no man can be expected to 
know all these things before he enters the ser¬ 
vice, but without such knowledge he cannot 
properly perform his duties. 
As a matter of fact, very few zoologists 
know all of the 860 species of mammals, birds 
and fish which have been recorded from New 
York. An ordinary man does well if he knows 
even ten per cent, of them. It is less important 
to know many of them than it is to know how 
to find the name or the life history of the par¬ 
ticular species which may be of special interest, 
but which happens to be unfamiliar, and what 
museum books of reference or authorities on 
each special subject to consult. Very few law¬ 
yers, unless they are also sportsmen and have 
given special attention to the game law, make 
any pretense of knowing either the details of 
its provisions or of the decisions which the 
courts have rendered, but they do know where 
and how to look them up when necessary. Simi¬ 
larly the protector’s first concern should be to 
ascertain how and where he can obtain com¬ 
petent legal advice when he needs it. 
But it is not sufficient for hint to be familiar 
with the local game law or local officials. He 
should also be familiar, especially if he is located 
in any of the border counties, with the more im¬ 
portant provisions of the laws of adjoining States 
and the addresses of the principal game officials, 
so that at a moment’s notice he can render ef¬ 
fective co-operation to them or secure similar 
courtesies in return. The law of any State is 
made up of the best provisions of the laws of 
other States, and provisions now in force in 
other States will probably be adopted here in a 
few years. The resident license law which has 
proved so successful in this State had been in 
force ten years in the Northwest before it was 
adopted in New York. The non-resident license 
had been in effect twenty years in Nova Sc >tia 
before it was generally adopted in the Ur.'ted 
States. It is one of the special functions of the 
Biological Survey of the U. S. Department of 
Agriculture to collect and summarize informa¬ 
tion regarding the various methods of game pro¬ 
tection which have been proposed, and to place 
it before the people in all the States. Upon ap¬ 
plication to the Department such information as 
is available may be had concerning conditions. 
Enough has been said to show the necessity to 
the protector of keeping up with the times. 
THE DUTY OF THE PROTECTOR TO THE PEOPLE. 
Beside his duty to the commission or de¬ 
partment, the protector owes a duty to the people 
which is none the less real or important because 
it is not defined by statute. The Conservation 
Commission is the creature of the Legislature 
and its employes are the servants of the people. 
In making its reports to the Legislature, account¬ 
ing for funds received and expended and work 
accomplished under its direction, the commission 
performs a public duty, but the people who elect 
the Legislature come into direct contact with 
the employes of the commission and expect prac¬ 
tical and substantial results from the work in¬ 
trusted to the game protectors. The public is 
apt to be ill informed as to the limitations under 
which the protector labors, highly critical of 
methods, impatient for results, and frequently 
openly hostile to certain provisions of the law. 
It looks only to the gratification of its desire 
for the maximum amount of fish or game with 
the minimum of restriction. It chafes under the 
restrictions regarding hunting, fishing, trapping, 
shipment, sale or possession. It is inclined to 
place personal interest above public good, to de¬ 
mand greater protection for the hunter than the 
game, and then to condemn the system which 
fails to perform a miracle in producing an abund¬ 
ance of birds or fish amid a hundred means of 
destruction. 
Under such obstacles is the protector com¬ 
pelled to work and to account to a master 
usually unreasoning and frequently unreasonable 
to avoid pitfalls, overcome opposition, and not 
only secure strict enforcement of the law, but 
to mould public opinion in favor of more effec¬ 
tive conservation. Is it any wonder that under 
these circumstances he needs the skill of a 
lawyer, the tact of a diplomat, and the patience 
of Job? Ignorance of the law excuses no man, 
but the warden who follows this adage too close¬ 
ly and confines his attention to applying it liter¬ 
ally, seeking only to arrest those who are 
ignorant or negligent, not only falls far short 
of his full duty to the public, but is laying up 
trouble for the future. Sooner or later his 
master, the people, will bring about his retire¬ 
ment “for cause,” inefficiency, or the “good of 
the service.” 
[concluded in next issue.] 
