458 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
[March 20, 1909. 
New York Legislature. 
In the Senate Mr. Agnew’s cold storage bill 
has been read twice and referred to committee. 
In its present form it amends Section 241 of 
the game law by striking out all reference to 
game and the flesh of any animal or bird, and 
applies only to fish held in cold storage during 
the closed season. 
Assembly BiPs. 
By Mr. Williams—Relating to trout in Dela¬ 
ware county. 
By Mr. Merritt—To create a forest reserva¬ 
tion in the Highlands of the Hudson, to be 
known as the Hudson Forest Reservation, to 
provide for its regulation and making an appro¬ 
priation therefor. It is proposed to acquire the 
mountains touching the Hudson River in the 
towns of Cornwall, Woodbury and Highland in 
Orange county; Stony Point in Rockland county; 
Fishkill in Dutchess county; Phillipstown and 
Putnam valley in Putnam county; and Cortlandt 
in Westchester county. The appropriation 
named is $5,000. 
By Mr. Reed—Relating to an open season for 
muskrats. 
By Mr. Duell—Relating to the destruction of 
certain forest trees. 
By Mr. Lanahan—Making a closed season on 
quail, English pheasants and Hungarian par¬ 
tridges in Richmond county until 1914. 
By Mr. Murphy—To regulate nets in Lake 
Erie. 
By Mr. Thompson—Changing the quail, wood¬ 
cock and grouse season. Also a bill relating to 
rabbits in Orleans county. 
By Mr. Edwards—A bill similar to the cold 
storage bill introduced in the Senate by Mr. 
Agnew, and referred to above. Also a bill to 
increase the number of game protectors from 
80 to 150. Also a bill prohibiting the pursuit, as 
well as the firing at, wildfowl from boats pro¬ 
pelled otherwise than by hand. Also a bill to 
permit taking dogs into forests inhabited by 
deer, under license, for bird, rabbit and fox 
hunting; violations to be punished by refusal 
of further license. Also a bill to make the open 
season for ducks, geese, brant and swan Sept. 
16-Dec. 31, both inclusive, the dates for posses¬ 
sion to be the same. Also a bill to remove the 
great blue heron from the list of protected birds. 
By Mr. Hawley—Relating to trespass. In this 
bill the exemplary damages that may be re¬ 
covered cannot exceed $25 for each trespass, in 
addition to the actual damages sustained. 
Wailing for Brant. 
Editor Forest and Stream: 
About two weeks ago a party of Long Island 
sportsmen were stationed near Montauk Point. 
Many ducks and geese were moving, but brant 
were very scarce. Foxhounds were turned loose, 
but before the sweet music announcing that rey- 
nard was at home greeted our ears, a smack 
hove to near the point. Our attention was at¬ 
tracted by the number of small boats she put 
out in line. We soon learned that they were 
not fishing, but shooting, and they banged away 
all day. More than forty birds were picked up 
by the fishermen after the craft sailed away. 
Were these people shooting on the strength of 
the bill introduced by Assemblyman Lupton? 
By the way, I think the Long Islanders were 
hit pretty hard in your issue of March 6 in the 
editorial about spring shooting. We have not 
asked for spring shooting, but to have the privi¬ 
lege of shooting during the months of January 
and February. At this time of year the birds 
are migrating and the argument against spring 
shooting and the killing, of birds when .mating 
does not apply to our proposition. These are the 
two months in the year, when we have the time 
to enjoy the gun on Long Island, and it is the 
proper time to shoot waterfowl as they are pass- 
TVVO VIEWS OF ELK IN THE JACKSON's HOLE COUN¬ 
TRY OF WYOMING. 
From photographs by S. N. Leek. 
ing, and not when they are settled down to a 
permanent living place. Therefore, I say, cut 
out the brant clause, limit the possession of wild¬ 
fowl to the open season, then with the sale of 
birds prohibited and the gun license in force, the 
Long Island boys can do no real harm. 
We have one protector to every 100,000 in¬ 
habitants, I believe, and on Long Island there 
is one man to every 100,000 who thinks we 
should not kill ducks and geese in January and 
February. Under the circumstances it would 
be good policy to pass Mr. Lupton’s bill. The 
above protection would be sufficient. Why will 
not this bill become a law? Square Deal. 
The Forest and Stream may be obtained from 
any newsdealer on order. Ask your dealer to 
supply you regularly. 
Elk Starving in Wyoming. 
Cheyenne, Wyo., March 12.— Editor Forest 
and Stream: From reports that have been re¬ 
ceived from the Jackson Flole country, south 
of the Yellowstone National Park, in the> west¬ 
ern part of this State, ten or twelve thousand 
elk are in great danger of starving to death. 
Within the rugged, crisscross ranges of moun¬ 
tains that run southeast and southwest from the 
Yellowstone National Park and diverge again 
toward the southern boundaries of this State, 
forming a rich basin with millions of acres of 
good grazing ground, there are 30,000 elk. In 
summer they feed up in the impassable moun¬ 
tains and are driven down into the valleys by 
the deep snows of the winter. 
This has been one of the most severe winters 
in the history of this State. Snow has fallen 
to a depth of five to ten feet on the moun¬ 
tains, and has covered the valleys to a depth 
of two to four feet on the level. This snow 
has frozen on the surface and has covered the 
elks’ winter grazing ground. These noble ani¬ 
mals have eaten bark off the trees, devoured 
almost all available food, such as brush and 
twigs, and have been breaking into farmers’ hay¬ 
stacks by tearing down fences and causing other 
depredations in search for food. 
Residents of the Jackson Hole country held 
a mass meeting last week and raised over $1,000 
with which to purchase food for the starving 
elk, which are considered one of the State’s 
most prized possessions. This gave immediate 
relief. Delegates were sent to the Legislature 
at Cheyenne to ask for help. A bill was at once 
drafted appropriating $5,000 for immediate re¬ 
lief of the elk. This was passed through both 
Flouses and signed by the governor. State 
Game Warden Nowlin has gone to the elk coun¬ 
try, authorized to use as many men and as much 
of the appropriation as is needed to save the 
animals. Sufficient hay is available in the Jack- 
son Hole to feed the elk until warm weather 
sets in. 
W. J. Kelly, of Elk, Wyo., recently, when in¬ 
terviewed on the elk question, said: 
“In a ride of five miles a week ago last Satur¬ 
day afternoon I counted and estimated at least 
7,000 elk in the Jackson Hole country, and the 
condition of those creatures is pitiful indeed. 
Elk have increased wonderfully in numbers in 
the last few years, and it is estimated that to¬ 
day there are from 20,000 to 40.000 of these 
animals in Jackson’s Hole. I know that this win¬ 
ter I have seen not less than 10,000 in a radius 
of not more than five miles in that country. 
These elk stay up in the hills as long as they 
can get anything to eat, and then the cows and 
many of the others come down into the valley 
to graze. And when they do come down they 
a-re hungry, and everything they strike goes as 
completely as though it was ravaged by the 
grasshoppers. 
“Fences will not keep them out and ranch¬ 
men have to sleep at their stacks and guard 
them or they would have no hay in a few days 
after the herd strikes the country. 
“I recently interviewed twelve farmers in the 
Jackson Valley, and they all agreed that if a 
big snow would strike the valley now. not less 
than 25 per cent, of the old elk and 50 per cent, 
of the calves would perish.’’ 
W. A. Bartlett. 
