[May g, 1908. 
736 
Alabama Game Law Decision. 
In the case of John Hyde vs. the State, ap¬ 
pealed from the Bibb County Court, the Su¬ 
preme Court of Alabama recently upheld in an 
exhaustive opinion the constitutionality of the 
Wallace game law. The opinion was written by 
Justice Denson and Chief Justice Tyson and 
Justices Simpson and Anderson concurred. In 
the opinion the history of game laws from early 
times down to the present was reviewed. 
One of the chief points of the defense was that 
the act was unconstitutional, as embracing a 
subject not within the power of the State to 
deal with or legislate upon. On that point the 
opinion says: 
“Speaking generally with respect to the act. 
it may be said that the right of the State, in 
the exercise of the police power to make regu¬ 
lations for the preservation of game and fish, re¬ 
stricting their taking and molestation to certain 
seasons of the year, and under prescribed rules 
and regulations—is recognized and established not 
only in the common law of England, but by the 
decision of the courtj of last resort in many of 
the States as well as by the Supreme Court of 
the United States. In the case of Geer vs. the 
State of Connecticut will be found an exhaustive 
and interesting discussion of the question, by 
Justice White, who wrote the majority of opin¬ 
ions for the court. In that opinion, after dis¬ 
cussing the nature of the property in game, and 
asserting that the ownership of wild animals (so 
far as they are capable of ownership) is in the 
State not as proprietor, but in its sovereign 
capacity as the representative, and for the bene¬ 
fit, of its people—the learned writer announces 
the further conclusion that the Legislature, in 
virtue of the police power,, has absolute right 
to control and regulate the killing of game even 
to the extent of prohibiting the shipment of 
game birds and animals out of the State after 
they have been reduced to possession. The 
latter conclusion has reference to the interstate 
commerce clause of the Federal Constitution.” 
The court quotes from Justice White of the 
Supreme Court of the United States and an¬ 
nounces: 
“It suffices to say, our views on the subject 
accord with those expressed in the very able 
opinion of Justice White.” 
The court further says, “It is clear to our 
minds that instead of the law’s being an invasion 
of an undue abridgment of any right of the land- 
owner in the use of his property, it operates as 
a protection to it against trespassers. The only 
restriction, it seems to us, is the one placed upon 
the defendant; and it is not, and in the very 
nature of things, cannot be contended that the 
restriction invades any constitutional right of 
his.” 
The Adirondack Deer Record. 
The report made by the secretary of the Com¬ 
mission to Hon. J. S. Whipple, Forest, Fish and 
Game Commissioner, shows no apparent de¬ 
crease in the number of the deer in the Adiron- 
dacks. It is true that the number shipped put 
is slightly smaller than last year, but this may 
be accounted for by the lack of snow and the 
way in which the foliage clung to the trees last 
autumn. The kill for the year 1907 is given as 
2,021 carcasses, 72, saddles and 70 heads. The 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
record shows the kill in 1907 to have been nearly 
double that of the year 1900. 
A number of unusually heavy deer was killed, 
the weights of which are given as from 200 up 
to 300 pounds, dressed. The latter, consigned 
to Mr. H. E. Battie, of Utica, N. Y., could 
hardly have been a Virginia deer, we think. 
Another deer weighed 246 pounds and several 
others weighed between 220 and 230 pounds. 
From the Catskills a buck is reported as weigh¬ 
ing 348 pounds and one shipped from Big Indian 
is said to have weighed 306 pounds dressed, but 
the name of the hunter is not given. Twq or 
three white, or white-spotted, deer were reported 
killed during the past season, and in a number 
of cases the names of the hunters are given. 
A number of deer with extraordinary horns 
have been reported this year. One said to have 
been killed by Wm. M. Brown, of Ilion, had 
three horns, another killed by Mr. Williams, of 
Utica, had a horn on the right side of her head. 
A buck weighing 253 pounds, killed by Mr. Chas. 
Streever, of Boston, is said to have carried 
twenty-one points on flattened, moose-like horns. 
There has been a gradual increase for three 
years in the number of licenses issued; thus in 
T905, 67 licenses yielded $698.50; in 1906, 96 
licenses yielded $1,042.50; while in 1907, 123 
licenses yielded $1,290.50. 
The report, which is very complete and in¬ 
teresting, speaks well for the work of the Forest, 
Fish and Game Commission. 
New Publications. 
My Friend the Partridge. Memories of New 
England Shooting. By S. T. Hammond 
(“Shadow”). Forest and Stream Publish¬ 
ing Co. Cloth, illustrated, 148 pages. Price, 
$1.00 
Partridge shooters all over that portion of 
North America inhabited by the ruffed grouse 
will rejoice that Mr. Hammond’s charming serial 
on this species and its pursuit has at last been 
issued in book form. It is a delightful volume, 
bound in a gray buckram suggestive of the tree 
trunks of the fall and winter woods, and is of 
just the right size to hold in the hand. 
The twenty chapters of this delightful little 
book comprise more partridge lore than has ever 
before been put between covers. Mr. Hammond 
has been hunting the birds for about sixty-six 
years, during which he has had a multitude of 
experiences with it, each one of which is full of 
interest to the partridge shooter. While there is 
probably no one in the world who is up to all the 
tricks and devices of this wily bird, we do not 
hesitate to say that Mr. Plaminond is probably 
the most learned exponent of the science of the 
ruffed grouse of anybody now living. 
Among the subjects discussed in connection 
with this bird are the country that it inhabits; 
the local names that it bears; its tricks, and de¬ 
vices; its foods; its enemies; then there is drum¬ 
ming, mating and nesting; the “crazy season”; 
its autumn habits; chapters devoted to its de¬ 
struction by snaring in early days and the advent 
of the gun; and then five chapters of shooting 
incidents which are full of wisdom, mystery, 
failure and success. 
The book is full of feeling, natural history, 
humor and incident, and can be read and re-read 
with pleasure. It is one which no one fond of 
upland shooting can afford to be without, and it 
is certain of a welcome from all upland shooters. 
More About Skunks. 
Godbout. Canada, May 7 .— Editor Forest and 
Stream: Quite a lot has been written recently 
on this subject, and as I have had a good deal 
of experience with the critter, my letter may be 
of interest. I should not advise anyone to carry 
them by the tail, or by any other part of the 
body, but once in a while such a thing can be 
done, as I have seen and handled them myself, 
but it is too risky a business to recommend. 
Caught in steel trapst-a large percentage .will not 
squirt the perfume until you approach them, but 
a good many do immediately on feeling the trap 
spring on them. I tried many experiments to 
get them loose without their embalming my trap. 
With me shooting was a failure, as no matter 
in what part of the body I shot them the result 
was not satisfactory. Then I tried snaring with 
a noose at the end of a long pole, then by drop¬ 
ping a long and heavy pole across their back in 
imitation of the action of the dead fall. This 
was effective occasionally and better than shoot¬ 
ing. but not a sure thing. 
I then thought of trying to handle them alive, 
and for that purpose when visiting my traps used 
to carry a strong cotton bag which I would use 
at the end of a stick, landing-net fashion, in this 
manner, and by moving the bag slowly I have 
taken some out without any trouble, but a small 
percentage only, not “ninety-nine out of the hun¬ 
dred.” The most satisfactory of all is the dead¬ 
fall trap which must be well weighted and the 
trap not too short, so that the wood piece will 
catch them just in front of the hind legs. Very 
few will squirt if the trap is properly made. 
Some success will be had also by making them 
“giddy” as follows: Set the steel trap in an open 
space, tie the chain or nail on the end of a pole 
about eight or nine feet long, which is about the 
distance a skunk will ordinarily let you approach 
without showing its flag. Take hold of the pole 
end and draw quietly till you get the full length 
of the chain tight, then by a sudden pull lift it 
off the ground and swing it around. After a 
couple of turns, and when the trap has the im¬ 
petus, this whirling can be done at arm’s length. 
After tern or twelve turns drop on the ground 
and remove quickly. This is the only way I was 
ever able to handle them safely. 
As a rule skunks are not shy. We had them 
burrow under our buildings here and when no 
dogs were about they would stay for days 
around the premises without causing any annoy¬ 
ance from the scent. Two have dropped down 
through tjie ventilator into our cellar. By work¬ 
ing cautiously I got them out by placing some 
boards in a slanting position up to the entrance 
of the ventilator. Neither of them squirted, but 
a few days later one of my sisters on a visit to 
11s here tried to pat one of them, thinking it was 
tamed. I leave you to imagine what happened. 
She never tried to pat another one. Her mis¬ 
take was not due to any want of knowledge of 
the habits of the animal, but to the fact that, a 
couple of years before I had kept some tame 
ones from which I had removed the scent glands. 
This is an easy operation (if one does not mind 
a little smell) and the wound heals quickly. A 
couple of artery forceps, a sharp penknife and 
a needle are the requisites. They tame readily 
and are as useful as a cat in destroying mice, 
etc., but of course cannot be kept if poultry 
is around. Nap- A. Comeau. 
