ion, rule or regulation shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and
shall, upon conviction, be subject to a fine of not to exceed one
hundred dollars, or shall be imprisoned for not more than thirty
days, or both, for each offense, in addition to the penalties
hereinafter provided for taking fish, birds or quadrupeds in the
close season.
* * * * *
I want all sensible, honest sportsmen to stop citing the killing of game
birds by severe winters _as a reason_ why long close seasons are not
necessary, and why automatic guns "don't matter." And I want sportsmen
to consider their duty, and not go out hunting any game species that has
been slaughtered by a hard winter, until it has had at least five years
in which to recover. Any other course is cruel, selfish, and
shortsighted; and a word to the humane should be sufficient.
The worst exhibitions ever made of the wolfish instinct to slay that
springs eternal in some human (!) breasts are those brought about
through the distress or errors of wild animals. By way of illustration,
consider the slaughter of half-starved elk that took place in the edge
of Idaho in the winter of 1909 and 1910, when about seven hundred elk
that were driven out of the Yellowstone Park at its northwestern corner
by the deep snow, fled into Idaho in the hope of finding food. The
inhabitants met the starving herds with repeating rifles, and as the
unfortunate animals struggled westward through the snow and storm, they
were slaughtered without mercy. Bulls and cows, old and young, all of
the seven hundred, went down; and Stoney Indians could not have acted
any worse than did those "settlers."
On another occasion, it is recorded that the prong-horned antelope herd
of the Mammoth Hot Springs wandered across the line into Gardiner, and
quickly met a savage attack of gunners with rifles. A number of those
rare and valuable animals were killed, and others fled back into the
Park with broken legs dangling in the air.
In the interest of public decency, and for the protection of the
reputation of American citizenship, one of two things should be done.
The northern boundary of the Park should be extended northward beyond
Gardiner, or else the deathtrap should be moved elsewhere. The case of
the town of Gardiner is referred to the legislature of Montana for
treatment.
Beyond question, the highest sentiments of humanity are those that are
stirred by the misfortunes
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