The Florida agriculturist. [volume] (DeLand, Fla.) 1878-1911, 1882-01-11
Preservation Of Game.
# The Florida Agriculturist::

Editor Of The Florida AgricultartSt: !
The following was written for some
sportsman's Journal, but thinking
that it might come within your
province as we'll, herewith submit
it to such of your readers as may be
interested Ill the subject, pretacing
the whole with the usual egotism ct
the old, who rarely ever tire of scorn>
full expression respecting pen and |
ink sportsmen who sit at their desks |
and gather wisdom ilom cyciop@dias4
and dictionaries, unmindful OF the
fact, that they are "reaping where
they have not sown," and often Ill
fields where the tares are as plenty as
the wheat; tor of all common SUBJ
iects there is really less known, and
more popular error, III what re-
lates to the inci ease, decrease and
preservation of game, than almost
any other. All people desire an in
crease Of harmless game, and per Sc
ouence, a decrease of their natural
enemies; but how lew sportsmen even
who will take the trouble TO give the
robber hawk, owl or eagle his death
warrant when it costs him only a
single charge; yet it may save to him
many broods; tor it is their special
mission to kill and eat; and the false
philanthropy or sentiment that saves
their lives, if carried to its utmost
limit, would leave us nothing but the
least desirable of animated nature. |
have always found it difficult to inn
press ups sportmen the Importance
of yery dcts hostility against these
rapacious rascals, and that it was
owing to ignorance Of the proximate
amount of life they destroy. A
Gagged specimen would soon eulighten
them. While / was a resident OF
certain locality on the acific Slope,
where quails were few and hawks
abundant, l gave permission to
person to cut hay on my place; after
being placed in the cock, he was
called away, and the hay remained in
the field all the dry summer-it suf-
fered but little harm, while it tur-
nished secure breeding place for
the quail, and every cock had one or
more nests, giving them a good res
treat when young, from the hawks;
quail were plenty enough that season.
| have known the duck hawks so
plentiful on the upper San Joaquin,
Cal, that we were obliged to leave
with each deposit % game on the
open prairie, some article of clothing,
otherwise they would STRIP a bunch
to skeletons in lew minutes; and the
quail hawks so rapacious as to seize
the birds in mid when falling from
the shot, and not unirequently have l
brought down quail when shooting
a hawk. Nor is the owl less destruc~
tive, only his tracks are better COWS
cred, flowing darkness, as his deeds
are evil" and his ways can best be
known by finding his breeding nest,
where you will see plenty of evil
dence that he takes to his young all
birds of lesser size, except birds OF
prey, with only an occasional mouse
or rat; but OF rabbits l have found
in one nest two full grown and hall
OF another; 50 you see they live high
and start in lite with good capital OF
strength TO conquer their timid and
weaker victims. Surely all true
sportsmen will wish that Minerva
had thrust her spear through the first
specimen and taken better emblem
OF wisdom than stupid rapacity.
Now for the
"Fierce gray bird with bending beak,
An angry eye and piercing shIiel,
That nurses her brood where the cliff flowers
blow,
On the precipice top in perpetual snow.n
which is all very fine il she or he
would only stay there, but to have
bin come down into good society
and carry off our lambs and pigs,
and throttle iunumerable ducks,
grouse, and hare, and incite his cou-
sin, the bald, to rob his own kin the
osprey, and wear him down to skin
and bones i'll his endeavor to furnish
fish for both families-depletlng wa
ters OF our desirable try-is neither