The Sunday herald. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1866-1887, 1883-03-18
ENGLISH sNOB.S AND AMERICAN
GAME.

CAME.
The leasing of the Yellowstone Park
hotel sites to the Rufus Hatch syndicate
has finally been accomplished. The hotel
company do not get as much as theF asked
but what they do get will suffice to change
that wild region OF wonders into an ordi-
nary stamping ground for tourists, and,
worse than all, into convenient resort for
the pseudo sportsmeu, whose mission in
life is to extermnate true sport by wanton
destruction of game. The Yellowstone
Park is the very centre OF the finest hunting
grounds on the continent. The American
bison still roams there in fast diminishing
herds The noble elk, the mountain sheep
the antelope, and several fine varieties of
deer are yet numerous in this Rocky Noun
tain country. There are also grizzly, black,
and cinnamon bears in abundance.
The opening of hotels in the Yellowstone
Park dooms all these, except perhaps the
useless bears, to speedy extinction. Hotels
and boarding houses in such place destroy
all its peculiar charm, which is essentially
the charm of wild outdoor lie When it
becomes the function Of government to make
the seeing of geysers and the slaughter of
game easy, or at least easy TO the rich, then
will such performance as the leasing Of
the Yellowstone Park for hotel purposes
have been justified in the eyes of the
Lordes who swarm from seaside to noun
tain top every summer
F,,l all. al. Ill
other valuable animals, which has been
going merrily on for years, will now be ac-
eelerated tenfoli. Possibly, but this is a
faint hope, the very access OF the evil will
bring about some effort to enact and enforce
game laws which win check some OF the
wanton slaughter. Wyoming Territory
already has fine game law, bnt it does not
do much good, because there is nobody TO
watch for and prosecute offenders. Although
public sentiment is strongly on the side Of
the law, ranchmen, who are the ones most
apt TO know Of its violation, cannot leave
their stock to ride fifty or a hundred miles 10
make an example of some English lord who
is littering the plains with carcaaaes merely
10 get antlers 10 take home as trophies To
the credit Of American sportsnen it must be
said that the parties Of English snobs, often
titled ones, who roam the Rocky Mountain
region every summer, are the worst Of all the
wantou destroyer Of game one Of them
not long ago boaated OF having stood
still in his tracks and shot forty
elk. lie belonged 10 the party OF Lord
Gordon, We believe, who were guests Of
an English son-in-law of LeOnari-jerone, Of
New York. This party shipped to England
four immense wagOn-lOads ut heads and
horns. The yilest part Of this snobbish,
brutal, and unsportsmanliEo business is that
these English iordiiugs all shoot vast mum
bers Of animals simply to be able to pick out
the finest antlers. Thousands Of elk are
killed that few Of the largest pairs Of an
tiers may be taken across the Atlantic for ex-
hibition. These Englishmen shoot all sum
mer for the mere pleasure Of killing.
Tie American froHtiersman does not
butcher game in this way, and there is moth
ing he more thoroughly despises. His eye is
keen enough 10 see the animal he wants
that he shoots and lets the rest lige. That
the Yellowstone hotels will smooth the path
of all such ruthless destroyers oI game is
what chiefly makes Us regret that they ara
10 be built. Congress at is very next sea-
sion ought to enact & law ior the protection
oi the remnant Of the game ia the Icrito-
ries, and place ils enforcement Ia the hend3
OF the Amy. The way ia simple: let the
Wyoming game law he enacted into . Fede
raj statute applying to All the Territories
aud all reservations, including the Yellow
stone Park, aud possibly to public lands
within the states, aud make it the duty Of
United States officers 10 see ii enforced. Un-
less something is done the next ten years
viii leave but miserable remnant Of tue
game now in the Rocky Mouutaiu..