The record-union., 1894-12-14
KERN COUNTY'S AWFUL EXAMPLE. !"
Almost Bereft of Its Wild Game by a
Few Men.
Fields That Once Tened With Quail
Now Barren-Superyisors Deaf
to All Appeals.

Up to a few years ago Kern County was
q veritabie sportsmen's paradise. 1t was
one of the finest quail and duck-shooting
districts in the State. There were land
are now comparatively few farms fenced,
and men might hunt in almost all di-
rections. The level, open plains about
Bakersfield were the finest field trial
grounds in the Union, and for several
years the Pacific Coast Club held its trials
there.
Now all this is changed. The ruthless
slaughter of game by market hunters has
we'll nigh exterminated the quail in the
valley near Bakersfield, and the Field
Trials Club two years ago had to abandon
that locality and seek new grounds
where it was possible to protect the quail.
Lest some of the newspaper defenders of
the game destroyers. who are fighting
the sportsmen's protective clubs, may in
their ignorance charge that the Kern
County quails were killed of by the field
trial men, let it be said here that the av-
erage number of birds shot during a
weeks meeting OF the club was perhaps
a dozen-certainly not to exceed two
dozen.
SO regardless had the market-shooters
at last the latter demanded some protec-
ton at the hands Of the Supervisors OF
the county. They petitioned that BODY TO
pass an ordinance prohibiting the ship
ment OF game out OF the county, but
some OF the Supervisors were personal
friends of the market-hunters, and had
not yet been educated up to the idea that
the wild game of the county was some
thing worth preserving Tor future gener-
atoms, SO they defeated the petition.
While the evidence taken before the
board was such as should have opened the
eyes of the Rip Van Wrinkle members, 1t
seems to have had just the opposite effect,
judging by the following report III the
bakersfield Californian:
The Board OF Supervisors disposed OF
petition this morning that requested an
ordinance passed prohibiting shipment of
game outside of the county. All save
one voted to reject the petition. The Nc
Cutcheon brothers were present. and
stated that they had made the price OF
valuable fruit farm in Rosedale out OF
shooting for the market.
Among the statements made was the
astonishing one that 1000 per year was
probably received from game shipped
from Bakersfield, which at nigh aver
age rate per dozen quails or ducks, say
s., would represent ten thousand dozen
birds, or 12O, 900 birds. This is most sur
prising, and we doubt if any county in
the United States can make such show
ing.
An interesting question in this con-
nection is, how long can the game of this
county stand such a drain? 1t certainly
looks very like killing the goose that lays
the golden eggs"
1t will now be in order for some coun-
try editor to assert that the Kern County
game was killed OF by members of San
francisco gun clubs, and that the Super
nj lrJyx a,.i,r
ing with both feet on the attempt to in
Hict an "odious English game law'' on
Kern County.
Kern now has her McCutchen Brothers
and their fruit farm as consideration
Tor the almost extinction of her game
and 1t does not require much 'fggering"
10 demonstrate whether she has made or
lost by the bargain. The Pacific Coast
Field Trials Club alone spent about So. 600
year in bakersfield for six years, and
had the county authorities exercised even
ordinary vigilance in the matter of pro-
tecllng the quails these annual expendi-
lures would have continued Indefinitely,
increasing year by year. as people learned
TO appreciate the sport connected with
field trials.
Not only that, but there would have
been game sufficient TO afford every citi-
zen in The county all he required for his
table, with enough left in its native
hauntS to attract visitorS-and even
home-seekers-f far away.
bakersfield had few years ago a gun
club composed of large number of the
leading citizens of the place, and they
made gallant effort to stem the tide and
at least partially protect the wild game
from the rapacity OF greedy market hunt
ers. but had to give up the struggle. The
public generally, and the officials partic-
ulariy, were not capable of approaching
the fact that the game was something
worthy of protection, and now Kern
County has little to boast of except it's big
ranches, water bitches and herds of live
stock.
" s, she has her McCutcheon brothers
and their fruit farmland some .hay-
seed" officials.