The Cook County herald. [volume] (Grand Marais, Minn.) 1893-1909, 1895-08-10
GAME PRESERVES IN GERMANY.
Farmers Make Money by Taking
Care of. Birds and Other Animals.

Farmers Make Money by Taking
Care of Birds and Other Animals.
In Prussia the game law allows the
owner of every piece of; land that is
inclosed by a fence or wall the right
to shoot birds or animals on it, or to
rent the privilege out to those from
the towns or cities. All of the land
less than 200 acres in extent which Is
not inclosed may belong to one. ac-
cording to law, but the shooting priv
ilege is owned by the commune in
which the land is. located. The ..esult
is that there is not free and indis-
I criminate hunting. The sportsmen
from the towns or cities, however, for
mere nominal rent, can find excellent
hunting by hiring from any of the
farmers along the line of the railroads
The game is generally preserved and
fed by the farmer until the shooting
season, for the abundance of the game
determines largely the price he can
obtain for the shooting privilege. A
great deal of the shooting land IS own
ed hy the farmers. who do not inclose
it, and the communal authorities usual
ly have the renting OF the shooting
privileges. These renting privileges
constitute "a very important revenue
of the agricultural class The commu-
nal authorities credit to each farmer
his due share of the aggregate rental
in proportion to the area of his land #
The leases of the shooting Driv1I-#
eges are usually from six to nine or
twelve years, and, by furnishing prop
or financial guaranty that the rent will
be paid, the privilege goes to the high
est bidder, at a public auction The
club OF individual leasing the land
then assumes all responsibility both
as to the rearing and preservation of
the game, and to the damage done to
growing crops. Two communal as
SCISSORS determine the amount of DAM
age done to farm crops by the hares,
birds or deer, and they levy the tax
to be paid to the farmer. Generally
local gamekeeper* watches over the
small preserves to see that the game
is not molested L.. 49, S
81 No one is allowed to wander over
the fields with a shotgun and a hunt
er'ss accoutrements without a license
from the local authorities. In order to
secure, license, the applicant must be
man of good standing and not un-
der Is years of age. These licenses
to shoot On certain fields cost from 75c
to So a year. Any infrac ction of these
rules is punishable by fines, confisca-
ton of the gun and accoutrements
and by Imprisonment. Poaching is
thus kept down. and the professional
bird and animal killer is abolished.
SpOrtsmen who pay for shooting
privileges are not governed by any
written code, such as prevails in
America. that it is. not good form to-
sell their ga me ia \ % pen nhrket.s
IA g many they XIII the game for the
sport, and then sell it to help pay for
the expenses of the preserves.
The principal wild game in Germany
are the stag, the deer, hares and rab-
bits, pheasants, partridges, snipe
woodcock. wild ducks, swans, foxes,
badgers. fish offers and many others
The hare is the great national game
animal, hunted alike in every part Of
the empire.
In Prussia alone as many as 2.5OO.-
600 hares have been killed in one
season, representing an income to the
agricultural classes Of nearly 81. 800.
O0O.-Country Gentleman