The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-02-03
FIN DE Steele GUIDES.
New Kind Provided for In n Bill
Introduced Yesterday.


IF little knowledge Is dangerous,
who shall say what horrible calamity
may not fall on the heads Of guides, who
in future, point out half-hidden run
ways and salt ticks to the sportsmen
who annually shoulder their rifles and
gamebags and find their way to Min
nesota hunting grounds. The learned
professor, soon to be appointed to
the chair of anthropology at the state
university, with his knowledge Of en-
tomology, archaeology and phrenology,
is not required to know nearly as
much as must these hardy denizens Of
the sparsely settled regions, where
game aboundS-Who, until now, have
been chiefly serviceable to hunters, ow-
ing to their thorough knowledge of
wCodcraft and their ability to cook
VenisOn saddles and boil coffee. II
is like this:
Some worthy constituents of Benton
Severance, who halls from the county
OF NicQllet, have prevailed on their
representative to introduce bill,
which, if it becomes a law, will play
hob in the ranks Of well-edueated men
in the cities, who will forthwith tear
to the tall timber" there to use their
acquired knowledge to good advantage.
For, if you please, nothing in the way
OF knowledge touching on the science
OF Woodcraft or the habits of animals,
is mentioned in the measure as being
essential to the fin de steele guide.
He must be a linguist so as to tell
and appreciate jokes with the vari-
Gus men who retain his services while
in search Of game; he must be on good
terms with the intr1cacies Of trigO-
nOmetry, astronomy, anatomy, and,
above all, must be up on penmanship
and double-entry bookkeeping. In or
der to pass examination for eligibility
to membership in the order Of up-to-
dEate guides he must be posted on the
traits Of gentlemanly sportsmen, who
would cen defraud the state by the
Illegal shooting of game and catch
ing Of fish. Likewise, he is bound to
take: three months course in mem
cry, that he may be prepared to esti-
mate, at any time the number Of carl
bou or planked whitef1sh still remain
ing uncaught. Such reports must be
made to the game and fish commission
and are based on a subtraction Of the
number captured and killed by mem
bers Of parties under his charge from
tie estimated total on hand in the
forests and streams at the beginning
Of the open season. He must also file
with the commission a detailed report
OF the names, ages and ability as
rnarksmen of the gentlemen, who, dur
ing the season, have been beneath his
chaperonage
This is not all 1t must come out in
ms examination that the prospective
guide belongs to at least one church
or literary society," that he does not
use liquor or profanity in any form,
and that he has, or is able to secure
the sum Of So with which to obtain a
license, the patent Of his eligibility for
the period of one year.
This ncenSe-when duly secured-en-
titles the guide to one neatly litho-
graphed coupon boog, containing five
game, and one hundred fish coupons
which shall be affixed to deer and fish
caught according to the code, as prima
facie evidence that they were so caught
In this report to the commission must
be included, also, the number of ami
mails and fish SO tabled and shipped,
the character and climatic conditions
OF the regions traversed, and any inter
eSting notations such as the number
of four-leaf clover and tomato cans
found, and the number of prairie fires
put out. This last item IFS to be report
ed to the state fire warden. In the
paragraph Of the measure referring to
this the insinuation Is made that there
shall be some compensation for this
service, but 1t Is not to be supposed
that the new genus guide cares aught
for compensation.
1t is expected that with the passage
Of the bill there will be a hegira Of uni
versity graduates to the glens and
copses. If this bill passes, the old
fashioned guides have lost their jobs.