Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1899-05-11

| erybody knows, Governor Scofield is the
| father OF the taxation OF life insurance
companies in this state, for the previous
driblets from his source can hardly be
| called taxes. Mr.. Hall and Mr.. LaFol-
| lette shall have abundant credit for
agitating corporation taxes: but it was
| Governor Scofield who put his finger on
| the "Northwtetern Mutual and said
Thou art the man" 1t seems that for
years he has had a paid-up policy for
$1,000 in that splendid company. 1t
netted him, however, only about $40 a
year. 1t occurred to him one day to
look into the finances of the company
and its Aladdin-like treasures dazed
him.
He decided such a Croesus should be
brought to the block of taxation and
everyone admits he did 1t. 1t must pay
$780, 900 year more to the state every
year.
Chicagoans Pay $25 to Hunt.
Under the new game law there are
thirty wardens Especially, twenty five
new ones appointed by the governor
(and the chief warden) and paid out
of the license fees and fines If you be-
long in Wisconsin and hunt with dogs
you pay 81 and may kill fifty birds and
two deer. But the game cannot be
shipped in or out of the state unless the
hunter goes with them. People from
outside the state must pay $25 to hunt
deer and $40 to hunt small things. There
is lot of red tape that strikes people
who don't hunt but do enjoy an oca-
sional yenison steak at a hotel as rid
idulous. The law gives the game ward
en- the right to enter any car or refrig-
orator without a search warrant.
The trouble heretofore has been that
man could get a deer license and ship
in the deer and have the tag torn off
and returned to him. The warden
would thus have no record of 1t. Now
the tags have coupons lettered A, B
and G. Section A is detached by the
agent receiving the deer and sent to
the state game warden. Section G must
stay on the carcass until the last piece
is sold. If warden finds a piece Of
meat on sale without the tag coupon he
can confiscate 1t.
Wild Pigeons Come Again.
People of Lime Ridge, near Reeds
burg, declare that q fortnight ago they
saw Il flock OF pigeons go by--not a few,
but great cloud of them, stream so
long that the first of them were out of
sight before the rear of the procession
had passed Old settlers saw the Won
derful sight, and no one questions but
that they know the American passenger
pigeon when they see it. Why 1T is
that no one shot at least one of them
but we forgot the game law!
For fourteen years these birds have
been supposed to be extinct. Older
people have caused children to marvel
by tales of the pigeons hiding the sun,
so great was the number. Even col
lectors, willing to pay any price, have
not been able to get a bird TO stuff.
They were killed spring and fall in
great numbers, for they were good eat
ing and easy mark. AS it says in Cen
esis, THE dove found no rest for the
sole Of her foot"
There were theories that the birds
had CHANGED to be together when a
storm swept them out to sea and to
death; and some other wise fellow had
an idea that an infectious disease got
among them. But, whatever the cause,
it was certainly remarkable, for the
disappearance was sudden. A writer
in the Reedsburg Free Press says he
saw tHltS CT >dIlp DouBluS tlS III ytdIo
ago this spring-a male and two fe-
males-and refrained from shooting
them, though they could probably all
have been killed at one shot, as they
perched on the limb of tree, billing
and cooling In their loving way. Others
have reported seeing small numbers
around Reedsburg in later years, and it
is hoped they may return:
Sweet bird, that shunnst the noise Of
folly,
Most, musical, most melancholy"
Great Lawyers After Supper.
The lobby of the Park hotel Is the
Fifth avenue hotel corridor of Wiscon-
sin. A great deal of our greatness Sits
through there in the course of a year.
John +. Fish and Gabe Bouck We're
about the only occupants just after
supper the other night. Fish is tall,
handsome, quiet man, with white hair
and moustache, Any observer could see
that he was somebody. He was stroll
ing up and down disconsolately, though
he said afterwards that he came to the
supreme court that day with fifteen
cases on his mind, The court had just
handed down twenty-five decisions and
ltIl VI ilti, Wy WIG way, "tl1 LtNtI StilS
OF lower courts. Two of these decisions
interested Lawyer Fish Both were re-
versals and both he had argued sue
cessfully before the highest court.
Gabe Bouck sat in a chair looking like
slumbering lion, as he usually does.
Graccs the Oshkosh lawyer does not
possess. Even when addressed the big
smooth shaver face may not move a
muscle. When he does talk. how ever,
there is n frequent besprinkling OF eX-
pletives, and declaratory sentences are
delivered with an interrogative huh"
at the end, and there Is a spirit wholly
devoid OF anything apologetic that has
often made witnesses in the box trem-
Bile as If the royal Bengal tigers cage
might give way at any instant. Mr.
Bouck is one of the old school and
wisconsin has few left.
His father was governor of New York
state in 1884. The son came to Wis
Consin in lS4S and after studying law
a year in Milwaukee, he went to Osh-
kosh. That was fifty years ago. and
Philetus Sawyer was working with his
hands and John Hicks had not begun to