The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-10-24

little respect for the game laws. Whllee
he may realize that the preservation OF
the deer and trout and the consequent
visits of city sportsmen with well nlled
purses are due to these Iaws, ana tnat III
this sense they are the goose responslple
Tor mis- golden egg, 1t Is hardl IN the W. ~
ter months, when the larder Is reduced 70
the pork BARREL to resist.the temptation
TO shoulder a gun and make an atleinpt
at Knocking over some fresh meat. II ne
he Is fortunate enough to do the trick
not much time will elapse before the
horns, head and hide of the animal are
buried, the carcass cut up and some cnolce
cuts Of mountain sheep" are stoWea
away in the woodsman's cabin. Win
this done the danger of detection is past
and unless some ill-natured neighbor mas
witnessed the shooting and chooses 70
make it warm for the hunter, he Is safe
from the clutches of the law and the
game protector.
In one of the Adirondack counties there
nave been in the past ten years several
homicidesr but in no case has there been
q convictioh of murder in the first degree.
The same county has also seen frequent
violations of the game laws and 1t has
sometimes happened that punishment has
followed the latter offense more swiftly
and with greater proportionate severity
than the capital crime. A group of noun
taineers were discussing this state of af-
fairs in an Adirondack cabin not long ago.
II believe" said the sage of the party,
" $ safer to Kill man than a deer in
this county. If We got to kill somethin',
Jest crack yer wife over the head with a
The jury'll acquft We on the ground that
twas accidental. But don't kill a deer
out @ season., or, yen find yerself behind
the bars quicker'n lightntn'
Il see they got ole Sam Judson locked
up down t. the county seat" remarked
one of the group.
Yes, the game warden was up this way
yesterday supoenain' witnesses. Teller
'Dnanha1' IN Until
went out into the clearin with his gun
fore breakfast an seen Judson cuttin'
the critters throat. Reckon Smith was
lookin' for that same deer herself that S
the reason he felt so much righteous in
dignation at seem Sam violatin the law
Judson'll go to jail, sure pop. He hain't
got nothin to pay. fine. with. County Il
have to support his family or else they'll
starve. | reckon the county can afford
to do it, for it'll be a grand warnin' to
other folks not to monkey with the game
laws. Ez I said If Sand only been sat
iisfied to shoot man or any human bein'
he'd prob'ly got off all right.
You recollect the case of Berkeley an
Brown up at Saranae Brown'd been out
guidin' an had considerable money. He
went into Berkeleys hotel TO get his load
up. He made a fairly successful job of
It, an after he'd spent most of his cash
Berkeley fired him out That sorter hurt
Browns feelin's, He went away an got
his rife an a box of cartridges. Come
back TO the hotel where Berkeley was
settin' on the porch. Brown up with his
gun an shot him dead He cleared out
right away, an hain't been heard of
sence. Different ones claim to have seen
him: but he amt been brought to trial,
anyhow.
Then there was the Teller up south,
who shot his wife with a pistol He was
drunk at the time an she lived long
enough to swear twas an accident. He
got off with few months in jail. At
the same term O. court they gave a Teller
five years for stealing a few pounds of
butter. l suppose butter was high at the
time.
81 ed recollect other cases, but YOU
know EN- ez wells do. When We shoot
a deer out of season, on the other hand,
you're a darned scoundrel an amt en-
titled to any pity. The jury'Il soak We
the limit every time"
These sentiments are shared pretty
generally by the Adirondack woodsmen
They are by no means lawless men, but
the lax enforcement of some statutes
tends to lessen their respect for the whole
fabric of the law Perhaps this explains
in part why many deer are killed and fish
are caught out of season which the game
warden never hears about.