The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1899-12-29

| the members present a cioSeu season was
not deemed advisable Unofficially, |
would like to state my opinion:
| Admitting that the extreme cold the
last winter has seriously decreased the
number of cartridges in many places in
this State, | think that there are two
methods by which the number can be in
creased: One is by prohibiting shooting
for year, and the second is by affording
the present stock of birds every protection
possible during this winter; by purchasing
birds from the West for propa eating pur
| poses and by so caring for the birds dur
ing this and the following winters by af-
| fording them proper shelter and food that
great number of birds now annually killed
through cold, hawks, etc, will be saved
| The only thing in favor of the first
plan is that a certain number of birds will
not be killed next winter by sportsmen
who will not obey the law. The experience
of our neighbors in Virginia has been that
there are number of people scattered
through the country who will not observe
be killed in spite Ct the closed season.
do not believe that the number of birds
which are killed by shooting seriously at
fects the sport in the following autumn.
If the birds are given closed season
for year it means that nothing more will
be done for them. In my opinion, the diff
ficulty in Maryland does not arise from
the number of birds which are killed by
shooting, but from the change which has
taken place in the methods of agriculture
in the State which deprives the birds of
| cover and protection during both the sum-
mer and the winter. At present the nests
of large numbers of cartridges are de-
stroyed by the mowers and reapers, and
probably this cannot be avoided to any
great extent; but, in addition to that, by
the constantly increasing use of the wire
fence throughout the State, the birds are
being deprived more and more each year
of the protection from hawks, storms, etc,
which protection the old post and rail and
snake fences used to afford.
1 L
do not think that we will ever have good
shooting in Maryland until the farmers af-
| ford the birds protection from hawks and
SHOWS. think in neighborhoods where
the birds are now very scarce, if those in
| terested in shooting will feed the birds
| during this winter, so that the loss of life
| through cold will be rendered as small as
possible; if they will, by placing small
traps Oh the tops of poles, through the
country, catch the hawks; If in moving
and reaping the nests of the brOOding
birds are avoided as far as possible; if hun
dreds of vagrant ours owned throughout
the counties are destroyed through some
effective law which will protect the farm
ers sheep as well as the birds, then the
| right step will be taken toward perma-
nent increase of birds in the State.
II also believe that the residents of the
city who take advantage of the invitations
of their country friends to shoot in the
country should assist in the good work by
purchasing quail from the West to be
turned out for propagating purposes. My
experience in Howard county in this line
exclusively proves to me two things:
First, that large proportion of the birds
which are turned out will breed. and Sec
ondly, that every farmer on whose land a
small bunch OF birds was liberated imme-
diately took an interest in protecting the
birds, and was willing to do everything
possible to assist them in increasing, and
| from that time became an ardent advocate
of protecting and feeding the birds. The
| residents of the city could also very easily
make the necessary pecuniary arrange
ments with their country friends to have
| small patches of grain sown in various
sheltered spots. to be left uncut for use of
the birds. There are more birds in Eng
land to an acre than there are here on 10
acres, and their winters ale at times even
more trying than ours. No one hears,
| however, of closing season for a wear
there, and it is only because the birds are
cared for intelligently instead of being
left to themselves to struggle for an exist
ence on bare fields, as here.
This is the spirit which must be aroused
have good partridge shooting. | will no.
| say that giving Il closed season is step
backward, but | do say that it is not the
step forward which we should take: it is a
temporary makeshift at the best During
the closed season the birds are not any
|
more protected from hawks, cold or hun
ger than they are now. At the tcrmina-
| ton of the closed season we will be about
where we are now, with the except on of
perhaps a few more birds, which may be
destroyed Immediately by blizzard
Il have given these views fully because
| do not want the county friends of the
| game association to feel that the members,
as far as they have unotiicially expressed
themselves to me, are not in full sympathy
with their desire to protect and increase
the number of birds. 1t is merely ques-
ton of the best way to do it, and believe
that the plan | have outlined is the only
one which will place the protection of
game in this State on a permanent and sat
| sfactory basis
| 1t has been definitely decided that State
Senator Elect John IIubner, of Baltimore
county, will be elected President of the
Maryland Senate and Mr. Lloyd Wilkin-
son Speaker of the House. The honor of
| having It's representatives selected as pre-
| siding officer of the Senate is compliment
! I ID