The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-12-17

diculous on the face of it to ask a man
getting $50 or SIS a month to follow a
band of Indians to catch them killing
game, and when they are seen with
game to call him guilty of neglect or
incompetence for not catching them. In
several cases newspaper reports were
traced and found to be with little foun-
dation, or if the culprit was discovered
as has happened, it has been impossible
to get evidence. Violators of game
laws are hard to convict, and only the
most positive evidence or plea of
guilty seems to stand in the courts.
Indeed, in the face of positive evidence
juries have brought in verdicts of ac-
quital, because they did not believe in
game laws. No one has thought of
curbing the press or refusing news in
this line, but it is urged that the news
papers refrain from printing eXtrava
CANT notices of slaughter and inatten-
tion of wardens without careful in
vestigation.
The principal reason for suggesting
the above is because there needs to be
an education among the people as to the
value of game, and desire to aid the
officers in Furnishing offenders. 1t is
one thing to find game killed. 1 is an
other to find the offender As an eX-
ample, there are sections of the state
where game is killed by poachers, out
Of season, and everybody in the neigh
borhocd knows it. Moreover in the
same region cattle are killed and in
almost the same quantities, and the Of
tenders cannot be apprehended. Now,
a man will take more pains to bring to
Justice one who kills his cattle than one
who kills a deer in the hills If the
killer of cattle cannot be apprehended
why expect the poor, unpaid warden
to sCour the hills in a vain effort to do
what is impossible?
During the past year the commission
has had opportunity to test the pres
ent law, and there are SO many loop
holes that it is impossible to work with
any degree of satisfaction. The word
pond" in the law is very misleading.
1t should be defined, sc that it may be
distinctly understood. In one case
seine is used to take the fish: they are
dumped across a dam into pocket,
and taken from a private pond Such
men are of the worst type on game,
but we have them. The word speckled
trout is misleading. If the law is 10
mean all trout it should so specify,
or there should be some one outside
of the average court to decide so piS-
catorial a question.
The system of fines seems to meet
with general disapproval. 1t is consid-
cred the depth Of depravity to cinch
want even the suspicion of such thing
as this in connection with their names.
If they know of a violation they will
in most cases keep still because they
do not want any one to think they
are after the fine, and whether they
take it or not they are supposed to do
so. The state warden thinks this has
caused more trouble in getting help
from citizens than most other causes.
A better plan would be to put half the
fine in the state fund for the commits
sion, the other half in the school fund
in the county in which the offense is
committed, and pay the warden for his
service and all reasonable expense.
During the past year the commission,
through its agents, has been very ma
terially aided by the assistance rem
dered by different organizations in the
state. Among these may be mentioned
the League of American Sportsmen,
which has a good sized membership
scattered over the state, all of whom
are working hard to see that the laws
are enforced. Many of the gun clubs
of the state have been very instru-
mental in making the work of the war
dens effective, and have exerted a
great moral influence in the community
in which, they live. We are glad to