The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1900-09-29
Doomed Birds and Animals.
From the Chicago Record.


| once had access to large South
American condor which found very amen
able to the tanning process. After some
weeks it came to know me, and would
hold up its head to be scratched, like
dog. The living California vulture that
it was my good fortune to see, appeared
to be quite as heavy and powerful bird,
though there is no doubt that the Andean
form is the superior in this respect As
to their strength, DIR. Cooper states that
four could drag the body of young grizzly
bear, weighing 100 pounds, distance of
600 feet. DIR. Newbury observed these
birds in the Sacramento valley in 1856,
ana refers to their fine soaring powers; and
DIR. Garfield states that he has seen as
many as $50 yultures around dead ante
lope in the Columbia river region South
ern California today is undoubtedly the
principal retreat for the great bird, which
will be hunted in the winter from peak to
valley, and from one live oak grove to
another until they too have joined the ma
jority.
The disappearance of this bird can be
traced to different causes; first, the pot
hunter, who goes forth to kill everything;
second, the collectors, who sell their
''game, " from blue birds to yultures, to
curiosity dealers; third, poisoned meat set
for coyotes and bears, and, fourth, Mexican
miners in Lower California, who it is said
destroyed the bird solely for their plumes,
in the hollow part of which they deposit
gold dust.
Among the doomed animals are the ante
lope and elk. A few years ago the plains
of California were covered with antelope
Even so late as fourteen years ago hunters
could find them in the old dry lake bottoms
in the vicinity of NIojave; and fifty years
ago the great San Joaquin vailed supported
many bands But the advance of the
white man into the West has been fatal;
| they have been shot down, driven away,
murdered in cold blood for their heads
alone, and today are on TIE verge of ex-
tinction in California, As to the actual
numbers in this State, H. w. Keller, State
Fishery Commissioner, wrote me- fsThe
only antelope have seen or heard of are
in the following localities In the Mount
Shasta foothills, about forty miles east of
Yreba, Siskiyou county, found about IS
head in small bands, running in the timber
entirely, something unusual for this animal
There is also a small band in the western
end of Antelope Valley, possibly less than
20 in all. There may be some in the
counties bordering on the Nevada line, but
of this | am not sure. do not think that
there are 500 antelopes in the State =
The elk are disappearing so rapidly de-
spite the efforts on the part of the Govern
ment to save them, that it would hardly
be an exaggeration to say that within 20
years there will not be one left outside the
limits of the national preserves. Even
this retreat is not a protection, and pot
hunters and renegades hunt the borders,
drive game into the open country and
slaughter it, Elk in the territories and
interior States are hunted in the deep snow
4 Of winter, made to ''nove on from post
to pillar. Fifty years ago elk could be
found plentiful in California; and 200
years ago the animals ranged the State and
far into lower California and everywhere
over the great valleys, judging BY the ant
lers found. How it is today Mr.. Keller
writes me as follows "The only elk |
knew of in this Static California-are a
few in the northern part of Humboldt
county, and about $50 in Kern county,
west of Bakersfield