The Meeker herald. [volume] (Meeker, Colo.) 1885-current, 1902-12-06

near John B. Croft came to be mortally
wounded, and all last season guides
hesitated to take out parties to the game
districts. l.. for one. had two closer
calls than I care to ever experience
again. Two Midland conductors shot
at me one morning while was trying
| to get up nearer to a buck. One bullet,
.80-40, passed within few inches Of
my head; the other struck the groand
several yards in front Of me. These
men were profuse in their apologies,
claiming that they had been sure i was
Hon, but the fact remains that il they
had not had the lion fever their bullets
would moi have gone wild. On the next
occ aston l was returning home from a
trip one evening and was crossing a
broad, open park when man came over
the bill! on the other side, not over two
hundred yards away. just as he rode
into sight small buck jumped up on
the hillside and bounded across the park
about midway between us. This hunter
did not cease firing from the minute
that he first saw the deer till it had gone
over the hill on the opposite side of the
park. One shot was in direct line with
me. and passed so close under my horse
that he reared and plunged as though
I hit. This was about 8 O'Clock and the
sun shone brightly. Added TO this.
was riding IA white horse, 80 ii the tour
lists eYesight was good enough to see
the deer he could have hardly failed to
perceive me also. Even the ranchmen
were kept OH the qui yive, for each load
OF hunters, unable to restrain them
selves until they were out of civilization,
had their full paraphernalia OF the hunt
in readiness, and II hawk or q dove
few out Of u field or a hay yard bonn
bardment at once followed regardless of
| what or who was in range.
~
Yet the tourists are necessary evil.
They bring the state a vast revenue, and
few indeed are the residents that do not
profit, directly or Indirectly, by the
| thousands of summer visitors tO Colo
RADIO. Even were this not SO, there
never was and never can be any law TO
prevent their coming. True, there
might be a law passed prohibiting the
hunting of any and all game. hut we
| would have about the same number of
visitors, only that somewhere near
three-fOurths of them would be "bare-
fOotS," while the mOneyed men would
90 elsewhere. Many argue that unless
there is close season on game of all
kinds tor five years, several species,
especially deer and elk, will he exter-
minated in a short time. II proper
law is passed by the next legislature,
and enforced. such fears will. however.
be proven groundless, for there will be
Uatna hpfQ fnr fnt1ra uAnaFQfinnQ Wit.
ness the examples Of other states, not
ably Maine and New York.
rhs kew to tha whole situation Hes In
licenseing the guides, giving them the
same power as deputy wardens, and
making them. responsible for the &C.
tiOns OF their parties. No party, in
Guiding residents, but excluding set
tiers in the game districts, to be al
lowed TO hunt unless accompanied bv a
guide. This may seem severe on the
residents OF this state, hut this year has
shown that a large number of them
to their shame, be it said !-are as ig-
norantly or as criminaIly careless MS
any of the eastern tenderfeet Besides
the above the allowance of game to
each person should be decreased from
the amount that they are now legally
entitled to.
II. however. no action is taken to pre-
vent tile slaughter of this year from be-
ing repeated, it will be a matter of only
very few years till our big game is as
completely extinct as are the buffalo,
and like the bison, nothing will remain
to show that there once existed drOves
of hundreds and thousands Of deer and
elk save once in Il while u pile OF
bleached bones in the mountains and
on the plains.
Many If not all of the following sug.
gestions could be embodied in q new
game law to advantage:
License guides tproportionately to
their outtits) etc. This would practi-.
cally do away with all the above enum.
Grated evils. The guides could agree
on uniform rate of payment for their
services.
No nOn-residents or residents, exclud-
ing persons living in the game country,
to be allowed to hunt in the state with
out a guide. The purpose Of excluding
residents of game districts is because
they generally know how anG how not
to hunt.
Each person to be limited to one deer
or antelope, or elk in the season. but
not all three.
Fifteen instead of twenty pounds Of
trout in dav.
Ope0 season lOT ueeT August lOtn u
September 25th. After the latter date
they are jOurneying down from their
summer haunts on the fattops to their
winter range in the lower countries, and
every experienced hunter knows that it
is when the deer are ambushed on their
trails while travelling that the greatest
number are killed.
Open season for elk Sept. 10th to
Sept. 25th. The present season (Oct.
18th to Nov. 5th) is so late that there is
almost always snow on the ground.
This permits hunters to trail these
animals and run them down too easily.
The larger portion of both deer and
elk have rubbed and polished their
antlers by the above date.
The use Of one hound to each party
for trailing wounded deer, etc. There
are three deer crippled to each one
killed. and it is a safe estimate to say