The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1905-02-10
lay Henry Long S Observations
on a Recent Trip.
Laws Are Being Violated BY the
Lumber Companies.
venis0n Served on Hotel and
Restaurant Tables.

Hesotd Is DelnS ruunleSSly slaughtered
off was brought out in talk that The
Free Press had with Attorney Jay
Henry Long, after the latter returned
from his recent northerly tour.
81 was not only thoroughly surprised
but thoroughly disgusted," said Mr..
Long, cat the way our large game is
being slaughtered and with very little
regret or respect for the law in most
cases; and the way that game law is be-
ing administered does certainly call for
severe criticism. In the southern part
of the state, where there is not game
enough to. be worth protecting, game
warden in every town is watching the
little boys and pulling the shaver who
catches a few fish in an illegal way or
who shoots quail back of the house,
while up north the deer and other large
game is being shot every day in the
year, the lumber companies feeding their
men with venison and moose steak and
the hotels thus serving their guests,
standpoint. They can get the venison
cheaper than beef-steak. We can have
some compassion for a poor settler who
is arrested for shooting a deer out of
season, whensRis family have no meat
and he has il9p money to Buy provisions,
and Judge in in Duluth recently discharg
ed prisoner arrested and brought be-
fore him under such circumstances, but
if that game warden would follow up
the information given me, he would find
that every winter many of the lumber
camps hire hunters to keep them in
fresh meat and save money by it. a1,
"Beef and pork cost a great deal of
money up in that region and have to
be toted a longer distance than the
slain deer and moose '''''
'What is your reason for believing
that the lumber lamps are doing this?"
was asked. a'''
81 did not see any ca1rcaRsss5ees on my
trip, but too mahy people III III too many
different neighborhoods told me the same
story for me to doubt that there is a
great deal of truth in the statements.
man from one of the camps near
Grand Rapids was relating how that
camp was supplied by two hunters
hired by the lumber boss, and I don't
believe he was lying As for the no.
tells at Grand Rapids, Aitkin, Cass Lake,
Bemidi and some other towns, venison
is frequent dish and almost a regular
diet all winter, 1t is called by the
waiter by some other name, but it is
venison just the same, and my taste
is good enough evidence for me on that
point At Aitkin short time since,
little kid was arrested for killing a
muskrat out of season, while on the
same day two hotels served venison
steak for dinner.
"The Indians also kill large game the
year round, even in the fawning sea-
son, killing the does heavy with fawn,
and the wolves are rapidly finishing
what the lumbermen and the Indians
graciously spare"
"Can anything be done to remedy ex-
listing conditions?"
'We have a game law as voluminous
as the old testament, but in this mat
ter we make the mistake so common, to
use up large stock of brain matter
making laws while very little care or
expense is manifested in the enforce
ment of the same. / am not after the
state game warden's scalp or his job,
neither am I going to recommend that
the legislature enact a new game law,
but some better method of enforcing the
law on the books should be studied up
and adopted. The ordinary game warden
gets star as large as the full moon
and wears it on the outside of his coat,
and he is known mile off and he is
not going to catch anybody but fool
kid in the act, neither will be get any
information ON the subject. He also is
local man and is thus handicapped.
Let a good detective go up into the
woods with his star and his title hid
in his boot leg and let him play tender
foot or land hunter and he will get just
such information as / got and he can
follow it up and get the proofs in full,
which l did not have time to do.
Cruisers and other men best informed
tell me that with the present rate of
slaughter our big game will be practical
" extinct in ten years, but that if the
venison diet at hotels and lumber camps
out of season could be shut off and a
thinning out of the wolves had, north
L. L. h. D..