East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1911-02-04
INTRODUCE ANTELOPE
into OKLAHOMA
ANTELOPE
INTO OKLAHOMA
Takes Part of Herd From
Yellowstone Park Band - Eunus
Furnished by New York club.

| OONcFllnicIt IuNeS Iurt Va ii''u
Yellowstone Park Band - Funds
Furnished by New York club.
Neutrality-suspicious. Warden Rush,
of the Wichita Game Refuge in the
State of Oklahoma, has informed the
Department of Agriculture of the re-
ceipt in good condition of s head of
antelope, which came from the Ma
tonal herd in the Yellowstone park.
Through the generosity of members
of the Boone and Crockett club OF
New York, funds We're furnished for
capturing and transporting these ami
mails from Wyoming to oklahoma
The news of the arrival of the ante
lope at their destination has been re-
ceived with satisfaction by the de-
partment officials, who are much in
terested in the attempt to preserve
this interesting game animal.
The pronghorned antelope is un-
like any other antelope on the face
of the earth. and has so many pc
culiarities that naturalists class 1t in
family by itself Formerly exist
ing by thousands on our open West
ern plains it has now been so re-
uuced in numbers that its absolute
extinction is certain in the very near
future unless protection is given to
the few remaining. 1t does not do
well east of the Mississippi river, and
can not be successfully bred in cap
tivity; but it thrives If allowed to roam
practically free within large enclos-
ures and under conditions closely ap-
preaching the natural ones.
In 1908 the Biological Survey es-
timated that the total number of an
telope in the United States had been
reduced to 1900. OF these about
10000 were in Montana, Wyoming
and the Yellowstone National park,
and the remaining 1000 were dis
tributed in 12 other states.
on the Wichita Game Refuge it Is
hoped that the antelope will find
themselves in surroundings suited to
their increase. The Wichita Is re-
ally a National forest, and Game
Warden Rush acts as its supervisor
and attends to all the business in
! volved in its administration. But on
the Wichita, which was set aside by
act of congress as a national game
refuge because of its especial suita-
bility TO act as a breeding place for
the wild creatures of the plains and
lower Rocky Mountain regions, the
Importance of the game work has
overshadowed the ordinary uses of a
national forest. There are over $50
national forest, but only two national
game refugees.
This does not mean that outside of
these refugees the game of the nation
al forest is not protected for the ma
! tional forest officers are uniformly
instructed to see that the game laws
! of the various states are observed on
their forests, in so far as they can do
\ this in justice to their other duties.
Many of the forest officers are reg
I ularly appointed deputy game ward
ems. and it is the policy of the depart
I ment of agriculture to encourage their
acting in this capacity when they can
do so without prejudice to their work
as forest officers. They are not, how
ever, expected to go off the forests
in order to enforce the game laws
of the states, nor can they make en-
! forcement of game laws their prin-
cipal occupation. The work of a for
I eSl III dlleT UHCle
Sans affairs generally insures his
I being a pretty busy man, and what
he does in enforcing game laws can
only be incidental to selling timber
protecting the forests from fires, look
ing after grazing matters, and re-
spending to various other calls which
use of the forests by the public in
wolves.
Ordinarily, game matters pertain
to the states, and not to the nationa
government. The state prescribe:
when and under what condition!
game may be killed. If it desires tC
prohibit the killing Of game in certain
parts of the state, in order that tn,
I game may breed there, and these
parts of the state are within the ma
tional forests, the government co
- operates with the state to carry on
, the law. Such cooperation may re
quire the closing of fixed areas of tn
20 national forests to grazing, for whel
~, big game becomes plentiful 1t mus
- have sufficient food supply left ol
no the range to carry 1t throug the win
n ~ ter, or it will succumb for lack o
III sustenance. If the range Is full
|
a d the summer, elk and deer will far
III badly in the winter.
te In the Wichita and the Grand Can
yon Game Refugees the government
VI has not left the matter of caring 70
game protection wholly to the states
ne but has established national reserv
~ ations on which an attempt will b
III made to breed game. The Wicht
is notable for the fact that it has
small herd of buffalo upon it, whic
u the game warden regards as the appl
IL OF his eye. They were donated
an the American Bison Society and shiI
ped from the New York geologic;
q Garden in 1908. They then number
as ed Is, and have since been increase
by the addition of 10 calves; two
the original herd, however, died
the first year. To the buffaloes al
all now added the antelope.
20 The antelope were shipped fro
nd Yellowstone park, and have been Ill
4 % TnI1