Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1912-10-24
UP-T0-OATE LAW
REGARDING GAME
Commissioner Titcomb Has
Changes in View That Will
Interest Hunters.

Montuclier, oct. 1.-THE fish and game
commissioner has been lowering about
the capital Of late. and 1t is whispered
that he has up his sleeve something
thoroughgoinG in the way of legislation.
II is pretty generally known that MIR.
ritcomb IS DESTROYS of bringing together
all the fish and game legislation into
systematizcd whole. To-day It was
learned through unauthorized channels
that the form of the ccdfication will
be as follows
In the first place tn" laws will be
not merely gathered heltcr skelter under
one heading but so welded together as
to make them parts OF one couprehen-
slve and logical law. The manner of
stating the laws will be changed so as
to state what is permitted. as far as
that is possible. rather than what is pro-
hibited. Effort will be made 10 eliminate
as many AS possible of the special laws,
applying to separate localities, so that
the whole State may in great measure
be brought under one law and the
statutes simplified. At present the fish
and game laws of the State are said to
be about as simple as the Chinese
language and no simpler. This does not
mean that an attempt will be made to
do away with all the sectional laws,
Lake Champlain for instance must al
ways be subject to laws different from
those which govern Lake Mansfield.
The law as 1t is likely to appear. II
the proposed code Is enacted. involves
some important changes and numerous
minor ones. An increase of the license
fee from fifty cents to one dollar is
suggested as a definite revenue mea-
sure. 1t is further suggested that the
office OF deputy commissioner be Great
ed. One Of the most important changes
called for is a lengthening of the open
season on deer so as to permit OF
hunting them from November / to No
| vember 25.
WOULD PREVENT CROwDING
The reason for this heightened sea
son is not that the deer may be lie
| stroyed but that there may be les.
hunters at any one time in the woods
| 1t is claimed that with short season
everybody arranges to go hunting the
very first day. the woods are thronget
with hunters and so thoroughly tramp
ed over that 1t amounts rather to
drive than to a legitimate hunt. With
the hunting distributed over nearly &
month. instead OF being crowded into
a shorter period. it is urged that thes'
defects in the present system would
| be remedied.
Other features of the comprehensiv,
l fish and game bill, II is said. will b,
an open season from September t,
April for hare and rabbit hunting. an,
an open season on foxes and skunk
from September Is to March /.
An original and promising scheme.
| which II Is said may he given effect Il
this bill. has to do with the establishin
OF game refugees, The game commits
sioner. Is this were law. would have powe
to set aside by posting certain portions q
the public lands, and private lands If tn
owner consented. in which hunting shou
be forbidden even In the open season
This would go far to guard against tn
extinction OF game.
The general arrangement OF the sug
gested codifca ton Of the fish and gam
laws Is said to be somewhat as follows
Part !, ownership, manner OF takin
limit, possession. sale and transportation
definitions and regulations; part II. AMI
mails; part III. birds; part ". fsh; par
v, nets and netting: part vi. hunting II
censes; part VII. preserves; part VIII
powers
! An Interesting example OF history's re
peating itself In presented by the remark
able parallel between the case OF the pres
ent Lieutenant governor. Frank Il. Howe
and another lieutenant governor II year
ago. Before the election OF Nj
Howe the last lieutenant governor
] who had also been speaker OF tn
House. was Abraham b. Gardner VIII
held once as observation-disclosures froi
1861 TO 1867. The remarkable thing II this
lMr. Gardner also cana from BennlnRtoI