The Holbrook news., 1912-09-13

out by the settlers who have hunted them in season and out Elk are great travellers, and, when disturbed, will go long distances in the endeavor to shake off danger. Fleeing from the populated mountain districts of Colo rado into Wyoming, they have at last drifted to the sparsely populated Jack sons Hole country. The additions of the large elk herd that has always fed in the Jackson's s Hole and Yellow stone Park country have proved too great for the natural range to support. Wyoming has had to feed the elk, and finally the problem of caring for the animals has grown so acute that Un- cle Sam has been called upon for aid, and at the last regular session of con- gress several thousand dollars were appropriated, to be spent in caring for the elk. Had the elk been properly protected from the first, no such sit uation would have arisen.
 Tragedy of Buffalo.
 It has been proposed to remove sev- eral thousand of the Jacksons Hole elk to Colorado and Montana, but old hunters claim that such a move would be folly, as the elk would drift back to their old feeding ground and in a year or two conditions would be as bad as ever. Apparently the only so- lution of the problem, according to officers of the Biological Survey who have the matter in hand, is the re- moval of a part of the elk in small numbers to various parks and private game preserves, where they will be under fence. This means a long step toward the extinction of the elk, for those animals do not thrive well in captivity, their natures being too rest less to stand close confinement
 Owing to differences in the game laws of various states, and lax en- forcement of the same, game birds are disappearing Wild geese that could be killed in great numbers in the Rocky mountain states few years ago are now a rarity. Some of the game hog pictures, taken by men who love to pose before the camera in the midst of their trophies, go a long way toward telling the details of the tragedy.
 The tragedy of the buffalo is famil- lar IO dll. lu6I0 IS O4ly OulAdW herd in the country, which numbers about seventy-five head, and which is supposed to be part of the herd own ed by Michael Pablo, of Roman, Mont. There was a small herd in Losa Park, Colorado, but the last chapter in the history of that herd was written when the state confiscated a number of skins and heads, in the possession of a hunter, and sold them for $1,085.
 Mountain lions, wolves, coyotes and bob cats are responsible for a part of the decrease in wild game in the western states. These predatory anil mals have actually shown an increase, in spite of liberal bounties offered for their destruction. Mountain lions are especially skillful in killing deer and elk. They have wrought great dam age in Yellowstone National Park so much so that professional hunters are employed in the national forests adjoining the park and spend much of their time pursuing mountain lions with packs of specially trained hounds. Wolves and coyotes play havoc with the antelope on the plains in winter. All western states have standing boun- ties on the heads of these animals, but so hard are the wolves and coyotes to trap that Nthey remain a constant menace to the wild game as well as to the f1ocks and herds of western stock men.
 The problem of saving the wild game in the west is difficult to solve, but it is not impossible of solution Evidently the simplest way is to have the government take the matter in charge The game hog" has whole some fear of Federal officers that To- cal officials fail to inspire. Convic- tions could be secured against local residents in the Federal courts, whereas such things would be impos- sible in local courts. The extension of the national forests has done much to preserve the wild game. Forest rangers who are deputized as game wardens have brought many prosecu- lions which have ended successfully. Next to absolute control of the gov ernment, cooperation between the government and the state would be effective. A more uniform system of game laws on the part of the states, md an awakening of public sentiment n behalf of state authority would be beneficial. As 1t is, game protection n the last haunts of the creatures of he wild Is merely a sarce, and one if the choicest heritages of the po& )le is being shamefully wasted.