The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1913-04-28
Everybody Free to Fish i'm
Most Trout Streams
in BrattlebOro
ONLY TWO HAVE
FILED AFFIDAVITS
They Are L. H. Richardson and George
Washer-Cwners Must Stock at Own
Expense and May Be Fined for
Maintaining Posters Irregularlv.

Some of the fishermen who are
''wise ones are laughing in their
sleeves at the men who have posted
streams running through their lands
expecting that such posting alone is
sufficient authority to keep off others
from despoiling the streams of their
fnny denizens. These wise ones
ones - have discovered that under the
new law a lot more than posting is
required to make the posting hold
water,' also that fines are provided
for not complying with the law
Section 81 of chapter POI of the new
laws reads as follows:
See. 81 Private preserves. An own
er, or person having the exclusive
right to hunt or trap upon enclosed
land or cultivated land not enclosed
or to take fish in a pond or stream,
who desires to protect his land or
/ land over which he has such exclusive
control, shall maintain notices or sign
boards not less than two feet long by
one foot wide, stating that shooting,
trapping or fishing is prohibited anu
/ giving the name of such owner or per
son, upon every twenty-five acres of
/ the premises sought to be protected,
upon or near the boundaries thereof.
and one such sign at each corner
thereof; said posters shall show the
date on which such waters were stock
ed and shall be maintained upon or
near the shores thereof in at least
two conspicuous iplaces. No person
shall take or disturb fish, birds or ami
mails upon such private preserve, or
injure, defacc or remove such notice
or signboard. Provided, however, that
no forfeiture as provided i'm subdi-
vision Ga of section 60 shall result
from entering such land for the pur-
pose of fishing, unless the owner or
occupant thereof stocks and keeps
stocked the waters of such land. at
his expense, with trout or other fish
artiiciallv Matched or reared. The
stocking of waters under this provision
shall mean the placing there annually
by the owner or occupant of the land
in which such posted waters lie, not
less than one thousand fry or three
hundred fngerings. for each half mile
or less of stream or each acre or less
of pond or pool 50 posted; and such
owner or occupant shall, annually, inn
mediatelv after stocking such posted
waters, file with the town clerk of the
town in which such posted waters lie,
Il sworn affidavit stating that the pro
visions Of this section have been com.
piled with. Such affidavit shall show
the number and kind of fish so distrib
uted by the owner OF occupant in such
waters. from whom such fish were pur
/ chased or procured, and the date there
of. The town clerk snail file such aft
] davit in his office and it shall be open
I to inspection by the public in the same
/ manner as other public documents. II
4 waters or lands are hereafter stOckel
by the state with fish or game with the
knowledge and consent of the owner
q the provisions Of this section shall nC
longer apply thereto.
That section very plainly says tina
q unless the owner or occupant of the
3 posted property has stocked tn,
stream with a considerable number o
9 fish at his own expense and has file,
q an affidavit to that effect with TIT
q town clerk, the posting Is not wort
q the paper it is printed upon. The Onl,
Il persons who have filed aftidavits in tn
q Brattleboro town clerk : Office are l.
8 II. Richardson and George Washer.
q This paragraph of section 80 is ais
8 interesting reading:
q A person who maintains a poste
8 prohibiting fishing for more than on
!. year after said waters were last stock
q ed by him shall be fined ten dollar
s for each poster so maintained. Thi
3 subdivision shall not apply to a perso
3 maintaining at his own expense a pr
81 vate preserve, when the commissions
81 after examination of such preserve
q eertifes that the same is properl
s stocked and that such posters may b
maintained thereon.