The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1914-10-23
A DAY OF BLOOD AND
 FIRE AND ITS RESULTS
(E. II. Forbllsh. )

' ri- H. rOE Dl1S4k1.J
 The gunhers have given the people of Massachusetts lesson and now the gunners themselves are likely to get theirs.
 In 1912 the Great and General Court of Massachusetts passed an act changing the date of the beginning of the open season on upland game to October I2th-three days earlier than formerly This was done at the solicitation of large numbers of gun ners that the season might open on Columbus Day, which has been made a holiday. The change was strongly opposed by sportsmen, game protec- tionists and bird protectors, but all opposition was futile.
 Last Columbus Day was the begin, ming of the first open season on pheasants that Massachusetts has had for some years. Practically all the hunters were out on Columbus DaS. For about 45 days the weather had been fine nearly all the time and the woods were as dry as finder. Weather sharps say there has not been such q dry fall for about 90 years. The number of hunters that have taken out licenses in Massachusetts is not less than s O 900 and may be mora out about 10000 hunters licenses to the town and city clerks this year. From the complaints that have been constantly coming in since, it seems that most of them were out on Co., lumbus Day and many more who had Also some 70,000 farmers and their sons have the right to shoot on their own prennises without a Hcense- In many towns the hanging of guns sounded like the celebration of the Fourth of July Not only were song birds. ducks and poultry. Aliens who should pay $15 for a license were out with a $1 hunters license and seemed to think that it gave them a right to shoot anything that moved. One gentleman complains that they killed all his tame ducks, and when he remonStrated with the Italian who shot the last ones he was asked what he was going to do about it. Another man lost all his ducks but did not have the satisfaction Of knowing who got them.
 The game wardens were so few that they were Of no consequence. Had the open season begun on some other day than a holiday they might have controlled the slaughter in a measure but as one Of them said You can contEol a small brook and but you can't control c flood" Think of it! 6e.o0o men! Sixty full regi- ments. licensed to kill and turned loose on Massachusetts. in one day, besides the farmers, boys and the unlicensed horde. A man who raises pheasants found automobiles patro1ling the road in front of his place with men on the running board ready to shoot ev- cry bird that came over the fence The gunners careless1y or purposely set fires in many towns, and in some eases went on ahead of the fires and killed the game that the fires drove out. Fences were cut thousands of acres of woodland were burned over; thousands of cords of cut wood and some buildings were destroyed A rough estimate of the damage caused is $20.0o0 to $3O,0o0. The Game Commissioners have received reports that show 5000 pheasants were killed, but no one knows how many more were not reported or how many thousands of grouse, quail, wood ducks and small birds died that day.
 The next day the Governor issued a proclamation closing the hunting sea son. It was time! A few more such lays would have left the country