Putnam patriot. [volume] (Putnam, Conn.) 1872-1962, 1919-11-07
SKUNKS RAISE
LEGAL PROBLEM
Court Doesn't Know What to
Do With Pelts Taken Out
of Season
Question No~ Up 20 Game Connie
sIoner

LE common 1lEpfAA4iS NEAFt A@satlsAf
skunk for short. has often taken the
Joy out Of life for the ramrer BY steal
ing his chickens. He has also spoiled
enough wearing apparel TO stock
store He Is like the old settlers
view Of the American aborigines. he
Is only good when dead, for then he
furnishes nice soft coats for the la
dies. Nov he has added another item
to the debit side by causing a dis
pute as to who owns his skin when
that skin Is taken out Of season.
Of course il anything IS taken from
the rightful owner unlawfully X
should be returned This is only fair
and equitable and an elementary legal
maxim II the court could so order
it would settle the matter But both
the beach and the bar are agreed that
dead skunk has no use for his pflf
and doesn't care what becomes Of II
after he has passed beyond. This be
ing 50 and the rightful owner being
eliminated from the problem the
question assumes narrower proper
tions but the legal knot is only tight
ened the harder.
If a trapper takes fifteen skunk
skins out of season and is fined s25
for doing it and then allowed to keep
the skins worth eight TO ten dollars
apiece it takes the penal out of the
penal statute. Anyone can see that
and that as why, when an offender
asked the court 70 give him back the
Is pelts he had taken, the court sat
up and took especial notice, got out
the 1919 blue book and hunted for
skunk" The hunt being successful,
here is what the court found:
Amy person who shall take or at
tempt to take except for the purpose
Of protecting property, any skunks
between February l and October 81,
inclusive, shall be fined not more than
s25."
Among the law makers who passed
that statute at the last session Of the
legislature il is safe to assume were
senators and representatives. from the
rural districts and they know about
skunks and we're willing to give them
a sporting chance BY protecting them
certain months in the year But APP
parently none Of them thought of the
situation the court might find itself
in in enforcing this skunk law There
is no word as TO what is 70 be done
with the pelts after the wrongful
owner has paid fine for his act.
1t might be suggested that the
court take Judicial notice or employ
experts to appraise the pelts and then
impose fine equal TO the assessed
valuation of the hides, or perhaps just
a little bit more, and then let the il
legal trapper have them to sell and
raise the money to pay his fine. 1t is
a safe gamble that no man is going to
trap skunks just for the fun of sell
ing their skins to pay into court.
There have been a number of
skunk cases in Windham county the
past week The question of whose
property the skins were did not come
up until defendant in the Whitman
tic court asked to have the pelts he
was fined for taking placed back in
his possession. 1t was then that the
law was scrutinized unsuccessfully as
far as deciding the point in issue was
concerned. 1t was left by passing the
buck and Game Commissioner
Crompton is TO have a shot at the le-
gal aspect of an Illegal skunk pelt and
possibly he may submit il TO the at
torney general
Il has been observed in some
courts that when man is arrested
for intoxication and bottle more or
less full of fiery liquid is found on his
person and the offender has the tenn
Gritty 10 ask for il il is usually hand
ed over-to the police captain to turn
down the sink As far as the law
discloses the statute for intoxication
does not set forth what shall be done
with liquor found outside Of an in
toxicated man, but it is usually dis
posed Of Good liquor these days is
even harder to get than skunk skins.
1t is not the place Of a layman to
invade the legal atmosphere sur
rounding skunks but it does no harm
to try little reasoning power for
puzzles are always attractive to all
classes of people. Meanwhile the de-
cision of the state game commissioner
is being awaited with interest while
the odor from police cell in the
Willimantic police station needs no
label.