Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1921-09-23
SHELDON ENDORSES
SPORTSMEN LEAGUES
THE BEST REMEDY FOR LAW
VIOLATIONS, HE SAYS
Letter of Commissioner of Fish and
Game of Interest to Every
Hunter and Angler

The best remedy for the infraction
OF the fish and game laws" writes
Commissioner H. P Sheldon in a let
ter to his deputies, "is an organization
OF sportsmen who are pledged to stand
back of the game laws and back of
you when you make an arrest. The
state Commissioner of Fish and Game
urges his wardens to encourage the
growth of such organizations as the
Addison County Fish and Game
League and to take every opportunity
to tell the public the real truth about
the game laws and the individual re-
sponsibility and interest of every
citizen in their observance. The Shell
don letter is of value to every sports
man and is published that all may be
persuaded to join in the better hunt
ing and fishing movement.
The Letter
MARX Twain once remarked that
the Lord gave a dog fleas in order to
keep him from remembering that he
was a dog but the purpose of a fish
and game commissioner is to keep you
from forgetting that you are a game
warden and charged with the protec-
tion of the most valuable natural re-
source in Vermont.
Zone of your most difficult and most
important duties is to make the sports
men in your vicinity realize the fact
just mentioned that our fish and
game are valuable and ex-
tremely perishabe- that these
things can only be adequately cared
for when all the sportsmen take an
active interest in the work. A man
who kills a partridge out of season is
taking a five-dollar bill out of the town
treasury; that he did it in the woods
with gun entities him to no more
from decent citizens than
if he actually sneaked the money from
the treasurer's safe when that gentle |
mans back was turned. He's a thief,
and should be made to feel it.
Sportsmen Can Aid
"The best remedy is an organiza-
ton of sportsmen who are pledged to .
stand back of the game laws and
back of you when you make an arrest I,
they can also distribute fish for plant .
ing, pheasant eggs for Matching and do
a dozen other things to help the shoot
ing and fishing in their locality. Once
or twice a year they can get together
for field day, to discuss plans and .
find out what can be done in coopera-
tion with this department. On that
occasion there can be target shooting
baseball and similar contests so that .
they'll be sure of good time. Incl
dentally, they'll be able to administer
this department which is their own
department because they pay for it,
And Vermont will have such shooting
and fishing that the old timers will
think the clock has been turned back
60 years
'1f there IS such an organization in
your locality, do all you can to help it
grow Confer with its officers and talk
to its members, If there isn't club
near YOU try to organize one Never
lose an opportunity to tell people the
real truth about our game laws, the
sound commonsense back of them and
to impress the fact that it is more
than one-man job II shooting and
fishing are to be improved.
Open Bird Seasons
"The duck season opens September
l6 and wood duck are not to be taken.
partridge (ruffed grouse may be
shot from October l to November |,
and the same with woodcock, subject
to bag limits defined in your pamphlet.
Gov Hartness may think it wise to
postpone this season if there is not
rain to wet down the woods,
put we won't cross that bridge until
we come to it.
There is no open season on gray
squirrels We're always ready to give
he hunter the benefit of a doubt but
A gray squirrel can't fly and the man
who says he thought the squirrel was
either a duck, a woodcock, or a par
fridge needs an operation-and the
nearest justice is the man to perform
it, Maybe the squirrel doesn't need
this protection but since the Legisla-
ure has given him a two-year vaca-
-ion it's up to US to see that he gets it. -