The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1921-01-20
THE BROOKINGs REGISTER, BROOKINGs, S. d, THURS

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h~atched) than all others combined.
Work at Lake Poinsett in Hamlin
county is urgently asked; another Job
at Twin lakes, seven miles south of
Redheld, will make a beauty spot. The
lakes are charmingly wooded. but too
shallow 10 maintain fish through the
winters, At Clear lake, in Deuel.
county, the citizens are asking for
help 10 build a dam at the outlet of
Clear lake. Another survey calls for
dlyerting the waters from the Fire
steel creek in Aurora county into
White lake, and thence to Platte lake
by ditching several miles. The de-
partment needs 800 900 right now to
take care of the surveys already on
file, and still the demand continues:
there appears to be no end to them.
Where is the funds coming from?
TWO resources are open to the com
mission, (1) an appropriation by the
legislature or GU a fishing license
law. So far the general public, so
greatly benefited, has done nothing.
hunters and trappers of the state
have been asked and expected to do
II all. They, altogether with the Ii
cense fees from non-residents, have
contributed rs per cen of the funds,
the balance coming from incidentals.
AT the meeting of the State Game and
Fish Protective association at Huron
last month a number of suggestions
were put in writing and forwarded to
the state game warden, among them
hints that the shooting might be in.
creased by additional stocking of
likely localities with the ringnecked
pheasants, native quail and the Hun
garian partridges and the creation OF
a state game breeding farm. 1t puts
the state game warden between the
devil and the deep sea to meet the
TO meet the difficulty a bill was
introduced during the last legislative
assembly by the game and fish com
mission for a fishing license law along
the same plan as the present hunting
license law, the $1.00 license fee to
cover both fishing and hunting and
to apply to male citizens only over
a certain age. But because of some
disagreements ver amendments the
bill failed TO get through. Since then
the sentiment for such a law has great
ly increased, especially among the
hunters, and there is not only a pros
pect OF a similar measure being intro
duced at the present session but of
ITS becoming a law as well. Eighteen
states have laws through which fisher
men contribute to the cost of main
tanning the supply Of fish, and not
only the hunters of this state but thou
sands of fishermen ask why not South
Dakota? The average hunter cheer
fully pays a license fee of less than
the cost of a single box of shells, and
he is asking why a fisherman who
laughs at burning up a dollars worth
Of gasoline on a fishing trip should
balk at a similar fee that permits
him to fish to his hearts content four
to six months out Of the year.
Hunters point to the fact that in a
very few years our rapidly disappear
ing game will dwindle to a point that
will not only force a drastic shorten
ing of the open season on both birds
and big game but cut out shooting
altogether every alternate year. Such
a movement On the part of the Ameri-
can Game Protective association is
now under way. AS the game grows
less the license fees naturally decrease
n the cutting out of shooting on
alternative years would cut even that
reduction in half. Any how, it is ap-
parent on the face Of it, hunters main
tain, that their fees alone cannot hope
to meet the expenses of both fish and
game protection and propagation; and
in that a legislative appropriation or
fishing license law is inevitable, if the
supply is TO be held up, why not now
Nv & G