The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1924-10-03
BEAVER TRAPPING
PERMIT RULES.
STATE GAME AND FISH COM
MISSIONER COULD OUT
LINES POLICY.

refuge are again in the limelight
with the advent of the trapping
season. State Game and Fish Com
missioner Gould has addressed let
ter to the wardens in the Cook
| county district in which he informed
them that Axel E. Berglund of
Grand Marais had been appointed
superintendent of wardens in the
district embraced by Cook county
and township 81, SO, SO, so and 81,
ranges and z in Lake County.
William E. Hanson has been ap-
pointed to the same position in the
Ely end of the district.
In the letter Mr.. Gould states
that the supervisors will have full
charge of all wardens and that the
men named are district chiefs or
supervising wardens for the terri
tory named and they are to handle
all situations that may arise in the
performance of their duties in hand
ling the territory under their juris-
diction. Further instructions are
given in the letter from Mr.. Gould
as follows:
''For your information, enclose
herewith copies of Attorney Cen
erals opinions relative to the man.
ner in which trapping of any kind
may legally be done in state game
refuge or state park. The Attorney
General is at the present time pre-
pairing form of contract to be
entered into between this depart
ment and one or more combined
game wardens and predatory animal
hunters who viii be employed by
the department on a salary of
$4,000 per month and expenses
and located by Mr.. Berglund in that
part of the Superior State Game
Refuge under his jurisdiction
These men will be commissioned as
game wadens, put under bond and
as stated above in the employ of
the State Game and Fish Depart
ment on a salary. Any and al
pelts taken by them of whatsoever
species become the property of the
State of Minnesota and are TO be
turned over at regular intervals or
on demand by Mr.. Berglund to him
or his duly authorized represent
atives and receipt given the warden
trapper therefor and the pelts ship
ped to this department for sale
The Commissioner will sell the same
at the highest price obtainable and
the money received from the pro-
ceeds of such sale or sales will be
used to pay the salaries and ex-
penses of the several warden-trap-
pers Therefore, manifestly each
such warden-traper must of neces-
sity know his business and be given
a territory sufficiently large to in
sure the trapping of a sufficient
number of predatory animals over
a given period of months with the
sum from the sale of the pelts pro-
cured by him.
"On the other hand, however, in
addition to trapping the predatory
species, each man will be held re-
sponsible as a commissioned game
warden for any and all violations
which occur in the territory assigned
to him. Therefore the individual
territory assigned any one combined
warden-trapper must not be too
large TO make it impossible for such
man to properly patrol the same in
addition to trapping.
1.-THE regular salaried wardens un
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will, under his instructions, make
regular trips through the territory
described above, checking an d
patrolling the entire territory and
keeping themselves and Mr.. Berg
lund informed as TO the activities of
the several warden-trappers.
'Under the law, as you know,
beaver and otter are protected by a
permanent close season, and the
only basis upon which the Commits
sioner may issue beaver trapping
permits is in the language of the
law, viz, '**** except that in the
event that beaver shall at any time
in any locality become so numerous
that in the judgment of the Com
missioner a limited number there
of may be AIKEN without unduly de-
pleting the species Heretofore, it
has been the policy of the depart
ment, when it seemed desirable to
permit beaver trapping in any par
ticular township or territory to issue
a beaver trapping permit to some
one individual for a certain town.
ship or other prescribed territory.
As you will note from the Attorney
Generals letter, this practice is IL
legal and no one applicant for a
beaver trapping permit may be
given monopoly. In other words,
If it is determined, after careful
survey and investigation, that beaver
may be trapped in certain town.
ship and ten trappers apply for a
beaver trapping permit therein, I'M
der the ruling of the Attorney Gem
.eral the Commissioner must give all
such applicants a permit. In other
words he cannot select one man out
OF the ten applicants and give him
the exclusive rights and trap beaver
in that particular territory. Need
less to say, however, If such a
situation developed it would be both
advisable and necessary for the de-
partment TO in some way limit the
number of traps which each appli-
cant could use in taking beaver in
the specified township or territory,
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