The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1928-05-11

save enough to add interest to the
woods, fields and streams and an in
centive to all who appreciate the best
things in life to go afield for the bene-
fit of body, mind and spirit.
This program is possible only
through the building up of sanctuaries
or wild life refugees in every county
of the state and these, to be effective,
should be surrounded by large tracts
of forest lands. We have been too
conservative in our policy of restora-
ton We must make haste to correct
our sins of omission by making our
uncultivated land productive, improv-
ing quality of our fresh water supply,
equalizing its run-off for power and
domestic purposes and encourage each
new generation to enjoy the benefits
of sport, observation and meditation
in Natures playground.
While many persons consider for
estry principally from the standpoint
of timber production or the mainten-
ance of water power or navigable
streams, the average sportsman is
likely to think of forests first in terms
OF recreational opportunity. He looks
upon the forest as vacation ground as
the home of large and small game, and
furbearing animals. They are the
source of his trout streams, and eS-
sential not only to the welfare of the
animals and birds of the deep woods
and the fishes of woodland streams,
but other species of wild life whose
habitat, even removed from the for
ests, is influenced by them.
While it is true that the regulations
pertaining to the open and closed sea-
son, bag and catch limits, and the like,
obviously are essential to the conser-
walton of wild life, it is highly i'm
portant to protect our game and fish
especially during their season of pro-
pagation if their kind is to be repro
duced or if the sports in the field and
stream are to be perpetuated Such
regulations, of course, are essential
but they are by no means sufficient to
solve the wild animal conservation
problem. 1t is obvious that preserva-
ton of the natural habitat is funda-
mentally essential to the maintenance
of supply of game and fish. It is
obvious too that the deer supply and
for that matter, the abundance of
other forest creatures, is reduced when
their homes are destroyed by fire.
Grouse and prairie chicken are pro-
tected from hunters except during the
open season in alternate years and yet
there is a great annual loss of nests,
eggs and young of these species, by
brush and prairie fires. Angling is
another activity which is jeopardized
and the sport is often lost by the low
ering of our lakes and streams and by
other causes bearing on the purity and
temperature of the water.
The protection and conservation of
game and fish are closely related to
forest protection and the significance
of American forests must be lost to the
sportsmen. 1t is well for us to think
of our forests in terms of board feet
of lumber or cubic feet of water, but
in addition we must think of them in
terms of deer, partridge, game, fish
and all other wild life that we inner
tied as part of our virgin forest land.
The perpetuation of wild life is rec
ognized as one of the most important
things to be accomplished in refor-
estation and every effort made to pro-
tect the forest and reforestate Amer
lea, in an effort to preserve and per-
petuate the wild life of America.
MinneSota's well stocked natural
trout streams are rapidly disappear
ing. Many fishermen have returned
to their old haunts to find the forests
along the streams burned, little or no
water remaining, all signs of trout
having disappeared, the result OF al
brother anglers carelessness with a
match, cigarette or camp fire, and in
the words of James Oliver Curwood,
human life is absolutely dependent
upon wild life and forests. Without
these things we would become extinct
as a race. If all vegetation, all wild
life and all forests should disappear
tomorrow, the human race would be-
come extinct upon the face of the
earth within one year.
Diminished forest area means re-
stricted range, and restricted range
means decrease in game. Increase
in game is measured largely by forest
production and what can the sports
men do about it? Why should a |
sportsman or an outer who would not |
think of tossing a/burning match or
glowing cigarette stub or dumping his |
ashes on costly rug in his own home,
do SO on the forests carpet? The loss
may be far greater, besides hundreds
Of lives may be perilled by so doing.