Evening star., 1936-05-10

regulation Of buying. handling and
selling. there will be a real new deal
for the animals. We shall then have
no more starving Winters in the ma
tional park areas, such as the one in
Yellowstone in 1921. when 5000 out of
herd of 10000 died slowly and pain
fully for lack Of food.
THAT situation gave me my origi-
nal idea. The early conservation
lists didn't realize how fast protected
elk increase. Yellowstone had appro-
priations for only 5000. But nature
interfered and when a bad Winter
came. even the help of the country's
sportsmen couldn't prevent tragedy.
In most cases it was the favrs and
mothers who died, the bulls being bet.
ter able to fight for survival.
Under private ranching the picture
is reversed. Our herd grows fat on
alternated Winter and Summer pas
ture. which, in spite of being fenced,
is some thousands of acres in extent.
so that the animals live as freely as
in their wild state. They are wild
game still, our only effort to tame
them being in hand-raising a few
lawns each year, which are returned
to the herd when they are grown to
become leaders. Such fawns become
great pets, and it is an interesting
fact that at II months old they will
average inches taller and about 60
pounds heavier than their herd-grovn
brothers.
Our herd books also show that
against 90 per cent estimate of in
crease under ideal conditions by Fed
eral authorities, we can prove IS per
cent.
Last year was the first time that
we made shipment of prepared meat
to market. the first time, incidentally.
that privately grown American elk has
ever been sold for food I could have
sold many times the amount l had
available. in New York City alone. at
fancy prices. But We 90 our thinning
humanely and scientifically, killing
only steers.
'Venison was one of the finest pio-
neer meats our people knew, and there
Is no good reason why it shouldn't be
in use today. At the present time,
for the holiday trade, New York i'm
ports 100000 pounds of foreign veni-
son and pays cents a pound duty.
Only the wealthier diners can afford to
buy. when the price charged runs
around $40 plate. Yet it costs less
to raise elk in our own Western noun
tains than it does cattle"
IT IS difficult to get the Scout" to
talk of the more picturesque part
OF his venture. but he finally admitted
that it took seven years to get the
necessary authority to buy from the
Government surplus through Congress.
and that everybody thought he was
crazy when he went out with his cow
pokeS' in the teeth of fierce Montana
Winter to bring in the selected herd
from the treacherouS mountains Of
the National Bison Range near Dixon.
Yes" he said, I'VE had pretty tough
going, but We made it at last and
brought in 125 animals, so thin and
weak from hunger that 80 died when
we got them to the ranch. Only con-
slant care saved the rest, but we've got
prime herd today. However. we have
more rivers to cross before we'll have
really successful industry. Reindeer
meat can be shipped by sea from
Alaska now, through the Panama
Canal, and landed in New York for
ga cents per pound. It costs us al
most 7 cent per pound to ship elk by
express from Montana. with the pres
ent rates. There are other complica-
tons in the form of State laws, which
add unequal taxes and cut down speed
in shipping We need protection also
against bootleg hunters. who cut our
fences, drive out our tame animals and
shoot them down few feet from the
fence line, Gripping 20 or 80 in order
to kill TO-"
LAS see it." Mr.. Durand concluded.
"about 100000 elk could be ranched as
cattle are, with the steers going to
market. There are thousands of iso.
lated acres at present under Govern
ment control, not used by cattlemen,
which could become tax producers for
the State.
There Is already growing interest
in our project, and am receiving let
ters daily from different parts of the
country asking information as to price
and methods of control and care. We
may be the only one of our kind at
present, but think the time isn't far
of when we'll have plenty of company,
our American wapiti deer will 10
longer be a vanishing race and the
American dinner table will have re.
ceiVed a. first rate food "