Montana labor news., 1937-01-07
OPEN FORUM
Fish and Game Commission Is
Asked to Explain Distribution
Made of Eggs Taken at Spawn
ing Station at Georgetown
Lake.

Lake.
The Rocky Mountain Sportsmen's
Association composed of more than
1900 men and women, without tax
ing into consideration its affiliated
organizations, are vitality interested
in the preservation, restoration and
propagation Of fish and game in
Montana and an association that was
organized primarily for the purpose
of seeing that our fish and game IS
preserved and handed down to pos
terity, and furthermore, that our
people should be given the privilege
of enjoying the sport connected with
the catching of fish and the hunting
of game to an extent that this object
should be attained. The extent to
which the Association is interested
in this subject is reflected in the fact
that it spent over $4,000 of its funds
during the month of February, 1886,
in supplying food for starving game
birds and game animals.
A ruling by the State Fish and
Game Commission put into effect
during the winter of 1886 that
Georgetown Lake shall be closed to
ice fishing has raised an issue be-
tween the Commission and the
Sportsmen's Association of Butte,
Anaconda and Phillipsburg, the con-
tention being that there was no JUS
LITIGATION for such ruling by the
Commission. Correspondence from
Kenneth F. Macdonald, State Fish
and Game Warden, shows that in the
year 1886 only 485,573 trout were
planted back in Georgetown Lake,
during the same period this cor
respondence sets forth that 100000
eggs taken from the spawning sta
ton at Georgetown were sold to the
State of New Mexico. The Commits
sion apparently took the view that
they had nowhere to plant the ex-
cess eggs sold to New Mexico, re-
gardless of the fact that some of our
streams in Montana are almost de-
/. pleted of the species known as Ma
tive trout which r propagated in
the waters of Georgetown Lake.
The defense made by the State
Fish and Game Commission for clos
ing Gecggetow4 Lake il that TIE
water level is low and that on ac-
count of good roads, and the increase
of unemployed, a very material in
crease in the number of anglers has
occurred with the resultant heavy
drain on the trout supply. Another
reason given by the Commission is
that there are a large number OF
people who oWn summer homes al
Georgetown Lake, and who spend
the week-ends boating and fishing
This, the Commission felt, should be
taken into consideration when the
regulation was made last spring per-
hitting fishing on Saturdays and
Sundays.
A word of explanation is in order
regarding the reason advanced by
the Commission. In the first place,
when the water is at normal level
in Georgetown Lake the soundings
taken in the greater portion of the
lake show a depth of 10 to 20 feet,
taking the Game Warden's own fig
ures, the elevation is 6.35 feet below
what he terms a normal level, there
is still on the average a depth Of
more than IL feet of water within
the confines of Is miles of shore line
in Georgetown Lake which has its
source to a great extent through nat
ural springs.
Second, if people are unemployed
they probably are on relief and they
should not be denied the privilege o.
fishing in the lakes of the State O
Montana for the purpose of increas
ing their meager food supply.
Third, in respect to the latter de
Tense relating to summer homes a
Georgetown Lake there are som,
poor people who live in homes a
Georgetown. There is no objection
however, let it be known right now
whether people are rich or poor il
respect to fishing, whether they ar,
millionaires or not, but the fact still
remains that the fish caught from
Georgetown Lake in the summe
time are hardly fit to eat, it does no
seem just that fishing should be al
lowed in the summer time to accom-
modate a few summer residents Jus
for a matter of sport, and that tn,
lake should be closed in the white
when the fish are fit to eat, and de
prive the unemployed and other poo
people of desired recreation and O
a very delicious dish.
Representatives of the Rock,
Continued to Page g.