The Daily Alaska empire., 1949-02-24
W0LF,5EAL COUNTIES
 ARE UppED
Preddtor Control Measures Passed by Senate -Coy-
 ote Stock Takes Slump
By BOB DeARMOND

The wolf and hair seal markets showed healthy gains this morning but coyote stock was in bad slump as the Senate passed two bounty bills. both of which origin ated in the House. Both passed the Senate unanimously, although the wolf-coyote bounty bill was amended and will have to be re- approved by the House.
 Committee Substitute for H.B. 6, as passed by the Senate. increases wolf bounties hy $10. making them $50 on each wolf. The bounty on coyotes, however. is dropped to $20, which is $5 below the previous rate and $10 below the rate approved by the House.
 | Substitute HB. 12, making the bounty on hair seals $6 instead of $3. was passed by the Senate with out change. The bill also extends bounty hunting for hair seals to 1 1900 miles of Arctic coastline, from Norton Sound to Demarcation Point. an area where bounties were not previously allowed.
 Although the bills were discuss ed at some length before passage 1 by the Senate, the only point in issue was the amount of bounty to be placed on coyotes. l After the Finance Committee amendment setting the coyote bounty at $40 had been adopted. Senator Frank Barr tried unsuc- cessfully to have it increased to $25.
 Oyerran Country 1 Several years ago, Senator Collins said, coyotes moved in from Canada and "overran the Interior of AL { aska."
 During the past few years, the Senator continued. they seemed to have disappeared. T haven't seen a coyote in the last three years, and have been in the woods a lot. don't know where they have gone. but I haven't seen them.'
 The question" Senator Barr an- nounced, lis not where the coyotes have gone, but where Senator Col l lins has been"
 | Senator Barr said that he has noted no great decrease in coyotes in the Interior.
 l T think we owe it to the Natives and the other trappers of that re- zion to keep the bounty at least at the present level' he said. Coy otes are very destructive to fur bearing animals and small game and reducing the bounty may tend to allow them to increase and will also reduce the income of the trap- pers"
 l Sideline Only
 Most of the Senators felt. ap- parently, that coyote hunting is . sideline to other trapping and to wolf hunting and that reduction in the bounty will make little dif- ference in the number of claims presented.
 Asked about hunting wolves from plane, Senator William Munz said he doesn't believe it would be pro- fitable at $l00 bounty or even, perhaps. at $1,000 apiece, but admit ted that it is good sport. T crack ed up one plane hunting wolves" he said
 Senator Butrovich estimated that bounty claims, at the $50 and $20 rates, will require approximately s100.000 during the coming bien- 1 nium
 During the past biennium boun- ty claims were paid for 1446 l coyotes and l536 wolves. He estimated also that a SIS 1000 :. appropriation will cover seal boun- ty claims at the $6 rate. Senators Mackenzie and Munz doubted that this would be sufficient.
 Senator Mackenzie pointed out that there will probably be more intensive hunting with the increaS- ed bounty as an incentive; Senator Munz mentioned the large number of seals in the Arctic area now op- ened for the first time to bounty hunting.
 We can go over that more thoroughly when the appropriation hill comes before us, since this bill does not carry an appropria- tion," SenatQsS Rutrovich reminded ! them. A<
 Thumbs Down On Tax i The Senate Taxation Committee this morning reported out Substi- tute H.B. 48.sto Increase liquor tax
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