The people's voice. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1939-1969, 1949-12-09


this paper and the various dali
organizations deplore what tn
stroy the wildlife of Montana,
stock interests and subservient
persons in public office are i'm
properly conniving with them.
These representatives state in
effect as follows:
ORGANIZED STOCKMEN WANT
THE GRASS
The determined drive to extermin-
ate certain valuable big game ami
mails from the public domain origin
ates in stockmen's associations aided
by their satellites in chambers of
commerce and their allies in those
industries which also derive profit
from exploitation of natural resour-
ces. The avowed objective among
themselves to secure the public
grazing lands for cattle and sheep,
and to destroy without mercy any
wild grazing or browning animals
native to the country who compete"
with domestic livestock for grass to
eat Many decent livestock men are
out of sympathy with this attitude,
but they are dominated or overruled
by the powerful groups and individ-
uals who run the livestock associa-
tons.
GAME MANAGEMENT" A RED
HERRING
The drive now in progress to
slaughter no one knows how many
thousands of the Yellowstone elk,
masquerades under the labels of
game management" and "conserva-
ton" and represents to the public
that the real purpose of the propos-
ed slaughter is to preserve the game
herds instead of destroying them.
No group would dare to come out in
the open and declare that they want
to slaughter the elk merely to make
room for sheep and cattle. Not any
more, though the day is not so long
ago when they were bold enough and |
powerful enough to say that and get
away with it. But now they claim
to be friends of the sportsmen and |
declare they wish to keep the elk /
from starving, therefore the only
course to take is to kill them off-all
out very few to be kept for breed
ng stock.
OVERSTOCKING NEVER
PROVED
The sportsmen's associations say
hey have repeatedly challenged the
pokesmen for elk slaughter to prove
heir case by showing the exact con-
litions, and that the challenge has
lever been met. They never disclose
he acreage of grass or the carrying
per acre per head of game
hey never give the basis of their
stimate of the size of the herd, but ;
merely climb on pedestal of in
and say, eve are experts,
nd you have got to take what we an
ounce" Some of these public of
icers made themselves ridiculous
bout a month ago by stating the q
erd to be 5000 in number, and then ]
ave CllS kASSOCldGtQ IGSS SUdU6-
lent only month later that it num- /
cred 1900. 1000 elk calves born L
1 November is going some, and in t
Olives the period of CESSATION being t
educed to about four weeks. 1t
Mould require at least an act of the t
[ontana legislature to make the elk h
ro-create as rapidly as that! il
ANGE DEPLETED BY WHOM? s
When challenged for absence of q
they fall back on the state I,
ent that the range is depleted. u
Tell, does that prove that the elk o
e all the grass, when it is well n
1own and admitted that so many 81
,rses are allowed to Craze on the :"
ellowstone Park grass lands that
ey even the hay that is put out m
r the buffalo herd, and all the buff ca
10 get is the fecal matter left by ii
e horses. Every possible prob tr