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Show MURDERING MATING DUCKS. If you saw a man lashing the blossoms blos-soms off fruit trees, you would conclude con-clude him to be either crazy or desirous de-sirous of destroying the fruit crop for that year. If he were ruining his own orchard, people might merely itarc in wonder or in pity, but, if he assailed as-sailed the orchard of any one else in such destructive manner, he probibly would land in the local jail before he had been at work Ions'. Now, killing wild ducks ill the spring is, in effect upon the birds, similar to threshing the fruit trees of their blossoms: one destroys the crop of ducks, the other destroys the crop of fruit. Springtime killers of ducks keep out of jail because wild fowl are no man's property, and the National Government- has not yet been put in control of our migratory game birds as it should be, and as, sooner or later, it will be. Some states have succeeded in making mak-ing laws prohibiting the shooting of wild fowl in the spring, and in many other states a strong sentiment is working to the same end. Happily an intelligent appreciation is extending extend-ing through the land of the great harm done by the selfish men who persist in spring shooting. People who do not think twice arc apt to look upon protective measures for wild fowl as being merely the voice of sportsmen protesting against the slaughter that they may have the better shooting for themselves in the autumn. This of course, is absurdly untrue; and, moreover, more-over, protection of ducks is not a subject with which sportsmen only should be or are cone: rued. Spurts-men Spurts-men happen to be the most active workers in the cause, because, as a rule, the sportsman is a bit above ths average citizen in the matter of intelligence; intel-ligence; but the protection of wild fowl is a subject which, fcr purely commercial reasons, should inlvrcst many different kinds of people. Long ago the inhabitants of Maine discovered a live deer to be worth to the average citizen several times in hard cash the value of a dead deer; so, primarily because it touched their pockets, the Maine Legislature made sound protective laws and the Maine citizens saw that they were respected. Wild fowl touch a very great many points of this country, and wherever they touch they arc a marketable article ar-ticle which gives occupation and profit prof-it to many, both through the actual marketing of the ducks as well as through the general business of supplying sup-plying means of transportation, guides, lodging, etc., to visiting sports, men. Long Island now offers a practical prac-tical illustration of the business folly of merciless duck slaughter in the great numbers of its unoccupied bay-men bay-men who formerly made good, steady money of caring for and boating and housing the sportsmen who have now abandoned their former haunts because be-cause of the scarcity of the birds. When Ducks are Mating. The serious objection to shooting ducks 111 the spring is because that is the time when the birds have mated, or are mating and are on the way to their nesting grounds. The average wild duck will raise ordinarily during the season from eight to sixteen birds, so that every female killed in the spring means not only loss of that one duck but of the brood she would have mothered. It does not take much intelligence to appreciate that that kind of killing leads in the cOiirse of time to extinction. And, furthermore, further-more, spring ducks arc not good eating. eat-ing. In several sections of the country where spring shooting has been abolished abol-ished an immediate increase in wild fowl has resulted. Over and .'.gain it has been proved by careful observation obser-vation that, if unmolested in the spring, the ducks arc able to sustain the slaughter of the autumn. In a word, the natural increase of spring repairs the loss by the autumn shooting. shoot-ing. It seems quite impossible that a human hu-man or intelligent person would deliberately de-liberately kill birds at Mie time nature has alottcd for Mie propagation of their species. It is so unfair! so unworthy un-worthy a man! so unsportsmanlike! Some men persist in spring shooting simply because they say others shoot ducks at that time, therefore why deny de-ny themselves? Others again ask the use of the sportsmen of a few states giving up duck shooting in the sin ing when other near-by states permit it. Then there is the other selfish reason that.if the birds are allowed to pass north unharassed in the spring, it only means an increased number for the south to slaughter all winter. But such arguments will not stand analysis; analy-sis; the fact is that the increase of birds wherever they have been given spring protection is eloquent and sufficient suf-ficient evidence of its wisdom and efficacy. ef-ficacy. Then, too, several of the southern states already prohibit the shipment of ducks beyond state lines, and other of the states are endeavoring endeavor-ing to enact similar laws. Laws, however, arc of little avail unless local sentiment backs them tin: and that is why the important thing for you and for me and for all of us to educate our neighbors and arouse a more general sentiment against the killing of wild fowl in the spring. If the entreaty not to kill God's creatures creat-ures during their natural breeding season is not sufficiently appealing, then there is the other economic argument ar-gument that a live duck is worth more than a dead one to any given community. com-munity. The protection of our wild-bird life, the conservation of our forests and the preservation of our wild animals on our national forest reserve-refuges arc three subjects that should be taught along with the A B C's in every schoolhouse. Saturday Post. |