American Big Game in Its Haunts: The Book of the Boone and Crockett Club
History
American Big Game in Its Haunts: The Book of the Boone and Crockett Club
Big game hunting -- United States
Although the Boone and Crockett Club has not appeared largely in the
public eye during recent years, its activities have not ceased. The
discovery of gold in Alaska, and the extraordinary rush of population to
that northern territory had the usual effect on the wild life there, and
proved very destructive to the natives and to the large mammals. A few
years ago it became evident that the Kadiak bear and certain newly
discovered forms of wild sheep and caribou were being destroyed by
wholesale, and were actually threatened with extermination, and through
the efforts of the Club, strongly backed by the Biological Survey of the
Department of Agriculture, a bill was passed regulating the taking of
Alaska large game, and especially the exportation of heads, horns, and
hides. The bill promises to afford sufficient protection to some of
these rare boreal forms, though for others it perhaps comes too late.
The enforcement of the law is in charge of the Treasury Department, and
permits for shooting and the export of trophies are issued by the Chief
of the Biological Survey.
Although a local affair, yet of interest to the whole country, is the
remarkable success of the New York Zoological Park, controlled and
managed by the New York Zoological Society, brought into existence
largely through the efforts of Madison Grant, the present secretary of
the Club. The Society has also recently taken over the care of the New
York Aquarium. The Society is in a most flourishing condition, and
through its extensive collections exerts an important educational
influence in a field in which popular interest is constantly growing.
Under the administration of President Roosevelt, the good work of
national forest preservation continues, and the time appears not far
distant when vast areas of the hitherto uncultivated West will prove
added sources of wealth to our country.
The Club has for some time given much thoughtful attention to the
subject of game refuges--that is to say, areas where game shall be
absolutely free from interference or molestation, as it is to-day in the
Yellowstone Park--to be situated within the forest reserves; and as is
elsewhere shown, it has investigated a number of the forest reserves in
order to learn something of their suitability for game refuges. It
appears certain that only by means of such refuges can some forms of our
large mammals be preserved from extinction. The first step to be taken
to bring about the establishment of these safe breeding grounds is to
secure legislation transferring the Bureau of Forestry from the Land
Office to the Department of Agriculture. After this shall have been
accomplished, the question of establishing such game refuges may
properly come before the officials of the Government for action.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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