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
"While Congress certainly may by law prohibit and punish the entry upon
or use of any part of those forest reserves for the purpose of the
killing, capture or pursuit of game, this would not be sufficient. There
are many persons now on those reserves by authority of law, and people
are expressly authorized to go there, and it would be necessary to go
further and to prohibit the killing, capture or pursuit of game, even
though the entry upon the reserve is not for that purpose. But, the
right to forbid intrusion for the purpose of killing, _per se_, and
without reference to any trespass on the property, is another. The first
may be forbidden as a trespass and for the protection of the property;
but when a person is lawfully there and not a trespasser or intruder,
the question is different.
"But I am decidedly of opinion that Congress may forbid and punish the
killing of game on these reserves, no matter that the slayer is lawfully
there and is not a trespasser. If Congress may prohibit the use of these
reserves for any purpose, it may for another; and while Congress permits
persons to be there upon and use them for various purposes, it may fix
limits to such use and occupation, and prescribe the purpose and objects
for which they shall not be used, as for the killing, capture or pursuit
of specified kinds of game. Generally, any private owner may forbid,
upon his own land, any act that he chooses, although the act may be
lawful in itself; and certainly Congress, invested also with legislative
power, may do the same thing, just as it may prohibit the sale of
intoxicating liquors, though such sale is otherwise lawful.
"After considerable attention to the whole subject, I have no hesitation
in expressing my opinion that Congress has ample power to forbid and
punish any and all kinds of trespass, upon or injury to, the forest
reserves, including the trespass of entering upon or using them for the
killing, capture or pursuit of game.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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