{"http:\/\/dx.doi.org\/10.14288\/1.0059852":{"https:\/\/open.library.ubc.ca\/terms#identifierAIP":[{"value":"33459c7c-55f0-4917-8301-509fac263d24","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/www.europeana.eu\/schemas\/edm\/dataProvider":[{"value":"CONTENTdm","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/alternative":[{"value":"GAME WARDEN'S REPORT.","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/isReferencedBy":[{"value":"http:\/\/resolve.library.ubc.ca\/cgi-bin\/catsearch?bid=1198198","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/isPartOf":[{"value":"Sessional Papers of the Province of British Columbia","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/creator":[{"value":"British Columbia. Legislative Assembly","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/issued":[{"value":"2016-03-22","type":"literal","lang":"en"},{"value":"[1916]","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/www.europeana.eu\/schemas\/edm\/aggregatedCHO":[{"value":"https:\/\/open.library.ubc.ca\/collections\/bcsessional\/items\/1.0059852\/source.json","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/elements\/1.1\/format":[{"value":"application\/pdf","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2009\/08\/skos-reference\/skos.html#note":[{"value":" ELEVENTH   EEPOET\nOF   THE\nPROVINCIAL GAME WARDEN\nOF  THE   PROVINCE   OF\nBRITISH   COLUMBIA\n1915\nTHEG0VERN1VIENTOF\nTHE PROI\/IMCE OF BRITISH MXLlBlfl.\nprinted by\nauthority of the legislative assembly.\nVICTORIA, B.C.:\nPrinted by William H.  Ctjllin, Printer to the King's  Most Excellent Majesty.\n1016.  To His Honour Frank Stillman Barnard,\nLieutenant-Governor of the Province of British Columbia.\nMay it please Your Honour :\nThe undersigned has the honour to submit herewith the Eleventh Annual Report of the\nProvincial Game Warden.\nW. J. BOWSER,\nAttorney-General.\nAttorney-General's Department,\nVictoria, B.C., March 3rd, 1916. Provincial Game Warden's Office,\nVancouver, B.C., February 16th,  1916.\nHonourable W. J. Bowser, K.C., M.P.P.,\nPremier and Attorney-General, Victoria, B.C.\nSir,\u2014I have the honour to submit herewith my Report for the year ending December\n31st, 1915.\nI have the honour to be,\nSir,\nYour obedient servant,\nA. BRYAN WILLIAMS,\nProvincial Game Warden. REPORT FOR 1915.\nIn making the Eleventh Annual Report, the most important matter to be brought to\nnotice is the fact that, in spite of the hard times and that some 25,000 men have enlisted,\nentailing a great loss to the revenue from firearms licences, the Game Department should still\nbe able to show a small profit at the end of the year, even without taking into consideration\nabout $4,000 which has been paid into the Treasury for fines under the \" Game Act.\" While\nthere has not been any curtailment of the regular staff of deputies, this enabling the collection\nof licence fees to be well looked after, the most rigid economy has been practised in all other\nitems, otherwise this satisfactory result could not have been brought about.\nA great many permits were issued to people in distress, allowing them to kill deer for\nfood after the season had closed. After it became known that such permits were being issued,\nthere was a regular flood of applications, mostly from people really hard up, but also from many\nothers who had no right at all to them. It was utterly impossible to make proper investigations as to the merits of each applicant, and, though this was done as far as possible, there is\nno doubt that many got permits who should not have had them.. In addition to giving these\npermits, several of the deputies were given instructions to kill deer themselves and distribute\nthe meat among people who were unable to go out and hunt for themselves. In one or two\ninstances, by this means, what almost amounted to starvation was relieved.\nIn all, 1,016 permits were issued, but as many of the permit-holders had no experience in\nhunting, they failed to kill a deer, in spite of the number about. Even if every one had done\nso, it would have had little effect on the stock of deer; even if it had, it would have been well\nworth it, as those that succeeded in getting them found one deer a greater benefit at that time\nthan a dozen would have been when times were good.\nPermits are again being issued, but on a much better-organized plan, whereby not only\nwill a proper record of the number issued be kept, but also of the number of deer killed; as\nfar, however, as reports have come in, there is nothing like the same amount of distress this\nwinter; in any case, there has not been anything like the same number of applications for\npermits.\nThe returns of game killed by resident big-game licence-holders was so incomplete this\nyear that they were of no value whatever. Those of trappers were a little better, but not\neven as good as last year, in spite of the fact that they were all notified that they must send\nthem in ; a large percentage of the notices with regard to this were returned through the\nDead Letter Office, the men to whom they were addressed probably have enlisted. All the\nguides' licences, giving the particulars required, came in, and it is most satisfactory to be able\nto repoi't that, with one or two exceptions, the guides, both white and Indian, gave satisfaction\nthis year, and that the trophies taken away by the big-game hunters were quite up to, if not\nabove, the high standard of the Province, and will certainly encourage others to come here.\nReferring to trappers' licences again, while the returns were very incomplete, a sufficient\nnumber was received to be able to form some comparison of the increase or otherwise of the\nvarious fur-bearing animals between this year and last., Beaver, wolverine, otter, and fisher\nwere about the same as the year before. Ermine and mink fell off about a third, and musk-rat\nquite half, the latter being accounted for by their not being trapped, as the value of the pelts\nwas practically nothing. On the other hand, there were just about ten times as many fox and\nthree times as many lynx.    The number of these animals, like that of the coyotes, seems to O 6 Game Warden's Report. 1916\nbe affected by the stock of rabbits. The value of pelts shipped out of the Province this year\nmust have run up to a very large sum, but, as the Indians almost have a monopoly of the fox.\ntrapping and make no returns, it is impossible to arrive at any figure, but it could easily be\ndouble what it is if the Indians could only be persuaded or forced into leaving the foxes alone\nuntil their pelts are prime. This year several large shipments of fox-pelts, principally those of\nthe cross-fox, were examined, and more than 50 per cent, of them were not prime and not\nworth a quarter of what they would have been if they had been left for a month or six weeks\nlonger.\nDuring the months of August and September there was a most unexceptional rise in the\nprice of furs ; cross-fox in particular was in great demand ; beaver, too, went up considerably ;\nhowever, just as the trapping season commenced, prices fell and many men who were preparing\nto trap gave up the idea. This not only left a number of men with nothing to do, but resulted\nin the loss of a good many thousands of dollars to the Province from the value of the furs,\nand, incidentally, $3,000 or $4,000 loss in revenue from trapping licences.\nAs usual, there were complaints with regard to the Orders in Council opening the seasons,\nbut this year, apart from one or two small matters which did not meet with general approval,\nthese complaints came almost entirely from Victoria and that vicinity and were unusually\nbitter. Every year recommendations are received from the Deputy Game Wardens, the various\ngame associations and private individuals, etc., on this subject, and it is almost invariably found\nthat opinions differ greatly according to the district and whether it is the opinion of people\nliving in the town or the country. To adopt all the contrary recommendations would be\nutterly impossible, and even to adopt the recommendations of what appears to be the majority\nin each district would mean that almost every district would have different seasons, not only\nfor shooting, but for selling also. It is one of the worst problems the Department has to deal\nwith, and it always will have trouble of this kind unless the seasons are fixed by Statute.\nThis, however, would not be satisfactory as far as game-protection goes, as, if it were necessary\nin the future to have a close season for any particular kind of game, we would once again have\nall the old difficulties in enforcing it that we had before.\nMen who are not satisfied with the seasons that are decided upon should try and remember\nthat the Department has a very difficult problem every year to contend with, and that it is out\nof the question trying to make them absolutely suitable for every district; also that the\nseasons decided upon in the past must have been pretty well right or there certainly would\nnot have been the amount of game there still is.\nAs far as returns have been received, 34,292 licences were issued this year, in comparison\n39,163 last year and 39,597 the year before; of this number, 8,653 were free farmers' licences\nand 2,427 free prospectors' licences. There was an increase of 1,600 in the farmers' licences\ntaken out (but a decrease of 160 prospectors' licences). The decrease of 4,871 in the total\nnumber of licences issued is not as large as might have been expected, but this is accounted\nfor by the fact that a great many who were not in the habit of shooting as a general thing did\nso this year for the sake of trying to lessen their butcher bills. As a matter of fact, though\nthere were not so many men with licences, those who had them did so much hunting that the\nbirds and deer got less rest this year than in other years ; in spite of this, owing to the lack\nof experience of so many of the hunters, very much less game was killed.\nWhile there has been a considerable falling-off in the returns from resident licences, there\nhas been an increase in those from non-residents. There were 44 big game, 10 bear, 149\nanglers, 1 season's bird, 3 weekly birds' licences in all, a total of 207 in comparison with 169\nlast year. These licences were sold almost without exception to tourists from the United\nStates, many of whom, not being able to go to Europe, seized the opportunity of paying this 6 Geo. 5 Game Warden's Report. O 7\ncountry a visit. The actual amount of revenue derived from these licences does not amount\nto a great deal, but the money they expended here did, and in at least one district it made all\nthe difference between very hard times and prosperity. As an instance, it was possible this year\nto get almost an exact figure of the money left in Telegraph Creek by big-game hunters, and\nit amounted to $18,034. Of this amount, $5,140 was paid out for horse-hire ; $6,545 in wages\nto guides, packers, and cooks; $2,765 in provisions; and the balance in furs, curios, hotel\nexpenses, launch-hire, etc. Several other districts benefited considerably in the same way, and\nif we continue to keep up a good stock of game, it will not be many years before the greater\npart of the Province will be having its quota of hunters and fishermen and enjoying as much\nprosperity from them as the State of Maine has done for some years.\nAs such a large percentage of men who shoot have enlisted, there has, of course, been a\nconsiderable falling-off in the revenue from gun-licence sales, and, if the war continues, many\nmore are bound to go and a further loss of revenue must be anticipated.\nRevenue derived.\nThe total amount of money paid to the Treasury this year is as follows :\u2014\nResident licences\u2014\nO.F.L., 21,154   $52,885 00\nG.F.L.,    1,258       6,290 00\nS.F.L.,       800       8,000 00\nGuides, 40  200 00\nF.F.L.,    8,653\t\nP.F.L.,    2,427\t\n$67,375 00\nLess refunds  580 00\n3,795 00\nNon-resident licences\u2014\nGeneral, 44  $4,400 00\nBear, 10  250 00\nAnglers, 149  745 00\nWeekly bird, 3  15 00\nSeason's bird, 1  50 00\nLess refunds.\nSpecial licence to trap foxes, 5\nMiscellaneous\u2014\nBranding fees..\nExportation permits\t\nSale of confiscated guns\t\nSale of confiscated heads and pelts.\n$5,460 00\n5 00\n5 455\n00\n500\n00\n$52 00\n38 00\n72 50\n61 75\n224\n05\nFines imposed under the \" Game Act \"    $,4,097 50\nLess moiety and remittance of fines  780 00\n$72,974 25\n3,317 50 O 8\nGame Warden's Report.\n1916\nRevenue derived from Sale of Resident Gun Licences.\nRichmond Electoral District:\nVancouver \t\nWestminster\t\nBalance of district\t\nEsquimalt and Cowichan   Electoral Districts:\nVictoria\t\nBalance of district\t\nOkanagan Electoral District :\nVernon \t\nKelowna\t\nBalance of district\t\nComox Electoral District\t\nCariboo Electoral District:\nSouth Fort George\t\nBalance of district\t\nKamloops Electoral District:\nKamloops\t\nBalance of district\t\nFernie Electoral District\t\nSkeena Electoral District:\nPrince Rupert\t\nBalance of district\t\nYmir Electoral District:\nNelson\t\nBalance of district\t\nNewcastle, including Nanaimo ..\n\u25a0Columbia Electoral District\t\nYale Electoral District\t\nChilliwack Electoral District\t\nDewdney Electoral District\t\nCranbrook Electoral District\nLillooet Electoral District\t\nAlberni Electoral District\t\nDelta Electoral District\t\nSimilkameen Electoral District,.\nGreenwood Electoral District ...\nRevelstoke Electoral District\t\nGrand Forks Electoral District.,\nSlocan Electoral District\t\nKaslo Electoral District\t\nIslands Electoral District\t\nAtlin Electoral District\t\nTotals\t\n2,891\n699\n664\n2,040\n956\n459\n524\n138\n311\n376\n737\n285\n468\n260\n542\n638\n727\n663\n464\n362\n470\n550\n464\n426\n180\n265\n149\n76\n150\n1\n$7,227 50\n1,747 50\n1,660 00\n5,100 00\n2,390 00\n1,147 50\n1,310 00\n2,240 00\n345 00\n852 50\n1,557 50\n940 00\n712 50\n1,170 00\n650 00\n1,355 00\n2,397 50\n770 00\n1,595 00\n1,817 50\n1,657 50\n1,160 00\n905 00\n1,175 00\n1,375 00\n1,160 00\n1,065 00\n450 00\n662 50\n372 50\n190 00\n375 00\n2 50\n852,885 00\nG.F.L.\n40\n50\n7\n170\n41\n1\n5\n39\n43\n33\n5\n17\n18\n81\n15\n18\n31\n2\n1258\n$555 00\n40 00\n40 00\n60 00\n50 00\n115 00\n50 00\n170 00\n195 00\n450 00\n45 00\n55 00\n745 00\n15 00\n170 00\n245 00\n250 00\n35 00\n850 00\n205 00\n5 00\n25 00\n195 00\n215 00\n165 00\n25 00\n85 00\n90 00\n405 00\n75 00\n90 00\n155 00\n10 00\n6,290 00\n\u00a71,090 00\n60 00\n70 00\n20 00\n40 00\n70 00\n60 00\n190 00\n390 00\n1,850 00\n370 00\n110 00\n130 00\n540 00\n100 00\n100 00\n10 00\n530 00\n210 00\n90 00\n40 00\n150 00\n300 00\n70 00\nI-'. F.\nL.\n150 00\n220 00\n30 00\n130 00\n140 00\n150 00\n$8,000 00\n$135 00\n65 00\n$200 00\n225\n272\n148\n184\n207\n354\n313\n112\n278\n358\n462\n95\n166\n46\n75\n118\n57\n1S8\n1\n8653\n53\n5,180 00\n2,480 00\n41)\n1\n5\n1,332 50\n1,420 00\n2,600 00\n17\n154\n21\n1\n107\nlie\n6\n1\n122\n71\n62\n46\n93\n138\nDistrict\nTotals.\n$9,007 50\n1,847 50\n1,770 00\n$12,625 00\n930 00\n3,152 50\n1,972 50\n1,105 00\n857 50\n1,880 00\n995 00\n1,705 00\n5,352 50\n4,127 50\n4,082 50\n3,077 50\n2,837 50\n2,737 50\n2,700 00\n2,442 50\n2,150 00\n2,010 00\n1,912 50\n1,722 50\n1,505 00\n1,420 00\n1,410 00\n1,400 00\n1,375 00\n1,305 00\n1,075 00\n767 50\n592 50\n485 00\n375 00\n227 50\n507,375 00 6 Geo. 5 Game Warden's Report. O 9\nEnforcement of the Law.\nThe sentences imposed by the Magistrates during the past year have been most remarkable,\nvarying from the very highest ever imposed down to suspended sentence.\nA number of the Magistrates have again this year shown far too much leniency, even\ntaking the present hard times into consideration. There are again on record a number of\nsuspended sentences, one or two of which were with the consent of the Attorney-General, but\nmost of them without, and in spite of the fact that in almost every case it was pointed out\nthat if a conviction was given a minimum fine of $5 must be imposed. To such an extent\nhave some of the Magistrates shown leniency in imposing fines that the enforcement of the\ngame laws would be a hopeless task if it were not for the fact that some Magistrates take\nthese laws as seriously as they should and made examples of some of the men who deserved it.\nA few severe sentences have a wonderful effect on a district for a considerable time afterwards,\nand as a fine of $1,000 was imposed for killing four cow caribou (just $250 a piece, as fixed by\nStatute), it is safe to say that nobody will kill any more caribou of this sex for some time to\ncome if there is the slightest possible chance of their being caught. The case was a bad one;\nthere were many reasons for inflicting the full penalty, and nothing that could possibly be\nconsidered an extenuating circumstance. The news of such a sentence spread rapidly not only\nin British Columbia, but all over Canada, and it had a most beneficial effect. There were also\nsome heavy gaol sentences, some of them for what might appear not to be very serious offences.\nFor instance, three months in gaol for carrying traps without a licence seems pretty hard; as,\nhowever, it happened, the man was a Greek and he had all the appliances for trapping pheasants\non him at the time of his arrest, and others of like nationality had already been fined for\nsimilar offences in the same locality, even at a time when grain was being put out in winter to\nsave them from starving, and that these fines had no effect, then it will be seen that the sentence\nimposed was exactly what was wanted. In all other cases where severe gaol sentences were\nimposed there was every reason for such severity.\nAs usual, one of the worst offences to deal with has been that of \"pit-lamping,\" and until\nsome Magistrate deals with one of these cases in a similar manner to the man convicted of\nof killing cow caribou, or better still, gives a stiff gaol sentence without the option of a fine, it\nwill be impossible to stamp out this practice. There were several prosecutions for this offence\nlast year and fairly heavy fines imposed, but the practice has been carried to even a greater\nextent this year, with the result that close to one hundred head of horses, cattle, and sheep\nhave either been killed or injured and several men had narrow escapes of their lives. What\nmakes the use of pit-lamps so dangerous is the extraordinary effect they have on other lights\nand the impossibility of judging distances when using it. A few actual facts will illustrate\nthis : A man actually fired several shots at a lighthouse several miles away; logs that have\nbeen bored with an auger and set on fire by men clearing land are frequently shot at; and this\nyear it is an absolute fact that a man fired a charge of buckshot at the lights of an automobile\nwhile the occupants were making some repairs. In this case the culprit was fined just $25,\nthough it was no fault of his that he had only damaged the machine and not killed anybody.\nAnother man actually caught pit-lamping in the same district, after getting away and evading\narrest for a month or two, also got off with a fine of $25, and yet the deputies are blamed for\nnot putting a stop to this practice.\nIn last year's report it was stated that informations had been laid against a party of six\nmen who had come up from the Sound cities and shot without non-resident licences. It took\nover five months before a chance occurred to bring them into Court, but eventually three of O 10 Game Warden's Report. 1916\nthem were heavily fined ; the informations against the other three were withdrawn, as the\nevidence against them did not warrant continuing the cases. These cases will have a very\ngood effect upon future visitors of this kind.\nAmerican launches cruising on our Coast now almost invariably leave their firearms at\nhome or else take out their licences. There was one exception this year, and though every\neffort was made to arrest the offenders, the attempt was a failure, owing to the cruising permits\nthat are issued by Customs officials unfortunately not requiring such launches to call and clear\nwhen leaving. Warrants have, however, been issued for their arrest and will certainly be\nexecuted if they come up here again.\nThere have been a very large number of prosecutions for carrying firearms without licences.\nSuch small fines are inflicted for this offence that they simply encourage men to take chances\non being caught.\nThe practice of using another person's licence or badge is fairly common in spite of the\nminimum fine of $50. It is, of course, a matter of great difficulty to catch such offenders, but\nthere have been several convictions this year, three of these convicted being Chinamen; there\nare also another three cases of this sort still to be brought into Court.\nThere were a great many complaints from Victoria and neighbouring islands of grouse being\nshot between September 1st and 15th, also that numbers of Americans were coming over from\nacross the line. There may have been some truth about the grouse, but there could not have\nbeen much of it going on, as no arrests were made at that time in spite of the fact that the\ndeputies did all in their power to catch anybody killing them; as far, however, as the\nAmericans coming over was concerned, all the reports in that particular district seem to have\nbeen without foundation.\nSpecial attention has been given to the protection of foxes this year, and, while it has\nnot yet been possible to entirely do away with trapping them out of season, this practice has\nbeen considerably checked by the seizure of two silver, one cross, and three red fox skins.\nDigging the young foxes out of their dens in the breeding season has also been pretty well\nstopped. 6 Geo. 5\nGame Warden's Report.\nO 11\nProsecutions.\nDuring the year there have been 273 informations laid, seven of which were subsequently\nwithdrawn, and nine cases have not yet come up for trial. In the remaining 258 cases, there\nwere twenty-one dismissed, twenty-eight suspended sentences, fifteen gaol sentences, and fines\namounting to $4,097.50 imposed in the remaining 194 cases.\nFines imposed.\nNo.\nof Cases.\n14\n4\n1\n2\n5\n8\n1\n1\n2\n1\n1\n1\n4\n2\n2\n8\n3\n3\n5\n1\n5\n1\n2\n5\n3\n2\n2\n6\n3\n1\n3\n2\n4\n1\n1\n1\n2\n1\n258\nDescription of Offence.\nDeer in possession out of season\t\nKilling deer out of season\t\nBuying deer out of season\t\nSelling deer out of season\t\nSelling deer without head on\t\nDeer in possession under one year of age\t\nDeer (doe) on premises of a hotel.\t\nAllowing dogs to run dser\t\nPheasants in possession out of season\t\nHunting hen pheasants\t\nHunting pheasants out of season\t\nHen pheasants in possession\t\nShooting hen pheasants\t\nExceeding bag limit on pheasants  \t\nShooting pheasants during close season\t\nGrouse in possession out of season\t\nShooting grouse out of season\t\nShooting duck out of season\t\nSelling ducks during close season\t\nDucks on premises of restaurant during close season\t\nGame in possession during close season\t\nBig game on premises of restaurant during close season.\nShooting game birds out of season      \t\nGame birds in possession\t\nGame in cold storage\t\nKilling beaver out of season\t\nKilling four cow caribou  \t\nMountain-sheep in possession out of season\t\nMarten in possession out of season\t\nMusk-rat in possession out of season\t\nSwan in possession\t\nMountain-sheep head illegally in possession\t\nBuying mountain-sheep head    \t\nFurs in possession during close season\t\nCarrying firearms without a licence\t\nCarrying firearms without proper licence\t\nNon-residents shooting without proper licence\t\nTrapping without a licence\t\nCarrying traps and firearms without proper licence...   .\nActing as a guide without a licence\t\nHunting with head-lights\t\nHunting between sunset and sunrise.\t\nAutomatic shotguns in possession\t\nRepeating guns not plugged\t\nPump-guns not plugged\t\nUsing another person's badge\t\nAllowing licence or badge to be used\t\nFirearms in auto during close season\t\nRefusing to stop auto\t\nTrespassing in pursuit of game\t\nInterfering with Deputy Game Warden\t\nGiving false information to a Deputy Game Warden. ...\nFishing during close season    \t\nKilling steelheads during close season  \t\nNon-resident fishing without a licence\t\nTotal Fines.\n|270 00\n100 00\n25 00\n40 00\n25 00\n120 00\n5 00\n5 00\n30 00\n10 00\n5 00\n10 00\n100 00\n50 00\n50 00\n145 00\n175 00\n175 00\n10 00\n5 00\n50 00\n25 00\n25 00\n10 00\n5 00\n25 00\n1,000 00\n25 00\n5 00\n15 00\n25 00\n10 00\n5 00\n5 00\n317 50\n130 00\n250 00\n60 00\n20 09\n25 00\n170 00\n30 00\n20 00\n35 00\n50 00\n150 00\n50 00\n30 00\n35 00\n20 00\n50 00\n5 00\n20 00\n40 00\n5 00\n,097 50 O 12\nGame Warden's Report.\n1916\nPenalties imposed.\nNo.\nof Cases.\nDescription of Offence.\nHunting grouse on game reserve\t\nShooting grouse out of season\t\nShooting hen pheasants\t\nHen pheasants in possession\t\nFawn in possession\t\nSelling doe deer\t\nSelling deer without head on\t\nUsing deer-meat illegally killed under permit.\nAllowing dogs to run deer\t\nShooting mountain-sheep out of season  \t\nMountain-goat in possession out of season\nFoxes in possession out of season\t\nKeeping game in cold storage\t\nActing as guide without licences\t\nCarrying firearms without licence\t\nNetting salmon illegally\t\nFishing for salmon with grapnel-hooks\t\nHunting ducks out of season\t\nKilling deer out of season\t\nKilling bear without proper licence\t\nDeer-horns in possession illegally\t\nAutomatic shotgun in possession    \t\nGame in possession during close season\t\nCarrying firearms without licence\t\nFishing during close season\t\nSpearing trout illegally\t\nNetting salmon illegally\t\nFishing with grapnel-hooks\t\nShooting grouse out of season (each)\t\nGrouse in possession out of season\t\n(Jame birds in possession out of season\t\nMountain-goat in possession out of season\nVenison in possession out of season\t\nDeer-hides in possession out of season\t\nHunting deer with dogs\t\nTrapping without a licence\t\nHunting without a licence\t\nPenalty.\nDismissed.\nSuspended sentence.\n1 month in gaol.\n15 days in gaol.\n3 mos. and 2 mos. in gaol.\n3 months in gaol each.\n15 days in gaol each.\n2 days in gaol.\n3 months in gaol.\n3 months in gaol.\nHanded over to the Military Authorities.\nDestruction op Noxious Animals.\nFrom all over the Province complaints have been received of the enormous increase in the\nnumber of coyotes ; reports have also been received that they have, in several cases, attacked\ncalves and foals instead of, as formerly, confining their depredations to domestic sheep, deer,\npoultry, etc. Last year a record number of bounties were paid on these pests, but it was hoped\nthat the rabbits would die off and then the coyotes would disappear with them, as is generally\nthe case. The rabbits, however, continued to thrive, and instead of the coyotes decreasing,\nthey increased at an alarming rate. Some idea of the increase can be obtained from the number\nof bounties paid in the last three calendar years. In 1913 there were only 1,618 bounties\npaid, but in 1914 the number rose to 4,138, which was a record number; this past year, 1915,\nhas, however, completely eclipsed this record, the total number for the year being 7,482 ; thus,\nduring the past two years, the Government has paid bounty on 11,620 coyotes. Of this number,\n798 were pups and only half the regular fee paid on them ; nevertheless, it has cost the Government $33,663, and it is quite questionable whether any good has been done or not. It will be\nargued, of course, that if the bounty had not been paid and these 11,620 coyotes had been left 6 Geo. 5 Game Warden's Report. O 13\nto breed, there would have been so many of these pests they would have made the country\nunbearable. It is possible that this may be right; nevertheless, it can be also argued that\nthere would not be a sufficient food-supply for the number of pups that would be born, and that\ndisease would be much more likely to occur, and then when it did, to spread much more rapidly.\nIn the meantime the Province is paying out a great deal of money which it can ill afford\nto spare under present financial conditions, and has not even the satisfaction of knowing that\nit is doing any good; in fact, it certainly looks the other way about. After paying bounties\non these pests for some fifteen years it is not very hopeful to find they have multiplied very\nrapidly, and that as fast as they are killed others take their place.\nWhether it is or is not advisable to continue paying bounties through the whole of the\nProvince, there is no question but that it is money thrown away as far as the Peace River\nDistrict is concerned.\nA very comprehensive report on this subject has just been received from the Chief\nConstable of the district, and this report is accompanied by a map showing the exact location\nof where the coyotes on which bounties were paid were supposed to be killed, and by far the\ngreatest numbers are shown just on the Alberta Boundary-line.\nAlberta does not pay any bounty, and even if many of the coyotes on which we have paid\nbounty were not actually killed in Alberta (and there is not the slightest doubt many of them\nwere), it was not only giving money away, but also throwing out a regular bait for fraud.\nDuring the year of 1914 only about eighty coyote bounties in this district were paid;\nwhereas this year the number has increased to a few over 260, and next year it is liable to go\nup to several times this number.\nThe extermination of the coyote is now almost as hard a problem to solve as the rabbit,\nwas in New Zealand and Australia. The State of Montana has for several years past been\nexperimenting with \"sarcoptic mange,\" with results sufficiently satisfactory to demonstrate\nit might be made a success if the scheme were generally adopted. Unfortunately, while in no\nway affecting cattle, horses, or sheep, it is highly contagious among all members of the canine\nfamily, and there might be some danger of it spreading among dogs.\nIn the last year's report mention was made of the fact that more wolves had been killed\non the Mainland than the year before, and that in the Grand Forks District bounties were\npaid on fifty-eight. As a matter of fact, it subsequently transpired that the whole of these\nfifty-eight animals were nothing more or less than big coyotes, locally christened \"brush-\nwolves.\" Unfortunately, suspicion that there was something wrong about these certificates\nwas not aroused until near the end of the year, when an extra number of certificates came in;.\ninvestigations were then started, but before anything definite was established sixteen more\nof these bounties had been paid. The result of the investigations led to further investigations,,\nand it subsequently transpired that a certain amount of the same sort of thing was going on\nall over the southern part of the Province, also in one or two places in the north. It was only\npossible to get a few of the skins for examination, but as every one that came to hand proved\nto be that of a coyote, there is every reason to believe that they were all the same species. If\nthis is the case, 106 wolf bounties were paid in 1914 and forty-seven in 1915 on coyotes.\nWhile the investigation of this matter did not bring out any actual proof of deliberate fraud,\nsufficient to warrant a prosecution, it certainly showred that there was a great deal of laxity\namong certain of the Justices of the Peace who had signed the certificates, as well as absolute\nlack of knowledge of the difference between the two animals. It is worthy of note that the\nsteps taken to prevent any such occurrences in future have been successful, as not a single wolf\nbounty has since been paid in any part of these districts. O 14\nGame Warden's Report.\n1916\nThere was a certain amount of fraud being carried on in obtaining coyote bounties on\npups; sufficient care was not taken by the Justices of the Peace in destroying the pups, and\nin a few cases the applicants, after obtaining their certificates, regained possession of the pups\nand took them to some other Justice of the Peace and obtained a second certificate. As far\nas is known, this practice was confined solely to Indians, two of whom were prosecuted and\ngiven gaol sentence.\nWhile there may be some doubt as to whether any benefit is derived from the bounty on\ncoyotes, there is no doubt that the bounty on cougars and wolves is having a beneficial effect.\nDuring the past year only 235 cougar bounties were paid, in comparison with 280 the year\nbefore; of this total, in spite of the fact that there are more men hunting cougar than formerly,\nonly 114 came from Vancouver Island, which is forty-eight less than the year before.\nThere was a decrease in wolf bounties everywhere; that is, of course, in a great measure\ndue to the precaution taken to regulate the payments in the south, but not entirely so, as, even\nin the north, where wolves are most plentiful, there has been some decrease also.\nThe following table gives the number of bounties paid in the various districts during the\npast calendar year :\u2014\nBounties paid during 1915.\nMainland.\nAtlin    ...\nCariboo (North)\t\nCariboo (South)\t\nColumbia\t\nComox (Mainland)\t\nCranbrook    \t\nDewdney\t\nFernie\t\nGrand Forks\t\nGreenwood\t\nKamloops\t\nKaslo\t\nLillooet    \t\nOkanagan\t\nRevelstoke. ....   \t\nRichmond\t\nSimilkameen\t\nSkeena\t\nYale\t\nYmir\t\nVancouver Island.\nAlberni\t\nComox\t\nCowichan\t\nBalance of Island\t\nTotals\t\n89\n22\n7\n13\n16\n1\n6\n10\n1\n4\n103\n1\n12\n299\n1\n4\n1\n18\n16\n3\n7\n13\n2\n14\n3\n3\n15\n37\n19\n38\n26\n235\n185\n1,047\n1,295\n138\n143\nik\n30\n104\n1,071\n10\n789\n609\n27\n3\n134\n314\n1,364\n85\n7,4S2\nGolden Eairies.\n37\n3\n55 6 Geo. 5 Game Warden's Report. 0 15\nFur-farming.\nThe reports received from the fox-farming companies that are operating in this Province\nhave been extremely satisfactory, some of the operators having gone to a great deal of trouble\nin giving a lot of information as to their methods. A most comprehensive report of the\noperations of the companies at Telegraph Creek was also received from the Government Agent\nof that district. Great pains were evidently taken in getting up this report, and it is most\nvaluable, as it gave most detailed information on everything that could possibly be of interest.\nIt is hoped that before long it will be possible to embody this and the other reports into an\narticle that will be of use to those who are either engaged or about to engage in the industry.\nUntil this year no records were received at this office of any foxes bred in captivity, but\nthis year eleven different farms have sent in such records. In all, fifty-six foxes were bred\nthis year, and, as far as is known, these are all still alive. In addition, one or two litters of\nred foxes were bom, but destroyed as not being worth raising. The company operating at\nBella Coola reports that several litters were born, but that heavy blasting on a road close to\nthe farm caused the parent foxes to destroy all their young. The Telegraph Creek companies\nhad no success at all; most pups born were killed by their parents ; one litter that might have\nbeen raised was destroyed, as they were only of the red variety.\nThe most successful operators were those located at Atlin, Pouce Coupe, and Francois\nLake.\nThere was a fairly heavy loss of foxes during the year ; some escaped from the pens,\nothers got killed in fighting, but the principal loss was through \" worms.\" All such losses can\neasily be done away with if the foxes are in the hands of a man who has requisite knowledge\nof his work.\nThe recent collapse of the boom in fox-farm shares will eventually result in just as much\ngood as the collapse of the real-estate boom. The industry will now come down to a proper\nbusiness footing. Prices of live foxes having fallen, nothing like the capital hitherto required\nwill be necessary, and many people will go into it on a small basis who were not able to before,\nand it is the small operators that are likely to meet with the most success.\nEven with the price of fox-pelts 50 per cent, lower than it is at present, a good profit\ncould be made in breeding foxes, as it costs very little more to raise foxes on a small scale than\nit does to raise small dogs. There is no reason why all the farmers' sons should not have a\npair or two as pets, in the same way that boys in England keep rabbits, pigeons, etc., and\noften make good profits. It is likely that far more money would be brought into the country\nin this way than by a few big companies.\nEvery encouragement should therefore be given to those living in the country to make a\nstart.    It would be best to begin with red foxes, which are easily obtained and of little value.\nPamphlets giving full particulars as to the handling of these animals should be available\nfor beginners. Undoubtedly there would be some little trouble getting the industry started\nin this way, but once it was given a fair start it would spread rapidly, and, taking the natural\nadvantages of this Province, particularly the northern portions, it might eventually develop\ninto a most important revenue-producer. O 16\nGame Warden's Report.\n1916\nThe following table is a list of foxes that are at present in captivity in this Province;;\nplacing their value at about one-tenth of the prices asked before the collapse of the boom, they\nstill represent close on to $100,000 worth of foxes :\u2014\nCassiar Silver & Black Fox Co.\nStikine Fox Co\t\nW. E. Lennox\t\nThorman & Williams\t\nAtlin Fur Farming Co\t\nA. Swanson\t\nPacific Silver & Black Fox Co..\nLandry & Demorest Co\t\nHoniray & Axten\t\nJ. V. Valkenberg\t\nS. H. Colwell\t\nM. Ross\t\nO. S. Haywood\t\nD. Laiti\t\nA. Blaynev\t\nW. McCullough\t\nR. H. Stewart\t\nM. Coons \t\nW. C. Ramsey\t\nA. Falk\t\nTotals.\nAddress.\nTelegraph Creek..\nTelegraph Creek..\nTelegraph Creek.\nTelegraph Creek..\nAtlin\t\nAtlin\t\nRevelstoke\t\nBella Coola\t\nWalhachin \t\nAtlin\t\nKlinaklini\t\nSoda Creek\t\nFort Fraser\t\nSointula\t\nSt. Francois Lake.\nPouce Coupe .\nPouce Coupe\t\nPouce Coupe\t\nPouce Coupe ....\nPouce Coupe\t\nOld Foxes.\n20\n4\n27\n11\n4\n7\n4\n5\n9\n5\n2\n6\n5\n2\n1\n5\n2\n4\n104\nPits dug out under\nPermit.\nPups bred ix\nCaptivity\nSilver.\nCross.\nRed.\n4\n7\n\"$\n4\nS\n2\n2\ni\n3\n4\n2\n5\n2\n1\n'e\n3\n1\n21\n31\n4\nTotal\nNo. of\nFoxes..\n48\n18\n4\n24\nV\n15\n14\n6\n20\n3\n6\n18\n5\n10\n15\nDeer.\nFor the past three or four years we have had exceptionally mild weather in the fall, but\nthis one has been milder still, and the deer stayed up in the mountains until very late; in\nconsequence, very few were killed until almost the end of the season, when heavy snow in the\nmountains at last brought them down ; then people living in the country and those fortunate\nenough to be able to get out of town had no difficulty in getting as many as they were allowed,\nto kill.\nThis year's Order in Council allowing the sale of deer from September 1st to October 15th\ncame in for much adverse criticism. For many years past no sale of deer has been allowed on\nVancouver Island, though there has always been on the Mainland, and consequently it was.\nalmost impossible to prevent the sale on the Island, as they were shipped across to the Mainland and then sold; it was therefore advisable either to prohibit the sale altogether or to\nallow it everywhere. There certainly was no reason why they should not be sold on the Island\nif they were on the Mainland, as there are many more deer on the south end of the Island\nthan on the southern part of the Mainland. This matter was given very careful consideration,\nbut, in view of the hard times and the desire of the Government to give people living in the\ncountry a chance to get a few dollars by selling a deer or two, it was not deemed advisable to\nentirely prohibit the sale this year, and in consequence the same period of sale was allowed\neverywhere.\nAs far as Vancouver Island was concerned, the number of deer sold was a mere bagatelle;,\nas near as can be estimated the total did not exceed 170. The sale of deer has a very much\nworse effect on the stock of deer in the Interior than on the Coast, as practically every hotel\nand restaurant uses venison when they can get it. In the Interior the market-hunters are\nalmost entirely comprised of Indians and half-breeds, and almost to the same extent on the\nCoast, so that it is very doubtful if many of the people the sale of deer was intended to help\ndid benefit by it, as very few of these actually in great need of money had sufficient experience,\nin hunting to be able to kill bucks during the period the sale was allowed. 6 Geo. 5 Game Warden's Report. O 17\nMule-deers do not seem to be as plentiful as they were thought to be in the Lillooet\nDistrict. The Chilcotin Indians kill far too many, and until the district is declared organized\nit is almost impossible to stop them. In most other parts of the Province mule-deer continue\nto increase.\nSome mule-deer have lately been reported in four different places on the Peace River, all\nto the west of Fort St. John. They are said to be increasing and in sufficient numbers to\nbecome firmly established there if no open season is allowed for several years.\nThere are rumours of mule-deer being in that district received from time to time, but this\nis the first authentic report of them that has come to hand.\nThe few white-tailed deer that were left in the southern part of the Okanagan have been\nvery carefully looked after for the past few years and have made a splendid increase. If they\ncontinue to do so well it will be possible to open the season for them again in a year or two.\nRed Deer.\nThe red deer imported from New Zealand have become completely acclimatized and are in\nsplendid condition.    They were, of course, too young to breed this year.\nWapiti.\nIn East Kootenay wapiti are still increasing, although no further reports of the small\nband that had crossed into the Selkirks have been received. On Vancouver Island there is an\nundoubted increase, particularly in the southern part; it will, however, be most advisable to\nkeep a close season on these animals for a good many years yet;' at any rate, on Vancouver\nIsland, though in the Kootenay District in a year or two it may be possible to have a short\nopen season.\nThe wapiti in captivity at the Colony Farm did not do as well as was hoped for. Only\ntwo calves have been born so far this year, and both of them at an extraordinary time of the\nyear.    One was born in the middle of August and the other one actually in December.\nAnother calf was born at Burnaby Prison Farm;   it also is, unfortunately, a bull, as also\nwas last year's calf.\nMountain-goat.\nGoats have been but little hunted this year; they seem to have increased in several of\nthe places where they were getting a bit scarce.\nBear.\nA tremendous number of black bear were seen on the Coast this year; this being due to\nthe extraordinary dry weather keeping the creeks so low that the salmon were not able to\nget up.\nMoose.\nThese magnificent animals continue to work their way south, and are increasing rapidly\nalmost everywhere. There is one exception to this, and that is on the Nelson River, where\nthey are reported to be very scarce, and the Indians are suffering in consequence. Reports\nfrom Cassiar varied somewhat, but the men who are in the best positions to know say they\nwere extra numerous, but that there is an extraordinary percentage of young bulls. That\nthere are plenty of moose- in that country can be easily believed from the fact that one tourist\ncounted 280 odd during the short time he was out.\nA bull moose was lately seen as far south as the 108-Mile House, on the Cariboo Road.\nSigns of others were seen a little farther north.\nB 0 18 Game Warden's Report. 1916\nCaribou.\nSome magnificent trophies were obtained in Cassiar this year, though, owing to the mild\nweather, the caribou were late in coming to their fall ranges; however, everybody that went\nthere to hunt found them without much trouble.\nWhen the last report was written the mountain caribou in the Selkirks were supposed to\nbe very scarce, but subsequent reports were quite the contrary; in fact, there were more\ncaribou about than for some years, though, owing to a bad crust on the snow, they were hard\nto get.\nThe Chilcotin caribou have almost disappeared; even the Indians are now agitating for\nan absolute close season in certain areas, and promise to see that if any such regulations are\nmade they will be observed. There are many more caribou on the ranges towards the headwaters of the Fraser River than were thought to be. This country was hunted a good deal\nduring the past season, and one party reported having seen 128 head, which is a very large\nnumber for this district.\nSheep.\nIn Cassiar the Stone sheep were very numerous, and some good bands were seen on several\nranges that have been almost deserted for several years past.\nThe Lillooet sheep have been hardly hunted at all during the past two years. The few\nmen who were after them this year reported them very numerous, and as they all returned\nwith excellent trophies, there is little doubt about the veracity of their reports.\nThe Okanagan sheep have done remarkably well and several have been seen in places\nwhere they have not been known for years. Two rams were shot this year in spite of the close\nseason. In each case a mistake was claimed in extenuation and only a light fine imposed.\nNow that these sheep are really increasing and spreading into new country, there is going to\nbe greater difficulty in protecting them. In fact, it will be impossible if men are allowed to\nplead it was through an accident or ignorance and then get off with what, for such an offence,\namounts to a nominal fine.\nAlthough many of the trails leading to some of the best sheep-ranges in East Kootenay\nare quite impassable, a fair number of sheep have been killed this year.\nWild-fowl.\nThe wild-fowl shooting this season has been the best we have had for years. Not only\nwere there many more local-bred birds than usual, but the northern ducks and geese came in\nlarge numbers ; in fact, in some places there were ducks almost equal in number to what there\nused to be years ago.\nIt is extremely pleasing to find that there is still every reason to believe that the wild-fowl\nshooting, instead of being more' or less a thing of the past except in remote districts, can be\nimproved, even in the vicinity of the larger towns. Cutting down the length of the shooting\nseason was extremely unpopular with a great many men, and some of the expressions of disapproval made by selfish shooters, who considered nothing except their own sport, where by\nno means pleasant to hear. This year has amply proved that it was a move in the right\ndirection, as the wild-fowl resting here on their way back north, not being molested in February\nwhile pairing, stayed here to breed in greater numbers than usual, and many more of those that\nwent farther north to breed returned in the fall, bringing with them other birds. Probably\nthere were other influences to account for the increased number of birds, such as further\nrestrictions with regard to taking eggs in the northern breeding-grounds and doing away with\nthe spring shooting in the States; nevertheless, the measure adopted here must have had a\ngreat deal to do with it. 6 Geo. 5 \u2022 Game Warden's Report. O 19\nThe United States is still endeavouring to get through a treaty with Great Britain for the\nabsolute protection of all insectivorous birds, and also to prohibit the shooting of all wild-fowl,\nsea and shore birds after once the mating season is commenced. The idea is a most excellent\none, but the present proposal sent to this Province for approval is much too far-reaching; it\ncovers the protection even of mergansers (commonly called sawbills), which exist in hundreds\non our lakes and rivers and do no end of damage to our salmon and trout fry. There are\nseveral other things in the proposal which would by no means suit this Province; if, however,\nthe treaty were confined to the protection of insectivorous birds and the various species of what\nare considered sporting wild-fowl and shore-birds, this Province should give its most hearty\nsupport.\nGrouse.\nThe stock of grouse varied a great deal, according to the district, but, with the exception\nof a few places, and a very few at that, blue grouse in the Interior were extremely scarce.\nBefore this year's seasons were decided upon this fact was definitely known, and it was thought\nadvisable to delay the opening date in the Interior for two weeks. A great deal of dissatisfaction was expressed at this decision and an attempt was made to have an alteration made. It\nwas a most fortunate thing that the later date was made and adhered to; as a matter of fact,\nhowever plentiful blue grouse may be, September 15th is quite early enough to shoot them in\nthe Interior, no matter what anybody may say to the contrary. Those who advocate an earlier\ndate either want them to eat or think more of easy shots and full bags than sport. Four or\nfive birds killed up on the ranges in October are worth a dozen killed at the beginning of\nSeptember, when they are altogether too tame.\nOn the Coast there were plenty of blue grouse in August, more than the year before, and\nprobably more than there were years ago, when they were allowed to be sold and were brought\ninto the market by the sackful. As usual, a few wet days just before the season opened put\nthe birds into the trees, and it was hard to make any sort of a bag. That few birds were\nkilled was generally ascribed to the season for deer having been opened earlier than the season\nfor grouse. This was not the case; it is possible, even probable, that a few were killed by\nmen hunting deer, but it is quite certain that practically the same number would have been\nkilled anyway, and in any event the number killed could not have made any apparent difference in the shooting on the 15th. The same thing happens year after year; there are\ngenerally more or less birds about all through the month of August, and this year they were\nexceptionally plentiful, but almost invariably the majority of them disappear before the\nshooting season. It is simply a question as to whether it is better to work hard and get a\nmoderate number of birds or open the season earlier and get big bags one year, with a good\nchance of an entire close season for a year or two after.\nThe number of ruffed grouse (commonly called willow-grouse) also varied considerably. In\nthe Interior there was not a fifth of the number that there have been during the past few years.\nIn the Fraser Valley they were generally scarce, but along the Coast they seem to have been\nmore plentiful than usual.\nThe extraordinary decrease in grouse of all kinds in the Interior is rather hard to account\nfor. It is true there was a most exceptionally wet season in the Interior, and there was also\na regular plague of \" wood-ticks.\" A combination of this kind certainly would be very hard\non all game birds, but not bad enough to account for such a rapid decrease.\nA report just received from the Chief Game Guardian of Alberta also relates a similar\ndisappearance of both grouse and prairie-chicken in that Province. O 20 Game Warden's Report. 1916\nPheasants.\nAfter an extremely mild winter, an early spring, and apparently an excellent breeding\nseason, both on the Mainland and Island, it was expected that there would be better shooting\nthis season than for many years. The number of birds did not nearly come up to expectations ',\nnevertheless, there was nothing really to complain about; Vancouver Island probably had\nabout as many as usual, and on most of the Mainland there were more and in some plains\nconsiderably more than the year before. That the stock of birds did not come up to expectations was due to several things, but principally owing to the fact that the summer was actually\ntoo dry, and except on very low ground the birds suffered considerably from want of water.\nThen, again, fires did a lot of damage, particularly in the Delta District.\nThe number of birds shot was very small, many less than would have been expected, but\nthe birds having been hatched out early were unusually strong on the wing and wild, and it\ntook better dogs and much straighter shooting than usual; whereas a great number of the best\nshots had enlisted and were hunting, or preparing to hunt, much bigger game.\nOwing to the limited number of birds shot, there is a splendid breeding stock left over\nfor the next season almost everywhere. Not many reports have been received from Vancouver\nIsland, but as far as it has been possible to find out, there are rather more left than usual.\nOn the Mainland there certainly is a much larger stock, and, what is more to the point, plenty\nof cock birds, so that next year's sport depends on whether there is a good or bad breeding\nseason next spring, and also how much snow we have this winter. At the present time, while\nbirds are not yet suffering, there is snow almost everywhere, and there is good reason to expect\na fairly bad winter, which means a certain amount of mortality, even if every effort is made\nto feed them.\nThere is a much stronger feeling on the Mainland in favour of not opening the season until\nNovember 1st, some even advocating a later date. It is undoubtedly the proper thing to do\nas far as the sport of shooting is concerned, and this applies to Vancouver Island as well as the\nMainland. October 1st on Vancouver Island and the 15th on the Mainland are good dates\nfor men who want to be sure of nice fine weather and easy shooting; it is also suitable for\nthose who think more of the number of birds they take home than the sport they have. A\nfortnight or three weeks at that time makes quite a difference in the strength of the birds.\nOpening the season, even if only at two weeks' later date, would by no means be generally\npopular; in fact, at present it would only be approved of by a very limited number; at the\nsame time it is the proper thing to do.\nOne suggestion made with regard to the season for pheasants, which sounds like a good\none, is that the opening date should be November 1st; that for the first part of the season\nonly cock birds be shot, but that during the last fortnight two hens be allowed; but that the\nlimit be six birds a day, no matter what sex. This suggestion has been given very careful\nconsideration, and the conclusion come to is that there is no real reason why it should not be\ntried in certain districts, but that it would not do in all. For instance, in the greater part of\nDewdney there are none too many hens, but in the Delta District on the Mainland, and on the\nmost of Vancouver Island there are quantities of hens. The only thing that can be said against\nit is that too many young hens might be shot. This is a matter that can only be settled by a\ntrial ; but one thing is quite certain, and that is that the hens are so numerous in some districts\nthat no serious damage could be done in a fortnight. On the other hand, the change might be\nbeneficial; there is no doubt that, with one or two exceptions, there are too many hens and\nthat the cock birds need more protection, and that an extra fortnight's growth, with the\nincreased chances of bad weather as a handicap, would mean quite a lot. Then, again, and\nthis seems the strongest argument in its favour, it would enable the men who know pheasants 6 Geo. 5\nGame Warden's Report.\n0 21\nwell to kill some of the old hens which they frequently see and, under present conditions, have\nto let go, though they know perfectly well it would be better to shoot them.\nThere seems every reason to believe that pheasants stand a good chance of being a success\nin many parts of the Interior where hitherto it was not even thought worth trying them.\nApparently they are now permanently established in the Okanagan, all the way from Penticton\nto the United States boundary-line. The Mongolians put out near Okanagan Falls have done\nsplendidly and spread for miles both north and south. Now it appears some of the ordinary\nChinese ring-neck (they were either put out there years ago or came up from the States) have\nalso increased and stocked the lower part of the valley. In addition, a few birds which were\nsent to Kelowna last year as an experiment, also appear to be doing well, as a report just\nreceived from there states that twenty-four were just counted in a garden.\nThere is very good news with regard to pheasants at Creston in West Kootenay, where\nthey are said to have increased tremendously.\nA few birds (two cocks and six hens) were sent to Lillooet last winter and turned out in the\nspring. They did well and, it is said, there are fifty birds there now. This is a large number\nfor six hens to raise, but even if there are only half as many it would be a very good start.\nTwo cocks and six hens were sent to the Otter Valley (between Nicola and Princeton);\nthey wintered well and must have raised a number of birds, as only a short time ago thirty-\nthree birds were counted, twenty-four in one field and nine in another.\nThe pheasants sent to Texada Island, on the Coast, a few years ago seem now to be\npermanently established. There is also a nice stock of birds for a start on Valdes Island. In\nIn 1914 two settings of eggs were sent there and ten hens raised; two cock birds were placed\nwith them last spring and there are now over fifty birds there.\nNo reports have been received of the pheasants sent to Queen Charlotte Islands last year.\nThis year another lot was sent there consisting of six hens and two cocks. They arrived in\ngood condition.\nSix hens and two cocks were sent to Keremeos, Similkameen; one hen died, but the\nothers all arrived in splendid condition.    No reports have been received since.\nVery few birds were bred at Chilliwack this season, as almost all the stock on hand was\nturned out, and it \"was decided to try the experiment of sending out most of the eggs obtained;\nall the hens that were raised are being kept up for breeding next year; the few spare cocks\nare being kept to send over to Vancouver Island, where a little fresh brood will do good.\nThe following is a list of eggs sent out this year :\u2014\nName.\nAddress.\nSettings.\nBirds hatched.\nR. A. Bartholemew\t\nOkanagan Mission\t\n2\n!}\nVery successful.\nD. G. Warden\t\nF. B. Frowl\t\nA. V. Scott\t\nTrail\t\nCourtenay Island (Coast)\t\nNo report.\nTwenty birds raised.\nNo report.\nThree hens and eight cocks raised\nFour birds raised.\nNo report.\nNine turned out.\nFive turned out.\nNo report.\nJ. R. A. Pritchard\t\nSalmon Arm (Kamloops)\t\nSalmon Arm (Coast)\t\nKaleden\t\nArjacush \t\nBuchbard (West Kootenay)\t\nMidway (Greenwood)\t\nFrank Harrison\t\nS. S. Coif\t\n\u2014. Studdy\t\nJ. A. Jackson\t\nH. 0. Bell-Irving\t 0 22 Game Warden's Report. 1916\nEuropean Partridges.\nFor the first time in the history of the Province there was an open season for these birds ;\nit was confined to the Delta District and was for only two days, November 13th and 14th.\nOn these two days there were even more men out after these birds than there were after\npheasants on their own opening day. Almost everybody reported seeing lots of birds; everybody reported them very wild and that coveys of any size almost invariably got up out of\nshot; consequently bags were generally small. Still everybody seemed to have thoroughly\nenjoyed the sport, and while there were a few who returned with empty pockets, those who\nworked hard and had steady dogs had excellent sport.    Nearly everybody got a bird or two.\nAn effort was made to get an estimate of the number of birds that were killed, but there\nwere so many out shooting it was quite impossible to get anything like a correct figure.\nCertainly, at the very least, 200 birds were killed, but between 400 and 500 would be somewhere nearer the mark. Anyway, no matter what the actual number killed amounted to, no\nharm was done, as there appear to be just as many birds now as there were before. It is\nmore likely that the reverse was the case, and that there will be a marked improvement in\nnext year's broods, as, after two days' incessant hunting, the coveys must have got fairly well\nbroken up and mixed.\nAt present it looks as if another two days might be allowed next year, but this cannot be\ndecided upon until after the breeding season; it will entirely depend on whether we have a\ngood or bad one.\nA short time ago there were rumours of a bob-white quail having put in an appearance\nnear Waneta, in West Kootenay. Then there were rumours that they were another kind of\nquail, and then came a report that they were partridges. Finally, a bird that had been killed\nby a cat was sent to this office for inspection. There was absolutely no doubt about its\nidentity ; it was a partridge. Now it transpires there are a number of coveys in the district,\nbut how they got there is a mystery. A good many have, of late years, been put out in\nvarious places in the United States, but, as the partridge is a bird that is most local in its\nhabits, they were not likely to have come from there unless some were turned out close to the\nboundary-line. The most probable solution of the problem is that some enthusiastic sportsman imported them on his own account. If this is the case and the birds continue to thrive,\nthe district will owe him a debt of gratitude.\nQuail.\nCalifornia quail are reported to have been unusually plentiful on Vancouver Island, a\nmild winter and excellent spring having had a good effect.\nThe birds put out in the Okanagan have done remarkably well, and a short open season\nwas allowed in the northern part of the district, and the same might easily have been allowed\naround Penticton, where the few birds that were put out a year or two ago increased so\nsplendidly that a good fifteen miles of the valley is now well stocked.\nIt is pleasing to be able to report that the bob-white quail have migrated into the Province\nin several places, probably from the United States. Close to Grand Forks there are quite a\nlot of these fine little game birds, and their number is now estimated to have increased from a\nfew pairs to several thousand. That they have done so well there is, in a great measure, due\nto the enthusiasm of the local sportsmen, who not only assisted in seeing that nobody shot\nthem, but also assisted the Deputy Game Warden in carrying grain out to feed them during\nsevere weather.\nThere are also a fair number of these birds in Greenwood District, and a few have lately\nput in an appearance in West Kootenay, where they are also having special attention. 6 Geo. 5 Game Warden's Report. 0 23\nIt will be extremely interesting to see whether these quail will prove a permanent success\nor disappear just at the time they appear to have become permanently established, as they did\nnear Ashcroft and any other place where they have been tried.\nPrairie-chicken.\nThese birds, like the blue grouse, were very scarce, and an entire close season almost\neverywhere next year will be ad.visable unless it transpires there is a much better stock of\nbirds than there appears to be.\nBetter reports come from the southern part of the Okanagan Valley and from Greenwood\nDistrict than from anywhere else.    In these places prairie-chicken have been fairly plentiful.\nVICTORIA, B.C. :\nPrinted Ity Williah II. Cullin, Printer to.the King's Most Excellent Majesty.\n1910.","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/www.europeana.eu\/schemas\/edm\/hasType":[{"value":"Legislative proceedings","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/identifier":[{"value":"J110.L5 S7","type":"literal","lang":"en"},{"value":"1916_V02_08_O1_O23","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/www.europeana.eu\/schemas\/edm\/isShownAt":[{"value":"10.14288\/1.0059852","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/language":[{"value":"English","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/www.europeana.eu\/schemas\/edm\/provider":[{"value":"Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/publisher":[{"value":"Victoria, BC : Government Printer","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/rights":[{"value":"Images provided for research and reference use only. For permission to publish, copy or otherwise distribute these images please contact the Legislative Library of British Columbia","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/source":[{"value":"Original Format: Legislative Assembly of British Columbia. Library. Sessional Papers of the Province of British Columbia","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/title":[{"value":"ELEVENTH REPORT OF THE PROVINCIAL GAME WARDEN OF THE PROVINCE OF BRITISH COLUMBIA 1915","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/type":[{"value":"Text","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/description":[{"value":"","type":"literal","lang":"en"}]}}