CLOSE SEASON FOR DUCK.

Thames Star, Volume LXV, Issue 19272, 29 November 1934, Page 2

CLOSE SEASON FOR DUCK.

(To the Editor). Sir, —On this question the shooting men and the ucclimdtisation societies do not garee. The societies are out for q close season for duck and a double license fee to shoot game. The price of a license to shoot is £1; that is to say, this really gives the holder the right to „bag, or otherwise ask permission to shoot somewhere,; as the license states it does not entitle the holder to shoot on any property without permission of the owner, etc. I am under the impression that the movement for a Shooting Licenseholders’ Association should have been thought of years and years ago. Hamilton, however, has applied the match to reform, and the Minister for Internal Affairs, Mr. J. A. Young, states at the conference of acclimatisation societies at Wellington that reform could only come from within. This was in answer to the question of compelling the small societies to come into the large ones. God help them had this been done. Under present conditions the small societies do liberate from 100 to 500 pheasants in the counties under their control against approximately 30 per county under Auckland. The shooting men who are the backbone of the whole thing have known for years past that acclimatisation societies are a too costly relic of the past, and must go under and better methods adopted, or this country is doomed to destruction, whereas it should be under proper management the best country for game in the world. A farmer can shoot a pheasant on his property, but he must not touch the eggs of that bird without permission of the acclimatisation society. This will be knocked on the head under new management. The farmers of the North Island should do the same with pheasants as they do wiih other sidelines —breed them for the market. There is great money in it and the townspeople would be able to ring their game-dealer for a brace of pheasants or wild duck, as is done in London.

To cut out the big costs of the large acclimatisation societies, my advice to the shooting men is to get the Government to take over control and let all the clubs act as advisory clubs to the Minister for Internal affairs as to the wants of our counties. This would stabilise matters and the shooting men would know that their money was being placed to the purpose for which it was collected. —I am, etc.,, “OLD SPORT.”