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EVERYBODY READS THE ENTERPRISE—EVEN IF THEY BORROW IT! i.-J—!■»>. ' i '-s Founded In 1899 by Col. W. F. Cody (“Buffalo Bill”) and Col. Peake. VOL. XXIII. NO. 34 “WYOMING GAME LAWS A FARCE-TREAT MENT OF ELKDISGRACE’--B. G. RUMSEY Inhumane To Encourage The Increase And .Make No Provision For Hard Winters—Cannot Change Elk Into Mountain Sheep—Too Much Politics, His Opinion. B. C. RUMSEY Once again the legislature has "been criminally negligent and uncon cerned towards the wild animals of the State entrusted to its care and protection, and I consider it a privi lege to have the opportunity to raise my voice in behalf of the wild animals which have suffered and died this winter from starvation. While is is too early, as yet, to give details and facts as to the number of animals that have perished from star vation. lions and coyotes, it Is not too early to bring to the attentipn of the people of Wyoming the fact that a great destruction of game has occur red, and that steps should be taken— from a humane point of view, if for no other —to prevent, for all time, a eimilar occurrence. I confess at the outset, that I haven’t enough or thodox Christianity or political finesse in my system, to think one thing and Bay the opposite for fear of being cri ticised or offending the powers that l)e t but on the other hand. I have enough real religion in me to desire to arrive at the facts and truth of the matter and “to hew to the mark asd let the chips tall where they will!” Consequently I i epeat what I said a little over a year ago In your paper viz: that the game laws of Wyoming are not only a farce, but a disgrace to the State! The truth of this as sertion is substantiated by the facts! Is is not a farce to pass laws for the preservation of game which fail of their purpose? Is it not a farce to print a book full of game laws devot ing pages to prescribing the duties wnd obligations of citizens, hunters, guides, etc,, when the very authors of the laws themselves fail utterly in their own duties and obligations to wards the animal wild life of the State committed to their care and preservation, instead of destruction l>y the citizens of the State? Is it not a farce to pass hundreds of laws for the preservation of game, while at the same time failing to pro vide the one thing essential for their preservation namely. Winter Feed? Are not thos’-j laws a iarce, I sav. and a commentary on the intelligence and understanding of all those respon sible for them, when they fail to pro duce the results desired viz: the pre servation of our game animals? Is it not a disgrace to any people, calling themselves civilized men and women, to stand by without a protest and see dumb animals starve to death, when it is within their power to pre vent it? Thus the facts and results •either condemn those responsible for such laws, ns being totally ignorant •of the situation, or knowing better, it condemns them for fearing to meet the issue for fear of stepping on some “body’s toes. Ignorance in the first ■case; fear in the second. But the issue has got to be met. The State has a duty to perform. It has either Co protect its game animals from star vation or it must get rid of them hu manely. And the situation is never going to bo met by the “wobbly-spined” poll ticians who converse in whispers anent such things for fear of offend ing the powers that be in Cheyenne! Pray, who are the powers at Chey enne, anyway? Are they the masters er servants of the , people? Is Wyo ming an obligarchy, a or a “Republic? Do we send our represen tatives thee to tell us what to do, or ■do we send them there rather with Instructions as to what we want them to do for us? Citizens of Wyoming, it is clearly up to you. All the game preserves and all the game laws in Wyoming “will hot preserve the game from de struction, elk especially, unless they liave access to natural winter grazing GREAT BUSINESS REVIVAL IMPENDING SAYS WILL HAYS NEW YORK—The country needs a little more “come on. let’s go” spirit and a little less “thou shalt not.” This is how Will Hays, new com mander in chief of the motion picture industry and former postmaster gen eral, summed up the business situa tlon as he sees it today. “There are tremendous problems ahead of us,” he told the New York ■council of the American Association of Advertising agencies at its lunch eon, “but there is impending the great est revival the world ever has seen.” dfie Cody Enterprise CODY, PARK COUNTY, WYOMING—GATEWAY TO YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK ground during the severe winters! Just as a stockman’s herd of cat tle or sheep is commensurate to the amount of winter feed he can pro vide for them during the severe win ters! Mild winters will take care of themselves. This is axiomatic. At least it ought to be. It is now about time for some “bone-headed politi cian” to suggest a closed season on elk!! That will be fine! It will at least serve to illustrate the amount of gray matter with which nature has endowed them. Much more to*the point, if someone; had the intelligence to suggest that we take care pf what we have, before | breeding more to starve to death. But! then you can’t squeeze blood out of a turnip, tho many still are trying!! If we are not going to take care of j our wild animals, a thousand times , better to exterminate them bu-; manely! Should we pursue the lat ter course, it will be apparent that, our heart is in the right place, tho we be deficient in the head! Should we continue to follow the former, it but proves we have neither j brains nor heart, and are much rather fit subjects for the lunatic asylum i and the Humane Society, rather than ! be called rational human beings’ The state will break its neck trying to l catch a citizen killing a deer for a piece of meat, just as it will to catch a citizen taking a-drink, but-when it comes to a cardinal crime—cruelty to animals—it is childish in its eager ness to exonerate itself and place the blame on Nature, severe winters, too much snow, etc., as if God Alxnightv was responsible for elk starving to death, instead of man!! Nature may have given us a severe winter, but man has given us the rot ten laws taking away the winter graz-i fng grounds! Don’t blame Nature for not conforming her laws to man’s selfish and silly ones, when reason would dictate that it would be the part of wisdom to discover and adapt ! his laws to Nature! Never worry, ' Nature will provide for our wild ani-! mals if man will but let her! Do not for one moment think that' our elk are trying to become mount- ‘ ain sheep thru choice!! They are be-j Ing kept in the mountains and deep! snows by man, and man only, and j they are starving to death, not be cause of a severe winter —with due re gard to the statement of the Forest Service to the contrary—but because of this fact, and because the winter grazing grounds they would come to j naturally have been allowed by the! state legislature to pass into the j hands of a few stockmen, who believe ‘ that their special interests are of more value to the state and humanity than are our wild animals, forests, etc. Os course, the state legislature has a very different opinion of itself! Witness the following, written by it self: “Whereas, the people of the State of Wyoming, through their legislature, after long experience, and a fine sense of the artistic and economic value of the big game of the state, enacted and perfected a code of wise and equitable ■game lows.” etc. Thanks to these “wise and equitable game laws” conceived with a .“fine sense of artistic! and economic! val ue,” our big game, and especially the elk, have been starving to death!! Such high sounding phrases and ver biage are thoroughly consistent with a class of politicians who think more of the “trappings on the scabbard than the quality of the blade.” Has the State a duty to perform to wards its wild animals? It has. Has it fulfilled those duties? It has not! For that reason, I repeat: “The game laws are not only a farce, but a dis grace to the people of Wyoming!” I NED FROST’S GAME ARTICLE LIKED BY EASTERN READER . | Genera! Louis L. Babcock writing . from Buffalo, N. Y., says of the ar ticle on the game situation written for the Enterprise by Ned Frost: i i “I read Ned Frost’s article on the elk with great interest. It is clear, logical and convincing. I hope it ! may find its way into the hands of i 1 men like Hornady and Plnchot, who, : I am sure, will bring the mutter for i j cibly before the authorities in Wash •l ington.” Phone your news items to No. 9. AND THE PARK COUNTY ENTERPRISE As Seen from the Water-Wagon Caroline Lockhart The Enterprise Jiad the flu this week which explains its tardy appear ance. ff f f When Fred Houston kidnapped Joe Hill we are wondering if he enticed him into his car with candy? fl fl I 11 New York City. Dear Caroline Lockhart: The only part of your paper I don’t like is-or-are the patent Insides. I read the Enterprise then send it back home to Chicago. They read it and pass it around —the pikers—it’s a won der they wouldn’t subscribe for them selves. Ye-ah, wouldn’t you think so! fl fl fl fl The sad tidings comes to us that the appropriation of nine or ten mil lion for the enforcement of prohibition is already nearly ehauseted. It costs money to keep a standing army of stool pigeons and enforcement offic ers, an air squadron, a navy of sub marine chasers and a fleet of fa»t ships to screen their activities. Oh. well, its only a matter of mak ing another “touch” so they should worry over the cost of it. fl fl fl fl Mary Ellen Mac Donald, of Antigon ish. Nova Scotia, who set several fires and braided the cows’ tails, thus giv ing rise to a story that the farm was haunted, is said by a scientific ghost hunter from Boston to have done this mischief while in “an altered state of consciousness.” That wasn’t, what our mother used to call it when she took the rawhide from behind the picture and led us into retirement. fl fl fl fl ! Says the Basin Rustler: I "Visitors in Cody tell us that never during the many years of its history have the good citizens of that Enter | prising community ■walked so circum | spectly down the straight and nar i row path as they do today, and that the new slogan of the town is, ‘Watch [ your step.’ ” What folks don’t know doesn’t hurt ’em. WAR BREWING ON GREYBULL RIVER - ♦ Ranchers To Fight Proposal Os Company To Construct Dirt Dam At Head Os Stream. The ranchers along the ufiper Giey bull are up in arms against the pro posal of the Greybull Improvement Co. to bond their land without their consent and against their wishes. i This company, of which C. A. Web ! ster, county commissioner, and Sen | at or Shovgard of Basin are conspicu ; ous members, proposes to construct an earthen dam at the head of thej river and are now ready to sell SBOO,- 000 worth, of bonds for this purpose. The ranchers contend that they do not need such a dam. do not w’ant it and consider it would be dangerous and a constant menace to their lives and property as practically all the great disasters of this kind in the * country have come from the breaking ! of dirt dams. i They intend to fight it through ev ery efturt and as a preliminary step | have decided to retain E. E. Lone-' baugh of Sheridan to represent them I in the matter. ( They are also circulating the fol , ’owing petition which w’ill be sent to I Frank W. Mondell in the hope that 1 he will Intercede for them and stop Jhe Company from carrying out its j intentions. “April. 1922 TO Tho Honorable Frank W. Mondell. Representative from Wyoming, Washington, C. The undersigned are all residents of the Greybull Valley, in Park or Rig Horn Counties, and residents or land owners within the newly organ ized irrigation district known as the “Greybull Improvement Company.” We are appealing to you as our re- j presentative in Congress, in tho con fident hope that by reason of your ex-1 tensive experience in public affairs, and your broad knowledge in all pub-l lie land irrigation matters you maybe, able to help us in what we consider ■ a dangerous situation, or nt least ad-' vise us where we can look for help. The Commissioners of the said irri-' gr.’ion district are now planning, in event of their success in selling the necessary bonds, for the purpose of i creating a reservoir, to erect a huge dirt dam one hundred and sixty fee’ ' high and twelve hundred feet long,' When we make a mistake we are willing to admit it. As proof of our sincerity, we wish to apologize to Santford Watkins. At the time he, as commissioner, let the county printing to the highest bidder at a cost of nearly 11,400.00 to the taxpayers, we Inti mated that we believed it would be possible to saw through Mr. Watkins’ head without wetting the blade. Since the incident mentioned else where, we know that Mr. Watkins’ head can be dented and retract and apologize profusely for our previous statement. fl fl fl fl W. C. Hanes, formerly of the Sho shoni Enterprise and of the Greybull Tribune, is the latest acquisition to the large and brilliant staff of the Cody Enterprise. Mr. Hanes, together with a' newspa per man from Colorado, recently start ed the Tribune in Greybull but found too much scrapping between the business men and labor Unions to in sure a comfortable life in that city. Therefore, Mr. Hanes, who likes tranquillity, has decided to come over to Cody where we live in peace and harmony. Harmony is our middle name. fl fl fl fl Perusing the literature sent out by the anti-saloon league we read that prohibition is a success, fear has en tered into the heart of the law-break er,, drunkenness is going if not gone,’ etc., etc., and then some prosaic, mat ter-of-fact reporter spills the beans. The following is from the Cheyenne Tribune: “Hootch is becoming more abund ant. if the increasing visibility of ef fect bears its customary relation to I cause. In other words, drunkenness ■ seems to be getting more common, figuring on the basis of arrests made, and it would seem naturally to follow that hootch is at the bottom of it. City police made four arrests last night, and at least one of these, it is alleged, was a regular old-fashioned “fighting jag.” 1 which it is claimed will impound over fifty thousand acre feet of water. We as citizens living under such proposed dam w’ish to register our protest. We do not like dirt dams; we are afraid of them. The history of our country and the various flood disasters that have from time to time appalled us are strong proof of the uncertainty and danger of such structures. As a notable re cent instance of this we cite the Pue blo disaster. This proposed dam is of such unus ual height and length, and is to im pound such a ast body of water that we cannot but feel that it will be a most serious menace to all lives and property of all the inhabitants of this valley. We understand the plan has receiv i the approval of our state engineer, so w r e are helpless from thqt quarter. Many of us have already united in fighting the whole proposition in the courts, and we are still fighting, but so far with little success. How, under these conditions, are w’e to be saved from this menace? Our years of acquaintance with you have given us the highest regard for and confidence in your efficiency and resourcefulness, and we are appeal ing to you as a last resort in our dis tress.” “BUFFALO BILL’S” SISTER CELEBRATES 78th BIRTHDAY Mrs. Julia Goodman, unquestionably . Cody’s most beloved old timer, cele brated her seventy-eighth birthday on Monday, when about twenty-five of her old friends among the ladies of the town and vicinity gathered at the home of Mrs. Goodman’s daughter, Mrs. H. W. Thurston, on Rumsey Avenue. The occasion proved a delightful one for all, and “mother” Goodman, who In spite of her reasonably mature I years is in the best of health, entered into the spirit of the affair with all i the enthusiasm of'a school girl. Ma l ny Howers and other suitable remain- I brances were showered upon the I guest of honor. A list of those pres- I ent would read like a roster of the • leading women of the community a idozen years ago. Mrs. Goodman, as Col. Cody’s old , est and favorite sister, and one of , the very earliest residents of Cody is so well known and so much beloved I that everyone joins in wishing her i long and continued health and happi- * ness and many returns of the day. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 29, 1 922 JEFF’S HOUSE PARTY HAS SAD ENDING Ranch Visited By Sheriff Who Arrests Guests And ‘Finds Cache of Moonshine. The boarders in the county jail were increased by three last Friday after Sheriff Davis, upon information furnished by Mrs. Alice Collins, paid I a visit to Jeff Chapman’s ranch near Hart Mountain. Jeff, as well as Marshall Hay and Moore who were enjoying his hospitality were brought to town by the officers. They were taken before Judge Metz at Thermopolis who gave Marshall Hay 6 months in jail and a $1,500 fine. Moore received 30 days in jail and a ’ S2OO fine. Chapman would not plead guilty and was held in SSOO bond to | appear at Court. It is said that a dude staying with Marshall Hay ga.v< the officers the in formation whicc 1 *d to the finding of a cache of whisky on his place, I while Frank Moore dropped in inop portunely with a gallon jug as his . contribution to Jeff’s house party, < during the officers’ visit and was ar rested vrith the others. According to rumor, a still was found in the corral of which Jeff de-! nies the ownership, and declares it | was thrown there as part of a frame up. Jeff has never been regarded as a “ladies’ man,” but, of late, it looks as though the women would be his un doing. A short time ago he appeared in collrt charged by Mrs. Blanche Gokel with owing her for S6O worth of baths —a charge which he strenuously de nied —and now it is alleged he has been betrayed by the housekeeper in whom he has implicit confidence. Mrs. Collins, who has been employ ed in that capacity in Jeff’s log cabin of modest dimensions near Hart Mountain, has long been looked upon as an informer but he is still uncon-1 vinced that she is responsible for this particular visit of the officers and she has returned to the ranch to look af ter his welfare. It was thought that Jack Spicer, who is w’anted for taking four shots at Joe Hill, might be among those present at Jeff’s house party, but there was no trace of him on the premises. It is believed that Joe Hill will re cover from the terrible wound he re ceived in the battle with his erstwhile friend Spicer. “BATTLING” WATKINS LOSES BELT AND TITLE One Round Go With “Spider” Finley Costs Commissioner His Pugilistic Reputation. It is one of the sayings of this coun try that you can’t tell from the looks of a frog how far he can jump. If S. A. Watkins had remembered this in time last week it might have saved him a head ache. It appears that Mr. Watkins being dissatisfied with work done on f his car by “Mike” Finley, an automobile mechanic? used intemperate language in expressing his displeasure, calling “Mike” the national fighting word and striking him. “Mike,” who is about 5 ft. 5 in., and weighs around 120 pounds, responded j to the challenge with as much enthu- ’ siasm as might be expected of one of his name and nationality. When he arose he brought a leaf from an auto spring up with him, which same he bounced off the bean ' of one of Cody’s most prominent citi zens. Mr. Watkins, who w-eighs probably over 200 and -is close to 6 feet in height, took the count Instantly. He came up for air, so it is reported by eyewitnesses, dazed and chastened. Anyway, “Mike” has since been the recipient of so«many cigars from ad mirers that he has enough to last him well intn the summer, while Mr. Watkins went to on the next train and returned on Munday with a new hat. Lloyd and George Coleman who were badly burned in a gas explosion at Mexia, Texas, are now at Thermopolis . taking the baths. Judge Richard found his voice at' his ranch where he had mislaid it. He came in town Saturday to demon- ■ strate the fact to his local friends. - •>■■■ ■ J- 1 .- J1f.g.1.1 ‘.V The policy of this paper is 9 to uphold the standards 9 and perpetuate the spirit! , of the old West. J ISSUED WEEKLY WILL WATER 240 ACRES WITH HOSE Town Withdraws Suit And En ters Into Contract With Canal Board To Supply Water. Upon consideration, and after pressure had been brought to bear. Mayor Cox decided that peace wa« cheaper than war and held out the olive branch to the Cody Canal Board with the result that the difference be tween the Town of Cody and the Cody Canal Irrigation District were adjust ed last week. The suit which was started against the company has been withdrawn and a contract entered into between the Town and Canal Company. Under the agreement the Town will : have water for a definite and restrict- ■ ed area—24o acres—and it will be al lowed a foot of water for each 70 ' 1 acres. An exact record of the amount of i water the Town diverts into its reser- I voir will be kept in order to determine what the Town needs for its munici . pal supply. An adequate measuring device will be installed which meets the approval of the Water Board, and this already has bean ordered. If the amount to which the Town I is entitled is not sufficient then they will have to make arrangements with the Canal Company for more water. The Canal Co. will look to the Lin coln Land Co. for any monies which may be delinquent for improvements on the canal. The Town of Cody relinquishes its trusteeship in the water for the land lying outside of the specified 240 acres. The Town of Cody supplies all the water for irrigation and other purpos es to the lands embraced in the 240 acres. This means that all lawns, ■ trees, and gardens, must be irrigated i with hose. The water is off in the ditch the i. first of November and cannot be de | pended on again until the first of i 1 May. During the intervening six months the Town will be supplied from the reservoir and when this is exhausted, the pump at the river will work as usual. In Powell, where the reservoir is much larger than the Muskrat Laks reservoir, the water has become stag nate and disagreeable for household purposes causing much complaint from the users, but. of course, this could not happen in Cody. Under the Cox-Bell plan it will be “soft, pure, and plentiful.’’ CARRIED MILK BOTTLE “FRISKED” BY SHERIFF There was a time when any citizen could carry a milk bottle, a vinegar jug, or an oil-can through the streets of Cody without any thought of being stopped by an officer, much less searched by him. That time has pas sed apparently. Take the case of George Collins, hamburger artist employed behind the lunch counter at Duly’s. At a quarter of six one morning last week George was enroute to his job carrying a glass container in which it is his custom to take spring water or buttermilk home to his wife. “Hey!” A voice called sharply. Innocent as a babe with his butter milk bottle. Collins kept on going. “Stop!" The command was imper- I ative so he obeyed it. ft came from no less a person than i Sheriff Davis out with his body-guard ' and deputy. Cullom, completing a tour ! of the alleys. ! “Whats the matter?" Collins de manded. “I’m goin’ to “frisk" you. What’s ' in that bottle?" “Nothin’ yet,” replied George, “but there’ll be buttermilk this evenin’." ‘Tit search you anyhow." “Where’s your warrant?” “Never mind about my w’arrant. Got a gun on you?" “No.” So the sheriff, whose “splendid ac tivity" was recently so highly com mended by the Anti-Saloon League, furnished another example of his zeal by going through the pockets of the peaceable citizen without a warrant on the strength of the tact that he ' was carrying an empty bottle. Barry Williams writes that he is ; enjoying a cruise in the West Indies I aboard an 80-foot schooner yacht , which he and some friends have char , tered. He expects to return to Cody ‘ about May first. Patronize the advertisers.