Chapter 20. GAME, FISH AND FORESTRY.

§1. Department of Game, Fish and Forestry; Divisions.—A state department of game, fish and forestry shall be maintained for the conservation, protection and propagation of wild animals, wild birds and fowls, fish and frogs, and for the conservation and protection of the forests of the State against injury or destruction by fires, insects, fungus or other diseases and for forest culture. The department shall consist of a division of game and fish and a division of forestry, under the charge of a chief game protector and a chief forester, respectively.(1929, c. 13, §1.)

§2. Game, Fish and Forestry Commission; Appointment; Terms of Office.—The state department of game, fish and forestry shall be under the control, charge and management of a commission known and designated as “West Virginia Game, Fish and Forestry Commission,” which shall be composed of three members, who shall be citizens of this State, appointed by the governor, by and with the advice and consent of the senate, no two of whom shall be residents of the same senatorial district. The commission shall supervise the work of the divisions, and shall have charge of the administration and enforcement of all laws which it is the duty of the commission to administer and enforce, and shall direct all inspections and investigations.

The members of the commission in office on the date this Code takes effect shall, unless sooner removed, continue to serve until their respective terms expire and their successors have been appointed and have qualified. Beginning on the first day of July, nineteen hundred and thirty-one, and on the first day of July of each year thereafter, a member shall be appointed to serve for a term of three years beginning on said first day of July. Any commissioner shall be eligible for reappointment. A vacancy in office shall be filled by appointment by the governor for the unexpired term.(1929, c. 13, §2.)

§3. Oath; Bond.—Before entering upon the discharge of his duties, each commissioner shall take the oath prescribed in section five of article four of the Constitution of this State, and shall give bond in the sum of two thousand dollars for the faithful performance and discharge of his duties as commissioner, and in case a surety company executes such bond the premium there for shall be paid out of the funds of the commission.(1929, c. 13, §3.)

§4. Traveling and Other Expenses.—The commissioners shall receive no salary or other compensation for their services, but shall be allowed and paid their actual necessary expenses in traveling and other personal expenses incurred in the performance of their duties: Provided, That in no case shall such total amount so allowed for traveling and other personal expenses exceed in any one year the sum of fifteen hundred dollars for all of the commissioners. No expense account shall be paid unless a statement of the items thereof together with the time of expenditure and the person or persons by whom expended shall be certified by at least two members of the commission to be a true statement of money actually expended, at the times designated, for traveling and other personal expenses in the performance of duty as such commissioners.(1929, c. 13, §4.)

§5. Office; Chairman.—The commission shall maintain an office at the capitol of the State, furnish the same, secure necessary supplies for the keeping of its records, and the conduct of its business, and may employ, with the right to remove summarily, such number of clerks as are necessary.

The commission shall annually, at the first meeting held after the first day of January, choose a chairman who shall serve as such for one year from the date of his election, or until his successor has been elected and has qualified.(1929, c. 13, §5.)

§6. Rules and Regulations.—The commission shall make such rules and regulations, not inconsistent with law, as are necessary to regulate its proceedings and to carry out the purposes and enforce the provisions of this chapter.(1929, c. 13, §6.)

§7. Powers and Duties in General.—The commission shall, in addition to the duties hereinafter specifically prescribed, have entire charge, control and supervision of fish, frogs, wild animals, wild birds and wild fowl of the State, the conduct, control, operation and management of all state wild bird, wild fowl, wild game, farms, reserves, refuges and public shooting grounds, fish hatcheries, reserves and refuges, and all other fish, frog, wild game, wild bird and fowl, plants and places now or hereafter to be established in the State for the propagation of fish, frogs, wild game and wild birds and fowls. It shall supervise and direct the granting and the cancellation or revocation of all game and fish, hunting or other licenses provided by this chapter to be granted, and the payment, collection and expenditure of all moneys derived from such licenses and otherwise collected or appropriated for the operation of the department of game, fish and forestry. It shall supervise, direct and have charge of the enforcement of all laws enacted for the propagation, preservation, conservation, protection and distribution, or in relation to the pursuit, hunting, capturing and killing of the fish, frogs, wild animals, wild birds and wild fowl of the State; and do and perform all acts and things expressly provided or implied to be done by the commission under the provisions of this chapter or by law.(1929, c. 13, §7.)

§8. Records; Reports.—The commission shall keep records of all its acts and doings in relation to its duties and shall preserve the same at its office. It shall keep its financial records and books in the manner to be prescribed by the public accounting department of the State, and shall submit the same to said accounting department for inspection at such time as the department may require.

The commission shall make a report to the governor not later than the first day of September of each odd numbered year, or oftener if required by the governor, of the conduct of its affairs during the preceding two years, including a statement of receipts and disbursements, a budget of its probable expenditures during the succeeding two years, and such recommendations as the commission may desire to make in relation to the matters within its duties and purposes.(1929, c. 13, §9.)

§1. Appointment; Compensation.—The commission shall have power and authority to appoint a chief game protector and other competent men who shall be designated game protectors, not fewer than one protector for each county of the State, each of whom shall hold office at the pleasure of the commission. The commission may at its discretion, with or without cause, summarily remove any person appointed by it and fill such vacancy so created by removal. The commission shall fix the salary to be paid to the chief game protector and the compensation of the game protectors.(1929, c. 13, §10.)

§2. Oath of Office.—Before entering upon the discharge of their duties the chief game protector and the game protectors shall each take, sign and execute the oath of office prescribed in section five of article four of the Constitution of this State. The oath may be administered to the chief game protector and game protectors by any commissioner or any other person authorized by law to administer oaths, and all such written obligations shall be returned to, and filed with the commission.(1929, c. 13, §11.)

§3. Powers.—The chief game protector and the game protectors and all other officers of the State of West Virginia, while engaged in the enforcement of the provisions of this chapter, shall be under the supervision and direction of the commission. The chief game protector and the game protectors shall have full power and authority to execute and serve any warrant, notice or any process of law issued under this chapter or any law enacted relating to game animals, fish, frogs, wild birds and wild fowls and forests, issued by any justice of the peace or by any court having jurisdiction thereof, in the same manner, with the same power and authority, and to and with the same legal effect, as any constable or sheriff can serve or execute such warrant, notice or process. They may arrest on sight, without a warrant or other court process, any person or persons detected by them in the violation of any of the provisions of this chapter or of any law of this State relating to game animals, fish, frogs, wild birds and fowls, and forests; and shall, under the supervision and direction of the commission, do all things necessary to properly carry into effect the provisions of this chapter.(1929, c. 13, §12.)

§4. Scope of Authority; License to Carry Revolvers.—The authority, powers and duties of the chief game protector and game protectors shall be state wide, and after they are appointed as such, each may obtain from the circuit court of the .county of his residence a license to carry a pistol or revolver by giving bond in the sum of thirty-five hundred dollars, conditioned as provided in article seven, chapter sixty-one of this Code, and no notice or other application, except the presentation of his commission as such game protector, shall be required of him before such license is granted. Any such license granted shall be valid for one year, or for the duration of his term of office if less than one year, unless sooner revoked in the manner provided in said article seven.(1929, c. 13, §13.)

§5. State, County and City Police Officers as Game Protectors; Reports.—The sheriffs and constables in the several counties of the State, and police officers of any city, and members of the department of public safety, hereinafter called state police, shall be vested, within their respective jurisdictions, with all the powers and authority of game protectors, but no oath shall be required of such sheriffs, deputy sheriffs, constables, state police or police officers, and each shall, after making an arrest or executing other court process under the provisions of this chapter, report the same to the commission.(1929, c. 13, §14.)

§6. Authority to Make Searches.—The chief game protector and game protectors, including such sheriffs, deputy sheriffs, constables, state police, and police officers, while engaged in the enforcement of any of the provisions of this chapter, shall have the power, in manner provided by law, to search and examine any boat, vehicle, automobile, conveyance, express or railroad car, fish box, fish bucket or creel, game bag or game coat, or any other receptacle in which game birds, game animals, fish or frogs could be packed, concealed or conveyed, whenever they have reason to believe that they will thereby secure or discover evidence of the violation of any provision of this chapter, and such officers shall have, in manner provided by law, the same right to execute a search warrant as is now conferred upon sheriffs in their respective counties.(1929, c. 13, §15.)

§7. Authority to Summon Aid.—Any of the officers herein mentioned, whose duty it is to enforce the provisions of this chapter, shall have the same rights and powers as sheriffs have in their respective counties to summon aid in making arrests, seizures or executing any warrants, notices or court process.(1929, c. 13, §16.)

§1. State Ownership of Game, Birds, Fish and Frogs.—The ownership of, and the title to, all wild game, wild birds, both resident and migratory, and all fishes and frogs in the State of West Virginia, are hereby declared to be in the State, and no such game, birds, fish or frogs shall be taken or killed in any manner, or at any time, except the person so taking or killing the same shall consent that the title thereto shall be and remain in the State of West Virginia, for the purpose of regulating the use and disposition of the same after such taking or killing. The taking or killing of wild game, birds, fishes, or frogs at any time or in any manner by any person, shall be deemed a consent of such person that the title thereto shall be and remain in the State, for the purpose of regulating the use and disposition of the same. But nothing herein contained shall make unlawful the bringing in of game or fowl acquired lawfully in another state.(1929, c. 13, §17.)

§2. “Closed Season” and “Open Season” Defined.—The words “closed season,” as used in this chapter, shall mean the time or period during which it is unlawful to hunt, pursue, catch, shoot, wound, trap or destroy any animal or bird, or fish for or catch any fish; and the words “open season,” as used in this chapter, shall mean the time or period during which it shall be lawful to take these animals, birds and fish, as specified and limited by law.(1929, c. 13, §18.)

§3. Unlawful for Alien to Hunt or Fish.—No person, not a citizen of the United States of America, shall at any time hunt, pursue, kill or catch any wild animals or wild birds or wild fowl in this State, or have in his possession firearms of any kind, or fish for, capture, catch or kill any fish, frogs or turtles in this State.(1929, c. 13, §19.)

§4. Unlawful to Hunt on Sunday.—It shall be unlawful to hunt, catch, kill or injure, or pursue with intent to catch, kill, or injure any game animals, game birds, game fowl, or any other animal or bird or fowl protected under the provisions of this chapter, on the first day of the week, commonly known as Sunday.(1929, c. 13, §20.)

§5. Unlawful to Possess Certain Hunting or Fishing Paraphernalia.—It shall be unlawful for any person to have in his possession or about his premises any hunting or fishing paraphernalia, such as fish traps, nets and seines over legal size, which cannot be lawfully used during the open season for hunting or fishing, and it shall be obligatory for any game protector or conservator of the peace, at any time, to remove and destroy such hunting or fishing paraphernalia, whenever found in this State, and the person or persons claiming ownership or possession thereof shall have no recourse at law against the party destroying the same.(1929, c. 13, §21.)

§6. Unlawful to Hunt or Fish on Lands of Another Without Written Permission; Penalty; Posting Unenclosed Land.—It shall be unlawful for any person to shoot, hunt, fish or fowl upon the grounds or lands of another person, or to camp, peel trees or timber, build fires or do any other act or thing thereon in connection with or auxiliary to shooting, hunting, fishing or fowling on such lands, without permission in writing from the owner, lessee or other person entitled to the possession of such lands, or the tenant or agent of such owner, lessee, or person entitled to the possession thereof, duly authorized to give such written permission, and every person hunting, fishing, shooting or fowling upon such lands shall have such written permission with him when so doing: Provided, however, That the owner of unenclosed lands shall have erected and maintained signs or placards legibly printed, easily discernible, conspicuously posted and reasonably spaced, so as to indicate the territory in which hunting or fishing is prohibited. Any person violating any of the provisions of this section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than ten dollars nor more than fifty dollars, in the discretion of the justice, or be confined in the county jail not more than thirty days; and if any person be convicted a third time of such offense, he shall be confined in the county jail for a period of not less than sixty days in addition to any fine imposed, and in all cases he shall be confined in the county jail until such fine and costs are paid: Provided, That such time shall not exceed sixty days.

It shall be lawful for the owner, lessee, or the person entitled to the possession of such lands, or the agent thereof, to arrest any such person found violating this section and immediately take him before a justice of the peace for trial, and such owner, lessee, person or agent is hereby vested with all the powers and rights of a game protector for such purpose. It is hereby made the duty of the game protector to see that this section is enforced, if requested so to do by such owner, lessee, person or agent, but not otherwise.(1929, c. 13, §22.)

§7. Commission May Capture and Maintain Game Animals, Birds and Fish for Propagation, Protection and Distribution; Permits to Others.—The state game, fish and forestry commission may hunt, capture and maintain in captivity, at any time, for the purpose of propagation, protection and distribution, any of the game animals, fur bearing animals, game birds, game fowls, fish or frogs or any of the wild animals, wild birds and wild fowls of this State.

The commission may issue permits to any person for similar purposes, when satisfied that such person desires to exercise such privilege exclusively for scientific or propagating purposes. Such permit shall be in writing and shall state the number and kind of animals, birds, fowls, fish or frogs to be taken, the purpose and manner of taking, and the name and place of residence of the person to whom issued, and shall be signed by the chief game protector. Such permit shall not be transferable and shall expire on the thirty-first day of December following the date of issue. It shall be unlawful to sell or barter any of the animals, birds, fowls, fish or frogs taken under such permit. A fee of one dollar shall accompany each application for a permit. The owner of such permit shall furnish the chief game protector, upon the demand of the latter, with a detailed list of all animals, birds, fowl, fish or frogs captured.(1929, c. 13, §23.)

§8. Suspension or Change of Open Seasons on Any Stream, or in Any County, or Throughout State.—The commission shall have the power, by a proper order made and entered in its record book, to limit or suspend, for a fixed and definite period, or change the dates of, the open seasons for the catching of fish in any stream or part of a stream in this State. The order shall definitely fix such stream by a proper description and shall state therein the period of such suspension. Before such suspension shall become effective, the commission shall give notice thereof by the publication of such order once a week for two successive weeks in the newspapers of the county, or of each county, wherein such stream is located.

The commission shall have the power, by a proper order made and entered in its record book, to limit or suspend, for a definite and fixed period, the open season for the killing of any of the game animals or birds mentioned in this chapter in any county in this State, but not to exceed one year at a time. Such order shall state the period of such suspension and name the birds and animals, the killing of which is prohibited. Before such suspension shall become effective, the commission shall give notice thereof by the publication of such order, in two newspapers of general circulation throughout the State, at least once a week for two successive weeks before the date of the beginning of such suspension.

The commission shall also have the power, by a proper order made and entered in its record book, when it is deemed necessary to protect game animals, fur bearing animals, fish and frogs, game birds and fowls and forests, to modify and change the dates for the opening and closing of the open season on such animals, birds, fish and frogs; and to modify and change the bag limits on game animals, birds, fish and frogs. Before any such change in the open season or bag limits is made effective, the commission shall give notice thereof by the publication of such order, in two newspapers of general circulation throughout the State, at least once a week for two successive weeks, the last publication to be not later than two weeks in advance of the date the change shall become effective. Any such change shall apply uniformly in all counties of the State.

When the commission shall have entered any such order and given the notice required herein, then any one fishing in such stream, or hunting or killing in such county any of the animals or birds the killing of which is prohibited, or fishing or hunting in violation of such changes made in the open seasons and bag limits, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished as provided in section fourteen of this article.(1929, c. 13, §§8, 24.)

§9. Transportation of Game, Birds, Fish or Frogs Out of State.—No person shall at any time transport or kill or have in his possession with the intention of transporting beyond the limits of the State, any elk, deer, quail, pheasant, ruffed grouse, wild turkey, squirrel, wild duck or wild goose, or any part thereof, or any game fish or frogs killed, caught or captured within this State: Provided, however, That a nonresident licensee may take with him personally, when leaving the State, any game animals or game birds that he has lawfully taken or killed, not exceeding during the season, the number that any person may lawfully take or kill in any one day.(1929, c. 13, §25.)

§10. Sale of Game, Birds, Fish or Frogs Caught or Killed in State; Transportation Thereof.—It shall be unlawful for any person at any time to purchase or offer to purchase, sell or offer to sell, expose for sale, or have in his possession for the purpose of selling any elk, deer, squirrel, wild turkey, ruffed grouse, quail, woodcock, wild duck, wild goose, wild swan, wild brant, snipe, sandpiper, or any of the song or insectivorous birds of this State; or purchase, or offer to purchase, sell or expose for sale, any trout of any species, salmon of any species, pike of any species, bass of any species, perch, turtle or any frog, caught or captured within the State, except as provided in section thirteen, article six of this chapter. It shall be unlawful for any person or common carrier, except as provided in said section thirteen, article six of this chapter, to transport, carry or convey, or to receive for such purpose any of the animals, birds, or fowls aforesaid, or any part of the same, or the fish or frogs so caught or killed within the State, knowing or having reason to believe that such animals, birds, fish or frogs had been or were to be sold. The selling or exposing for sale, having in possession for sale, transporting and carrying, contrary to the provisions of this section, of each and every animal, fish or bird, the sale of which is prohibited in this section, shall constitute and be a separate offense.(1929, c. 13, §26.)

§11. Hunting or Fishing for Compensation.—It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to employ or hire, or induce or persuade, by the use of money or other thing of value, or by any means, any person to hunt, catch or kill, for such other person, firm or corporation, any game animal, game bird or game fowl, or any other bird or fowl for which no bounty has been offered by the commission, or to fish for, catch or kill any fish or frog which is protected under any of the provisions of this chapter, or the sale of which is prohibited by this chapter.

No person shall charge, accept, receive or take money, wages, hire or reward of any kind to hunt, pursue, capture or kill, for any other person, any game animal, game bird, or game fowl, or any song or insectivorous bird, or any game fish or frog.(1929, c. 13, §27.)

§12. Serving Game, Birds, Fish or Frogs at Public Eating Place.—No person shall serve for pay, either directly or indirectly, at any hotel, restaurant, or other licensed eating place in this State, or in any public eating place in this State, any game animal, (except rabbit), game bird, or game fowl, or any part thereof, whether caught within or without this State, or any game fish or frog caught within this State.(1929, c. 13, §28.)

§13. Bounties for Killing Wild Nongame Animals.—The commission shall have the authority to offer and pay, from time to time, under such regulations as are hereinafter prescribed, such bounties for the killing and destruction of wild nongame animals which prey upon and destroy game animals and game, song and insectivorous wild birds and fowl of this State, as the commission shall deem necessary.(1929, c. 13, §30.)

§14. Offenses; Penalties.—Any person violating any provision of this article, the punishment for which is not prescribed, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall, for each offense, be fined not less than twenty nor more than two hundred dollars, or confined in jail not less than ten nor more than one hundred days, or both fined and imprisoned within the limitations aforesaid; and in the case of violation by a corporation, every officer or agent directing or engaged in such violation shall be guilty, and, in the discretion of the court, may be punished by both fine and imprisonment within the limitations aforesaid.(1929, c. 13, §31.)

§1. Game and Fur Bearing Animals Defined.—For the purpose of this chapter the following are game animals: Elk, deer, rabbits, gray and fox squirrels and raccoons; and for the purpose of this chapter the following are furbearing animals: Opossums, beavers, otter, mink, raccoons, muskrats and skunk.(1929, c. 13, §32.)

§2. Hunting Elk.—No person shall hunt, chase, capture, wound or kill any elk in this State at any time before the first day of December, nineteen hundred and thirty-five: Provided, That the owner of any elk which shall be kept in any park or field sufficiently enclosed to reasonably prevent its escape therefrom shall have the right to kill any such elk. No person shall chase or hunt elk with dogs in this State at any time, or permit his dog or dogs to hunt or chase elk. No person shall at any time catch, capture or kill, or attempt to catch, capture or kill any elk by means of poison, bait, trap or snare or like device of any kind. Any person violating this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than one hundred nor more than three hundred dollars and may be confined in the county jail not to exceed sixty days.(1929, c. 13, §33.)

§3. Hunting Deer; Report to Commission.—No person shall hunt, capture or kill any deer in this State at any time before the first day of November, nineteen hundred and thirty, after which it shall be lawful to hunt, capture or kill any buck deer with one or both horns branched, from the first day of November to the tenth day of November, both inclusive, of each year: Provided, That the state game, fish and forestry commission may at any time open or close the season against the killing of all deer in manner and form as provided in this chapter: Provided further, That the owner of any deer which shall be kept in any park or field sufficiently enclosed to reasonably prevent its escape therefrom shall have the right to kill any such deer.

No person shall kill more than one deer in any one season of each year; nor shall any person at any time hunt, pursue, shoot at or kill any fawn, doe or any other deer than bucks with one or both horns branched, or have the fresh skin or any other part of any doe or fawn or illegally killed buck in his possession. No person shall chase or hunt deer with dogs in this State at any time, nor permit his dogs to hunt or chase deer; nor shall any person kill any deer that has been chased by dogs. No person shall at any time catch, capture or kill any deer by means of any poison, bait, salt lick, natural or artificial, trap or snare, or like device of any kind. No person shall hunt, pursue, catch or kill any deer between night fall on one day and daylight of the next day, and no one shall kill or wound any deer while the said deer is in any stream, lake or pond in this State: And provided further, That no person shall hunt, capture or kill any deer in the counties of Mingo, Marion, Marshall and Mercer in this State until the first day of November, nineteen hundred and thirty-four, and that on and after said date the provisions of this chapter shall govern the hunting, capturing or killing of deer in said counties.

Any person killing a deer in this State in any season when it is lawful so to do shall, within twenty days thereafter, inform the commission in writing of such fact, and shall also specify in writing the date and place of such killing, the person by whom killed, the person or persons hunting with him at such time, the length and branching of its horns or antlers, and what was done with such deer.

Any person violating any provision of the first two paragraphs of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than one hundred nor more than three hundred dollars and confined in the county jail not less than thirty nor more than sixty days. Any person violating any provision of the third paragraph of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished as provided in section fifteen of this article.(1929, c. 13, §34-35.)

§4. Hunting Rabbits.—No person shall hunt, capture or kill any rabbit between the first day of January and the fourteenth day of October, both inclusive, of each year: Provided, That it shall be lawful for any person or the children of any person to hunt, catch or kill at any time any rabbit upon his own land or any land of which he may be a tenant. No person shall kill more than six rabbits in any one day nor more than forty in any one season: Provided, That this limit shall not apply to persons killing rabbits on their own premises.(1929, c. 13, §36.)

§5. Hunting Squirrels.—No person shall hunt, capture or kill any gray, black or fox squirrel between the first day of December and the fifteenth day of September of the following year, both inclusive. No person shall kill more than six squirrels in any one day nor more than thirty in any one open season: Provided, That upon the petition of one hundred and fifty duly licensed persons of any county, the game, fish and forestry commission may open the season not earlier than September first, and, if they deem wise, close it at a correspondingly earlier date than that specified in this section.(1929, c. 13, §37.)

§6. Hunting Raccoons or Skunks.—No person shall hunt, capture or kill any raccoon or skunk between the first day of February and the thirty-first day of October, both inclusive, of each year.(1929, c. 13, §38.)

§7. Hunting Opossums.—No person shall hunt, capture or kill any opossum between the first day of February and the thirty-first day of October, both inclusive, of each year.(1929, c. 13, §39.)

§8. Hunting Beavers.—No person shall hunt, capture or kill any beaver in this State at any time: Provided, That the game, fish and forestry commission may at its discretion establish an open season for the killing and taking of beavers.(1929, c. 13, §40.)

§9. Hunting Otters.—No person shall hunt, capture or kill any otter in this State at any time: Provided, That the game, fish and forestry commission may at its discretion establish an open season for the killing and taking of otters.(1929, c. 13, §41.)

§10. Hunting Muskrats.—No person shall hunt, capture or kill any muskrats between the first day of March and the thirty-first day of October, both inclusive, of each year.(1929, c. 13, §42.)

§11. Hunting Red Foxes.—It shall be unlawful for any person to catch, kill or injure, by means of a gun, snare, trap or poison, any red fox between the first day of February and the first day of December following, both inclusive, except in the following named counties: Pocahontas, Doddridge, Monongalia, Marion, Randolph, Pendleton, Monroe, Jefferson, Hardy, Wayne, Gilmer, Hancock, Lincoln, Hampshire, Braxton, Raleigh, Webster, Preston, Roane, Jackson, Mercer, Nicholas, Greenbrier, Marshall, Berkeley, Tyler, Boone, Logan, Clay, Barbour, Mineral, McDowell, Tucker, Grant, Ohio and Calhoun: Provided, however, That it shall be lawful for any person at any time, or by any means, to catch, kill or pursue any red fox upon his own land, or on any lands upon which he may be an actual bona fide tenant or resident, and also for the agents of the owner or tenant of such land so to hunt and kill any red fox thereon by the direction of such owner or tenant.(1929, c. 13, §29.)

§12. Unlawful Methods of Hunting Game Animals.—It shall be unlawful for any person at any time to hunt any game animals at night by the use of a spot or jack light, or any light of like kind, except that game animals which take refuge in trees may be so hunted. It shall be unlawful for any one to destroy or cut down any tree in which animals den or take refuge, for the purpose merely of taking such animals. It shall be unlawful for any person to kill any game animals or birds from any automobile or other land conveyance or from a motor driven craft upon any of the rivers or waters of this State.(1929, c. 13, §43.)

§13. Unlawful to Own Ferrets.—It shall be unlawful to own ferrets in this State for any purpose or at any time to have a ferret in one’s possession.(1929, c. 13, §44.)

§14. Traps or Snares.—No person shall at any time set or maintain any snare or other trap upon the improved or enclosed lands of another without the express permission of the owner or tenant of such lands. No person shall set or maintain any steel or spring bear trap upon any lands not his own and then only on lands enclosed by a fence.(1929, c. 13, §45-46-47.)

§15. Offenses; Penalties.—Any person violating any provision of this article, the punishment for which is not prescribed, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall, for each offense, be fined not less than twenty nor more than one hundred dollars, or confined in jail not less than ten nor more than one hundred days, or both fined and imprisoned within the limitation aforesaid. The unlawful killing or capturing of each game animal shall be deemed a separate offense.(1929, c. 13, §48.)

§1. Game Birds and Fowls Defined.—For the purposes of this chapter the following are game birds or game fowls: The anatidae, commonly known as ducks, geese, swans and brant; the rallidae, commonly known as mud hens, rails, coots, and gallinules; the limicolae, commonly known as shore birds, plovers, snipes, woodcocks, tatlers, curlews, ortolans and sand pipers; and the gallinae, commonly known as wild turkeys, ruffed grouse or pheasant, quail or bobwhite.(1929, c. 13, §53.)

§2. Hunting Migratory Game Birds.—No person shall hunt, pursue, catch, capture or kill any wild duck, goose, brant, plover, snipe, woodcock, ortolan, sandpiper or any other migratory game bird included in the terms of the convention between the United States and Great Britain for the protection of such birds, during the closed seasons prescribed for such birds by federal regulation adopted by the secretary of agriculture and approved by the president of the United States pursuant to the authority conferred by the act of congress entitled “An act to give effect to the convention between the United States and Great Britain for the protection of migratory birds, concluded at Washington, August sixteenth, nineteen hundred and sixteen, and for other purposes,’’ and known by the short title of the “Migratory Bird Treaty Act,” or by any amendment thereof.

No person shall kill more than fifteen ducks, or more than four geese, or more than eight brant, in any one day.(1929, c. 13, §54.)

§3. Hunting Wood Ducks.—No person shall hunt, pursue, catch, capture or kill any wood duck at any time within this State.(1929, c. 13, §55.)

§4. Hunting Wild Turkeys; Report to Commission.—No person shall hunt, pursue, capture, wound, or kill any wild turkey between the first day of December and the fourteenth day of October of the following year, both inclusive ; nor shall any person, during the period when it shall be lawful to hunt, pursue, catch and kill wild turkeys, engage therein between nightfall of one day and daylight of the next day. No person shall kill more than one wild turkey in any one day, nor more than two wild turkeys in any one open season. In the month of December of each year, it shall be the duty of each person who has killed a wild turkey in this State to report to the commission in writing the number killed by him during the open season of that year, designating whether or not the same were male or female.(1929, c. 13, §56.)

§5. Hunting Ruffed Grouse.—No person shall hunt, pursue, catch, capture or kill any ruffed grouse between the first day of December and the fourteenth day of October of the following year, both inclusive. No person shall kill more than three ruffed grouse in any one day, nor more than fifteen ruffed grouse in any one year.(1929, c. 13, §57.)

§6. Hunting Quail or Virginia Partridge.—No person shall hunt, pursue, catch, capture or kill any quail or Virginia partridge between the first day of December and the thirty-first day of October of the following year, both inclusive. No person shall kill more than eight quail in any one day nor more than fifty quail in any one year.(1929, c. 13, §58.)

§7. Hunting Foreign Game Birds.—No person shall at any time hunt, pursue, catch, capture or kill any Hungarian partridge or quail, Reeve’s pheasant, English pheasant (not meaning thereby ruffed grouse), Lady Amherst’s pheasant, Chinese pheasant, Caporcailzie, or any other foreign game bird introduced into this State by the commission.(1929, c. 13, §59.)

§8. Hunting Song or Insectivorous Birds.—No person shall at any time hunt, pursue, catch, capture or kill any song or insectivorous bird.(1929, c. 13, §60.)

§9. Unlawful Methods of Hunting.—No person shall catch, capture or kill, or attempt to catch, capture or kill, at any time, by seine, net, bait, trap or snare, or like device of any kind, any wild turkey, ruffed grouse, pheasant or quail.(1929, c. 13, §61.)

§10. Destruction of Birds’ Nest or Eggs.—No person shall willfully or needlessly destroy or attempt to destroy the nest or eggs of any wild bird or have such nest or eggs in his possession, except it be the nest or eggs of a bird for which a bounty has been offered by the commission, or unless such person be acting under a permit issued by the commission to any person for the purpose of collecting birds, their nests or eggs, for scientific purposes.(1929, c. 13, §62.)

§11. Unlawful to Kill, Possess, Purchase, Sell or Transport Certain Wild Birds or Their Plumage; Birds Not Protected by Chapter.—No person shall, within this State, kill, catch, or have in his possession, living or dead, any wild bird, other than a game bird or wild bird for which a bounty has been offered by the commission; or purchase, offer or expose for sale, or transport within or without the State, any such bird, except as aforesaid. No part of the plumage, skin or body of any bird protected by this section shall be sold or had in possession for sale, irrespective of whether such bird was captured within or without the State, except the English or European sparrow, starlings, owls, hawks, eagles, cross, kingfishers, and the common blackbird, sometimes called the “crow” blackbird, which are not included among the birds protected by this chapter, and the killing thereof at any time is lawful.(1929, c. 13, §63.)

§12. Offenses; Penalties.—Any person violating any provision of this article shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall, for each offense, be fined not less than twenty nor more than one hundred dollars, or confined in jail not less than ten nor more than one hundred days, or both fined and imprisoned within the limitations aforesaid. The unlawful killing or capturing of each bird or fowl named in this article shall be deemed a separate offense.(1929, c. 13, §64.)

§1. Game Fish Defined.—For the purpose of this chapter the following are game fish: Black bass, green bass, white bass, willow bass, trout, white salmon, landlocked salmon, jack salmon, jack fish, wall-eyed pike, muskalonge, pickerel and perch.(1929, c. 13, §65.)

§2. Closed Seasons for Fish and Frogs.—The following closed seasons for fish and frogs are hereby established, during which no person shall fish for, catch, take, kill or destroy in any manner any of the fish or frogs hereinafter enumerated: For

(a) Black bass, green bass, white bass or willow bass, from the first day of December to the thirtieth day of June of the following year, both inclusive: Provided, however, That in the navigable slack water created by dams maintained by the federal government it shall be lawful to take (but only with rod, line and hook or hooks with natural or artificial lures) any bass mentioned in this section between the thirtieth day of May and the first day of December, both inclusive, of each year: Provided further, That upon the petition of one hundred and fifty duly licensed persons of any such county, the game, fish and forestry commission may open the season for that county for one month from March fifteenth to April fourteenth, both inclusive.

(b) Trout, from the first day of August to the fourteenth day of April of the following year, both inclusive.

(c) White salmon, from the first day of April to the thirtieth day of May of each year, both inclusive.

(d) Landlocked salmon, from the first day of August to the fourteenth day of April of the following year, both inclusive.

(e) Jack salmon, jack fish, or wall-eyed pike, from the first day of April to the thirtieth day of May of each year, both inclusive.

(f) Pike, other than wall-eyed pike, or muskalonge, from the first day of December to the thirtieth day of June of the following year, both inclusive.

(g) Pickerel, from the first day of December to the thirtieth day of June of the following year, both inclusive.

(h) Perch, from the first day of December to the thirtieth day of June of the following year, both inclusive.

(i) Frogs, from the first day of December to the first day of July of the following year, both inclusive.(1929, c. 13, §66.)

§3. Limitations on Catch.—No person shall catch more than ten bass, or more than twenty-five brook trout, or more than fifteen rainbow trout, or more than ten brown trout, in one day. No person shall catch more than twenty-five of all species of trout in one day.(1929, c. 13, §67.)

§4. Lawful Length of Fish.—It shall be unlawful for any person to catch and keep or not return to the water immediately after catching, any jack salmon, commonly called jack fish, less than ten inches in length, or any pike or pickerel less than ten inches in length, or any bass or perch less than eight inches in length or any trout less than six inches in length. Fish less than the length prescribed herein shall be returned to the water, with as little injury as possible, immediately after being caught. The measurement of the fish shall be taken from the end of the nose to the center fork of the tail.(1929, c. 13, §65.)

§5. Unlawful Devices and Methods of Fishing.—It shall be unlawful for any person to kill or catch or attempt to kill or catch, any fish in this State, at any time, by means of seines, nets, or traps, or devices of like nature, unless written consent shall have been given by the commission for the use of such seines as herein after provided; or by draining water out of any pool, pond or stream, with the intent to take or injure the fish therein; or by the use of dynamite, or any like explosive or other explosive mixture, or any poisonous drug or substance; or by the use of electricity or lime; or by the use of a gun, rifle, pistol or any other like weapon; or by any other means whatsoever except by rod, line and hook or hooks with natural or artificial lures: Provided, That any person may employ a seine not more than eight feet in length for the purpose of securing minnows other than salmon, bass, shad, pike, perch and trout, for use in angling: Provided further, That the commission may at any time catch fish, with nets, seines, or otherwise, for the purpose of propagation and protection of the fish of this State. It shall be unlawful for any person at any time to kill or catch any game fish by gigging, snaring, spearing, gaffing or grabbing; or to so take any fish during April, May and June.(1929, c. 13, §68.)

§6. Pollution of Streams with Matter Deleterious to Propagation of Fish; Penalty.—It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to throw, discharge or cause to enter into any stream, watercourse or water in this State, sawdust or other matter deleterious to the propagation of fish. It shall be lawful, however, for the owner or operator of any mine or coal washery in this State to drain or cause to be drained therefrom the water that naturally collects in such mine, and the water from such coal washery, and to discharge the same into any stream, watercourse or water in the State, in the manner provided in section seventy-nine, article two, chapter twenty-two of this Code: Provided, however, That any mine owner or operator having one suitable, convenient and sufficient outlet for the water from his or its own mine into one stream shall not cause the same to be drained into any other stream. Any person, firm or corporation violating any of the provisions of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than ten nor more than one hundred dollars, and such person violating this section, and the officer or agent of any corporation who directs or participates in the violation of this section, may be imprisoned in jail not less than ten nor more than one hundred days, or both such fine and imprisonment may be imposed for such violation.(1929, c. 13, §69.)

§7. Fish Hatcheries and Feeding Stations.—The commission may establish, operate, conduct and maintain fish hatcheries and feeding stations for fish, and may employ and appoint such persons and assistants at such salaries and for such time as it may deem necessary to operate, conduct and care for them, and may discharge such employees and appointees at will. It may, in the name of the State, purchase or lease lands and water necessary for the establishment, operation, conduct and maintenance of such hatcheries and feeding stations.(1929, c. 13, §70.)

§8. Power of Commission to Designate Streams for Propagation of Fish.—The commission shall have the power to designate certain streams for the propagation of certain species of fish, and no person shall place fish in such streams other than the species so designated.(1929, c. 13, §71.)

§9. License for Propagation of Fish; Fee; Duration; Renewal.—The commission shall have power and authority to issue a license to any person for the propagation of game, food and bait fish, upon written application therefor, signed by the applicant, and upon the payment to the commission of a fee of ten dollars. All licenses issued under this section shall expire on the first day of January following the date of issue. A license may be renewed from year to year upon paying to the commission the sum of one dollar for each such renewal.(1929, c. 13, §72.)

§10. Same; Application; Refusal; Revocation.—Such application shall be made on blanks prepared by the commission, and shall show the size, character and location of the plant or pond proposed to be constructed, the purpose thereof, and such other information as the commission may require. The license shall describe the plant or pond to be constructed. Such license may be refused when, in the opinion of the commission, any such pond or structure would interfere with the free passage of fish, and may be revoked for like cause, or when the licensee violates any of the provisions of this article.(1929, c. 13, §73.)

§11. Establishment of Plant or Pond; Licensing of Existing Plant.—The commission may grant a license to an applicant to establish any such plant or pond in any water or stream flowing over land owned, leased or occupied by him, or may authorize him to divert any such water or stream to such plant or pond, provided the riparian rights of other landowners are not violated by such diversion, if, after investigation, the commission is satisfied that such plant, pond or diversion will not interfere with the public stocking or propagation of game or food fish frequenting such waters, or that any such stream or water by reason of its natural size is not suited to such public stocking or propagation.

The commission may license any plant or pond constructed prior to the time this Code takes effect, if it would be proper to authorize the construction of such plant or pond under the provisions of this article. The application for such license shall give the location of the plant or pond, the character and description thereof, the waters in which located or from which supplied, and such other information as the commission may require in determining whether such license should be granted or refused.(1929, c. 13, §74.)

§12. Nature of Dam or Pond; Abatement.—No dam, pond or other device which will prevent the free passage up and down stream of migratory fish frequenting such waters shall be erected or placed by a person licensed under this article in any stream containing game or food fish, except in streams which by reason of their natural size are not suited to the public stocking or propagation of fish. All ponds and other structures used for the propagation of fish shall be so constructed as to prevent other fish from entering therein. Any person violating any provision of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, on conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than twenty nor more than one hundred dollars. The commission or any game protector may remove and abate any such obstruction whether conviction be had under this section or not.(1929, c. 13, §75.)

§13. Authority of Licensee to Propagate, Catch and Sell Fish.—Any person licensed under the provision of this article shall have authority to carry on the business of propagation and sale of all species of game, food and bait fish, or the eggs thereof, during the year for which the license is issued. Such licensee shall also have authority to catch and kill game, food, or bait fish from his licensed pond, in any manner whatsoever, except with explosives or poisonous substances. Such licensee shall have the authority under such license to sell or dispose of, in any manner whatsoever, game, food, or bait fish, or the eggs thereof, taken from such licensed pond, at any time of the year, and any railroad or express company may receive and transport the same.(1929, c. 13, §76.)

§14. Certificate of Invoice of Sale.—A person selling fish under the license provided for in this article shall furnish the purchaser with a certificate or invoice of sale, bearing the date of sale, the number of the license under which sold, the number of fish and number of pounds sold. The form of such certificate or invoice shall be prescribed by the commission.

The certificate or invoice shall be shown by the holder on demand of any game protector, or any person authorized under the provisions of this chapter to enforce the provision thereof.(1929, c. 13, §77.)

§15. Annual Report of Licensee.—Every person holding a propagation license under this article shall annually, on the thirty-first day of December, file with the commission a written report, duly sworn to, showing the number of fish and number of pounds, or the eggs thereof, sold or disposed of during the year, to whom, and the value thereof.(1929, c. 13, §78.)

§16. Offenses Relating to Plants or Ponds.—No person shall, except for private use, maintain a plant or pond for the propagation of fish without first having obtained the license provided for in this article. No person shall catch, kill or injure any fish, or take or destroy any of the eggs thereof, in any pond or plant licensed under the provisions of this article without the authority of the owner or proprietor thereof. No person shall willfully or maliciously injure, damage or destroy any propagating plant or pond licensed under this article. No person shall interfere with, obstruct, pollute or diminish the natural flow of the water into or through a propagating plant or pond licensed under this article.(1929, c. 13, §79.)

§17. Offenses Generally; Penalties.—Any person violating any provision of this article, the punishment for which is not prescribed, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall, for each offense, be fined not less than twenty nor more than one hundred dollars, or confined in the county jail not exceeding thirty days, or both fined and imprisoned within the limitations aforesaid: Provided, That any person convicted of killing fish by dynamite or other explosives, or poisons, shall be guilty of a felony and be confined in the penitentiary not less than one nor more than three years.(1929, c. 13, §80.)

§1. Necessity for License.—No person above the age of fifteen years, who is a citizen of the United States, shall, at any time, hunt, pursue, kill or catch any wild animals, or wild birds, or wild fowl, or fish for, kill or catch any fish or frogs, of any kind whatsoever, without first having secured a license so to do as herein provided, and then only during the respective periods when it shall be made lawful to hunt such wild game animals, or wild game birds and wild game fowl, or fish for, capture, catch or kill such fish or frogs: Provided, That a bona fide resident land owner of this State, or his resident children, or his bona fide resident tenant, may hunt, kill, pursue or catch any of the game animals and game fowl, and fish for, capture or kill any of the fish or frogs of this State on his own land during the open season therefor, but under the regulations and laws herein expressly made for hunting and fishing, without obtaining a license to do so, if said land shall not have been designated and made, in manner provided by law, a state game refuge or reserve. Nothing herein shall be construed to permit any resident or nonresident member of any club or organization or association of persons owning or leasing a game or fish reserve in this State to hunt or fish without having secured a license therefor.(1929, c. 13, §81.)

§2. Kinds of Licenses; Fees.—A resident hunting and fishing license shall entitle the licensee to hunt and fish in all counties in this State, except as hereinafter provided as to deer. The fee for such license shall be one dollar and twenty-five cents.

A resident big game license shall entitle the licensee to hunt deer in all counties of the State. The fee for such license shall be five dollars: Provided, however, That in the county of one’s own residence only the resident hunting license shall be required to hunt deer.

A nonresident hunting license shall entitle the licensee to hunt in all counties of the State. The fee for such license shall be fifteen dollars.

A nonresident fishing license shall entitle the licensee to fish in all counties of the State. The fee shall be five dollars.(1929, c. 13, §82.)

§3. Application.—Such several licenses may be secured in the following manner. If the applicant is a resident of this State, he shall go before the clerk of the county court of the county of his residence and in ink fill out and sign his name to a blank application, which application shall be prepared by the commission and furnished by it to such clerk, and which shall state, among other things to be provided therein by the commission, the class of license sought, the citizenship, age, name, occupation or profession, weight, height, place of county residence, color of hair, eyes and complexion of the applicant, and the applicant shall in person make oath thereto before and file such application with such clerk. If the applicant is a bona fide resident of this State, he may fill out such application and swear to the same before someone authorized to administer oaths and send the same to the clerk of the county court of the county of his residence, together with the amount of license tax herein prescribed and sufficient postage for the return of the license, and such clerk shall thereupon issue and send him such license.

If the applicant is a nonresident of this State, he shall make, sign, swear to and file a like form of application, but such application may be signed and sworn to by him before any person authorized in the state of his residence to administer oaths, and the officer taking such affidavit shall affix his seal thereto. Such application may be filed with and such license may be granted by the clerk of the county court of any county in this State to whom such application is made.

Before any such licenses shall be issued such application shall be made and filed as aforesaid and the applicant shall pay to the clerk the fee for such license as is provided in the preceding section of this article.(1929, c. 13, §83.)

§4. Issuance and Delivery of License and Tag; Display of Hunting Tag.—The clerk shall issue and deliver to the applicant a license in the form prescribed by the commission, sign the same, affix thereto the seal of the county court of which he is clerk, and number the license according to the serial order in which it was issued. The clerk shall, at the same time, deliver to each hunting licensee a tag, furnished by the commission free of charge, bearing the license number, in figures at least one inch in height, and containing the words “resident” or “non-resident,” as the case may be, which tag such hunting licensee is required to display on the outer garment, on the back between the shoulders, in such manner that all figures are plainly visible at all times while hunting. The license tag for the current year only shall be displayed. The clerk shall keep an accurate list of all licenses issued by him and of all moneys received therefor, for each class of license.(1929, c. 13, §84.)

§5. Period During Which License Valid.—Such license shall be valid only until the last day of the calendar year in which the same is issued.(1929, c. 13, §85.)

§6. Alteration, Sale or Transfer of License Prohibited.—No person shall in any manner alter or change any license or tag issued under the provisions of this article, or buy or sell, or offer to buy or sell the same, or transfer it to any other person or permit any other person to have or use it. No person shall have, use or exhibit any license or tag which has been issued to any other person than himself.(1929, c. 13, §86.)

§7. When License to be Exhibited.—No person to whom such license is granted shall hunt, pursue, kill or catch any game animals, game birds or game fowl, or fish for, capture or kill any fish or frogs in this State, unless, at the time thereof, he shall, on demand, exhibit such license to any officer of this State, or to the owner, tenant or lessee of any land on which he is hunting or fishing.

Any person having in his possession, in the fields or woods in or about the streams or waters of this State, any gun or hunting paraphernalia or any fishing rod or other fishing paraphernalia, except he be the owner of such fields, woods, streams or waters, or the child, tenant or lessee of such owner, shall, upon demand of any officer mentioned in this chapter, or of the owner, tenant, lessee or agent of the owner of such fields or woods, produce and exhibit his proper license to such officer or person for inspection, and shall give to such officer or person his correct name and address.(1929, c. 13, §§ 87, 88.)

§8. Carrying Uncased Gun Without License.—No person shall carry any uncased gun in any of the fields or woods of this State, unless he has a properly issued and valid hunting license, or unless such person is the bona fide owner of such field or woods, or his child, tenant or lessee. The carrying of such uncased gun in any of the fields or woods of this State, by any person not having a hunting license to do so, as aforesaid, shall be deemed prima facie evidence that the person so carrying such uncased gun is hunting wild animals or wild birds or fowls.(1929, c. 13, §89.)

§9. Refusal or Revocation of License.—In case the commission desires to refuse a license to any person, it shall notify the clerk of the county in court of the county, of the residence of such person, or any such clerk where it is expected such license may be sought, of the name and address of such person and such other information in relation thereto as it may desire to give, and such clerk shall not issue a license to such person thereafter, and shall report to the commission any application made therefor. In case any clerk shall, after receiving such notice, knowingly issue such license, he shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than ten nor more than one hundred dollars for each offense. The commission may revoke any such license so wrongfully issued. The violation of any of the provisions in of this chapter by any person holding a license shall be sufficient cause for the refusal of the commission to grant in any year a license to the person so violating any such provision.

All licenses herein authorized to be granted shall be deemed to have been granted by the commission, and the power and authority to revoke such licenses is vested in the commission. Upon the revocation of any license, the one to whom the same was issued shall, upon having a knowledge of such revocation, forthwith deliver the license and tag so issued to him to the clerk of the county court of the county who issued the same to him, and such clerk shall thereupon transmit the same to the commission.(1929, c. 13, §90.)

§10. Disposition of License Fees.—All moneys received by or paid to any officer or other person of this State for licenses as aforesaid shall be paid to the commission, in the manner and at the times as hereinafter provided, and the commission shall, on receipt of the same, forthwith pay over to the state treasurer such money so received, accompanying it with a statement showing in detail the sources of such money and the purposes for which the same was originally paid. Such officers and other persons so receiving such money shall, on the first day of each month, pay over to the commission all moneys so paid to them during the preceding month, and each officer and person shall accompany such payment with a report showing, in the case of license money, the name of the county, the class of licenses sold, the names and addresses of the persons paying the same, and the date of the receipt thereof. All such money so paid for licenses shall be credited to and kept separately in a “game, fish and forestry fund,” and shall be used and paid out upon the order of the commission, solely for the conservation, protection, propagation and distribution of the fish, frogs, wild game and wild birds and fowls of this State, in the enforcement of the fish and game laws of this State, for any of the purposes in this chapter provided, and for the operation of the Commission.

All the money so credited to the game, fish and forestry fund and applicable as aforesaid to the maintenance and conduct of the commission shall be withdrawn from the state treasury and expended only upon the written requisition of the commission authorized by it at a meeting duly held, and signed by the chairman of such commission.(1929, c. 13, §91.)

§11. Portion of License Fees to be Used for Specific Purposes.—The commission shall expend each year not less than ten per cent of the total revenue obtainable from the resident hunting and fishing licenses and from the nonresident hunting licenses, for the purpose of creating, establishing and maintaining game refuges and public shooting grounds, hereinafter more fully described.

The commission shall expend each year not less than ten per cent of the total revenue obtainable from the resident hunting and fishing licenses and from the nonresident hunting licenses, for the purpose of paying bounties on such predatory and nongame animals as the commission may deem harmful to the increase and propagation of wild game animals and wild game birds.

The commission shall expend each year forty per cent of the total revenue obtainable from the resident hunting and fishing licenses and from the nonresident fishing licenses, for the purpose of building, erecting and maintaining fish hatcheries and rearing troughs and such other material and equipment as the commission may deem necessary to properly stock the streams of this State with fish.

The commission shall expend ninety per cent of the total revenue obtainable each year from the resident big game licenses, for the purpose of buying Virginia white tail deer for restocking purposes and for no other purpose whatsoever.(1929, c. 13, §92.)

§12. Offenses; Penalties.—Any person violating any provision of this article shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall, for each offense, be fined not less than twenty nor more than one hundred dollars, or confined in jail not less than ten nor more than one hundred days, or both fined and imprisoned within the limitations aforesaid.(1929, c. 13, §93.)

§1. Acquisition of Suitable Lands by Commission; Maintenance Thereof as State Forests or Game and Fish Refuges.—The game, fish and forestry commission, with the consent of the governor, shall have the power and right to purchase, in the name of the State, out of funds set aside for the purpose, or out of any unused funds in the hands of the commission under this chapter, lands suitable for forest culture, forest parks, game and/or fish refuges, or game refuges and public shooting grounds. Such purchase may be made on terms requiring not less than one-third of the purchase price to be paid down at the time of the conveyance and the residue in not less than one and two years after date: Provided, however, That the commission shall not pay more than five dollars per acre for such lands to be used as game refuges and public shooting grounds. The commission may also receive any gift of any such lands whether by deed or will. In the case of gifts or purchases, the fee simple title shall pass to the State, except for the reservation of minerals and the mining rights to remove such minerals.

When any such lands have been so acquired, the commission shall have power to protect, preserve and maintain the same as state forests, state forest parks, or game and fish refuges, for the propagation and distribution of forest trees, and for the protection, propagation and distribution of the fish, wild animals, and birds on the same, and may prescribe and enforce rules and regulations, consistent with the laws of this State, in order to carry out that object. The commission may prescribe and enforce rules prohibiting all fishing and hunting, catching, trapping, capturing and killing of fish, wild animals and birds upon such state forests, state forest parks and game and fish refuges, for such length of time as it may deem proper.

The commission shall investigate the water-sheds of the Gauley, Williams, Greenbrier, Elk, Cheat, Tygart’s Valley, New, Blue-Stone, Potomac, Coal, Guyandotte, and other rivers of the State, and report to the governor what lands thereon are suitable for the purposes of state forests, forest parks and game and fish refuges, together with all information obtainable as to the proper value and the adaptability of such lands for such purposes.(1929, c. 13, §§94, 117-119.)

§2. Establishment of Game Refuges and Shooting Grounds Thereon; Leasing Lands Therefor.—The commission shall establish and maintain game refuges and public shooting grounds on lands purchased or given for this purpose, out of funds provided for such purpose in this chapter. Not more than one-third of the area of any tract established for this purpose shall be used for game refuges and the remainder shall be a public shooting grounds. Such area set apart as a game refuge shall be located as nearly as possible in the center of such tracts.

It shall be unlawful at any time to hunt, pursue or molest in any manner, any animals, birds or fowls on that section of any game refuge and public shooting grounds designated as the game refuge, except that any legally constituted game protector or game refuge keeper or warden may hunt, pursue, catch and kill in any manner predatory animals and predatory birds thereon.

Each state game refuge shall be surrounded by a well defined fire line, road or other clear strip of land, and by at least one wire at the boundary thereof. On the boundary of each state game refuge, there shall be posted in conspicuous places, not more than one hundred and fifty yards apart, notices bearing the following words: “State game refuge—hunting is unlawful,” and such other information or rules and regulations as the commission may deem advisable. On the boundary line of the area surrounding any such refuge which has been established as a public shooting grounds, the commission shall have posted in conspicuous places, not more than one hundred and fifty yards apart, notices bearing the following words: “Public shooting grounds,” together with information as to when hunting is legal on such tract. For and upon every such game refuge and public shooting grounds the commission shall employ not less than one resident caretaker or warden whose duty it shall be to protect and propagate game thereon, grow, harvest and distribute food for the same when needed, keep the area as free as possible from predatory animals and birds, protect the area from fire, and perform all duties necessary to maintain such refuge and public shooting grounds.

The commission shall also have the power to lease lands for this purpose for not less than ten year periods, the rental price thereof not to be more than the amount of the taxes on such land, and in no event to exceed ten cents per acre per annum.(1929, c. 13, §95.)

§3. Game Refuges and Shooting Grounds on Lands Not Owned by State.—The commission may, with the consent of the owner or owners of any land in this State of two thousand acres or more in extent, set the same apart as a game refuge and public shooting grounds, not more than one-third of such tract to be used as a game refuge and the remainder as a public-shooting grounds. When any such lands have been so acquired, they shall be conducted in the same manner and for the same purpose as are game refuges and public shooting grounds acquired by purchase or gift, as is hereinbefore set forth. Any such lands not owned by the State and now held by the commission as game refuges shall, at the expiration of their agreement, be reorganized as game refuges and public shooting grounds or be discontinued.(1929, c. 13, §96.)

§4. Fish and Frog Refuges on Lands Not Owned by State.—The commission may, with the consent of the owner of any land bordering any stream of this State, by posting of notices as provided in section two of this article, because of drought, forest fires, diseases existing among the fish, or for the purpose of conservation, protection or propagation of fish and frogs, declare any such stream in this State, or any part thereof, as a fish or frog refuge, and thereafter maintain the same as such. After such declaration no person shall, during the time the same is made a refuge, fish for, capture, catch or kill any fish or frogs in such streams or in any manner pollute the waters thereof.(1929, c. 13, §97.)

§5. Offenses; Penalties.—Any person violating any of the provisions of the three preceding sections shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of not less than twenty nor more than one hundred dollars, or by confinement in jail not less than ten nor more than one hundred days, or by both fine and imprisonment within the limitations aforesaid, for each offense.(1929, c. 13, §98.)

§1. Powers of Commission Over Forests; Chief Forester and Local Forest Protectors; Compensation.—The game, fish and forestry commission shall have power and authority to protect the forests of the State against injury or destruction by fire, insects, fungus, or other disease, to study and make recommendations as to proper methods for such protection and for forest culture, and to disseminate any such information throughout the State. For such purposes the commission shall appoint a chief forester, duly qualified with technical forestry training, a graduate of a reputable college or university supplemented by actual experience in handling forestry field organization. The commission shall also appoint local forest protectors for such forest fire districts as the commission may deem it necessary to designate. The commission, may, at its discretion, with or without cause, summarily remove any person appointed by it and fill any vacancy so created. The commission shall fix the salary to be paid to the chief forester, and may pay local forest protectors at the rate of three dollars and fifty cents per day when actually engaged in fighting fires.(1929, c. 13, §99.)

§2. Oath of Office of Chief Forester.—Before entering upon the discharge of his duties, the chief forester shall take, sign and execute the oath of office prescribed in section five of article four of the Constitution of this State. The oath may be administered by any commissioner or any other person authorized by law to administer oaths, and shall be returned to and filed with the commission.(1929, c. 13, §100.)

§3. Forest Fires; Duties of Commission and Others in Regard Thereto.—The commission shall have authority and power to protect the forests against injury or destruction by fire, and it shall be the duty of the commission, the chief forester and forest protectors, upon receiving notice of any such forest fire, to employ all the necessary means to confine or extinguish the same. For this purpose authority is given to destroy fences, plow lands, or, in cases of extreme emergency, to set back-fires. The chief forester and forest protectors may, under the general supervision of the commission, in cases of emergencies, summon or employ persons to assist in fighting fires, who shall be paid at the rate of three dollars a day for the actual time so employed in fighting such fires. Any person who shall fail or refuse to assist in the fighting of such fires shall, unless such failure is due to physical inability, be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction, be fined not less than ten nor more than twenty dollars for each offense.(1929, c. 13, §101.)

§4. Payment for Services Rendered at Forest Fires.—All services rendered at forest fires, except those rendered by the chief forester or forest protectors, shall be charged against the county in which the fire was, and each forest protector shall render to the county court, within twenty days after such fire, and also to the commission, a sworn statement of the time used in fighting such fires, with the name or names of all persons who were summoned and assisted thereat and who furnished subsistence or supplies therefor, or transportation, and the amount of money due each therefor. The county court of the county in which the fire was shall pay such charges against it within ninety days after the occurrence of such fire.(1929, c. 13, §102.)

§5. Failure of Person to Extinguish Fire Started or Used by Him; Penalty.—Whoever, by himself, or by his servants, agents or guides, or as the servant, agent or guide of any other person, shall build any fire, or use an abandoned fire in a field, public or private road, or adjacent to, or in any woods or forest in this State, shall, before leaving such fire, totally extinguish the same; and upon failure to do so, such person or persons shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, on conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than twenty-five dollars nor more than one hundred dollars and the costs of the prosecution, and, upon default in paying such fine and costs, shall be confined in the county jail not more than ninety days unless such fine and costs be sooner paid.(1929, c. 13, §103.)

§6. Duty of Railroad Company to Protect Against Fires.—Every railroad company or other company operating a locomotive shall, on such part of its road as passes through forest lands, or lands subject to fires from any cause, cut and remove from its right of way along such lands, at least twice a year, all grass, brush, and other inflammable materials, and employ, at times when such lands are in a dry and dangerous fire condition, sufficient trackmen to promptly put out fires on its right of way; and shall provide locomotives thereon with netting of steel or iron so constructed as to give the best practical protection against the escape of fire and sparks from the smokestacks thereof, and against the escape of fire from ash pans and furnaces which shall be used on such locomotives.

No railroad company, or employee thereof, shall deposit fire coals or ashes on its track or right of way near such lands. In case of fire on its own or neighboring lands, the railroad company shall use all practicable means to put it out. Engineers, conductors or trainmen discovering or knowing of fire in fences or other material along or near the right of way of the railroad in such lands shall report the same at the first station to the station agent, and such station agent shall, as soon as practicable, notify the nearest forest protector and use all necessary means to extinguish the same. And any officer or employee of a railroad company violating any provision of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than twenty nor more than two hundred dollars.(1929, c. 13, §104.)

§7. Right of Railroad Company to Clear Land Adjacent to Right of Way.—For the purpose of providing increased protection to forest property from fire originating along railroads, any steam railroad company shall have the right, subject to the provisions of this section, without liability for trespass, to enter upon forest or brush lands for a distance of fifty feet from the railroad right of way and to clear from such a strip any inflammable material such as leaves, grass, dead trees, slash and brush, but shall not remove any valuable timber growth or other things of value without consent of and recompense to the owner. Not less than fifteen days prior to clearing such lands, the railroad company shall give the owner thereof notice of its intention, together with a transcript of this section, by letter deposited in the United States mail to his last known address. If the owner shall not file an objection to such clearing with the commission within ten days of the date of said notice he shall be deemed to have given consent. Upon the filing by an owner of such objection showing cause why such clearing should not be done, the commission shall review the case and may sustain the objection of the owner or permit the clearing in whole or in part.

Nothing contained in this chapter shall apply to temporary steam tram roads used for hauling logs and lumber.(1929, c. 13, §114-115.)

§8. Recovery of Expenses Incurred in Extinguishing Fires from Persons Causing Them.—The commission shall, in the name of the county in which any forest fire has occurred, and which has been extinguished or suppressed by its efforts, recover from the person or persons, firm or corporation negligently giving origin to such fire, the amount so expended in extinguishing such fire and the costs thereof, and the same shall not bar the rights of damages between the parties thereto.(1929, c. 13, §105.)

§9. Commission Authorized to Secure Federal Cooperation.—The commission may do all things required to meet the conditions and requirements of the federal government in securing federal cooperation under the provisions of the Weeks law and the Clarke-McNary law, and any law amendatory thereof or supplemental thereto, for the purpose of preventing forest fires and the advancement of forestry practices.(1929, c. 13, §106.)

§10. Financial Assistance From Owners of Forest Lands; Expenditures by Commission.—The commission may cooperate with the owners of forest lands and receive financial assistance from them for the purposes aforesaid and do any and all things necessary therefor, including the establishment and maintenance of patrol and lookout stations: Provided, That the commission shall expend for forestry purposes only such moneys as shall be appropriated therefor by the State, and such moneys as may be contributed therefor by the private owners, and in addition for the aforementioned purposes shall provide twenty-five per cent of the funds derived annually from the sale of game and fish licenses: Provided further, That the commission shall, upon the written request of twenty or more taxpayers of any county, expend in that county at least twenty per cent of all money received from such county in hunting and fishing license fees for the purpose of restocking and propagating fish or game.(1929, c. 13, §107.)

§11. Duty of Owner of Timber Land to Furnish Fire Patrol.—Every owner of timber land in this State shall furnish or provide a sufficient fire patrol during the season of the year when there is danger of forest fires, which patrol shall meet with the approval of the commission.(1929, c. 13, §108.)

§12. Maintenance of Fire Patrol by Commission when Owner Fails to Provide Same; Expense.—If the owner of any forest land fails properly to patrol his lands, the commission may cause the same to be patrolled and charge the cost thereof against such owner: Provided, That the aggregate amount so charged shall not exceed one cent per acre per year. If the amount so charged against such owner as cost and expense of such patrol is not paid upon presentation of a bill therefor, it shall be the duty of the prosecuting attorney of the county in which such land or the greater part thereof is situated, at the instance of the commission or some one of its agents, to institute, in the name of the State of West Virginia, action for the recovery thereof. All moneys collected from owners of forest lands, either by suit or voluntary payment, shall be paid into the state treasury. But the foregoing provisions shall not apply to corporations, firms or individuals who are members of and contributing to the various fire protective associations of this State, now in existence.(1929, c. 13, §109.)

§13. Residence of Owner Sufficient Protection in Certain Cases.—Actual bona fide residence, by the owner or lessor of three hundred and sixty acres or less, on or within one and one-half miles of such tract, shall be deemed to constitute reasonable and adequate protection for such tract, but such residence shall not relieve the owner, his agents or employees, from responsibility for the control and suppression of fires occurring on such tract, or entitle such owner to compensation from the county for the time spent by him, his agents or employees in controlling or suppressing any fire that threatens or occurs thereon.(1929, c. 13, §110.)

§14. Degree of Protection; Total Cost of Protection.—The degree of protection required on a given tract of land shall not exceed that required on adjoining tracts in the same protective unit, and in no case shall the total cost of protection assessed against the land by the State exceed one cent per acre per annum.(1929, c. 13, §111.)

§15. Timber Land Defined.—For the purpose of this chapter, any land shall be considered timber land which has enough timber standing or down to constitute, in the judgment of the commission, a fire menace to itself or adjoining lands: Provided, however, That nothing in this section contained shall be construed to include lands under cultivation or in grass: Provided further, That nothing contained herein shall be construed so as to include within the provisions of this section any land which is an isolated fire risk, unless a forest fire thereon would imperil the lands of any adjoining land owner or land owners.(1929, c. 13, §112.)

§16. Owner Not Relieved From Civil Liability for Damage from Fire.—Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to relieve the owner, lessee or user of any land from civil liability for damage resulting from any fire for which their agents or employees may be responsible.(1929, c. 13, §113.)

§17. Prima Facie Evidence of Negligence.—In all criminal and civil actions for any injury occasioned by fire communicated by burning or clearing land, the fact that such fire was so communicated shall be prima facie evidence of negligence on the part of the person or agent or employee or any other person who shall at the time of such injury by fire be in the use and occupation of the land on which the burning was done and of those who shall at such time have care and management of such burning.(1929, c. 13, §116.)

§1. Prosecutions; Costs.—The commission may cause complaints to be made and proceedings to be instituted and prosecuted against any violators under this chapter, without the sanction of the prosecuting attorney of the county wherein such proceedings are instituted, and in all such cases no security for costs shall be required of the commission. The commission may employ an attorney to represent it in any prosecution under this chapter, and in such case there shall be taxed as costs, in case of conviction, the sum of ten dollars in each case, in addition to the usual amount lawfully taxed, which ten dollars shall be for the benefit of and paid to such attorney as and for his compensation.(1929, c. 13, §120.)

§2. Rewards.—The commission shall have the right to offer and pay, in its discretion, rewards for information respecting the violation, or for the apprehension and conviction of any violators, of any of the provisions of this chapter.(1929, c. 13, §121.)

§3. Jurisdiction of Justices.—Justices of the peace shall have concurrent jurisdiction with the circuit or other criminal courts of all misdemeanors arising under this chapter.(1929, c. 13, §122.)

§4. Obstructing Commission, Game Protectors or Other Officers; Penalty.—Any person who hinders, obstructs or interferes with, or attempts to hinder, obstruct or interfere with, the game protector, or any other officer named herein, in the performance of his duties, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than fifty nor more than two hundred dollars, or may be confined in jail not more than six months, for each offense, or may, in the discretion of the court, be both fined and imprisoned within the limitations aforesaid.(1929, c. 13, §123.)

§5. Offenses Under Chapter Generally; Penalty.—Any person violating any of the provisions of this chapter, the punishment for which is not prescribed, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall for each offense be fined not less than twenty nor more than one hundred dollars, or confined in jail not less than ten nor more than one hundred days, or both fined and imprisoned within the limitations aforesaid; and in the case of violation by a corporation, every officer or agent thereof directing or engaged in such violation shall be guilty and punished as aforesaid.(1929, c. 13, §124.)