Missouri Conservationist Spring 1942

              The\ Missouri
Conservationist
Published Quarterly by the Missouri Conservation Commission
VOL. 3. NO. 7.
JEFFERSON CITY, MISSOURI
SPRING, 1942
Governor Names TurnbuII
As Member of Commission
Re-appointment
Of Mr. Stephens
Widely Approved
THE appointment, by Governor Forrest
Donnell, of Owen TurnbuII, of Troy,
and the re-appointment of E. Sydney
Stephens, of Columbia, to the Conservation Commission has met with the
hearty approval of not only the sportsmen of the state but of all Missourians
who are interested in conservation.
Mr. TurnbuII is a sportsman and an
active conservation worker in his section
of the state. Mr. Stephens has proven,
during his four years as chairman of the
Commission, his sincere devotion to the
work.
Mr. TurnbuII was born in Lincoln
County and has lived there ever since.
E. SYDNEY STEPHENS
In 1927 he married Miss Kathleen Hall,
and they have two daughters, Mary Sue,
12 years old, and Kathleen, who is nine.
OWEN TURNBULL
He has always taken an active part
in civic affairs, and during his term as
president of the Troy Chamber of Commerce, he succeeded in getting the
Federal government to establish the
Cuivre River Recreational Area, east of
Troy.
In addition to his business and civic
work, he owns a farm near Troy, where
he indulges in his hobby of raising and
training foxhounds and bird dogs. He
is fond of both fox hunting and bird
hunting. At present Mr. TurnbuII is
vice-president of the Midwest Fox Hunters Association, an organization of fox
hunters from 17 states; and he bred and
trained the foxhound, "Major Bowes,"
which was crowned grand champion of
the Missouri State Roundup at Jefferson
City in  1939.
It was during Mr. Stephens' tenure of
office as president of the Restoration and
Conservation Federation of Missouri
that the people of the state were made
(Continued on page 2.)
COMMISSION
LIBERALIZES
POND POLICY
WELCOME news to farm pond
owners and prospective builders of
farm ponds is the announcement by the
Conservation Commission of a liberalized
policy for stocking ponds with fish.
Crappie, bluegill, green sunfish and
bullheads from state hatcheries and
rescue stations will be available for
stocking those ponds which meet certain
specifications of construction and protection.
Heretofore, owners of farm ponds, in
order to secure fish from the Commission,
were required by agreement to maintain
restrictions regulating size and catch
limits, which were at least as restrictive
as those imposed by the Wildlife and
Forestry Code.
Under the new policy pond owners
agree:
(1) To permit reasonable use of their
ponds for fishing, without a fee,
subject to permission of the
owner.
(2) To attempt to manage the pond
and to control the fishing so that
restocking will not be needed.
(3) To permit no fish of any species to
be released in the pond without
first consulting the Commission.
The stocking of farm ponds, the Commission points out, will be for the purpose of establishing initial, adequate
breeding stock only, and not on the basis
of perpetual restocking.
Consequently, it is up to the owner of
the pond to so regulate fishing that the
pond will not be fished out and require
restocking.
However, lest farmers become over-
restrictive through fear of their ponds
being fished out, it should be understood
that there is far less danger of overfishing  than  there  is  of under-fishing.
If only desirable pond species are
planted, reasonable fishing in the pond
will lead to an adequate supply of fully
grown fish; whereas, too little fishing
will result in over-population, leading
to stunted and under-sized fish.
(Continued on page U.)