the park, of which 5,345,000 were shipped green and the balance were eyed at the hatchery before shipment. The balance of the eggs taken in the park were eyed and then planted in the small streams flowing into Yellowstone Lake. Ten thousand fingerling brook trout (fontinalis) were received from the Bozeman hatchery on August. 29 and planted in Glen Creek, and 100,000 black-spotted fry (salmo mykiss) were received from the same source on August 29 and planted in Lava Creek, a branch of the Gardiner River. Both of these streams are near the road and convenient for fishing, and therefore require frequent restocking. WILD ANIMALS. ANTELOPE. The experiment of capturing antelope in the park and transferring them by express to the national bison preserve in Montana and to the Wichita game preserve in Oklahoma, for which funds were supplied by the Boone and Crockett Club, was quite successful. Twelve (4 bucks and 8 does) were captured and sent to the Montana preserve, and 11 (4 bucks and 7 does), to the Wichita preserve. But 3 were lost in making the capture and 3 injured themselves en route to such an extent that they did not live long after arrival at their destination. It was found that the does were quieter and easier to handle than the bucks. The capture was made near the stacks of hay along the north line near Gardiner, during December and the early part of January, and naturally disturbed the herd more or less, and for some time afterwards it took considerable effort to get them back to their winter range and used to eating hay. In February 450 were counted after they had quieted down and recovered from the fright incident to the capture of those shipped away. As yet this fall but few have come down from the mountains, and it is therefore impossible to tell much about their condition until later. An unusually large number of elk that wintered along the north line interfered seriously with feeding the antelope, deer, and mountain sheep, the hay not being sufficient in quantity to feed the large herds of elk, which also constantly broke down the fence along the north line, rendering it difficult to keep the antelope inside the park. On 11 different occasions during December, January, and February it was necessary to send detachments of troopers of from 10 to 30 men each to assist the scouts in herding them. back into the park. This fence is not in very good condition, and it is contemplated repairing it for this winter at as little expense as possible, and have it replaced by a higher and stronger fence, or by rebuilding and adding to the present one when suflicient funds are available for the purpose. The alfalfa on the field near Gardiner, which has produced hay for the antelope, mountain sheep, and deer, was run out by foxtail, weeds, etc., and was plowed up last spring with a view to restocking to alfalfa. It requires at least two years' plowing and cultivating to put the land in proper shape for reseeding, and as an experiment the sod ground was sowed to spring wheat, which was cut and stacked for use as hay. The season chanced to be a very favorable one, and the results have therefore been quite satisfactory, about 80 tons of wheat hay having been cut and put in stack for the game for the winter. DEER. Practically all of the deer that remain in the park during the winter are found within a few miles of Fort Yellowstone, where they are fed hay, and both white-tailed and black-tailed deer become very tame, many of them eating from the hand. About 1,000 black-tailed deer were counted last winter, and while many of them died (probably at least 100 in this vicinity) the loss was not considered excessive in view of the fact that the winter seemed to be a particularly hard one on the game. The white-tailed deer, of which there has never been above 100, wintered well and seem to be holding their own and probably increasing slowly. ELK. Elk in certain portions of the park are very numerous, and are numbered by thousands both in winter and summer. Last winter the deep snows drove them down in large herds from the latter part of November on, and many of them drifted into Montana, where they did much damage to haystacks, fields, and fences on the ranches near the park. Another result was to make good hunting in Montana along the park line during the closing days of the open season. At the last session the Montana State Legislature set aside a strip several miles in width and extending along the park line from where it crosses the Yellowstone River, west to the northwest corner, thence south along the west line for about 7 miles, as a game preserve, and this will be of great assistance in protecting the game in the park. MOOSE. Moose are frequently seen in the southeast, southwest, and northwest portions of the park, but usually in wild and unfrequented spots and never near human habitation. BUFFALO. WILD HERD. The wild herd has been seen several times, usually in the Pelican Creek Valley. The largest number seen at any one time was 27. A patrol reported having seen 8 along the road, about 7 miles west of Thumb Station, on August 12. FENCED HERD. This herd is thriving and now consists of 147 head. On the date of last report there were 121 head-61 males and 60 females. In October, 1910, one 4-year-old bull was sold to B. A. Grant, of Long Beach, Cal., for $500, delivered on board the cars at Gardiner, Mont. Mr. Grant took him to his home for exhibition purposes. On August 22, 1911, one of last year's male calves was gored so severely by one of the old bulls that it had to be killed. During the spring and summer 29 calves were born, and on September 28 one of these, a female, was found with a broken leg and had to be killed. The heads, skeletons, and robes of those.that had to be killed, together with those of the yearling calf that died September 1, 1910 (see annual report 1910), were shipped to the National Museum, Washington, D. C., for use as mounted specimens. Fifteen bulls were brought in from the Lamar Valley to Mammoth Hot Springs, where they were kept under fence for exhibition during the tourist season, and were, as usual, one of the favorite sights for the tourists. About 200 tons of hay have been cut and stacked for use of this herd during the winter. During the summer and late into the fall these buffalo are herded in the open during the day and returned to the pasture for the night. The 40 acres of meadow land that was plowed up in the spring of 1909 and stocked with timothy produced about 80 tons of excellent hay this season, which is at least double the amount it would have produced as wild land. An irrigation system to cover this and several hundred acres adjoining was constructed last spring, and additional meadow land will be taken up as rapidly as funds permit, in order to secure plenty of hay for the increasing herd. BEAR. The bears seem to be increasing at least they have been very plentiful during the past summer around the hotels and camps. They are very tame. During the summer two grizzlies and three black bears, becoming dangerous to life and property, were killed. In one or two instances men who have become too bold with bear have been attacked and severely injured, usually by a mother bear that thought she was defending her cubs, but investigation of cases of this kind usually result in a conclusion that the bear is not entirely to blame. During the summer there have been captured and shipped alive to public parks, under authority of the department, the following bears: A mother grizzly with a pair of cubs, and a male grizzly to the Zoological Society of Philadelphia; a pair of grizzlies (male and female) to Riverdale Zoological Gardens, Toronto, Canada; a mother grizzly with a pair of cubs and a male grizzly to Swope Park Zoological Gardens, at Kansas City, Mo.; and a pair of black bears (male and female) to the city park at West Bend, Iowa. All of these shipments were received without accident and were reported in each case as very satisfactory. The expenses of capturing and shipping were borne by the parks to which the animals were sent. COYOTES. Coyotes are plentiful, and doubtless do much damage to other game. One hundred and twenty-nine have been killed by scouts, noncommissioned officers in charge of stations, and others who were specially authorized to kill them. MOUNTAIN SHEEP. The small flock of mountain sheep that winters on the slopes of Mount Everts and in Gardiner Canyon seems to be thriving. Hay is fed to these animals in winter, when they become very tame and are seen at close quarters. As yet they have not come down for the winter, but several small bands have been seen in the mountains, accompanied by a number of lambs, which indicates a fair increase. In addition to the animals mentioned above, mountain lions, lynx, otter, foxes, badgers, beaver, martin, mink, muskrat, and different varieties of rabbits, squirrels, and chipmunks are found. Beavers are particularly plentiful and are found in nearly every stream in the park. More than 70 species of birds, including pelicans, ducks, geese, swan, and other waterfowl inhabit the park during the summer, and some of them, including some of the waterfowl, remain during the winter. Eight young pelicans that were captured at Pelican Roost in Yellowstone Lake and held and fed during the summer were shipped by express to the National Zoological Park at Washington, D. C., on September 27, where they arrived in good condition on October 1. PROTECTION OF GAME. Many of the former favorite hunting grounds adjoining the park in the States of Montana and Wyoming have been included in strips set aside by these States as game preserves. This fact, together with the hearty cooperation of the officers of the game and fish commissions of the adjoining States, has been of great importance and assistance in protecting the game of the park from the depredations of poachers. TRAILS. Late last fall 25 miles of new trails or fire lanes were built in the southeast corner of the park, and during the present summer similar passageways were built from Snake River Station, on the south line, west to near the southwest corner, thence north along the west boundary line and northeast via Summit Lake to Upper Basin. These, together with such trails as have been opened up by troops, enable scouts and patrols to get about much easier and quicker and are of great importance in the protection of game and of forests from fire. FOREST FIRES. Owing to the constant vigilance of patrols and strict enforcement of the regulations relative to camp fires, there has been no forest fire of any importance during the summer. In several instances camp fires were left burning, but these were extinguished by the patrols themselves, or the guilty parties were marched back to put them out. TELEPHONE LINES. The War Department has extended its system of telephone lines from Snake River Station west to the new Bechler Station in the southwest corner, about 30 miles. Also from headquarters to the new Gallatin Station in the northwest corner of the park, about 31 miles. The new Canyon Hotel has been completed during the year and is all that could be desired in a hotel in the park. A convention of park superintendents and others interested in the national parks was held in the park from September 10 to 13 to discuss park problems and to arrive at such uniform methods of management as are applicable to the different national parks. Those in attendance were unanimously in favor of a bureau of national parks. Very respectfully, L. M. BRETT, The SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR. APPENDIX. RULES AND REGULATIONS. Regulations of May 27, 1911. The following rules and regulations for the government of the Yellowstone National Park are hereby established and made public, pursuant to authority conferred by section 2475, Revised Statutes, United States, and the act of Congress approved May 7, 1894: 1. It is forbidden to remove or injure the sediments or incrustations around the geysers, hot springs, or steam vents; or to deface the same by written inscriptions or otherwise; or to throw any substance into the springs or geyser vents; or to injure or disturb, in any manner, or to carry off any of the mineral deposits, specimens, natural curiosities, or wonders within the park. 2. It is forbidden to ride or drive upon any of the geyser or hot spring formations, or to turn stock loose to graze in their vicinity. 3. It is forbidden to cut or injure any growing timber. Camping parties will be allowed to use dead or fallen timber for fuel. When felling timber for fuel, or for building purposes when duly authorized, stumps must not be left higher than 12 inches from the ground. 4. Fires shall be lighted only when necessary and completely extinguished when not longer required. The utmost care must be exercised at all times to avoid setting fire to the timber and grass. 5. Hunting or killing, wounding, or capturing any bird or wild animal, except dangerous animals when necessary to prevent them from destroying life or inflicting an injury, is prohibited. The outfits, including guns, traps, teams, horses, or means of transportation used by persons engaged in hunting, killing, trapping, ensnaring, or capturing such birds or wild animals, or in possession of game killed in the park under other circumstances than prescribed above, will be forfeited to the United States, except in cases where it is shown by satisfactory evidence that the outfit is not the property of the person or persons violating this regulation, and the actual owner thereof was not a party to such violation. Firearms will only be permitted in the park on written permission from the superintendent thereof. On arrival at the first station of the park guard parties having firearms, traps, nets, seines, or explosives will turn them over to the sergeant in charge of the station, taking his receipt for them. They will be returned to the owners on leaving the park. 6. Fishing with nets, seines, traps, or by the use of drugs or explosives, or in any other way than with hook and line, is prohibited. Fishing for purposes of merchandise or profit is forbidden. Fishing may be prohibited by order of the superintendent of the park in any of the waters of the park, or limited therein to any specified season of the year, until otherwise ordered by the Secretary of the Interior. 7. No person will be permitted to reside permanently or to engage in any business in the park without permission, in writing, from the |