HOUSE BILL NO. 57.

An Act to amend Sections 897 and 898, of Chapter V, of Title XIII. of Part I. of the Penal Code of the State of Montana, relating to larceny of gas, water, and electrical current for light and power purposes.

Be it enacted by the Legislative Assembly of the State of Montana:

1. That Section 897 of Chapter V. of Title XIII. of Part I. of the Penal Code of the State of Montana, be, and the same is hereby amended so as to read as follows:

"897. Every person who, with intent to injure or defraud, procures, makes, or causes to be made, any pipe, tube, wire, or other conductor of gas or electricity, and connects the same, or causes it to be connected, with any main, service pipe, or other pipe for conducting or supplying illuminating gas or any wires or other conductor of electricity, in such manner as to supply illuminating gas or electricity to any lamp, motor, burner, or orifice, by or at which illuminating gas or electricity is consumed, around or without passing through the meter provided for the measuring and registering the quantity consumed, or in any other manner SO as to evade payment therefor, and every person who, with like intent, injures or alters any gas or electric meter, or obstructs its action, is guilty of a misdeIn prosecutions for offenses under this Section proof that, any of the acts herein forbidden have been done in, upon, or about the premises owned or used by the defendant charged with the commission of such offense in such a manner as to decrease or lessen the amount he should pay under his understanding or contract with any person or corporation engaged in the business of furnishing and selling gas or electricity, shall be prima facie evidence of the guilt of said defendant.

meanor.

2. That Section 898, of Chapter V. of Title XIII. of Part I. of the Penal Code of the State of Montana, be, and the same is hereby amended so as to read as follows:

"898. Every person who, with intent to injure or defraud connects or causes to be connected, any pipe, tube, wire electrical conductor or other instrument with any main, service pipe, or other pipe or conduit or flume for conducting water, or with any main, service pipe, or other pipe or conduit for conducting gas, or with any main service wires, or other electrical conductor used for the purpose of conducting electricity for light or motive service, for the purpose of taking therefrom

water, gas, or electricity without the knowledge of the owner thereof and with intent to evade payment therefor, is guilty of a misdemeanor. In prosecutions for offenses under this Section proof that any of the Acts herein forbidden have been done in, upon, or about the premises owned or used by the defendant charged with the commission of such offense in such a manner as to provide for such defendant's use water, gas or electricity shall be prima facie evidence of the guilt of the defendant."

That there is hereby added to Chapter V of Title XIII., of Part I, of the said Penal Code, an additional section to be designated as Section 900 as follows:

Section 900. Every person, or persons, or officer or officers or employe, or employes of any corporation or corporations who with intent to injure, or defraud, uses or causes to be used any false registering or false reasuring device or meter for the measuring of any water, gas or electric current that is sold to any other person or persons, corporation or corporations, or who shall alter or change the record or measurement of any such meter or measuring device with intent to injure or defraud, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction thereof shall be fined in the sum of not less than $100 nor more than $500. In prosecutions for offenses under this Section, proof of the use of such false registering meter or proof of an attempt to collect payment from any consumer for any falsified amount or quantity of gas, water, or electricity, shall be prima facia evidence of the guilt of such defendant. Approved March 6, 1897.

HOUSE BILL NO. 123.

An Act to repeal Sections 1110, 1111, 1112, 1113, 1114, 1115, 1116, 1117, 1118, 1119, 1120, 1121, 1122, 1123, 1124, 1125, 1126, 1127, 1128, 1129, 1130, 1131, 1132, 1133, 1134, 1135, 1136, 1137, 1138, 1139, 1140, 1141, 1142, 1143, 1144, of the Penal Code of the State of Montana, and to provide further protection to birds, fish, fur bearing animals and game.

Be it enacted by the Legislative Assembly of the State of Montana:

Section 1. Any person who wilfully shoots or kills, or causes to be shot or killed, any Bison, Buffalo, Quail, Chinese Pheasant, Beaver or

Mountain Sheep shall be punishable by imprisonment in the State Prison for a term not exceeding two years or in the county jail not less than six months, or shall be fined in a sum not more than Five Hundred Dollars, nor less than Fifty Dollars, or by both such fine and imprisonment

Section 2. Any person, who, between the fifteenth day of November of one year, and the fifteenth day of September of the following year, wilfully shoots or kills, or causes to be shot or killed, any Moose or Elk, or who, in a single open season, shall kill or shoot, or cause to be killed or shot, more than two moose or elk, shall be punishable by imprisonment in the State Prison for a term not exceeding two years, or in the county jail not less than six months or by a fine of not more than Five Hundred Dollars nor less than One Hundred Dollars, or by both such fine and imprisonment.

Section 3. Every person, who between January 1st and September 1st of same year, wilfully shoots, or kills or causes to be shot, or killed any Deer, Antelope, or Rocky Mountain Goat, or who, in a single calendar's Year's open season shoots or kills, or cause to be shot or killed more than six Deer, Antelope or Rocky Mountain Goat, shall be punished by imprisonment in the State Prison for a term not exceeding one year, or in the county jail not less than three months, or by a fine not more than Five Hundred Dollars, nor less than One Hundred Dollars, or by both such fine and imprisonment.

Section 4. Every person, who, wilfully hunts, chases, or runs with dogs, any of the animals inentioned in the three preceding Sections, at any time, shall be punishable by a fine not exceeding Two Hundred and Fifty Dollars, or imprisonment in the county jail not to exceed three

months or both.

Section 5. Every person, who, between the fifteenth day of December and the fifteenth day of August of the year following, wilfully shoots or kills or causes to be shot or killed, any grouse, prairie chicken, fool hen, sage hen, and pheasant or partridge; or who during the open season, shoots or kills, or causes to be shot or killed, more than twenty grouse, or prairie chicken, or fool hens, or pheasants, sage hen or partridges, in one day, shall be punishable by a fine of not less than Twenty five Dollars, nor more than Two Hundred and Fifty Dollars, or by imprisonment in the county jail not to exceed three months, nor less than one month, or by both such fine and imprisonment.

Section 6. Every person, who, wilfully shoots or kills, or causes to be shot or killed, any wild geese, wild ducks, brants, or swan, between

the first day of May and the first day of September of the same year, shall be punishable by a fine of not less than Twenty five Dollars, nor more than Two Hundred and Fifty Dollars, and by imprisonment in the county jail for a term not to exceed three months, and not less than one month, or by both such fine and imprisonment.

Section 7. Every person, who, wilfully shoots, or otherwise kills or causes to be killed, any meadow lark, blue bird, thrush, oriole, woodpecker, mocking bird, gold-finch, snow-bird, cedar-bird, stork, or any other of the small birds known as singing birds, shall be punishable by a fine not exceeding One Hundred Dollars, nor less than five Dollars and by imprisonment in the county jail not to exceed three months, or by both such fine and imprisonment.

Section 8. That any person who shall wilfully catch, trap or otherwise restrain, for the purpose of sale or domestication or any other purpose, any buffalo, elk, moose, or mountain sheep within the State, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and be fined not more than Five Hundred Dollars, nor less than One Hundred Dollars and shall be imprisoned in the county jail not exceeding six months or by both such fine or imprisonment for each offense committed in the discretion of the court.

Section 9. Any person who shall wilfully destroy the nests or carry away the eggs from the nests of any of the birds or wild fowls mentioned in this Act, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof, shall be fined in any sum not less than Five Dollars nor more than Twenty five Dollars for each offense committed, or by imprison ment in the county jail for a period of not exceeding sixty days, or both, at the discretion of the court.

Section 10. Evey person who takes or catches fish in any of the streams, lakes or ponds of this State, except with a pole, line and hooks, or any person who takes or catches fish with a hook baited with any poisonous thing or substance, or by means of dams, or in the use of any fish traps, grab-hooks, seines, or similar means for catching fish, is guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be fined in any sum not less than Twenty five Dollars, nor more than Two Hundred Dollars, or be imprisoned in the county jail not less than thirty days, nor more than ninety days, or both such fine and imprisonment in the discretion of the court.

Section 11. It is, however, lawful to use a seine or catch net for the purpose of catching fish in the Missouri River, below Great Falls, and in the Yellowstone River, below Big Horn, provided said seine or net has a

mesh not less than two inches square; and it is also lawful to use a seine or net in any stream, lake or pond for the purpose of taking fish to transport into or stock other streams, lakes or ponds in the State of Montana. Section 12. Every person, who, in any way, catches any trout or graylings for speculative purposes, for market or for sale, and every person who offers for sale or sells speckled Mountain trout in the State of Montana is guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall be punished as provided in Section 10 of this Act. This Section shall not apply to fish caught in private ponds by owners thereof.

Section 13. If any person, or persons shall use any giant powder or other explosives compounds for the purpose of catching or killing fish, he shall be deemed guilty of a felony, and upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine not less than Two Hundred Dollars, nor more than Five Hundred Dollars, or by imprisonment in the State Prison not less than one year nor more than three years, or both such fine and imprisonment.

Section 14. Every person who operates any saw-mill on or near any stream, who dumps, drops, carts, deposits, or causes to be deposited in any such stream, any saw dust, bark or debris, coming from said saw-mill, is punishable by a fine not less than Fifty Dollars not more than Two Hundred and Fifty Dollars, or by imprisonment in the county jail not less than thirty days, nor more than ninety days, or both such fine and imprisonment, in the discretion of the court.

Section 15. There shall be constructed at all dams now existing or any that may be hereafter placed on any of the streams of the State, a fish way or ladder, said fish-way or ladder to conform to the following requirements: It shall be from three to six feet in width, as the fish and game warden may direct; it shall extend from the base to the apex of the dam; it shall be strongly constructed and made of at least two-inch planks; the sides shall not be less than one foot in height; it shall have wings placed on the inside at an angle of not more than forty-five degrees, which said wings shall not be more than four feet apart along each side of the way or ladder; the way or ladder shall have a slope of not more than thirty degrees. Any persons or corporations who shall violate any of the provisions of this Section, upon conviction thereof, shall pay a fine of not less than Fifty Dollars, not more than Two Hundred dollars, or be imprisoned in the county jail for a period of not less than thirty days, nor more than ninety days, or both such fine and imprisonment in the discretion of the court.