hereby authorized and empowered to execute to its legally designated officers, such deeds, conveyances, or other formal instruments, as may be necessary to effectuate the purpose of this Act, and to deliver the same to the Secretary of War of the United States.

SEC. 3. The State of Texas hereby cedes to the United States title to and jurisdiction over the territory described in Section 1 of this Act, subject to the provisions of Article 375 of the Revised Civil Statutes of The State of Texas.

SEC. 4. Whereas there is uncertainty as to the location and boundaries of Pelican Spit as heretofore conveyed by the State of Texas to the United States, and,

Whereas it is to the interest of the city of Galveston that the boundaries of the property of the United States as described in the first section of this Act, be fixed and that any title that the said City of Galveston may have thereto should be released, transferred and conveyed to the United States by and with the approval and consent of the State of Texas, and,

Whereas, the expenditure by the United States Government of a large amount of money in the improvement of the channel in Galveston Harber is conditioned upon the ratification of the action of the City of Galveston by the Legislature of the State of Texas,

Therefore an emergency and an imperative public necessity exists that requires the Constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several days to be suspended, and said rule is hereby suspended, and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its passage, and it is so enacted.

[NOTE. The enrolled bill shows that the foregoing act passed the Senate with the following vote, yeas 23, nays 0; and passed the House of Representatives with the following vote, yeas 111, nays 0.]

Approved April 18, 1907.

Became a law April 18, 1907.

USURY PRESCRIBING PAINS AND PENALTIES FOR COLLECTION OF.

An Act amending Article 3106, Title 59, of the Revised Statutes of the State of Texas, 1895, and prescribing the pains and penalties for the collection of usurious interest, and fixing the venue of suits for the recovery of same, and declaring an emergency.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Texas:

SECTION 1. That Article 3106, Title 59, of the Revised Statutes of the State of Texas, 1895, be so amended as to hereafter read as follows: Article 3106. If usurious interest shall hereafter be received or collected upon any contract, either written or verbal, the person or persons paying same, or their legal representatives, may by action of debt, instituted in any court having jurisdiction thereof in the county of the

defendant's residence, or in the county where such usurious interest shall have been received, or collected or where said contract has been entered into, or where parties paying same reside when such contract was made, within two years after such payment, recover from the person, firm or corporation receiving the same double the amount of such usurious interest so received and collected.

SEC. 2. The fact that many persons in this State are now engaged in lending money to poor people and exacting promissory notes secured by chattel mortgages therefor, payable in the county of the residence of the payee, and that large sums of money are being collected as usurious interest thereon, and that the persons paying such usurious interest are in most instances compelled to go to a distant county to maintain suits for the recovery of the penalty prescribed for the collection of usurious interest, which practically defeats the purposes of the law, and the fact that the pains and penalties now prescribed by law for the collection of usurious interest is inadequate, creates an emergency and an imperative public necessity that the law requiring bills to be read on three several days be suspended, and said rule is hereby suspended, and that said act take effect and be in force from and after its passage, and it is hereby so enacted.

Approved April 18, 1907.

Takes effect ninety days after adjournment.

GAME-PROVIDING FOR PROTECTION OF WILD GAME.

H. B. No. 345.]

CHAPTER CXLIV.

An Act to preserve and protect the wild game, wild birds and wild fowl of the State, to provide adequate penalties for the violation of this Act, and the unlawful taking, slaughter, sale, purchase or shipment thereof; and to repeal all laws or parts of laws in conflict herewith.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Texas:

SECTION 1. All the wild deer, wild antelope, wild Rocky Mountain sheep, wild turkey, wild ducks, wild geese, wild grouse, wild prairie chickens (pinnated grouse), wild Mongolian or English pheasants, wild quail or partridges, wild doves, wild pigeons, wild plover, wild snipe, wild jacksnipe, wild curlews, wild robins, wild Mexican pheasants or chachalaca, and all other wild animals, wild birds and wild fowls found within the borders of this State, shall be and the same are hereby declared to be the property of the public.

SEC. 2. That from and after the passage of this Act it shall be unlawful for any person in the State of Texas to kill, catch or have in his or her possession, living or dead, any wild bird, other than a game bird, or to purchase, to offer or expose for sale, transport or ship within or without the State any such wild bird after it has been killed or caught, except as permitted by this Act, and no part of the plumage. skin or body of any bird protected by this Section shall be sold or had in possession for sale. For the purposes of this Act the following only shall be considered game birds: Wild turkey, wild ducks, wild geese,

wild grouse, wild prairie chicken (pinnated grouse), wild Mongolian or English pheasants, wild quail or partridges, wild doves, wild pigeons, wild plover, wild snipe, wild jacksnipe, wild curlews, wild robins and wild Mexican pheasants or Chachalaca.

SEC. 3. It shall be unlawful for any person in the State of Texas to take or needlessly destroy the nest or eggs of any wild bird, or have such nest or eggs in his or her possession, except as permitted by this Act.

SEC. 4. Any person violating any of the provisions of Sections 2 and 3 of this Act shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and shall upon conviction be fined not less than ten nor more than one hundred dollars for each bird, living or dead, or a part of a bird, nest or set of eggs, or part thereof, possessed in violation of this Act, or may be imprisoned in the County jail for not less than five nor more than thirty days for each offense, or may be subject to both such fine and imprison

ment.

SEC. 5. Whoever shall sell or offer for sale, have in his or her possession for the purpose of sale, or whoever shall purchase or have in his possession after purchase any wild deer, wild antelope or wild Rocky Mountain sheep, killed in this State, or the carcass thereof, or the hide thereof, or the antlers thereof; or whoever shall sell or offer for sale, or have in his possession for the purpose of sale, or whoever shall purchase or have in his possession after purchase any of the game or game birds mentioned in Section 1 of this Act, killed or taken within this State, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be fined in any sum not less than ten nor more than one hundred dollars, or may be imprisoned in the County jail for not less than five nor more than thirty days, or may be subject to both such fine and imprisonment.

SEC. 6. The netting or trapping of any wild bird or wild fowl mentioned in Sections 1 and 2 of this Act at any season of the year is hereby prohibited; and any person violating the provisions of this Act shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be fined in any sum not less than ten nor more than one hundred dollars, or may be imprisoned in the County jail not less than five nor more than thirty days, or may be subject to both such fine and imprisonment.

SEC. 7. It shall be unlawful to destroy any wild geese or wild ducks by any means otherwise than by an ordinary gun, capable of being held to and shot from the shoulder, and whoever violates the provisions of this Section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be fined in any sum not less than ten nor more than one hundred dollars, or may be imprisoned in the County jail not less than five nor more than thirty days, or may be subject to both such fine and imprisonment.

SEC. 8. It shall be unlawful for any person to kill, take or destroy any wild Mongolian or English pheasant, wild prairie chicken (pinnated grouse), wild antelope or wild Rocky Mountain sheep, for the space of five years next after this Act takes effect; and any persons violating the provisions hereof shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be fined in any sum not less

than ten nor more than one hundred dollars, or may be imprisoned in the County jail not less than five nor more than thirty days, or may be subject to both such fine and imprisonment.

SEC. 9. It shall be unlawful for any person to kill, ensnare or entrap, or in any way destroy any wild deer in the period of time embraced between the first day of January and the first day of November in each year; provided, it shall be unlawful for any person at any season of the year to take, kill, trap or ensnare any wild female deer or spotted fawn within this State; and provided further, that it shall be unlawful for any person to take, kill, trap or ensnare more than three wild buck during the months of November and December of any one year; (provided, it shall be unlawful to kill any wild turkey in the period of time embraced between the first day of April and the first day of December of each year, or more than three wild turkey in the period of time embraced in the months of December, January and February of each year), or any wild quail or partridge, or any dove within. the period of time embraced between the first day of February and the first day of November in each year; provided, it shall be unlawful, except herein elsewhere provided, for any person in any one day to kill or destroy more than twenty-five of the birds or fowls mentioned in Section 1 of this Act that are permitted to be taken or killed, in any one day. It shall further be unlawful for any person at any time to hunt deer or other game mentioned in Section 1 of this Act by aid of what is commonly known as a hunting lamp or lantern, or any other light used for the purpose of hunting at night; and after the space of five years next after this Act takes effect, it shall be unlawful for any person to kill, trap or ensnare or in any way destroy any wild antelope or Rocky Mountain sheep in the period of time embraced between the first day of January and the first day of November of each year; provided further that it shall be unlawful for any person to kill, trap or ensnare more than two wild antelopes or one Rocky Mountain sheep during the months of November and December of each year; and any wild Mongolian or English pheasants, wild turkey or any prairie chicken (pinnated grouse), in the period of time embraced between the first day of February and the first day of November of each year. Any persons violating any provisions of this Section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be fined in any sum not less than ten nor more than one hundred dollars, or may be imprisoned in the county jail for not less than five days nor more than thirty days, or may be subject to both such fine and imprisonment.

SEC. 10. It shall be unlawful for any express company, railroad company or other common carrier, or the officers, agents, servants or employes of the same, to receive for the purpose of transportation, or to transport, carry or take beyond the limits of the State, or within this State, except as hereinafter provided, any wild animal, bird or water fowl mentioned in Section 1 of this Act, or the carcass thereof, or the hide thereof. Any persons violating the provisions of this Section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be fined in any sum not less than ten nor more than one hundred dollars, or may be imprisoned in the County jail for not less

.

than five nor more than thirty days, or may be subject to both such fine and imprisonment; provided, that each shipment shall constitute a separate offense, and that such express company, or other common carrier, or its agents, servants or employes shall have the privilege of examining any suspected package for the purpose of determining whether such package contains any of the Articles mentioned herein.

SEC. 11. Nothing in this Act shall be construed to prohibit the transportation or shipment of any of the game, birds or wild fowls mentioned in Section 1 of this Act, when lawfully taken or killed, from the place of shipment to the home of the person who killed the same; provided, the person who killed said,game, birds or fowls shall accompany said game, birds or fowls on the same train or common carrier from the point of shipment to the said point of destination; and provided further, that the person desiring to ship or transport said game, birds or fowls shall first make the following affidavit in writing before some officer authorized by law to administer oaths, and deliver same to said railroad or common carrier, or to the agent of said railroad or common carrier at the point of shipment; and upon filing the affidavit, such party shall be permitted to transport to his home in accordance herewith not exceeding twenty-five of any wild game bird, when such number is permitted to be killed or the kind offered for shipment, except wild duck, provided that such party may be permitted to transport seventy-five wild ducks upon filing the affidavit containing the provisions as stipulated in the affidavit prescribed.

State of Texas, County of......

Before me, the undersigned authority, on this day personally appeared.....

who, after being by me

in...

number and kind of game, birds or fowls), which I desire to ship from.... .. County, to my home, which game I killed for my own use and not for sale, and same shall not be sold, and same will be accompanied by me from the point of shipment to the point of destination; that I have not killed or shipped exceeding three buck deer during this hunting season and have not killed or shipped exceeding twenty-five birds or fowls mentioned in Section 1 of this Act, except wild ducks, in any one day during the present hunting season; and that I have in no way violated any of the provisions of this Bill; (and if such game to be shipped be wild duck, then such party shall further make affidavit) that the shipment I offer is wild duck only, that the number does not exceed seventy-five, that I killed the said ducks in three days consecutively, and that I did not kill more than twenty-five of same in any one day.

Sworn to and subscribed by..

this.... ...day of... . .

before me

190...

Name and official character of officer.