DIVISION <»F BIOLOGICAL SURVEY. 41 



itecl the importation of the Eiiglisli spai'row, mongoose, .starling', flying- 

 fox, and such otlier species as may l)e declared injurious to agricul- 

 ture, and has also prohibited the shipment of such species from one 

 State to another. The importation of foreign birds and mammals is 

 now under the control of this Department, and with a few exceptions 

 no species can l)e imported except under i^ermit from the Secretary of 

 Agriculture. Incidentally it maj^ be noted that the first permit was 

 issued on .June 25, exactly thirty days after the law went into effect. 

 Domesticated birds, canaries, and parrots may be brought in without 

 permits, and the Secretary is given authority to extend the list when 

 necessary. It will doubtless be advisable to exempt a number of ani- 

 mals and all reptiles which are brought in solely for purposes of exhi- 

 bition. The Secretary of the Treasury, who is authorized to make the 

 regulations governing the importation of foreign birds and animals, 

 has heartil}' cooperated in carrying the law into effect. The neces- 

 sary regulations were promptly prepared in the Division of Cus- 

 toms and were published on .June i'8. Officers of the customs at all 

 the ports of entry were notified of the proyisions of the new law and 

 were instructed to use eyery effort to prevent tlie introduction of 

 prohibited species. 



The Lacey Act is not intended to work undue hardships on importers. 

 In the great nmjority of cases it can be enforced so as to cause xevy slight 

 annoyance and still i)reyent the entry of species which may become 

 pests. Doubtless it will be advisable to exercise control over impor- 

 tations in Hawaii and Porto Rico, where certain noxious species have 

 already been introduced and where unusual interest seems to be man- 

 ifested in the acclimatization of foreign birds and mammals. It is 

 believed that this law will afford greater protection to the United 

 States than is now enjoyed by Cape Colony, Xew Zealand, or any of 

 the colonies of Australia which have similar laws. Had such an act 

 been in force fifty years ago, the importation and consequent spread 

 of the English sparrow could doubtless have been prevented. 



INTERSTATE COMMERCE IN BIRDS KILLED IN VIOLATION OF STATE LAWS. 



Nothing will do more to preserve game than the enforcement of State 

 laws. Heretofore States have vainly prohibited the shipment of game 

 Ijeyond their boundaries or limited their open seasons to short periods 

 in the autumn. As soon as the seasons closed their game was forwarded 

 to other States or sold in distant markets without respect to season, 

 on the plea that by such shipment it had become an article of inter- 

 state commerce, and hence was not subject to the laws of the State 

 where offered for sale. This is now changed. The transportation 

 provisions of the Lacey Act strike at the root of the evil by prohibit- 

 ing the shipment from any State of birds or game killed in violation 

 of local laws and by placing imported game on the same footing as 

 birds or animals produced within the State where the game is sold. 

 Shippers are required to mark their names, addresses, and the nature of 

 the contents on all packages containing game, and common carriers 

 and consignees, knowingly receiving game shipped in violation of the 

 law, are liable to heavy penalties. Obviously the enforcement of these 

 provisions of the law must depend largely on game wardens and other 

 local officers, but the Department can accomplish much by furnishing 

 information in regard to State regulations governing the export of 

 game, open seasons, and similar matters which were formerly of local 



