128 Wisconsin State Horticultural Society. 



travesty on nature and real art, as are cheap chromos and 

 dauby paintings. 



A prominent argument in favor of bird protection is the 

 general damage to national character arising from disre- 

 gard of life. Death's awful change, only God understands, 

 life, even in its lowest forms, He alone can give. Do chil- 

 dren have reverence for these solemn mysteries, and will 

 they show mercy to the aged, poor and sick, when parents 

 contradict gentle teachings by inconsistent actions? The 

 boy who kills for pleasure will not make the best type of 

 man, because it is impossible to be cruel or even inconsid- 

 erate in one line and not be selfish in other directions. Char- 

 acter is not divided into compartments. What occupies one 

 portion pervades the whole. Humming birds and red birds 

 are not merely killed but skinned alive, that their plumage 

 may retain more lustre. 



A tender regard for life need not betoken effeminacy. Pres. 

 Grant, statesman and general, with a healthy admiration 

 for fine stock, disliked the cruelty of what is called sport. 

 When the late Mr. Forster, member of parliament and sec- 

 retary, conspicuous among leading statesmen of Europe, 

 was asked by a friend whether he ever diverted himself 

 with shooting, he answered indignantly: "I have never 

 killed a fellow creature for amusement." There are at pres- 

 ent so many games and implements, little excuse remains 

 for hunting the innocent and pretty game of our small 

 woods. 



The continued use of birds in millinery may hinder re- 

 forms in which women are vitally concerned. Already in- 

 temperate men plead woman's pet adornment, with its in- 

 volvement of selfishness and wastefulness, as an offset to 

 their own pet potations with similar concomitants. A wine- 

 maker's journal, published in New York, made an extended 

 argument on such premises in an article which met my eye. 



Some wings, stuffed specimens, etc., purchased by me for 

 decorative purposes now cause regret at every sight. So, 

 I believe no true woman, having once had her serious atten- 

 tion directed to this barbarity, will then become an ally of 

 bird butchers. Like many another wrong, it has been a 



