BUREAU OF BIOLOGICAL SURVEY. 547 



gestion of elk each winter in the Jackson Hole region; with the 

 Boone and Crockett Club in securing antelope for the Wichita Game 

 ]^reserve and the National Bison Range; with the Benevolent Pro- 

 tective Order of Elks in securing elk for the Wichita Game Preserve; 

 with the American Bison Society in locating a suitable site in South 

 Dakota for a new bison range, and with the National Association of 

 Audubon Societies in maintenance of some of the bird reservations. 



PLUMAGE. 



The Biological Survey has cooperated actively with officials of 

 various States in enforcing the laws prohibiting the sale and posses- 

 sion of certain plumage for millinery. The condition of the plumage 

 traffic of Los Angeles, San Francisco, Salt Lake City, Denver, Kansas 

 City, St. Louis, Chicago, and Milwaukee was investigated. It was 

 found that no heroru aigrettes were being sold in California, and very 

 few in Utah and Colorado; a few were on sale in St. Louis and 

 Kansas City, which were shortly afterwards seized under the game 

 law; a few in Milwaukee, and many in Chicago. The Shea law, 

 passed by the New York Legislature in 1910, went into operation 

 July 1, 1911, and a similar law passed by the New Jersey Legislature 

 in May, 1911, became effective in August, 1911. Each of these laws 

 prohibits the sale or possession of plumage of birds of the same 

 family as any that are found within the State. The desirability of 

 similar legislation will be brought to public attention in other parts 

 of the United States. Through the State Department statistics of the 

 trade in aigrettes throughout the world have been secured, and the 

 bureau will soon publish this information. 



The newly appointed plumage expert of Missouri was given the 

 opportunity to study our collection of birds and to consult our 

 ornithological works. Not only has he thus been enabled to do 

 better official work, but he incidentally brought out certain facts of 

 general interest to ornithologists as well as bird protectors. 



INTERSTATE COMMERCE IN GAME. 



As heretofore the policy pursued in the enforcement of sections 

 242, 243, and 244 of the Criminal Code of the United States regulat- 

 ing interstate commerce in game has aimed at prevention of viola- 

 tions rather than prosecution. 



At the beginning of the sale season for game the most important 

 game markets of the United States — Philadelphia, Buffalo, Cleve- 

 land, Indianapolis, St. Louis, and Chicago — were personally in- 

 spected by a representative of the bureau and showed fairly general 

 compliance with the law and a notable falling off in the amount of 

 game handled. Investigation of Mississippi County, Ark., an im- 

 portant point of supply, afforded useful knowledge relative to con- 

 ditions and methods at that point. Evidence of a large number of 

 shipments from Arkansas to St. Louis furnished this bureau by the 

 chief deputy game and fish commissioner of Missouri was carefully 

 reexamined, but failed to disclose any case of sufficient strength to 

 justify prosecution. 



It was ascertained that on the coast of Virginia, an important source 

 of supply for the eastern markets, ducks were being netted and 



