THE GREAT MASSACRE 107 



of the free' meant that he had a license to kill 

 every song-bird in his part of the country. 



''It isn't only immigrants, either. You've seen 

 gangs of negroes, with their 'bird dogs,' going for 

 a night's shooting in the winter among the holly 

 trees and coming back with hundreds of robins. 

 Haven't you seen thousands of birds sold in any of 

 the little villages around here ? 



"I ask you frankly, do you think it's right 

 that all the woods of America are to be made 

 silent, and all the insects are to be allowed to ruin 

 our crops, merely to give a few meals to a bunch 

 of shiftless negroes who are too lazy to work for 

 their grub?" 



The pot-hunter looked at his guest, feeling what 

 was coming. 



"What is their excuse. Bull Adam? They'll 

 say that the birds are wild an' they've a right to 

 shoot them. There 's no fence around a Robin and 

 no one throws grain to the Trumpeter Swan. Oh, 

 I can tell where Shan got his arguments. 



"Where are you any worse or any better than a 

 gang of negroes shooting robins, or an Italian 

 catching song-birds with a blinded but living de- 

 coy? 



"Go on! Shoot for your pot! Shoot for your 



