LIFE HISTORIES OF NORTH AMERICAN WILD FOWL 95 



of Hamilton Inlet, Avhere they formerly bred in immense numbers, 

 but a remnant is left. All the ornitlioloo;ists from the time of 

 Audubon to the present day Avho have visited the Labrador coast 

 liaAe bewailed the fact that the eider was singled out for destruc- 

 tion. In "A Plea for the Conservation of the Eider " (Townsend, 

 1914) occurs the following: 



There is uo reason why the eider, which furnishes the valuable eider down 

 of commerce, should not be made a source of considerable income without any 

 reduction of its natural abundance. The principle of conservation can as 

 well be applied to the eider as to a forest. The conservation of the common 

 eider of Europe {Somatcria moUissiiiiu), a species that differs but very slightly 

 from the American bird, has been practiced for many years iu Iceland and 

 Norway. The birds are rigidly protected during the nesting season and 

 offered every encouragement. They are not allowed to be shot, and even the 

 discharge of a gun in their vicinity is forbidden by law. Suitable nesting 

 sites are furnished close to the houses and the birds become semi-domesticated, 

 losing all fear of man. The people are allowed to take the eggs and down 

 during the lirst of the season, but the birds are permitted to hatch out and 

 rear a few young in order to keep up the stock. The last down is taken after 

 the birds have left. 



Many quotations are given from various authors showing what 

 is being accomplished in Iceland and Norway, For example 

 (Annandale, 1905) : 



The one offense against the Icelandic bird laws which a native can not com- 

 mit with impunity is the slaughter of the eider duck. What is more important 

 than many laws, namely public opinion, protects the species, and there seems 

 to be a sentimental interest in it Probably it is due to the great tameness 

 of the bird, which appears actually to seek the vicinity of a human dwelling 

 for its nesting place and to frequent those parts of the coast which are more 

 frequented by man. The Icelandic eider farms are frequently situated on little 

 islands off the coast. Small circular or oblong erections of rough stones are 

 made among the hummocks, to protect the brooding ducks from wind and 

 driving rain. All the sea fowl in these farms become exceedingly tame, as no 

 gun is allowed to be fired and everything liable to disturb the ducks is care- 

 fully banished. Those who know how to handle them can even stroke the 

 backs of the ducks as they sit on their eggs. On such farms there is a sepa- 

 rate l)Uilding or large room entirely devoted to cleaning the down. It was 

 formerly the custom to take away all the down supplied by the; female ; but 

 this practice was said to lead to great mortality among the ducks through 

 exhaustion, and nowadays each nest is generally rilled only once before the 

 eggs are hatched, and then again after the young have left it. 



Townsend (1914) then goes on to say: 



Eiderdown is not only extremely light and elastic but is also one of tlie 

 poorest conductors of heat. It is therefore an ideal substance for preserving 

 v.armth and is the best material for coverlets, puffs, cushions, etc. Its money 

 value is considerable, and there is always a demand for it in the markets of 

 the world. The down obtained from dead eiders, however, soon loses its ela.s- 

 ticity and is of little value. The retail price in Boston at the present time of 

 well-cleaned Iceland or Norwegian eiderdown is $14 a pound. It is probable 

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