114 



Bird- Lore 



TO PROVIDE FOR A DUTY ON IMPORTED CAGED BIRDS 



The following is a copy of the brief 

 submitted by T. Gilbert Pearson for the 

 National Association of Audubon Socie- 

 ties to the Ways and Means Committee 

 of Congress on February 20, 192 1, re- 

 lative to paragraph 416 in the tariff 

 act, pertaining to and suggesting the 

 advisability of a duty on imported wild 

 birds. 



The United States imported under 

 normal conditions (prior to the war) 

 nearly 500,000 live birds annually. These 

 birds may be divided roughly into three 

 groups, viz., Canaries, 360,000; game birds, 

 40,000; and miscellaneous cage birds, 

 60,000. 



The Canaries were imported chiefly 



from German}'. Other cage birds, the 

 game birds, comprising mainly Quail and 

 Pheasant, came chiefly from Europe, 

 Canada, Mexico and the Orient. These 

 game birds were imported for restocking 

 game areas. The miscellaneous cage birds, 

 included parrots, finches, weaver birds 

 and a great variety of species of brightly 

 colored small birds. These latter birds 

 arrived from Europe, Africa, Australia, 

 the Orient and a few from tropical America. 

 The following table shows the number 

 imported for eleven years, 1908—18, includ- 

 ing six years prior to the passage of the 

 present laws and five years since the en- 

 actment of the law (see report of Biological 

 Survey, Department of Agriculture.) 



The figures for 1919 and 1920 are not at 

 present available, but it is known that the 

 importations have not yet reached the 

 normal condition that obtained prior to 

 the war. 



VALUE OF THE BIRDS IN QUESTION 



Figures as to the value of the birds 

 vary widely, depending on the species and 

 the source of the shipments. The lowest 

 appraisals are those of miscellaneous 

 shipments from the Orient. The records 

 of the Custom House in San Francisco 

 show, among other consignments received 

 during the quarter ending December 31, 

 1920, the following: 



146 Parakeets, $22; 15 cents each. 

 130 Chestnut Finches, S13; 10 cents 

 each. 



400 Strawberry Finches, $32; 8 cents 

 each. 



150 Sociable Finches, $5; 3 cents each. 

 205 Strawberry Finches, $4; 2 cents each. 



These birds are imported free of duty 

 and when sold by retailers bring from Si 

 to several dollars each, leaving a wide 

 margin of profit between the value at 

 point of shipment and the retail price. In 

 bringing these birds into the country the 

 importer needs only to secure a permit 

 from the Secretary of Agriculture. Other 

 than this there is no means of controlling 

 the industry, and there is evidence to 

 show that there is a large waste of bird- 

 life through lack of proper care while in 

 transit, or after arrival, or due to the fact 

 that few foreign species are able to become 

 acclimated in this countrv. 



