The Audubon Societies 



145 



ent species from the Yellowstone Park 

 Elk. The Game Committee will discour- 

 age any plan for the distribution of I'Ak 

 from the Yellowstone to regions where 

 they will mix with, and by interlireeding 

 destroy other species of Elk. 



"No more Elk should be shipped to 

 the Glacier National Park, which already 

 possesses an adequate breeding reserve." 

 — T. G. P. 



Prohibit Feather Importations 



The Ways and Means Committee of 

 our National Congress has recently been 

 engaged in revising the Tariff Schedule. 



On January 30, the writer appeared 

 before this Committee on behalf of the 

 National Association of Audubon Societies 

 and presented a proposition to the effect 

 that Congress should absolutely prohibit 

 the importation of "aigrettes" and the 

 feathers of other wild birds native to the 

 United States as well as those taken from 

 birds whose feathers resemble those native 

 to this country. 



Dr. William T. Hornaday, of the New 

 York Zoological Society, was also present 

 and told the Committee much about the 

 destruction of bird life throughout the 

 world for millinery purposes. He asked 

 the committee to stop the importation of 

 the feathers of all wild birds, 



Shortly after this the Committee went 

 into executive session, and we shall 

 probably not learn what action they may 

 take in reference to the matter until they 

 make their report to Congress in April. 



Hundreds of our members have been 

 writing to the members of the Ways and 

 Means Committee, asking them to adopt 

 the recommendations presented at that 

 time. In this matter we also have the 

 most active cooperation on the part of 

 the National Federation of Women's 

 Clubs and many of the bird and game 

 protective organizations throughout the 

 country. Mr. Henry Oldys, one of the 

 energetic Audubon workers in Washing- 

 ton, D. C, has been particularly active 

 in this work. 



The following is the Brief submitted by 



the Association for tiie Consideration of 

 the Ways and Means Committee: 



The National Association of .\udubon 

 Societies urgently recommends the amend- 

 ments of i)aragraph 438 of the Tariff Act, 

 relating to feathers and downs, so as to 

 prohibit the importation of plumage of 

 our native birds of the United States, 

 including aigrettes. We ask for this 

 change: 



Amend Schedule N, Section 438, to 

 read as follows: 



Feathers and downs of all kinds, 

 including bird skins or parts thereof with 

 the feathers on, crude or not dressed, 

 colored, or otherwise advanced or man- 

 ufactured in any manner, not specially 

 provided for in this section, twenty per 

 centum ad valorem; when dressed, colored 

 or otherwise advanced or manufactured 

 in any manner, including quilts of down 

 and other manufacturers of down, and 

 also dressed and finished birds suitable for 

 millinery ornaments, and artificial or 

 ornamental feathers, fruits, grains, leaves, 

 flowers and stems or parts thereof, of 

 whatever material composed, not specially 

 provided for in this section, sixty per 

 centum ad valorem; provided, that the 

 importation of plumage of native birds 

 of the United States or of plumage indis- 

 tinguishable from that of our native wild 

 birds, including aigrettes, crude or manu- 

 factured, is hereby prohibited except for 

 scientific purposes. 



We ask this on the following grounds: 



1. That a number of the species are 

 now approaching extinction. 



2. That the birds are of great economic 



value. 



3. That the trafi&c in such plumage is 



illegal in many states. 



4. That the plumage trade is destruc- 



tive, barbarous, and unnecessary. 



5. That the loss of revenue can readily 



be made up from other sources. 



I. The demand for plumage for wild 

 birds for millinery purposes during the 

 past twenty years has grown to enor- 

 mous proportions. In the effort to supply 

 the market, the woods, fields, and sea- 



