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Bird - Lore 



opportunity to attend any of these sum- 

 mer schools will find the bird-work of an 

 exceedingly high order. It will consist of 

 lectures and laboratory work in the 

 identification of species; also of field- 

 work for learning at first hand the birds 

 of the surrounding country. Students 

 will receive instruction on the economic 

 value of birds, and on the migration, 

 feeding-habits, nesting-habits, and gen- 

 eral activities of the common birds. An 

 opportunity will also be afforded for 



acquiring information regarding the best 

 sources of supply of bird-pictures, bird- 

 books, and other helpful materials. 



If further information is wanted regard- 

 ing any of these summer schools, it may 

 be obtained by writing to the Directors of 

 the various schools, or to the ofiice of the 

 National Association. All those desiring 

 to take the special advanced work at Cold 

 Spring Harbor, should address their 

 applications to T. Gilbert Pearson. 

 Secretary, 1974 Broadway, New York. 



LEGISLATING BACKWARD 



One of the states in which we have 

 been particularly active in legislative 

 matters of late is Rhode Island. The need 

 of it is explained in an article which 

 appeared on April 18 in the Providence 

 Journal. The writer says: 



"Yesterday two bills passed the Senate, 

 and are now on their way to the House, 

 one of which nullifies important pro- 

 visions in the bill passed a year ago to 

 conform our State law to the Federal 

 law with regard to migratory birds, and 

 the other will deprive the song-birds of 

 this state of the protection of the law. I 

 refer to Senate bills No. 61 and No. 60. 



"Our present hunters'-license law pro- 

 vides that the license money shall be 

 used to enforce the bird and game laws. 

 The sponsor for Senate bill No. 60 makes 

 the plea that the money should be used 

 to protect the game-birds only, and to 

 ensure this bill abolishes the present Bird 

 Commission, and provides for the ap- 

 pointment of a new commission to be 

 called the Game Commission, and to be 

 composed entirely of hunters! He said 

 from the floor of the Senate, 'let the 

 Audubon Society take care of the song- 

 birds.' 



"a more mischievous bill than this 

 is hard to conceive of, and yet it is in a 

 fair way to go through and become law 

 unless something is done by the friends 

 of the birds, and done quickly. 



"About a year ago the terms of the Bird 

 Commissioners expired. The Governor 

 was asked by the Audubon Society for a 



representative on the new board, which 

 he was about to appoint. An Audubon 

 man was appointed. The author of Senate 

 bill No. 60 was not reappointed. He is 

 now 'getting back' at the Audubon 

 Society for their temerity. What a motive 

 to inspire important legislation!" 



The State of Ohio has taken a back- 

 ward step in the protection of its birds, 

 by the enacting of the following bounty- 

 law on hawks. The Legislature has, of 

 course, taken this action in response to a 

 demand, either real or imaginary, of the 

 farming element. Some Hawks, particu- 

 larly the Cooper's Hawk and Sharp- 

 shinned Hawk, are more or less destruc- 

 tive to poultry and birds; but what of the 

 Fish Hawk, the Sparrow Hawk, or the 

 Red-shouldered Hawk, which may well be 

 killed and a bounty claimed for them under 

 such loose statutory terminology as 

 "Chicken Hawk" and "Blue Hawk!" 

 The new Ohio law is, in part, in the fol- 

 lowing language: 



"Section i. That a bounty of one dollar 

 shall be allowed and paid, in the manner 

 hereinafter provided, for each Chicken 

 Hawk, American Goshawk, Blue Hawk, 

 Cooper's Hawk, Sharp-shinned Hawk, or 

 Duck Hawk, killed in this state by an 

 inhabitant thereof. 



Section 2. Any person applying for 

 such bounty shall take each Hawk to 

 the clerk of the township in which such 

 Hawk was killed. . . but such certificate 

 shall not be issued unless there is a fund 

 in the township treasury out of which 

 such bounty may be paid." 



