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BIBB NOTES ANB NEWS. 



remorse with which the doctor must have con- 

 templated the defunct remains of the hapless 

 subjects of his experiment. Would he dare to 

 show his face to a farmer ? ... It may well 

 be the case, however, that there is a limit to the 

 number per acre at which Rooks are useful to the 

 farmer, and that when that number is exceeded, 

 some of the Rooks get into bad habits, such as 

 preferring grain to grubs. 



" LA CHASSE " IN TRANCE. 



The writer of "La Vie a la Campagne " in Le 

 Temps, always a friend of the birds, has a vigorous 

 article in the issui of May 28th, 1907, with special 

 reference to the Congress a la Chasse holding its 

 sittings in Paris. Under the delusion that all 

 sportsmen were protectors of small birds, he was 

 surprised to find that when snaring was spoken of, 

 the destruction of birds was energetically demanded 

 by an important section of the Congress, and this 

 in the name of liberty — liberty of work, liberty of 

 gain, liberty for the cuisine, liberty for pleasure ! 

 Should not every one, it was argued, have 

 freedom to hunt what they can, to eat what they 

 will, and to kill in order to amuse themselves ? 

 The opinion appeared quite natural and simple to 

 its promulgators, and there was shrugging of 

 shoulders at the mention of pity. By way, how- 

 ever, of concession forced from them by the pro- 

 tectors of birds, it was agreed that birds might be 

 ranged under two heads, those useful to agriculture 

 and those which are not, and some measure of 

 protection allowed the former. For the others, 

 whether they die or whether they live, what 

 matter? The theory, proceeds the writer, is easy 

 to combat, since it falls to pieces of itself if it is 

 conceded that all birds useful to agriculture should 

 be protected, because all species render some 

 service. But is this then all that should be said 

 in favour of the little birds ? Is no motive to be 

 found for sparing them except on account of their 

 utility from the agricultural point of view ; and 

 apart from this is their slaughter justified by the 

 exigencies of the larder ? Let me protest, con- 

 tinues M. Cunisset-Carnot, with all my strength 

 against such a theory. 



" I must not allow myself to abuse those who 

 hold these theories, nor must I make unfortunate 

 comparisons between civilized men and savages, 

 but I must say that certain practices in which bird 

 catchers indulge appear to me to be absolutely 

 unworthy of our civilization, and can only be looked 

 upon as retrogressive. For example a ' chasseur ' 

 who has netted a nightingale crushes the throat of 



the little songster between his fingers until the bird 

 is strangled, and glories in the sport ; and not only 

 are such acts excused, but they are said to be right 

 and natural, and children are allowed to participate 

 in them, and among certain people the larger the 

 number of victims the greater the pride. 



"As forme I cannot excuse such cruelties, and 

 I cannot admit the point of view which looks upon 

 a little bird as nothing more nor less than a 

 mouthful of food for a glutton, considering as I do 

 such an opinion to be monstrous and distorted. 

 Nor can I approve of birds being unpityingly sac- 

 rificed just because it cannot be proved that they 

 are agriculturally useful ! Can it be right to cruelly 

 ill-treat and destroy innocent creatures who are 

 not only inoffensive but pleasing, exquisite beings 

 full of grace and charm who bring to the earth, as 

 Michelet said, 'la haute lumiere de vie, l'art dans 

 sa premiere etincelle,' and who surround us with 

 grace, beauty, harmony, are builders of wonderful 

 nests, and songsters the perfection of whose music 

 can never be attained by man ? Truly no answer 

 is possible beyond that of mute indignation. 



" Further, if this abominable destruction of little 

 birds took place in far countries only, our selfish 

 indifference might be explicable if not excusable ; 

 but the terrible hecatombs of birds which so distress 

 me are not taking place in China or Mesopo- 

 tamia, it is here in France that these massacres 

 are carried on, and the barbarities lie at our door. 

 A well-informed correspondent tells me that 'in 

 two Departments of Landes and the Basses 

 Pyrenees along the coast at the time of migration 

 are to be seen scattered over a wide area double 

 trap nets every 500 metres. On a fine day each 

 trapper will take fifty to sixty dozen birds ; this 

 means, counting the trappers at a minimum of one 

 thousand, 620,000 to 720,000 birds a day ; reduce 

 these figures to a quarter and you still have during 

 the thirty days' migration nine million birds 

 destroyed each year, and that in two Departments 

 only.' In face of such a computation, of what use 

 is it to protect birds in other parts of the country ? 

 Of what use are Bird protective measures in the 

 north, the east, and inland when such only help 

 to provide more food for slaughter in the south 

 and west ! " 



This exclamation of Monsieur Cunisset-Carnot 

 might be echoed by Bird-protectors in Great 

 Britain, for migrants to and from our country run 

 many risks at the hands of merciless trappers on 

 foreign shores. 



Recent telegrams from South Africa announce 

 that millions of locusts were upon the move in the 

 Transvaal. They settled upon Johannesburg in 



unprecedented swarms Fortunately 



man is not the only enemy of the locusts. Vast 

 numbers are destioyed by natural causes. Starlings 

 and Larks feed eagerly on the eggs. Waggon- 

 loads of these birds used constantly to be sent to 

 the French market, now the killing of them has 

 been forbidden in the province of Constantine, and 

 this ought to be done throughout the Colony. — 

 Sphere, May iSth, 1907. 



