56 



Bird Notes and News 



reported cases of nests being robbed. In one instance 

 two cadets made the boys return the eggs to the nest." 



From a Hampshire teacher : — 



" Two of our girls (11 years old) were overtaken 

 near a hollybush on the road by a lady and gentleman 

 on bicycles, and just as they passed it a thru?h flew 

 from her nest. All four stopped, and the nest was 

 discovered, containing four eggs. The man took these 

 and offered one each to the girls, and put the other 

 two in his pocket. He and his companion rode away. 

 When I expressed my surprise at their taking the eggs 

 the girls answered : ' We ran and put them back 

 again in the nest, for we thought if we said no to the 

 man he would have carried them all away.' The 

 following week the girls saw two little thrushes had 

 been hatched from the two eggs they replaced. They 

 were glad." 



IN THE COURTS. 



Assault and Trespass.— At SouthpoH, on August 

 2nd, William Seddon, of Wigan, was fined £S for 

 carrying a gun without a licence, £5 for assaulting 

 WiKred Clarke, and £2 for trespassing in pursuit of 

 game, at Ainsdale, on Bank Holiday. Defendant, with 

 another man (who escaped) was seen shooting on the 

 Sandhills by Clarke, who is gamekeeper to Mr. A. 

 Chisholm, and also acts as Watcher for the Royal 

 Society for the Protection of Birds. When chased and 

 caught he bit the keeper's wrist and threatened to 

 shoot him. In his pockets were five rabbits and two 

 Sandpipers. He said he was out for a bit of sport, 

 and thought wild birds were not protected after 

 August 1st. The Magistrates accepted the latter plea, 

 dismissing a further charge under the Wild Birds 

 Protection Acts. (So long as magistrates continue 

 to allow ignorance as an excuse for offences under 

 these Acts, whilst in every other matter it is presumed 

 that a man should be aware of the law ; and so long 

 as they thus rate the offence against a landowner of 

 trespassing in pursuit of game as serious, while the 

 killing of harmless and protected wild birds is passed 

 over, so long will Acts and Orders be flouted by the 

 public. ) 



BiRDCATCHiNG. — At Kitigslon-on-Thames, on August 

 8th, William Searle and his son, of Battersea, were 

 fined £4 for cruelty to a braced Linnet. They were out 

 with nets, etc., at Thames Ditton, and the decoy was 

 found to have a broken wing and had to be killed. 

 He described himself as " a naturalist and trainer of 

 singing birds." 



The Cage and the Bird. — At Westminster, on 

 June 24th, John Deans, a second-hand dealer, was 

 fined £5 and 2 guineas cost for cruelty to birds. Two 

 Linnets and two Goldfinches had been kept for months 

 in cages that did not allow the stretching of even one 

 wing. Defendant said he was a lover of birds and 

 kept them as a hobby ; a thousand such cages could be 

 seen in Club Row. Mr. Francis said he could not 

 conceive anything more cruel, and he would like to 

 send people to prison who caused birds to flutter their 

 lives out in this way. — Equally strong comments were 

 made by Mr. d'Eyncourt, at Marylehone, on July 1st, 

 in fining John Oliver, bird-dealer, £5 and '2 guineas 

 costs, for keeping Chaffinches, Linnets and a Lark in 

 extremely small cages, dirty and neglected. The 



Magistrate remarked that the whole practice of 

 catching these poor little birds and putting them in 

 small cages was, in his opinion, extremely cruel, and 

 the least people who caught birds could do was to keep 

 them properly. Any further cases would meet with 

 a much heavier penalty. — A similar prosecution by the 

 R.S.P.C.A., against E. W. Lawley, of the Swan 

 Tavern, Bethnal Green, resulted in a fine of 6 guineas 

 at Old Street, on August 23rd. 



THE STORY OF BIRD PROTECTION IN 



BRITAIN. 



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AN OPEN LETTER TO THE MILLINERY 

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Reprinted, with additions, from the " Millinery 

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With short and simple descriptions from which 

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 local names ; and brief notes on the food they 

 eat that may be regarded as " pro " or " con " 

 the interests of husbandman and gardener. 



IGmo. 64 pages. Price 6d., by post 7d. 



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Bird Notes and News (issued quarterly) will 

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