Bird Notes and News 



31 



south of the war zone carried out their 

 flight to the warm lands in the customary 

 direction, but began it somewhat earlier 

 than usual — as, for example, the Storks. 

 But migrants dwelling north of the war zone 

 skirted the line of the front and, instead of 

 flying through France, flew through Switzer- 

 land and Italy. Blackbirds, for instance. 



which usually fly southward every year in 

 huge flocks from Germany and Scandinavia 

 through Burgundy did not appear there. 

 Similarly no Larks were seen in October. 

 In Flanders and Holland there were neither 

 marsh- nor water-birds. 



More decisive data will no doubt be noted 

 this autumn. 



The Protection of Birds' Eggs. 



In April of the present year an advertisement 

 appeared in the Tim^s informing " ornitholo- 

 gists or country folk in a position to find 

 this season's nests " of certain named birds, 

 that they might '' profitably write " to a 

 box number at the office of the paper. 

 Persons who replied to the advertisement 

 were informed that the advertiser was 

 prepared to pay for clutches of the eggs 

 of these birds, provided tliat such eggs 

 were in all cases " the complete set laid 

 by the same bii'd preparatory to incubation," 

 with none cracked, broken, or blown. 

 A second communication, received even 

 where no reply to the first was sent, enclosed 

 a box " that will hold at least two clutches " — 

 " on the assumption that you Avill be 

 successful in finding me at least one or two 

 clutches." The letters were signed by 

 Mr. Edgar P. Chance, a collector well known 

 to ornithologists. 



A large number of protests reached the 

 Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, 

 deprecating tliis wholesale incentive to 

 egg-depredations, and urging the Society'' 

 to prosecute, especially as the three birds 

 specified — two of them insectivorous migrants 

 — are interesting and not too common 

 species. 



The eggs of all three species are protected 

 by Coimty Council Orders under the 

 Wild Birds Protection Acts in a considerable 

 number of coimties. In one case they 

 are scheduled by twenty-four English and 

 Welsh Orders, in another by fom^teen, and 

 in the third by eleven Orders. In no case, 

 seemingly, where persons wTote from these 

 areas, did Mr. Chance inform his corres- 

 pondents that the eggs were protected and 

 therefore should not be taken in those 

 districts, nor did he warn them that by such 

 infiingement of the law they would render 

 themselves liable to a fine of £1 for each egg. 



The Society placed the matter in the 

 hands of their solicitors, and a letter was 

 sent to Mr. Chance, stating that — ^j 



■ ' The Society before deciding upon the 

 steps which in the circumstances it is their 

 duty to take, desire us to obtain an explana- 

 tion from you as to the reason why, for 

 the purposes of your collection, it is assumed, 

 you ignore and set at defiance the Acts 

 for protecting wild birds. You are, we 

 gather, a collector of experience, and not 

 one who could plead ignorance of the 

 Statutes and Orders affecting wild birds." 



To this letter Mr. Chance replied by 

 sending a representative to call upon the 

 firm, w^ho litimately suggested (without 

 prejudice) that the Society might withhold 

 proceedings if !Mi'. Chance would undertake 

 for the futm-e not to collect, or incite other 

 persons to collect, eggs of wild birds in 

 districts where they are protected by Wild 

 Birds Protection Orders. On this Mr. Chance 

 wrote : — 



'• I am quite willing to do all that I 

 reasonably can to observe the Acts for the 

 protection of ^ild bijds and the County 

 Comicil Orders, if for no better reason than 

 that I have every sympathy with the objects 

 which, I presume, the Society have in view, 

 ^^z., the preservation and protection of 

 our wild birds." 



As this letter contained no definite 

 undertaking to respect the law, nor any 

 explanation of the fact that (in spite of liis 

 sympathy with the objects the Society 

 have in view), the writer had incited to 

 widespread infringement of the Acts, the 

 solicitors wrote again ; m acknowledg- 

 ment they received a personal visit from 

 Mr. Chance, and his verbal assurance that 

 he would perform the undertaking he had 

 given to the best of his ability, but would 

 not add to it, and could not undertake to 



