Bird Notes and News 



71 



In answer to Mr. Dart, he admitted that 

 at the beginning they had between £11 

 and £12 a week for selling them, but at 

 the end not so much. 



Mr. d'Eyncourt said that the word 

 " concerned " in the charge meant having 

 knowledge, and if there was reasonable 

 doubt as to knowledge on the part of 

 defendants — which on the evidence he 

 was inclined to think — he could not con- 

 vict. He thought they were innocent 

 vehicles in the matter, and dismissed the 

 case. 



Mr. Dart stated that instructions would 

 have to be given by the Board of Trade 

 and the Commissioners as to what should 

 be done with the smuggled feathers. 



Two other cases of smuggling have been 

 detected by the officers of H.M. Customs 

 at Newhaven, and were dealt with by 

 the County Magistrates at Lewes. On 

 January 30th Messrs. Jenner & Co., of 

 Princes Street, Edinburgh, were convicted 

 of importing prohibited plumage and 

 fined £30 with £31 10s. costs ; and on 

 February 20th Messrs. Sale & Norwood, 

 of Conduit Street, London, were fined £20 

 with £31 10s. costs. In one case twelve 

 samples of the feathers found were sent 

 to the British Museum (Natural History) 

 for identification, and these were found to 

 consist of six specimens of the Lady 

 Amherst Pheasant, four of the Argus 

 Pheasant, one of the Chinese Pheasant 

 and one Ring-necked Pheasant. AU of 

 these were contraband goods, except the 

 last-named bird, which has been placed 

 on the Schedule to the Act by the 

 Advisory Committee. 



PROHIBITION IN SINGAPORE 



The following Order, dated June 12th, 

 1922, has been passed by the Legislative 

 Council of the Straits Settlements under 

 the Provisions of the Prohibition of 

 Exports and Imports Ordinance 1922 : — 



" That this Council prohibits absolutely the 

 import into the Colony and the export from the 

 Colony of the plumage of any bird except 

 ostriches, eider ducks, birds imported alive, 



and birds ordinarily used as articles of diet, 

 and plumage actually used as wearing apparel 

 of a passenger, and skins for scientific purposes." 



Dr. J. C. Moulton, of the Raffles 

 Museum, in urging legislation on the 

 Government, stated that since the im- 

 portation of plumage had been prohibited 

 in Great Britain, Australia and America, 

 it was desired to bring the laws of the 

 Colony into line, with a view of preventing 

 as far as possible the destruction all over 

 the world of harmless birds for inde- 

 fensible purposes. Dr. Moulton showed 

 that Singapore, as a port of tranship- 

 ment, was an important factor in the 

 trade, since birdskins from anywhere in 

 the Far East or Middle East must of 

 necessity pass through that port. There 

 was also undoubtedly a trade in Birds of 

 Paradise going on in Singapore, he him- 

 self having been offered a case of twenty 

 skins. He added that action on the part 

 of the Government of the Colony "to- 

 wards the suppression of a trade which 

 has long remained a blot on civilisation 

 will be welcomed by all English-speaking 

 countries, who alone have had the courage 

 to adopt legislation to stop it." 



I^IARKETFOR POULTRY FEATHERS 



The Journal of the Ministry of Agri- 

 culture (December, 1922) draws attention 

 to the desirability of poultry-keepers 

 bearing in mind the possibility of market- 

 ing the feathers. 



" From information which the Ministry 

 has obtained from various sources, it 

 appears that large quantities of poultry 

 feathers are annually imported from 

 China, United States, France and 

 Portugal, and that some are exported 

 from this country to the Colonies. The 

 weights and values of these imports in 

 1920 was 79,115 cwt. at £587,516." 



It appears that English feathers have 

 been regarded as inferior, in not being 

 so free from dirt and impurities as the 

 best imported, but this is obviously 

 through want of care, and the prohibition 

 of wild-bird plumage is likely to increase 

 demand for that of poultry. 



