144 OUR FEATHERED FRIENDS. 
have been nearly or quite all killed for this fashion. 
Some of the most delicate plumes you see have been 
taken from the egret,! or white heron, at nesting time. 
The mothers are shot or stoned to death very easily, 
because they will not leave their young. It is said 
that many are left wounded and yet alive after the 
plumes have been stripped off. There is no one to 
care for the young which are left in their nests, and 
so they die of cold and hunger. All this suffering 
is just to satisfy the cruel pride of women and girls 
who must wear birds in their bonnets. 
If boys would resolve never to kill a bird, even 
though they could get money by doing it; and if girls 
would resolve never to wear a bird or a bird’s wing on 
their hats, our country would be more beautiful with 
song and color than it has ever been. 
We sat in church the other day, and in front of us 
was a lady with nine bird’s wings on her bonnet. She 
was a tender-hearted lady, and probably would not hurt 
a fly herself. Yet her pride had really caused the death 
and suffering of five birds, and possibly of fifteen or 
twenty birdlings. She did not stop to think. Will 
you, kind reader, stop to think ? 
