68 Report of Committee on Bird Protection. [£j£ 



efficient work which has been done in our State by Warden 

 H. W. Loveday and his deputies. Since the first of the year 

 over one hundred prosecutions and convictions have been made 

 for the wanton killing and trapping of song and insectivorous birds, 

 by men and boys, largely Italians and Bohemians. In 1897 there 

 were 580 convictions in the State for illegal killing of game birds, 

 and the result has made violators much less bold, and greatly 

 decreased the breaches of the law. An attempt was made to 

 convict a dealer in native cage birds, but owing to a technicality 

 in the faulty law it failed, though the Judge expressed sincere 

 regret at his inability to punish the offenders. This is another 

 evidence of the necessity of a carefully worded law." 



District of Columbia. 



Dr. T. S. Palmer of the Committee and of the Biological Sur- 

 vey of the U. S. Department of Agriculture, has furnished much 

 valuable information on bird legislation to various persons con- 

 templating revisions in their State laws. He reports that the 

 Survey has, as in former years, aided the cause of bird protection 

 in every way possible. Its library is always open to students for 

 consultation, and during the spring it kept a special collection of 

 specimens convenient for reference for persons studying the local 

 birds. More than 20,000 copies of the circular on 'Bird Day in 

 the Schools ' have been distributed, as well as several editions of 

 the Bulletin on ' Common Birds in relation to Agriculture.' Dr. 

 Palmer conducted a class in bird study among teachers in the 

 Normal School, '■ the object being to familiarize them with the 

 common birds of the District by actual examination of speci- 

 mens.** The results were highly satisfactory and the plan is an 

 excellent one. 



Texas. 



Mrs. E. Irene Rood of the Committee reports on her work in 

 Texas: "No doubt the most important work done in this State 

 during the year for the protection of birds, has been the organiz- 

 ation of numerous Bands of Mercy, all pledged to protect the 



