INTRODUCTION. 1 1 



or are nearly extinct. To some extent this is un- 

 avoidable. The general deforesting of the country, 

 and consequent complete change of the face of vast 

 areas, has deprived many birds of such localities as 

 their habits of life demanded ; but in many cases 

 these same birds would have adapted themselves to 

 the new condition but for the inhuman persecution 

 to which they were subjected. The phrase " there 

 are more gunners than birds" is often literally true, 

 and raises the question of the propriety of allowing 

 fire-arms to be so freely carried as they are. Birds 

 should be the wards of the general government, and 

 not the property of the individual upon whose land 

 they happen for the time being to tarry. This, 

 doubtless, will never be brought about, and unless a 

 very radical change takes place in the mind of the 

 community, the great bulk of bird-life will soon be a 

 thing of the past, and when too late the agricultural 

 interests will awake to the fact that the birds were 

 better friends than they supposed, and did better 

 works than the insecticides that have now to be used 

 so freely upon fruit-trees, and even annual growths. 

 The rose-breasted grosbeak, the scarlet tanager, and 

 the cardinal red-bird are all fond of potato-beetles ; 

 but how long would they remain unmolested if they 

 appeared boldly in the fields ? Loafers with shot- 

 guns and boys with slung-shots would quickly make 

 way with them ; and why ? Because there are silly 

 women who will pay well to put such birds upon 

 their bonnets. 



Nor can the professional ornithologist escape cen- 

 sure in this matter of bird-slaughter. There has 



