28 



clearly point in the cases of many of the imported skins to the 

 speedy extermination of the species involved.* And all to 

 satisfy cruel and thoughtless female vanity ! 



The attention of the British public has been drawn to this 

 important matter by the Bill introduced into the House of 

 Lords in the spring of 1908 by Lord Avebury. By the time it 

 left the House of Lords after its third reading, it was a Bill 

 prohibiting the possession for the purpose of sale or exchange 

 of imported birds or their plumage ; it did not, however, apply 

 to the plumage of Ostriches or Eider Ducks. Exceptions were 

 also made in favour of wild birds imported for use as articles of 

 diet, imported birds held under licence of the Board of Trade 

 for supplying museums or for scientific research, plumage forming 

 part of the wearing apparel of any person entering the United 

 Kingdom, and plumage imported for use solely in the manu- 

 facture of flies for the capture of fish. 



In spite of its critics, the Bill was a long step in the right direction, 

 and the greatest credit is due to those responsible for its intro- 

 duction. We are sure it " hit the right nail on the head " in 

 making " possession " the key note. 



The objection most strongly put forward against the Bill was 

 that such a law would not affect its object so long as markets for 

 sale in other lands remained open. This objection is probably 

 more specious than real ; at any rate such a law would go a long 

 way towards the accomplishment of its object by destroying 

 the best market of this revolting and detestable trade. 



Appalling evidence was given before the Select Committee 

 appointed to consider Lord Avebury's Bill showing the enormous 

 extent of the sales of skins and feathers. The catalogues of 

 feather sales in the Commercial Sale Rooms in London in 1907 

 contained entries of over 28,000 skins of Birds of Paradise, and 

 the feather packages catalogued during the last half of that 

 year contained the plumes of 115,000 birds, mostly Herons. 

 The figures given to the Committee were subjected to somewhat 

 severe criticism by representatives of the millinery trade, and 

 no doubt considerable allowance must be made for the fact that 

 articles not sold at one auction are frequently included in the 

 catalogue of the next ; but it was clearly proved that wholesale 

 butchery takes place on a scale so gigantic, so sickening, that it 

 makes the brain reel to think of it. 



It is of course true that many of these feathers are sent here 

 from coimtries over which Great Britain has not control, and 



* How near some of the Birds of Paradise are to extinction was shown by 

 Mr. Walter Goodfellow at the meeting of the British Ornithologists' 

 Club on 19th June, 1907. 



