ECONOMIC VALUE OF OUR BIRDS 47 



now on the national statute books, the birds neces- 

 sarily are safe, without further campaigning. That 

 is far from being the case. The struggle for the 

 saving and bringing back of the birds is our new 

 "irrepressible conflict." Let us look the situation 

 squarely in the eyes, and prepare ourselves for what 

 is inevitable. 



Just so long as any wild birds live there will be 

 deadly enemies seeking to destroy them; and it is 

 our bounden duty to be constantly on the alert 3 and 

 ready to repel the attack of every foe. Just so 

 long as repressive protective laws remain upon our 

 statute books will the enemies of wild life strive to 

 repeal or nullify them. 



Let us briefly review the investigations and the 

 facts that have demonstrated the commercial and 

 industrial value of our wild birds. Naturally, 

 foresters will be interested in hearing first of the 

 birds that benefit the trees of our country. 



Thousands of species of insects feed upon and 

 shelter in the trees of the street, the park, the 

 orchard and the forest. It is no exaggeration to 

 assert that every tree has its insect enemies. The 

 chief points of attack are the bark and the leaves ; 

 but the wood also is attacked by many destructive 

 borers. To one who loves trees, who has planted 

 hundreds with his own hands and caused the plant- 

 ing of thousands more, there are times when the 

 work of the insect pests become fairly heartbreak- 

 ing. The awful chestnut blight, which is due to a 



