A CONSERVATION SKETCH 289 



always been rare; the majority have suffered 

 woeful losses. 1 



Such, then, is the status' of birds in the United 

 States to-day; but even at that they are better off 

 a hundred times than only twenty years ago, be- 

 fore avian protection and conservation as an ac- 

 tual practice gained a foothold in America. 



Conservation of its wild-life resources is now a 

 policy of the United States Government, and for 

 it as a national policy we have to give thanks 

 mainly to two men, Theodore Eoosevelt and Dr. 

 T. S. Palmer. During the Presidential adminis- 

 trations of the former, no less than fifty-three 

 federal bird refuges were established, to say noth- 

 ing of several national bison-ranges and at least 

 four national game-preserves. And it was the 

 Biological Survey of the Department of Agricul- 

 ture, under the supervision of Dr. Palmer, that 

 carried out the work laid down by the President. 



The conservation of bird life in the United 

 States, although still only in the stage of infancy, 

 is now fostered in the following ways: (1) 

 Through the enactment of sane game-laws. (2) 

 Through the education of the public to encourage 

 the presence of birds around their homes and 

 farms. (3) Through government or state wild- 

 life refuges and sanctuaries. (4) Through pri- 

 vately owned preserves, refuges, and sanctuaries. 

 (5) Through state game-farms for propagating 



i For more detailed information, see Appendix. 



