DECLINING YEARS (1873-1893) 297 



F. O. Morris appeared in the Times drawing atten- 

 tion to the movement, and enlisting sympathy and 

 help for the poor birds. He quoted a letter from 

 Lady Mount-Temple to him, in which she said : 

 " You have probably, with your usual zeal for our 

 dear friends the birds, written on the subject of this 

 shameful destruction to meet the tasteless fashion of 

 covering ladies' bonnets, hats, and ball-gowns with 

 lovely specimens of them, and in some cases with our 

 special favourites and home pets. They parade the 

 massacre, showing the heads and throats sometimes 

 stretched, as if in dying agonies, on the hat. A 

 milliner told me she had put twelve birds on one. 

 Another told us of a ball-dress covered with canaries. 

 I am glad to say the wearer of it, though handsome, 

 had no partners." Even the kingfishers on the 

 Thames were destroyed for this same contemptible 

 and cruel purpose. The letter concluded with an 

 earnest appeal to the ladies of England to put a 

 stop to this hateful and cruel fashion. 



The following day a leading article appeared in 

 the Times backing up the plea urged by their " old 

 and welcome correspondent, the Rev. F. O. Morris," 

 as they were pleased to describe him, concluding 

 with a forcible expression of their opinion on the 

 subject by saying: "Surely Lady Mount-Temple and 

 her ally, Mr. Morris, will not be left to plead in vain 

 for those who have so much to say for themselves, 

 could they but say it. As a mere matter of taste 

 there can be no doubt about the matter. A live 

 bird is a beautiful thing. A dead bird is a very ugly 



