Some Invisible Defenders 243 



of those whom we call dead. What matter if the 

 body lies mouldering in the grave so long as the 

 soul goes marching on? The death of Audubon 

 in no way interfered with his work as poet-natu- 

 ralist a real John the Baptist in the wilderness 

 preparing the way for all naturalists who could 

 but follow after him along the trail he blazed. 

 Among the living of to-day there is not to be found 

 among bird-students another whose work and in- 

 fluence is to be compared in virile force and power 

 of inspiration with the first Commander-in-Chief 

 of the present army of bird-lovers. William Dut- 

 cher, voiceless, speechless for nearly ten years, 

 through the influence of the Audubon Society, 

 never spoke more eloquently in all his useful, beau- 

 tiful life than to-day. Audubon and Dutcher 

 rank high as two mighty invisible defenders of 

 the bird kingdom and those on the firing line had 

 as well pull down their flag, were it not for them 

 and all other invisible defenders of our vanishing 

 wild life. 



If bird-lovers were without the spiritual in- 

 sight that sees in death no intimation of the less- 

 ening of a man's ability to still further his own 

 work, the passing of Theodore Roosevelt would 

 be a cause for putting on crepe, and hearing in 

 bird-song a vast, sad requiem. As President, he 

 established the principle of government bird-reser- 

 vations, and created thirty-eight of these national 



