146 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Pub. Doc. 



son or out, anything which comes within the range of his 

 gun, from a hen to a chickadee, for sport or practice, as the 

 case may be — who should be suppressed. The trolley 

 cars which flood the country, especially on Sundays and 

 other holidays, with gunners and fishermen from the cities, 

 have increased the danger to the birds from this class of 

 people. A large proportion of these people are foreigners, 

 or of foreign extraction. Since the trolley roads came into 

 Wareham, we have had occasion to warn many of these 

 people away from the premises. Usually when spoken to 

 they have replied in broken English. Many of these for- 

 eigners shoot and trap song birds to eat. They are also 

 trapped in considerable numbers for exportation alive. The 

 constables in country towns should be empowered and 

 directed to arrest these trespassing law breakers, and should 

 be allowed half of the fines whenever convictions can be 

 secured. The natural destructive propensities of our own 

 children may readily be controlled by education, by teach- 

 ing them to take an interest in birds, their songs and habits, 

 and by showing them their usefulness. 



Having done what we could to protect the birds about 

 the farm from cats, dogs, gunners, English sparrows and 

 boys, we are still confronted with the undeniable fact that 

 most species of birds about the place are not increasing in 

 numbers, while some of them are decreasing. Some fail to 

 breed at all, while some are entirely absent in the breeding 

 season . The explanation of this lies largely in the fact that 

 under protection the jays increased largely the first year, 

 while the crows are increasing regularly, and frequenting 

 the place more and more. It is to be regretted that, where 

 all birds are protected by man, birds are the [ireatest enemies 

 of birds. I have previousl}^ reported * that in the Middle- 

 sex Fells reservation near Boston the crows appeared to 

 have increased at the expense of the smaller birds. This 

 region came under my observation in 1891, Avlien the com- 

 mittee in charge of the gypsy moth work was first ap- 

 pointed. From that time until 1900 several observers who 

 were well acquainted with the birds of the region passed 



* Agriculture of Massachusetts, 1900, p. 50. 



