-^ New Light on the Tragedy of Civilisation 



longer possible to provide European collections with even 

 a pair of specimens of the mighty elephant, or to procure 

 other large animals for exhibition in these establishments. 

 And this will be the case not only with regard to the 

 larger species, but the same thing will happen to all others. 

 The Queen of England has lately expressed the wish 

 that no lady shall come into her presence wearing osprey 

 plumes in her hat. This act of hers should be most 

 heartily welcomed, for the bird world is being destroyed 

 in a way of which only a few experts have any idea. If 

 our ladies only knew that whole species of birds have 

 become extinct, thanks to the fashion of wearing hats 

 trimmed with birds' feathers, doubtless they would no 

 longer pay allegiance to this destructive fashion. The 

 massacre of birds is carried on in some such way as this. 

 The leadinof firms agfree to make this or that bird 

 fashionable. It is thus that the death-sentence of many 

 rare species of birds is pronounced. The traders scattered 

 all over the world give the hunters who engage in this 

 kind of business directions, for instance, to bring in osprey 

 feathers. And how are they obtained ? The royal heron, 

 a timid and beautiful bird, is not easy to stalk. But the 

 businesslike hunter knows what to do. He simply kills 

 the herons in thousands and thousands at their nesting- 

 places. Love for its offspring brings the beautiful creature 

 within range of the gun-barrel of the lurking hunter, who 

 kills thousands of the birds in cold blood when they are 

 gathered together in the breeding season. Countless 

 thousands must be killed, countless thousands more of 

 young helpless nestlings, bereft of the parent birds, must 



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