BIRDS 97 



the fruits, the vegetables, and the grains, must pay higher 

 prices for the food we eat and the clothes we wear. 



79. Conservation of birds. But it is not yet too late 

 to save the remnant of the birds still left to us, and even to 

 increase the bird life of our country. It is evidently neces- 

 sary, however, in the first place, that laws similar to the 

 following should be passed in every state. 



" The Bird Law of the American Ornithologists' Union. An 

 Act for the Protection of Birds and their Nests and Eggs. 



" Section 1. No person shall within the State of kill or 



catch or have in his or her possession, living or dead, any wild 

 bird other than a game bird, nor shall purchase, offer, or expose for 

 sale any such wild bird after it has been killed or caught. No part 

 of the plumage, skin, or body of any bird protected by this section 

 shall be sold or had in possession for sale. 



" Section 2. No person shall within the State of take or 



needlessly destroy the nest or the eggs of any wild bird nor shall 

 have such nest or the eggs in his or her possession. . . . 



" Section 3. Any person who violates any of the provisions of 

 this act shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall be liable to a 

 fine of five dollars for each offense, and an additional fine of five dollars 

 for each bird, living or dead, or part of bird, or nest and eggs pos- 

 sessed in violation of this act, or to imprisonment for ten days, or 

 both, at the discretion of the court. 



" Section 4. Sections 1, 2, and 3 of this act shall not apply to 

 any person holding a certificate giving the right to take birds and 

 their nests and eggs for scientific purposes, as provided for in Sec- 

 tion 5 of this Act. . . . 



" Section 7. The English or European house sparrow (Passer 

 domesticus) is not included among the birds protected by this act." 



" In addition to the above, every state that has not 

 already done so, should at once enact laws to prohibit the 

 sale of all wild game at all seasons, and to stop all shooting 



