^°lg^f- ] Bird Protection. I43 



species scheduled be introduced in the Federal Legislature.- He gave 

 some particulars of the measure desired. 



Mr. A. H. E. Mattingley, C.M.Z.S., spoke regarding the value of 

 birds to the community. Flocks were interfered with by liver flukes ; 

 the intermediate host of the fluke was a species of snail, and this snail 

 was part of the dietary of Herons, Magpie-Larks (Grallina), and other 

 kinds of birds. So the birds, by destroying the flukes in the snails, 

 were valuable servants of man. Again, the Ibis was a great enemy 

 of the grasshopper. A single Ibis would destroy 2,000 immature 

 grasshoppers in a single day. 



Mr. D. Le Souef, C.M.Z.S., produced four catalogues of one plume 

 sale held in London in December, 1909. They showed that 3,915 

 skins of Birds-of-Paradise, and hundreds of skins of Australian Rifle- 

 Birds, Emus, cSic, had been disposed of. 



Mr. H. W. Wilson, hon. secretary of the Union, explained recent 

 legislation for bird protection in New York State. 



Mr. Charles Barrett said that there was urgent necessity for action. 

 What was done must be done quickly, as some birds were rapidly 

 nearing extinction. The plume-wearing custom was an abominable 

 one, and there should be some law whereby women who wore the 

 plumes of protected birds could be punished for an offence. 



Mr. Tudor, in reply, said that he was absolutely sympathetic with 

 the objects of the deputation, and would be pleased to do all in his 

 power to help the birds, who could not help themselves. At the 

 present time the powers of the department were doubtful, but there 

 were provisions in the Customs Act Amendment Bill regarding the 

 necessary power. He referred to Mr. Mattingley's remarkable photo- 

 graphs of Egrets, and the slaughter of birds in the United States. He 

 had no sympathy with persons who decorated themselves with bird 

 plumes ; it had been said that women were beautiful enough without 

 borrowing beauty. He deprecated the wholesale murder of birds, 

 and assured the deputation that, not only would its request receive 

 sympathetic consideration, but that he was at one with it. 



The deputation thanked the Minister and withdrew. — The Mel- 

 bourne Hevald, 29/8/10. 



Reviews. 



[" A Monograph of the Petrels (Order Tubinares)," by F. Du Cane Godman, 

 D.C.L., F.R.S., &c.] 



This magnificent work on an exceedingly difficult class of Aves 

 to deal with has been completed by the publication of Part V. 

 The whole sets a high standard in Nature book work, and 

 incidentally Dr. Du Cane Godman has erected to himself, with the 

 assistance of friends (foremost among whom were the late Osbert 

 Salvin and the late Dr. Bowdler Sharpe), a monument which will 

 celebrate for all time his term of office as president of the British 

 Ornithologists' Union. He is congratulated accordingly by his 

 ornithological brethren in these " British dominions beyond the 

 seas." 



Part V. opens with the puzzling Prions and the Diving-Petrels 

 {Pelecanoides), peculiar to Southern seas, the latter resembling in 

 habit the Little Auk of Northern latitudes. But the bulk of Part 



