28 Lreport of Commitiee on Bird Protection. ra 
I assume that the island in question belongs to the Government, and 
as the lightkeeper is a public servant in the employ of the Government, 
drawing a salary for a specific purpose, he has no right to engage in any 
commercial pursuit, especially when it is so harmful in its effects. 
This destructive work can be easily stopped if the Lighthouse Board 
will issue an order to the keeper of the South Farallon Light prohibiting 
him from engaging in egging, and also authorizing him to prevent all 
other persons from egging on the Government property. 
I feel assured that your Board are in sympathy with this work, from 
the fact that some four years since, by authority of the Lighthouse Board, 
Capt. Henry P. Field, of the Little Gull Island Light, N. Y., was allowed 
to be appointed as Special Game Protector under the New York State 
laws for the purpose of protecting the colony of Common Terns (Sterna 
hirundo) and Roseate Terns (Sterna dougall?) on Great Gull Island. 
The protection afforded this colony of Terns has increased it more 
than four-fold and necessitates no action on the part of the Lighthouse 
Keeper except to inform eggers that the birds are protected. 
I trust that your honorable Board will see fit to issue the order asked 
for, and I shall be pleased to have a communication from you to that 
effect so that I may so report to Prof. Loomis and to our Society. 
An immediate reply was received, as follows : 
Treasury Department, 
Office of the Lighthouse Board. 
3 WASHINGTON, 7 October, 1896. 
Mr. WiLLiAmM DuTcHER, 
Chatrman of the American Ornithologists Union Committee, 
No. 525 Manhattan Avenue, New York, N. Y. 
SIR :— 
Your letter of 3d of October, 1896, relative to the sale of wild birds’ 
eggs, by employes of the Lighthouse Establishment, on South Farallon 
Island, Cal., has been received. 
In reply, the Board has to state that your letter, together with its 
enclosures, was referred this date to the district officers of the 12th 
Lighthouse District for enquiry, and for a joint report to the Board upon 
the subject. 
The co-operation of the Biological Survey of the Department 
of Agriculture has been promised in case the appeal to the 
Lighthouse Board is not successful. 
LOWER CALIFORNIA. 
Mr. A. W. Anthony, of San Diego, Cal., appealed early in the 
year to the Committee, through Mr. Stone, for aid to prevent the 
