02 Report of Committee 0)1 Bird Protection. ! Tai 



birds are not killed for me personally ; they would be killed at 

 any rate." In other words, unless the wearer has a particular 

 bird killed for her particular use, she will not assume any respon- 

 sibility. It certainly is a curious inconsistency to visit a church 

 or a lecture room and listen to a discourse on some philanthropic 

 subject and note the extreme sympathy displayed by scores of 

 women, while at the same time their hats are decorated with 

 plumes and feathers that could only have been obtained by acts 

 of the extremest cruelty. 



The work is extending so rapidly, and interest is becoming so 

 widespread, that it requires a greater amount of labor and time 

 than the members of the Committee should be called upon to 

 give. In fact, the work has now reached such a stage that, if 

 possible, it should be transferred to some individual who could 

 devote his or her whole time to it. The members of the Com- 

 mittee are all engaged in other pursuits, and therefore find it 

 impossible to devote but a small amount of time to the work, and 

 consequently cannot advance it as rapidly as would otherwise be 

 possible ; however, notwithstanding these drawbacks, your Com- 

 mittee feels that the year 1897 closes with an ample reward for 

 the labor bestowed, and sees great cause for congratulation in 

 the very greatly, increased interest manifested. 



With these few introductory statements, your Committee submits 

 a r^sum^ of the work done in each State. 



Maine. 



Miss Edith J. Boardman of Brunswick, Maine, reports : " We 

 are just about making an attempt to organize an Audubon 

 Society. Professor Leslie A. Lee of Bowdoin College will^'assist, 

 and we hope that we will be able to report a full organization in a 

 few weeks. A systematic study of birds has not been introduced 

 into the schools of the State, so far as I know, but occasional 

 talks on birds have been given in the schools, and attempts have 

 been made to call the scholars' attention to the subject, and an 

 hour is occasionally given for recitations about them. No steps 

 have been taken, however, towards establishing a Bird Day." 



