4 The Purple Martin 



and by their continuous chatter and fluttering, particularly during the early 

 part of the night. There is usually little prejudice against them, but not 

 infrequently the people in the neighborhood make excuse that the birds are 

 a nuisance and proceed to shoot into the flocks when they come to roost. 



"At Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, a great number of these mi- 

 grating birds gathered the past summer (1905), and chose as their nightly 

 roosting place the grove of a summer hotel. The proprietor, wishing to 

 rid himself of them, invited a number of his neighbors, who, lying wait for 

 the birds, fired into the trees and continued to shoot until the ground was 

 literally covered with the dead and dying birds, and for days after wounded 

 Martins could be found fluttering about the neighboring lawns and road- 

 sides. Estimates on the number of birds killed vary from 8,000 to 15,000. 

 Upon hearing of this tragic violation of the law, the North Carolina Audu- 

 bon Society sent a warden to prosecute the offending parties, twelve of 

 whom were convicted and fined in the local court. The warden, to pre- 

 vent any further slaughter, arranged a number of tar barrels to the wind- 

 ward of the grove, and fired them in the evening, thus creating a dense 

 smoke, which drifting over the grove drove the birds away, and they were 

 not seen again. A citizen of the place said it had been very noticeable that 

 since the appearance of Martins there had been less mosquitoes than for 

 many years previous, and he thought that the community would never again 

 allow these valuable birds to be slaughtered in that locality." 



The moral of this story is this: You who love the Martin for his cheery 

 social nature and his inestimable worth must do something at once to 

 educate those who do not yet appreciate and value these birds. This can 

 be done by circulating thousands of copies of this leaflet. The National 

 Association has the organization to carry on this necessary educational 

 work; you are asked to contribute financial aid. A membership in the 

 Association costs but $5 annually, and each member can feel assured that 

 his dues will be the means of circulating hundreds of leaflets, some of which 

 may reach those who are now blind to the beauty and value of these aerial 

 gleaners. 



"So were we men and women, and should hold 

 Our rightful rank in God's great universe, 

 Wherein, in heaven and earth, by will or nature, 

 Naught lives for self." 



525 Manhattan Ave., New York City, 

 October I, igo^. 



I 



