170 
millions of White Herons breeding in the 
United States; today there is only a 
pitiable remnant of the same, and, owing 
to the high prices offered for the plumes 
of these birds, makes it difficult and almost 
impossible to preserve even the small 
remnant remaining. 
The stock of these birds having been 
exhausted in the United States, the 
plume-hunters have followed the White 
Herons to other parts of the world, and 
in many localities these beautiful exam- 
ples of bird life are on the verge of ex- 
termination; this extermination is caused 
solely by the millinery trade. 
The Birds of Paradise are another 
example of this unholy traffic. The range 
of these birds being so much more re- 
stricted than that of the White Herons, 
it will take a much shorter time to ex- 
terminate them than it has the Herons. 
Have the milliners of Paris, or London, 
or Berlin, or New York, any right to de- 
mand the privilege of selling the plumes 
of so valuable and interesting a species 
as the Bird of Paradise when they know 
that they are on the verge of extermi- 
nation? 
Among the large reservations establish- 
ed by President Roosevelt was one 
known as the Hawaiian Islands Reserva- 
tion. Recently Japanese poachers sta- 
tioned themselves upon these islands, and 
before they were discovered by the 
United States authorities, they had 
destroyed over a quarter of a million 
Albatrosses, simply that they might take 
the wing quills for the millinery market, 
and ship them to London, via Japan. Is 
this right? Should not Japan aid the 
United States in the preservation of her 
birds by entering into an agreement to 
that effect. 
The Americas have among their birds 
those little gems of the air known as the 
Hummingbird. Hundreds of thousands of 
these birds have been destroyed for the 
millinery trade, and have been sold at 
the London feather sales. In the February, 
gio, sale a large number of Ruby- 
throated Hummingbirds were sold; these 
birds are only found in eastern North 
Bird - Lore 
America. From there they migrated to 
northern South America, where they 
were killed and shipped to the London 
markets. How can the Americans pro- 
tect their Hummingbirds if they may be 
killed in South America, and sold in 
England for use wherever birds are used 
for millinery ornaments? 
One need do no more than to examine 
the schedules of bird skins offered for 
sale at the London auction markets every 
sixty days, to realize how important it is 
that some drastic steps be taken to stop 
this enormous drain on wild bird life: 
Herons, Trogons, Hummingbirds, Tou- 
cans, Macaws, Tanagers, Emus, Birds of 
Paradise, Marabou Storks, Crowned 
Pigeons, Cockatoos, Parrots, Rifle Birds, 
Kingfishers, Pheasants, Albatrosses, 
Hawks, Bitterns, Lyre Birds, Grebes, 
Owls, Terns, Gulls, Bustards and Cuckoos 
are some of the many species dealt in— 
sacrificed at the behest of fashion. 
A suggestive item in all of the schedules 
is “Various Birds.” As the several species 
that have been most dealt in in the past, 
the gorgeously plumed birds, become 
scarcer and consequently more expensive, 
the milliners have other species sent them 
to test the market, and should any of 
them prove to be acceptable to fashion, 
then that species will be raided also—so 
much for the slaughter of birds for milli- 
nery purposes. 
There are other vital reasons why 
Europeans should take active steps for 
an international agreement, and they are 
that thousands of the insectivorous birds 
of Europe are shipped to the United 
States every year as cage birds. Do the 
Europeans care so little for their song 
birds that they are willing to permit 
this cruel traffic? The Americans stopped 
such export several years since, to the 
great advantage of the country. . 
There are also thousands of game birds, 
such as migratory Quail, the Gray Par- 
tridge, and the Lapwing, that are sent to 
the American markets, for use in hotels 
and fashionable restaurants. Are the 
Europeans willing to have such birds 
slaughtered, and shipped out of the 
