Reports of Field Agents ' 393 



REPORTS OF FIELD AGENTS 



REPORT OF EDWARD HOWE FORBUSH, FIELD AGENT 

 FOR NEW ENGLAND 



Since the last annual meeting of this Association, your Field Agent for 

 New England has had more than the usual demand for lectures, and has been 

 obliged to refuse many opportunities because of other pressing work. Twenty 

 lectures have been given, however, to about 4,000 people, mainly in Massa- 

 chusetts, Connecticut, Vermont and New Hampshire. 



The series of newspaper articles pubhshed in New England newspapers, 

 which was interrupted for a time last year because of lack of means for their 

 pubHcation, has been continued intermittently during the present year. Some 

 educational work has been done in the schools in cooperation with the State 

 Societies. 



Two legislatures in New England held sessions in 191 2, — Massachusetts 

 and Rhode Island, — and the fall session of the A'ermont Legislature has just 

 begun as this report is being written. The Audubon Society of Rhode Island 

 did not initiate any new legislation, and apparently no attempt was made 

 to improve the bird laws of that state. On the other hand, no bad legislation 

 was enacted, and the session was rather uneventful so far as bird- and game- 

 legislation was concerned. In Massachusetts, however, a light was waged 

 from the beginning of the session almost to its close. Early in the year two 

 bills were passed opening the shooting season on October 12, instead of on 

 the 15th as formerly. These bills passed in spite of strenuous and persistent 

 opposition. As October 12 (Colimibus Day) is now a legal holiday in Massa- 

 chusetts, and as the season now opens on that day, it is easy to see what a 

 slaughter takes place when every shop-worker and clerk who carries a gun is 

 let loose the first day of the season to hunt birds which have become tame by 

 reason of protection through the long close season. 



These bills gave the "poor man" an opportunity to hunt on the holiday. 

 No consideration was shown for the poor birds. 



The passage of these biUs warned the friends of the birds as to what they 

 might expect of the legislature, and when a strong attempt was made to repeal 

 the present law prohibiting spring-shooting, we were ready to meet it. Five 

 bills were introduced to change the open season on certain wild fowl in order 

 that the gunners along the shore might enjoy a longer season for shooting in 

 the winter or spring. Two of these were very strongly advocated and might 

 have passed had they not been strenuously opposed by this Association and 

 the Massachusetts Audubon Society. One was finally killed in the House, 

 another in the Senate, and the others were defeated in Committee. 



The greatest fight made by the Association during the session was waged 



