66 WILD LIFE PROTECTION FUND 



Jan. 30. — William T. Hornaday appeared before the House Committee 

 on Ways and Means, 63rd Congress, representing the New York 

 Zoological Society, and asked for a clause in the new Tariff bill to 

 prohibit the importation of all wild birds' plumage into the United 

 States for commercial purposes. T. Gilbert Pearson appeared for the 

 Audubon Association, asking for the exclusion of the plumage of 

 American birds. Briefs were filed by both delegates, and published 

 in full. (Tariff Schedules, pp. 4422* et seq.) 



Feb. 27. — The federal migratory bird clause came up in the House for 

 a test vote. Representative Cox said: "The whole bill is a delusion 

 and a snare. It would have been impossible to put the bill through 

 simply to protect the game birds; and in order to get it through they 

 had to couple with it a provision about which the fathers of the 

 measure cared nothing whatever." The reference was to the inclusion 

 of protection for insectivorous birds as well as game birds. As 

 usual, Mr. Mondell of Wyoming opposed the measure. On the test 

 vote the bird bill was sustained by a vote of 285 to 15. 



Feb. 27. — The Agricultural Appropriation Bill, containing Senator 

 McLean's migratory bird measure, was passed by the Senate. 



March 4. — As a clause in the Agricultural Appropriation Bill, the Weeks- 

 McLean federal migratory bird bill became a law. 



Marrh 11. — Representative Francis Burton Harrison, of the Ways and 

 Means Committee, wrote to Mr. Hornaday, requesting him to draft 

 a clause for the tariff bill embodying his ideas for the exclusion of 

 plumage. Draft forwarded to Mr. Harrison, on March 13. 



April 7. — The new tariff bill was submitted to the House, containing 

 under Schedule N, the plumage clause as furnished to Mr. Harrison, 

 without the slightest alteration. 



April 8. — The Zoological Society issued Circular No. 1: "Stop the Impor- 

 tation of Wild Birds' Plumage." 



April 17. — After six years of effort by the protectors of wild life, 

 Pennsylvania enacted a hunter's license law, on a basis of $1 for an 

 annual hunting license, but no license required for a land-owner 

 hunting on lands lived upon by him, and cultivated. In 1913, there 

 were 305,028 licenses issued and paid for under this law, and it is 

 estimated at least 100,000 persons hunted unlawfully without licenses, 

 or hunted on their own premises. 



May 16. — The tariff bill, having passed the House, was reported to the 

 Senate. 



May 21. — Hearing before a Sub-committee of the Senate Committee on 

 Finance consisting of Senators Johnson, Smith and Hughes. Present 

 for the birds: W. T. Hornaday, E. H. Forbush and Henry Oldys. 

 Against the birds: Leventritt, Cook & Nathan, representing the 

 Eastern and Western Millinery associations, and Feiner & Maas, for 

 the Associated Feather Importers. 



Date unknown. — The Sub-Committee reported a mischievous and destruc- 

 tive amendment to the plumage clause, as desired by the millinery 

 importers and manufacturers. 



Date unknown. — The Democratic caucus adopted the feather trade's 

 amendment. 



July 2. — The Democratic majority of the Finance Committee again revised 

 Schedule N., struck out entirely the provision to prohibit the importa- 

 tion of wild birds' pulmage, except as to aigrettes, and as a double 



