90 WILD LIFE PROTECTION FUND 



ported, unanimously, that "the evidence submitted to the 

 Congress of the United States and Parliament of Great 

 Britain, against the continuance of the trade in wild birds' 

 plumage, is reliable and conclusive," and the two societies 

 firmly declared themselves unwilling to co-operate in any 

 way in the formation of the dilatory Committee of 

 Economic Study that was proposed. The next action was 

 a decision to award the Society's Grand Medal of Honor 

 to Dr. Hornaday. 



It was first proposed that the medal should be awarded 

 at the joint annual meeting of the Acclimatation Society and 

 League for the Protection of Birds, to be held on March 

 29, at the Museum of Natural History, in Paris; and the 

 American Ambassador, Hon. Myron T. Herrick, had 

 promised to attend and receive it. 



The President of the Republic, and the Minister of the 

 Colonies who was to take the chair, had engaged to at- 

 tend, with the Ambassadors of several foreign powers. 

 The plume-traders' syndicate, having heard of this, ap- 

 prized the Government that if the medal was delivered at 

 the public meeting, "it was to be expected that the work- 

 men of the plume trade would in some violent manner 

 publicly manifest their disapprobation." The feather 

 trade strenuously objected to the presence of President 

 Poincare at the presentation, even though he is known to 

 be in sympathy with the work of the two societies in the 

 preservation of the birds of the world. 



In order to avoid an unpleasant episode, the officers of 

 the two societies reluctantly decided to alter their program 

 somewhat; but it is reported that "the American Ambas- 

 sador acted most gallantly in the matter, saying that in 

 any event he would attend the meeting, and if any stones 

 were to be thrown he wished to take his share." 



The presentation of the medal was made at the Ameri- 

 can Embassy, on March 29, by a delegation of officers from 

 the two societies, composed as follows : 



Mr. Edmond Perrier, Member of the Institute of France, 

 President of the Acclimatation Society of P'rance. 



