ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY BULLETIN 



985 



The Society appealed to each member of 

 Congress for what is now the Federal migra- 

 tory bird law. Toward the close of the ses- 

 sion, the responses indicated overwhelming ma- 

 jorities for the bill. The tidal wave of public 

 demand that was created by placing the facts 

 of the situation before thousands of newspapers 

 and tens of thousands of people finally swept 

 the McLean bill through both houses, despite 

 the protest (in the House) of Representatives 

 Mondell and Cox, and a very few others. 

 The vote in the House in favor of sending the 

 measure to the Conference Committee was 285 

 to 15. For general information it should be 

 stated that by the advice of a wise counselor 

 in Washington, to insure a vote in the House 

 even after the Senate had once passed the bill 

 unanimously, the Senate added it to the agri- 

 cultural appropriation bill as an amendment, 

 and in that honorable and exalted position it 

 passed the House by the vote stated above. 



Some of the friends of the measure ques- 

 tioned its full and perfect constitutionality ; but 

 that point created hardly a ripple of interest. 

 The need for the law was so urgent, all over 

 the United States, and the demand for it was 

 so universal and overwhelming, all doubts and 

 objections on technical grounds were swept 

 aside by the needs of the American people. It 

 was a matter that affected the market-basket 

 and the dinner-pail ; and notwithstanding their 

 old traditions regarding "the sovereign rights 

 of the States," the people of the South (with 

 valuable cotton crops to protect from the boll- 

 weevil) strongly supported the bill, and never 

 once raised the question of states' rights. 



The law thus placed on the national statute 

 books is the greatest wild life measure that ever 

 came before Congress. It will exert an enormous 

 influence for good on our bird life. The rules 

 and regulations will be laid down and promul- 

 gated, after careful study and the hearing of 

 expert opinions, by the Department of Agri- 

 culture. We can depend upon it that many an 

 unfair, mean and destructive state law will now 

 be corrected for the greatest good of the great- 

 est number! In the few states that still meanly 

 permit the shooting of waterfowl in savage 

 winter weather and in spring, that abuse of 

 privilege will be brought to a sudden end. The 

 slaughterers of our song-birds, swallows, mar- 

 tins, woodpeckers, chickadees and other birds 

 of great economic value will now get what they 

 deserve. The country is now thoroughly 

 aroused, and is ready to back up the Secretary 

 of Agriculture to the uttermost. 



THE AUTOMOBILE IS A GREAT PROMOTER OF 

 BIRD-SLAUGHTER 



The members of the Zoological Society may 

 have the satisfaction of knowing that their or- 

 ganization did its very utmost to help accom- 

 plish the McLean law. One of the most valu- 

 able features of the service rendered by its of- 

 ficers was in pointing out and insisting upon 

 the best line of approach to success. In our 

 judgment we fully agree with Mr. Cox, that 

 the fight for the Shiras-Weeks-Anthony-McLean 

 law was won under the banner of the useful 

 insect-eating birds, and not the game birds 

 which most sportsmen protect only to kill. 



In the near future we believe that Congress 

 will give to the Department of Agriculture at 

 least $200,000 per year with which to enforce 

 this law throughout the length and breadth of 

 the land. The country will be satisfied with 

 nothing less than universal enforcement, and 

 whether it costs $200,000 per year or $1,000,- 

 000 per year, it will be cheerfully paid. What is 

 even the last figure in comparison with an an- 

 nual loss of four hundred and twenty millions 

 through noxious insects ! 



Incidentally, our abiding faith in the intel- 

 ligence and the sincere good will of Congress 

 toward distressed wild life has again been 

 splendidly justified. W. T. H. 



With this number of the Bulletin we offer 

 a colored plate, by .Miss M. E. Eaton, showing- 

 five of the beautiful and curious birds of the 

 world that are being exterminated for the 

 feather trade. The species represented are the 

 cock-of-the-rock of South America ; the famous 

 resplendent trogon. or "quetzal," the national 

 emblem of Guatemala; the greater bird-of-para- 

 dise; the scarlet ibis, and the snowy egret which 

 produces the "white badge of cruelty." 



Let the bird-lovers of the world ask them- 

 selves: "Can we allow such birds as these to be 

 exterminated for the enrichment of a few mil- 

 liners?" 



