THE GAME BREEDER 



streets. All of them are squeezed as close 

 to the wall of the church building as they 

 can get, and there they lie in wait for 

 sparrows which infest the creeping vines 

 that grow all over the wall of the church 

 ■on the south side. Every moment or so 

 some luckless sparrow alights too near the 

 ground or chirps too loud, and some cat 

 immediately makes a running jump up the 

 vine, and before the bird can fly from un- 

 der the leaves it is cat food. Sometimes as 

 many as twenty cats can be seen in a row 

 watching for their evening meal of birds. 



Some steel traps and the judicious use 

 of an automatic shot gun have reduced 

 the numbers of the cats which frequent- 

 ed the grounds of The Game Breeders' 

 Association, w^ith the result that the 

 quail and other game birds nest in safety 

 and multiply accordingly. One "corkin" 

 big tabby went off home hitched to a 

 trap, but the matter was amicably ad- 

 justed since the feline evidently was a 

 trespasser when it "got its foot in it." 



The Divorce of Interests. 



Old readers of "The Amateur Sports- 

 man" will recall the inquiry made by that 

 publication as to the attitude of the Na- 

 tional Association of Audubon Societies 

 towards field sports. It seemed evident 

 that many members of the association 

 did not approve of killing anything, and 

 the active part always taken by the asso- 

 ciation, when restrictive legislation was 

 urged, raised a doubt as to the position 

 the association would take when laws 

 prohibiting shooting at all times or for 

 long terms would be proposed. 



"The Amateur Sportsman" suggested 

 that the song birds and the wild food 

 birds required different handling; that 

 laws prohibiting the killing of song and 

 insectivorous birds at all times were, of 

 course, excellent, but that similar laws 

 were not satisfactory either to sportsmen 

 and game dealers, or to arms and am- 

 munition manufacturers, when applied to 

 game. It was suggested that the Audu- 

 bons had enough to do in protecting the 

 songsters, and that the edible species 

 might well be looked after by an inde- 

 pendent national association of sports- 

 men. The suggestion may have had 

 something to do with the formation of 

 The American Game Protective and 

 Propagation Association, which is now 

 a most influential organization. 



What ';^Bird Lore" Says. 



Mr. Frank M. Chapman, the treasurer 

 of the Audubon Association and the 

 editor of "Bird-Lore," the official organ 

 of the Audubon Societies, in an able 

 editorial, says : 



In view of the fact that the National As- 

 sociation of Audubon Societies, as we think, 

 very properly refused to administer the 

 sum of $25,000 annually for the seasonal 

 protection of game birds on behalf of the 

 arms and ammunition companies of this 

 country, it is a satisfaction to know that, 

 through the formation of the American 

 Game Protective and Propagation Associa- 

 tion, this large amount of money is not 

 to be lost to the cause of bird protection. 

 This organization is composed mainly of 

 sportsmen, and its object is primarily not 

 only to prevent the decrease but to pro- 

 mote the increase of game birds, to the end 

 that their shooting may not tend to 

 diminish the supply. 



It is needless to say that many members 

 of the Audubon Societies do not approve 

 of the killing of game birds under any con- 

 ditions; and for this reason, if for no others, 

 it was not possible for the National Asso- 

 ciation to become the agents of the donors 

 of the fund in question. But we must deal 

 with man in the light of his inheritance and 

 not expect the rank and file to measure up 

 to the highest standard thus far attained. 

 If the past, through the present, throws any 

 light toward the future, beyond question the 

 most humane-minded have reason to be en- 

 couraged. In the meantime, recognizing 

 the imperfections of human nature, let the 

 most tender-hearted sentimentalist join 

 hands with the less sympathetic but pos- 

 sibly more practical sportsman in every 

 honest effort to preserve wild life. 



What Professor Pearson Says. 



Professor Pearson,' the secretary of 

 the National Association of Audubon 

 Societies, also has written an excellent 

 editorial about the new Protective and 

 Propagation Association. He gives 

 credit to the arms and ammunition men, 

 praises their generosity and says "the 

 association is in no way tied to any 

 business interests but is free to use its 

 influence unrestricted for the broad and 

 worthy cause for which it was or- 

 ganized." 



Hon. John B. Burnham. 



Mr. Burnham is the president and ex- 

 ecutive oflicer of the American Game 

 Protective and Propagation Association 

 and, as Professor Pearson says, "he is 

 a practical game protector and a man 



