BIRD NOTES ANT) NEWS, 



39 



" artificial ospreys" which "over a thousand hands " 

 are engaged in making ! 



Is it not time that women ceased to make them- 

 selves a laughing-stock by swallowing these stories ; 

 ceased to countenance this miserable fashion (a 

 veritable father of lies) under the shallow pretence 

 that they do so in appearance only? 



Those interested in the matter may be referred 

 to the article on " Osprey Plumes," by Mr. W. P. 

 Pycraft, in Knowledge and Scientific News for June, 

 1904. After showing up the stories of egret farms, 

 etc., the writer adds : "The statements that imitation 

 or artificial ospreys are made of split quills, whale- 

 bone, or other material, are all absolutely false." 



IN THE COURTS. 



An exceptionally large number of interesting cases 

 under the various Wild Birds Protection Acts have 

 come before the magistrates of late, the larger 

 number having to do with birdcatchers and their 

 ways. 



On May 2nd two men, named Hayes and Turner, 

 were before the Brighton Bench on an adjourned 

 summons for being in possession of 216 linnets, 

 recently taken. The men, while driving on the 

 Marine Parade on March 26th, were stopped by 

 Inspector Waters, of the R.S.P.C.A., who found in 

 the cart three large boxes containing the birds. 

 The defence was that the men had permission from 

 the owner of a farm in East Sussex to take the 

 birds ; but Mr. Polhill contended that, though 

 linnets were not scheduled in East Sussex, they 

 were protected against all persons in Brighton, and 

 that the Bench had to deal only with the Act as it 

 related to Brighton Hayes, said to have only 

 driven Turner into town, was discharged. Turner 

 was fined 2d. in respect of each bird, with advocate's 

 fee, £4. us. 6d. in all. The magistrates consented 

 to state a case, but the intended appeal has since 

 been abandoned. (The linnets after being counted 

 and examined at the police station, were bought by 

 Waters for 2d. each and liberated.) 



At Lewes, on May 16th, two men named Dine, 

 who were convicted of a similar offence in January, 

 were fined 6d. each bird and 4s. 6d. costs for taking 

 21 linnets ; and at the same court three other men 

 were convicted of a similar offence, all these being 

 Inspector Waters' cases. 



At Kingston-on-Thames two Clerkenwell bird- 

 catchers were fined 17s. each, or 14 days, for having 

 five chaffinches in their possession and using bird- 

 lime at Thames Ditton. The Chairman remarked 

 that far too much birdcatching was done by idle 

 loafers, and ordered their apparatus to be destroyed. 



The Chairman of the Stratford Bench (Mr. 

 Tabrum) appears to take another view of the matter. 

 Mr. Francis McKenzie, of the Warren, Loughton, 

 being in Epping Forest on Easter Sunday, saw 



three men working with call-birds, and shortly 

 afterwards met a couple of others sauntering along 

 the hedge and carrying two chaffinches in cages. 

 He took possession of the cages, and was sub- 

 sequently summoned for unlawfully detaining the 

 "goods," he at the same time summoning the men 

 for searching for nests contrary to the Forest 

 bye-laws. They said they kept birds for singing 

 competitions, and took them out for training. The 

 cross-summons was dismissed, and Mr. McKenzie 

 was ordered to give up the birds and pay the 

 costs, ^3 7s. 6d., Mr. Tabrum observing that 

 there was no possible harm in the men taking 

 out their birds and hearing them sing ; it was a 

 nice relief from Bethnal Green. (Mr. F. G. Aflalo, 

 commenting in the Morning Leader on the case, 

 suggests that bird-lovers and natural history so- 

 cieties in each county should establish a small 

 reserve fund to defray the costs of anyone sued for 

 his interference with birdcatchers and their like.) 



Before the same Bench, on May 20th, two men 

 charged with birdcatching were, the one fined, the 

 other sentenced to six weeks' hard labour for re- 

 sisting and assaulting a forest-keeper. 



A Nottingham birdcatcher was fined 40s. for 

 cruelty to decoy linnets at East Bridgford on May 

 7th. The birds were held captive with twine round 

 their legs, and defendant used a "jigger" to make 

 them hop about. One was dead, and the others 

 had their legs cut and bleeding. 



Henry Curline was let off with a warning and 

 payment of 10s. costs by the Bristol magistrates, 

 on April 8th, for cruelty to decoys. He had eight 

 birds tied on a string, which was twitched to make 

 them jump and fly when free birds came near. One 

 bird, a yellowhammer, was dead, having its back 

 broken. Defendant said he had been catching 

 birds for fifty years, and had never been in trouble 

 before. 



For stoning coots, which were afterwards found 

 dead, two men were ordered to pay 7s. costs each, 

 at Castle Eden, on May 28th, the magistrates 

 regretting they could not impose a fine. 



At the Aberdeen Sheriff's Court, on May 24th, 

 James McConnach was fined 15s. for taking eight 

 eggs of the black-backed gull from the estate of 

 Glen Tana. 



An important case, the first raised in the county 

 for many years, under the Poisoned Grain Act, 

 was heard by the Harewood End Bench (Hereford- 

 shire), on May 9, when John Williams, of Demence 

 Farm, Garway, was fined £"- ) and costs — ^10 3s. 6d., 

 for placing poisoned seed on land in his occupation. 

 In consequence of numerous complaints defen- 

 dant's actions were watched by Inspector Lewis, 

 of the Hereford S.P.C.A., and the police, and 

 some grain picked up on his field was sent 

 to the analyst and was found to be impregnated 

 with strychnine. 



The Irish Game Preservation Association has 

 secured five convictions against game dealers of 

 Dublin and Blackrock, for exposing wild duck 

 and plover for sale in the Close season. The 

 fines varied from 10s. to £2. 



