THE ANNUAL MEETING 
103 
for the purpose of adorning ladies’ hats. More often than not 
the wounded birds were captured ; their wings were then cut 
off, and the bird, still alive, was thrown into the sea. He (Lord 
Avebury) hoped that that could hardly be the case. Mr. Pike 
said if ladies could only see the terrible work which was only 
done to supply their unworthy fancies, he did not think they 
would be so partial to hats adorned with such “ murderous 
millinery.” The use of aigrettes, he pointed out, had been aban- 
doned in the Army, and he was glad to see from the Nottingham 
Guardian that a League had been formed, the members of which 
pledged themselves not to marry any lady who wore them. 
That was perhaps going too far, because ladies mostly wore 
them owing to ignorance or want of thought. He had men- 
tioned that subject on a previous occasion, and twelve ladies then 
present were found to be wearing aigrettes in their hats. This 
year he was pleased to say he did not see a single one. He was 
sure, however, that no one of those twelve ladies would wear 
aigrettes in her hat again. He could not hope to have the 
same effect on the ladies present, as they had anticipated him; 
He hoped all, however, would do their utmost to put an end 
to the cruel practice. He was informed that in 1900 one bird- 
catcher caught seventeen kingfishers in the Metropolitan dis- 
trict. One reason of the failure of legislation on the subject until 
now had been that the fines were so small that those who had 
rare birds or eggs could afford to pay the fine and snap their 
fingers at the magistrate. Now we had an amendment act 
by which the court might, in addition to imposing a penalty, 
order any such wild bird or wild birds’ eggs to be forfeited and 
disposed of as the court might think fit. That important 
provision would go far to make the act more operative than 
had been the case hitherto. Then again they might congratulate 
themselves on the fact that all over the country more and 
more refuges were growing up, in which game birds and other 
wild birds were protected. There was no doubt that the 
strict preservation going on had the advantage that owing to 
the nests of pheasants and partridges being guarded, the nests 
and eggs of other birds had been protected also in consequence. 
He cordially approved of the work of Mr. J. E. Whiting (Hon; 
Sec. of the Hampstead Branch of their Society), who some time 
ago started a sanctuary or refuge for birds on Hampstead 
Heath. The London County Council, to whom they were all 
indebted for their co-operation in such matters, had done what 
they could to protect the place, and had now planted it with 
trees, shrubs, &c. A beginning therefore had been made. 
Another sanctuary, he understood, was in the neighbourhood of 
Ealing, and he ventured to hope that the example might be 
followed in other parts of the Metropolis. It was satisfactory 
also, he thought, that the authorities in British India had taken 
