as an outcome of this feeling in May 1918 the breeding colony in the 
Indian River near Sebastian was raided and 300 or 400 young were killed* 
Much publicity was given the alleged depredations of the pelicans in 
the press and the matter of their protection was made in a way e poli- 
tical issue during the last state campaign. A pertinent reason for this 
last may be found in the fact that a# 4,000 state licenses were issued 
last yoar to fishing boats, each of whioh carries a orew of from one to 
ten men, there are at a conservative estimate 10,000 or 12,000 men en- 
gaged in this industry. As these men are voters in nearly all oases the 
value of catering to them in a political way is evident a glance. 
During the oourse of the present work many of the fishermen were 
sounded as to their views on the pelican. As these men on the whole 
take a purely utilitarian view of life all oonfessed that they were un- 
able to see why pelicans should be protected, as they were of no apparent 
use in any way, either as a source of food or as aid in destroying any 
form of life detrimental to the interests of man. Even those who in a 
rough way made pets of the great birds by throwing them worthless fish 
taken in their nets were free to say that they considered the birds 
♦ 
U gly and ill favored and seemed more interested in their somewhat amaz- 
ing ability to gulp down fish of some size entire, rather than in at- 
©h +' D - 
tract i^g^them through any real interest in them. 
As regards the alleged destructiveness of the pelican sentiment 
was found to be about evenly divided in favor of or against the bird. 
Certain of the fishennen claimed that pelioans fed upon mullet to the 
exclusion of other fish and that each individual bin! consumed from 
ten to fifteen pounds of these fish daily, as estimates of the number 
