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or appreciation is impossible. At the other extreme are those who are 
unsatisfied until they know all about the objects of their admiration and 
interest, and have pried into the innermost secrets of their relationships, 
habits, and economy. Between these extremes are every degree and 
combination of aesthetic and scientific interest. It may not be necessary 
for all to become highly developed scientific ornithologists, but it is essential 
to every art or science that there exist a certain leaven of experts to direct 
the amateur, assist him with short-cuts, and present conclusions that 
he may not be qualified or inclined to discover for himself. Equally 
necessary is it to healthful development of any such line of inquiry that 
there be these experts and specialists to set, by example, standards of 
excellence and method. This is as true in ornithology as it is in art, ath- 
letics, or stock raising. Considerable sesthetic pleasure and some informa- 
tion can be obtained by merely watching birds in life, more can be obtained 
by use of field glasses and systematic study, but it is no more possible for one 
to obtain accurate and comprehensive knowledge of birds than of plants 
or insects without collecting or at least handling specimens. It would be 
impossible for anyone to write such a book as this without constant 
access to complete or extensive series of specimens. Scientific ornithol- 
ogists are necessary, but they cannot be developed without conceding 
them the right to collect and study at first hand the material through 
which they can develop. That such a right cannot be distributed too 
freely is obvious. In consequence, for collecting in Canada for scientific 
purposes, birds covered by the Migratory Birds Convention Act, a permit 
from the Canadian National Parks Branch of the Department of Interior 
is necessary. These are granted to applicants who show that they are 
sincere and bona fide bird students, qualified to make proper use of them. 
The spirit in which these permits are issued and the guards against their 
abuse are well shown by the following “principles” that are attached to 
and form a part of them. 
PERMIT PRINCIPLES 
Permits to take migratory birds, their nests and eggs, under the 
Migratory Birds Convention Act and Regulations, are granted for the sole 
purpose of scientific study and not for the collection of objects of curiosity 
or personal or household adornment. Therefore, only such persons as 
take a serious interest in ornithology, and are competent to exercise the 
privilege for the advancement of knowledge, are eligible to receive such 
permits. 
It is expected that the holders of permits will use them with reason- 
able discretion, taking only such specimens as their scientific requirements 
demand and avoiding unnecessary waste of life. The habitual taking of 
numbers of individuals for the purpose of obtaining a few specially desirable 
ones is deprecated and it is urged that the collector take no more specimens 
than he has reasonable prospects of caring for and will conscientiously 
endeavour properly to prepare each and all when taken. 
It is also recommended that the holders of permits will, so far as is 
consistent with their object, be considerate of the local feeling in the 
neighbourhood where they collect and will demonstrate both by actions 
and speech that the scientific collector is sympathetic towards the principles 
of wild-life conservation and is not the rival of legitimate sportsmen. 
