13 
ity, so that they should not be killed nor snared. Rather 
they should be encouraged to live in the neighborhood of 
houses. This can be done to some extent by preventing 
their being shot or trapped and by protecting their nests and 
young. Crows eat the eggs and young of wild birds as 
well as of chickens and should be killed or driven away 
from the vicinity of houses. In some places a supply of 
clean water will attract birds to bathe and drink. In the 
United States birds that naturally nest in holes, such as 
nuthatches and chickadees, take very readily to nesting 
boxes, which may be nailed in trees, to fence posts, and 
in other sites. One of the worst enemies of small birds, 
especially during the nesting season, is the stray cat. Cats 
that are fed and are kept close to the house may do very 
little killing, but when forced to find their own food, cats 
kill so many birds that the farmer should not hesitate to 
put them out of the way. Boys, especially when equipped 
with air guns, are responsible for killing or scaring away 
many useful birds. A boy with a gun must shoot at some¬ 
thing, but he should be shown that insectivorous birds are 
too valuable to be expended for target practice. Let him 
confine his attention to crows, which are certainly of no 
use about a farm house or coconut grove. 
Societies Jot bivd protection. —In many countries theie 
are societies whose object is to protect useful and beautiful 
wild birds. These societies stimulate interest in birds by 
publishing information concerning the value of well-known 
birds, by encouraging the building of bird houses, by il¬ 
lustrated lectures, and by the introduction of bird study in 
schools. The object of this work is to develop respect and 
admiration for birds through knowledge of their habits. 
In the United States this work is carried on by the Na¬ 
tional Association of Audubon Societies, named in honor of 
John James Audubon, a very famous artist and lover of 
birds. The National Association is made up of the state 
societies, which in turn have local societies in the towns. 
Besides its educational work the Association has carried on 
aggressive campaigns for the establishment of bird re¬ 
serves, for reform of game laws, and for laws protecting 
nongame birds and prohibiting the sale of the feathers of 
