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Birds-nesting, unfortunately, is inherent in every country urchin, 
and. it will not be suppressed by fragmentary and ill-conceived enact¬ 
ments on the part of County Councils. Personally, I am less concerned 
about the abstraction of a few of the commoner eggs than about the 
destruction of the parent-birds, for, despite opinions to the contrary, 
I am quite satisfied that the former is an evil of little moment in com¬ 
parison with the latter. In the great majorty of cases, where a clutch 
of eggs is taken, the birds build and lay again, and repeat the process 
in the event of a second spoliation of their eggs. But when, as in an 
instance that came under my notice not very long ago, a pair of honey 
buzzards, in addition to being defrauded of their eggs, were actually 
murdered at the nest, it is not difficult to appreciate the indignation 
which fills the minds of lovers of birds when they note a veritable 
hotch-potch of regulations, lacking in efficacy as well as consistency, 
usurping the place of what in competent hands would prove truly 
advantageous and beneficent legislation. I suppose it is idle to hope 
that the suppression of the professional birdcateher, frequently a vagrant 
of the worst type, is a dream that will be realised in the near future, 
but I fail to see why power should not be given to landowners to prose¬ 
cute trespassers who come on their property to catch or take wild 
birds or their eggs without leave or license. Prosecutions of children 
for taking eggs, however, are obviously not things to 1 be encouraged. 
Apart from the fines that might be imposed weighing hardly on the 
parents of the delinquents, I take it that magistrates would not care 
to have their courts congested—as they unquestionably would be—with 
trivial business of this character. As bearing on these manifold issues, 
nevertheless, it should ever be borne prominently in mind by those 
bent on furthering the interests of birds that it is a grievous mistake 
to do a good cause the ill service of overstating it, or of exaggerating its 
requirements. A positive curse to the cause they profess to have so 
warmly at heart may frequently be affirmed of too-zealous partisans! 
It is understood that a somewhat sweeping measure concerning the 
protection of wild birds is shortly to be re-introduced in the House of 
Commons. Its effect, briefly summarised, is as follows: —All birds of 
every kind and species are to be protected from Feb. 1 to 1 August 31, 
under a penalty of 40s. for each bird killed or taken. No egg of any 
wild bird can be taken under a penalty of 20s. However, to counteract 
this most comprehensive enumeration of impending new offences is a 
