972 
Women Help Bison Fund. 
Editor Forest and Stream: 
It is fair to assume that every American 
naturalist and sportsman is interested in the per¬ 
petual preservation of the great American bison, 
for it is his duty to feel concerned in a matter 
of so much importance to the future Americans. 
By the same token, every business man of the 
country beyond the Mississippi should feel an 
interest in the fate of the wild animal species 
that warmed and fed and clothed tens of thou¬ 
sands of the men who won the great West from 
the Indians and wild beasts. It was the ‘'busi¬ 
ness interests” of the plains country, wanting 
hides to sell at $2.50 each, that exterminated 
4,000,000 bison between 1870 and 1884; and for 
this reason the business men of the West have 
been asked to contribute to the Bison Society 
fund for the purchase of the Montana National 
Herd. 
Last May we asked ourselves, “What shall the 
harvest be?” Cheerfully we entered upon the 
task of raising $10,000 for the purchase of forty 
bison, for the nucleus herd. In view of the great 
number of persons likely to be interested, the 
task did not at that time seem to be so very 
great. 
But we live and learn. Of the millions of men 
who openly lament the fate of the bison, only 
a fraction of one per cent, are willing to do more 
than exclaim, “Too bad!” The number of 
naturalists and sportsmen who have not yet sub¬ 
scribed to the Bison Fund is appalling, and the 
number of Western business men whose pocket- 
books require a jimmy to open them to this 
cause is quite beyond belief. It is clear that 
up to this date only a very few of the zoologists 
and sportsmen of America have acquired the 
habit of giving money for the promotion of prac¬ 
tical measures for the protection and perpetua¬ 
tion of the wild life in which they are undoubt¬ 
edly interested. It is difficult to persuade them 
to give, but to induce them to raise money by 
auxiliary subscriptions is still more so. 
Nevertheless, even to this general rule there 
are some exceptions, and among the most im¬ 
portant we give credit to the following persons 
who have gone afield and raised sums as fol¬ 
lows : 
Mr. John M. Phillips, Pittsburg, $361; Prof. 
Morton J. Elrod, Missoula, Montana, $283; F. 
H. Kennard, Boston, $200; Geo. H. Gould, Santa 
Barbara, Cal., $25; Wm. P. Palmer, Chicago, 
$24; G. D. Pope, Detroit, $49; Francis G. Eaton, 
St. Louis, $25; Miss Harriet E. Freeman, 'Bos¬ 
ton, $20; Hugo A. Koehler, St. Louis, $28; 
Henry S. Fleek, Newark, Ohio, $30; Frank 
Rush, Cache, Oklahoma, $48; The Nineteen 
Club, through T. Charles Farrelly, New York, 
$100; Clemens Herschel, New York, $17; Forest 
and Stream, $99. 
Of course many smaller subscription lists have 
been turned in and a few individuals have sub¬ 
scribed generous sums, all of which eventually 
will be set forth. 
The campaign has been very productive of 
surprises, and the first one is the fact that the 
women of America have taken a hard and fast 
interest in this work, far beyond everything that 
might reasonably be expected of them. The 
first check received came from Mrs. Emma L. 
Mee, of Concord, Mass., and it has remained 
for another gentlewoman of the Old Bay State, 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
Mrs. Ezra Ripley Thayer, of Boston, to furnish, 
by her example, an object lesson of the first 
magnitude to the men of America. 
Early in the campaign, in response to a printed 
circular from a practical stranger, Mrs. Thayer 
wrote me that she felt a deep interest in the 
plan for a Montana National Bison Herd, and 
she pledged herself to raise, with her own con¬ 
tribution, a total of $400 for the fund. Her 
first remittance was forwarded on July 16, and 
for nearly five months her efforts continued with 
unflagging industry. At last, on Nov. 30, the 
society received with her final list her own con¬ 
tribution of $200, bringing her total up to $500, 
MRS. EZRA RIPLEY THAYER. 
or one-twentieth of the whole $10,000, required 
for the forty bison. 
Many men find it impossible to secure money 
by subscription. They say, “I cannot go to my 
friends and ask them for money.” And of 
course they will not go to their enemies. But 
is it not strange to see every American sports¬ 
man and every zoologist also, for that matter, 
completely outclassed in actual bison preserva¬ 
tion by the Lady of Boston! To one man, at 
least, her example has been more than encourag¬ 
ing. When a woman can work thus for the 
preservation of the bison, how can men who are 
naturalists or sportsmen withhold from the 
doing of their plain duty? 
A little later on a full report on the contribu¬ 
tions of American women to the Bison Fund 
will make very interesting reading. 
W. T. Horn ad ay. 
Audubon Work. 
In his address to the members of the National 
Association of Audubon Societies at the recent 
annual meeting, the President, Mr. Dutcher, 
made an earnest plea for public support, not 
only for financial aid, but for the support of 
public opinion and an increased general interest 
[Dec. 19, 1908. 
in the work. He well says: “The foundation 
of all the wealth of the country is based on its 
agricultural and forestry products, and without 
birds such products would be impossible. The 
annual loss from insects and rodent pests at 
the present time is estimated to be $800,000,000. 
When the public begins to think about these 
figures and realizes that this annual loss may 
be reduced by such work as ours, I feel sure 
that an adequate support will be forthcoming. 
If it is not, this generation is simply robbing 
children yet unborn. We do not wish our chil¬ 
dren to feel about us as we do about our fathers 
who permitted the wanton and useless extinction 
of the bison and the wild pigeon.” The income 
of the association during the past year was $24,- 
000 and this, when apportioned among the sev¬ 
eral branches of the work and divided among 
the States and Territories, gives but a small sum 
to each. The subject is one of great importance 
to the agricultural interests of the country. 
In order to inform the public as to this im¬ 
portance, the National Association employs 
various means. Among these is a Press Bureau 
through which correct statements as to birds, 
their habits and their uses are disseminated 
throughout the land. It was by means of such 
a notice that Mr. Wilcox, the benefactor of the 
association, learned of its existence and its work. 
Besides this, educational leaflets are distributed 
to children, field agents give illustrated lectures, 
and exhibits are made at agricultural fairs. The 
work of the association includes the protection 
of wild animals as well as wild birds, and Mr. 
Dutcher hopes for legislation prohibiting spring 
shooting in certain States, providing that game 
birds shall not be sold, that non-game birds shall 
be protected and that big game shall be pro¬ 
tected. 
To Mr. Dutcher’s great energy and persistence 
more than to anything else is due the extension 
of interest in the Audubon movement which to¬ 
day is a living and growing force in the land. 
The London Fur Market. 
The advices received from London up to 
November, 1908, report the importation of- furs 
by Hudson’s Bay Company as follows: 
T’l importations 
Advised to 1907, as per 
date, 1908, Sales Catalogs, 
Pounds. Pounds. 
Muskrat . 300,000 172,318 
Raccoon . 150 243 
Mink . 11,000 21,473 
Skunk . 1,500 5,205 
Marten . 22,000 34,734 
Fox, red .• 3,000 7,508 
Fox, cross . 1,400 3,173 
Fox, silver . 350 653 
Fox, white . 2,000 6,749 
Fox, blue . 15 64 
Otter . 5,300 6,132 
Lynx . 8,800 36,201 
Fisher . 2,700 4,688 
Badger ... 125 182 
Beaver . 33,000 29,803 
Wolf . 3,800 4,472 
Bear . 4,500 4,702 
Wolverine . 700 894 
Dry hair seal . 1,800 1,522 
Ermine . 15,000 29,770 
Castoreum . 1,600 1,255 
Messrs. C. M. Lampson & Co., 64 Queen street, 1 
E. C., London, England, announce the following 1 
dates of fur sales for the next year: 
Hudson’s Bay Company, Jan. 25, March 22 to j 
25- 
C. M. Lampson & Co., Jan. 25 to 29, March ; 
22 to April 2, June 21 to 24, Oct. 18 to 21 (fur 
seals), Dec. 17. 
