The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1898-02-05


vorable to dyeing feathers, and in no
country in the world can such beau
tiful gloss and shine be given to black
ostrich plumes and tips. All of these
aigrettes owls, gulls, and%erns you see
in the cases were killed in this country;
the skins were sold to London dealers
and purchased from them by the
| French, who prepared them, and we i'm
| ported our own birds from Paris. 1t
Will be long time, I'm thinking, be-
fore women give up fancy birds and
| feathers"
| Another buyer for large concern said:
There is perfect fad for wearing
birds and feathers among women. 1t
amounts almost to a craze Nearly ev-
! cry day, however, a woman or two
comes in who refuses to wear anything
except ostrich feathers; but such wo-
men do not hurt the business, for they
| are too few and far between. We inn
port nearly our entire stock of birds,
and | want to tell you frankly that
very, very few of the thousands and
thousands Of birds wings and feathers
that we sell are from domesticated
birds. They are wild birds that come
from all parts of the world. do not
believe in denying that fact, though
see no harm in women wearing them
| These people who oppose the fashion
are lot OF folks who have nothing to
do, and they must find something. So
they rant about killing the birds for
their feathers. 1t isn't likely that they
will hurt the business much, for wav-
ing plumes and soft, fluffy birds and
stiff wings are too becoming to the av-
erage woman"
Mrs Harriet Beecher Stowe once
said: when you get into a tight place
and everything goes against you, till
1t seems as if you couldn't hold on a
minute longer, never give UP then, for
that is just the place and time the tide
will turn" and she found occasion to
repeat it often. The Audubon society
finds itself in the tight place, so far as
this bird and feather fashion Is con-
cerned, but the members are confidently
holding on to their principles and work,
for they believe that the tide is about
to turn. They are convinced that the
obstruction of birds for the disfgure-
ment of women's heads" has about
reached the top notch. They do not
claim that it will abate perceptibly very
soon, for this cannot be expected when
some feathers sell for more than their
weight in gold.
ut is impossible to tell just what in
f1uence the work of the Audubon society
has had upon the public" said Frank
NJ Chapman, the ornithologist, who Is
chairman of the executive committee of
the society. 1--WE try to stop the whole
sale destruction Of birds by creating a
sentiment against the fashions of wear
ing all except the feathers of the os-
trich and domesticated fowls for or
namentation. Sentiment cannot be
measured, but our society has grown
steadily and we take that as good
Indication of interest in the work. Then,
too, frequent requests are coming from
women's clubs for talks on birds and
their destruction. This is a straw show
ing which way the wind tends.
"The Audubon society would like to
impress on women the fact that they
can get infinite variety in color and
form in the plumage of birds and fowls
killed primarily for food. We hear a
great deal of talk about the thousands
of people who would be thrown out Of
employment If women should stop
wearing birds and feathers. The re-
strction Of feathers to those of domes-
ticated birds would result in a greatly
. |
increased INDUSTRY, because they Woulo
REQUIRE SO inueh more treatment III .he
way OF ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS anu ffiakihs
up.
Undoubtedly the plumage of many
domesticated birds is used in millinery,
but not nearly so much as some dealers
claim. Take the pheasants so much
in vogue now. only know of three
pheasantries near New York; one IS on
the Havemeyer estate at Mahwah, N.
j., one on the Schieffelin estate, near
Tarrytown, and the third at Closter, N.
j. But all of these breed pheasants to
. sell as birds of beauty as one breeds
, fine poultry. Most pheasants are wild
birds. 1T Is exceedingly difficult to do
mesticate them, and, indeed, the Eng
, lish pheasant is the only one that has
, been domesticated with success. The
, hotels and restaurants here probably
import those they use from England,
, and you may be sure most pheasants
roostlng on the hats of women are not
, English pheasants, but wild ones killed
, for millinery purposes
"Owls are also verv fashionable now.
and they are among our most useful
! birds hecallse their food consists of ami