Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1907-04-27

Doubt a good deal of this is paid for
killing weeds. How much money
could have been saved If no doves
had been killed at all can only be
surmised.
The mere idea of our song birds
as food seems both wicked and pre-
MYSTERIOUS. But we have progressed
vastly since Mr.. Sennett, of the
American Ornithologists Union, be-
held in the markets of Norfolk, Vir-
ginia. 26 species, among them being
the robin, catbird, brown thrasher,
bluebird, yellow-rumped warbler,
wax-wing and eight kinds of spar
rows and doves. Some Of the stall
stands had three or four hundred
birds exposed.
Worse still, Mr.. Frank NJ. Miller,
president of the Louisiana Audubon
society, while making a cruise amona
the islands of the Gulf, found that
the eggs of the royal and least terms,
laughing gulls and black skimmers
were actually being used for the
manufacture of glue on a large scale
surely the most fragrant and
vicious form of bird destruction.
Thre cor four years ago Audubon
work in Louisiana was unknown, but
couple of years spent in educating
public opinion wrought a complete
change in bird affairs; and now
Louisiana has the most perfect nom
: game bird law in America.
There are plenty of districts, how
ever, where the blrd-catcher works
his cruel nets, some of them a 100
feet long. You'll see a man catching
fnches and working his net from be-
hind hedge. Half a dozen stuffed
birds are stuck up all close together,
as though around a rare find of
grubs; and there is one live decoy
that can be worked up and down by
means of a string held in the fowler's
left hand.
As soon as the flock is seen coming
the live bird Is set inmotion, and the
flying myriads see him, and also the
little crowd of dummies, evidently
having a good time on the ground.
And down swoop the clouds of pret-
ty creatures-only to be covered by
the ruthless net. One man will
catch 20 or 80 dozen in a single day.
They work in pairs, one man seeing
TO the nets, while the other acts as
beater.
The net man has all kinds OF little
bird-calls, tiny fiat drums with a hol-
low in the center, which he puts be-
tween his lips, and Stimulates every
call with wonderful skill. You will
see him fetch down flocks of larks In
full flight from a great altitude.
Quite large prices are paid for de-
coy birds with seductive voices; a
fine goldhnch will fetch $5 for this
purpose. Larks are caught on dark
nights, as they roost on the ground,
by a net 10 yards long and IS feet
deep. IL is mounted on two poles
and carried by a couple of men with
the top four feet OFF the grorlu, and
the bottom just touching the grass
so as not TO disturb the sleeping
birds and make them rise. Directly
a lark nutters up. the net is droppet
and the victim Is taken out. An ex
perienced hand will take 20 or 81
dozen larks in a night.
Each state reports intelligen
, progress; and in places where sea
birds nest in vest numbers, sea-goini
, launches protect them during tn
8 breeding season. Audubon Bir,
clubs are organized in the school
with the object of studying birds
, protecting them, attracting then
q around about the schools and park
. and homes; and In England the biri
> cociety employs women who atten