Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1908-01-09
JOUR- TREES IN DANGER
Forests Doomed Unless Native
Birds Are Protected, Says
John Davey
HAVOC WROUGHT BY INSECTS

Our Only Hope Lies In American
Birds That Feed on Thorn, Says Tree
Lover-EngIish Sparrow Must Go,
He DecIares-Cats Serious Menace
to Birds.
John Davey Of Kent. O.. whose lee
ture on trees and their diseases Is at
tracing national attention. has been
chosen to give the opening lecture at
the great summer school in Chautau-
qua, N. Y, says the Kent (Oo Courier.
The intense interest recently shown
In Dayton. o.. and in Yonkers. N. Y.
indicates that great national cam
paign is about to be inaugurated for
the restoration of the native birds.
William butcher. national president
Of the Audubon society. was Mt the
Yonkers meeting and said: III am an
Audubonist not from an aesthetic but
from an economic standpoint. Our So
cieties will gladly cooperate with the
civic leagues to help save the trees by
the restoration of the native birds.
The agricultural department at Wash
ington informs us that $SOO.O0O,00O
damage annually is done to the crops
of the United States by insects and
this through our folly and sins of de.
stroying the native birds"
Mr.. Dayey shows in his lecture that
in fifteen years Ohio and the adjoining
states will be treeless II the "fall web.
worms" cannot be brought under con.
troll. Already they are throughout the
woodlands. and 1t is beyond human
power to control them. ANY tree" he
says. 'defoliated five gears in success.
sion will perish Again. he says: 60
ing from Pittsburg to Marietta on the
b. and o. last fall saw thousands OF
hickory and walnut trees standing
dead, killed by the caterpillars. They
first attack the wild cherry, then the
hickory and walnut trees. then the
apple. elm. ailanthus--indeed. anything
and everything. The gypsy and brown
tail moths are sweeping westerly from
Massachusetts, and our only hope is
from our God appointed friends, the
American native birds"
The English sparrow must go, for 1t
will not allow the bluebird. the oriole,
wren or any Of our insectivorous birds
to stay near human dwelling. These
are driven from our homes by this
abominable pest--the English "house
sparrow" Then IN the nesting season
these innocent little fellow workers
of ours (tlle native brds>. whose main
living Is the larvae. grubs. borers, etc.
become a prey of the hawk, crow, red
squirrel and other enemies that prey
upon them.
Passing through the woods at Mr.
William Rockefellers estate at Tarry.
town. N. Y. one morning last May. |
noticed the crows fitting from shrul
to shrub. called the superintendent;
attention to la why" said he, there
are probably thousand crows in this
region, and this time Of the year the,
do little else but hunt for young birds
Within all these beautiful WOODLAND
surroundings there is scarcely song
ster heard,
In q discussion following Mr.. Da
vey's lecture in Yonkers the facts were
there brought out that the domestic
cat Is one of the worst foes of tho
birds. Said gentleman: I'VE have
a pet cat. None of US has ever seen
it catch mouse or rat, but last sea-
son it brought fifty two young birds
into the house." An Audubonist said
that his society had considered the
''cat nuisance" and there are estimat-
ed to be 6O,OOO,O00 cats in the United
States, and that most of these would
have to be shot or taxed out of ex-
fstence.
Said Mr.. Davey: without the trees
man could not live. Without the aid
Of our native birds the trees will sure.
ly perish. am told that in the south
every boy big enough to carry gun,
whether he be white or black, spends
his winter months in shooting and
shipping robins, catbirds, orioles, red
wings, meadow larks, ETC., under the
name OF 'reedbirds' Will the nation
axe and save the trees by restoring
and protecting the birds? Will not the
newspapers speak to the people"