Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1909-06-29
TO Save BIRDS.
Campaign Begun By Na.
Aiifrol aisdgAaa. Saeiah.
q. ing 10 Project ssagslsiis'.' :



American boy and girl in one grea,
child army to guard the bird resources
Of their country is the object of a cam
paign that has been begun in this CITY
today. Under the direction of the Ma.
tional Association of Audubon So.
cities it is planned to try to reach
every one of the twenty million school
children scattered over the continent
and form them into an active and
united fighting force for the feathered
crop guards whose butchery is now
threatening the agricultural wealth of
coming generations. Already it is re-
ported that the children of many states
are enrolling in the ranks Of this ma
tional array Of boys and girls on whom
the Audubon officials base their bright
est hopes of future protection for the
birds.
To muster the children Of the South
into the van guard of this boy and
girl army T. Gilbert Pearson. secretary
Of the Audubon association, has today
gone to Knoxville where he will lecture
to several thousand teachers at their
summer school on the relation of birds
to agriculture and the best methods Of
teaching this important subject in
schools With an endowment of $780,
900, which it is hoped may be obtained
from the Peabody fund next fall, this
branch of education will be pushed and
extended throughout the southern
states till every child in this section
has become an active advocate of the
proper protection Of it's valuable bird
resources.
&c.
the boys of Cincinnati are already
heading an extensive child movement
in that state by building 1000 houses
Tor the birds who sadly need shelter
in the parks. Instead of robbing
BIRDS nests of their eggs, these boys
as well as many others throughout the
country are now interested in the
equally interesting occupation of max
ing and placing these bird shelters in
the trees where they will be patron
lied by the native hocks. Such work
has been done in Germany for long
time with splendid results.
On the Pacific Coast and in New
England the children are now ready to
organize for the work of guarding
their birds in which their elders are
actively interested. In New York
state hundreds of thousands of school
children are known to be eager to en-
list. The boys and girls of Illinois are
also reported to he preparing to make
up a good large section of the young
army. Thousands of pamphlets show
ing the children the uses and habits
of over sixty American bird species
have been distributed in schools over
the entire country by the National As
slciation of Audubon Societies during
the past year in preparation for this
movement by American boys and girls.
# sufficient funds become available
for this educational campaign it is
planned to spread the knowledge of
every bird in the land in this way to
every schOolhouse on the continent.
1--WE must depend upon the little folk
to take up this battle for the birds
which we have Waged for years all
over the country" said William Dutch
er. president Of the National AssOcia
ton of the Audubon Societies at it's
headquarters, al Broadway, today
besides the great sentimental interest
which the children take in the feath-
cred SongSterS of their home country.
they must be taught to realize that
their native land will become barren
in few generations If the insect
eating birds are not preserved and In
creased, This is great and vital work
of national education and we hope to
rally thousands of parents to its active
sllpport"