The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1910-02-17
What Il Means When g
Woman Wears an AiqrCtc
Deadly Work
OF PIurndge
Hunters
Audubon Society
Undertakes TO
End Trade

That the baby egret, or heron, may
not be left to starve in it's nest while
the parents. in their fine nuptial plum
age, are carried off from the nesting
grounds in the bag of the hunter, Miss
Ethel Bagnall of the millinery firm of
Bagnau & Boughton appeared yester-
day morning in Judge Conlan's depart
ment of the police court. She is charged
with having aigrettes in her possession
and offering them for sale in violation
of the state law.
". l.. Finley of the Audubon society,
the complaining witness in the case,
says that the prosecution was insti-
tuted to destroy the trade in aigrettes
in California and thus effect protec-
ton of the egrets. Egrets in the
neighborhood of klamath lake, Lake
Tulare and other coast lakes have been
nearly exterminated
The proceedings yesterday morning
consisted chiefly in esta blishing the
fact that Miss Bagnall had aigrettes in
her possession and for sale. Two mar
velous hats were offered as evidence.
The price of one was SIS and the other
had been marked $50. Finley had Sc
cured the evidence against the milliner
by negotiating for the purchase of the
hats.
CASE AGAINST JEWELER DROPPED
The case was continued until this
morning, when Miss Bagnall will make
her defense. The charge against
Charles Isaac of the Baldwin jewelry
company was dismissed yesterday on
the showing that the aigrettes in the
tiara which had been on exhibition in
the window of the Baldwin house were
there solely as an attraction and were
not for sale.
BY destroying the market for
aigrettes the Audubon society which
is behind nation wide movement to
protect the birds, the egret, which
bears the delicate pluma ge, will not
alone be saved. The little ones left
in the nest by the father and mother
before the guns of the plumage
hunters viii not be fated to starve
to death in their retreats owing to
the death of the parent birds.
The killing of the heron TO secure
the aigrettes is considered by the
be the most ruthless and cruel
slaughter of the innocents ever de-
vised to pamper the extravagances
and vanities of woman.
THE NUPTIAL PLUMAGE
The feathers used by the milliners
in alleged violation of the existing
law are known as the nuptial plumage.
They start to grow between the
shoulders of both the male and the
female bird in February or March
They are at their best during the
hrpadin0 n mid len
When the eggs have been laid in
the nest and the little birds have
cracked their shells the fatal beauty
of the feathers is at its best. Then.
in past years, the sections where the
egret or heron abound have swarmed
The nests in the marshes are located
and the hunter sits ready with his
gun to catch the bird as it flies from
cover.
The male bird comes first, the dainty
fiiligree Of feathers between the
shoulders catching the CLINT of the
summer sun. There is the report of
a carefully aimed shot and the bird
drops dead. The little egrets in their
nests are left half orphaned.
Later in the day the dead birds mate
after waiting in vain for its return to
the nest with food for the clamoring.
chirruping youngsters, will despair and
another report of the skillfully aimed
gun as the sunlight catches the CLINT
OF the ffligree feathers between the
mother birds shoulders. The bird drops
LITTLE CHICKS STARVE
Left in the nest are several feeble
little chicks. able to clamor loudly for
food, but unable to move from the
nest in the reeds in quest of nourish-
ment. A long afternoon passes and the
chill of night comes. The little birds
have no warm breasted mother to keep
off the chill of the marsh. When the
sun comes up on the second day there is
still no food and slowly the birds
stsrve in their nests. The killing of
two birds means determination of the
second generation. AS a consequence
Of the slaughter the locales which were
once populated by the heron are now
almost bereft of them. Nearly .ll the
birds that once abounded in the vicin-
ity of Lake Tulare. Lake klamath and
other marshes of the coast have been
exterminated.
BREAK UP THE MARKET