The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1913-07-03
Benefits Bird Butchers.
Clapp Amendment May Spoil Tariff Guard
of Wild Life-Feather Traders Frantic in
Its Support Audubon Workers Appeal
For Its Defeat

New YORK, June 80, 1913. Threaten
ing to defeat the will OF the millions Of
Americans who joined hands to force
into the tariff bill the partisan clause
prohibiting the importation of the
feathers Of wild birds, the moniad inter-
ests of the feather dealers are now at
tempting to kill the effect OF this provlso
in the senate finance committee, accord
ing to reports received at the head
quarters Of the National Association of
Audubon Societies in this city. In a
wenty-word amendment by Senator
Clamp, for which the millinery forces
are frantlcally attempting to gain sup
port, it has just been discovered that a
loophole large enough to sanction all the
worst forms Of bird butchery may be
punche in this popular provision of the
bill. Unless every nature lover protes
to senators Hughes of New Jersey,
Smith of Georgia and Johnson of Maine
who VIII pass upon this subtle amend
ment IN subcommittee, it is admitted
that the fight against further bird
slaughter and importation may be lost.
BY adding this joker eXempting 1.-The
! feathers or plumes of game birds usual6
killed for food purposes and birds which
are killed as pests the millinery inter-
/ ests have now taken a sure step toward
perpetuating the traffic in aigrettes and
other plumes gathered by the bird
butchers of the world, the Audubon
leaders declare. Over a score of species
. md Of ha Wild irJe VIII
! destruction the feather traders put the
been legally regarded as game birds, :"
it is pointed out, while the aigrette-
| bearing heron has even been classified
under this general head by an Ohio
court. If birds usually killed for food
J purposes are to be exempted from this
prohibition on Importation dozen more
species of the most valuable insect and
weed-eaters can also be handled by the
| feather houses, that it is known may
easily substitute American feathers for
such varieties as they are allowed to
import from countries where many more
birds are killed for food
At the other end of the large loophole
which the millinery interests are secret
ly trying to tear in this saving clause tor
wild birds, the exemption of birds "kill-
ed as pests" is regarded by expert
ornlthologists here as practically nullify-
ing the effect of the whole provision.
/ Mockingbirds, Jays, Woodpeckers, Cat
birds, Robins and others of the Thrush
and Thrasher families are known to be
killed ''as pests" occasionally by farm
ers enraged at their rare crop eating,
while the birds that bear aigrette plumes
are even regarded by a few ignorant
fishermen as dangerous to young trout.
If the Clapp amendment is adopted, the
scalps of almost any birds may be I'M
ported on the plea that they were 'kill-
ed as pests" the Audubon workers
point out.
Every American who stands for de-
Tending the birds from slaughter should
at once write or wire their senators at
Washington, or this Clapp amendment
may destroy the wild bird protection
which the people rallied to support, -
said L. Gilbert Pearson, secretary of the
National Association of Audubon So
cieties, at its headquarters, 1874 Broad
way, to-day. Think of the millions of
birds throughout the world that can
easily be. killed as pests or for food
purposes by commercial interests who
have accumulated wealth by putting a
premium on the destruction of the val
liable bird life of the world. These in.
terests are now giving the Clapp amend
ment to Schedule N their frantic sup
port and may defeat the will of the
whole American people if our appeals
are not answered by popular protest
to the senate"