l‘lt‘0NthltJ UliNl'l‘lltHfltl Y. 7

Indies, and the rabbit in Australia. el 'arly show that our attempts to improve upon Nature must be directed, not by haphazard methods, but by knowledge gained through a careful study of Nature‘s laws.

Few persons realize the value of birds to Inan. 'l‘hey are the natural check upon the increase of inseet life. (‘onsider the ineal- culable number of insects destroyed by the birds which pass the greater part of each day hunting through our lawns. orchards, fields, and woods for the pests that destroy vegetation. 0t almost equal im- portance are the birds of prey whose food consists largely of the small rodents which are among the farmer's worst enemies. Indeed, it is not too much to say that without birds the earth would not long be habitable.

As yet we are on the threshold of an exact knowledge of the value of birds to man; but let us cite one easily demonstrable arse where ignorance of birds‘ habits resulted in direct pecuniary loss. Quoting from the report for 1886 of Dr. (‘. llart. Merriam, Ornithologist and Mammalogist of the l'nited States Department of Agriculture: “011 the 23d of June. 1885, the Legislature of Pennsylvania passed an act known as the ‘sealp act,” ostensibly ‘for the benefit, of agriculture,‘ which provides a. bounty of fifty cents each on hawks. owls. weasels, and minks killed within the limits of the State, and a fee of twenty cents to the notary or justice taking the atlldavit.

“By virtue of this act about $90,001) has been paid in bounties during the year and a half that has elapsed since the law went into effect. This represents the destruction of at least 128.571 of the above-mentioned animals, most of whieh were hawks and owls.

“ Granting that 5.1)th ehiekens are killed annually in Pennsylvania by hawks and owls, and that they are worth twenty—fire cents each (a liberal estimate in view of the fact that a large proportion of them are killed when very young), the total loss would be 1.250. and the poultry killed in a year and a half would be worth $1.875. Hence it appears that during,r the past eighteen months the State of Pennsylvania has expended $90,000 to save its farmers a loss of $1.875. But this esti— mate by no means represents the actual loss to the farmer and the tax- payer ol' the State. it is within bounds to say that in the course, of a year every hawk and owl destroys at least a thousand miee ortheir et'piivalent in insects. and that each mouse or its equivalent so de— stroyed would cause the farmer a loss of two cents per annum. There- fore, omittingr all reference to the enormous increase in the. numbers of these noxious animals when Nature’s means of holdingr them in cheek has been removed. the lowest, possible estimate 'of the 111110 to the farmer of each hawk, owl, and weasel would be $20 a year, or $30 in a year and a half.