obins are instantly haled to court, and fined or imprisoned. If we of
the North should kill for food the mockingbirds that visit us, the
people of the South instantly would brand us as monsters of greed and
meanness; and they would be perfectly justified in so doing.

Let us at least be honest in "agreeing upon a state of fact," as the
lawyers say, whether we act sensibly and mercifully or not. Just so long
as there remains in this land of ours a fauna of game birds, and the
gunners of one-half the states are allowed to dictate the laws for the
slaughter of it, just so long will our present protection remain utterly
absurd and criminally inadequate. Look at these absurdities:

New York, New Jersey and many other northern states rigidly prohibit the
late winter and spring shooting of waterfowl and shore birds, and limit
the bag; North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, and other southern
states not only slaughter wild fowl and shore birds all winter and
spring, without limit, but several of them kill certain non-game birds
besides!

All the northern states protect the robin, for the good that it does;
but in North Carolina, Tennessee, Mississippi, Louisiana and some other
southern states, thousands of robins are shot for food. Minnesota has
stopped spring shooting; but her sister state on the south, Iowa,
obstinately refuses to do so.

THE UNITED STATES AT LARGE.--There are two great measures that should be
carried into effect by the governing body of the United States. One is
the enactment of a law providing federal protection for all migratory
birds; and Canada and Mexico should be induced to join with the United
States _in an international treaty to that effect_.

The other necessary measure is the passage of a joint resolution of
Congress _declaring every national forest and forest reserve also a game
preserve and general sanctuary for wild life_, in which there shall be
no hunting or killing of wild creatures of any kind save predatory
animals.

The tendency of the times,--and the universal slaughter of wild life on
this continent,--point straight as an arrow flies in that direction.
Soon or late, we have GOT to come to it! If Congress does not take the
initiatory steps, _the People will_! Such a consummation is necessary;
it is justified by common sense and the inexorable logic of the
situation, and when done it will be right.

The time was when the friends of wild life did not dare speak of this
subject in