Once upon a time, not very long ago, the birds and animals were brought into court to be tried on the charge of committing all sorts of misdeeds. Some of their accusers wanted to shoot them for food. Others said they did much harm and should be destroyed, while still others envied their beautiful coats of fur or feathers. To settle the matter fairly, the judge decided that each prisoner should be tried by itself.

The first case called was that of the English sparrow, who made such a noisy disturbance that the bailiff had to call for silence. All witnesses asserted that the bird was a foreigner and did not belong in this country. They further testified that the sparrow was a meddlesome, gossiping neighbor, always fighting the other birds and driving them away. The sparrow looked around, but not a single friend could he find. The court decided that he should be driven out and made the lawful prey of every one. He cautioned all present, however, always to be very careful to distinguish between the English sparrow and the other sparrows. The latter birds must on no account be molested, for they were without any exceptions most useful citizens.

In regard to the linnet the judge hardly knew what to say. The bird was shown to be a sweet singer, but very destructive of fruit. It was finally decided that a census of the linnets must be taken occasionally. Whenever their number was found to be so great as to endanger the fruit crop in any particular place, the farmers were to be allowed to dispose of a certain number.

The bobolink had many friends as well as enemies present. Every one that knew the bobolink in its summer home in the North insisted that this beautiful singer must be protected. But the people from the South, where it spends the winter, wished the privilege of shooting it. They said that its flesh formed a delicious morsel and also that in the rice fields, where it was known as the "rice bird," it did a great deal of harm. The judge refused to listen to the plea of the hunters and said that this attractive bird must be protected in both its winter and summer homes.

The turn of the blue jay came next. Every one wondered what the charge against this bird with the beautiful blue plumage could be. Some thought that he was on trial for his discordant screeching, which alarmed all the inhabitants of the woods. The charge against the jay was, however, far more serious. He had been caught while making his breakfast of some baby birds which a mother robin had just hatched. The quail and every other small bird present called for vengeance on this ruthless destroyer of their homes. The gardener also added that the bird ate his cherries and apples.

The jay now presented a strong defense, saying that most of his food was made up of harmful insects and worms. He proved that he did almost as much good as harm. The judge, knowing what a wise bird the jay was, told him to go but that he must thereafter look out for himself.

The family of hawks was next examined. There were many witnesses who declared that they were the most destructive of neighbors and lived entirely upon small birds and chickens. The songbirds all raised their voices against hawks, saying that when they left their nests to hunt for food for their children, they were never sure of finding them alive upon their return. The judge inquired carefully as to the truth of these complaints, but found that only a few of the hawks were guilty as claimed. These included the peregrine falcon, sharp-shinned hawk, and Cooper's hawk. The other hawks proved that they were the farmers' best friends, for they waged endless war upon mice, rats, ground squirrels, gophers, and rabbits, and only occasionally caught other birds. They had evidence also that in those places where their numbers had been much reduced by the hunters, the small rodents increased enormously.

The court had to be held at night to accommodate the owls and give them justice. The judge decided from the evidence that, in this family as in the last, there were good members as well as bad and he could not condemn them all to death. The owls proved that they were of even more benefit to the farmers than were the hawks, because of the large number of rats which they ate. The great horned owl and the barred owl only were singled out for punishment.

The case of the meadow lark was called next. An old farmer complained that this bird had destroyed his young grain. Then the hunters made the plea that the meadow lark was really a game bird and that they ought to be allowed to shoot it. In defense of these birds the stomachs of many of them that had been killed were shown in court. It was proved that two thirds of all their food was made up of harmful insects and that the farmers ought to be glad to have them about. It was further shown that if the insects killed by the meadow larks in one day in the San Joaquin Valley, California, were loaded on the cars and hauled away, it would take a train of twenty cars of ten tons each. The meadow lark, upon this showing, was allowed to go unmolested and at once began a happy carol.

The grizzly bear had been summoned, but could not be found, for all of his species had been killed except a few in the Yellowstone Park. But the black bear was brought in and accused of eating young calves and colts. The stockmen asked that all the black bears be killed. The judge decided, however, that as there are so few left, and they are so timid and rarely do any harm, and are, besides, among the most interesting of the citizens of the woods, they should go free and be protected from the hunter.

The coyote was next dragged in and accused of all manner of evil deeds. He pleaded in defense that he helped to keep down the numbers of the rabbits and ground squirrels, and that if it were not for his tribe, these little animals would eat up everything. The judge decided that the coyote was on the whole a rather unpleasant neighbor and refused to afford him any protection. Every one knew, however, that the coyote was so sharp and keen that he was a match for most of the enemies about him and would get along very well.

Those sly little animals, the skunk, weasel, coon, and mink, destroyed a great many birds, especially those that nested on or near the ground, according to the report of most of those present in court. But the skunk had some good friends who showed that his chief food was insects and worms, and that he did more good than harm. It was further proved that the fur of all these animals was so valuable that, while trapping them would be permitted, they must not be exterminated. In regard to the weasel, the testimony showed that he was a badly slandered animal. Most of his food appeared to be rats and mice, and only rarely did he kill chickens. The judge added that these poor animals had too often been condemned offhand. Although they occasionally ate chickens, no one had tried to find out the good which they did.

To hear the complaints against the great California sea lion, the court adjourned to the seashore. The fishermen declared that the sea lion ate the fish upon which their livelihood depended, and also broke their nets. They demanded that all the sea lions be killed. Careful search in the stomachs of some of them that had been taken for that purpose made it very clear that the fishermen were wrong. The sea lions ate almost no fish, but lived upon squid and other sea animals not valuable to the fishermen. As a result, these interesting animals were given full protection.

The oyster farmers complained most indignantly to the court about the conduct of the wild ducks. They said that the ducks ate a large part of the young oysters on their oyster farms. They wanted the ducks shot without delay, for their business was almost ruined. This matter was carefully looked into, and it was proved that the ducks really ate very few oysters.

The judge remarked as he adjourned court that if all the accusations were true, hardly a wild creature would be left. He said further that each one was entitled to fair treatment at the hands of men unless it was wholly bad.