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Animal Rights History Timeline » [1837-1901] Victorian Age » Carl Spencer

Carl Spencer

A Word on Wearing Bird Plumage

[1897] Carl Spencer, "A Word From Carl Spencer," in Birds' Nest; A Plea for Bird and Beast by William Day, (Sommerville, MA, 1897; Online at Animal Rights History, 2003); [Reprint of article previously published in Woman's Journal, 1897 Aug 21].

Carl Spencer, in his protest against stigmatizing a law against the wearing of bird plumage as "sumptuary," elaborates—

It is not a question of mere things, like ribbons and other legitimate trimmings. Life is bound up with every bunch of feathers—beautiful, joyful, musical, and incomparably useful life.

The ruthless self-conceit of mankind, which shrinks from no amount of slaughter, has no respect for non–human life, however amiable and wonderful.

Is not cruelty a soul-destroying thing, the very root and ground of moral evil? Is not this business demoralizing to all who act or acquiesce in it? Is it nothing that the brightest of earth's creatures, the sweetest of her singers, the delight of all poets and lovers of Nature, should be in actual danger of extinction through gentle woman's barbarity?

Heaven should abandon our ungrateful race, and give us over, as it seems about to do, to be devoured by myriads of crawling things, since these have been preferred to the winged, singing creatures.