100 years ago

Mr Cathcart Wason, MP, at the Committee of the House of Commons on Mr Hobhouse’s Bill to prohibit the importation of plumage, had withdrawn his amendment to include ostrich feathers in the prohibition, which had caused consternation in South African circles in London.

He said he had been assured there was no cruelty on an ostrich farm any more than on a sheep or cattle farm. Sir Edwin Cornwall objected to the granting of a licence for importing plumage for natural history or other museums or for scientific research, and contended that in the case of rare wild birds there was more risk of extermination as the result of the destruction of birds by collectors than from the trade in feathers.

The Postmaster-General said it was his intention, if the Bill passed, to set up an advisory committee, which would practically decide what persons might be granted licences. On June 10th, 1913, 5000 birds of paradise had been exhibited for sale by three traders. He did not think that all the collectors in the world shot anything approaching that number in that year.

 

50 years ago

Almost half of the £30,000 for which the Northern Horticultural Society had launched an appeal the previous autumn to develop and extend its trial grounds and gardens at Harlow Car, Harrogate, had been subscribed.

This had enabled a start to be made on a new rock garden and pond on the 20 additional acres bought from Harrogate Corporation. Dr Donald G Ineson, chairman of the Society, said that gifts had come from Fellows throughout the North of England and not merely from the West Riding.

They regarded this as proof that the gardens were meeting the purpose for which they were established, namely, to ascertain which plants, trees and shrubs were most suitable for the northern climate. The society planned to provide more car parking and other amenities for visitors, such as garden shelters and a cafeteria, and to establish a nursery with fully-equipped greenhouses for propagation and display. The rose gardens were to be extended, and there would be one plot for the old-fashioned varieties only.

 

25 years ago

The freedom to enjoy the countryside was under threat, according to the leader of Britain’s walkers. The Ramblers’ Association was having to fight to keep one step ahead of people blocking and diverting existing paths, said the chairman, Mr Chris Hall. In Yorkshire, Ramblers said there were hundreds of miles of paths in danger, simply because they had been missed off the map.

The chairman of the East Yorkshire and Derwent Association, Mr Dennis Parker, said hundreds of paths in his area alone had been missed off the map in the days of the East Riding Council. “All they put on were paths no one objected to. That left a whole lot that we claimed, but landowners objected to.” North Yorkshire County Council was in the middle of drawing a definitive map of the county’s path system, said Mr Parker.