| By Author | [ A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z | Other Symbols ] |
| By Title | [ A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z | Other Symbols ] |
| By Language |
|
Download this book: [ ASCII | HTML | PDF ] Look for this book on Amazon Tweet |
Title: Bird Lore, Volume I—1899
Author: Various
Language: English
As this book started as an ASCII text book there are no pictures available.
*** Start of this LibraryBlog Digital Book "Bird Lore, Volume I—1899" ***
(This file was produced from images generously made
available by the Library of Congress)
Transcriber's Note
Emphasis is indicated by _Italic and Underscore_ and =Bold=.
Whole number and fractional part is indicated as 7-3/4.
=Bird-Lore=
_AN ILLUSTRATED BI-MONTHLY MAGAZINE DEVOTED TO
THE STUDY AND PROTECTION OF BIRDS_
Edited by
FRANK M. CHAPMAN
Official Organ of the Audubon Societies
Audubon Department Edited by
MABEL OSGOOD WRIGHT
[Illustration]
_VOLUME I--1899_
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY
ENGLEWOOD, N. J., AND NEW YORK CITY
Copyright, 1899
By FRANK M. CHAPMAN
INDEX TO ARTICLES IN VOLUME I BY AUTHORS
Allen, J. A., The American Ornithologists' Union, 143.
Babcock, C. A., 'Suggestions for Bird-Day Programs in the Schools,' 49.
Baily, William L., 'Three Cobb's Island Pictures,' 81.
Batchelder, Annie V., Sec'y, report of, 102.
Beal, F. E. L., Reviews by, 98, 133.
Beebe, C. Will, 'Two Nova Scotia Photographs,' 113.
Board, Nellie S., Sec'y, report of, 62.
Brown, Elizabeth V., 'A Bird-Day Program,' 52.
Burnett, Dr. D. L., 'A Musical Woodpecker,' 60.
Burroughs, John, 'In Warbler Time,' 3.
Butler, Amos W., Sec'y, report of, 66.
Chapman, Frank M., 'Birds Through a Telescope,' 132;
'Gannets on Bonaventure,' 71;
'The Legend of the Salt,' 55;
'The Passing of the Tern,' 205;
'The Surprising Contents of a Birch Stub,' 187;
editorials by, 2, 28, 63, 135, 169, 201;
photographs by, 119, 149;
reviews by, 26, 27, 61, 97, 98, 133, 167.
Collins, H. M., 'The Peculiarities of a Caged Skylark,' 157.
Cram, William Everett, 'Winter Bird Notes from Southern New
Hampshire,' 180.
Crolius, A. A., 'How the Central Park Chickadees Were Tamed,' 185.
Day, Mary F., 'Home-Life in a Chimney,' 78.
Deane, Ruthven, President, report of, 66.
Dutcher, William, 'Loons at Home,' 40.
Eaton, Isabel, 'Bird Studies for Children,' 17.
Fisher, Dr. A. K., 'Average Dates of Arrival of the Commoner Birds
at Sing Sing, N. Y., during April and May,' 54.
Geery, D. R., 'Sparrow Proof Houses,' 60.
Glover, Harriet D. C., Sec'y, report of, 31.
Glover, Helen W., Sec'y, report of, 139.
Grant, Annie M., Sec'y, reports of, 30, 204.
Hegner, Robert W., 'Photographing a Bluebird,' 43;
'The Prairie Horned Lark,' 152.
Hodge, C. F., 'A Pleasant Acquaintance With a Hummingbird,' 155;
'On the Ethics of Caging Birds,' 158.
Horack, Frank E., 'The Songs of Birds,' 96;
'A Singing Bluejay,' 197.
Ives, Ella Gilbert, 'The Cardinal at the Hub,' 83;
'The Cardinal in Maine,' 132.
Judd, Sylvester D., Ph. D., 'Collecting a Brown Thrush's Song,' 25.
Kearton, R., 'Photographing Shy Wild Birds and Beasts at Home,' 107.
Kendall, Blanche, photographs by, 84, 85, 86.
Kennard, Fred. H., 'A May Morning,' 91.
Lehmann, Lilli, A Message from, 103.
Lemmon, Isabella McC., 'Oliver Twist, Catbird,' 163.
Lockwood, Emma H., Sec'y, report of, 32.
Loring, J. Alden, 'Inquisitive Magpies,' 96.
Mellick, Mary A., Sec'y, report of, 32.
Menke, H. W., 'From a Cabin Window,' 14;
photograph by, 106.
Merriam, Florence A., 'Clark's Crows and Oregon Jays on Mount
Hood,' 46, 72;
'Our Doorstep Sparrow,' 20.
Miller, Oliver Thorne, 'On the Ethics of Caging Birds,' 19, 89.
Mumma, Rosa Meyers, 'Matins,' 77.
Nash, H. W., photograph by, 176.
Newkirk, Garrett, 'Mr. Flicker Writes a Letter,' 129;
'Robin Rejoice,' 95;
'The Little Brown Creeper,' 197.
Noble, Floyd C., 'A February Walk in Central Park,' 57.
Osgood, Fletcher, report of, 137.
Patten, Mrs. John Dewhurst, Sec'y, reports of, 32, 173.
Peabody, P. B., 'Richardson's Owl,' 190.
Peckham, Mrs. Elizabeth W., Sec'y, reports of, 101, 205.
Princehorn, A. L., photograph by, 154.
Richards, Harriet E., Sec'y, report by, 30.
Roberts, Dr. Thos. S., 'The Camera as an aid in the Study of
Birds,' 6, 35;
'A Catbird Study,' 87.
Robins, Julia Stockton, Sec'y, report of, 66, 204.
Robinson, Mildred A., 'A February Walk,' 94.
Roosevelt, Theodore, Letter from, 65.
Royael, John L., 'An Accomplished House Sparrow,' 24.
Russell, Miss Cora, Sec'y, report of, 32.
Sage, John H., 'Fall Migration at Portland, Conn.,' 128.
Schwab, L. H., 'An Odd Nesting Site,' 166.
Slosson, Annie Trumbull, 'A Tragic St. Valentine's Day,' 45.
Smith, Anna Harris, 'On the Ethics of Caging Birds,' 160.
Smith, W. Gordon, photograph by, 177.
Soule, Caroline G., 'Birds and Caterpillars,' 166;
'Humanizing the Birds,' 193.
Southwick, E. B., 'A Nut-hatching Nuthatch,' 24.
Stone, Witmer, 'A Search for the Reedy Island Crow Roost,' 177.
Stone, Witmer, and others, 'Hints to Young Bird Students,' 125.
Tabor, E. G., 'A Least Bittern Portrait,' 39;
photographs by, 149, 156.
Taylor, John W., President, report of, 67.
Thomas, Edith M., 'The Masquerading Chickadee,' 77.
Thompson, Ernest Seton, 'The Myth of the Song Sparrow,' 59.
Torrey, Bradford, 'Watching the Bittern Pump,' 123.
Tyler, D. T. A., Audubon's Seal, 172.
Van Altena, Edward, photograph by, 116.
Van Dyke, Henry, 'The Angler's Reveille,' 150.
Van Sant, Florence A., 'Zip and Phoebe, A Catbird Story,' 130.
Widmann, Otto, 'In the Spartina with the Swallows,' 115.
Webster, Ellen E., 'An Interesting Phoebe's Nest, 197.
Wood, George, photograph by, 21.
W[right], M. O., Editorials by, 29, 64, 100, 136, 170, 202.
INDEX TO VOLUME I
A Dictionary of Birds, reviewed, 199.
Adney, Tappan, 202.
Advisory Council, 192.
Allen, J. A., 127, 142, 144, 169.
Aldrich, Chas., 142.
American Ornithologists' Union, 142, 143, 169.
Audubon Bird Chart, 27.
Audubon Calendar, 200.
Audubon Societies, reports of. See under names of Secretaries.
Auk, The, 146, 147.
Babcock, C. A., 62.
Bailey, H. B., 142.
Baird, S. F., 142.
Baldpate, 128.
Ball, Helen A., 167.
Barlow, Chester, 62, 168.
Bartsch, Paul, 200.
Batchelder, C. F., 142.
Beal, F. E. L., 134.
Belding, Lyman, 146.
Bendire, C. E., 142.
Bicknell, E. P., 142.
Bickmore, Professor, 32.
Bird Collecting, 135, 168.
Bird-Day, 36, 49, 51, 53, 98.
Bird Games, 18.
'Bird Gods,' reviewed, 26.
Bird Houses, figured, 60.
'Bird-Life; A Guide to the Study of our Common Birds,' Teachers'
edition, reviewed, 27.
Bird-Lore, 28, 63, 201.
'Bird Migration in Mississippi Valley,' 146.
'Birds,' reviewed, 97.
Birds and Farmers, 103.
'Birds as Weed Destroyers,' reviewed, 134.
Birds' Christmas Tree, 195.
'Birds of Washington and Vicinity,' reviewed, 26.
Birds, Food for, 19.
Birds, Songs of, 96.
'Birds Through an Opera-glass,' 168.
Bittern, American, 54, 123, 128;
figured, 149;
Least, 39, 40, 123, 128;
figured, 34;
Blackbird, Red-winged, 92, 96, 128;
Rusty, 128;
Yellow-headed, 16;
figured, 16;
Bluebird, 43, 150;
figured, 43, 44.
Bobolink, 55, 92, 117, 128.
Boynton, Helen M., 98.
Brewster, William, 27, 127, 142, 144, 202.
British Columbia, 98.
Brooks, William R., 132.
Brown, Elizabeth V., 173.
Brown, Nathan C., 142.
Brownell, L. W., 63.
Bunting, Indigo, 55, 128.
Burroughs, John, 2, 5, 202.
California, 62.
Campbell, A. J., 202.
Camera, 6, 35, 107, 202.
Canada, 40, 133, 171.
Canary, 17, 89, 96.
Cardinal, 57, 83, 132;
figured, 84, 85, 86.
Catbird, 54, 91, 128, 163, 166;
figured, 87, 88.
Cedarbird, 92, 166;
figured, 161.
Chamberlain, M., 142.
Chapman, Frank M., 26, 31, 32, 127, 202.
Chat, Yellow-breasted, 55.
Chautauqua Literary and Scientific Circle, 168.
'Check-list of British Columbia Birds,' reviewed, 98/
Check-list of North American Birds, 147.
Chickadee, Black-capped, 9, 10, 11, 19, 24, 56, 58, 77, 94, 97, 181,
182, 185, 187;
figured, 7, 10, 12, 13, 56, 189.
Clark, Josephine A., 62.
Code of Nomenclature, 145.
Cohen, Donald, 62.
Connecticut, 27, 128, 166.
Cooke, W. W., 146.
Cooper Ornithological Club, 62.
Coot, American, 128.
Cormorants, Double-crested, 71.
Cory, C. B., 142.
Coues, Elliott, 135, 142, 144.
Coues' 'Key,' 98.
Cowbird, 54, 93, 128.
Creeper, Brown, 57, 128, 181, 195;
figured, 195.
Crow, 92, 164, 177, 181, 184;
figured, 177, 184.
Crow, Fish, 54.
Crow, Clark's, 46, 72;
figured, 47, 72, 74, 76.
Cuckoo, Black-billed, 55, 93, 128, 166;
Yellow-billed, 55, 128, 166.
Dart, Leslie O., 10.
Davis, W. T., 200.
Dearborn, Ned, 98.
De Kay, Charles, 26.
Delaware, 179.
Dickey Downy, reviewed, 200.
Diver, Great Northern, 40.
Dove, Mourning, 128.
Duck, American Scaup, 128;
Black, 128;
Buffle-head, 128;
Lesser Scaup, 128;
Ring-necked, 128;
Ruddy, 128.
Dutcher, William, 103, 127.
Eagle, 26.
Eagle, Bald, 170, 171, 181;
Golden, figured, 176.
Eckstorm, Fannie Hardy, 98.
'Economic Relations of Birds and Their Food,' noticed, 134.
Edwards, George Wharton, 26.
Egg Collecting, 61.
Elliot, D. G., 142.
Evans, A. H., 97.
Fannin, John, 98.
February Walk Contest, 57.
'Field Key to the Land Birds,' reviewed, 167.
Finch, Purple, 54.
Fisher, A. K., 127, 142.
Flicker, 18, 128, 181.
Florida, 45, 63.
Flycatcher, Alder, 55;
Crested, 55;
Green-crested, 55;
Least, 54, 128;
Olive-sided, 55;
Yellow-bellied, 55.
Gadow, Hans, 199.
Gannets, 70;
figured, 70.
Gill, Theodore, 135.
Gleeson, Joseph M., 199.
Goldfinch, 17, 183;
European, 58.
Goose, Canada, 128, 181.
Goshawk, American, 128, 180.
Grackle, Bronzed, 128.
Grant, Annie M., 133.
Grebe, Pied-billed, 54, 128.
Grinnell, George Bird, 146.
Grosbeak, Pine, 183;
Rose-breasted, 55, 92, 128, 166.
Grouse, Blue, 46.
Gull, Herring, 71.
Harvey, L. D., 98.
Hawk, Cooper's, 128;
Marsh, 128;
Pigeon, 54, 128;
Rough-legged, 181;
Sharp-shinned, 128;
Sparrow, 54.
Henshaw, H. W., 142, 202.
Heron, Black-crowned Night, 54, 128;
Green, 54, 92, 128;
Great Blue, 128.
Hodge, C. F., 161, 162, 167.
Hoffmann, Ralph, 27, 30.
Holder, J. B., 142.
Hornaday, W. T., 31.
Hornbrooke, Orinda, 102.
Howe, Reginald Heber, Jr., 134.
Hubbard, Marion C., 202.
Hummingbird, 55, 128, 155;
nest of, figured, 156.
Iowa, 43, 152.
Jay, Blue, 96, 181;
Oregon, 46, 72;
figured, 48, 72, 73, 75;
Stellers', 46.
Jones, Lynds, 27, 168, 202.
Judd, Sylvester D., 134.
Junco, 19, 113, 128, 183;
nest of, figured, 113;
Oregon, 46.
Kearton, C., 26, 133.
Kearton, Richard, 26, 133.
Killdeer, 35;
figured, 36, 38.
Kingbird, 39, 55, 92, 128.
Kingfisher, 54, 128.
Kinglet, Golden-crowned, 128, 181;
Ruby-crowned, 3, 46, 54, 128.
Knight, O. W., 62.
Knobel, E., 30, 167.
Lacey-Hoar Bird Bill, 63.
Land Birds of Pacific District, 146.
Lark, Horned, 15, 180;
figured, 14, 15;
Prairie Horned, 152;
figured, 152, 153.
Lawrence, Geo. M., 142.
'List of Birds of Belknap and Merrimack Counties,' reviewed, 98.
Lodge, G. E., 97.
Loon, 40, 41, 128;
nest and eggs of, figured, 42;
Red-throated, 128.
Lucas, F. A., 200, 202.
Magpie, 96.
Maine Ornithological Society, 62.
Mallard, 128.
Martin, European, nest and young of, figured, 122;
Purple, 54, 120, 128.
Maryland Yellow Throat, 55, 151.
Massachusetts, 27, 83, 91, 134.
Maynard, C. J., 62.
Maynard, Mrs. L. W., 25.
McCormick, A. I., 62.
McCormick, L. M., 202.
Meadowlark, 92, 128, 183.
Mearns, E. A., 142, 202.
Merganser, Hooded, 128;
Red-breasted, 128;
Merriam, C. Hart, 127, 142, 145, 146, 169, 202.
Merriam, Florence A., 26, 31, 173, 202.
Migration, 54, 128, 145, 169.
Miller, Olive Thorne, 32, 62, 158, 159, 160, 167, 202.
Minnesota, 10, 67, 190.
Missouri, 27, 115.
Morrill, C. H., 62.
Nash, Charles W., 133.
Nature Study, 51, 62, 193.
Nehrling, H., 27.
Nests, 19.
Nest-building, 50.
Nest-holder, 197.
New Hampshire, 98, 180.
New Jersey, 78, 116, 119, 126, 132, 177, 187.
Newton, Alfred, 199.
Newton, Dr. Heber, 31.
New York, 5, 39, 54, 55, 57, 132, 134, 149, 156.
Night-hawk, 55, 128;
figured, 114.
Nova Scotia, 113.
Nutcracker, 46, 72.
Nuthatch, Red-breasted, 128, 182;
White-breasted, 24, 58, 94.
Nuttall 'Bulletin,' 143, 144.
Nuttall Ornithological Club, 143.
Oberholser, H. C., 173, 200.
Ohio, 27.
Olds, Henry, 173.
Old-squaw, 128.
'On the Birds' Highway,' reviewed, 134.
Oregon, 46, 72.
Oriole, Baltimore, 55, 91, 128;
Orchard, 55.
Osprey, 54, 128.
'Our Animal Friends,' 168.
'Our Common Birds,' reviewed, 167.
Ovenbird, 55, 128.
Owl, Barred, 117;
Richardson's, 190;
figured, 190, 191;
Saw-whet, 182;
Screech, figured, 154;
Short-eared, 128;
Snowy, 128, 180;
figured, 181.
Palmer, Alice Freeman, 102.
Palmer, T. S., 32, 127, 134, 173.
Parkhurst, H. E., 200.
Patterson, Virginia Sharpe, 200.
Pelican, Brown, 169, 171.
Pewee, Wood, 55, 92, 128.
Phoebe, 128, 130.
Phonograph, 25.
Pinchot, Professor, 202.
Pintail, 128.
Pipit, American, 128.
Plover, American Golden, 128.
Prentiss, D. W., 142.
Purdie, H. A., 142.
Quail, 91, 93.
Quills to Avoid, figured, 169, 171.
Quincy, Josiah, Mayor, 137.
Rail, Yellow, 128;
Virginia, 128.
Razor-bill, 81.
Redstart, 55, 93, 128.
Reynaud, Capt., 202.
Rhode Island, 134.
Richards, Harriet E., 102.
Richmond, C. W., 27, 127, 200.
Ridgway, Robert, 32, 127, 142, 200, 202.
Roberts, T. S., 202.
Robertson, Howard, 62.
Robin, 17, 32, 50, 128, 150, 166;
figured on nest, 95.
Robinson, Lieut. Wirt, 21.
Robinson, Mildred A., 57.
Rowley, John, 202.
Rubbish Heap, Artificial, 109.
Sage, J. H., 27.
Sandpiper, Least, 55, 128;
Pectoral, 128;
Semi-palmated, 128;
Solitary, 55, 128.
Sapsucker, Yellow-bellied, 54, 128.
Scoter, American, 128;
Surf, 128;
White-winged, 128.
Sennett, George B., 198.
Sharpe, R. Bowdler, 61.
Shrike, Northern, 6, 128, 181.
Shufeldt, R. W., 142.
Sketch Book of British Birds, reviewed, 61.
Skimmer, Black, figured, 81;
nest and eggs of, figured, 82;
Skylark, 157.
Siskin, Pine, 128.
Slab-Sides, 5.
Snipe, Wilson's, 54, 128.
Snow Buntings, 180, 181.
Snowflake, 141, 128;
figured, 14, 15.
Solitaire, Townsends, 47.
Sparrow, Chipping, 20, 54, 97, 166;
figured, 21;
English, 17, 49;
Field, 54, 93, 128;
Fox, 128;
Henslow's, 117, 118;
House, 24;
Lincoln's, 128;
Nelson's, 128;
Savanna, 54;
Song, 58, 92, 128;
figured, 59;
Swamp, 54, 92, 128;
Tree, 19, 128, 181;
Vesper, 54;
White-crowned, 47, 55, 128;
White-throated, 54, 57, 128;
Yellow-winged, 55;
Sparrow War, 137.
Stake-driver, 124.
Starling, 57.
Stejneger, Leonhard, 195.
Stone, Witmer, 27, 28, 29, 61, 125, 127, 200.
Swallow, Bank, 54, 120, 128;
Barn, 54, 92, 128;
Cliff, 55, 128;
nests of, figured, 106;
Eave, 115, 118, 119, 120;
Rough Wing, 55, 115, 119, 120;
Tree, 45, 54, 115;
figured, 116, 119, 121;
White Breast, 115, 118, 119, 120.
Swan, 26.
Swift, Chimney, 54, 78, 92, 128.
Tanager, Scarlet, 55, 128.
Tatlock, John, Jr., 132.
Taylor, Henry Reed, 62.
Teal, Blue-winged, 128;
Green-winged, 128.
Tern, Gull-billed, 82;
figured, 82;
Wilson's, 205;
figured, 206.
Thayer, Abbott, 200.
'The Birds of Eastern North America,' reviewed, 200.
'The Birds of Ontario in Relation to Agriculture,' reviewed, 133.
'The Danger of Introducing Noxious Animals and Birds,' noticed, 134.
'The Feeding Habit of the Chipping Sparrow, and the Winter Food of
the Chickadee,' reviewed, 97.
'The First Book of Birds,' reviewed, 167.
'The Osprey,' 135;
Thompson, Ernest Seton, 27, 62, 134, 202.
Thrasher, Brown, 25, 54, 91, 128, 151.
Thrush, Gray-cheeked, 55, 128;
Hermit, 54, 128;
Olive-backed, 55, 128;
Wilson's, 55, 128;
Wood, 54, 92, 128.
Torrey, Bradford, 202.
Towhee, 54.
Tree Trunk, Artificial, 108.
Tryon, Kate, 31.
Van Dyke, Dr. Henry, 31.
Van Name, Willard G., 31.
Veery, 55, 128.
Vermont, 166;
Vireo, Blue-headed, 54, 128;
Philadelphia, 128;
Red-eyed, 55, 91, 128, 166;
Yellow-throated, 55, 93, 128;
Warbling, 55, 128, 166;
White-eyed, 55, 91, 95, 166.
Virginia, 81, 206.
'Wabeno, the Magician,' reviewed, 199.
Warbler, Bay-breasted, 55, 128;
Black and White, 5, 54, 93, 128;
Blackburnian, 55, 128;
Black-poll, 5, 55, 93, 128;
Black-throated Blue, 55, 128;
Black-throated Green, 4, 55, 128;
Blue-winged, 3, 55;
Canadian, 55, 128;
Chestnut-sided, 4, 55, 92;
Connecticut, 128;
Golden Swamp, 11;
Golden-winged, 4, 55, 92;
Kentucky, 55;
Magnolia, 55, 128;
Mourning, 55;
Myrtle, 54, 128;
Nashville, 55, 128;
Parula, 55, 128;
Pine, 128;
Prairie, 128;
Prothonotary, 10;
Tennessee, 55;
Wilson's, 55, 128;
Worm-eating, 55;
Yellow, 55, 92, 128;
Yellow Palm, 41, 54, 128.
Water-Thrush, Large-billed, 54;
Small-billed, 55, 128.
Wheaton, J. M., 142.
Whip-poor-will, 55, 128.
Widmann, Otto, 27, 202.
'Wild Animals I Have Known,' 62, 134.
'Wild Life at Home: How to Study and Photograph It,' reviewed, 133.
Willcox, M. A., 200.
Wilson Bulletin, 168.
Wisconsin, 27.
Wisconsin Arbor and Bird Day Annual, 98.
'With Nature and a Camera,' reviewed, 26.
Woodcock, 128, 166.
Woodpecker, 19, 26;
Downy, 11, 58, 60, 166, 181;
Lewis, 47, 72.
Wren, House, 54, 128, 166;
Long-billed Marsh, 39, 55;
Short-billed Marsh, 117, 128;
Winter, 128, 181.
Wright, Mabel Osgood, 30, 31, 195, 202.
Wyoming, 14, 106.
Yellow-bird, Summer, 17.
Yellow Hammer, 18.
Yellow-legs, Greater, 128.
* * * * *
VOL. 1 20c. a Copy
No. 1 FEBRUARY, 1899 $1 a Year
=Bird-Lore=
[Illustration]
Edited by
FRANK M. CHAPMAN
The Macmillan Company
HARRISBURG, PA.
New York City
COPYRIGHT, 1899, BY FRANK M. CHAPMAN
=Bird-Lore=
February, 1899
CONTENTS
Frontispiece--John Burroughs at 'Slab Sides.' From a Flashlight
Photograph.
In Warbler Time _John Burroughs_ 3
John Burroughs at 'Slab Sides.' Illustrated 5
The Camera as an Aid in the Study of Birds. Illustrated.
_Dr. Thomas S. Roberts_ 6
From a Cabin Window. Illustrated _H. W. Menke_ 14
FOR TEACHERS AND STUDENTS
Bird-Studies for Children _Isabel Eaton_ 17
Winter Bird Studies 19
FOR YOUNG OBSERVERS
Our Doorstep Sparrow. Illustrated _Florence. A. Merriam_ 20
A Prize Offered 23
NOTES FROM FIELD AND STUDY
An Accomplished House Sparrow _J. L. Royael_ 24
A Nut-hatching Nuthatch. Illustrated _E. B. Southwick_ 24
Collecting a Brown Thrasher's Song. (With the gramophone)
_S. D. Judd, Ph.D._ 25
A Cover Design. Illustrated 25
BOOK NEWS AND REVIEWS 26
Kearton's 'With Nature and a Camera;' De Kay's 'Bird Gods;' Mrs.
Maynard's Birds of Washington; Bird-Life: Teachers' Edition;
The Massachusetts Audubon Society's Bird Chart.
EDITORIALS 28
AUDUBON DEPARTMENT 29
Editorial; Reports from Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut,
New York, New Jersey, Ohio, and District of Columbia Societies.
×*× _The Publication Office is in the Mount Pleasant Building,
208 Crescent Street, Harrisburg, Pa._
×*× _All communications in regard to contributions, etc., and all regular
exchanges, should be addressed to the Editor, Frank M. Chapman,
Englewood, New Jersey._
×*× _The subscription price is One Dollar per annum. Subscriptions and
advertisements may be sent to the Publishers, The Macmillan Company,
Harrisburg, Pa., or 66 Fifth Avenue, New York; or to the Editor,
as above._
PUBLISHERS' ANNOUNCEMENT
The April number of Bird-Lore will contain the conclusion of Dr.
Roberts' interesting paper on 'The Camera as an Aid in the Study of
Birds,' with photographs which surpass in merit even those presented
in this issue; An article by Miss Merriam, entitled 'Oregon Jays and
Clark's Crows on Mt. Shasta,' accompanied by photographs of the birds
from life; A sketch of the home-life of Loons, by William Dutcher,
illustrated by the author, and an illustrated account, by R. W. Hegner,
of the manner in which he secured a unique picture of a Bluebird.
For 'Teachers and Students' Prof. Lynds Jones, of Oberlin College, will
write on methods of bird-study, and a program suggesting appropriate
exercises for Bird-day in the schools will be given.
Ernest Seton Thompson has written and illustrated some verses 'For
Young Observers,' and there will be the usual departments.
[Illustration: JOHN BURROUGHS AT 'SLAB SIDES'
Flashlight photograph, by F. M. Chapman, October, 1896]
=Bird-Lore=
A BI-MONTHLY MAGAZINE
DEVOTED TO THE STUDY AND PROTECTION OF BIRDS
Official Organ of the Audubon Societies
=======================================
Vol. 1 February, 1899 No. 1
=======================================
In Warbler Time
BY JOHN BURROUGHS
[Illustration]
This morning, May 5, as I walked through the fields the west wind
brought to me a sweet, fresh odor, like that of fragrant violets,
precisely like that of our little white sweet violet (_Viola blanda_).
I do not know what it came from,--probably from sugar maples, just
shaking out their fringe-like blossoms,--but it was the first breath
of May, and very welcome. April has her odors, too, very delicate and
suggestive, but seldom is the wind perfumed with the breath of actual
bloom before May. I said it is Warbler time; the first arrivals of
the pretty little migrants should be noted now. Hardly had my thought
defined itself when before me, in a little hemlock, I caught the flash
of a blue, white-barred wing; then glimpses of a yellow breast and a
yellow crown. I approached cautiously, and in a moment more had a full
view of one of our rarer Warblers, the Blue-winged Yellow Warbler. Very
pretty he was, too, the yellow cap, the yellow breast, and the black
streak through the eye being conspicuous features. He would not stand
to be looked at long, but soon disappeared in a near-by tree.
The Ruby-crowned Kinglet was piping in an evergreen tree near by, but
him I had been hearing for several days. The Kinglets come before the
first Warblers, and may be known to the attentive eye by their quick,
nervous movements, and small greenish forms, and to the discerning
ear by their hurried, musical, piping strains. How soft, how rapid,
how joyous and lyrical their songs are! Very few country people, I
imagine, either see them or hear them. The powers of observation of
country people are not fine enough and trained enough. They see and
hear coarsely. An object must be big and a sound loud, to attract their
attention. Have you seen and heard the Kinglet? If not, the finer inner
world of nature is a sealed book to you. When your senses take in the
Kinglet they will take in a thousand other objects that now escape you.
My first Warbler in the spring is usually the Yellow Redpoll, which
I see in April. It is not a bird of the trees and woods, but of low
bushes in the open, often alighting upon the ground in quest of food.
I sometimes see it on the lawn. The last one I saw was one April day,
when I went over to the creek to see if the suckers were yet running
up. The bird was flitting amid the low bushes, now and then dropping
down to the gravelly bank of the stream. Its chestnut crown and yellow
under parts were noticeable.
The past season I saw for the first time the Golden-winged Warbler--a
shy bird, that eluded me a long time in an old clearing that had grown
up with low bushes. The song first attracted my attention, it is so
like in form to that of the Black-throated Green Back, but in quality
so inferior. The first distant glimpse of the bird, too, suggested the
Green Back, so for a time I deceived myself with the notion that it was
the Green Back with some defect in its vocal organs. A day or two later
I heard two of them, and then concluded my inference was a hasty one.
Following one of the birds, I caught sight of its yellow crown, which
is much more conspicuous than its yellow wing-bars. Its song is like
this, _'n-'n de de de_, with a peculiar reedy quality, but not at all
musical, falling far short of the clear, sweet, lyrical song of the
Green Back.
One appreciates how bright and gay the plumage of many of our Warblers
is, when he sees one of them alight upon the ground. While passing
along a wood road in June, a male Black-throated Green came down out of
the hemlocks and sat for a moment on the ground before me. How out of
place he looked, like a bit of ribbon or millinery just dropped there!
The throat of this Warbler always suggests the finest black velvet. Not
long after I saw the Chestnut-sided Warbler do the same thing. We were
trying to make it out in a tree by the roadside, when it dropped down
quickly to the ground in pursuit of an insect, and sat a moment upon
the brown surface, giving us a vivid sense of its bright new plumage.
When the leaves of the trees are just unfolding, or, as Tennyson says,
"When all the woods stand in a mist of green, and nothing perfect," the
tide of migrating Warblers is at its height. They come in the night,
and in the morning the trees are alive with them. The apple trees
are just showing the pink, and how closely the birds inspect them in
their eager quest for insect food! One cold, rainy day at this season
Wilson's Black-cap,--a bird that is said to go north nearly to the
arctic circle,--explored an apple tree in front of my window. It came
down within two feet of my face, as I stood by the pane, and paused a
moment in its hurry and peered in at me, giving me an admirable view of
its form and markings. It was wet and hungry, and it had a long journey
before it. What a small body to cover such a distance!
The Black-poll Warbler, which one may see about the same time, is a
much larger bird and of slower movement, and is colored much like the
Black and White Creeping Warbler with a black cap on its head. The song
of this bird is the finest, the least in volume, and most insect-like
of that of any Warbler known to me. It is the song of the Black and
White Creeper reduced, high and swelling in the middle and low and
faint at its beginning and ending. When one has learned to note and
discriminate the Warblers, he has made a good beginning in his or her
ornithological studies.
John Burroughs at 'Slab Sides'
Some years ago a favor to a neighbor resulted in Mr. Burroughs
acquiring possession of a small 'muck swamp' situated in a valley in
the hills, a mile or more west of his home at West Park, on the Hudson.
To Mr. Burroughs, the agriculturist, this apparently worthless bit
of ground promised a rich return after it had yielded to successive
attacks of brush-knife, grubbing-hook, plough, and spade. To Burroughs,
the literary naturalist and nature-lover, this secluded hollow in the
woods offered a retreat to which he could retire when his eyes wearied
of the view of nature tamed and trimmed, from his study on the bank of
the Hudson.
In the spring of 1895 the muck swamp was a seemingly hopeless tangle of
brush and bogs, without sign of human habitation. One year later its
black bed was lined with long rows of luxuriant celery, while from a
low point at one end of the swamp had arisen a rustic cabin fitting the
scene so harmoniously that one had to look twice to see it.
This is 'Slab Sides,' a dwelling of Mr. Burroughs' own planning, and,
in part, construction, its outer covering of rough sawn slabs, which
still retain their bark, being the origin of its name. In a future
number we hope to present a photograph of the exterior of Slab Sides,
with an account of the birds its owner finds about it. Part of its
interior is well shown by our photograph of Mr. Burroughs seated before
the fireplace, in which, as head mason and stone-cutter, he takes a
justifiable pride. Here, from April to November, Mr. Burroughs makes
his home, and here his most sympathetic readers may imagine him amid
surroundings which are in keeping with the character of his writings.
The Camera as an Aid in the Study of Birds
BY DR. THOS. S. ROBERTS
Director, Department of Birds, Natural History Survey of Minnesota.
With photographs from Nature, by the Author.
[Illustration]
Anyone having an earnest interest in both natural history and
photography can find no more delightful and profitable way of spending
leisure hours than by prying into the secrets of Dame Nature with an
instrument capable of furnishing such complete and truthful information
as the camera. Delightful and fascinating, because it not only gives
worthy purpose and charming zest to all outing trips, but yields
results that tell in no uncertain way of things and incidents that it
would be well nigh impossible to preserve in any other manner. There
is no department of nature-study in which the camera cannot be turned
to excellent account, and while records of lasting and scientific
value are being made, the devotee of amateur photography has at the
same time full scope for the study of his art. What may, perhaps, be
considered the greatest value, albeit an unrecognized one, of the
present widespread camera craze, is the development of a love for the
beautiful and artistic which may result, and along the line of study
here suggested may surely be found abundant material to stimulate in
the highest degree these qualities. Too much time is spent and too much
effort expended by the average 'kodaker' in what has been aptly termed
"reminiscent photography," the results being of but momentary interest
and of no particular value to anybody.
In the present and subsequent articles, it is intended to illustrate
by pictures actually taken in the field by the veriest tyro in the
art of photography, what may be accomplished by any properly equipped
amateur in the way of securing portraits of our native birds in their
wild state and amid their natural surroundings. Supplemental to such
portraits are the more easily taken photographs of the nests, eggs,
young, and natural haunts of each species; the whole graphically
depicting the most interesting epoch in the life-history of any
bird. Words alone fail to tell the story so clearly, so beautifully,
and so forcibly. And, best of all, this can be accomplished without
carrying bloodshed and destruction into the ranks of our friends the
birds; for we all love to call the birds our friends, yet some of us
are not, I fear, always quite friendly in our dealings with them.
To take their pictures and pictures of their homes is a peaceful
and harmless sort of invasion of their domains, and the results in
most cases are as satisfactory and far-reaching as to bring home as
trophies lifeless bodies and despoiled habitations, to be stowed
away in cabinets where dust and insects and failing interest soon
put an end to their usefulness. It is not intended, of course, to
reflect in any way upon the establishment of orderly and well-directed
collections, for such are absolutely necessary to the very existence
of the science of ornithology. To such collections the great body of
amateur bird students should turn for the close examinations necessary
to familiarize themselves with the principles of classification and the
distinctions between closely related species. Indeed, it is impossible
for anyone to be intelligently informed as to the many varieties of
birds, and their wonderful seasonal changes of plumage, without having
actually handled specimens.
[Illustration: CHICKADEE AT NEST-HOLE, WITH FOOD FOR YOUNG]
The growth of avian photography has been of short duration,--only a few
years in this country and not much longer in England, where it seems
to have had its inception. But there are already one or two good books
dealing with the subject; and a goodly number of ornithological works
of recent date, and especially the pages of the journal literature
of the day, bear excellent testimony to the merit and beauty of
this method of securing bird pictures. Attention, however, has thus
far been directed chiefly to obtaining illustrations of nests and
eggs and captive birds, to the neglect of the more difficult but
more interesting occupation of securing photographs of live birds in
their wild state. Herein lies the chief fascination of this branch of
photography, for good photographs from life of any of our birds, even
the most common, are still novelties.
The successful bird photographer must possess a good camera, including
a first-class lens, with at least an elementary knowledge of how to
get the best results from it; some acquaintance with field and forest
and their feathered inhabitants, and a fund of patience, perseverance,
and determination to conquer that is absolutely inexhaustible. No
matter how well equipped in other respects, this latter requisite
cannot be dispensed with. As to the technique and many details of
the art of photography, the writer is still too much of a novice
to speak very intelligently. Suffice it to say, that the general
principles governing other branches of photography are to be consulted
here. One great difficulty to be encountered is that there is little
opportunity to arrange the lighting or background of the object to be
photographed, and as the latter is apt to be either green foliage or
the dull ground, with the camera very near the object, the beginner
will be much perplexed to determine the proper stop and the right time
of exposure. With the usual appliances a wide open stop will be found
necessary with the rapid exposure required, and this will detract in a
disappointing manner from the beauty of the negative as a whole. But
every determined student will try in his or her own way to lessen these
defects, and will find in failure only increased incentive to discover
better methods and better appliances. Cameras and lenses especially
devised for this kind of work are promised in the near future. A
rapid telephoto lens is a great desideratum, and there is reason to
believe that in the near future such an one will be available. Those
to be had at present increase the time of exposure too much to be
generally useful in bird work. The writer has used a 4 × 5 long-focus
'Premo' with Bausch and Lomb Rapid Rectilinear lens (Zeiss-Anastigmat,
Series II-A, 4-1/4 × 6-1/2), the focal length of the combination being
about 6-1/4 inches. Many kinds of plates have been used, but any good
rapid plate will do. For those who are willing to take the additional
care necessary to handle them successfully, rapid isochromatic or
orthochromatic plates are undoubtedly to be preferred, as they preserve
quite clearly the color values.
A consideration of the actual field difficulties, rather than the
more purely photographic problems to be encountered, is more within
the scope of the present paper. To this end a rather detailed account
is given of just how each of the following groups of photographs was
secured, hoping that others better equipped, with a better knowledge
of photography, and with more leisure, may be encouraged to go and do
likewise and present us with the results.
One of the greatest of these field difficulties is that the camera
is rarely focused upon the bird to be taken, but is either snapped
at random or focused upon some spot to which the bird is expected to
return. The latter, in the great majority of cases, is the nest; at
other times a much-used perching-place or feeding-ground. Success
depends, therefore, very largely upon the nature, disposition, and
habits, especially nesting habits, of the particular bird being dealt
with. Some birds are of a confiding, unsuspicious nature, and easily
reconciled to quiet intrusion; while others are so timid and wary that
hours of time have to be expended, and all sorts of devices resorted
to, in order to get the coveted 'snap.' Of the risk of life and limb
necessary to reach rocky cliff and lofty tree-dwelling species, the
recital must come from such daring and fearless devotees of this art as
the Kearton brothers of England, and others nearer home.
The nest being the lure usually employed to bring the bird within range
of the camera, it will follow that the nesting season is the time of
year when most of this work must be done. Thus, spring and early summer
are the harvest time of the bird photographer, and as it happens that
these, of all the seasons, are the most delightful in which to be
afield, the bird-lover, with glass, camera, and note-book, can leave
care behind and find contentment, rest, and peaceful profit in the
glorious days of June, so happily styled the rarest of all that come.
[Illustration: CHICKADEE LEAVING NEST]
Leaving general considerations, let us first study a series of
photographs that well illustrates what charming and dainty little
pictures can sometimes be secured with most trifling effort. Success
in this instance was easily attained because the little 'sitters' were
not very unwilling and because the conditions under which they lived
were more than usually favorable. The subject of these photographs,
the little Black-capped Chickadee, or Titmouse,--_Parus atricapillus_,
the scientists call him,--is familiarly known to almost every one
who has given even casual attention to birds. Its generally common
occurrence throughout the United States, cheery, happy disposition, and
lively notes as the little band, for they usually travel in companies,
goes roaming through woodland and copse, endears it to all. All
through the long, dreary winter, with its short days and perpetual
snow and ice, they are the same sprightly, contented little fellows,
and refreshing it is to meet and visit with them at such times as
they come 'chick-a-de-dee'-ing right into your very presence in their
familiar, confiding way. Springtime finds them with a mellow, long-drawn
love whistle of two notes and thoughts of home and home-like
things. Soon, down by the lake or brook-side, or in some moist woodland
glade, where birch and willow trunks long since dead and soft with age
stand sheltered among the growing trees, the little Black-cap and his
chosen mate pick out a cozy retreat. This, perhaps, is some deserted
Woodpecker den, decayed knothole, or more often it is a burrow of their
own making, and here they assume the delights and cares of wedded life.
A snug, warm nest of rabbit's hair or fern down is quickly built, and
in this softest of beds the five or six rosy white, finely speckled
little eggs are laid. Before very many days, eight or ten at most,
the old stump exhibits unmistakable signs of being animated within,
and in a wonderfully short time the little nestlings are as large
as their parents, and full, indeed, is this family domicile. Owing
to the cleanly habits and care of the old birds, the dresses of the
youngsters are cleaner and brighter than those of their hard-worked,
food-carrying parents. It was just at this stage in their progress that
the little family, whose portraits are here shown, was discovered one
late June day, snugly ensconced within the crumbling trunk of a long
since departed willow tree. With a bird-loving companion, Mr. Leslie O.
Dart, the writer was drifting idly in a little boat through one of the
many channels of the Mississippi river, which cut up into innumerable
islands, the heavily wooded bottomland of eastern Houston county,
Minnesota. Being in search of the nests of numerous Prothonotary
Warblers, which were flashing hither and thither across the channel, we
skirted the shore closely, tapping on all likely-looking stubs. Now
the tapping brought to view a Downy Woodpecker, then a beautiful Golden
Swamp Warbler; sometimes unexpectedly a great gray mouse scrambled
out and plunged boldly into the water beneath; but this time the blow
was followed by a subdued hum from within, and an inquiring, anxious
parent Chickadee appeared suddenly on the scene, joined in a moment
by a second, and we had the family complete. It was near noon, the
sun was shining brightly, the hole was on the water side of the stub
in the light, and we had no Chickadee pictures; so we camped at once
and prepared to 'do' the situation. A little investigation showed the
nest to be too high for setting up the camera satisfactorily, as the
tripod legs sank deep in the mud and water. But our kit included a
saw for just such an emergency, and sawing off the soft stub at the
proper height, it was lowered gently until the hole came just on a
level with the camera, placed horizontally and at a distance of about
three feet. Propped with a forked stick, it rested quite securely on
the soft bottom. This was better than tipping the camera and employing
the 'swing back,' as the sun was nearly overhead. After focusing
carefully on the opening in the stub, attaching to the camera fifty
feet of small rubber tubing with large bulb, in place of the usual
short tube and small bulb, setting carefully the trigger and other
accessories of our harmless gun, and covering the whole camera with a
hood of rough green cloth, the lens alone visible, we retreated to a
convenient vantage point among the small willows close by. But a few
minutes elapsed before the old birds were on the spot peering at us and
the big green object from all sides. In an incredibly short space of
time, considering the great liberties that had been taken with their
habitation and door yard, they became resigned, and one of the birds,
which we assumed to be the female, flew straight to the stub, and, with
a last suspicious glance at the great glistening eye so near at hand,
disappeared into the hole with a large brown worm in her bill. But that
momentary delay was the looked-for opportunity, and all-sufficient;
for with a quick squeeze of the bulb, click went the shutter, and in
the twenty-fifth of a second the bird was ours; shot without so much
as knowing it, without indeed the ruffling of a feather or the drawing
of a drop of blood, and preserved life-like and true to nature for all
time to come.
From this time on the birds came and went without hesitation, the only
serious delays in our operations being due to the drifting clouds,
which now and then obscured the sun and rendered the light too weak
for the rapid exposures necessary. One of the birds, the one we took
to be the female, was a little more courageous than the other, and it
is her picture that appears oftenest. The timid one,--the male,--even
went so far on several occasions as to himself devour the worm he had
brought rather than trust himself at close quarters with the unknown
enemy, although his mate was at the time coming and going industriously
and keeping the little folk well supplied with the great larvæ. Surely
personal traits and individuality are quite as well marked in the
bird world as higher in the scale! After we had made several more
exposures similar to the first, one of the best of which shows the
bird, worm-laden as before, balanced on the edge of the hole and taking
the usual last look at the camera, we turned our attention to catching
her as she was coming out. This required quicker coöperation between
eye and hand, as the exit was generally made with a dash; but the
accompanying picture, with head just emerging, will show that we were
fairly successful.
[Illustration: YOUNG CHICKADEES.]
Having concluded from all indications, chief among which was the
immense number of huge caterpillars carried in to the young, that
the latter must be fairly grown, we decided to expose the nest and
complete our collection by securing the entire family. So carefully
sawing away the front wall of the cavity with a keyhole saw carried
for just such purposes, we gave the little fellows within their first
view of the outside world. I fear they must have thought the manner
of opening their second shell a rather rude one, and the outlook
somewhat forbidding. They were pretty little youngsters, fully grown,
with clean, jaunty coats, and a grown-up 'chickadee-dee,' just like
the old folks. Though somewhat dazzled at first by the sudden flood of
bright sunlight, they were, after a little coaxing, induced to sit out
on the veranda that had been improvised for them; but, like youthful
sitters generally, they were hard to pose, and after many exposures, we
succeeded in getting no more than two of them at once. The prettiest
one of all, showing two of the little fellows as they finally settled
down contentedly in the warm sunshine, was obtained at the expense of
much patient effort and a great deal of slushing back and forth in mud
and water between boat and camera, and it was gratifying to find that
one at least of the negatives did fair justice to the situation.
[Illustration: CHICKADEE FEEDING YOUNG]
The old ones came and went after the mutilation of their home, just as
before, and, indeed, apparently found the new arrangement much more
convenient than the old. In one of the photographs here presented,
domestic affairs that had before been entirely concealed from view
are fully revealed, and had not the plate been light-struck by one of
the many aggravating accidents likely to occur in the out-door work
of the beginner, the picture would have been the best of the series.
The courageous parent is attending to her maternal duties under
circumstances which must appear most appalling. The little fellow
sitting so contentedly by has undoubtedly had his share of the huge
juicy caterpillars, and patiently recognizes that it is not his turn.
(_To be concluded_)
From a Cabin Window
BY H. W. MENKE
With Photographs from Nature by the Author
[Illustration]
During the winter of 1897-8 I prospected for Jurassic fossils in Carbon
and Albany counties, Wyoming. When cold weather and snow rendered field
work impracticable as well as very disagreeable, I made permanent camp
for the winter at Aurora, Wyoming,--a mere station on the Union Pacific
R. R., an old abandoned section-house serving as my winter quarters.
This part of Wyoming,--at all times dreary and lonely,--is strikingly
so during winter months. Then snow fills the ravines and lends a
level, prairie-like aspect to the landscape. I doubt if there is to be
found anywhere a more desolate country than this; at least such was my
impression when the novelty of my surroundings had worn off.
[Illustration: HORNED LARKS AND SNOWFLAKES]
Among the various expedients to which I resorted for amusement, was
photographing such birds as I could lure around the cabin. That I
was not more successful in securing good negatives is due to the
difficulties with which I had to contend. Chief of these were the
fierce, wintry blasts sweeping over the plains and filling the air
with snow and dust.
A single experiment taught me the inadvisability of leaving the camera
exposed for any length of time to these conditions. I had been trying
to get a large photograph of Horned Larks. The camera was placed on the
ground and a handful of oats scattered before it, while I waited within
the cabin for nearly two hours for an opportunity to pull the thread
attached to the camera shutter. But the birds persistently avoided the
pebble marking the focal plane, and clouds continually obscured the
sun when I wished to make an exposure. At last the right moment came,
I pulled the thread, and hurried out to get the result. That plate
was never developed. Snow had clogged the shutter, and I found it had
remained wide open after being sprung.
[Illustration: HORNED LARKS AND SNOWFLAKES]
By throwing oats on only one spot, and that close to the window, I
soon gathered quite a flock of Horned Larks, who came regularly every
morning to feed from the constantly replenished supply. Finally, after
a week of gloomy, dark weather, a cloudless sky offered especially good
chances for a photograph of my feathered friends. This time I placed
the camera on the window-sill. Maneuvers attendant upon focusing and
inserting a plate-holder, of course, frightened the birds away. They
were back again within a few minutes, but an unexpected source of
annoyance interfered. A freight train stopped opposite the scene of my
operations and belched great billows of smoke between the sun and the
birds. Also the shadow of the cabin was gradually encroaching on the
feeding ground. I made a trial exposure, however, and obtained a very
good negative. But a shadow in the foreground and a wagon tongue in the
rear, did not add to the pictorial effect of the group.
After much pulling and prying, I pushed the objectionable wagon out
of the drifts, and put off further photographing until the next
morning. The morning came as bright and sunny as I desired. My
feathered subjects were early in the open air studio, and required no
conventional admonition to 'look pleasant.' In fact, they were almost
too lively for the camera shutter. The negative obtained proved very
good, and well repaid me for all trouble and annoyance.
[Illustration: YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRDS]
A few Yellow-headed Blackbirds were attracted by the food supply I
furnished, and I made several negatives of them. The Yellow-heads
were more wary than the Horned Larks, and flew away at the slightest
disturbance. Only a few at a time gathered beneath the window, while
the others perched on fence-posts at a safe distance and kept watch.
But it remained for a Northern Shrike to add 'insult to injury,' by
seizing a dead mouse I had placed on a post and alighting on the camera
with its capture!
=For Teachers and Students=
Bird-Studies for Children
BY ISABEL EATON
[Illustration]
It is a simple matter enough, with the little folk who happily live in
the country, to excite an interest and develop a familiar friendship
with their bird neighbors. The birds can easily be coaxed to the piazza
or the window-shelf by the judicious offer of free lunch, and so a
speaking acquaintance, perhaps even a life-long friendship, with them
may be gained.
But with city children, especially those of the poorer classes, the
case is very different. The question how to teach them to know and care
for birds is by no means so easy.
Look at their case: they have seen no birds but English Sparrows
and caged Canaries and Parrots; few of them know the Robin; they
practically never go to the country, and many of them never even go to
the parks. How shall they be taught about birds? Observing the rule
of advancing from known to unknown, would suggest Dick the Canary,
as the obvious point of departure from a tenement into the world of
birds; then, perhaps, the Summer Yellow-bird in the park, commonly
known as the 'Wild Canary,' and then Mr. Goldfinch and his little
olive-brown spouse, who would make a natural transition to the brown
Sparrow family, and so on. The difficulty here is that it is so nearly
impossible to get city children up to the park to see the Yellow-bird.
So another method, involving no country walks and no live birds, has
to be resorted to. We may use pictures,--drawn before the class and
colored, if possible,--and, trusting to the children's powers of
imagination and idealization, may connect with their experience at some
other point. After studying about the carpenter, in kindergarten or
primary school, for instance, it is easy to interest children in the
Woodpecker by proposing to tell them about a "little carpenter bird;"
after talking of the fisherman, a promise to tell them of a bird who
is a fisherman is sure to stir their imaginations of the doings of the
Kingfisher, and so with the weaver (Oriole), mason (Robin) and others.
When several birds have been learned, the best kind of review for
little people is probably some game like the following, which has been
played with most tumultuous enthusiasm and eager interest in a certain
New York school of poor children. The teacher says:
"Let's play 'I'm thinking of a bird.' All shut your eyes tight and
think. Now, I'm thinking of a bird nearly as large as a Pigeon; he
is brownish, with black barring on the back, black spots all over
the breast," etc., etc., giving a description of the Yellow Hammer,
or Flicker, but leaving the characteristic marks until the end of
the description. Before the teacher has gone far, a dozen hands are
waving wildly and several vociferous whispers are heard, proclaiming
in furious pianissimo: "_I_ know," "_I_ know what it is." Then the
child who gets it right is allowed to describe a bird for the class to
guess, and if the description fails in any point the class may offer
corrections.
This appeal to the play instinct excites great interest, which is the
thing chiefly to be desired.
When a number of birds have been learned in this way, a trip to the
Natural History Museum would be of very great value, especially
noticing the wonderful reproductions of actual scenes from bird-life
there displayed. In this way city children could see in a single day
more real bird-life than they could otherwise get in a year, as their
few country days are generally populous picnics, from which the birds
flee aghast.
The children should take their kindergarten principles of observation
and conversational description to the Museum with them, and, on
returning to school, should draw and color some bird they have seen.
To observe and describe and, perhaps, draw each new bird whose picture
is shown in the classroom is also a good thing. The writer passed a
mounted Flicker through a class of fifty children of kindergarten
age, let them look and carefully handle, and then asked for "stories"
about it. One child said: "I know--Oh--I know seven stories--no,
eight--_nine_ stories about Mr. Yellow Hammer," and she really did know
her nine "stories."
When they have gone as far as this, most bird stories will interest
them, especially if the birds are humanized for them by the teller of
the tale.
To sum up, it may be said that the best way to begin is to teach a few
birds well,--a dozen or so,--by connecting with the child's experience,
in some way, the information to be given, and then employing the play
instinct by having bird games of various kinds, both kindergarten bird
games and others; observation, description and drawing of birds may
follow, and first and last, and all the time, all descriptions and
stories given to children should be in terms of human nature.
Winter Bird Studies
[Illustration]
Although we have fewer birds during the winter than at any other
season, at no other time during the year do the comparative advantages
of ornithology as a field study seem so evident. The botanist and
entomologist now find little out of doors to attract them, and, if we
except a stray squirrel or rabbit, birds are the only living things we
may see from December to March. Winter, therefore, is a good time to
begin the study of birds, not only because flowers and insects do not
then claim our attention, but also because the small number of birds
then present is a most encouraging circumstance to the opera-glass
student, who, in identifying birds, is at the mercy of a 'key.'
Indeed, the difficulty now lies not in identification, but in
discovery; unless one is thoroughly familiar with a given locality
and its bird-life, one may walk for miles and not see a feather--a
particularly unfortunate state of affairs if one has a bird-class
in charge. This dilemma, however, may be avoided by catering to the
dominant demand of bird-life at this season, the demand for food.
Given a supply of the proper kind of food, and birds in the winter may
nearly always be found near it. Bird seed and grain may be used, but a
less expensive diet, and one which will doubtless be more appreciated,
consists of sweepings from the hay-loft containing the seeds to which
our birds are accustomed. This may be scattered by the bushel or in a
sufficient quantity to insure a hearty meal for all visiting Juncos and
Tree Sparrows, with perhaps less common winter seed-eaters.
The bark-hunting Woodpeckers, Nuthatches, and Chickadees will require
different fare, and meat-bones, suet, bacon-rinds and the like have
been found to be acceptable substitutes for their usual repast of
insects' eggs and larvæ.
Winter, strange as it may seem, is an excellent season for
bird-nesting. The trees and bushes now give up the secrets they guarded
from us so successfully during the summer, and we examine them with
as much interest as we pore over the 'Answers to Puzzles in Preceding
Number' department of a favorite magazine.
Immediately after a snow storm is the best time in which to hunt for
birds' nests in the winter. Then all tree and bush nests have a white
cap, which renders them more conspicuous.
When walking with children, the spirit of competition may be aroused
by saying "Who'll see the first nest," or "Who'll see the next nest
first," as the case may be, and the number discovered under this
impetus is often surprising.
=For Young Observers=
Boys and girls who study birds are invited to send short accounts of
their observations to this department.
Our Doorstep Sparrow
BY FLORENCE A. MERRIAM.
[Illustration]
Don't think that I mean the House, or English Sparrow, for he is quite
a different bird. Our little doorstep friend is the very smallest of
all the brown Sparrows you know, and wears a reddish brown cap, and a
gray vest so plain it hasn't a single button or stripe on it. He is a
dear, plump little bird, who sits in the sun and throws up his head and
chippers away so happily that people call him the Chipping Sparrow.
He comes to the doorstep and looks up at you as if he knew you wanted
to feed him, and if you scatter crumbs on the piazza he will pick them
up and hop about on the floor as if it were his piazza as well as yours.
One small Chippy, whom his friends called Dick, used to light on the
finger of the kind man who fed him, and use his hand for dining-room,
and sometimes when he had had a very nice breakfast, he would hop up on
a finger, perch, and sing a happy song!
Dick was so sure his friends were kind and good, that as soon as his
little birds were out of the nest, he brought them to be fed too. They
did not know what a nice dining-room a hand makes, so they wouldn't fly
up to it, but when the gentleman held their bread and seeds close to
the ground, they would come and help themselves.
CHIPPY'S NEST.
If you were a bird and were going to build a nest, where would you put
it? At the end of a row of your brothers' nests, as the Eave Swallows
do? Or would that be too much like living in a row of brick houses in
the city? Chipping Sparrows don't like to live too close to their next
door neighbors. They don't mind if a Robin is in the same tree, on
another bough, but they want their own branch all to themselves.
[Illustration: TAMING A CHIPPY
Photographed by Mr. George Wood at the home of Lieutenant Wirt
Robinson, in Virginia. Lieutenant Robinson writes that a pair of
Chipping Sparrows placed their nest in the climbing rose bush at the
end of the piazza. One of the pair, supposed to be the female, was
easily tamed with the aid of bread crumbs, and for three successive
years she returned to the piazza, always immediately resuming her
habits of familiarity.]
And they want it to be a branch, too. Other birds may build their nests
on the ground, or burrow in the ground, or dig holes in tree trunks,
or even hang their nests down inside dark chimneys if they like, but
Chippy doesn't think much of such places. He wants plenty of daylight
and fresh air.
But even if you have made up your mind to build on a branch, think how
many nice trees and bushes there are to choose from, and how hard it
must be to decide on one. You'd have to think a long time and look in
a great many places. You see you want the safest, best spot in all the
world in which to hide away your pretty eggs, and the precious birdies
that will hatch out of them. They must be tucked well out of sight, for
weasels and cats, and many other giants like eggs and nestlings for
breakfast.
If you could find a kind family fond of birds, don't you think it would
be a good thing to build near them? Perhaps they would drive away the
cats and help protect your brood. Then on hot summer days maybe some
little girl would think to put out a pan of water for a drink and a
cool bath. Some people, like Dick's friends, are so thoughtful they
throw out crumbs to save a tired mother bird the trouble of having
to hunt for every morsel she gets to give her brood. Just think what
work it is to find worms enough for four children who want food from
daylight to dark!
The vines of a piazza make a safe, good place for a nest if you are
sure the people haven't a cat, and love birds. I once saw a Chippy's
nest in the vines of a dear old lady's house, and when she would come
out to see how the eggs were getting on she would talk so kindly to
the old birds it was very pleasant to live there. In such a place your
children are protected, they have a roof over their little heads so the
rains won't beat down on them, and the vines shade them nicely from the
hot sun.
When you are building your house everything you want to use will be
close by. On the lawn you will find the soft grasses you want for the
outside, and in the barnyard you can get the long horse hairs that all
Chipping Sparrows think they must have for a dry, cool nest-lining.
Hair-birds, you know Chippies are called, they use so much hair. The
question is how can they ever find it unless they do live near a barn?
You go to look for it, someday, out on a country road or in a pasture.
It takes sharp eyes and a great deal of patience, I guess you'll find
them. But if you live on the piazza of a house, with a barn in the
back yard, you can find so many nice long hairs that you can sometimes
make your whole nest of them. I have seen a Chippy's nest that hadn't
another thing in it--that was just a coil of black horse hair.
After you have built your nest and are looking for food for your young
it is most convenient to be near a house. The worms you want for your
nestlings are in the garden, and the seeds you like for a lunch for
yourself are on the weeds mixed up with the lawn grass. You needn't
mind taking them, either, for the people you live with will be only too
glad to get rid of them, because their flowers are killed by the worms,
and their lawns look badly when weeds grow in the grass, so you will
only be helping the kind friends who have already helped you. Don't you
think that will be nice?
CHIPPY'S FAMILY.
Did you ever look into a Chippy's nest? The eggs are a pretty blue and
have black dots on the larger end.
When the little birds first come out of the shell their eyes are shut
tight, like those of little kittens when they are first born.
If you are very gentle you can stroke the backs of the little ones as
they sit waiting for the old birds to feed them.
I remember one plum tree nest on a branch so low that a little girl
could look into it. One day when the mother bird was brooding the eggs
the little girl crept close up to the tree, so close she could look
into Mother Chippy's eyes, and the trustful bird never stirred, but
just sat and looked back at her. "Isn't she tame?" the child cried, she
was so happy over it.
There was another Chippy's nest in an evergreen by the house, and when
the old birds were hunting for worms we used to feed the nestlings
bread crumbs. They didn't mind the bread not being worms so long as it
was something to eat. It would have made you laugh to see how wide they
opened their bills! It seemed as if the crumbs could drop clear down
to their boots! Wouldn't you like to feed a little family like that
sometime?
A Prize Offered
We want the boys and girls who read Bird-Lore to feel that they have a
share in making the journal interesting. Young eyes are keen and eager
when their owner's attention is aroused; so we ask the attention of
every reader of Bird-Lore of fourteen years or under to the following
offer: To the one sending us the best account of a February walk we
will give a year's subscription to this journal. The account should
contain 250 to 300 words, and should describe the experiences of a walk
in the country or some large park, with particular reference to the
birds observed.
=Notes from Field and Study=
An Accomplished House Sparrow
In June, six or seven years ago, my daughters found in the courtyard
of our home, a young House or English Sparrow who had evidently fallen
from the nest, and had broken its leg in the fall. They took it in and
cared for it, binding up the injured limb and feeding it as experience
with other birds of the same family had taught them to do. Happily, the
bird recovered, and in a short time became quite a pet of the household.
At that time we had two Canary Birds, both beautiful singers, and in
almost constant song. The Sparrow was in the same room with them, and
very soon (making use of its imitative power, which we have observed is
a strong characteristic of the Sparrow) acquired the full and complete
song of the Canaries. We followed with much pleasure the unfolding of
his musical ability, which was gradual, and found that he had surpassed
his teachers, producing melodies much richer and stronger, as all who
had the pleasure of listening to him freely admitted.
The bird retained his song to the last, although as age came upon him,
as with all other pet birds, his singing was less and less frequent
till he passed away, some few months ago. Besides imitating the song
of the Canary, he acquired the song of a bird in our collection known
as the 'Strawberry Finch,' which he gave perfectly. His plumage was
greatly improved by his confinement and the very great care given him,
so much so, that one almost doubted his being an English Sparrow till
convinced upon closer examination.
We have had a large experience with these birds; they become very
affectionate with petting, and show a wonderful degree of intelligence.
I would further say that our Sparrow had all the notes common to the
English Sparrow, beside his acquired accomplishments, and there was
sadness in our home when his little life went out.--John L. Royael,
_Brooklyn, N. Y._
A Nut-hatching Nuthatch
On October 14, 1898, while on a short visit to my old home, at New
Baltimore, New York, I sat down near a clump of trees and shrubs to
enjoy the bird-life so abundant there.
[Illustration: ACORN WEDGED IN BARK BY WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH
Photographed from Nature, by E. B. Southwick]
Here I saw the Chickadee carefully examining the fruit-heads of the
smooth sumach, and twice take from them a mass of spider-web; then,
flying to a limb, dissect it and obtain from it the mass of young or
eggs. It was with difficulty that the food was disentangled from the
silk, and I found on examination that much of it had been so crushed,
that it was impossible to determine whether the web contained eggs or
young.
While thus engaged, I saw a White-breasted Nuthatch, with something in
its beak, alight on the trunk of a wild cherry tree. While running
about over the bark, the bird dropped what proved to be an acorn, but
immediately flew down and picked it from the long grass, and returned
to the tree. A second time it dropped it, and then, after carrying
it again to the tree, thrust it into a crevice in the bark with
considerable force, and began to peck at it vigorously. This it did for
a few seconds, when I jumped up quickly and, with wild gesticulations,
frightened it away. It proved to be the acorn of the pin Oak (_Quercus
palustris_), and as no fruiting tree of this species was nearer than
the Island, in the river opposite, I concluded that the bird had
carried it across the water from that point.
After photographing the acorn on the tree, I cut the section of bark
off, glued the acorn in its cavity, and the photograph shows the
result.--E. B. Southwick, _New York City_.
A Cover Design
[Illustration]
This interesting sketch was contributed by a prominent ornithologist
as an appropriate cover design for this magazine at a time when it
was proposed to call it "The Bird World." The appearance of a book
bearing this title renders it necessary for us to abandon its use, but
we do not, for the same reason, feel justified in depriving the world
of this remarkably artistic effort, and therefore present it for the
edification of our readers, and we trust, to the delight of its author!
Collecting a Brown Thrasher's Song
Rustler, my pet Brown Thrasher, was pouring out his loud, long, spring
song. A phonograph, or rather a graphophone, had been left on a table
by the cage. Everything seemed to favor the collection of a bird song.
I placed the instrument so that the open funnel of the horn came within
less than a foot of the Thrasher's swelling throat, and touching a
lever, set the wax cylinder revolving below a sapphire-tipped style,
which cut the bird notes into the wax. Just as the medley changed
from that of a Catbird to that of a Wood Thrush, a Robin flew past
the window. Rustler stopped short, but the style continued to cut and
ruin the wax cylinder. When Rustler started in again he hopped to the
opposite side of the cage, rudely turning his back upon the graphophone.
More than a little vexed at the perversity of dumb animals, I quickly
covered over the end of the cage farthest from the graphophone; then
Rustler sulked beneath the cloth in silence. Next I removed the perch
from that side and then Rustler absolutely refused to sing any more.
Some hours later, however, I made another attempt, but each time the
graphophone was started the whir of the revolving cylinder cut short
my Thrasher's rich, rippling notes, so that the only thing to do was
to remove the recording style and accustom him to the noise of the
cylinder, and when this had been accomplished, I replaced the recording
style. I found that by shutting off the graphophone the instant
Rustler's notes became weak or stopped, I could catch a continuous
series of notes. I succeeded the following morning in getting a pretty
fair song. It was not so loud as it might have been, but in pitch and
timbre it was perfect.
In September dear old Rustler died. For nine long years he had
enlivened my northern New Jersey home with his cheery music. In
November, at a meeting of the American Ornithologists' Union, the notes
of Rustler's love song fell sweetly upon sympathetic ears.--Sylvester
D. Judd, Ph. D., _Washington, D. C._
=Book News and Reviews=
With Nature and a Camera. By Richard Kearton, F. Z. S. Illustrated by
180 Pictures from Photographs by Cherry Kearton. Cassell & Co.,
London, Paris and Melbourne [New York, East 18th St.], 1898. 8vo.
Pages xvi + 368. Price, $5.
Authors may or may not be indebted to reviewers of their works, but it
is not often that reviewers are under obligations to the authors of
the works they review. In the present instance, however, we feel that
we must express our gratitude to the Messrs. Kearton for furnishing us
with such an admirable demonstration of the kind of ornithology for
which this journal stands. If, following the same lines, we can bring
Bird-Lore to the high standard reached in 'With Nature and a Camera,'
we shall have nearly approached our ideal.
Briefly, this book is a record of observation and photography by two
ornithologists in Great Britain. Doubtless, no birds in the world
have been more written about than the birds of this region, and still
this book is filled with fresh and original matter, which is always
interesting, and often of real scientific value.
Asked to explain how it was that in such a well-worked field the
author of this volume had succeeded in securing so much new material,
we should reply that we believed it was because he was an observer
rather than a collector. Apparently realizing that to collect specimens
of British birds would add but little to the store of our knowledge
concerning them, he has devoted his time to a study of their habits,
and in presenting the results of his labors, he has been most ably
seconded by his brother, whose photographs of birds in nature have not,
so far as we know, been excelled.
Perhaps the most forcible lesson taught by this book is the pleasure
to be derived from photographing wild birds in nature, and the
surprisingly good results which may be achieved by patient, intelligent
effort. We do not recall a more adequately illustrated nature book, and
its pictures not only claim our admiration because of their beauty, but
also because they carry with them an assurance of fidelity to nature
which no artist's pencil can inspire.
Bird Gods. By Charles de Kay. With decorations by George Wharton
Edwards. A. S. Barnes & Co., New York. 12mo, pages xix + 249.
Price, $2.
So singular a combination of ornithologist and mythologist is the
author of 'Bird Gods' that students of birds, as well as of myths, will
find his pages of interest. "Why," he asks himself, "should certain
birds have been allotted to certain gods and goddesses in the Greek and
Roman mythology? Why should the Eagle go with Zeus, the Peacock with
Hera, the Dove with Venus, the Swan with Apollo, the Woodpecker with
Ares, the Owl with Pallas Athené?" And his search for a reply to these
questions has led him into many little-frequented by-paths of early
European literature, in which he has found much curious information
concerning the influence of birds on primitive religions. Impressed by
the "share birds have had in the making of myth, religion, poetry and
legend" he wonders at their wholesale destruction to-day, and ventures
the hope that "recollection of what our ancestors thought of birds and
beasts, of how at one time they prized and idealized them, may induce
in us, their descendants, some shame at the extermination to which we
are consigning these lovable but helpless creatures, for temporary
gains or sheer brutal love of slaughter."
Birds of Washington and Vicinity. By Mrs. L. W. Maynard, with
Introduction by Florence A. Merriam. Washington, D. C., 1898. 12
mo, pages 204. Cuts in the text, 18. Price, 85 cents.
In a prefatory note the author states that this book "has been prepared
at the suggestion of the Audubon Society of the District of Columbia,
in the belief that a local work giving untechnical descriptions of all
birds likely to be seen in this vicinity, with something of the haunts
and habits of those that nest here, will be useful to many who desire
an acquaintance with our own birds, but do not know just how to go
about making it."
The book seems admirably adapted to achieve this end. The opening pages
by Miss Merriam are a capital introduction to the study of birds in
the District of Columbia. They are followed by 'A Field Key to Our
Common Land Birds,' and attractively written biographical sketches of
the breeding species. The migrants and winter residents are treated
more briefly, and an annotated 'List of All Birds Found in the District
of Columbia,' by Dr. C. W. Richmond, is given. There are also nominal
lists of winter birds, birds that nest within the city limits, etc.,
and an 'Observation Outline,' abridged from Miss Merriam's 'Birds of
Village and Field.'
The book is, in fact, a complete manual of ornithology for the District
of Columbia, and will undoubtedly prove an efficient guide to the study
of the birds of that region.
Bird-Life: A Guide to the Study of Our Common Birds. Teachers'
Edition. By Frank M. Chapman. With 75 full-page plates and
numerous text-drawings by Ernest Seton Thompson. D. Appleton & Co.
New York. 1899. 12mo, pages xiv + 269 + Appendix, pages 87.
This is the original edition of 'Bird-Life,' with an Appendix designed
to adapt the work for use in schools. The new matter consists of
questions on the introductory chapters of 'Bird-Life,' as, for
instance, 'The Bird, its Place in Nature and Relation to Man,'
'Form and Habit,' 'Color,' 'Migration,' etc.; and, under the head
of 'Seasonal Lessons,' a review of the bird-life of a year based on
observations made in the vicinity of New York City. This includes a
statement of the chief characteristics of each month, followed by a
list of the birds to be found during the month, and, for the spring and
early summer months, a list of birds to be found nesting.
For the use of teachers and students residing in other parts of
the eastern United States there are annotated lists of birds from
Washington, D. C., by Dr. C. W. Richmond; Philadelphia, Pa., by Witmer
Stone; Portland, Conn., by J. H. Sage; Cambridge, Mass., by William
Brewster; St. Louis, Mo., by Otto Widmann; Oberlin, Ohio, by Lynds
Jones, and Milwaukee, Wis., by H. Nehrling.
The Appletons have also issued this book in the form of a 'Teachers'
Manual,' which contains the same text as the 'Teachers' Edition,' but
lacks the seventy-five uncolored plates.
This 'Teachers' Manual' is intended to accompany three 'Teachers'
Portfolios of Plates,' containing in all one hundred plates, of which
ninety-one, including the seventy-five plates published in 'Bird-Life,'
are colored, while nine are half-tone reproductions of birds' nests
photographed in nature. The one hundred plates are about equally
divided in portfolios under the titles of 'Permanent Residents and
Winter Visitants,' 'March and April Migrants,' and 'May Migrants and
Types of Nests and Eggs.'
Audubon Bird Chart
A most practical step in Audubon educational work is the publication,
by the Massachusetts Audubon Society, of a chart giving life-size,
colored illustrations of twenty-six of our common birds. On the whole,
both in drawing and coloring, these birds are excellent, and while a
severe critic might take exception to some minor inaccuracies, the
chart may be commended as the best thing of the kind which has come to
our attention. It is accompanied by a pamphlet containing well written
biographies, by Mr. Ralph Hoffmann, of the species figured. The chart
is published by the Prang Educational Company, of Boston, from whom,
with Mr. Hoffmann's booklet, it may be purchased for one dollar.
=Bird-Lore=
A Bi-monthly Magazine
Devoted to the Study and Protection of Birds
OFFICIAL ORGAN OF THE AUDUBON SOCIETIES
=Edited by FRANK M. CHAPMAN=
=Published by THE MACMILLAN COMPANY=
=====================================================
Vol. 1 February, 1899 No. 1
=====================================================
=SUBSCRIPTION RATES.=
Price in the United States, Canada, and Mexico,
twenty cents a number, one dollar a year, postage
paid.
Subscriptions may be sent to the Publishers, at
Harrisburg, Pa., or 66 Fifth avenue, New York City,
or to the Editor, at Englewood, New Jersey.
Price in all countries in the International Postal
Union, twenty-five cents a number, one dollar and
a quarter a year, postage paid. Foreign agents,
Macmillan and Company, Ltd., London.
-----------------------------------------------------
Manuscripts for publication, books, etc., for review,
should be sent to the Editor at Englewood,
New Jersey.
-----------------------------------------------------
Advertisements should be sent to the Publishers
at 66 Fifth avenue, New York City.
-----------------------------------------------------
COPYRIGHTED, 1899, BY FRANK M. CHAPMAN.
-----------------------------------------------------
During the past six years New York and Boston publishers have sold
over 70,000 text-books on birds, and the ranks of bird students are
constantly growing. With this phenomenal and steadily increasing
interest in bird-studies, there has arisen a widespread demand for a
popular journal of ornithology which should be addressed to observers
rather than to collectors of birds, or, in short, to those who study
"birds through an opera-glass."
The need of such a journal has also been felt by the Audubon societies,
and in concluding his report for the year 1898, Mr. Witmer Stone,
chairman of the American Ornithologists' Union's Committee on Bird
Protection, remarks on the necessity of a "magazine devoted to popular
ornithology which could serve as an organ for the various societies and
keep the members in touch with their work. All societies which have
reached a membership of several thousand realize that it is impossible
to communicate with their members more than once or twice a year,
owing to the cost of postage, and the success of the societies depends
largely upon keeping in communication with their members."
It is to supply this want of bird students and bird protectors that
Bird-Lore has been established. On its behalf we promise to spare no
effort to make it all that the most ardent bird student could desire,
and, in the event of our success, we would appeal to all bird-lovers
for such support as we may be deemed worthy to receive.
We have issued a 'Prospectus,' setting forth in part the aims of
Bird-Lore, and as a matter of permanent record, we enter its substance
here. It stated that Bird-Lore would attempt to fill a place in the
journalistic world similar to that occupied by the works of Burroughs,
Torrey, Dr. van Dyke, Mrs. Miller, and others in the domain of books.
This is a high standard, but our belief that it will be reached
will doubtless be shared when we announce that, with one or two
exceptions, every prominent American writer on birds in nature has
promised to contribute to Bird-Lore during the coming year. The list of
contributors includes the authors just mentioned, Mabel Osgood Wright,
Annie Trumbull Slosson, Florence A. Merriam, J. A. Allen, William
Brewster, Henry Nehrling, Ernest Seton Thompson, Otto Widmann, and
numerous other students of bird-life.
The Audubon Department, under Mrs. Wright's care, will be a
particularly attractive feature of the magazine, one which, we trust,
is destined to exert a wide influence in advancing the cause of
bird-protection.
The illustrations will consist of half-tone reproductions of birds
and their nests from nature, and on the basis of material already in
hand, we can assure our readers that, whether judged separately or as
a whole, this volume of Bird-Lore will contain the best photographs of
wild birds which have as yet been published in this country.
At present Bird-Lore will contain from thirty-two to forty pages, but
should our efforts to produce a magazine on the lines indicated be
appreciated, we trust that the near future will witness a material
increase in the size of each number.
=The Audubon Societies=
"_You cannot with a scalpel find the poet's soul,
Nor yet the wild bird's song._"
Edited by Mrs. Mabel Osgood Wright (President of the Audubon Society of
the State of Connecticut), Fairfield, Conn., to whom all communications
relating to the work of the Audubon and other Bird Protective Societies
should be addressed.
DIRECTORY OF STATE AUDUBON SOCIETIES
With names and addresses of their Secretaries.
=New Hampshire= Mrs. F. W. Batchelder, Manchester.
=Massachusetts= Miss Harriet E. Richards, care Boston Society
of Natural History, Boston.
=Rhode Island= Mrs. H. T. Grant, Jr., 187 Bowen street,
Providence.
=Connecticut= Mrs. Henry S. Glover, Fairfield.
=New York= Miss Emma H. Lockwood, 243 West Seventy-fifth
street, New York City.
=New Jersey= Miss Mary A. Mellick, Plainfield.
=Pennsylvania= Mrs. Edward Robins, 114 South Twenty-first
street, Philadelphia.
=District of Columbia= Mrs. John Dewhurst Patten, 3033 P street,
Washington.
=Wheeling, W. Va.= Elizabeth I. Cummins, 1314 Chapline street,
(branch of Penn Society) Wheeling.
=Ohio= Miss Clara Russell, 903 Paradrome street,
Cincinnati.
=Indiana= Amos W. Butler, State House, Indianapolis.
=Illinois= Miss Mary Drummond, Wheaton.
=Iowa= Miss Nellie S. Board, Keokuk.
=Wisconsin= Mrs. George W. Peckham, 646 Marshall street,
Milwaukee.
=Minnesota= Mrs. J. P. Elmer, 314 West Third street,
St. Paul.
This department will be devoted especially to the interests of active
Audubon workers, and we earnestly solicit their assistance, as our
success in making it a worthy representative of the cause for which it
stands largely depends upon the heartiness of their coöperation. Others
also, who are lovers and students of nature in many forms, but who
have never, for divers reasons, engaged in any bird protective work,
may, through reading of the systematic and effective methods of the
societies, become convinced of the necessity of personal action.
We intend at once to establish the more practical side of the
department by printing in an early issue a bibliography of Audubon
Society publications, in order that anyone interested may know exactly
what literature has appeared and is available. For this reason we ask
the secretaries of all the societies to send us a complete set of their
publications, stating, if possible, the number of each which has been
circulated, and, when for sale, giving the price at which they may be
obtained.
We also request the secretaries to send us all possible news of
their plans and work, not merely statistics, but notes of anything
of interest, for even the record of discouragements, as well as of
successes, may often prove full of suggestion to workers in the same
field, and aid toward developments that will broaden and strengthen the
entire movement. A movement in complete harmony with the great desire
of thinking people for a broader life in nature, which is one of the
most healthful and hopeful features of the close of this century.
M. O. W.
Reports of Societies[A]
[Footnote A: The editor acknowledges the receipt from Mr. Witmer
Stone, chairman of the Committee on Bird Protection of the American
Ornithologists' Union, of a number of the following reports, which,
before the establishment of an official organ for the Audubon
Societies, had been sent to Mr. Stone for inclusion in his annual
report to the A. O. U., from which, through lack of space, they were
necessarily omitted.]
THE MASSACHUSETTS SOCIETY
The Massachusetts Audubon Society has reissued the Audubon Calendar
of last year and it is having a good sale. The drawings were made
especially for the calendar by a member of the society; the originals
are painted in water colors on Japanese rice paper, and are very
artistic bird portraits. The same artist is now at work on drawings of
new birds for a calendar for 1900, which the directors hope will be
reproduced by a more accurate and satisfactory process.
The Bird Chart of colored drawings of twenty-six common birds, which
the Directors undertook last spring, is now ready. The drawings have
all been especially made for the chart by E. Knobel and are reproduced
by the Forbes Lithograph Manufacturing Co., on twelve stones. Some of
our best ornithologists have seen the color proof and pronounce it
good. The society has published a descriptive pamphlet to accompany the
chart which has been prepared by Ralph Hoffmann. His sketches of the
birds are delightfully written, and the book is valuable in itself.[B]
[Footnote B: See note on this chart and pamphlet in _Book News and
Reviews_.]
The Directors have recently sent out a new circular mainly in Boston
and vicinity, which briefly describes the work undertaken and asks
for further coöperation from interested persons, and states that
"in addition to our first object, the support of other measures of
importance for the further protection of our native birds has been
assumed by the Society." Among such measures may be mentioned:
1. Circulation of literature.
2. Improved legislation in regard to the killing of birds, and the
better enforcement of present laws.
3. Protection during the season for certain breeding places of Gulls,
Herons and other birds, which, without such protection will soon be
exterminated.
4. Educational measures. This includes the publication of colored wall
charts of birds, Audubon Calendars and other helps to bird study.
The response to this circular has been gratifying.
The society now numbers over twenty-four hundred persons, twenty-six
of these are Life Associates, having paid twenty-five dollars at one
time; four hundred and seventy-five are Associates, paying one dollar
annually; the remaining are Life Members, having paid twenty-five cents.
While the rage for feather decoration is unabated, we feel that there
is steadily growing a sentiment among our best people in condemnation
of the custom. There is a noticeable decrease in the use of aigrettes
and of our native birds, excepting the Terns and the plumage of the
Owl; and a marked increase in the employment of the wings and feathers
of the barnyard fowl. While the latter continue to feed the fashion
they are harmless in themselves.
Harriet E. Richards, _Sec'y._
THE RHODE ISLAND SOCIETY
The Audubon Society of Rhode Island was organized in October, 1897, and
has now about 350 members.
The purposes of the society, according to its by-laws, are: the
promotion of an interest in bird-life, the encouragement of the study
of ornithology, and the protection of wild birds and their eggs. Some
work has been done in the schools, abstracts of the state laws relating
to birds have been circulated throughout the state, lectures have been
given, and a traveling library has been purchased for the use of the
branch societies.
Nearly five thousand circulars of various kinds have been distributed,
and it is evident that the principles of the society are becoming well
known and are exerting an influence, even in that difficult branch of
Audubon work, the millinery crusade.
Annie M. Grant, _Sec'y._
THE CONNECTICUT SOCIETY
A score of ladies met in Fairfield on January 28, 1898, and formed
"The Audubon Society of the State of Connecticut." Mrs. James Osborne
Wright was chosen president and an executive committee provisionally
elected, representing so far as possible at the beginning, the State of
Connecticut.
An effort was made to find every school district in the state, and
a Bird-Day programme was sent to 1,350 of these schools. Care was
naturally used to see that the rural schools, at least, should be
reached. Through the kindness of Congressman Hill of this district, one
of our vice-presidents, 740 copies of Bulletin No. 54, 'Some Common
Birds in their Relation to Agriculture,' issued by the United States
Department of Agriculture, were received by the secretary, and 600 of
these have been mailed to individuals.
The Society has had two lectures prepared, one by Willard G. Van Name,
entitled 'Facts About Birds That Concern the Farmer,' illustrated by
sixty colored lantern slides, and one by Mrs. Mabel Osgood Wright, on
'The Birds About Home,' illustrated by seventy colored slides. A parlor
stereopticon has been purchased for use in projecting the slides.
The lectures and slides are intended primarily for the use of the local
secretaries of the society, and after these for such members of the
society as desire to give educational entertainments in the interest of
bird protection.
The only expense connected with the use of the lectures and slides will
be the expressage from Fairfield to place and return.
Under no circumstances will the outfit be allowed to go outside of the
State of Connecticut.
The oil lantern accompanying the slides is suitable for a large parlor
or school room, and can be worked by anyone understanding the focussing
of a photographic camera, but it is advised that when the audience is
to be composed of more than fifty people the exhibitor should secure a
regular stereopticon.
Applications should be made at least two weeks before the outfit is
desired.
_No admission fee is to be charged at any entertainment at which the
outfit is used_, the intention of the Audubon Society of the State of
Connecticut being to furnish free information about our birds, and so
win many, who may never have given the matter a thought, to a sense of
the necessity and wisdom of their protection.
The secretary is glad to report on January 1, 1899, that the society
has had practical proof of the success of its experiment in sending out
these free illustrated lectures. Much interest has been awakened by
them, and the State Board of Agriculture has listed both lectures for
the Farmers' Institutes, held during the winter months. Much enterprise
is being shown by local secretaries. An illustrated lecture by Mrs.
Kate Tryon, having been given in Bridgeport, November 19, under the
auspices of Miss Grace Moody (local secretary), Mrs. Howard N. Knapp,
and Mrs. C. K. Averill. While Mr. Frank M. Chapman lectured before a
large audience at the Stamford High School, on December 2, under the
auspices of Mrs. Walter M. Smith, the local secretary of that city.
Harriet D. C. Glover,
_Cor. Sec'y and Treas._
NEW YORK SOCIETY
Since November, 1897, the society has distributed 13,465 leaflets,
making a total distribution of over 40,000 since its organization on
February 23, 1897.
In spite of this large circulation of literature, the society has only
529 members, including 9 patrons, 7 sustaining members, 356 members,
157 junior members.
Financially, the society is now in a sound condition.
During the year two public meetings have been held in the large lecture
hall of the American Museum of Natural History, at both of which the
hall was well filled. Addresses were made by Dr. Henry van Dyke, Dr.
Heber Newton, and others.
A 'Bird Talk' was also given by Mr. W. T. Hornaday, at the house of one
of the honorary vice-presidents, which was well attended.
In educational work we have secured the publication of a paper on 'The
Relation of Birds to Trees,' by Florence A. Merriam, in the annual
Arbor Day Manual of New York State, and Mr. Chapman, chairman of
our Executive Committee, reports that in connection with Professor
Bickmore, of the American Museum's Department of Public Instruction,
and a committee representing the science teachers of the fourteen
normal colleges of the State, he has prepared a course in bird study
for the normal colleges for the present year.
Further interest in birds was shown by the science teachers of the
State in their invitation to Mr. Chapman to address them on the subject
of 'The Educational Value of Bird Study,' during their convention, held
in New York City, December 29-30, 1898.
That the good work accomplished cannot be gauged by the number
of members is proved by the constant reports received from local
secretaries and others, telling of classes formed for bird study, of
clubs that have taken up the subject, of bird exercises in schools,
etc. If all these silent sympathizers would only realize how much the
cause might be strengthened by open, concerted action, shown by a large
membership roll of the Audubon Society, its influence would be greatly
increased.
Emma H. Lockwood, _Sec'y._
NEW JERSEY SOCIETY
We have at present 124 members and have distributed over 1,000 general
circulars in regard to the work, and 1,000 aigrette circulars written
by Mr. Chapman. We expect to have new literature issued during the
coming year, and are now having the State bird-laws printed for
distribution.
Mary A. Mellick, _Sec'y._
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Mrs. John Dewhurst Patten, secretary of the Audubon Society of the
District of Columbia, reports much valuable work. A course of six
lectures was given by Mrs. Olive Thorne Miller, and others by Mr.
Chapman and Dr. Palmer.
A successful and fashionably attended exhibit of millinery was held
in April. Nine of the leading milliners contributed hats and bonnets,
which, of course, were entirely free from wild bird feathers. The
society has designed an Audubon pin after a drawing of the Robin, by
Mr. Robert Ridgway. This has already been adopted by the Pennsylvania
and Massachusetts societies. At the suggestion of the secretary of
the Pennsylvania society, efforts have been directed towards the
establishment of societies in the south.
In response to a great demand for a cheap book of information about
local birds, this society has been instrumental in issuing 'Birds of
Washington and Vicinity,'[C] by Mrs. L. W. Maynard--200 pages 12mo,
illustrated, which may be had for the small sum of 85 cents. The price
placing the volume within the reach of teachers and pupils in the
public schools.
[Footnote C: See a review of this book in _Book News and Reviews_.]
OHIO SOCIETY
Miss Clara Russell, corresponding secretary of the Ohio society,
informs us that at a meeting held in Cincinnati on December 14 an
Ohio Audubon society was organized with the following officers:
President, William Hubbell Fisher; vice-president, William H. Venable;
corresponding secretary, Miss Clara Russell; secretary, Mrs. T. B.
Hastings; treasurer, Mrs. W. T. Armor.
On December 30 Miss Russell writes: "We have over fifty members, and
feel much encouraged that we have aroused a sentiment in this locality
to know more about our feathered friends, and to protect birds from
being wantonly destroyed for pleasure, fashion, or the table."
* * * * *
[Illustration: pointing hand] Reports from the New Hampshire,
Pennsylvania, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Minnesota
Societies, will appear in the April number.
* * * * *
VOL. 1 20c. a Copy
No. 2 APRIL, 1899 $1 a Year
=Bird-Lore=
[Illustration]
Edited by
FRANK M. CHAPMAN
The Macmillan Company
ENGLEWOOD, N. J.
NEW YORK LONDON
COPYRIGHT, 1899, BY FRANK M. CHAPMAN _R. Weber_
=Bird-Lore=
April, 1899
CONTENTS
Frontispiece--Least Bittern, Nest and Eggs.
From a Photograph by E. G. Tabor.
The Camera as an Aid in the Study of Birds. Illustrated.
Concluded from February Number _Dr. Thomas S. Roberts_ 35
A Least Bittern Portrait. Illustrated _E. G. Tabor_ 39
Loons at Home. Illustrated. _William Dutcher_ 40
Photographing a Bluebird. Illustrated. _Robert W. Hegner_ 43
A Tragic St. Valentine's Day. _Annie Trumbull Slosson_ 45
Clark's Crows and Oregon Jays on Mount Hood. Illustrated.
_Florence A. Merriam_ 46
FOR TEACHERS AND STUDENTS
Suggestions for Bird-Day Programs in the Schools. _C. A. Babcock_ 49
Summer Boarders for Boys and Girls. 51
A Bird-Day Program. _Elizabeth V. Brown_ 54
Migration Tables for April and May. _Dr. A. K. Fisher_ 52
FOR YOUNG OBSERVERS
The Legend of the Salt. Illustrated. _Frank M. Chapman_ 55
The February Walk Contest. 57
A February Walk in Central Park. _Floyd C. Noble_ 57
The Myth of the Song Sparrow. Illustrated. _Ernest Seton Thompson_ 59
NOTES FROM FIELD AND STUDY 60
Sparrow-Proof Houses. Illustrated. D. R. Geery; A Musical
Woodpecker, D. L. Burnett; An Ornithologist at San Juan.
BOOK NEWS AND REVIEWS 61
Sharpe's 'Sketch Book of British Birds'; Stone's Report on Bird
Protection; 'Journal of the Maine Ornithological Society';
'Bulletin of the Cooper Ornithological Club'; Maynard's 'Nature
Study in Schools'; A new book by Mrs. Miller; Ernest Seton
Thompson's 'Wild Animals I Have Known'; Clark's 'Bird Tablets';
A book by the originator of Bird-Day.
EDITORIALS 63
AUDUBON DEPARTMENT 64
Editorial; A Letter from Governor Roosevelt; Reports from the
Pennsylvania, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa and Minnesota Societies.
×*× _Bird-Lore is published at Englewood, New Jersey, where all
manuscripts intended for publications, books, etc., for review, and
exchanges should be mailed in care of the Editor, Frank M. Chapman._
PUBLISHERS' ANNOUNCEMENT
The unexpectedly large demand for the first number of Bird-Lore has so
nearly exhausted the edition it has been deemed advisable to reserve the
few remaining copies for subscribers to the volume.
Bird-Lore for June will contain an article by Olive Thorne Miller
entitled, 'The Ethics of Caging Birds'; a poem by Edith M. Thomas; the
conclusion of Miss Merriam's article; an account of a visit to Audubon's
birthplace, by Otto Widmann; unusually interesting papers on the Cardinal
and Chimney Swift, and some remarkable bird pictures, including one by
Dr. Roberts.
[Illustration: LEAST BITTERN ON NEST
Photographed From Nature by E. G. Tabor. (_See page 39_)]
=Bird-Lore=
A BI-MONTHLY MAGAZINE
DEVOTED TO THE STUDY AND PROTECTION OF BIRDS
Official Organ of the Audubon Societies
=======================================
Vol. 1 April, 1899 No. 2
=======================================
The Camera as an Aid in the Study of Birds
BY DR. THOS. S. ROBERTS
Director Department of Birds, Natural History Survey of Minnesota
With photographs from Nature by the Author
(_Concluded from page 13_)
[Illustration]
Turning reluctantly from the attractive little Chickadee family,
described in the preceding number of this magazine, we will next seek
the acquaintance of a bird of entirely different feather, and, what
is of more moment to the bird photographer, of entirely different
disposition.
The Killdeer Plover, perhaps from his close kinship to the fraternity
of game birds, has come to regard man and all human devices with
deep suspicion, and to get on terms of close fellowship with him is
no easy matter. While not himself an usual object of the sportsman's
effort, owing to his lean body and indifferent savor, he is the
immediate relative of those much sought-after birds, the Golden and the
Black-bellied Plover. Unlike these more aristocratic members of the
Plover group, the Killdeer does not retire to semi-arctic fastnesses to
rear its brood, but nests wherever found throughout the eastern United
States. Its ever-restless nature and loud alarm, "killdee, killdee," as
it moves from place to place, or circles round and round, always at a
safe distance, together with its common occurrence throughout populated
as well as wild regions, makes this plebeian well-known to every
country lad and the bane of every would-be stealthy Nimrod. So noisily
persistent is its outcry that it has been dubbed by ornithologists
_vocifera_--_Ægialitis vocifera_--and a most appropriate appellation it
is.
[Illustration: KILLDEER ON NEST]
Like many loquacious people, Mr. and Mrs. Killdeer have a rather
lazy vein in their make-up, and spend but little time or effort nest
building. A little depression lined with a few bits of stick or straw,
a few pebbles or other handy materials satisfies their ambition. In
the bare, exposed situation usually chosen, such a nest, with its
four spotted eggs, is much less conspicuous than would be a well made
one. The first of our pictures showed one of these nests located in a
corn-field, which is a not very uncommon site, although bare pasture
knolls and gravelly banks are more usually selected. The photograph of
the nest and eggs was, of course, easily secured, and is chiefly of
interest because it shows so well how an open nest with its eggs may be
protected by blending perfectly with the general color of the immediate
surrounding--protective coloration, as it is called. To secure the
portrait of the wary old Killdeer, who left the nest the instant anyone
but entered the large field, seemed a hopeless task. But the novice is
ever ambitious, and the attempt was made in the following fashion, with
what success the accompanying pictures will show. Placing the camera
on the sharply tilted tripod, so that the distance from lens to nest
was about four feet, the dreadful looking object was left in position
for some time on the evening preceding the day on which the photographs
were taken. The next day proved light and clear, and with the sun well
up in the heavens we began operations, my companion and assistant on
this occasion being Rev. H. W. Gleason, a bird enthusiast undaunted by
any obstacle and fertile in devices. Arranging the camera as already
described, omitting the green hood in this instance, as it would have
been worse than useless, we retired entirely from the field, which
fortunately lay on a gently sloping hillside. From our distant retreat
we watched, with field-glass in hand, the maneuvers of the mother bird.
The experience of the preceding evening had evidently helped to prepare
the way, for after only brief delay the anxious bird began running
in a great spiral steadily converging to the central point. Every
clod of earth or little mound in the path was mounted and, with much
craning of neck and turning of head, the dreadful engine glistening
in the sunshine was closely scrutinized from all sides, but as it was
motionless, it probably was regarded as some new-fangled contrivance
for cultivating corn, of finer build than the hoes, rakes, and other
implements left by the men in the field. Once satisfied, she made a
last quick run directly between the legs of the tripod, and stood erect
over her treasures. A long trolling-line, procured at a neighboring
farm-house, had been attached to the lever arm releasing the shutter,
as our seventy-five feet of tubing was not half long enough. Creeping
to the end of the line, a quick pull made the exposure,--1/25 of a
second, with wide open stop and rapid plate. Pulling up the slack
of the line seemed to startle the bird more than the click of the
shutter, and after repeating this procedure several times we were
altogether uncertain as to whether the bird had been caught at all;
and as it was impossible, there in the field, to follow the advice of
an interested farmer spectator, who insisted that we "ought to look
at them there plates and see what we had before going further," we
cast about for some surer method. Carefully looking over the ground,
I found that some seventy-five feet from the nest there was a shallow
depression just deep enough to entirely conceal a man lying prone on
the soft, ploughed ground. So the rubber tube was substituted for the
line and the bulb end carried up the slope to the little hollow. As it
would be impossible from this position to see the bird, and as we had
discovered that a low whistle or noise caused her to leave the nest
at once, some method of signaling had to be arranged. The trolling
line suggested a way, as we found that it would reach readily from the
bulb in the hollow to the edge of the field. So, attaching one end of
it to my wrist, I took my position flat on the ground in the middle
of the field, with a hot noon sun pouring down overhead, and awaited
the signal,--a vigorous jerk on the trolling line, to be given by Mr.
Gleason, who from a distance was watching with a glass the movements
of our unwilling sitter. The signal soon came, and these complicated
and rather juvenile tactics proved so successful that very soon Mrs.
Plover did not so much as change position at the click of the shutter,
and when driven away to rearrange the camera between exposures, came
quickly back again. In a short time we had exposed all the plates
that seemed necessary, and retired from the field conquerors, though
leaving the foe in peaceful possession. Returning to the house for
supplies for a new expedition, a lady member of the party, who, from
a shady hammock, had been watching for several hours these rather
boyish antics, saluted us with the withering remark, "About four years
of age, I should think, instead of forty." But we hoped that the end
would justify the means, and were anxious to inspect the developed
results. This part of the work was accomplished a day or two later, and
the pictures here presented show, I think, that our efforts were not
entirely in vain. Several others were not so good. In one, the female
sits quietly on her nest, back to the camera, and in coloration blends
admirably with the surroundings. In another, she is crouching in a half
uncertain attitude, while in still another she stands erect, revealing
the four eggs directly beneath her, and with ruffled plumage seems a
little resentful of the intrusion. In all, it will be noticed that the
bill is partly open, either because it was a very warm day, because the
poor bird was startled and ill at ease, or, it may be, because it was
no easy matter for this always loquacious bird to keep its mouth shut
even when posing for its picture.
[Illustration: KILLDEER, NEST, AND EGGS]
A Least Bittern Portrait
BY E. G. TABOR
(_See Frontispiece_)
[Illustration]
On the morning of May 27, 1897, equipped with an extra supply of
patience and a 5 × 7 'Premo B' camera fitted with rapid rectilinear
lens, my plate-holders filled with unexposed plates, and accompanied
by my wife, who has been a partner in all of my successful trips, I
started for Otter Lake, Cayuga County, N. Y.
It was a beautiful morning, with not a breath of air stirring (by the
way, this is the hardest of all things to control, and is an absolute
necessity if you are to make fine, clear-cut negatives of birds and
their natural surroundings), and the lake looked like a mirror. It
took but a minute to get the large, flat-bottomed row-boat ready for
the start, and we were soon gliding along, an oar's-length from shore,
scanning every tree, bush, and bunch of rushes, in search of nests,
those of the Red-winged Blackbird being very plenty and placed both
in bushes or rushes in about equal numbers. A pair of Kingbirds had
selected as the place for their summer home, a large, low willow limb
which projected over the water; a peep into the nest revealed three
eggs, common, yet so beautiful in their bed of wool and feathers.
Our next finds were several nests of a pair of Long-billed Marsh Wrens,
which looked more like mouse-nests than anything else I have in mind.
As we could return to these later, if unable to find anything better,
we had not yet exposed a single plate, reserving them for a rare or
unusual find.
We were in search of nests of the Least Bittern, and as we were passing
that part of the shore where they always nested, we soon located a
nest, but as it only contained one egg, another nest must be found. A
male Least Bittern flew up a short distance ahead of us and 'dropped
in' back of the bushes. We rowed down to the place from which he
flushed, and standing up in the boat looked around, and not more
than a boat's-length ahead, we espied a female sitting on a nest. I
pushed the boat very carefully to within a couple of feet of the nest,
and prepared to make an exposure. The camera was set to focus on an
object 34 inches from cap of lens, and I moved it back and forth until
the focus was perfect, the diaphragm was closed to _f_ 16, and an
instantaneous exposure with speed at 1/25" was made.
As most of my operations, preparatory to making the exposure, were
of necessity carried on within three feet of the bird on the nest,
she at several times started to leave it; but when the bird moved I
kept still, and when she kept still I worked; in this way I finally
completed my preparations. The peep I got of the eggs as she partly
raised off from them, just as I finished, made me squeeze the bulb
before I intended to; but the result I obtained fully satisfied me, for
in no other way could I describe the results of this trip, and what I
saw and learned of the habits and home-life of the Least Bittern.
Loons at Home
BY WILLIAM DUTCHER
[Illustration]
I should like to say a few words to the readers of Bird-Lore on the
subject of making good photographs of birds. Don't conclude at once,
when you see pictures of nests, or birds in their wild state, that
it is an easy matter to get them. A year ago, when I saw the fine
exhibition of slides presented by Mr. Brewster and Mr. Chapman at the
American Ornithologists' meeting, I at once concluded that it would be
an easy thing for me to get similar results. So I forthwith invested
much good money in purchasing a camera, and all the accompanying
outfit; but not until I had worried all my photographic friends for
advice of all kinds. With all the confidence of an expert I started
on this unknown sea, and I must confess to you, patient reader, that
my efforts were a brilliant string of failures, for from the more
than one hundred and twenty-five plates that I exposed, I succeeded
in getting only two good negatives. But I had lots of fun and plenty
of experience, and am just as proud of my two good negatives as the
celebrated old hen that had but one chick. If you want to learn to be
patient and persevering, try photographing in the fields and woods.
If you wish to learn more of the habits of birds than you can in any
other possible way, try for hours to get them familiar enough with
you and your camera to go on with their nest-building, or feeding
their nestlings. Besides all this, in later days, whenever you see the
photograph, it will recall to you every pleasant moment that you spent
in getting the negative.
That you may share with me some of the pleasures that I experienced
in getting a negative of a nest of eggs, from which the accompanying
picture was made, let me tell you the following story about the
Great Northern Diver, more commonly known as the Loon, and among the
scientists as _Gavia imber_.
Those of you who are familiar with the Adirondack or Canada lakes can
easily picture the surroundings of this nest, which I found in Higley
Lake, Canada. This is a small body of water, hardly more than a very
large pond. This section of Canada may be called a lake region, and
is very beautiful. Most of the lakes are surrounded with forests, in
which the contrasting colors of the evergreens and white birches add
greatly to the natural beauty of the scenery. This nest was built in
very shallow water, about eight feet from the shore. It was, at its
base, about twenty inches in diameter, and at its apex about fifteen
inches wide. It was about nine inches above the water at its greatest
height, and composed entirely of mud, so far as I could determine, of
a very dark color. The water where it was placed was not over six or
eight inches deep, but it was really a very hard matter to determine
exactly where the water ended and the mud commenced. This I ascertained
to my sorrow and discomfiture when I undertook to set up my tripod.
Standing in a very round-bottomed boat and trying to plant a tripod in
silt of seemingly unfathomable depth is no easy job, as I found out.
Finally, however, I succeeded in getting what I now have the pleasure
of showing you; but I dare not tell you of the beautiful failures I
made before this picture was obtained. When I first discovered the
nest, the Loon was upon it, but as soon as she saw me she slid off into
the lake and made every effort to dive. It is true that her head was
under the water, but her back was not until she had gone some feet from
the nest out into the lake, where the water was deep enough to entirely
cover her. She did not then appear until she was well across the pond,
where she was joined by her mate. The nest contained only one egg when
I first saw it; but in the water, on the lake side of the nest, I found
another egg, which the mother bird had evidently rolled out of the
nest, perhaps in her fright and hasty departure when she first saw me.
This egg I replaced in the nest by lifting it with the broad end of the
boat oar, thinking, perhaps, that handling it might cause the Loon to
desert the nest. The egg that was in the water was many shades lighter
in color than the one found in the nest, which leads me to believe that
the eggs of birds that habitually breed in damp mud nests acquire a
darker color from stains.
In another pond of about the same size, and within half a mile of
Higley Lake, I subsequently saw a pair of Loons that had but one young,
so far as I could ascertain. If there was another it was kept well
hidden. I was very much interested in watching the methods by which
the old birds kept the little fellow out of danger. When I first saw
the family group, both parents and the little one were together; but
immediately on the appearance of my boat the whole group disappeared
under the surface. The young bird soon came to the surface again in
about the same spot, but the parents were some distance off on the
other side of the boat, so that I was between them. Both parents were
perfectly quiet until I undertook to row toward their offspring, when
one of the parents uttered what was to me a very new and peculiar cry,
on hearing which the little one immediately dove; the cry was entirely
different from the usual loud, maniacal cry of the Loons. As soon
as the young one appeared I again started toward him, when the old
bird repeated the same cry, and down went the little fellow. It was
very evident that he knew whenever he heard that warning cry he must
disappear at once. I had so much sympathy for the lonely little chap
that I left him, after I had tried the experiment a number of times. As
soon as I drew away to another part of the pond the old birds uttered
the usual well known cry of the species, but the little one then
remained on the surface and was soon joined by the parent birds.
[Illustration: NEST AND EGGS OF LOON
Photographed from Nature, by William Dutcher]
A few weeks later the same group acted in an entirely different manner;
then they remained together, and as the boat approached, the old bird
with its bill seemed to push the young one under the water before it
dove itself.
If this bit of the domestic life of these two Loon families has
interested you as much as it did me, I shall feel amply repaid for the
thirty-two miles I had to drive each time I visited them.
[Illustration: BLUEBIRD FLYING TO NEST]
Photographing a Bluebird
BY ROBERT W. HEGNER
With Photographs from Nature by the Author.
[Illustration]
During the severe cold of January and February, 1895, most of the
Bluebirds were thought to have perished. So it is with the spirit
of a genuine Audubon that we hail their return in ever increasing
numbers each succeeding spring. How sadly we should miss these little
friends may be judged by the great commotion among ornithologists
caused by their supposed extinction. In order to have more than a
mere remembrance of their habits, I set out one day in the summer of
1898, at Decorah, Iowa, to obtain photographs of them in their haunts,
and secured two interesting negatives of the female, as shown in the
accompanying illustrations. The history of the case is as follows: A
pair of Bluebirds, after several previous attempts at housekeeping, and
subsequent removals by 'small boys,' at last selected an old, deserted,
Woodpecker's hole in a fence-post, and built, as usual, a nest of dry
grass with a softer lining of horse-hair. The birds had already begun
incubating the three pale blue eggs, which formed the set, when I
disturbed them. I crept within five feet of the post before the female
left the nest and joined her mate, who had been keeping guard in a
neighboring plum tree.
[Illustration: BLUEBIRD AT NEST]
After focusing my camera to within three feet of the post, and
arranging a string attachment, I concealed myself in some bushes about
seventy-five feet away. I waited patiently for ten minutes before the
female left the tree and flew down to the fence. The male followed
close after, and they hopped about the post and wires, getting nearer
and nearer the nest, until the female flew straight into the hole. A
snap-shot, just before she reached the entrance, was only partially
successful, but shows very clearly the pose of the bird's head and neck
while it was in the air. It was made in a twenty-fifth of a second
with the lens stopped down to sixteen. I disturbed the female several
times before she gained the desired position at the nest-opening; but,
finally, the snap of the shutter helped bring to life one of my best
bird-pictures.
A knowledge of the bird's nesting habits is a prime requisite in
avian photography. Much patience is needed, as failures are very
numerous. A camera which may be focused to within two or three feet
is an absolute necessity in order to make the picture large enough.
Most of my failures have been caused by the lack of bright sunlight,
under-exposure, or movement of the bird the instant the picture was
taken; but one good photograph is sufficient reward for many trials.
A Tragic St. Valentine's Day
BY ANNIE TRUMBULL SLOSSON
[Illustration]
The cold wave reached us at Miami, on Biscayne Bay, Florida, in the
night of February 12, 1899. It was preceded by severe thunder storms
in the evening. On the 13th, Monday, it was very cold all over the
state, with snow and sleet as far south as Ormond and Titusville. Our
thermometers at Miami ranged from 36° to 40° during the day. As I sat
in my room at the hotel, about four in the afternoon, I saw a bird
outside my window, then another and another, and soon the air seemed
full of wings.
Opening my window to see what the visitors could be, I found they were
Tree Swallows (_Tachycineta bicolor_). Several flew into my room,
others clustered on the window ledge, huddling closely together for
warmth. There were hundreds of them about the house seeking shelter
and warmth. They crept in behind the window blinds, came into open
windows, huddled together by dozens on cornices and sills. They were
quite fearless; once I held my hand outside and two of them lighted
on its palm and sat there quietly. As it grew dark and colder their
numbers increased. They flew about the halls and perched in corners,
and the whole house was alive with them. Few of the guests in the hotel
knew what they were; some even called them 'bats,' and were afraid
they might fly into their faces or become entangled in their hair. One
man informed those about him that they were Humming Birds, 'the large
kind, you know,' but all were full of sympathy for the beautiful little
creatures, out in the cold and darkness. A few were taken indoors and
sheltered through the night, but 'what were these among so many?'
The next morning the sun shone brightly though the weather was still
very cold--the mercury had fallen below 30° during the night. But as
I raised the shade of one of my eastern windows I saw a half-dozen of
the Swallows sitting upon the ledge in the sunshine, while the air
seemed again filled with flashing wings. I was so relieved and glad.
Surely the tiny creatures, with their tints of steely blue or shining
green contrasting with the pure white of the under parts, were more
hardy than I had feared. But alas! it was but a remnant that escaped.
Hundreds were found dead. Men were sent out with baskets to gather the
limp little bodies from piazzas, window ledges, and copings. It was a
pitiful sight for St. Valentine Day, when, as the old song has it,
"The birds are all choosing their mates."
Clark's Crows and Oregon Jays on Mount Hood[D]
BY FLORENCE A. MERRIAM
[Footnote D: Read before the American Ornithologist's Union, Nov. 16,
1898.]
[Illustration]
Cloud Cap Inn, the loghouse hotel fastened down with cables high on
the north side of Mount Hood, is too near timber-line to claim a great
variety of feathered guests, but Oregon Jays and Clark's Crows or
Nutcrackers are regular pensioners of the house. The usual shooting
by tourists does not menace them, for the nature-loving mountaineers,
who keep the Inn and act as guides to the summit, guard most loyally
both birds and beasts. They like to tell of a noble Eagle which used
to fly up the cañon and circle over the glacier every day, and they
recall with pleasure the snowy morning when an old Blue Grouse brought
her brood to the Inn, and the birds ate the wheat that was thrown them
with the confidence of chickens. The Grouse were, apparently, regular
neighbors of the Inn, and while there I had the pleasure of seeing a
grown family. They fed on the slope close above me with the unconcern
of domestic fowls, conversing in turkey-like monosyllables as they
moved about, and two of them came within a few feet and looked up at
me--that not forty rods from the Inn! The pleasure of the sight was
doubled by the reflection that such things could be so near a hotel,
even on a remote mountain.
[Illustration: CLOUD CAP INN]
It was delightful to see how familiarly birds gathered about the
house. You could sit in the front doorway and when not absorbed in
looking off on the three wonderful snow peaks--St. Helens, Rainier,
and Adams--rising above the Cascade range, could watch Oregon Juncos,
Steller's Jays, Oregon Jays, and Nutcrackers coming down to drink at
the hydrant twenty feet away; while the Ruby Kinglet and White-crowned
Sparrow, together with Townsend's Solitaire and other interesting
westerners, moved about in the branches of the low timber-line pines;
and Lewis' Woodpeckers, with their long, powerful flights, crossed
over the forested cañons below. Crossbills had stayed around the house
sociably for three weeks together, Mrs. Langille, the noble old mother
of the mountaineers, told me. She said they would fly against the logs
of the house and call till she went out to feed them. They left with
the first heavy storms, though usually, she said: "That's the time when
we have birds come around the house--when there are storms." And a
friendly hospice the feathered wayfarers find it so long as the Inn is
open!
[Illustration: CLARK'S CROW]
The Oregon Jays and Clark's Crows are, as I said, the regular
pensioners of the house. The Jays look very much like their relatives
the Canada Jays, but are darker, and when you are close to them the
feathers of their backs show distinct whitish shaft-streaks. The Crows
have the general form and bearing of Crows, but are black only on wings
and tail, their general appearance being gray. Speaking of the birds,
Mrs. Langille said: "If I was in the kitchen myself I'd have them come
right to the porch outside; when I'm in the kitchen I'm always throwing
out crumbs for the birds and squirrels, and I've had the Jays come and
sit right down on the block where I was cutting meat and take the fat
right out of my hands." Clark's Crows, she said, would not eat from her
hand, but would sit on the back porch and call for their breakfast.
When I was at the Inn, the Chinese cook used to throw scraps from the
table over a lava cliff, and both Crows and Jays spent most of their
time carrying it off. As the foot of the cliff was one of the best
places to watch them, I spent part of every day there, and when the
smell of coffee grounds got too strong, consoled myself by looking
through the trees up at the grand white peak of Hood.
It was interesting to see the difference in the ways of the two birds.
The Nutcracker would fly down to the rocks with rattling wings, and,
when not too hungry to be critical, would proceed to investigate
the breakfast with the air of a judge on the bench, for he is a
dignified character. To touch the hem of his robe to the food would
have been defilement, so he went about pressing his wings tight to his
sides, sometimes giving them a little nervous shake. To smile at this
sober-minded person seems most disrespectful, but the solemnity of
his gambols was surely provocative of mirth. Not content with turning
his long-billed head judicially from side to side as he advanced
through the scraps, if the biscuit on his left was not to his mind,
with one great ungainly leap he would box half the compass and plant
his big feet before a potato on his right. This he would proceed to
probe with a grave air of interrogation, and if he decided the case
in the negative would withdraw his beak and pass to the next case on
the docket. Once when the potato was half a waffle, he pried it up
tentatively with his long bill, and at last, deciding in its favor,
proceeded to fly off with it, his long legs dangling ludicrously behind
him.
[Illustration: OREGON JAY]
The Oregon Jays were quite unlike their Crow cousins. They would
come flying in, talking together in sociable fashion, and drop down
so noiselessly you could but be struck by the difference between
fluffy owl-like feathers and stiff quills. Sometimes one of the Jays
would touch the side of a tree a moment before dropping lightly to
the ground. All their motions were quick and easy, if not actually
graceful, and they worked rapidly, with none of the profound
deliberation shown at times by the Nutcracker. The smaller pieces of
food they ate; the larger ones they carried off, usually in their
bills, occasionally in their claws. In eating, the Jay would sometimes
adopt the Blue Jay style and put his food under his foot, where he
could pull it apart, throwing up his head to swallow. When the food was
soft and too large to swallow at one gulp, both Crows and Jays would
carry it to an evergreen, lay it down on a twig before them, and there
eat comfortably, as from a plate. Both birds often flew to the ledges
of the cliff for food that had lodged there in falling, and it made a
busy scene when eight or ten of the big fellows were flying about the
place at once.
(_To be concluded._)
=For Teachers and Students=
Suggestions for Bird-Day Programs in the Schools
BY C. A. BABCOCK
(Originator of Bird-Day)
[Illustration]
A Bird-Day exercise, in order to have much value educationally, should
be largely the result of the pupils' previous work, and should not
be the mere repetition of a prepared program, taken verbatim from
some leaflet or paper. The program should be prepared by the pupils,
under the direction of the teacher, and should contain as many
original compositions or statements about birds, derived from personal
observation, as possible.
Bird-Day should be announced some weeks beforehand, in order to give
the children time to prepare for it. In the meantime, direct them to
observe the birds, and allow from five to ten minutes each morning to
receive the reports. Direct that crumbs be scattered in the back yards,
and cups containing seeds be put up in the trees, or on the fences, and
that bones from the table be fastened where they can be seen from the
windows. Then, with an opera glass, if one can be obtained, results are
to be looked for.
For directing the young observer, write upon the board a scheme like
this:
ENGLISH SPARROW
Length from tip of beak to end of tail?
What is the shape, color, and size of beak?
What is the color of legs and feet?
How many toes? Which way do they point?
Gait upon the ground,--does it walk, hop or run?
Color of head and throat? Color of under parts?
Color and marking of back?
Difference in markings of male and female?
Describe actions which indicate its character.
Is it pugnacious? Is it brave? Is it selfish?
Does it trouble other birds?
Describe its voice or song. Does it utter notes indicating diverse
feelings, as joy, anger? What syllables best recall some of its notes?
For the younger pupils a few of these questions, perhaps two or three,
will be sufficient for one exercise. Children will vary, and often
contradict one another in answering the same questions. Dwell upon
each question till it is answered correctly, and all agree upon the
answer.
A similar plan may be followed for studying the Robin, Bluebird,
Catbird, Oriole, or other birds as they arrive, or as they become
accessible to certain of the pupils. In April, two years ago, one
little girl had observed, and described accurately, seventeen different
species of birds which she had seen in the little yard of her home.
They had been attracted by the food she had put out for them.
The nest-building of birds is also a good subject for observation, the
Robin being, perhaps, the best species for a first study.
QUESTIONS ON NEST-BUILDING AND NESTING HABITS
Which bird does most building, the male, or the female?
Do both carry material?
Does the male ever seem to be acting as escort or guard to his mate?
What materials are used? What is the appearance of the nest?
Its situation--sheltered or not?
After the nest is completed, watch it till the young are hatched.
Which bird sits upon the eggs? Does the male ever relieve his mate at
this task? Does he bring food to her? Does he spend some time singing
to her, as if he were trying to keep her cheerful? Does he protect
her from attack by birds or other enemies?
SOME QUESTIONS TO BE ANSWERED ABOUT ROBINS
Learn to distinguish the voices and call notes of the male and
female. Which bird wakes first in the morning and calls the other?
You may also notice, sometimes, in the night, that one bird wakes and
calls the other. Which one generally wakes first at these times?
Do Robins raise more than one brood in a season? If so, do they use
the same nest twice? If they raise two broods, what becomes of the
first, while the mother is sitting upon the eggs for the second?
Watch for a Robin leading out a family of chicks. Notice the feeding
after the birds are old enough to run and fly fairly well. The young
birds are placed apart by the parent, who visits each one in turn,
and rebukes any who tries to be piggish, sometimes nipping it with
its bill when it runs up out of turn. Notice this parent teaching the
young to sing,--it is a very interesting sight.
The teacher will need some good manual to aid in identifying some of
the species, though much of the work the first season would better be
upon common, well-known birds. The following are recommended:
'Handbook of Birds of Eastern North America,' by Frank M. Chapman,
published by D. Appleton & Co.; 'Bird-Craft,' by Mabel Osgood Wright,
published by The Macmillan Company.
FOR BIRD-DAY PROGRAMS
For the first Bird-Day in every school it would be well to have some
one read Senator Hoar's petition of the birds to the Legislature of
Massachusetts. This remarkable paper deserves reading by all friends of
birds at least once a year.
_Compositions._--Have also original compositions, describing some
bird studied, or describing some of its habits, especially its habit
of feeding, and the actions showing its disposition.
_Personations._--Special interest will be awakened by having
'personations' of birds. These are descriptions of birds told in the
first person, as if the bird itself were telling its own story. An
accurate account of the bird's appearance, habits, feelings, and life
from the bird's view-point, is given, but without telling the bird's
name. At the close of the reading, the hearers vote upon the name of
the bird 'personated.'
_Audubon Society Literature._--The teacher should also obtain
circulars from the secretaries of the New York, Massachusetts,
Pennsylvania and other Audubon Societies. These will give information
concerning the rapid destruction of birds. Extracts may be read from
them.
_Poems._--Extracts from the poets naturally form an interesting
feature of Bird-Day. Poets are generally bird-lovers and bird-seers.
Among the poems peculiarly adapted are the following:
'Robert O'Lincoln,' Bryant; 'The Mocking Bird,' Sidney Lanier; 'The
Sky Lark,' Shelly; 'The O'Lincoln Family,' Wilson Flagg; 'The Rain
Song of the Robin,' Kate Upson Clark; 'The Titmouse,' R. W. Emerson;
'The Eagle,' Tennyson; 'To The Skylark,' William Wordsworth.
_Personal Experiences._--Another pleasant part of the program will be
the short statements of facts about birds, by the pupils, obtained
from their own observation. Birds of the Bible may also be given in
short extracts.
_Prose Selections._--John Burroughs' 'Birds and Poets,' and 'Wake
Robin;' Bradford Torrey's 'Birds in the Bush;' Olive Thorne Miller's
'Bird Ways,' and many other books, abound in suitable passages for
Bird-Day.
The pupils will enjoy preparing a Bird-Day program much more than
learning little set speeches from one already prepared. The preliminary
observation of birds will arouse an enthusiasm that will be of great
value in all educational work.
Summer Boarders for Girls and Boys
The Bureau of Nature Study of Cornell University offers to assist
all boys and girls who want to take bird boarders this season. By
addressing this Bureau, at Ithaca, N. Y., one may receive a copy of
an admirable leaflet entitled 'The Birds and I,' containing numerous
designs for houses which may be constructed for the occupation of the
expected 'boarders.'
A Bird-Day Program
BY ELIZABETH V. BROWN
Washington Normal School
[Illustration]
Birthdays, red letter days, memorial days, arbor days and bird days!
The two hundred days of the school calendar are hardly sufficient to
meet the special demands made upon them in the interests of history,
literature, and philanthropy. After all, is not this call for
specialization something of a reproach to both home and school? If the
child is symmetrically developed, harmoniously educated, will not all
these influences find their proper place and expression in his life in
the _regular_ course of events?
But in the meantime since 'days' are ordained, it is highly important
that they shall be celebrated in a manner to make lasting impressions
on the minds and hearts of children. The mental hysteria resulting from
the spasmodic, sentimental fervor worked up for this cause to-day, and
for that to-morrow, is to be strongly condemned.
As in every other subject, an interest in _birds_ should be based
upon the knowledge gained by the child primarily through his own
observations and experiences, supplemented and enriched later by what
he reads or has told him. The interest thus aroused leads to sympathy
and love as enduring as life itself.
Hence the Bird-Day program should mark the culminating rather than the
initial point of bird study for the year.
The children should be led to anticipate it, and should be prepared
for it in as many ways and for as long a time as possible. All that
nature lovers have written or poets sung will have deeper significance
after the child's contact with the birds of his neighborhood, as seen
in parks, woods, or fields. To see their pictures is not enough. Field
work alone can give the stimulus which leads to fellowship, sympathy,
love, and protection.
For young children especially, interest is most readily aroused through
the study of the _activities_ which ally bird and child. The character
and the adaptation of birds' clothing, foods and homes to their
peculiar needs and environment; glimpses of nest-life; characteristic
traits; disposition; the cleverness of the parent birds in outwitting
enemies and protecting the young; the skillful uses of tools--bills
and claws--are all readily appreciated by the children. Add to these,
studies in protective coloration, migration, the relation of birds
to insects injurious to vegetation, and kindred subjects, which form
a never-failing source of delight. Through such work, the child
learns almost unwittingly much of bird structure, classification, and
description which would otherwise prove dry and barren of interest.
The boy who thus comes into fellowship with birds will not delight
in beanshooters or find his chief joy in robbing birds' nests and
violating game laws; while his sister will try to find something more
ornamental for her hat than slaughtered birds.
_THE PROGRAM_
While programs must vary according to the needs and ability of the
children, a few suggestions may be helpful to all.
DECORATION
'Sharp Eyes,' and 'I Spy,' by William Hamilton Gibson, 'Nature's
Hallelujah,' and 'The Message of the Bluebird,' by Irene Jerome, are
full of delightfully suggestive and artistic bits of bird-life for
black-board pictures.
A pretty corner may be made by a small bush or the branch of a large
tree in which the nests collected by the children are appropriately
placed.
Pictures of bird-lovers and writers should be in evidence. Audubon,
Wilson, John Burroughs, Bradford Torrey, Olive Thorne Miller, and
others. Many of these may be found in recent magazines.
Anecdotes and short sketches from their books may be told or read.
COMPOSITIONS
Compositions prepared in advance, on various phases of bird-life,
may be read by their young authors. These may be the result of work
previously done in class along the lines before mentioned, or of new
observations and experiences gathered for Bird-Day. The greater the
variety of topics, the better.
Descriptions of individual birds, comparisons of birds, individually
or by classes, as to:
_Food._--Character; where, when, and how obtained.
_Home._--Location; materials; construction; appearance.
_Young._--Number; appearance; care and education.
_Songs and Calls._--Emotions expressed; character, short or
sustained, high or low, sweet or harsh, etc.
_Relations._--Names of other birds of same class.
_Bird Craftsmen._--Masons, miners, weavers, tailors, etc.
_Tree-top Neighbors._--Spring, summer, fall and winter.
_How Birds Travel._
_How Birds Help the Farmers._
_Invitations to the Birds._--Boxes put up for them; seed-cups, bits
of suet nailed to posts or trees.
CHALK TALKS
Stories may be told by teachers or pupils with accompanying
illustrations hastily sketched on the black-board as the story
progresses. The following lend themselves readily to this work:
'The Ugly Duckling,' 'The Daisy and the Lark,' Hans Christian
Anderson; 'The White Heron,' Sarah Orne Jewett; 'The White
Blackbird,' Guy de Maupassant; 'The Crane Express,' Child World; 'The
Crow and the Pitcher,' 'The Fox and the Crane,' 'The Crane and the
Crows,' Æsop's Fables.
FOR READING OR RECITATION
'Nest Egg,' Robert Louis Stevenson; 'Anxiety,' George Macdonald; 'The
Song Sparrow,' 'The Veery,' Dr. van Dyke; 'The One in the Middle,'
Margaret Eytinge; 'The Bluebird,' Emily Huntington Miller; 'The Peter
Bird,' Henry Thompson Stanton; 'The Robin,' Celia Thaxter; 'Brother
Robin,' Mrs. Anderson; 'The Birds' Orchestra,' Celia Thaxter; 'The
Sandpiper,' 'Little Birdies,' Tennyson; 'The Brown Thrush,' Lucy
Larcom; 'The Titmouse,' Emerson; 'The Stormy Petrel,' Barry Cornwall;
'The Sorrowful Sea Gull,' Child World; 'Robert of Lincoln,' 'The
Return of the Birds,' Bryant; 'The Blackbird,' Alice Cary; 'The
Crow's Children,' 'The Chicken's Mistake,' Phoebe Cary; 'What the
Birds Said,' Whittier.
Migration Tables for April and May
At our request, Dr. A. K. Fisher has furnished the following notes on
the spring migration. They are based on fifteen years' observation
and will therefore prove valuable as a guide, and interesting for
comparison, to other observers. A list of Mississippi Valley migrants,
which we expected to receive, unfortunately arrived too late for
publication, while a list from Philadelphia, by Mr. Witmer Stone, is
necessarily omitted for lack of space.--Ed.
_AVERAGE DATES OF ARRIVAL OF THE COMMONER BIRDS AT SING SING, N. Y.,
DURING APRIL AND MAY_
BY DR. A. K. FISHER
April 1 to 10
Pied-billed Grebe, Wilson's Snipe, Sparrow Hawk, Osprey, Kingfisher,
Fish Crow, Cowbird, Savanna Sparrow, Vesper Sparrow, Swamp Sparrow,
White-throated Sparrow, Tree Swallow.
April 10 to 20
Green Heron, Black-crowned Night Heron, American Bittern, Pigeon
Hawk, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Purple Finch, Chipping Sparrow, Field
Sparrow, Myrtle Warbler, Yellow Palm Warbler, Large-billed Water
Thrush, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Hermit Thrush.
April 20 to 30
Chimney Swift, Least Flycatcher, Towhee, Purple Martin, Barn Swallow,
Bank Swallow, Blue-headed Vireo, Black and White Warbler, Catbird,
Brown Thrasher, House Wren, Wood Thrush.
May 1 to 5
Spotted Sandpiper, Hummingbird, Kingbird, Bobolink, Baltimore Oriole,
Red-eyed Vireo, Yellow-throated Vireo, White-eyed Vireo, Parula
Warbler, Yellow Warbler, Black-throated Green Warbler, Black-throated
Blue Warbler, Ovenbird, Maryland Yellow-throat, Yellow-breasted Chat,
Redstart, Wilson's Thrush, Olive-backed Thrush.
May 5 to 10
Solitary Sandpiper, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Black-billed Cuckoo,
Whip-poor-will, Night-hawk, Crested Flycatcher, Orchard Oriole,
Yellow-winged Sparrow, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Scarlet Tanager, Cliff
Swallow, Rough-winged Swallow, Warbling Vireo, Blue-winged Warbler,
Golden-winged Warbler, Magnolia Warbler, Long-billed Marsh Wren.
May 10 to 15
Least Sandpiper, Wood Pewee, Green-crested (Acadian) Flycatcher,
White-crowned Sparrow, Indigo Bunting, Nashville Warbler, Worm-eating
Warbler, Chestnut-sided Warbler, Kentucky Warbler, Wilson's Warbler.
May 15 to 20
Olive-sided Flycatcher, Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Bay-breasted
Warbler, Black-poll Warbler, Blackburnian Warbler, Small-billed Water
Thrush, Canadian Warbler, Gray-cheeked Thrush.
May 20 to 25
Alder Flycatcher, Tennessee Warbler, Mourning Warbler.
=For Young Observers=
Boys and girls who study birds are invited to send short accounts of
their observations to this Department.
The Legend of the Salt
BY FRANK M. CHAPMAN
A great many years ago a little boy, whom I knew very well, accepted
the advice of an elder, and went out with a salt-cellar to make friends
with the birds. But they would not have him, even with a 'grain of
salt,' and it was not until he was considerably older that he learned
he had begun his study of birds at the wrong end. That is, you know,
the wrong end of the bird, for it is not a bird's tail, but his bill,
you must attend to if you would win his confidence and friendship.
So, instead of salt, use bread-crumbs, seeds, and other food, and
some day you may have an experience which will surprise those people
who would think it a very good joke indeed to send you out with a
salt-cellar after birds. I have recently had an experience of this
kind. It happened in the heart of a great city, surely the last place
in the world where one would expect to find any birds, except House
Sparrows. But Central Park, New York City, the place I refer to,
contains several retired nooks where birds are often abundant. A place
known as the 'Ramble' is a particularly good one for birds, and during
the past winter, when it was not too cold, I have often gone from my
study in the near-by Museum of Natural History to eat my luncheon with
the birds in the Ramble. Many other bird-lovers have also visited the
Park to study and feed the birds, and, as always happens when birds
learn that they will not be harmed, they have become remarkably tame.
[Illustration: A BIRD IN THE HAND
Photographed from nature, by F. M. Chapman.]
This is especially true of the Chickadees, who, under any
circumstances, seem to have less fear of man than most birds. When
I entered the Ramble they soon responded to an imitation of their
plaintive call of two high, clearly whistled notes. And in a short time
we became such good friends that I had only to hold out my hand with
a nut in it to have one of them at once perch on a finger, look at me
for a moment with an inquiring expression in his bright little eyes,
then take the nut and fly off to a neighboring limb, where, holding it
beneath his toes, he would hammer away at it with his bill, Blue Jay
fashion.
One day I induced one of them to pose before my camera, and, as a
result, I now have the pleasure of presenting you with his portrait,
as an actual proof that nuts are much more effective than salt, in
catching birds. So, after this, we won't go out with salt-cellars, but
with a supply of food; nor should we forget to take a "pocketful of
patience," which, Mrs. Wright says, is the salt of the bird-catching
legend.
The February Walk Contest
We have been delighted with the interest aroused by our request for
descriptions of February walks, and in imagination have enjoyed
outings throughout a large part of the United States with our little
correspondents.
We have found ourselves obliged to give two prizes, one of which goes
to Mildred A. Robinson, of Waltham, Massachusetts, whose essay will
appear in our next number; the other to Floyd C. Noble, of New York
City, whose description of a walk in Central Park appears in this issue
of Bird-Lore.
Much to his surprise, the Editor found that he was competing for the
prize he himself had offered! He had written an account of some Central
Park birds for this department before Master Noble's article was
received, and is obliged to confess that Master Noble mentions several
species which he had not observed. He, therefore, presents only that
part of his manuscript relating to the Chickadee, and leaves Master
Noble to tell of the other birds in the Park.
The selection of the winning essays was made with much difficulty,
and, in addition to the two chosen, we would especially commend those
written by the following named boys and girls:
Philip Baker, Indianapolis, Ind.; Harriet J. Benton, New Bedford,
Mass.; Zelda Brown, Yuma, Ariz.; Donald Bruce, East Hampton, Mass.;
Walter S. Chansler, Bicknell, Ind.; Marion Flagg, 90 Washington
St., Hartford, Conn.; Charles B. Floyd, Brookline, Mass.; Kathryn
Gibbs, Kalamazoo, Mich.; Albert Linton, Moorestown, N. J.; Clara T.
Magee, Moorestown, N. J.; George S. Mac Nider, Chapel Hill, N. C.;
Barnard Powers, Melrose, Mass.; Elden Smith, Milville, Mass.; Lydia
Sharpless, Haverford, Pa.--Ed.
A February Walk in Central Park, New York
BY FLOYD C. NOBLE
(Aged 14 years)
[Illustration]
On February 18, 1899, my friend and I started out 'bird-hunting,' as
usual, in the 'Ramble,' Central Park. It was during the comparatively
warm spell after the blizzard of the 12th, and the preceding zero
weather. On the way we saw a Starling, perched high on a building,
trying to sing. On entering the Park we saw a White-throated Sparrow. I
have seen this species more times than any other this month--of course,
excepting the common Sparrow.
On nearing our 'hunting-grounds,' we heard the familiar '_cree-e_' of a
Brown Creeper, and soon discovered the little fellow hard at work, as
usual. A little later we came upon the beautiful Cardinal, with his two
wives. It is a fact that there are one male and two females, though
probably only one is his real mate. He does not, however, appear to be
partial to either.
Further on we found what we were chiefly looking for--a flock of lively
little Chickadees. I found that I had only a very small supply of
hazelnuts with me, but I made the best of them. There was a good deal
of snow on the ground, which made the Chickadees unusually tame--being
hungry. They would light on our hands, inspect the pieces of crushed
nut there, knock off the ones that did not suit them, and finally fly
off with one--usually the largest. We soon began to recognize separate
birds, and gave them names: such as 'Buffy,' 'Pretty,' etc. Then our
attention was attracted by the queer noise made by the Nuthatch, and
this trunk-crawling friend of ours appeared. We think that continued
close inspection of tree-trunks has made him near-sighted, because when
you throw him a piece of nut he generally just gazes at it, grunts a
little, and then looks at you again. My cousin suggested that when he
did find what you threw him, it was by the sense of hearing rather than
that of sight, as he can generally find a big piece that makes a noise
in falling. When he succeeds in getting 'something good,' he wedges it
into the bark somewhere and hits it with his bill.
But, between the Nuthatch, the Chickadees, and the hungry
squirrels--that would sit up with their paws on their breasts, and
their heads on one side, imploring for food, it is needless to say
successfully,--our small supply of nuts was soon gone. So we went home
as fast as we could, procured more nuts, and in twenty minutes were
again in the 'hunting grounds.' But we found, to our dismay, that
others had monopolized our flock of chickadees! However, what partly
compensated for this, was a good close view of a Downy Woodpecker.
There is a pair of these birds around here, which you are almost sure
to see,--either together or singly.
But it was soon time to go home, and on the way we heard the lively
song of the European Goldfinches, and soon found four of them high up
in a tree. They are shy birds, and flew as we approached. They feed on
pine cones, and a flock of them will take possession of a pine tree,
hide themselves in the dark tufts of pine needles, and eat the seeds at
their leisure. The only way you can have knowledge of their presence is
by the frequent cracking of the seeds heard. For a long time we thought
they were Crossbills, but one day a flock of noisy Sparrows came into
the tree and drove the quiet Goldfinches out of their tufts--much to
my surprise, for I did not suppose that Goldfinches, which I had been
accustomed to find singing loudly, could keep so quiet. We also saw a
Song Sparrow quietly picking away at some bird-seed scattered there.
[Illustration]
The Myth of the Song Sparrow
BY ERNEST SETON THOMPSON
His mother was the Brook, his sisters were the Reeds,
And they every one applauded when he sang about his deeds.
His vest was white, his mantle brown, as clear as they could be,
And his songs were fairly bubbling o'er with melody and glee.
But an envious Neighbor splashed with mud our Brownie's coat and vest,
And then a final handful threw that stuck upon his breast.
The Brook-bird's mother did her best to wash the stains away,
But there they stuck, and, as it seems, are very like to stay.
And so he wears the splashes and the mud blotch as you see,
But his songs are bubbling over still with melody and glee.
=Notes from Field and Study=
Sparrow Proof Houses
Mr. D. R. Geery, of Greenwich, Conn., sends us descriptions of the two
bird-houses here figured. When designed for Bluebirds, they should be
suspended from a limb ten or twelve feet from the ground, in such a
manner as to allow them to swing slightly. Mr. Geery writes: "It may
happen that the Sparrows will go to these houses and even commence to
build, but, as soon as they find that they swing and are not firm, they
will abandon them entirely. Wren boxes should be stationary, with an
opening not much larger than a twenty-five-cent piece, and placed so as
to be well shaded most of the day."
[Illustration: Made of rough boards. Size, 6 inches high, 5-1/2 inches
square at the bottom, 3-1/2 inches square at the top.]
[Illustration: Made from a bark-covered log, 8 inches long and 8 inches
in diameter, a hole 5 inches in diameter being bored from end to end,
leaving an outer wall 1-1/2 inches thick.]
A Musical Woodpecker
In the pursuit of my profession I had occasion for some time to travel
over a certain road, along which is a telephone line, the glass
insulators of which are placed on short pieces of hard wood which are
nailed directly to the post.
Probably half a dozen times, when on this road, I saw a male Downy
Woodpecker perched directly beneath the hard wood block, pecking at it
in a manner to make the wire ring, then pausing and evidently listening
to the music it had produced.
When the vibration ceased the performance was repeated and continued
at intervals until I was obliged to drive by and frighten the bird
away.--Dr. D. L. Burnett, _South Royalton, Vt._
An Ornithologist at San Juan
An English newspaper correspondent, who called at the American Museum
of Natural History to identify certain birds which he had seen in
Cuba, gave an interesting illustration of how, under the most adverse
circumstances, an enthusiastic naturalist may exercise his powers of
observation. He said, "I noticed at San Juan a bird which seemed to
be much alarmed by the firing. He hopped from the bushes to the lower
branches of trees, and then, limb by limb, reached the tree tops," and
continued with a readily identifiable description of the singular Cuban
Cuckoo, locally known as Arriero (_Saurothera merlini_).
There is one bird in Cuba, the Turkey Buzzard or Vulture, of which many
of our soldiers probably retain a too vivid recollection, but how many
of the men who were at San Juan can recall any other bird observed
during the day of battle?
=Book News and Reviews=
Sketch Book of British Birds. By R. Bowdler Sharpe, L. L. D., F.
L. S. With Colored Illustrations by A. F. and C. Lydon, London:
Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, New York, E. & J. B.
Young & Co. 4to. Pages xx + 255. Numerous colored illustrations.
Price, $6.
Although more books have been written about British birds than on
the birds of any other region, and although Dr. Sharpe has written
more bird books than any other living ornithologist, this we believe
is the first treatise he has produced on the birds of his native
land. He explains that the text is only a "running commentary" on
the pictures, but claims that his "Systematic Index" is "the most
complete record of the birds in the 'British List' yet published." It
enumerates 445 species of birds which, according to Dr. Sharpe, have
been recorded from Great Britain. In his 'Introduction' he classifies
these according to the manner of their occurrence, as follows: Species
which have probably escaped from confinement, 14; Indigenous species,
138; Visitors from the South--regular, 70, occasional or accidental,
69; Visitors from the East--regular, 5, accidental or occasional, 38;
Visitors from the North--regular, 35, occasional or accidental, 29;
Visitors from the West--regular 1, occasional, 43. The latter are all
American species, and the number recorded indicates how much more
frequently our birds are found on the other side of the Atlantic than
European birds are observed here.
The illustrations consist of colored vignettes in the text of nearly
every species. They are not above criticism, but, on the whole,
are excellent and form a far more certain and convenient aid to
identification than the most detailed description or elaborate key. In
many cases even American species of accidental occurrence are figured,
and, in this connection, we are tempted to ask why British authors
cannot use for our birds the names by which they are known in this
country? Who would recognize the Rusty Blackbird under the name of the
"Rusty Black Hang-Nest," a misnomer in every sense of the word, or our
Robin as the "American Thrush," to cite two among numerous examples.
F. M. C.
Book News.
It is exceedingly gratifying to find the American Ornithologists'
Union, as represented by Mr. Witmer Stone, the Chairman of its
Committee on Bird Protection, taking so strong a stand on the question
of egg-collecting. In his annual report to the Union (The Auk, XVI,
January, 1899, p. 61), Mr. Stone says, "Egg-collecting has become a fad
which is encouraged and fostered by the dealers until it is one of the
most potent causes of the decrease in our birds. The vast majority of
egg-collectors contribute nothing to the science of ornithology, and
the issuing of licenses promiscuously to this class makes any law for
bird protection practically useless.
"Too often boys regard the formation of a _large_ collection of eggs or
birds as necessarily the first step towards becoming an ornithologist
of note; but if those who have already won their spurs will take the
trouble to point out to the beginners the lines of work which yield
results of real benefit to science, they will be led to see exactly
how much collecting and what sort of specimens are really needed for
scientific research, and not needlessly duplicate what has already
been procured. Further, they will in all probability become known
as original contributors to ornithological science, while as mere
collectors they would bid fair to remain in obscurity."
Mr. Stone's report is of the utmost interest to all workers for the
better protection of our birds. We have not space to notice it further
here, but it may be obtained by addressing him at the Academy of
Natural Science, Philadelphia, Pa., and enclosing six cents in stamps.
* * * * *
Two ornithological organizations established, in January, magazines
for the publications of their proceedings and papers relating to the
avifauna of their respective states. The first, the 'Journal of the
Maine Ornithological Society,' an octavo quarterly, is edited by C.
H. Morrill, at Pittsfield, Maine; the publisher and business manager
being O. W. Knight, of Bangor, Maine. The second, the 'Bulletin of
the Cooper Ornithological Club,' is edited by Chester Barlow, of
Santa Clara, California, with the assistance of Henry Reed Taylor and
Howard Robertson. The business managers are Donald Cohen, of Alameda,
and A. I. McCormick, of Los Angeles, California. Both journals are
the outgrowth of a demand on the part of the societies they represent
for an official organ, and they will undoubtedly exert a stimulating
influence on the study of birds in the states in which they are
published.
* * * * *
We have also to acknowledge the receipt of the initial number of a
third new periodical, 'Nature Study in Schools,' conducted by the
well-known naturalist, C. J. Maynard, at West Newton, Mass. It is an
illustrated monthly of 26 pages, containing papers interesting alike
to teachers and students, and should prove very helpful in its chosen
field.
* * * * *
Houghton, Mifflin & Company have in press a bird-book for children by
Mrs. Olive Thorne Miller, to be entitled 'The First Book of Birds.' As
its name indicates, it will aim to introduce its readers to the study
of birds by taking them from the nest through all the ordinary phases
of a bird's existence, and including chapters on structure, economics,
directions for study, etc. The book will be illustrated, and its
author's experience as a student and teacher of birds is an assurance
that it will be a valuable addition to ornithological literature.
* * * * *
Few nature books not designed to assist in identification of species
have met with the sale that has been accorded Ernest Seton Thompson's
'Wild Animals I Have Known' (Charles Scribner's Sons). Published late
in October, it went rapidly through several editions, and by January 1,
or little more than two months after its appearance, 7,000 copies had
been disposed of.
The reason for this phenomenal success is not hard to find; it appears
on every page of the book, the text, illustrations, and make-up of
which are equally pleasing.
Mr. Thompson goes a step further than most students of animals in
nature. He does not present us with the biography of the species,
but with its personal history, and his minute knowledge of and close
sympathy with his subjects leads to his writing a singular charm.
* * * * *
Josephine A. Clark, of 1322 Twelfth street, N. W., Washington, D. C.,
publishes a useful 'Bird Tablet for Field Use.' It is abridged from the
'Outline for Field Observations' in Miss Merriam's 'Birds of Village
and Field,' and may be obtained from the publisher for the sum of
twenty-five cents.
* * * * *
Mr. C. A. Babcock, well-known as the originator of Bird-Day, has in
manuscript a book entitled 'Bird-Day and How to Prepare for It,' which
will undoubtedly be of much assistance to teachers, and add greatly to
the value of Bird-Day observances.
* * * * *
The following books and papers relating to birds have been received and
will be reviewed in future numbers: The Cambridge Natural History, Vol.
IX, Birds, by A. H. Evans (The Macmillan Co.); The Birds of Ontario in
Relation to Agriculture, by Charles W. Nash; The Winter Food of the
Chickadee, The Feeding Habits of the Chipping Sparrow, by Clarence
M. Weed; A Preliminary List of the Birds of Belknap and Merrimack
counties, New Hampshire, with notes, by Ned Dearborn; Check List of
British Columbia Birds, by John Fannin.
=Bird-Lore=
A Bi-monthly Magazine
Devoted to the Study and Protection of Birds
OFFICIAL ORGAN OF THE AUDUBON SOCIETIES
=Edited by FRANK M. CHAPMAN=
=Published by THE MACMILLAN COMPANY=
=====================================================
Vol. 1 April, 1899 No. 2
=====================================================
=SUBSCRIPTION RATES.=
Price in the United States, Canada, and Mexico,
twenty cents a number, one dollar a year, postage
paid.
Subscriptions may be sent to the Publishers, at
66 Fifth avenue, New York City, or to the Editor,
at Englewood, New Jersey.
Price in all countries in the International Postal
Union, twenty-five cents a number, one dollar and
a quarter a year, postage paid. Foreign agents,
Macmillan and Company, Ltd., London.
-----------------------------------------------------
Manuscripts for publication, books, etc., for review,
should be sent to the Editor at Englewood,
New Jersey.
-----------------------------------------------------
Advertisements should be sent to the Publishers
at 66 Fifth avenue, New York City.
-----------------------------------------------------
COPYRIGHTED, 1899, BY FRANK M. CHAPMAN.
-----------------------------------------------------
The establishment of Bird-Lore has brought its editor in touch with
many previously unknown friends, who, with the utmost kindness, have
expressed their approval of the new publication and predicted for it
a successful career. To thank all our correspondents individually has
been out of the question, and we take this means, therefore, to assure
them of our appreciation of their good wishes.
Doubtless they will be interested to know that within two weeks after
the publication of Bird-Lore, the publishers had disposed of more
copies than it was supposed they would sell in two months, while the
demand for specimen copies was so large, that at the end of the same
period our edition of 6,000 was nearly exhausted and we were obliged
to issue a notice to the effect that the remaining copies would be
delivered only to subscribers.
* * * * *
The Lacey-Hoar Bird Bill has met with a greatly to be regretted fate.
With earnest advocates of bird protection in both the House and Senate,
and with sufficient support to ensure the passage of any desirable
measure, the prospects of securing needed legislation seemed to be
excellent. Doubtless both Congressman Lacey's and Senator Hoar's bills
would have passed if they had been presented separately, but making the
latter an amendment to the former, created a series of contradictions
that apparently could not be adjusted in conference, and, as a result,
measures the intent of which the majority of both houses evidently
favored, failed to become laws.
However, the terms of neither Mr. Hoar nor Mr. Lacey have expired, and
it is to be hoped that before the next Congress convenes they will have
prepared a bill in which their interests in birds will be harmoniously
presented.
* * * * *
One of the most dangerous enemies threatening our birds to-day is the
man who, under the mask of 'science,' collects birds and their eggs in
wholly unwarranted numbers. He is dangerous not alone because of the
actual destruction of life he causes, but because his excesses have
brought into disrepute the work of the collector who, animated by the
spirit of true science, and appreciating the value of life, takes only
those specimens which he needs to assist him in his studies.
For this reason we feel it to be our duty to publicly protest against
such wholly inexcusable nest-robbing as Mr. L. W. Brownell, of Nyack,
N. Y. confesses himself to be guilty of in the January issue of
'The Osprey.' In describing a visit to Pelican Island, Florida, he
states that in "about an hour he had collected all the eggs he could
conveniently handle, about 125 sets."
This is an outrageous piece of bird-slaughter. It is especially to
be deplored because Brown Pelican quills and back feathers are fast
becoming fashionable, and, unless the species is protected, Florida
will speedily lose one of its most characteristic and interesting
birds. But how can we expect women, unfamiliar with the bird in nature,
to aid in its protection, when people who have seen it in its haunts,
and know how much it adds to Florida's coast scenery, ruthlessly
destroy it.
=The Audubon Societies=
"_You cannot with a scalpel find the poet's soul,
Nor yet the wild bird's song._"
Edited by Mrs. Mabel Osgood Wright (President of the Audubon Society of
the State of Connecticut), Fairfield, Conn., to whom all communications
relating to the work of the Audubon and other Bird Protective Societies
should be addressed.
DIRECTORY OF STATE AUDUBON SOCIETIES
With names and addresses of their Secretaries.
=New Hampshire= Mrs. F. W. Batchelder, Manchester.
=Massachusetts= Miss Harriet E. Richards, care Boston Society
of Natural History, Boston.
=Rhode Island= Mrs. H. T. Grant, Jr., 187 Bowen street,
Providence.
=Connecticut= Mrs. Henry S. Glover, Fairfield.
=New York= Miss Emma H. Lockwood, 243 West Seventy-fifth
street, New York City.
=New Jersey= Miss Mary A. Mellick, Plainfield.
=Pennsylvania= Mrs. Edward Robins, 114 South Twenty-first
street, Philadelphia.
=District of Columbia= Mrs. John Dewhurst Patten, 3033 P street,
Washington.
=Wheeling, W. Va.= Elizabeth I. Cummins, 1314 Chapline street,
(branch of Penn Society) Wheeling.
=Ohio= Miss Clara Russell, 903 Paradrome street,
Cincinnati.
=Indiana= Amos W. Butler, State House, Indianapolis.
=Illinois= Miss Mary Drummond, Wheaton.
=Iowa= Miss Nellie S. Board, Keokuk.
=Wisconsin= Mrs. George W. Peckham, 646 Marshall street,
Milwaukee.
=Minnesota= Mrs. J. P. Elmer, 314 West Third street,
St. Paul.
The Conducting of Audubon Societies
It is one thing to organize a society or club and quite another to
set it upon a permanent footing and keep it in step with the constant
requirements of progression. At a time when a great majority look
askance at the startling array of societies that they are asked to
'join,' it behooves all Bird Protective bodies to conduct themselves
with extreme conservatism, that they may not bear the stigma of being
called emotional 'fads,' but really appeal to those whom they seek to
interest.
Many men (and women also) have many minds, and a form of appeal that
will attract one will repel another. It is upon the tactful management
of these appeals and the bringing of the subject vitally home to
different classes and ages, that the life of the Audubon Societies
depends.
Leaflets have their influence with those who already care enough to
take the trouble to read them. Special exercises in schools have a
potent influence for good. But the best method of spreading the gospel
of humanity, is that by which it was first spread 1900 centuries ago,
by personal contact and the power of the human voice. A few spoken
words are worth a score of printed ones. A compelling personality is
worth a well of ink in this Bird Crusade of 1899. Let the heads of
societies come in contact with the members as much as possible, and
gather them in local circles. Let those who are able to speak about
birds do so, and let those who lack the gift of words read aloud from
the works of others.
Whenever possible, urge local secretaries to hold bird classes during
spring and summer in their respective towns. If no one person knows
enough to teach the others let them club together, buy a few books,
and, going out of doors, work out the problems of identification as
best they may, until every little village has a nature study class
working its way, Chautauqua-Circle fashion. Remember one point, please.
No society can succeed that is content to count the quantity rather
than quality of its members. One hundred intelligent members who know
how to spread the _why_ and _how_ of the crusade are worth 10,000 who
have merely 'joined' because someone they were proud of knowing asked
them to and it was easier to say 'yes' than 'no,' especially as the
_saying_ was all it cost. Also, no society succeeds that _bores_ people
into joining it. Remember that no matter how near one's own heart a
project may be, we have no right to _force_ it upon others. We have no
right to take people by the throat, so to speak, to make them pause and
listen, but setting a high standard, holding out a helping hand and
making the way attractive to those who wish to reach it is a different
thing, and is the only sane policy under which Audubon Societies can
be conducted. One word to you who wish to see the societies flourish,
who love birds, but are shy and retiring, and do not care to commit
yourselves to joining anything. You may safely join the cause in
_spirit_ by sending a nice little check to the treasurer of your local
state society. Piers Plowman discovered long ago that he couldn't
"spede" far without money, neither can the Audubon Societies.--M. O. W.
A Letter from Governor Roosevelt
At the annual meeting of the New York State Audubon Society, held in
the American Museum of Natural History on March 23, 1899, a letter was
read from Governor Roosevelt, which is of such interest and importance
that we print it in advance of a report of the meeting, which will
appear in a future issue.
Governor Roosevelt regretted his inability to be present, and addressed
the following letter to Mr. Frank M. Chapman, Chairman of the Executive
Committee:
_My dear Mr. Chapman_:--
I need hardly say how heartily I sympathize with the purposes of the
Audubon Society. I would like to see all harmless wild things, but
especially all birds, protected in every way. I do not understand how
any man or woman who really loves nature can fail to try to exert all
influence in support of such objects as those of the Audubon Society.
Spring would not be spring without bird songs, any more than it would
be spring without buds and flowers, and I only wish that besides
protecting the songsters, the birds of the grove, the orchard, the
garden and the meadow, we could also protect the birds of the sea shore
and of the wilderness.
The Loon ought to be, and, under wise legislation, could be a feature
of every Adirondack lake; Ospreys, as every one knows, can be made the
tamest of the tame, and Terns should be as plentiful along our shores
as Swallows around our barns.
A Tanager or a Cardinal makes a point of glowing beauty in the green
woods, and the Cardinal among the white snows.
When the Bluebirds were so nearly destroyed by the severe winter a
few seasons ago, the loss was like the loss of an old friend, or at
least like the burning down of a familiar and dearly loved house. How
immensely it would add to our forests if only the great Logcock were
still found among them!
The destruction of the Wild Pigeon and the Carolina Paroquet has meant
a loss as severe as if the Catskills or the Palisades were taken away.
When I hear of the destruction of a species I feel just as if all the
works of some great writer had perished; as if we had lost all instead
of only part of Polybius or Livy.
Very truly yours,
Theodore Roosevelt.
Reports of Societies
PENNSYLVANIA SOCIETY
The Audubon Society of Pennsylvania was organized in October, 1896,
and was the first society to follow the admirable example set by
Massachusetts. During the first year 2,200 members were enrolled and
nearly 30,000 circulars distributed. The first annual report was sent
out in November, 1897, and it mentions a 'Hat Show,' and a course
of lectures to be given in Philadelphia during the spring. Both of
these were carried out with marked success, the 'Hat Show' attracting
much attention to the work of the society, and the lectures adding
materially to its income, as there are no dues of any kind connected
with membership. The second annual report appeared in November,
1898, and announces an increase of 1,100 members during the year. It
referred to the fact that as a direct result of the 'Hat Show' several
of the best milliners had established special Audubon departments.
Lectures were given in many parts of the state with most satisfactory
results, and finally, the coöperation of school teachers was solicited
to observe May 5, 1899, as Bird-Day. A course of five lectures, by
Mr. Stone, will be given this year at the Acorn Club, Philadelphia,
beginning March 16. A number of new slides have been bought by the
society to illustrate these lectures, and the course promises to be
more interesting than ever. Since the second report was issued seven
new local secretaries have been secured, making 42 in all. It is hoped
that this number will be doubled during the coming year, for as the
membership, which is now nearly 3,800, continues to increase, the need
of workers throughout the state becomes more important every day.
Julia Stockton Robins, _Sec'y._
INDIANA SOCIETY.
In 1889 the Indiana Academy of Science appointed a committee, of which
I was chairman, to secure the passage of a satisfactory law for bird
protection. The committee accomplished nothing. It was continued,
and in 1891 secured the enactment of the enclosed law. The Academy
of Science has, through its efforts in the way of advancing science
work in the public schools of the state, encouraged and taught bird
protection. In this it has had, since 1890, the coöperation of the
Indiana Horticultural Society.
In 1897 at different times several bodies were interested in the
movement in favor of bird protection. These appointed committees united
in a call for a meeting to be held at Indianapolis. A programme was
prepared, and the meeting held in the State House April 26, 1898. I
send you a copy of the call and programme; also of the constitution
of the Indiana Audubon Society. The Governor, and Superintendent of
Public Instruction have both been much interested, and as a consequence
Bird Day and Arbor Day were celebrated October 28, 1898. The "Outline
of Township Institute Work" has gone into the hands of every teacher
and school officer in the state.... You will see that the work we are
doing is practical, even though it is not so much as some States are
accomplishing. I have not the enrollment or statement of publications
issued, but counting the issue of the State Department of Public
Instruction, 20,000 copies of different articles, at least, have been
distributed.
Amos W. Butler, _Sec'y._
ILLINOIS SOCIETY.
The past year has shown a very marked improvement as the results of
bird protection and the general work of our Illinois Audubon Society.
While the fashion for decorating hats with feathers still continues,
yet there is a very noticeable decrease in the display of aigrettes
and the feathers of wild birds. I have visited the establishments of
several of our Chicago wholesale milliners and find that the larger
portion of their stock, this fall, is made up of the feathers of the
domestic fowl and game birds. Our Audubon Society has had two public
meetings this year, which were well attended, and the interest in its
work has rather increased than abated. Our membership has increased to
3,426. We have liberally distributed leaflets, including 500 of our
circulars, stating the purpose of the society, to the editors of local
newspapers in the state, with request that they aid the society by
publishing same and calling attention to it editorially.
On February 7, 1898, an Interstate Convention was held in Chicago,
represented by the game and fish wardens, and delegates appointed by
the legislatures of the six states which responded to the call. At the
request of Mr. Witmer Stone, I presented at this convention the text
of a new law for the protection of birds and their nests and eggs, as
drafted by our committee on Bird Protection. The convention agreed to
submit the proposed law to each of their respective legislatures.
Great credit is due to the efficient work which has been done in our
state by Warden H. W. Loveday and his deputies. Since the first of the
year over one hundred prosecutions and convictions have been made, for
the wanton killing and trapping of song and insectivorous birds by
men and boys largely Italians and Bohemians. In 1897 there were 580
convictions in the state for the illegal killing and transportation of
game birds. This year the game has been so carefully watched and such
prompt action taken of reported cases of violation, that the poachers
and market hunters have been less bold, and the number of arrests and
seizures of game have been reduced over one-half.
On April 9, 1898, as a result of the efforts of County Superintendent
of Schools Mr. Orville T. Bright, a meeting was held in Chicago in the
interest of the school teachers of Cook county. Over three hundred
were present, and the meeting was devoted exclusively to birds, and
addresses given by several members of the Audubon Society. A "Finding
List" of sixty species of birds, compiled by Mr. Frank E. Sanford,
Superintendent of the La Grange, Ill., Schools, was distributed. This
is a most effective method to inspire the teachers and in turn impart
their love for birds to the scholars.
Ruthven Deane, _President_.
IOWA SOCIETY.
Under the auspices of the Keokuk Woman's Club, the Audubon Society of
Iowa was organized April 5, 1898.
The first work taken up was the establishment of Bird Day in the public
schools.
The second meeting was held in Rand Park. Short talks were made by
Hazen I. Sanger, John Huiskamp, Rabbi Faber, Doctor Ehinger, and a
paper was read by Miss Read.
We have bought and distributed through the schools, from kindergarten
up, bird pictures and bird literature.
One of our men milliners asked to become a member.
On August 6 the officers of the society met and adopted articles of
incorporation, this being the first Audubon Society to be incorporated
under the laws of Iowa. The laws of Iowa give fair protection to the
birds; our work is in creating the right sentiment.
Nellie S. Board, _Sec'y._
MINNESOTA SOCIETY
Mr. John W. Taylor, President of the Minnesota Audubon Society, reports
the passage of a law establishing Arbor and Bird Day in Minnesota,
and writes: "It is, as you can well imagine, a source of great
gratification to the lover of birds in the state, and especially to
the Audubon Societies. Through this law we can do more towards bird
protection than we could accomplish in many years' labor without it.
It brings the subject before the teachers and children, and as you
educate the child so you mould the man. We have now in this state 58
branch societies, besides many school organizations and children's bird
clubs. The number of members I am not able to give, as I have not all
the reports in. We have sent out considerable literature, and used the
press largely to interest our people. We feel that we are doing wonders
for the first active year we have had, and congratulate ourselves that
the hardest work is done. We hope by April 1st to have a branch in
every county in Minnesota."
* * * * *
Reports from the New Hampshire and Wisconsin Societies and a notice of
the American Society of Bird Restorers are necessarily postponed until
June.
_... READY THIS MONTH ..._
Nature Study For Grammar Grades
_A Manual for the Guidance of Pupils below the High School in the Study
of Nature_
BY
WILBUR S. JACKMAN, A.B.
Dep't of Natural Science, Chicago Normal School
Author of "Nature Study for the Common Schools," "Nature Study and
Related Subjects," "Nature Study Record," "Field Work in Nature Study,"
etc.
REVISED EDITION
In preparing this Manual, it has been the author's aim to propose,
within the comprehension of grammar school pupils, a few of the
problems which arise in a thoughtful study of nature, and to offer
suggestions designed to lead to their solution.
That pupils need some rational and definite directions in nature
study, all are generally agreed. But to prepare the outlines and
suggestive directions necessary, and to place these within the reach
of each pupil, is more than any ordinary teacher has time to do, even
granting that she is fully prepared for such work. The utter futility
of depending upon oral suggestions during the class hour, when the
pupils are supposed to be doing individual work, is easily apparent
on a moment's reflection. With a manual of directions in hand, each
pupil may be made strictly responsible for a certain amount of work,
either in the field or in the laboratory. This removes all occasion for
that interruption in his work, which is, otherwise, due to the pupil's
attempt to _think_ and at the same time _hear_, what the teacher says.
Recent Publications on Nature Study
=Bailey's First Lessons With Plants.= $.40 _net_
"Extremely original and unusually practical."
=Ingersoll's Wild Neighbors.= $1.50
"Instructive as well as delightful."--_Popular
Science Monthly._
=Lange's Hand-Book of Nature Study.= $1
"The style of the book is fresh and inspiring."
=Murché's Science Readers.=
Vol. I. 25 cents.
Vol. II. 25 cents.
Vol. III. 40 cents.
Vol. IV. 40 cents _net_.
Vol. V. 50 cents _net_.
Vol. VI. 50 cents _net_.
=Weed's Life Histories of American Insects.= $1.50
"An unusually attractive book."--_Dial._
=Wilson's Nature Study in Elementary Schools.=
First Nature Reader 35 cents
Second Nature Reader 35 cents
Teacher's Manual 90 cents
=Wright's Citizen Bird.= $1.50
An interesting story, giving to the children
much accurate information about American
birds.
"Most delightful book on the subject yet
printed in the United States. I wish every
boy and girl could read it."--J. M. Greenwood,
Sup't Kansas City, Mo.
=Wright's Four-Footed Americans.= $1.50
Four-Footed American Mammals treated in
story form in the manner of _Citizen Bird_.
=Wright's Birdcraft.= $2.50 _net_
PUBLISHED BY
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, New York
* * * * *
Vol. 1 20c. a Copy
No. 3 JUNE, 1899 $1 a Year
=Bird-Lore=
[Illustration]
Edited by
FRANK M. CHAPMAN
The Macmillan Company
ENGLEWOOD, N. J.
NEW YORK LONDON
_R. Weber_
COPYRIGHT, 1899, BY FRANK M. CHAPMAN
=Bird-Lore=
June, 1899
CONTENTS
Gannets on Bonaventure. Illustrated _Frank M. Chapman_ 71
Clark's Crows and Oregon Jays on Mount Hood. Illustrated
_Florence A. Merriam_ 72
The Masquerading Chickadee. Verse _Edith M. Thomas_ 77
Matins. Verse _Rosa Meyers Mumma_ 77
Home-Life in a Chimney. _Mary F. Day_ 78
Three Cobb's Island Pictures. Illustrated _William L. Baily_ 81
The Cardinal at the Hub. Illustrated _Ella Gilbert Ives_ 83
A Catbird Study. Illustrated _Dr. Thos. S. Roberts_ 87
FOR TEACHERS AND STUDENTS
On the Ethics of Caging Birds _Olive Thorne Miller_ 89
A May Morning _Fred H. Kennard_ 91
FOR YOUNG OBSERVERS
A February Walk. _Mildred A. Robinson_ 94
Illustration--Robin on Nest. _T. S. Hankinson_ 95
Robin Rejoice. Verse _Garrett Newkirk_ 95
NOTES FROM FIELD AND STUDY 96
Inquisitive Magpies, _J. Alden Loring_; Songs of Birds,
_Frank E. Horack_
BOOK NEWS AND REVIEWS 97
Evans' Birds; Weed on the Feeding Habits of the Chipping Sparrow,
and Food of the Chickadee; Fannin's Check-list of British
Columbian Birds; Dearborn's List of Birds of Belknap and
Merrimack Counties, N. H.; Book News.
EDITORIAL 99
AUDUBON DEPARTMENT 100
Editorial; Reports from Wisconsin and New Hampshire Societies;
A Message From Madame Lehmann; Two New Audubon Societies;
Birds and Farmers.
×*× _Bird-Lore is published at Englewood, New Jersey, where all
manuscripts intended for publication, books, etc., for review, and
exchanges should be sent._
PUBLISHERS' ANNOUNCEMENT
Bird-Lore for August will contain an article by Bradford Torrey; A
paper on How to Photograph Wild Birds, by Richard Kearton, the most
successful of bird photographers; A poem by Garrett Newkirk; An account
of a Mississippi Swallow Roost, by Otto Widmann (whose paper on a visit
to the birthplace of Audubon is necessarily postponed); a report of the
American Society of Bird Restorers, by the organizer, Fletcher Osgood,
and other interesting articles.
[Illustration: GANNETS ON BONAVENTURE ISLAND
Photographed from nature by Frank M. Chapman]
=Bird-Lore=
A BI-MONTHLY MAGAZINE
DEVOTED TO THE STUDY AND PROTECTION OF BIRDS
Official Organ of the Audubon Societies
=======================================
Vol. 1 June, 1899 No. 3
=======================================
Gannets on Bonaventure
BY FRANK M. CHAPMAN
(_See Frontispiece_)
[Illustration]
Gannets (_Sula bassana_) are known to nest in only three places in
North America--Perroquet Island, the Bird Rocks, and Bonaventure
Island, all in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. By far the largest colony
is found on the last named island, where, on the ledges of the
red sandstone cliffs, some three hundred feet in height, they are
practically secure from molestation. Bonaventure Island itself,
however, is the most accessible of the three localities mentioned, and
may be easily reached in a small fishing boat from the neighboring
village of Percé, where the famous Percé Rock, with its colony
of Herring Gulls and Double-crested Cormorants, makes the region
particularly interesting to the ornithologist.
The Gannet cliffs are on the east side of Bonaventure, and are exposed
to the full force of the sea. To visit them satisfactorily, therefore,
one should select a calm day, when one may closely approach the cliffs,
and view with both safety and comfort the long, white rows, containing
thousands of birds nesting on the shelves and ledges on the face of the
cliff; a remarkable spectacle!
The unusually turbulent sea which prevailed during my visit to these
cliffs, on July 11, 1898, prevented me from securing satisfactory
pictures from a boat, but, landing on the west side of Bonaventure,
I crossed the island (here about one and a half miles in width),
and reached a position on the crest of the cliffs, from which the
accompanying picture was made. About four hundred Gannets are shown
nesting on this single ledge--one of many quite as densely populated.
Preparations were made to secure a picture of these birds on the wing,
but my best efforts to startle them into flight did not succeed in
making a single bird leave its nest!
Clark's Crows and Oregon Jays on Mount Hood
BY FLORENCE A. MERRIAM
(_Concluded from page 48_)
[Illustration: CLARK'S CROW AND OREGON JAY
Photographed from nature by Florence A. Merriam]
Although the Nutcrackers and Jays were masters of the feast,
they did not altogether monopolize it. Ground squirrels with golden
brown heads and striped backs would look out at me from the rocks, and
pretty little striped-nosed chipmunks would pick up choice morsels and
climb nimbly back along the cliff with them. Juncos often dropped in,
pecked indifferently at the crumbs, slipped off the tin cans they tried
to perch on, and flew off. Two Lewis' Woodpeckers stopped one day and,
flying down, clung awkwardly to the side of the cliff, as if vaguely
wanting to join in the proceedings, but not knowing how, finally left.
A single Steller's Jay hung around the outskirts in the same way, the
first day I was there. He hopped about, looked this way and that,
and pecked at the food perfunctorily, as if it was new to his palate
and not quite to his mind, acting altogether as if he realized that
something was going on he ought to be enjoying, though he really didn't
see just where the fun came in. Unlike the Woodpeckers, however, he was
determined to improve his opportunities, and cultivated his appetite so
successfully that on the last day when I visited the dining-room he and
a comrade were working away, apparently enjoying the viands as much as
their neighbors.
But the Crows and Oregon Jays were the regular habitues of the place.
When resting from his labors a solitary Crow would often perch on
the tip of a bare spar on the crest of the cliff, apparently quite
satisfied with his own society, but I never saw a Jay there, and one
whom I did see separated from his band for a moment fairly made the
welkin ring with shouts for his clan. Several Clark's Crows were often
at the table with the Jays, but while I never saw a Crow disturb a
Jay, a Crow would often fly with animation at a newcoming fellow
Crow. This was a surprise to me, for on Mt. Shasta I had seen the
Nutcrackers hunting in bands quite as the Jays did here. But on the
wide lava slopes of Shasta there were, doubtless, grasshoppers enough
for all the world, while here the feast was restricted to the foot of
one cliff on the mountain--quite a different matter. When I spoke to
Mrs. Langille about this difference in disposition, she acquiesced as
if it were an old story to her, unhesitatingly denominating the Jays
'generous fellows,' and the Crows 'greedy' ones.
[Illustration: OREGON JAYS
Photographed from nature by Florence A. Merriam]
One Crow made a special exhibition of egoistic tendencies. He was
engaged in hurriedly carrying off future breakfasts for himself when a
party of brother Crows appeared. He had been working with absorption,
flying back and forth to the table with eager haste, being gone less
than half a minute at a time, but on the arrival of his friends
dropped his work and devoted himself to driving them from the field.
Not content with keeping them from the table, he flew at them with a
strange note of ominous warning when they sat quietly in the tree-tops.
It seemed as if he were nervous lest they discover what he had been
storing among the branches. When he had fairly routed the enemy he
apparently acted on his fear of discovery, for, instead of placing his
supplies near at hand as before, he flew out of sight with them. As
before, he worked with nervous haste. As I looked down on the tree-tops
from above it was impossible to see where he put all the food, but
several times when he flew up in sight he seemed to be sticking small
bits between the needles of the pines. As the bunches of needles are
compact and stiff in this white-barked pine (_Pinus albicaulis_), this
might be a safe temporary cache, but the winter gales that make it
necessary to hold down the Inn with huge cables would presumably leave
little biscuit between the needles of a pine.
The question is, do these birds--and others which hoard--really use
their stores? The testimony of all who are in the field in winter is
needed to clear up the matter. The first point to be determined is
whether the individual birds winter where they store. The Nutcrackers,
Mr. Langille informed me, do remain at the high altitudes all the year.
As he said, it is stormy indeed when they cannot be seen sailing across
the cañons or perched on the topmost branches of the trees, screaming
and calling in their harsh way, always restless and seeming to resent
any intrusion of man, beast, or fowl. On the other hand, he said that
the Jays seldom remain at the high altitudes during the winter months,
usually descending to lower elevations, where they flit about in flocks
of from six to twenty, sounding their plaintive varied notes and
whistles at all times.
[Illustration: CLARK'S CROW
Photographed from nature by Walter K. Fisher]
Nevertheless, the storing of the Crows at this altitude was certainly
much less systematic than that of the Jays. The Jays' movements were
easy to follow, for they were concerted and regular. The Inn was on
a ridge between two cañons, and commanded the birds' pathway. A band
would come up from under the cliff at the top of the western cañon,
cross over the ridge, and drop down into the eastern cañon, where they
would fly over the tops of the firs till they disappeared from sight.
They would be gone some little time, and then return empty-handed to
repeat the performance.
The Jays talked a good deal in going back and forth, and their notes
were pleasantly varied. One call was remarkably like the chirp of a
Robin. Another of the commonest was a weak and rather complaining cry,
repeated several times; and a sharply contrasting one was a pure, clear
whistle of one note followed by a three-syllabled call, something
like _ka-wé-ah_. The regular rallying cry was still different, a
loud and striking two-syllabled _ka-wheé_. The notes of Clark's Crow
often suggested the rattling of the Red-headed Woodpecker. The bird
had a variety of _kerring_, throaty notes, and when disturbed, as at
the unexpected sight of me at its dining-room, gave a loud, warning
_quarr_. Besides these Woodpecker-like calls, it had a squawking cry
similar to that of Steller's Jay.
The voices of the birds were often heard from the house as they got
water from the hydrant in front of the Inn, the Jays frequently
stopping on the way back from their cañon storehouse. Sometimes three
Jays would suddenly appear overhead, drop noiselessly to the pool under
the hydrant, and squatting close together fill their bills and then
raise their heads to swallow. Though the Jays usually went to the pool
for water, they would sometimes light on the hydrant and, leaning over,
drink from the faucet, which Mrs. Langille always left dripping for
their benefit. The Clark's Crows, so far as I noticed, always drank
right from the faucet.
[Illustration: CLARK'S CROW
Photographed from nature by Walter K. Fisher]
It was hard to get photographs of the birds at the hydrant, as they
stopped only in passing, but as it was impossible to take them under
the cliff on account of the poor light, I determined to bait them.
Finding a number of the Nutcrackers in front of the kitchen window,
I asked the Chinaman for some meat for them, holding up my Kodak to
explain that I wanted to take the birds' pictures. To my surprise, the
man promptly and decidedly shook his head! I didn't know what to make
of such apparent rudeness at first, but it finally dawned on me that he
could not understand English and, not being an ornithologist, from past
experience with tourist cameras concluded that I wanted _his_ picture!
Accordingly, nothing daunted, I appealed to Mrs. Langille, and when she
gave me a plate of suet, returned to take the Crows. They flew at my
approach, but quickly settled back and fairly fell on the meat I put
in the road for them. I got a snap of one with a big mouthful. After
taking all the Nutcrackers I wanted, I went back to the hydrant to
wait for the Jays, but the Crows followed and one fellow fairly gorged
himself on the fat. He gulped it down so fast I had to drive him off in
order to have either meat or films left for the Jays. It was hard to
persuade him that I wanted him to leave. He had had no experience of
such inhospitality. Mild shooing did no good. I actually had to throw
small stones at him before he would take the hint! When he finally
started to go, I got his picture as he turned and looked regretfully
over his shoulder at the Jay he was leaving in possession of the field.
The Jays were even more fearless than the Crows. Several of them would
often be on the ground at once, but they ate so fast and flew back
and forth so rapidly that it was hard to focus on them quickly enough
to get their most interesting poses. I put a brown paper behind or
under the pan for a lighter background, and at first the birds hopped
nervously when it moved, but they soon got used to it, and ate on it
and on the pan, as it happened. And how they did stuff! They were
so absorbed that, although I sat within four feet of the pan, they
sometimes came too near for me to focus. They paid so little heed to
my presence I have no doubt they would have eaten from my hand had I
not been engaged in keeping them at a proper distance. When the raw
meat was gone Mrs. Langille gave me a supply of cooked fat, and it was
astonishing to see how much of the greasy stuff they could swallow. I
caught one just as he was about to fly off with a billful of it. The
fat seemed to make them thirsty; they had to go to the hydrant to wash
it down with cold water.
Meat Hawk, the name the mountaineers have for them, is certainly
appropriate. They are on the lookout for meat wherever it is to be
found, be it kitchen door or forest. Their appetite for game is truly
remarkable. Mr. Langille told me he might go through the woods all day
without seeing a single Jay, but if he killed a deer and the smell
of blood filled the air, in a few moments the birds would be about,
calling and whistling; and, emboldened by the prospect of a feast, they
would fly down and perch upon the carcass within reach of his hand,
sometimes before the deer was entirely skinned.
[Illustration: CLARK'S CROW
Photographed from nature by Walter K. Fisher]
On Mount Shasta, although the Nutcrackers came about camp, they showed
no desire for camp food, and on Hood Mr. Langille informed me that the
Crows tamed this year were the first they had ever succeeded in coaxing
about. After I left the mountain they became still more familiar, and,
I am told, would gather in the trees at daybreak and call until the
family went out to feed them.
[Illustration]
The Masquerading Chickadee[E]
BY EDITH M. THOMAS
[Footnote E: "March 1, 1856.--I hear several times the fine drawn
_Phe-be_ note of the Chickadee, which I heard only once during the
winter."--"Early Spring in Massachusetts."--Thoreau.]
I came to the woods in the dead of the year,
I saw the wing'd sprite thro' the green-brier peeping:
"Darling of Winter, you've nothing to fear,
Though the branches are bare and the cold earth is sleeping!"
With a _dee, dee, dee!_ the sprite seemed to say,
"I'm friends with the Maytime as well as December,
And I'll meet you here on a fair-weather day;
Here, in the green-brier thicket,--remember!"
* * * * *
I came to the woods in the spring of the year,
And I followed a voice that was most entreating:
_Phebe! Phebe!_ (and yet more near),
_Phebe! Phebe!_ it kept repeating!
I gave up the search, when, not far away,
I saw the wing'd sprite thro' the green-brier peeping,
With a _Phebe! Phebe!_ that seemed to say,
"I told you so! and my promise I'm keeping."
"You'll know me again, when you meet me here,
Whether you come in December or Maytime:
I've a _dee, dee, dee!_ for the Winter's ear,
And a _Phebe! Phebe!_ for Spring and Playtime!"
Matins
BY ROSA MEYERS MUMMA
As sable night fades into soft rose tint,
Through leafy aisles slow filters daylight's glint;
From green tree arch is faintly heard the call
Which summons quickly feathered choir all
To Nature's vast cathedral, where in song
Unite the worshippers, a feathered throng.
What harmonies pour forth from each bird throat!
A morning prayer ascends with each clear note.
Home-Life in a Chimney
BY MARY F. DAY
[Illustration]
Near Boonton, N. J., it was my good fortune last summer to have the
exceptional opportunity of watching closely the rearing of a family
of Chimney Swifts. The nest was built opposite and slightly above an
opening in the chimney designed for the insertion of a stovepipe. The
opening was about two feet from the floor of a second-story room in the
house where I spent the summer.
When discovered, the nest was only partially completed, so it was
necessary to exercise care, lest the birds become alarmed and choose a
more secluded spot. To guard against disturbance to them, a black cloth
was hung over the opening in such a way that it could be carefully and
noiselessly lifted during periods of observation. Although the room was
used as a bedchamber throughout the summer, the Swifts never seemed to
be annoyed by the close proximity of their human neighbors. They were
of a trustful disposition, and soon became accustomed to being watched.
Occasionally, when I looked in upon them at the beginning of our
acquaintance, they would spread their long, beautifully formed wings
and lift them gracefully above the back, as if intending to fly, but
usually, upon second consideration, would conclude it was unnecessary.
It was the 21st of May when I first peeped in upon the little bracket
against the chimney wall that became the stage for the enactment of
scenes filled with absorbing interest to me in the weeks that followed.
It was not placed in an angle, but against the north side of the flue,
beneath a slight projection formed by an accumulation of soot.
In a week one egg was apparent, but there may have been others, for the
little builders had been adding one twig after another to the front
edge of the nest, so that it had become impossible to see the bottom.
Two more days passed, after which it could be seen that there were at
least two eggs, and yet the structure continued to be enlarged.
June 5 marked the beginning of incubation. In mid-afternoon of this
day I saw the sitting bird had flown, and, going out-of-doors to study
birds, my attention was attracted to a Swift flying among the branches
of the locust trees near by. This was an unusual sight to me, and,
recalling that I had read that Swifts never alight in trees, I watched
eagerly to see what it might mean. Soon I saw that the bird was
snatching at little dry twigs. She flew round and round, and presently
was gone. Suspecting that it was my little friend, I ran quickly
upstairs, and sure enough, there sat my bird upon the nest, with a twig
in her mouth, panting as if tired by extra exertion. Resting a moment,
she proceeded to apply the salivary glue and adjust the twig, and then
settled again to the task of sitting.
After a few days there came a cold storm, and it was believed that the
little brooder proved unfaithful to her duties, for late one evening
and early the following morning she was seen huddled with others of her
kind beneath the nest. Great were my fears that no birds would ever
come from these chilled eggs, but time made it clear that the tiny
creature knew what she was doing. This was the sole act of parental
neglect that was apparent during all the weeks required to rear the
family. Under date of June 17, I noted that the eggs were constantly
protected. At whatever time of day I looked I saw a sitting bird.
June 24 dawned fair and warm. As was my custom, I called to say "good
morning" into the chimney before going down to breakfast, when I found
that there was excitement in the little home. A faint peep reached my
ear, which caused the mother anxious restlessness each time it was
repeated. From half-past eight until ten o'clock that morning I sat
at my post of observation, during which time it appeared that two or
three more young were hatched, for there was much peeping on the part
of the little ones and much fidgeting about by the adults. Two shells,
or parts of shells, were tossed from the nest. Occasionally the parents
exchanged places, one brooding the infants while the other went out
into the air. Even at the tender age that must be reckoned by minutes,
these young birds were fed, seemingly, by regurgitation.
During the progress of my study I found that one of the pair, which
from manners and appearance I judged to be the female, had lost a tail
feather, and this one I affectionately dubbed "Swiftie." She appeared
worn out with anxiety added to the confinement of a long period of
incubation, and embraced every opportunity to rest, but seasons of
sleep were of short duration, for it seemed that the body of the
brooding bird was lifted each time a movement was felt beneath. The
mate, with his sleek coat, bright eyes and calm demeanor, formed a
decided contrast to the ragged, unkempt appearance of the female.
Even four days showed perceptible growth in the swiftlings. They were
not allowed to remain uncovered, a wise precaution, for their bodies
were perfectly naked. At this age the instinct of cleanliness began
to assert itself. The weak, awkward little creatures would struggle
backward from beneath the brooder, up to the edge of the nest and
deposit over it that which, remaining within, would have made their
home uninhabitable.
From this time forth a third Swift was seen to enter into the care of
the nestlings, taking its turn at brooding and feeding. Was this a
nurse-maid employed to relieve the overburdened mother, or a kind and
helpful friend or neighbor, or the younger and less care-taking of two
wives? Who can tell?
It was not until the sixth day after hatching that I knew to a
certainty how many young birds there were. Then, to my surprise, I
found there were five. They had grown to be very clamorous for food.
Two, at most three (later but one), were served at one feeding, and the
process was after this manner: "Swiftie" would drop into the chimney
and alight below the nest, her throat bulging with the fullness of
captured insects. The little ones that were hungry were alert, for
all had learned that a rumbling noise in the chimney, followed by a
sound of "chitter, chitter, chitter," meant something to eat. After
resting a moment, the mother would scramble up over the nest, and,
with closed eyes, feel about until she came in contact with an open
mouth, whereupon she would place her beak far down the throat, deposit
a portion of food, then seek another yawning cavity. No system appeared
to be observed in the matter of feeding. The hungriest youngsters made
the greatest effort to reach the source of supply.
July 1 feathers began to appear. They grew rapidly, especially those
of wings and tail, and in a week the bodies were about covered. With
feathers came employment, for they must often be dressed, though from a
habit of yawning frequently, common to the family, one might be led to
believe that time hung heavily on their claws.
The nestlings were two weeks old before the eyes began to open, and
nearly three before they were much used. But when they were fully open,
and the feathers had grown out and were fast becoming sooty instead of
black, how winning these young birds appeared!
The time had now come to take up exercises preparatory to flying. The
young aspirants would stand in the nest and for a time vibrate the
wings rapidly, so rapidly that the identity of wing was lost. Two first
ventured from home when nineteen days old, clinging to the wall for a
short time a few inches from the nest.
One afternoon about this time there came a severe and prolonged shower.
The rain beat into the chimney, reaching down to the nest. What, now
did I see? Besides the five grown-up swiftlings, the three adults,
packed in and upon the nest, the rain dripping from those which were
exposed. I mention this incident to give an idea of the adhesiveness of
the glue used in the construction of Swifts' nests.
July 20 I made the following note: "Swiftlings no longer make use of
the nest, but dispose themselves in various parts of the chimney,
sometimes in a cluster, sometimes in twos or threes, and sometimes
separately. They take flying exercises up and down the chimney, but
I believe have not yet left it." The next morning I was forced to
conclude that three had taken flight into the great outside world,
for upon looking the chimney over thoroughly with the aid of a small
mirror, I could find but two birds.
The chimney was much used by this interesting family until the 24th
of August. Early in the morning of that day a large number of Swifts
were seen gathering in a flock at a short distance from the house. Ten
o'clock that night I searched the chimney with a lighted candle, but
found no sign of life, and I believe that the Swifts did not again
enter within its walls.
Three Cobb's Island Pictures
BY WILLIAM L. BAILY
[Illustration: BLACK SKIMMER]
Right out on the sandy beach, just above high tide, the Black
Skimmer risks her set of eggs, and, while apparently unprotected,
they are so much the color of the sand and the surrounding shells and
seaweed that they would not be noticed unless you were especially
looking for them.
The Skimmers are gull-like in form, with long, slender body and long
wings, spreading almost three feet. They have a glossy black back,
white breast, orange feet, and a most curiously shaped orange bill,
which is almost as thin as a knife, the thin edges closing vertically
together. This peculiarity has given the bird the name of 'Razor Bill.'
Their graceful and regular flight can hardly be mistaken for that
of any other bird. They skim just over the surface of the water,
following the contour of the waves, while the lower mandible of their
bill, which is longer than the upper, projects below the surface of
the water, and when it comes in contact with a small fish, the latter
simply slide up the narrow, inclined plane into the Skimmer's mouth.
[Illustration: NEST AND EGGS OF BLACK SKIMMER]
Formerly they bred in great numbers along the eastern coast of our
Middle and Southern Atlantic states, and only a few years ago were
abundant on the New Jersey coast. They have been crowded out, however,
by encroaching civilization, and hunted down by the milliners' agents
and the egg-collectors. In June, 1898, I found them on Cobb's Island,
Virginia, to the number of about two hundred pairs, where, not long
ago, they bred in thousands.
As the eggs are entirely exposed, the parents are relieved to some
extent from the duty of incubation by the heat of the sun, and as soon
as the young hatch they run about like chickens.
[Illustration: GULL-BILLED TERN]
After getting two good pictures of the Skimmer and her eggs, I turned
my attention to a Gull-billed Tern, and while standing over her nest,
which contained two eggs and one fuzzy young, just hatched, I obtained
a rather remarkable picture of the parent bird flying straight at the
camera, nicely illustrating what a small sectional area a bird occupies
while flying.
The Cardinal at the Hub
BY ELLA GILBERT IVES
With Photographs from nature by Blanche Kendall
[Illustration]
His range being southern, Cardinal Grosbeak seldom travels through New
England; and, to my knowledge, has never established a home and reared
a family north of Connecticut until in the instance here recorded.
Kentuckians claim him, and with some show of right, since James Lane
Allen built his monument in imperishable prose. But, soon or late,
all notables come to Boston, and among them may now be registered the
"Kentucky Cardinal."
Shy by nature, conspicuous in plumage, he shuns publicity; and,
avoiding the main lines of travel, he put up at a quiet country house
in a Boston suburb--Brookline.
Here, one October day in 1897, among the migrants stopping at this
half-way house, appeared a distinguished guest, clad in red, with a
black mask, a light red bill, and a striking crest; with him a bird
so like him that they might have been called the two Dromios. After a
few days, the double passed on and left our hero the only red-coat in
the field. A White-throated Sparrow now arrived from the mountains,
and a Damon and Pythias friendship sprang up between the birds. Having
decided to winter at the North, they took lodgings in a spruce tree,
and came regularly to the table d'hote on the porch. My lord Cardinal,
being the more distinguished guest, met with particular favor, and soon
became welcome at the homes of the neighborhood. With truly catholic
taste, he refused creature comforts from none, but showed preference
for his first abode.
It was March 5, 1898, when we kept our first appointment with the
Cardinal. A light snow had fallen during the night, and the air was
keen, without premonition of spring. It was a day for home-keeping
birds, the earth larder being closed. The most delicate tact was
required in presenting strangers. A loud, clear summons,--the
Cardinal's own whistle echoed by human lips--soon brought a response.
Into the syringa bush near the porch flew, with a whir and a sharp
_tsip_, a bird. How gorgeous he looked in the snow-laden shrub! For an
instant the syringa blossoms loaded the air with fragrance as a dream
of summer floated by. Then a call to the porch was met by several
sallies and quick retreats, while the wary bird studied the newcomers.
Reassuring tones from his gentle hostess, accompanied by the rattle
of nuts and seeds, at last prevailed, and the Cardinal flew to the
railing and looked us over with keen, inquiring eye. Convinced that no
hostilities were intended, he gave a long, trustful look into the face
of his benefactress and flew to her feet.
A gray squirrel frisking by stopped at the lunch-counter and seized an
'Educator' cracker.
[Illustration: CARDINAL AND GRAY SQUIRREL]
The novel sensation of an uncaged bird within touch, where one might
note the lovely shading of his plumage as one notes a flower, was
memorable; but a sweeter surprise was in store. As we left the house,
having made obeisance to his eminence the Cardinal, the bird flew
into a spruce tree and saluted us with a melodious "Mizpah." Then, as
if reading the longing of our hearts, he opened his bright bill, and
a song came forth such as never before enraptured the air of a New
England March,--a song so copious, so free, so full of heavenly hope,
that it seemed as if forever obliterated were the "tragic memories of
his race."
As March advanced, several changes in the Cardinal were noted by his
ever-watchful friends. He made longer trips abroad, returning tired
and hungry. The restlessness of the unsatisfied heart was plainly his.
His long, sweet, interpolating whistle, variously rendering "Peace
... peace ... peace!" "Three cheers, three cheers," etc., to these
sympathetic northern ears became "Louise, Louise, Louise!" Thenceforth
he was Louis, the Cardinal, calling for his mate.
On March 26, a kind friend took pity on the lonely bachelor, and a
caged bird, "Louise," was introduced to him. In the lovely dove-colored
bird, with faint washings of red and the family mask and crest, the
Cardinal at once recognized his kind. His joy was unbounded; and the
acquaintance progressed rapidly, a mutual understanding being plainly
reached during the seventeen days of cage courtship. Louis brought food
to Louise, and they had all things in common except liberty.
[Illustration: CARDINAL AND HOUSE SPARROWS]
April 12, in the early morning, the cage was taken out-of-doors and
Louise was set free. She was quick to embrace her chance, and flew into
the neighboring shrubbery. For six days she reveled in her new-found
freedom; Louis, meanwhile, coming and going as of old, and often
carrying away seeds from the house to share with his mate.
April 16, he lured her into the house, and after that they came often
for food, flying fearlessly in at the window, and delighting their
friends with their songs and charming ways. Louis invariably gave the
choicest morsels to his mate, and the course of true love seemed to
cross the adage; but alas! Death was already adjusting an arrow for
that shining mark.
April 25, Louise stayed in the house all day, going out at nightfall.
Again the following day she remained indoors, Louis feeding her; but
her excellent appetite disarmed suspicion, and it was thought that she
had taken refuge from the cold and rain, especially as she spent the
night within. The third morning, April 27, she died. An examination of
her body revealed three dreadful wounds.
Louis came twittering to the window, but was not let in until a day or
two after, when a new bird, "Louisa," had been put in the cage. When
he saw the familiar form, he evidently thought his lost love restored,
for he burst into glorious song; but, soon discovering his mistake, he
stopped short in his hallelujahs, and walked around the cage inspecting
the occupant.
[Illustration: CARDINAL]
Louisa's admiration for the Cardinal was marked; but for some days he
took little notice of her, and his friends began to fear that their
second attempt at matchmaking would prove a failure. April 30, however,
some responsive interest was shown, and the next day Louis brought
to the cage a brown bug half an inch long, and gave Louisa his first
meat-offering.
The second wooing progressed rapidly, and May 7, when Louisa was set
free, the pair flew away together with unrestrained delight. After
three days of liberty, Louisa flew back to the house with her mate, and
thenceforth was a frequent visitor.
May 21, Louisa was seen carrying straws, and on June 6 her nest was
discovered low down in a dense evergreen thorn (_Cratægus pyracantha_).
Four speckled eggs lay in the nest. These were hatched June 9, the
parent birds, meantime and afterward, going regularly to market and
keeping up social relations with their friends.
In nine days after their exit from the shell, the little Cardinals
left the nest and faced life's sterner realities. A black cat was
their worst foe, and more than once during their youth Louis flew
to his devoted commissary and made known his anxiety. Each time, on
following him to the nest, she found the black prowler, or one of his
kind, watching for prey. On June 28, the black cat outwitted the allied
forces, Señor Cardinal and his friends, and a little one was slain. The
other three grew up and enjoyed all the privileges of their parents,
flying in at the window and frequenting the bountiful porch.
July 25, Louisa disappeared from the scene, presumably on a southern
trip, leaving the Cardinal sole protector, provider and peace-maker for
their lively and quarrelsome triplet. A fight is apparently as needful
for the development of a young Cardinal as of an English schoolboy,
possibly due in both cases to a meat diet.
Over-feeding was but temporary with our birds. On the 8th of August the
migratory instinct prevailed over ease, indulgence, friendship, and
the Cardinal with his brood left the house where he had been so well
entertained, to return no more. No more? Who shall say of any novel
that it can have no sequel? Massachusetts may yet become the permanent
home of the Kentucky Cardinal, the descendant to the third and fourth
generation of Louis and his mate.
A Catbird Study
BY DR. THOS. S. ROBERTS
Director Department of Birds, Natural History Survey of Minnesota.
With Photographs from nature by the Author.
[Illustration: CATBIRD AND NEST]
The subjects of this sketch had located their bark- and
root-lined nest of coarse sticks, four feet from the ground, in a
little oak bush surrounded by brakes, sunflowers, and hazel. Instead
of being, as usual, in the midst of a dense, and, therefore, dark
thicket, this nest was quite in the open, shaded by only a few
overhanging, leafy branches of small size. Its exceptionally favorable
location and the apparent tameness of the birds suggested an attempt
at avian photography, and the undertaking was entered upon at once, a
very considerable fund of interest and enthusiasm having to take the
place of any special previous experience in this line of work. After
clearing away a little of the overhanging and intervening vegetation,
the camera was placed with the lens not more than two feet from the
nest, this being necessary in order to secure an image of the desired
size with the short focus lens at hand (a B. and L. Zeiss Anastigmat,
Series II A, 6-1/2 × 4-1/4, focal length 5-3/8 inches). Fifty feet
of rubber tubing, a large bulb, and a field-glass made it possible
to watch developments and carry on operations from a safe distance.
But, although the camera was nearly concealed with ferns and leaves,
this day's proceedings were not rewarded with much success. The birds
proved exasperatingly timid, and returned only after prolonged waits,
to disappear instanter on the click of the shutter (a B. and L.
iris diaphragm shutter). So we left the field, not disheartened but
bent upon improving our paraphernalia. A day or two later found the
camera again in position, but this time with tripod green-painted and
the whole unsightly top enveloped in a green hood with only a small
aperture for the lens. This ruse succeeded fairly well, and during the
three or four hours that the light was good on this day, and during a
like period on a subsequent day, a number of exposures were made that
resulted in an interesting series of negatives, giving good prints and
still better lantern slides.
[Illustration: CATBIRD ON NEST]
Only one of several time-exposures turned out perfect. It is here
presented, not only as the prize picture of some three hundred
negatives made during the summer of 1898, but as the sole and only
entirely satisfactory outcome of some twelve or fourteen hours' work.
=For Teachers and Students=
On the Ethics of Caging Birds
BY OLIVE THORNE MILLER
[Illustration]
Before saying a few words on this subject, I should like to define my
position. With all my heart do I disapprove of caging wild birds. I
never had, and never shall have, the liberty of one bird interfered
with for my pleasure or study, and if I had the power to prevent it,
not one should ever be caged. Especially do I regard it as cruel in the
extreme to confine an adult bird, accustomed to freedom and able to
take care of himself.
The question of "rights" we will not enter upon here, further than to
say that our moral right to capture wild creatures for our own use or
pleasure is the same in the case of birds as of other animals--horses,
for example.
But birds _are_ caged, and we must deal with circumstances as we find
them. If a bird-lover should worry and fret himself to death, he could
not put an end to their captivity. So it would appear to be the part
of wisdom to see if there are not mitigating circumstances, which may
comfort, and perhaps, in a slight degree, even reconcile one to their
imprisonment.
The case of Canaries is different from that of all others. Hatched in
cages, descended from caged ancestry, and accustomed to be cared for by
people, they know no other life, and are utterly unfitted for freedom.
So far from being a kindness to set one of these birds free, it is
absolute cruelty. It is like turning a child, accustomed to a luxurious
life, into the streets, to pick up a living for himself.
But a young bird, taken from the nest before he has learned the use of
his wings, I believe, can be made perfectly contented and happy in a
house--_if he is properly cared for!_
It is unfortunately true that not one in a thousand _is_ properly cared
for, but we are not considering the shortcomings of people. At this
moment we are considering the possibility of making a bird's life happy.
For several years I kept birds in captivity, and closely studied their
ways and their characters, and I say, without hesitation, that most
birds can be made so contented and happy that they will prefer their
captivity, with its several advantages, to freedom without them. The
advantages of captivity to a bird are three; viz., abundant food
supply, protection from enemies, ease of life--without labor or concern
about weather.
The conditions, therefore, necessary to his happiness are:
Never-failing care as to his physical comforts--such as a proper
situation of the cage,--neither in the hot sunshine nor in a draught;
fresh and perfect food, with variety; plenty of fresh water; suitable
and regular bath, etc. And secondly--though perhaps it should be first,
as it is most important--treatment as if he were a sentient being,
instead of a piece of furniture; talking to him, taking notice of him,
making a companion and friend of him. And thirdly, the freedom of a
room, at least part of every day.
Under these conditions, as I know from close and sympathetic
observation, our little brothers can be made so happy, that, as I
said, many of them will not accept their liberty. They choose between
freedom, with hard labor and many anxieties, and comfortable captivity,
with ease and security, and many decide--as do many of the human
family--for the former.
There is another reason why I have become partially tolerant of the
caging of birds. What first influenced me was the fact that every
individual rescued from the discomforts of a bird store, where they are
seldom well cared for and never cherished, is greatly benefitted, and I
felt that to be a work of charity.
But there is one strong argument in favor of the custom. That is,
their great value as a means of educating children. Nothing is more
important than the training of our youth in humanity and respect for
the rights of others. And in no way can this be so well accomplished
as by giving to them the care of pets. By investigation of prisons and
reform schools, it has been amply proved that nothing so surely keeps
a boy from falling into a criminal life as the care of and kindness to
the lower orders. The daily care of a pet bird is a daily lesson in
altruism which never fails to bear fruit.
In those precious first years of the child's life, when the mother
has the power of instilling lessons that will be a part of him,--the
most indelible he will ever receive,--if she takes a little pains to
do so she can implant, with the love of creatures dependent upon him,
qualities that will go far to make him a true, manly man.
While these considerations do not, perhaps, make it right to deprive a
fellow creature of his liberty, they do furnish a little consolation
to those who love humanity as well as birds. At the same time I must
admit, that of all pitiful sights on earth, that of a neglected captive
is one of the most heartrending.
A May Morning
BY FRED. H. KENNARD
[Illustration]
There is a bird pasture, as I call it, about a half hour's ride from
Boston, and thither I went on May 30, 1898, to see if I could find the
nest of a White-eyed Vireo that I had often hunted for in years gone
by, but never yet succeeded in finding.
This bird pasture, on one side of which runs the road, consists of
eight or ten acres of old, wet pasture land on a hillside surrounded
on two other sides by fields and an orchard, and immediately above a
marsh in which the sedges and grasses grow luxuriantly, and which is
bordered by alders, birches and other swamp-loving trees. The pasture
itself is very wet in one portion, and has been overgrown with birch,
alders, oak and tangles of grapevines, wait-a-bits, poison ivy, etc.
In another part it is more open, and is more sparsely covered with red
cedars and white pines, while the ground is dotted with wild roses and
hard-hack, interspersed with clumps of alders. This combination of hill
and marsh, field and orchard, cover and open, as well as evergreen and
deciduous growth, makes it an ideal place for birds and their breeding;
and one that is hard to duplicate in any locality, combining also woods
and civilization as it does, for there are houses and barns in the
immediate vicinity. You probably cannot duplicate this pasture, but
those of you who love birds, and who can find any spot approximating
this in conditions, would do well to appropriate it, metaphorically
speaking, as I have this.
But to return to the birds--I thought I would carefully note all those
I saw or heard in the course of a short hour I had to spare, and with
the following results: As I took down the bars in order to take my
bicycle into the pasture, a Baltimore Oriole was singing on top of an
elm close by, and I have no doubt that its mate was sitting on the nest
that hung pendent from the next tree. A Catbird slunk off into the
bushes to the right of me, from a thicket in which she last year raised
a brood; and, while chaining my wheel, I heard the glorious notes of a
Brown Thrasher singing, a little way off, on the top of a tall white
oak. Several Red-eyed Vireos were there too, their steady, rippling
song forming a soft accompaniment to the more conspicuous notes of
the other feathered songsters. Next, I flushed a Quail, and, while
watching its flight, I almost stepped on two more, which got up from
the under-brush at my feet.
I started in now on my hunt for the White-eye's nest, and for some
time was so absorbed in that, and in listening for its expected song,
that there was no time to make notes of the other birds heard, except
that of a Wood Thrush, whose nest contained four eggs, and was saddled
on the crotch of a grape-vine, where it crossed through the crotch of
an alder.
To make a long story short, I did not find the Vireos, or even hear
them, though for several years they had lived here throughout the
summer. I finally went out into an open space, lighted a pipe as a
mosquito preventive, and, seating myself on the soft side of a boulder,
put down the names of the birds whose notes I could hear.
Below me, in the swamp, the most prominent notes were the 'concarees'
of the Red-winged Blackbirds, while between them could be heard the
songs of several Swamp Sparrows. Close beside me were a Chestnut-sided
and a Golden-winged Warbler, both seemingly much disturbed by my
presence, while just as near was a Maryland Yellow-throat, an old
friend of mine, who did not seem to care whether I was there or not.
This same friend is rather a curiosity, for, although his species
usually build in or about the marshes or swamps, he always prefers the
hillside, and I last year found his nest within forty feet of where I
sat, and several hundred feet away from and above the swamp.
A few Cedar Birds were whispering from the tops of a couple of red
cedars about fifty yards away, and I could hear a Yellow Warbler on the
other side of the open space, where he sang, apparently for the benefit
of a near-by barberry bush.
A Wood Pewee was uttering his plaintive note from the orchard
immediately back of me; while just back of that, in the field by the
top of the hill, could be heard the rollicking notes of a Bobolink and
the occasional call of a Meadow Lark. While writing my notes, some kind
of a large Hawk, which flew so fast that identification was impossible,
but which I guessed to be a Cooper's Hawk, went off rapidly across the
marsh, pursued by a pair of vociferous Kingbirds; and, as I watched
them, I could see numbers of Chimney Swifts, from the neighboring
chimneys, and Barn Swallows, from a barn close by, coursing about above
the marsh after the insects that there abound, the Swallows low down
and the Swifts above. While watching the Swallows, two Crows came out
of the wood on the opposite side of the marsh, and flew, cawing, across
and off into the distance; and a little Green Heron, who, like all
fishermen, prefers quiet, flew off in another direction.
Down towards the edge of the swamp, in the outlying thicket, a Song
Sparrow was singing, while, close by, a magnificent Rose-breasted
Grosbeak, which every year builds in the birches which grow in these
thickets, was warbling his incomparable song. At first he had been
giving vent to his very unmusical call of alarm, but, becoming used
to my presence, and concluding that I meant no harm, he joined in the
concert.
Off to one side, among the more scrubby deciduous growth, I could hear,
and sometimes see, a Redstart, while the _tse-tse-tse_-ing of the
Black-poll Warblers, which were migrating northwards, could be heard
intermittently. Two Quails were now calling loudly for Bob-White, or
Rob-ert-White, as their fancy dictated, and in the confusing medley I
could make out the modest notes of a Black and White Warbler, which had
for years nested somewhere in this pasture. Behind me, at the top of
the hill, I could also hear the clear, cheery notes of a Field Sparrow,
which always builds there.
Being limited as to time, and having already heard twenty-eight kinds
of birds in the short space of about twenty minutes, and from one
place, I started to depart, but even as I did so I heard the notes of
another bird coming across the marsh, that of the Black-billed Cuckoo,
and just as I was again taking down the bars to get out into the
street, what should I hear, loud, clear and distinct, but the song of
that plaguey little White-eyed Vireo, a song seemingly of thanksgiving
that I was really going and that he had eluded me so well. I then
reluctantly mounted my bicycle, but was forced to get off, to add two
more birds to my increasing list; viz., a Cowbird, which was sitting on
the fence opposite, and a pair of Yellow-throated Vireos, the female of
which had evidently but just left her nest for a lunch, while the male
followed twittering and whispering close by, stopping his song until
she should have resumed her duties of incubation.
I had now seen thirty-two different species of birds in the short space
of about twenty-five minutes' actual time spent in observation, after
deducting the time spent in hunting the Vireo's nest, and departed
for home well content, even though I knew I had seen only about
three-fifths of the varieties of birds that are often to be found in
the immediate vicinity.
On a previous occasion, when I had been lucky enough to be able to
spend a whole morning in this pasture, I had seen forty-four different
species, nineteen of which I had not seen to-day, and which, added
to the thirty-two noted above, make a total of fifty-one species. Of
these, there were only five that were merely occasional visitors.
Of the remainder, I have found direct evidence of the breeding of
thirty-two species, while on various accounts I feel sure that fourteen
others breed there, although I have never actually found their nests.
=For Young Observers=
A February Walk (Prize Essay)
By Mildred A. Robinson
(Aged 14 years)
[Illustration]
We had planned to walk over to the pond to see if the recent thaw had
spoiled the skating. As we passed the foot of the hill, the little
brook splashed and tumbled down from its icy framework, eddying around
the brown goldenrod stalks, and then rushed on at topmost speed across
the opposite meadow.
We were standing on the little bridge, watching the ever fascinating
current, when an odd bird-note called our attention to a little
gray-backed, white-breasted bird who was running up and down a
neighboring tree.
All thoughts of skating instantly vanished from our minds; we climbed
the fence, and in a moment more were noiselessly following our
obstinate little bird, who would keep so high up in the tree-tops that
it was almost impossible to see anything but his breast.
Finally, he descended, head downward, along one of the lower branches
of the tree, and we saw that it was a White-breasted Nuthatch.
Evidently he thought he had stayed quite long enough for examination,
so, after a few parting pecks at the rough bark, trying to secure one
more hidden insect, he flew off.
We were slowly following the course of the little stream, when suddenly
a great rustle of the dead leaves near the water's edge caused us to
pause and listen. All was silent, with the exception of a few distant
Chickadees, then, with a whir and a clatter, we saw a bushy tail
disappear into the thicket; a moment more and out came a beautiful gray
squirrel. Like a flash he was up the tree, jumping from limb to limb,
frisking about in the sunshine, then down onto the ground again, and
away. His visit was even shorter than that of the Nuthatch, but not
less enjoyable.
And now, where were those noisy little Chickadees who had been calling
to us from the alder bushes for the last half-hour? It was easy enough
to find these confiding little creatures; they were feeding on the
ground, and seemed quite unconcerned at our presence, although we
approached very near to them. One little fellow seemed to be asleep;
he sat all puffed up on one of the alder branches, but as I came nearer
to him I could see that his bright little eye was on me, and at the
next step he flew away.
It was now late in the afternoon, and, as we looked toward the west,
the last rays of the sun were just tinting the distant hills with a
mellow, golden hue; the birds had flown away, leaving the woods silent,
so we reluctantly turned our footsteps towards home.
[Illustration: ROBIN ON NEST
Photographed from nature by T. S. Hankinson]
Robin Rejoice
BY GARRETT NEWKIRK
Among the first of the spring,
The notes of the Robin ring;
With flute-like voice,
He calls "Rejoice,
For I am coming to sing!"
To any one gloomy or sad,
He says, "Be glad! be glad!
Look on the bright side,
'Tis aye the right side;
The world is good, not bad."
At daybreak in June we hear
His melody, strong and clear:
"Cheer up, be merry,
I've found a cherry;
'Tis a glorious time of the year!"
=Notes from Field and Study=
Inquisitive Magpies
I was collecting specimens of natural history in the northern part of
the state of Washington, a few miles from the Canadian border. At the
time the incident which I am about to relate occurred I was stopping at
a ranch at the southern end of Okanagan lake.
The owner of the building was cramped for room, so, as it was during
the heat of the summer, I spent the nights rolled up in my blankets
under a haystack. One morning, as the sun was rising, I was awakened
by shadows crossing my face, and opening my eyes saw a flock, possibly
a family, of Magpies perched on the stack and ends of poles that had
been thrown over it to keep the hay from blowing away. I watched them
as they peered inquisitively at me from their perches, until finally
one flew to the ground, then another and another, until at last several
were gathered about me, but a few feet away. I lay on my side, with my
arms under the blankets, and watched their actions. At last one jumped
on the blankets at my feet. I could feel him hopping slowly upward.
I did not move for fear of frightening him. Finally he reached my
shoulder, and, after perching there a few seconds, flew to my cheek.
I closed my eyes slowly, fearing he might peck them. After testing my
cheek lightly with his bill, he began to get in some uncomfortably
heavy blows, so I thought it time to stop him. Without opening my
eyes, or moving, I said in a low tone. "Here! Here! That will do!"
He hesitated, as if to make sure his ears had not deceived him, and
then flew to the stack. Another took his place, after working up in
the same manner; he was quietly asked to move on. When the next one
hopped on the blankets, I slowly raised my hand under them, making a
tempting elevation, of which he was not slow to take advantage. He
lighted squarely in the palm of my hand, which I closed at once, and
held him prisoner. With the other hand I caught him by the legs from
the outside, whereupon he flopped his wings, cried out with anger, and
pecked at my wrist savagely. The remainder of the flock, which, in the
meantime, had flown to the haystack, scolded and jabbered away at a
great rate.
Evidently they had taken me for a corpse, but I think it was the
liveliest one they ever saw.--J. Alden Loring, _Owego, N. Y._
Songs of Birds
The songs of birds have attracted a good deal of attention in recent
years, and observation seems to confirm the theory that each generation
of birds learns the song characteristics of its species by association
with its own kind.
This fact was brought quite clearly to my mind several years ago,
when in a western town I was taken to a neighbor's to see his birds.
Four cages swung in the shelter of a commodious porch. One contained
a Red-winged Blackbird, that had been taken from its nest when very
young, and brought up by hand. His associates were a Canary, a Blue Jay
and an Oriole. The Canary had been purchased at a bird store, and had
there learned its song. The Blue Jay and Oriole had been taken from
neighboring nests, and had, no doubt, picked up the characteristic
notes of their species from the many other members of their kind that
inhabited the vicinity, but it was many miles to the nearest swamp or
low land where one might find a Red-winged Blackbird. This Red-wing had
learned perfectly the notes of his caged companions, and had picked up
some notes of other birds in the neighborhood, but not one note of the
Red-winged Blackbird did he know.--Frank E. Horack, _Iowa City, Ia._
=Book News and Reviews=
Birds. By A. H. Evans, M.A. The Cambridge Natural History, Vol.
IX. London: Macmillan and Co., Limited. New York: The Macmillan
Company. 1899. 8vo, pages xvi + 635. Numerous woodcuts in text.
Price, $3.50.
The author of this compact volume has essayed what he himself
recognizes as the "difficult and apparently unattempted task of
including in some six hundred pages a short description of the majority
of the forms in many of the families, and of the most typical or
important of the innumerable species included in the large Passerine
order."
The book opens with a "Scheme of the Classification Adopted," based
on the system proposed by Gadow, in which the _Archæopteryx_ stands
at the bottom of the list, followed by the Ostriches, Rheas, and
other struthious birds, while the Finches are placed at the top. An
introduction of twenty-two pages treats of feathers, color, the molt,
the skeleton, digestive organs, etc., classification, terminology,
geographical variations, and migration, the handling of the last two
subjects being far from satisfactory.
The remainder of the book is devoted to a consideration of the birds
of the world. The matter is selected with excellent judgment and is
admirably put together, the text having an originality and freshness
not often found in compilations. The author, however, is handicapped
by lack of space, and, except in monotypic families, is, as a rule,
obliged to generalize to such an extent that the seeker for information
concerning certain species will usually find only the characteristic
habits of its family given. But if the author has not achieved
entire success, he has, perhaps, more nearly approached it than any
of his predecessors, and in his work we have for the first time an
authoritative handbook of the birds of the world, which is sold at a
low enough price to be within the reach of every student.
The illustrations, with the exception of a comparatively few, which
were taken from duly credited sources, are by Mr. G. E. Lodge, who, at
his best, is, in our opinion, one of the foremost of bird artists.--F.
M. C.
The Feeding Habit of the Chipping Sparrow, and the Winter Food
of the Chickadee. By Clarence M. Weed, New Hampshire College,
Agricultural Experiment Station.
In the first of these interesting papers, Dr. Weed has introduced us
directly into the domestic life of a family of Chippies. We have a
view, for one day, of all their affairs, both personal and domestic;
and to many it must be a wonderful revelation. It is fortunate for
the birds that their period of infancy is so short, as otherwise
their parents must utterly break down with the task of filling their
ever-open mouths. Beginning at about 3:57 in the morning, these devoted
parents worked almost without cessation till 7:50 in the evening,
bringing food to their four young on an average of twelve times an
hour; or once every five minutes.
What would human parents think of such work? The question arises: When
do the old birds eat? In the case of a nest of this species watched
by the writer on July 11, 1898, feeding of the young ceased at 7:25
in the evening, when both parents flew away. In twenty-five minutes,
that is, at 7:50, the female parent (presumably) returned and settled
on the nest for the night. At that time it was so dark that all other
birds had disappeared. It seems probable that in this last twenty-five
minutes the parent birds filled their own stomachs for the night.
The second of these papers is of a more prosaic character, but not the
less interesting or useful. We have here a record in detail of the
winter food of the Chickadee, showing how largely it consists of those
minute insects, or their still more minute eggs, that injure the trees
and baffle the efforts of man for their extermination.
In both papers we are shown the unpoetical but useful side of
bird-life. These two confiding little birds have endeared themselves to
their human neighbors by their gentle ways and familiar habits; but in
these papers Dr. Weed has shown us that they should be no less dear to
us when viewed entirely from an economic standpoint. We hope he will
give us more of this kind of literature.--F. E. L. Beal.
Check List of British Columbia Birds. By John Fannin, Curator of the
Provincial Museum, Victoria, B. C.
This list forms a part--pages 13-55--of the 'Preliminary Catalogue of
the Collections of Natural History and Ethnology in the Provincial
Museum.' It enumerates 339 species and sub-species, with notes on their
distribution, and will prove exceedingly useful to students of the
bird-life of this interesting region, for a knowledge of the fauna of
which we are so greatly indebted to Mr. Fannin.--F. M. C.
A Preliminary List of the Birds of Belknap and Merrimack Counties,
New Hampshire, with Notes. By Ned Dearborn, Biological
Laboratories, New Hampshire College, Durham.
The author here presents the more important results of ten years'
observation, including also such information as he has gathered from
other naturalists concerning the 187 species recorded from the region
of which he writes. Mr. Dearborn's notes, we are glad to say, are not
restricted solely to statements concerning the rarity or abundance and
manner of occurrence of a given species, but often contain valuable
remarks on habits which show him to be a discriminating student of the
living bird.--F. M. C.
=Book News=
The origin of the present widespread interest in ornithology is so
largely due to the influence of Dr. Coues' classic 'Key to North
American Birds,' that we are sure bird students throughout the world
will welcome the news that its author is engaged in a thorough revision
of his epoch-making work. The new edition, which will be expanded
to fill two volumes, will be richly illustrated by Mr. Fuertes, and
while the advance made in the science of ornithology in the fifteen
years which have elapsed since the publication of the second edition
naturally leads us to expect some improvement in this forthcoming
edition, our credibility in the powers of human achievement is severely
taxed when Dr. Coues asks us to believe that the new 'Key' will be as
far ahead of the second as the second was beyond the first.
The Wisconsin 'Arbor and Bird Day Annual' for 1899, issued by L. D.
Harvey, State Superintendent of Public Instruction (Madison, Wis.), is
a most attractive and useful pamphlet of forty-five pages, containing
original and selected contributions well suited to interest and
instruct children in both the value and beauty of trees and birds. It
may well stand as a model for publications of this nature.
D. C. Heath & Co. have in preparation an elementary bird book by Fannie
Hardy Eckstorm. The book is designed for use as a supplementary science
reader, and it is the author's object to teach children what to see and
how to see it; and, at the same time, to provide them with something to
do.
The May issue of 'Primary Education' (Educational Publishing Co.) is
a 'Bird Day Number,' and contains numerous contributions of value to
teachers and students of birds.
'Our Dumb Animals,' the vigorously edited organ of the Massachusetts
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, says of Bird-Lore:
"We recommend this publication to ex-Presidents Cleveland and Harrison.
_It would have much interested President Lincoln._"
'By the Way-Side' is the name of a bright little four-page bi-weekly
issued by Helen M. Boynton, 118 Michigan Street, Milwaukee, Wisconsin,
at one cent a copy. It is devoted to "birds, butterflies, trees,
flowers, insects and fishes, and deserves the support of everyone
interested in popularizing the study of these subjects."
=Bird-Lore=
A Bi-monthly Magazine
Devoted to the Study and Protection of Birds
OFFICIAL ORGAN OF THE AUDUBON SOCIETIES
=Edited by FRANK M. CHAPMAN=
=Published by THE MACMILLAN COMPANY=
=====================================================
Vol. 1 June, 1899 No. 3
=====================================================
=SUBSCRIPTION RATES.=
Price in the United States, Canada, and Mexico,
twenty cents a number, one dollar a year, postage
paid.
Subscriptions may be sent to the Publishers, at
Englewood, New Jersey, or 66 Fifth avenue, New
York City.
Price in all countries in the International Postal
Union, twenty-five cents a number, one dollar and
a quarter a year, postage paid. Foreign agents,
Macmillan and Company, Ltd., London.
-----------------------------------------------------
Manuscripts for publication, books, etc., for review,
should be sent to the Editor at Englewood,
New Jersey.
-----------------------------------------------------
Advertisements should be sent to the Publishers
at Englewood, New Jersey, or 66 Fifth
avenue, New York City.
-----------------------------------------------------
COPYRIGHTED, 1899, BY FRANK M. CHAPMAN.
-----------------------------------------------------
Bird-Lore's Motto:
_A Bird in the Bush is Worth Two in the Hand._
-----------------------------------------------------
It has recently been remarked that the field ornithologists of to-day
are of two kinds: first, those who collect; second, those who observe.
The status of these two types of ornithologists, and the parts they
play in the advancement of the science of ornithology, is a subject of
the utmost importance to every one interested in the study of birds.
A consideration of it leads us to review briefly the progress which
has been made in our knowledge of North American birds during the past
twenty-five years. At the beginning of this period the Smithsonian
Institution contained the only large collection of North American
birds in the world, and our data concerning the exact distribution
and relationships of even our commonest species was of the most
meager character. Since that date the publication of Baird, Brewer
and Ridgway's 'History of North American Birds', of Coues' 'Key' and
Ridgway's 'Manual'; the organization of the American Ornithologists'
Union and of the Biological Survey of the Department of Agriculture,
and the establishment of several natural history museums, have given
a wonderful impetus to the collecting of birds. Naturalists have
explored every corner of the eastern United States, and, with almost
equal thoroughness, the western states, and the fruits of their labors
are shown in the large series of birds now possessed by our leading
museums. In fact, we have now reached a point where only a thoroughly
trained ornithologist or his personally directed assistants can make
collections which will be of real scientific value. Indiscriminate
collecting, therefore, particularly in the eastern United States, in
ninety-nine cases out of a hundred will only result in the duplication
of material already existing.
Not only has there been a great advance in the requirements of
collecting, but in the study of the specimens collected, and the
systematic ornithologist who would hope to add anything to our
knowledge of the distribution and relationships of any group of North
American birds, must possess advantages which can be afforded only by
well-equipped museums.
Turning, now, to the other class of ornithologists, the collectors of
facts, we find that they have been far less active than collectors
of skins. Thus, while we rarely or never refer to Wilson or Audubon
or Nuttall for information concerning the systematic position of a
species, these early writers are still authorities on facts connected
with the life histories of many of our birds.
This subject has been brought very forcibly to our mind by two papers
published in this number of Bird-Lore, and, without going into details,
we wish collectors of birds and their eggs would read carefully the
articles entitled 'The Cardinal at the Hub' and 'Home-Life in a
Chimney,' and then tell us frankly whether they do not think that
the facts therein set forth constitute a more valuable contribution
to the science of ornithology than a Cardinal's skin and five white
egg-shells. If they are both discriminating and sincere, we believe
they will admit the truth of Bird-Lore's motto.
=The Audubon Societies=
"_You cannot with a scalpel find the poet's soul,
Nor yet the wild bird's song._"
Edited by Mrs. Mabel Osgood Wright (President of the Audubon Society of
the State of Connecticut), Fairfield, Conn., to whom all communications
relating to the work of the Audubon and other Bird Protective Societies
should be addressed.
DIRECTORY OF STATE AUDUBON SOCIETIES
With names and addresses of their Secretaries.
=New Hampshire= Mrs. F. W. Batchelder, Manchester.
=Massachusetts= Miss Harriet E. Richards, care Boston Society
of Natural History, Boston.
=Rhode Island= Mrs. H. T. Grant, Jr., 187 Bowen street,
Providence.
=Connecticut= Mrs. Henry S. Glover, Fairfield.
=New York= Miss Emma H. Lockwood, 243 West Seventy-fifth
street, New York City.
=New Jersey= Miss Anna Haviland, 53 Sandford Ave.,
Plainfield, N. J.
=Pennsylvania= Mrs. Edward Robins, 114 South Twenty-first
street, Philadelphia.
=District of Columbia= Mrs. John Dewhurst Patten, 3033 P street,
Washington.
=Wheeling, W. Va.= Elizabeth I. Cummins, 1314 Chapline street,
(branch of Penn Society) Wheeling.
=Ohio= Miss Clara Russell, 903 Paradrome street,
Cincinnati.
=Indiana= Amos W. Butler, State House, Indianapolis.
=Illinois= Miss Mary Drummond, Wheaton.
=Iowa= Miss Nellie S. Board, Keokuk.
=Wisconsin= Mrs. George W. Peckham, 646 Marshall street,
Milwaukee.
=Minnesota= Mrs. J. P. Elmer, 314 West Third street,
St. Paul.
=Texas= Miss Cecile Seixas, 2008 Thirty-ninth
street, Galveston.
=California= Mrs. George S. Gay, Redlands.
A Bird Class for Children
One of the most frequent questions asked by those seeking to win
children to an appreciation of birds is, "How, when we have awakened
the interest, can we keep it alive?"
The only way to accomplish this, to my thinking, is to take the
children out-of-doors and introduce them to the 'bird in the bush,' to
the bird as a citizen of a social world as real in all its duties and
requirements as our own.
There is a group of people with ultra-theoretical tendencies, who
insist upon considering the bird merely as a feathered vertebrate
that must not be in any way humanized, or taken from its perch in the
evolutionary scheme, to be brought to the plane of our daily lives.
In teaching children, I believe in striving to humanize the bird as
far as is consistent with absolute truth, that the child may, through
its own love of home, parents, and its various desires, be able to
appreciate the corresponding traits in the bird. How can this best be
done? By reading to children? That is one way; and good, accurate, and
interesting bird books are happily plentiful. But when the out-door
season comes, little heads grow tired of books, and anything that seems
like a lesson is repugnant.
Then comes the chance to form a bird class, or a bird party, if the
word class seems too formidable. A dozen children are quite enough to
be easily handled. The ages may range from six to twelve. Arrange to
have them meet outdoors once a week, in the morning, during June and
July. A pleasant garden or a vineclad piazza will do for a beginning;
it is inadvisable to tire children by taking them far afield until
they have learned to identify a few very common birds in their natural
surroundings.
Children who are familiar with even the very best pictures of birds
must at first be puzzled by seeing the real bird at a distance, and
perhaps partly screened by foliage. The value of the out-door bird
class is, that to be successful it must teach rapid and accurate
personal observation.
"Very true," you say, "but the birds will not stay still while the
children are learning to observe." Yes; yet this difficulty may be met
in two ways. If you are so situated that you can borrow say twenty-five
mounted birds from a museum or the collection of a friend, you will
have a very practical outfit.
Choose four or five birds, not more for one day, take them outdoors,
and place them in positions that shall resemble their natural haunts as
much as possible. For example, place the Song Sparrow in a little bush,
the Bluebird on a post, and the Chippy on a path. Let the children look
at them near by and then at a distance, so that a sense of proportion
and color value will be developed unconsciously.
After this, the written description of the habits of the birds, which
you must read or tell the children, will have a different meaning. This
method may be varied by looking up live specimens of the birds thus
closely observed.
"True," you say again, "but I cannot beg or borrow any mounted birds."
Then take the alternative. Buy from the Massachusetts Audubon Society,
234 Berkeley St., Boston, for a dollar, one of its Audubon Bird Charts.
This chart is printed in bright colors and is accompanied by a little
pamphlet describing the twenty-six common birds that are figured. These
are the (1) Downy Woodpecker, (2) Flicker, (3) Chimney Swift, (4)
Ruby-throated Hummingbird, (5) Kingbird, (6) Bluejay, (7) Bobolink, (8)
Red-winged Blackbird, (9) Baltimore Oriole, (10) Purple Finch, (11)
American Goldfinch, (12) Chipping Sparrow, (13) Song Sparrow, (14)
Scarlet Tanager, (15) Barn Swallow, (16) Cedar Bird, (17) Red-eyed
Vireo, (18) Black and White Warbler, (19) Yellow Warbler, (20) Catbird,
(21) House Wren, (22) Chickadee, (23) Golden-crowned Kinglet, (24) Wood
Thrush, (25) American Robin, (26) Bluebird. Cut the birds carefully
from the chart, back them with cardboard, and either mount them on
little wooden blocks, like paper dolls, or arrange them with wires, so
that they can be fastened to twigs or bushes.
You will be surprised to find how this scheme will interest the
children, who may be allowed sometimes to place the birds themselves.
For those too old for the cut-out pictures, the teachers' edition of
'Bird-Life', with the colored plates in portfolios, will be found
invaluable. The separate pictures may be taken outdoors and placed in
turn on an easel behind a leaf-covered frame, with excellent effects--a
few natural touches and the transition from indoors out often changing
one's entire point of view.
One thing bearing on the question of bird study. If children ask you
questions that you cannot answer as they surely will, do not hesitate
to say "I don't know." Never fill their minds with fables guised as
science, that they must unlearn.
Now a material point. When you have entertained your class for an hour,
never more, lend the affair a picnic ending and give them a trifling
lunch before they go; something very simple will do--cookies and milk,
or even animal crackers!
The young animal of the human species, as well as many others, is a
complexity of stomach and brain, and it is well to administer food to
each in just proportion.
M. O. W.
Reports of Societies
WISCONSIN SOCIETY
Mrs. Elizabeth W. Peckham, secretary of the Wisconsin Society, sends to
Mr. Stone the first annual report of that body, from which we extract
the following:
"This society was organized April 20, 1897. The first efforts of the
executive board were in the direction of securing the coöperation of
the press in this city and throughout the state. The response was most
generous, and it is probable that more effective work has been done
through this agency than in any other way.
"The next appeal was to clergymen of all denominations, who were asked
to preach upon the fashion of wearing wild bird feathers. Here, again,
they received valuable aid and encouragement.
"In May, 100 circulars were sent to Milwaukee milliners, asking their
assistance in the work of reform, and announcing that there would be
held, in the fall, an Audubon millinery opening. This opening, which
took place in October, was well attended, and served its purpose in
calling attention to the existence and meaning of the society.
"The coöperation of the State Superintendent of Public Instruction, and
also of the Board of School Directors of this city, has been secured.
The response of the Milwaukee School Board was especially cordial and
encouraging. Talks upon the subject of bird protection have already
been given in several of the city schools, and it is intended that the
main work of the society for the coming year shall be done among the
teachers and school children of the state.
"The society is much to be congratulated in that, before it came into
existence, Bird Day had been established in Wisconsin. We can only
appreciate our good fortune in this respect by noting the difficulties
that are thrown in the way of the Audubon societies of other states
when they attempt to win the consent of their legislatures to this
step. We owe this great advantage to Mr. J. E. Morgan, of Sauk county.
"Although our Audubon Society is one of the largest in the United
States, we are working under great disadvantages, since we have, so far
as we can discover, the smallest income of them all. In order that no
one may be excluded, we have made our life membership fee exceedingly
small, so that it brings in an amount quite insufficient to meet the
expenses of printing, buying and distributing literature. We therefore
make an earnest appeal to intelligent men and women to become members
of the society, or to send us contributions of money. We are especially
anxious to increase the number of our associate members, who pay one
dollar a year, and thus provide us with a steady income."
Mrs. Peckham reports a total membership of 5,141, and writes that since
the publication of the report from which we have just quoted, "through
the coöperation of our State Superintendent of Public Instruction, our
society has formed 175 branches among the school children. These branch
societies include over four thousand members, including teachers and
children."
NEW HAMPSHIRE SOCIETY
On the 6th day of April, 1897, at the call of Mrs. Arthur E. Clarke,
a meeting was held at her residence in Manchester, for the purpose
of organizing the New Hampshire Audubon Society, which was duly
accomplished.
The work of the society throughout the state is carried on by means of
branch societies, the presidents of which act as vice-presidents of the
state society; or, when this is not practicable, local secretaries are
appointed to carry on the work, and such secretaries have already been
appointed in more than twenty places.
Special pains has been taken to influence the children in the public
schools. A junior Audubon society was early formed, and a very
interesting meeting was held in June, 1897, at which about three
hundred school children were present. A similar meeting was held in
June, 1898, and it is proposed to hold others from time to time.
With the same end in view, an 'Outline of Bird Study' was prepared for
use in the schools.
At the suggestion of the society, extracts from the game laws of the
state, relating to penalties for the destruction of song birds and
their eggs, have been posted in conspicuous places, thanks to the
prompt and energetic action of the street and park commissioners.
Similar action has been taken in various other cities and towns.
Lectures were given by Mrs. Orinda Hornbrooke, Mrs. Alice Freeman
Palmer, on 'The Educational Side of Bird Protection,' and by Mrs.
Harriet E. Richards, secretary of the Massachusetts society, on the
general work of the Audubon societies.
The society has distributed nearly 7,000 leaflets and circulars,
several of them having been procured of the United States government,
through the kindness of our members of Congress.
An additional circular has recently been issued in which prizes are
offered to the school children of New Hampshire on the following
conditions: Two prizes, one of ten dollars and one of five dollars to
children over twelve and under seventeen years of age; and two more,
one of five dollars and one of three dollars to children under twelve
years of age. These prizes are to be awarded for the best compositions
on 'Birds,' the compositions to be written as the result of personal
observation, the contest to close January 1, 1900.
The society has adopted the bird chart lately published by the
Massachusetts Society, and is introducing it as rapidly as possible
into the schools of the state.
Annie V. Batchelder, _Sec'y._
A Message from Madame Lehmann
At the second annual meeting of the New York State Audubon Society,
Madame Lilli Lehmann, whose love of animals is perhaps even greater
than her love of music, made an eloquent appeal to women to cease from
feather-wearing, which she characterized as a form of barbarism, and to
aid the Audubon Societies in their efforts to protect the birds.
Through the editor of Bird-Lore, she sends to the Audubon Societies the
following message, the tenor of which, it will be noticed, is in close
accord with the views of the editor of this Department, as expressed in
the last issue of this Journal.--F. M. C.
Madame Lehmann writes: "Tell the Societies that I take the greatest
interest in their work, that I do everything I can, and every minute,
if the occasion offers, to protect the birds.
"Tell them, also, that it is the duty of everyone to _speak_ and to
_do_ something every day for the cause; that it is not sufficient
to give a dollar or two--that alone will never help us. It is the
living word, the reasons given, the good example and the _teaching_ to
everyone that can bring us further in civilization."
Two New Audubon Societies
We announce with pleasure the formation of Audubon Societies in Texas
and in California. The Texas Society was organized on March 4, at
Galveston, with Miss Cecile Seixas as secretary. The organization of
the California Society was lately completed at Redland, with Mrs.
Geo. S. Gay as secretary. The addresses of the secretaries of these
societies are given in our 'Directory,' and we trust that they will
receive the coöperation of all bird-lovers in their respective states.
American Society of Bird Restorers
A report of the work of the American Society of Bird Restorers,
prepared by Mr. Fletcher Osgood, its organizer and manager, will appear
in Bird-Lore for August.
Birds and Farmers
It is pleasing to know that some farmers are awakening to the fact
that birds are an important factor in agriculture. At the last monthly
meeting of the Farmers' Club of the American Institute of New York, the
subject for discussion was "Birds and Their Relation to Agriculture."
The subject was introduced by Mr. N. Hallock, who presented a well
prepared paper giving much valuable information regarding birds as
insect destroyers. These statistics were from publications of the U. S.
Dept. of Agriculture and from his own observations. He strongly
urged the protection of all birds from the farmer's standpoint. The
paper was then discussed by the members present. Mr. William Dutcher,
of the Executive Committee of the New York Audubon Society, who was
present, addressed the Club, elaborating some of the statements in the
paper under discussion and emphasizing the fact that every bird an
agriculturist permitted to be killed on his farm was a direct loss to
him in money value.
_... JUST READY. PRICE, $1 NET ..._
Nature Study For Grammar Grades
_A Manual for the Guidance of Pupils below the High School in the Study
of Nature_
BY
WILBUR S. JACKMAN, A.B.
Dep't of Natural Science, Chicago Normal School
Author of "Nature Study for the Common Schools," "Nature Study and
Related Subjects," "Nature Study Record," "Field Work in Nature Study,"
etc.
_REVISED EDITION_
In preparing this Manual, it has been the author's aim to propose,
within the comprehension of grammar school pupils, a few of the
problems which arise in a thoughtful study of nature, and to offer
suggestions designed to lead to their solution.
That pupils need some rational and definite directions in nature
study, all are generally agreed. But to prepare the outlines and
suggestive directions necessary, and to place these within the reach
of each pupil, is more than any ordinary teacher has time to do, even
granting that she is fully prepared for such work. The utter futility
of depending upon oral suggestions during the class hour, when the
pupils are supposed to be doing individual work, is easily apparent
on a moment's reflection. With a manual of directions in hand, each
pupil may be made strictly responsible for a certain amount of work,
either in the field or in the laboratory. This removes all occasion for
that interruption in his work, which is, otherwise, due to the pupil's
attempt to _think_ and at the same time _hear_ what the teacher says.
RECENT PUBLICATIONS ON NATURE STUDY
=Bailey's First Lessons with Plants.= 40 cts. _net_
"Extremely original and unusually practical."
=Ingersoll's Wild Neighbors.= $1.50
"Instructive as well as delightful."--_Popular
Science Monthly._
=Lange's Hand-Book of Nature Study.= $1 _net_
"The style of the book is fresh and inspiring."
=Murché's Science Readers.=
Vol. I. 25 cents.
Vol. II. 25 cents.
Vol. III. 40 cents.
Vol. IV. 40 cents _net_.
Vol. V. 50 cents _net_.
Vol. VI. 50 cents _net_.
=Weed's Life Histories of American Insects.= $1.50
"An unusually attractive book."--_Dial._
=Wilson's Nature Study in Elementary Schools.=
First Nature Reader 35 cents
Second Nature Reader 35 cents
Teacher's Manual 90 cents
=Wright's Citizen Bird= $1.50 _net_
An interesting story, giving to the children
much accurate information about American birds.
"Most delightful book on the subject yet printed
in the United States. I wish every boy and girl
could read it." J. M. Greenwood, Sup't Kansas
City, Mo.
=Wright's Four-Footed Americans.= $1.50 _net_
Four-Footed American Mammals treated in story
form in the manner of _Citizen Bird_.
=Wright's Birdcraft.= $2.50 _net_
PUBLISHED BY
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, New York
* * * * *
VOL. 1 20c. a Copy
No. 4 AUGUST, 1899 $1 a Year
=Bird-Lore=
[Illustration]
Edited by
FRANK M. CHAPMAN
The Macmillan Company
ENGLEWOOD, N. J.
NEW YORK LONDON
_R. Weber_
COPYRIGHT, 1899, BY FRANK M. CHAPMAN
=Bird-Lore=
August, 1899
CONTENTS
Frontispiece--Nesting Site of Cliff or Eave Swallows _H. W. Menke_
Photographing Shy Wild Birds and Beasts at Home. Illustrated.
_R. Kearton, F.Z.S._ 107
Two Nova Scotia Photographs. Illustrated. _C. Will Beebe_ 113
In the Spartina with the Swallows. Illustrated. _O. Widmann_ 115
Watching the Bittern 'Pump'. _Bradford Torrey_ 123
FOR TEACHERS AND STUDENTS
Hints to Young Bird Students. { _Witmer Stone, J. A. Allen,_
{ _Robert Ridgway, C. Hart Merriam,_
{ _William Brewster, and others_ 125
Fall Migration at Portland, Conn. _John H. Sage_ 128
FOR YOUNG OBSERVERS
Mr. Flicker Writes a Letter. Verse. Illus. by Ernest W. Smith.
_Garrett Newkirk_ 129
Zip and Phoebe. Illustrated. _Florence A. Van Sant_ 130
NOTES FROM FIELD AND STUDY 132
Birds through a Telescope, _Frank M. Chapman_; The Cardinal in
Maine, _Ella Gilbert Ives_; A Useful Bird.
BOOK NEWS AND REVIEWS 133
Kearton's 'Wild Life at Home'; Mrs. Grant's Economic Value of Birds;
Nash's Birds of Ontario; Howe's 'On the Birds' Highway'; Palmer's
'Danger of Introducing Noxious Animals and Birds'; Judd's 'Birds
as Weed Destroyers'; Beal's 'Economic Relation of Birds'; Book News.
EDITORIAL 135
AUDUBON DEPARTMENT 136
Editorial; American Society of Bird Restorers; Massachusetts Society;
Connecticut Society; Tennessee Society.
×*× _Bird-Lore is published at Englewood, New Jersey, on the first of the
month, where all notices of change of address, manuscripts intended for
publication, books, etc., for review, and exchanges should be sent._
PUBLISHERS' ANNOUNCEMENT
The most important paper in Bird-Lore for October will be an
illustrated article on the American Ornithologists' Union, by its first
president, J. A. Allen, which will be of especial interest to all bird
students.
[Illustration: NESTING SITE OF CLIFF OR EAVE SWALLOWS, LITTLE MEDICINE
RIVER, CARBON COUNTY, WYO.
Photographed from nature by H. W. Menke, July 4, 1898]
=Bird-Lore=
A BI-MONTHLY MAGAZINE
DEVOTED TO THE STUDY AND PROTECTION OF BIRDS
Official Organ of the Audubon Societies
=======================================
Vol. 1 August, 1899 No. 4
=======================================
Photographing Shy Wild Birds and Beasts at Home
BY R. KEARTON, F. Z. S.
Author of "Wild Life at Home: How to Study and Photograph It;" "With
Nature and a Camera," etc.
[Illustration]
My brother and I were both delighted to see the first number of
Bird-Lore, and take the opportunity of congratulating our naturalist
and photographic chums across the Atlantic upon having such a practical
and highly interesting magazine to help them in their enchanting
pursuits. Such a publication would have been a veritable godsend to us
when we started our natural history photography.
As we have had a good deal of experience in circumventing the cunning
and timidity of the majority of wild creatures living in the British
Isles, and the same characteristics in this respect are common to wild
animals all the world over, I propose to tell by what means we have
secured some of our rarest pictures.
First of all, I ought to explain that we never use anything but a
strongly built, half-plate stand camera, fitted with a Dallmeyer
stigmatic lens, and an adjustable miniature on the top, which is used
as a sort of view-finder when making studies of flying birds and
mammals in motion. When fixed in position, and its focus has been
set exactly like its working companion beneath it, both are racked
out in the same ratio by the screw dominating the larger apparatus
which, when charged with a dark slide and stopped down according to
the requirements of light and speed of exposure, needs no further
attention. When the combination is in use, the photographer focuses
with his right hand, and, holding the air ball or reservoir of his
pneumatic tube in his left, squeezes it quickly and firmly directly
he has achieved a sufficiently clear and strong definition of his
object upon the ground glass of the miniature camera. This enables
the operator to focus up to the last instant, and to select the best
attitude of his "sitter."
We have a silent time-shutter built in behind the lens, and for very
rapid work, such as flying bird studies, use a Thornton & Pickard focal
plane shutter working up to the thousandth part of a second.
Good apparatus, that will work under almost any conditions with
precision and certainty, must be possessed for the achievement of
successful natural history work. We use the quickest plates made in the
old country for the greater part of our work, although, of course, for
still objects full of color, we cannot beat Ilford chromatic plates.
We soon discovered that it was absolutely impossible to figure many
timid birds at close quarters without some natural contrivance in
which the camera and its operator could be effectually hidden. For
the study of wood birds at home, we built an artificial tree trunk of
sufficient internal capacity to contain either of two broad-shouldered
Yorkshiremen. This is how we made it. Purchasing three pieces of
stout bamboo, each 7 feet in length, I split them down the center and
lashed each piece to three children's bowling hoops, the topmost and
center ones being 24 inches in diameter, and the bottom one 27, so
as to represent the base of a tree and give the legs of our camera a
greater stride. We then covered the whole with galvanized wire and a
coat of green American cloth, which my wife painted to resemble the
bark of a tree. After this we stuck bits of lichen and moss on to it,
and then passed a number of bits of strong grey thread from the inside
to the out. With these we tied on several pieces of ivy stripped from
adjoining tree trunks, so as to make our contrivance look as natural
as possible. How far we succeeded in deceiving the feathered folks of
Britain may be judged, when I state that one day a Chaffinch alighted
on the broken top of our artificial forest monster and began to rattle
off its song just over the unseen photographer's head.
[Illustration: IN THE TREE-TOPS
From Kearton's 'Wild Life at Home,' copyrighted by Cassell & Co., Ltd.]
We should much like to hear of this device being tried by someone
on American wood birds. Whoever makes and gets laced up inside
an artificial tree trunk will discover that a peculiarly dizzying
sensation attends the first attempt or two to stand for any length of
time so encased.
For some birds we fix up a mock camera near their nests or feeding
haunts a few days before we attempt to make a picture. This can be
easily done with a small wooden box and tin canister with its lid or
bottom blackened to represent a lens.
For photographing ground builders, such as Larks, Plovers, and so on,
we built an artificial rubbish heap, such as farmers rake up off their
grass land before laying it down to grow for hay time, and cart off to
form rick bottoms.
This we made from an old umbrella, to the ribs of which we lashed
pieces of bamboo four feet in length. The whole was then covered with
brown holland. To the outside we tied innumerable wisps of straw and
rubbish, and as some sort of testimony to its efficacy, I need only
mention that we have succeeded in photographing a Lark at her nest
bang in the middle of a bare field, and one of our very shyest British
Plovers, quite recently, sitting on its nest within a few feet of the
lens.
We next come to a consideration of how to photograph the eyries,
eggs and young of such birds of prey as Eagles, Falcons and Ravens,
that breed, at any rate so far as Britain is concerned, in the most
inaccessible cliffs.
The first business is to secure a couple of climbing ropes. We had
ours specially manufactured for us, from the best manila hemp, by a
London rope-maker of good repute. They are each two hundred feet in
length. The guide rope is an inch and a half in circumference, and the
descending rope, which has three loops at one end for the photographer
to sit in, is two inches in circumference. It will thus be seen that
both ropes are pretty stout, some folks might say unnecessarily stout,
but it is better to be on the safe side, as a break and a fall of three
or four hundred feet onto jagged crags or into the sea would be likely
to send the photographer into perpetual retirement.
It is a curious thing, but nevertheless true, that fictionists have
fixed one idea in the mind of the public in regard to the danger
attending a man hanging over a precipice on the end of a rope; viz.,
that all his danger comes from a probability of one or two of the
strands of his rope getting chafed in two over some sharp rock. I am
frequently asked, after my lectures, the question: "Has your brother
ever had a narrow escape from the rope nearly getting chafed in twain?"
They seem genuinely disappointed because he has not been hauled up on
the last faithful strand of a rope, with his hair standing on end, his
face o'erspread with an unspeakable horror, and then fainted dead away
on reaching _terra firma_.
[Illustration: DESCENDING AN OVERHANGING CLIFF
From Kearton's 'Wild Life at Home,' copyrighted by Cassell & Co., Ltd.]
I have heard a lot of terrible tales about chafing ropes, but as a
matter of fact, there are dangers a thousand times greater if less
picturesque; such, for instance, as a prosaic little stone, no bigger
than an orange, being dragged out of its bed by one of the ropes when
the photographer is being hauled up a cliff, and, after dropping a
hundred feet or so, alighting plump on the head of the unsuspecting
camera man. My brother has had one or two narrow escapes of this kind,
though never the shadow of one from a chafing rope.
[Illustration: PHOTOGRAPHING A CORMORANT
From Kearton's 'Wild Life at Home,' copyrighted by Cassell & Co., Ltd.]
Upon setting forth to photograph the eyries of cliff-breeding birds, we
equip ourselves with (1) our ropes; (2) a stout crowbar; (3) a good,
strong, level-headed assistant (nervous or careless assistants should
be studiously avoided, as the one kind of man is as dangerous as the
other), that can be relied upon; (4) a revolver; (5) a camera; (6) a
photographer who, in addition to being a good athlete and gymnast,
possesses no nerves at all, and can, in consequence, stand on the very
lip of a cliff a thousand feet sheer, as he would do on the gutter edge
of a sidewalk, and look straight below him.
I would advise all who do not possess the above qualities, more or
less, to leave cliff photography severely alone, as walking backwards
into a yawning abyss, even on the end of a good, stout rope, feels
uncommonly like stepping into eternity, and I would not like to have
the blood of any American cousin on my head.
Upon reaching the edge of any precipice wherein we suspect, say an
Eagle, to be breeding, we step as close to the lip of the crag as
possible. I hold the revolver over my head, fire, and watch to see
where a bird flies out. Should one do so we mark the spot, drive
our crowbar into the ground above it, tie one end of the guide rope
securely to it and fling the rest down into the chasm below. The
photographer lashes his camera to his back, dons the three loops at
the end of the descending rope round his hips, the rope is then passed
once round the crowbar, and the assistant pays it out from behind,
whilst the photographer, steadying himself by means of the guide-rope,
literally walks backwards down the cliff. Before going down, however,
he takes good care to clear away all the loose stones and rubble, for
if he did not do so they would be sure to be dislodged by the rope when
he comes up.
Upon reaching an eyrie, if it is situated on a ledge wide enough to set
the tripod of the camera on, he does so and makes his studies, taking
good care not to let go his ropes.
If the nest should be on a ledge too narrow to set the apparatus upon,
my brother passes two of the legs of his tripod through a belt round
his waist and the third into any convenient crevice he can find, and
with his body practically at right angles to the face of the crag and
his camera almost resting on his chest, focuses and takes his picture.
I feel that I have barely touched the fringe of my subject in this
short article, but I have no doubt that to the man equipped with a
decent camera and a genuine love of nature, the hints I have given will
be sufficient to set him to work natural history picture-making, and,
as an old farmer, I know enough of American ingenuity in tool-making to
convince me that there is no bird or beast living in the western world
that cannot be photographed, living, loving, and laboring in its free,
open-air home. Any way, every reader of Bird-Lore has the best wishes
of the brothers Kearton.
Two Nova Scotia Photographs
BY C. WILL BEEBE
With photographs from nature by the author.
[Illustration]
The slate-colored Junco or Snowbird breeds very abundantly in the
fields of Digby county, Nova Scotia, and its neat nests are often
so artistically placed that they are a continual temptation to the
naturalist photographer. One nest, in particular, with four eggs, was
especially beautiful, seen through the ground glass of the camera, the
contrast between the eggs and the waxy green leaves and scarlet fruit
of the bunch-berries near it making one long for color photography.
This nest was in a field, five feet from a road, and partly protected
by a tiny bank of turf.
[Illustration: NEST AND EGGS OF JUNCO]
Five days after the photograph was taken the eggs hatched, and four
balls of long, jet-black fuzz appeared. Daily twelve-hour meals of
green measuring-worms, provided by the parents, wrought marvels in
the appearance of the young birds, and in a surprisingly short time a
second suit of streaked black and brown was assumed. In this, perhaps,
the facsimile of their ancestors' plumage, they left the nest, and
apparently lost individuality among the large flocks of their species.
Another abundant summer bird of this part of Nova Scotia is the
Night-hawk, the name being almost a misnomer, as they are visible in
numbers, flying all day. But all do not depart from their usual custom
of sleeping during the day, as is shown in the accompanying photograph,
taken about 11 A. M. one August day, 1898. While walking along a
railroad track, I noticed this bird resting in a fallen trunk about
four feet from the track. I focused my camera and made the exposure
without disturbing the bird in the least. A train had passed not long
before, so it could hardly have been asleep more than an hour. The
characteristic longitudinal position assumed by this bird in perching
is well shown, and its protective coloring makes it appear a mere
excrescence on the bark.
[Illustration: NIGHT-HAWK ASLEEP]
When it awoke what a dream it might relate to its companions of being
approached by a horrible one-eyed, three-legged creature, which at a
glance made it immortal!
The photograph of the Junco's nest and eggs was made with a 128 opening
and a 4-second exposure, while that of the Night-hawk was stopped at
64, with an exposure of two seconds.
In the Spartina with the Swallows
BY O. WIDMANN
[Illustration]
Maple Lake, in St. Charles county, Mo., is one of a series of lakes
situated between the bluffs and the Mississippi River. The bluffs are
four to five miles from the river bank, thus leaving a wide stretch of
alluvial land, lowest toward the bluffs, forming an extended, nearly
level marsh, mostly too wet and poor for cultivation, and covered with
square miles of cord-grass (_Spartina cynosuroides_). In dry summers or
on higher levels it reaches only a height of three or four feet, but
in wet summers, as for instance in 1898, it attains the stately height
of six to eight feet, with such a dense growth of rigid leaves that it
is hard work to walk or even drive through. As a commercial article it
is worth very little, though it will make good paper. When young it is
liked by horses and cattle, and when two feet high it makes pretty good
hay, which is sometimes baled and sold as prairie hay.
But while man does not yet know how to make good use of it, birds do,
especially some species of the families Hirundinidæ and Icteridæ--the
Swallow and Blackbird families--who find in the spartina the material
for a good and safe dormitory. Hundreds of acres of this grass cover
the region about Maple Lake, and as they are within the confines of
one of the best managed club grounds, where neither plow nor cattle,
neither drainage nor fire are allowed, they serve many kinds of birds
for a roosting place at all seasons of the year, but especially in fall
migration.
Of Swallows, the most numerous frequenters are the Eaves, the Tree or
White-breasts, and the Roughwings, and they show their appreciation of
this rare place of security and peace by coming early in the season and
staying late. When the Eaves have become strangers at their breeding
stations for a long time, the marsh is the place to find them in
plenty. Here is the place to look for the first White-breast of the
year as early as the second week of March, and for the last, in the
third week of October. For two months, from the middle of August to
the middle of October, a cloud of Swallows may be seen every evening,
just before dark, hovering over the most remote and inaccessible part
of the immense spartina waste, and wherever you are in the marsh in the
late afternoon, you cannot fail to notice innumerable Swallows skimming
the grassy ocean and the adjacent lakes. If toward sunset you watch
them closely, you will find that, though they may linger long on some
favorite hunting ground, the general trend is toward one particular
region, and if you will wait long enough, you will find that they have
all disappeared in that direction and that, when almost dark, belated
parties passing by go in a straight line direct for the same unknown
destination. Certainly a most interesting sight for the naturalist to
see so many of these lovely, lively, likely creatures passing over,
about and around you, all governed by one idea, all driven by one
common impulse, all eager to reach the same aim, the common roost!
Where is the roost? Where do all these birds spend the night? How do
they retire in the evening, and what is their conduct when they leave
their night-quarters in the morning?
[Illustration: TREE OR WHITE-BREASTED SWALLOWS
Photographed from nature by Edward Van Altena, Alpine, N. J.,
September, 1898]
In spite of their large numbers and generally unconcealed activity,
the answer to these questions is not quite easy. Otherwise confiding
creatures, Swallows are careful to keep the exact location of their
roost as much as possible a secret from the outer world. Neither the
persons who live in the neighborhood of the marsh, nor the hunters who
desecrate its sanctity, could tell you where the Swallows roost. It
requires the persistent efforts and full attention of the naturalist to
show you where and how his favorite bird goes to rest and how it sets
out and enters upon the duties and pleasures of another day. You have
to be after nightfall, alone with the mosquitos and other pests, in the
wide, wet and pathless marsh, and again before the faintest glimmer
announces the approach of day.
But select a day in the latter part of August or the first half of
September, and follow me. We are up early, to be on the grounds before
5 A. M.; the stars are vanishing, one after the other, and the first
dawn appears on the eastern horizon; the air is cool and misty, the
grass loaded with heavy dew, but we have to plow our way through as
best we can. By previous observation we have located the whereabouts of
our birds, and we are now fast approaching their sanctum, all alive and
alert for the expected disclosures.
Before this, only the hooting of the Barred Owl in the distant woods
had broken the silence, but now comes from the depth of his private
retreat, the sleepy 'seewick' of the Henslow's Sparrow, and at the same
time the weak but lively 'chip chip churr' of the Short-billed Marsh
Wren. 'Pink, pink, pink' exclaims the Bobolink, whom we have startled
from his slumber of repose, and, as we advance, up go some Swallows,
one by one, to the right, to the left, in front of us, not in masses or
bunches, but singly, every few yards one or two flying up, silent, and
on wings heavy with dew.
Dawn has been making fast progress the last few minutes, and we can see
quite a little distance through the misty air. Now is the time when the
Swallows begin of their own accord to leave their perch down in the
depths of the spartina and fly with heavy wing through the cool and
foggy layer below into the clearer atmosphere above, where the sun's
first rays will soon dispel the chilly dampness of their plumage.
While we are still absorbed in the astounding spectacle, daylight is
stealing quietly into the novel scene, and discloses the presence of
greater and greater numbers of Swallows as far as the eye can reach.
Many have gained enormous heights, and are soaring majestically in the
sun-kissed zenith. Not so voiceless as the Swallows do the Bobolinks
leave the roost. Their _pink_ is continually in the air, and numerous
parties are seen passing over, drifting into all directions of the
compass. Some alight again, all in their yellow traveling suits, with
the exception of one who has a little song for us and wears a somewhat
mottled garb with whitish rump. Long-stretched flocks of Redwings pass
in one direction, troops of Frackles in another; but, on the whole they
do not present anything like the grand spectacle they will later in
the year, when migration sends millions of them to this marsh.
The sun is up now, and a little wind is stirring and dispels the clammy
dampness of the air. Short-bills sing on all sides, and a few Marylands
and Henslows are also heard to sing. Great Blue Herons are on the move,
and the Marsh Hawk is at work. A Bittern wings its way across the
marsh, attended by a committee of inquisitive young Eaves. There is
a peculiar movement now among the Swallows. They seem to concentrate
their forces. Let us follow them, and be treated to an unexpected sight.
Fifty thousand Eave Swallows are seated on the protruding tops of
sunflowers, which grow here among the spartina in restricted areas,
covering a few acres in the middle of the marsh! They sit, several on
one plant, as close together as the branches and their weight allow.
We draw nearer, until we are within twenty yards of the assembly. The
birds must see us, but do not mind, and we have excellent opportunity
to watch them. Their numbers are still swelling. The long, narrow,
ridge-like stretch of sunflowers is filling up more and more. From the
north comes a steady flow of Eaves, all bound for the convention.
It is now 6 A. M.; the influx of arrivals from the north has ceased,
and all seem ready for the opening of the session; but they do not look
as if they were going to transact important business. Some fly up from
time to time, draw a few circles and sit down again. Most of them look
tired, as if they had already performed a most fatiguing task. The
majority are young fellows, all Eaves, in pale attire, some so small as
if not fully grown; but there are also many adults in high dress among
them. All are enjoying their rest, some are preening their feathers,
others half close their eyes and puff up their plumage, as if going
to sleep. There are still some high up in the ether enjoying their
enviable wing power; others are hunting low over the marsh, in company
with Whitebreasts.
Although the two species hunt, fly and roost together, they do not
hold their meetings together. The Whitebreasts' assemblages are held
over water. They betake themselves to a pond or lake, and find a perch
on the pods, stalks and projecting leaves of the lotus (_Nelumbo
lutea_), with which some of these shallow waters of the marsh are
literally covered. There is a small pond only a quarter of a mile from
the sunflower patch, and this is now just full of Whitebreasts. Now
and then a little cloud of them rises from the pond, and after a few
evolutions settles down again. There are only a few hundred; the height
of their autumnal wandering is several weeks behind that of the Eaves.
These are most numerous in late August and early September; but, as
their number decreases, that of the Whitebreasts increases, reaching
the height at the time the Eaves depart.
In summer the roost belongs almost entirely to the Eaves, who flock
here from the surrounding country. So do the Roughwings, a few hundred
only, and some Barn Swallows and Whitebreasts, which two species are
not numerous breeders in this region.
[Illustration: TREE OR WHITE-BREASTED SWALLOWS
Immature birds on the ground gathering nesting material, which they
drop after carrying a short distance, thus apparently giving a
premature exhibition of the nest-building instinct
Photographed from nature by Frank M. Chapman, Leonia, N. J., August,
1897]
As soon as migration begins, about the middle of August, the Eaves
are greatly reinforced, and for the next four weeks enormous numbers
are present, but it is probable that they are not always the same
individuals, as their numbers vary from day to day. It seems they
perform their migrations by stages, from roost to roost, employing
mainly the first hour of the morning for their flights, spending the
day resting and feeding in the region surrounding the roost. The
substitution of arriving Whitebreasts for departing Eaves is in the
beginning almost imperceptible, but at last we see that the one has
taken the place of the other entirely. The Roughwings become more
numerous in early September, and many remain, with a few Barn Swallows,
into October, but the latter are never conspicuous at this roost.
Martins and Bank Swallows are only accidental visitors to this roost.
The Whitebreasts remain numerous to the middle of October, and small
detachments linger even a week longer.
Most of the Eaves that have been gathering on the sunflowers before
6 A. M. are still there at 8 A. M., and the Whitebreasts are also
on the lotus yet; but an hour later, when the sun has heated the
marsh and started the winged insects on their aërial mission, the
time for activity has arrived, and the meetings are adjourned, the
birds dispersed. We, too, will adjourn, with the promise to be back
for another meeting in the evening. When migration is well under
way, the collecting of the Eaves and Whitebreasts begins early in
the evening; in fact, large droves are met at all hours of the day,
playfully gyrating in the blue heavens above, or describing endless
curves upon the glittering marsh beneath. The Roughwings are seldom
seen in the marsh in daytime. As soon as they leave the roost at early
dawn, they hurry away to their accustomed haunts along the water
courses in the timber, where they collect on the branches of a dead
tree on the bank, if possible over water. There they sit, soon after
daybreak, fifty to one hundred together, silent and lost in meditation,
patiently awaiting the dissipation of the vapory dimness, the signal
for activity. They are greatly attached to these meeting-places, and
resort to them often in daytime as well as in the evening. Indeed,
these gatherings of Roughwings on certain dead trees along our woodland
lakes and streams are quite a feature of the landscape from July till
October. Often their ranks are considerably swelled by an admixture
of other Swallows--oftenest the Bank Swallows, who join them on their
entomologizing excursions, and find it congenial to spend some time on
the same perch with their gentle cousins.
In fall migration, the different kinds of Swallows like to mix,
hunt and rest together, and it is nothing rare to find four or five
species sitting side by side. To be sure of a full view of the whole
performance, we are in the marsh as early as 5 P. M., and take a stand
west of the roost to have a good light, and also to be in a position
where we can overlook part of Maple Lake, over which a large number
of Swallows take their way. Indeed, we find them already plentiful,
and watch their actions. A few dozens are sitting on the plant stalks
projecting from the water, mostly Whitebreasts. From the west comes
a pretty steady stream of Eaves. When they reach the spot where the
Whitebreasts are gathering now, they pause a moment, and, hovering,
take a drink, several at once, after which they continue their course.
Is it not strange that they seem to think that this is the only place
for Eaves to drink, though the lake is half a mile long?
[Illustration: 'BIRD NOTES'--TREE SWALLOWS
Photographed from nature by Frank M. Chapman]
Bobolinks also arrive in the marsh; small parties pass over, and their
_pink_ is often in the air. It is now 5.30 P. M. More Eaves come,
drink, and move on. We move, too, following them through the high
spartina until we see in the distance an oasis of black dots in the
yellow sea of grasses. While we are still advancing, a Pigeon Hawk
darts over our heads, going straight for the oasis. In less than no
time the black dots take wing and up goes the whole congregation of
Eaves, up, up, scattering to all winds, and disappearing for several
minutes. But the disturber is gone, and the frightened birds find
courage to return and sit down again on their favorite weeds, from
which they can overlook the marsh for miles around.
The Bobolinks, for whose special benefit the Hawk's visit was this time
meant, are still hovering in the air, but new troops arrive, and after
some aimless drifting all settle down to roost amongst the grasses.
The sun is down now, and perfect streams of Swallows are flowing from
all sides toward the oasis in the center. This is the moment when the
Whitebreasts, who for the last hour have been congregating on the lotus
of the neighboring lakes, mingle with the passing Eaves and accompany
them to the common roost. The Roughwings, too, have left their haunts
and are appearing in the marsh.
The light of day is waning fast, and the smoky air gets dim and misty.
The assembled Eaves are now seen to rise in clouds from their oasis,
mix their forces with the invading army, and the grandest spectacle
ensues. At first it looks as if confusion reigned, but soon the hosts
of fleet-winged birds no longer whirl aimlessly through space. All mass
and muster, and perform strange evolutions with amazing swiftness and
precision. Now we see them scattering and spreading over the whole area
on which they intend to roost, apparently to make sure that no danger
lurks beneath the grasses. Here they come, skimming, almost touching,
the spartina, pass by, and speed onward until lost to sight for a few
moments, when all at once a great cloud of moving specks is visible in
the distant sky. The specks are Swallows, and the cloud has life; it
moves, it rolls, it swells, it comes, it breaks and, like a torrent of
wing-borne arrows, darts upon us, scattering and spreading out, as it
descends for another wild dash low over the spartina.
The same wonderful maneuvers repeat themselves as long as the evening
twilight lasts, and, though with each descent the cloud does shrink
in size, it does not cease to rise again until black night has fully
settled down, and even after dark small droves of bewildered birds
rush madly by our side. Being well within the range of the now settled
birds, we cannot go away without disturbing some in their repose;
although they are dispersed over a large area, every now and then one
will be seen to scamper out and vanish in the darkness.
[Illustration: YOUNG EUROPEAN MARTINS AND NEST
Photographed from nature by "C. R."]
Watching the Bittern 'Pump'
BY BRADFORD TORREY
[Illustration]
Since I printed, in 'The Auk' (Vol. vi, p. 1), a description of the
Bittern's vocal performances, I have witnessed a repetition of them on
three occasions; and the story of my successes, such as they are, may
be encouraging to the younger readers of Bird-Lore.
The remarkable sounds, sometimes likened to those of an old-fashioned
wooden pump, sometimes to those made by a man driving a stake in wet
soil (and the likeness is unmistakable, not to say perfect, in both
cases), must have attracted attention, we may suppose, ever since the
settlement of the country. The dullest person could not hear them,
it would seem, without wondering how and by what they were produced.
But up to the time of my 'Auk' article, there was only one authentic
record, so far as I am aware, that the bird had ever been seen in the
act of uttering them. For my own part, having never lived near a meadow
adapted to the Bittern's purposes, I had never so much as heard his
famous 'boom,' though references to it here and there, in the writings
of Thoreau especially, had given me a lively desire to do so. It was
a strange accident, surely, that the first Bittern I had ever heard
should show himself so openly and for so long a time. Beginners' luck,
we may call it, and be thankful that such providential encouragements
are not so very uncommon. As the Scripture says, "The last shall be
first."
On the 2d of May, 1889, a year after the observations recorded in
'The Auk' article, I was lying upon a cliff on the edge of a cat-tail
swamp, listening for Rail notes or a Least Bittern's _coo_, when a
Bittern, very much to my surprise, pumped almost at my feet. By good
luck a small wooded peninsula jutted into the swamp just at that point
(the swamp, I regret to say, has since been converted into a town
reservoir), and, keeping in the shelter of rocks and trees, I stole out
to its very tip unobserved. Two or three times the notes were repeated,
but I could get no sight of the performer. Then, all in a flash, he
stood before me--as no doubt he had been doing all the while--in full
view, just across a narrow space of open water against a patch of
cat-tails. He had taken no alarm, and pumped six or eight times while
I stood, opera-glass in hand, watching his slightest motion. Then he
stalked away into the reeds, pumped twice,--behind the scenes, as it
were,--and fell silent.
Two days later I went to the Wayland meadows, where I had seen my bird
of the year previous, and there, seated upon the railroad embankment,
as before, I watched a Bittern pump at short intervals for more than
an hour. Most of the time he was more or less hidden by the low grass,
through which he was slowly traveling down the meadow; but once, coming
near the remains of a last year's haycock, he went a little out of his
way, mounted it, and boomed in full sight. The Bittern is a wader and
a recluse, but once in a while, it appears, he has no objection to a
clear platform and dry feet.
I felt myself highly favored. Twice within three days I had been
admitted to "assist" at mysteries of which Thoreau, who spent his life
in the best of Bittern country, had never obtained so much as a glimpse.
Exactly a year afterward (May 4, 1890) I was strolling along a road
near home, when from a meadow beside it came the now familiar pumping
notes. I made toward the spot, and by the help of a clump of alder
bushes approached within a very short distance of the bird, who stood
in short grass, quite unconcealed. A migratory visitor only, he must
have been, for I am certain that no Bittern ever summered in that place
during my years of residence near it. I watched him at his work till I
was tired. Then, bethinking myself of a friend and neighbor who knew
nothing about birds, but had once expressed to me a curiosity about
the 'Stake-driver,' I walked to the village, rang his doorbell, and
invited him to go back with me to see the show. The showman was still
rehearsing, and we stole upon him without difficulty, and saw as much
as we wished of his doings. Though it was Sunday morning, and the bird
was as serious as any parson, we took the liberty of laughing a little
at his absurd contortions.
Since then I have heard the Bittern's music on sundry occasions, but
never have found it possible to come within sight of him in the act
of making it. Once, I remember, I was sitting upon a roadside fence,
reading, when a carriage stopped and an unrecognized feminine voice
said: "Do you see that Heron behind you, Mr. Torrey?" The "Heron" was
_Botaurus lentiginosus_, in a bit of low ground close by a house. I
shut my book and gave him my attention, which he presently rewarded by
catching and swallowing a snake. This was in autumn, when Bitterns,
like lesser birds, are liable to turn up in unexpected quarters. The
reader may take the incident, if he will, as a warning against the
reading of print out of doors. As a general thing, we may safely say,
Nature's page is better than a book.
One season a friend and myself became much interested in the question
as to the relative 'carrying power' of the three notes or syllables
of which the Bittern's music is composed. The discussion began by our
hearing a single far-away note, repeated at the proper intervals, at
a time when we could not well follow it up. Later investigation, to
our no small surprise, compelled us to settle down upon the conclusion
that the first note was the one last to be lost as we traveled away
from the bird. We were surprised, I say, for the second note is the one
which bears, or seems to bear, the accent. _Plum-pud-d'n_, the creature
appears to say, with an emphasis fairly to be called violent upon the
middle note. Why, then, should not the middle note be heard farthest?
What _is_ emphasis, anyhow, if not, as the dictionary says, a "special
force of voice." Could there be something peculiar, we asked ourselves,
in the _quality_ of the first syllable, which made it carry beyond the
others? We discussed the matter eagerly, trudging to and fro to make
certain of the fact itself, and agreed, if I remember rightly, upon a
plausible explanation. As I review the case, however, I am so much in
doubt as to the correctness of our theory that it seems quite as well
not to state it, but to leave the question to any Bird-Lore reader
who may some day have nothing better to do than to investigate it for
himself.
=For Teachers and Students=
Hints to Young Bird Students[F]
[Footnote F: From a leaflet prepared under the initiative of Mr.
Witmer Stone, Conservator Ornithological Section, Acad. Nat. Sci.,
Philadelphia. These "hints" are addressed to students who desire to
become scientific ornithologists and to whom specimens are a necessity.
They show, however, how few specimens are required, and how much more
there is to learn from living birds than from dead ones.]
It has always been our experience that young bird students who have
just crossed the threshold of ornithology are glad to turn for a word
of advice and assistance to their older brethren, who have already made
some progress in the science; and it has always been a pleasure for us
to give such aid. In view of these facts, we take this opportunity of
offering a few words of counsel for the benefit of those who are
beginning the study of birds.
Doubtless every beginner looks upon the formation of a collection as
necessarily the first step on the ornithological ladder; and probably a
collection of eggs is preferred to a collection of birds, because the
specimens can be prepared much more readily.
Soon you meet complaints from well meaning persons who object to
robbing birds' nests, and you reply that you are collecting for
scientific purposes. Very good; science has need of you all, but do you
know what scientific ornithology--real ornithology--is?
Are you not influenced, to some extent, at least, by "oölogical"
magazines and dealers' price-lists of eggs, from which you learn that
it is important to secure _series of sets_,--which means hundreds and
thousands of eggs,--and wherein you also learn the market price of this
or that egg, and value your specimens accordingly,--just as you do your
postage stamps? This is not science, and the men who advocate this sort
of collecting, and who have the largest collections of eggs, rarely
contribute anything to our knowledge of birds, and are not advancing
the science of ornithology.
If you must have a collection, a few sets of eggs (often a single set)
of each species of bird will answer all your purposes. There is nothing
to be gained by the collecting of a series, except the extermination of
the birds, which is surely not your object.
On the other hand, there is a vast amount of bird work that you can do
to help the science of ornithology and gain a reputation for yourself.
There are hundreds of facts regarding the distribution of birds, their
habits, etc., which are still unknown, and you should make it your aim
to become an authority on the birds of your region, and keep records of
all your observations as to migration, habits, abundance, etc. You will
find ample opportunity for work, as every year will bring to light new
facts, and the more you contribute to our knowledge of the birds the
more you will see what an insignificant matter the formation of an egg
collection is in comparison with real ornithology.
In the case of birds, it is justifiable to shoot specimens which are
new to you for purposes of identification, but you should make the best
use of the bird _before_ you kill it, so that it will not be necessary
to shoot more of the same kind in order to tell what they are. Your aim
should be to learn to recognize birds at sight and by their notes, and
you will find you will learn more of value by a study of the living
bird than by collecting skins.
The exact knowledge that we now possess of the coloration, etc., of
North American birds, and the large collections available for study in
the museums, render it entirely unnecessary for _every_ bird student to
form a collection. Those who undertake any special line of study will
soon learn what specimens are required and collect accordingly, instead
of amassing a large number of specimens with no particular object in
view.
These suggestions are not made with a faultfinding or sentimental
feeling, but in a friendly spirit, for the purpose of counteracting
the effect of the advice of egg dealers and traders, who seem bent
upon developing our budding students into "egg hogs" instead of
ornithologists.
We have all killed birds and collected eggs, but not to a useless
excess, and have always, we believe, made real use of our collections
in adding to the knowledge of birds and advancing the science of
ornithology.
As active members of the American Ornithologists' Union, we are only
too glad to encourage the study of birds and aid the beginner, but
unless some steps be taken against this useless egg collecting, the
extermination of some at least of our birds will soon be effected.
We ask your earnest consideration of these points, and trust you will
aid us by your influence and example in advancing true ornithology, and
in discouraging the waste of bird-life occasioned by this "fad" of egg
collecting.
WITMER STONE,
Conservator Ornithological Section, Acad. Nat. Sci., Philadelphia.
J. A. ALLEN,
Curator Dept. Vertebrate Zool., Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist.,
New York City.
FRANK M. CHAPMAN,
Ass't Curator Dept. Vertebrate Zool., Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist.,
New York City.
ROBERT RIDGWAY,
President American Ornithologists' Union.
Curator Dept. of Birds, U. S. Nat. Mus., Washington, D. C.
CHARLES W. RICHMOND,
Ass't Curator Dept. of Birds, U. S. Nat. Mus., Washington, D. C.
C. HART MERRIAM,
Chief U. S. Biol. Survey, Dept. of Agriculture, Washington, D. C.
T. S. PALMER,
Ass't Biol. Survey, Dept. of Agriculture, Washington, D. C.
A. K. FISHER,
Ass't Biol. Survey, Dept. of Agriculture, Washington, D. C.
WILLIAM BREWSTER,
Curator Dept. of Birds, Museum Comp. Zool., Cambridge, Mass.
WILLIAM DUTCHER,
Treasurer American Ornithologists' Union, New York City.
JOHN H. SAGE,
Secretary American Ornithologists' Union, Portland, Conn.
Fall Migration at Portland, Conn.
BY JOHN H. SAGE
I. AVERAGE DATES OF DEPARTURE OF THE COMMONER SUMMER RESIDENT BIRDS
September 1 to 10
Least Bittern, Black-billed Cuckoo, Least Flycatcher, Baltimore Oriole,
Veery.
September 10 to 20
Kingbird, Cliff Swallow, Purple Martin, Warbling Vireo, White-eyed Vireo,
Prairie Warbler, Wood Thrush.
September 20 to 30
Spotted Sandpiper, Whip-poor-will, Hummingbird, Rose-breasted Grosbeak,
Bank Swallow, Yellow-throated Vireo, Nashville Warbler, Yellow Warbler,
Redstart, Ovenbird, House Wren.
October 1 to 10
Green Heron, Night-hawk, Chimney Swift, Wood Pewee, Scarlet Tanager,
Red-eyed Vireo, Black and White Warbler, Parula Warbler.
October 10 to 20
Virginia Rail, Black-crowned Night Heron, Cooper's Hawk, Yellow-billed
Cuckoo, Phoebe, Bobolink, Indigo Bunting, Barn Swallow, Catbird, Brown
Thrasher, Short-billed Marsh Wren.
October 20 to 31
American Bittern, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Red-winged Blackbird, Meadow Lark,
Field Sparrow, Vesper, Savanna and Chipping Sparrows, Towhee, Tree
Swallow, Black-throated Green Warbler, Maryland Yellow-throat,
Long-billed Marsh Wren.
November 1 to 30
Woodcock, Mourning Dove, Marsh Hawk, Kingfisher, Flicker, Bronzed
Grackle, Cowbird, Song Sparrow, Swamp Sparrow, Robin.
II. DATES OF ARRIVAL OF MIGRANTS FROM THE NORTH
August 15 to 31
Great Blue Heron, Small-billed Water Thrush.
September 1 to 10
Yellow Rail, Least Sandpiper, Solitary Sandpiper, Osprey, Blackburnian
Warbler, Yellow Palm Warbler, Canadian Warbler[A].
September 10 to 20
Pied-billed Grebe, Blue-winged Teal, Wilson's Snipe, Pigeon Hawk,
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Rusty Blackbird, White-throated Sparrow,
Philadelphia Vireo, Bay-breasted Warbler, Black-poll Warbler,
Connecticut Warbler, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Grey-cheeked Thrush.
September 20 to 30
Loon, Black Duck, American Coot, Pectoral Sandpiper, Semi-palmated
Sandpiper, Greater Yellow-legs, Nelson's Sparrow, Junco, Lincoln's
Sparrow, Black-throated Blue Warbler[G], Myrtle Warbler, Magnolia
Warbler[G], Pine Warbler, Wilson's Warbler[G], American Pipit,
Winter Wren, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Olive-backed Thrush.
October 1 to 10
Green-winged Teal, Pintail, American Scoter, White-winged Scoter,
Short-eared Owl, White-crowned Sparrow, Blue-headed Vireo, Brown
Creeper, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Hermit Thrush.
October 10 to 20
Red-throated Loon, American Scaup Duck, Old-squaw, Surf Scoter, Ruddy
Duck, Canada Goose, American Golden Plover, American Goshawk, Fox
Sparrow.
October 20 to 31
Hooded Merganser, Baldpate, Lesser Scaup Duck, Ring-necked Duck,
Buffle-head, Snowflake, Tree Sparrow, Northern Shrike.
November 1 to 20
Red-breasted Merganser, Mallard, Snowy Owl, Pine Siskin.
[Footnote G: Generally noted at Englewood, N. J., between August 20
and 31.--F. M. C.]
=For Young Observers=
Mr. Flicker Writes a Letter
BY GARRETT NEWKIRK
[Illustration]
People:
Tell me where you scare up
Names for me like 'Flicker,' 'Yarup,'
'High-hole,' 'Yucker,' 'Yellow-hammer'--
None of these are in my grammar--
'Piquebois jaune,' (Woodpick yellow),
So the Creoles name a fellow.
Others call me 'Golden-wings,'
'Clape,' and twenty other things
That I never half remember,
Any summer till September.
[Illustration]
Many names and frequent mention
Show that I receive attention,
And the honor that is due me;
But if you would interview me
Call me any name you please,
I'm 'at home' among the trees.
Yet I never cease my labors
To receive my nearest neighbors,
And 'twill be your best enjoyment
Just to view me at employment.
[Illustration]
I'm the friend of every sower,
Useful to the orchard grower,
Helping many a plant and tree
From its enemies to free,--
They are always food for me.
And I like dessert in reason,
Just a bit of fruit in season,
But my _delicacy_ is _ants_,
Stump or hill inhabitants;
Thrusting in my sticky tongue,
So I take them, old and young.
[Illustration]
Surely we have found the best
Place wherein to make our nest--
Tunnel bored within a tree,
Smooth and clean as it can be,
Smallest at the open door,
Curving wider toward the floor.
Every year we make a new one,
Freshly bore another true one;
Other birds, you understand,
Use our old ones, second-hand,--
Occupying free of rent,
They are very well content.
To my wife I quite defer,
I am most polite to her,
Bowing while I say, 'kee-cher.'
Eggs we number five to nine,
Pearly white with finish fine.
On our nest we sit by turns,
So each one a living earns;
Though I think I sit the better,
When she wishes to, I let 'er!
--_Flicker._
Zip and Phoebe (A Cat-Bird Story)
BY FLORENCE A. VAN SANT
[Illustration]
Early each spring I watch for the return of a Phoebe bird, which
usually gladdens my heart by his appearance about sundown of some
bright day. He is alone, because, according to most authorities, he
travels in advance of his mate; and when I ask with wonder, "Well
Peter, where is Phoebe?" with a quick dip of his tail and an expressive
twitter, he seems to say, "She will arrive on the next train."
For several years they have returned to the same nest beneath the roof
of my veranda, each spring re-lining the inside and brightening the
outside with green moss. They always raise two broods. They are very
tame, and from year to year do not seem to forget their confidence of
the previous summer, and will perch on the cedar tree close to the
porch, or light on the rope of the hammock only a few feet away from me.
[Illustration: 'ZIP']
I have so trained my cat, Zip, that she thinks it is as wicked to look
at a bird as she does to climb on the table, and never does either.
Peter and Phoebe seemed to know that they had nothing to fear from her;
and, when sitting on the little white eggs, their bright eyes would
peep over the nest at Zip, sitting or napping in the easy chair below.
When the young birds arrived, the parents would fly back and forth
feeding them, without showing any more fear of the cat than they did of
me.
While busy in the house one day, my attention was attracted by a loud
tapping at the window, and on looking up I saw Phoebe apparently in
great distress. She would fly at the window, striking the glass with
her bill, circle round, fly back again, and tap, as though trying to
attract my attention. Upon my appearance at the door, she flew toward
the nest and, pausing on the wing, as a Kingfisher will poise over the
water when seeing a fish, uttered sharp cries, fluttering her wings all
the while, and telling me in bird language of her trouble. There sat a
cat on the chair just below the nest, but it was not Zip. She had taken
no other cat into her confidence, hence her alarm. When I drove the
strange cat away, she quieted down and administered to the wants of her
family as usual.
This little incident seems to show that birds become so accustomed to
their environments that they know each member of the family, even to
the dog and cat, and that they possess a certain degree of reasoning
power.
One day later in the season, when they were raising the second family,
my attention was again attracted by the same cries. A pair of my tame
Pigeons, looking for a place to build, had lighted on the cornice over
the door not far from the nest, and both Peter and Phoebe were trying
to drive them away. They would dart almost up to them, all the while
snapping their bills vigorously, as though catching a succession of
insects, but before the Pigeons could strike with their wings, would
dart away, and like a flash be back again. They did not seem to be
calling on me for assistance, but were themselves fighting for what
they considered their rights, and evidently did not think Pigeons "as
harmless as Doves." The warfare continued at intervals for several
days, until the Pigeons decided it was an unpleasant locality for a
future home, and retired to the barn.
[Illustration]
=Notes from Field and Study=
Birds Through a Telescope
The season is approaching when the migration of birds may be studied to
advantage through a telescope. A 2-inch hand glass may be used, though
a higher power is preferable. It should be focused on the moon, across
the surface of which the bird is seen passing.
September 3, 1887, at Tenafly, N. J., Mr. John Tatlock, Jr., and
myself, using a 6-1/2-inch equatorial, saw 262 birds cross the moon's
disc between the hours of eight and eleven (The Auk, V, p. 37), and we
have since repeated the observation.
Studies of this nature should throw much light on the question of
'highways of migration,' and at the same time furnish an idea of the
number of birds passing through a given space during a given time;
and, more particularly, they should tell us the height at which birds
perform their nocturnal journeys.
Mr. Tatlock and myself solved this latter problem by a hypothetical
assumption of the inferior and superior distances at which a bird would
be visible. In this way we arrived at the conclusion that the birds
seen were between one and three miles above the earth.
Until recently this theory has lacked confirmation, but I now learn
from Dr. William R. Brooks, Director of Smith Observatory, at Geneva,
N. Y., that during the evening of May 23, 1899, while observing the
moon through his 10-1/8-inch refracting telescope, using a power of
100 diameters, he saw some forty birds cross the field of vision. Dr.
Brooks states that from the distinctness of the image and the fact that
from three to five seconds were required by each bird to cross the
segment of the moon in the field of the telescope, he estimates the
birds to have been distant about seven and a half miles, and further
calculation, based on this estimate, places them about two miles above
the earth.--Frank M. Chapman.
The Cardinal in Maine
This incident is vouched for by Mrs. L. M. N. Stevens, National
President of the W. C. T. U.
Several years ago, after the first snowfall at Stroudwater, Maine,
Mr. Stevens hurried into the house one morning to ask his wife to
come and see a handsome, but cold and hungry-looking, red bird, in a
shrub near the door. Mrs. Stevens saw that it was a Cardinal Grosbeak,
and, placing some food in a large cage, she set it near the bush. The
Cardinal soon hopped inside, and was safely convoyed indoors under
cover of a blanket. A happy season began. He was given the freedom of
the room, and became very tame and companionable.
In the spring, as soon as the red bird grew restless and the weather
mild, he was let loose, and flew away.
In the fall, with the first cold snap, came the Cardinal, to spend his
second winter in the old home.
Again in the spring, when the restlessness re-appeared, Mrs. Stevens
wanted to let the bird fly, but yielded to the judgment of her husband,
who advised delay, lest cold and hunger overtake the little wayfarer.
Nature, however, avenged the violation of instinct; in a few days the
Cardinal drooped, refused to avail himself of liberty, and died.--Ella
Gilbert Ives, _Dorchester, Mass._
A Useful Bird
In speaking of the economic value of certain of our birds, a lecturer,
quoting Professor Beal, said that in Iowa the Tree Sparrow was
estimated to destroy 875 tons of the seeds of noxious weeds annually.
As reported in a local paper, this statement read: "The Tree or
Chipping Sparrow destroyed, as discovered by scientific observation,
640,000 tons of the eggs and young of harmful insects."
=Book News and Reviews=
Wild Life at Home: How To Study and Photograph It. By Richard
Kearton, F. Z. S. Fully Illustrated by Photographs taken Direct
from Nature by C. Kearton. Cassell & Company, Ltd., London, Paris,
New York, and Melbourne, 1898. 12mo, pp. xiv + 188. Numerous
half-tones. Price, $1.50.
In this book, Mr. Kearton and his brother show that their patience
and ingenuity, as well as their field of work, are inexhaustible. It
differs from 'With Nature and a Camera' chiefly in being addressed
more especially to photographers, the opening chapters being devoted
to a description of the outfit required, with practical suggestions
as to its use. These are followed by chapters on 'Birds,' 'Mammals',
'Insects,' and the life of 'Pond, River and Seashores.' The
illustrations are fully up to the standard of previous work by the
same authors, which we have before had occasion to praise so highly,
and continued experience with a camera leads us to appreciate more
fully than ever the truly marvellous pictures they have secured. Mr.
Kearton's paper in this number of Bird-Lore admirably illustrates the
practicability of his advice to naturalist-photographers, who, in
'Wild Life at Home' will find both instruction and encouragement. The
book should be in every naturalist's library, whether or not he uses a
camera.
F. M. C.
Birds. By Annie M. Grant. Report of the R. I. Board of Agriculture,
1899.
The Birds of Ontario, in Relation to Agriculture. By Chas. W. Nash,
Ontario Department of Agriculture, Toronto.
In Mrs. Grant's paper we have an epitome of a great amount of useful
information. The horticultural and agricultural societies are doing a
good work in publishing such papers in their reports, thus ensuring
to them a wide circulation among the class who most need this kind of
literature.
In that portion of her paper devoted to the 'Decrease in Bird-life,'
Mrs. Grant puts her finger on some very sore spots. There can be
no doubt that much harm has been done through egg-collecting by
pseudo-naturalists, who make no use of their collections except to
boast of their size and rarity, and who gather thousands of extra sets
for purposes of exchange. Another element of bird destruction is seen
in the South, where our common singing birds are so generally offered
for sale in the market as food. A campaign of education is needed here.
The time wasted in shooting these useful creatures would, if properly
applied, produce more and better meat in the shape of domestic poultry,
or other equally palatable food. We hope Mrs. Grant will continue her
good work.
In Mr. Nash's paper we have another concise statement of the facts with
regard to the usefulness of birds from an agricultural point of view.
The case of the birds of prey is very clearly and forcibly presented.
When these birds do harm--as when they pick up a stray chicken--the
evil is open and apparent to everybody; but the good work they are
constantly doing is only appreciated after the most careful and
systematic observation. The depredations of the vast hordes of small
mammals is a constant menace to the interests of husbandry, and more
especially to horticulture. Without question, the Hawks and Owls are
the most efficient checks upon the increase of these creatures, and it
cannot be too often or too forcibly impressed upon the farmers that
these birds should be rigorously protected.
With regard to the other birds, the case is equally well put, and
illustrated by many interesting and valuable observations and
experiments. There can be no question that this is a valuable paper,
and that it deserves a wide circulation among agricultural people.
As to the merits of the illustrations with which it is embellished,
there may be differences of opinion.--F. E. L. Beal.
On the Birds' Highway. By Reginald Heber Howe, Jr. With Photographic
Illustrations by the Author, and a Frontispiece in color from a
Painting by Louis Agassiz Fuertes.
This is a contribution to the class of literature which John Burroughs
and Bradford Torrey have made so deservedly popular. It cannot,
however, be said that the author has reached the standard of his
prototypes. His observations were made in the Atlantic states from
Virginia to Maine, and his descriptions bear evidence of sympathy
with his subject. The illustrations include an admirable frontispiece
of Chickadees by Louis Fuertes, thirteen full-page half-tones, for
the most part illustrating the localities described, and numerous
half-tone 'thumb-nail pictures' in the text, largely taken from mounted
birds. Some of the latter are effective; others are too small or too
indistinct to be of value to those who would need them.
An appendix gives nominal lists of the birds observed at Bristol,
R. I.; Washington, D. C.; Chevy Chase, Md.; Hubbardstown, Mass., and
Chateaugay Lake, N. Y.--F. M. C.
The Danger of Introducing Noxious Animals and Birds. By T. S. Palmer.
Yearbook of the Department of Agriculture for 1898, pp., 87-110; 1
half-tone plate and 6 cuts in the text.
Birds as Weed Destroyers. By Sylvester D. Judd. Yearbook of the
Department of Agriculture for 1898, pp., 221-232; 1 half-tone
plate and 7 cuts in the text.
Economic Relations of Birds and Their Food. By F. E. L. Beal.
Reprinted from the Proceedings of the Twenty-fourth Annual Meeting
of the New Jersey State Horticultural Society, January 4 and 5,
1899.
As long as man's attitude toward nature is the standpoint of dollars
and cents, bird-lovers will welcome every fact which places them in
possession of a fresh argument to be used where appeals to sentiment
are of no avail. It is, therefore, with great satisfaction that we
receive these sound, convincing papers on economic zoölogy.
Dr. Palmer's paper has long been needed and, fortunately or
unfortunately, so unanswerable are the facts which he presents, that
one would imagine universal knowledge of them would be all that was
necessary to avert further danger from the introduction of exotic
species. The subject, however, should receive the prompt attention of
legislators, in order that it may be duly placed under the control of
the proper authorities--obviously the officials of the Biologic Survey
of the United States Department of Agriculture.
In giving us the results of his studies of the food of certain
seed-eating birds, Dr. Judd at the same time places their economic
importance so far beyond dispute that we trust every agriculturist in
the land may become familiar with his facts and figures. None of the
many valuable papers issued by the Biological Survey has had a more
obvious value than this one.
In his lecture before the New Jersey Horticultural Society, Professor
Beal discusses unprejudicedly birds' power for good or evil. He shows
that while insects, especially certain noxious species, have greatly
increased since the settlement of this country, birds have decreased,
and that in order to restore the balance disturbed by man, an increase
in the number of our birds is greatly to be desired.--F. M. C.
Book News
Every lover of animals must rejoice in the phenomenal success achieved
by Ernest Seton Thompson's 'Wild Animals I have Known.' Although
published only last October, over 14,000 copies have been sold, and the
book's popularity increases as its charm becomes more widely known. Mr.
Thompson has done more to bridge the gap between human life and animal
life than any writer we have known. One has only to read his work to
become convinced of one's kinship with the lower forms of life.
=Bird-Lore=
A Bi-monthly Magazine
Devoted to the Study and Protection of Birds
OFFICIAL ORGAN OF THE AUDUBON SOCIETIES
=Edited by FRANK M. CHAPMAN=
=Published by THE MACMILLAN COMPANY=
=====================================================
Vol. 1 August, 1899 No. 4
=====================================================
=SUBSCRIPTION RATES.=
Price in the United States, Canada, and Mexico,
twenty cents a number, one dollar a year, postage
paid.
Subscriptions may be sent to the Publishers, at
Englewood, New Jersey, or 66 Fifth avenue, New
York City.
Price in all countries in the International Postal
Union, twenty-five cents a number, one dollar and
a quarter a year, postage paid. Foreign agents,
Macmillan and Company, Ltd., London.
-----------------------------------------------------
Manuscripts for publication, books, etc., for review,
should be sent to the Editor at Englewood,
New Jersey.
-----------------------------------------------------
Advertisements should be sent to the Publishers
at Englewood, New Jersey, or 66 Fifth
avenue, New York City.
-----------------------------------------------------
COPYRIGHTED, 1899, BY FRANK M. CHAPMAN.
-----------------------------------------------------
Bird-Lore's Motto:
_A Bird in the Bush is Worth Two in the Hand._
-----------------------------------------------------
The advice of a prominent ornithologist to beginners to collect all
the birds of a species they can get, has so long misrepresented the
necessities of the case and, at the same time, brought legitimate
collecting into disrepute, that every one having the interests of the
science of ornithology at heart will read with great satisfaction the
circular entitled 'Hints to Young Bird Students' which we reprint on
another page. Signed by a majority of the professional ornithologists
of this country, representing the institutions where ornithology is
most actively studied, it may be accepted beyond thought of dispute
as representing the true attitude of scientific ornithologists toward
the question of collecting. And in place of the advice to kill all the
birds "you can get," what do we find? Virtually a plea to abstain from
all egg-collecting, to take birds only for purposes of identification,
and a statement that the student "will learn more of value by a study
of the living bird than by collecting skins."
To our mind, the importance of this circular cannot be over-rated.
It marks an epoch in the history of North American ornithology. The
future ornithologist is not to be a mere hoarder of birds' skins,
but a student of bird-life whose researches, we predict, will prove
an invaluable aid in the solution of that most difficult and most
important of all biologic problems, the relation of animals to their
environment.
* * * * *
The paper by Mrs. Olive Thorne Miller on 'The Ethics of Caging Birds,'
published in the last number of Bird-Lore, has been both commended and
condemned. Some correspondents have considered it a most rational and
unprejudiced treatment of the subject, others have written that as
its general tenor might encourage the caging of birds, it was not to
be endorsed. Particularly do they deplore what Mrs. Miller feels to
be "a work of charity,"--the rescuing of birds "from the discomforts
of a bird-store" for, they say, that the dealer replaces the sold
bird with another, and the final result is to encourage the trade in
birds. Of this there can be no doubt, and the question, therefore,
becomes one for debate, as to whether the pleasure to be derived from
the companionship of a caged bird, the humanizing influence which may
be exerted by association with a creature dependent on us, and the
knowledge we may acquire of its habits, justify us in depriving it of
its liberty--assuming, of course, that it receives proper care. We
shall be glad to receive the opinions of our readers on this subject.
* * * * *
'The Century' for July has an illustrated article on Bird Rock, in the
Gulf of St. Lawrence, by the Editor of this journal, which, it should
be said, would have appeared in Bird-Lore had it not been disposed of
before this magazine was established. This statement will also apply
to an article on Pelican Island, Florida, which will appear in 'St.
Nicholas' for September.
* * * * *
Dr. Coues having retired from the Editorship of 'The Osprey,' Dr. Gill,
who had withdrawn his name from recent numbers, assumes control.
=The Audubon Societies=
"_You cannot with a scalpel find the poet's soul,
Nor yet the wild bird's song._"
Edited by Mrs. Mabel Osgood Wright (President of the Audubon Society of
the State of Connecticut), Fairfield, Conn., to whom all communications
relating to the work of the Audubon and other Bird Protective Societies
should be addressed.
DIRECTORY OF STATE AUDUBON SOCIETIES
With names and addresses of their Secretaries.
=New Hampshire= Mrs. F. W. Batchelder, Manchester.
=Massachusetts= Miss Harriet E. Richards, care Boston Society
of Natural History, Boston.
=Rhode Island= Mrs. H. T. Grant, Jr., 187 Bowen street,
Providence.
=Connecticut= Mrs. Henry S. Glover, Fairfield.
=New York= Miss Emma H. Lockwood, 243 West Seventy-fifth
street, New York City.
=New Jersey= Miss Anna Haviland, 53 Sandford Ave.,
Plainfield, N. J.
=Pennsylvania= Mrs. Edward Robins, 114 South Twenty-first
street, Philadelphia.
=District of Columbia= Mrs. John Dewhurst Patten, 3033 P street,
Washington.
=Wheeling, W. Va.= Elizabeth I. Cummins, 1314 Chapline street,
(branch of Penn Society) Wheeling.
=Ohio= Miss Clara Russell, 903 Paradrome street,
Cincinnati.
=Indiana= Amos W. Butler, State House, Indianapolis.
=Illinois= Miss Mary Drummond, Wheaton.
=Iowa= Miss Nellie S. Board, Keokuk.
=Wisconsin= Mrs. George W. Peckham, 646 Marshall street,
Milwaukee.
=Minnesota= Mrs. J. P. Elmer, 314 West Third street,
St. Paul.
=Tennessee= Mrs. C. C. Conner, Ripley.
=Texas= Miss Cecile Seixas, 2008 Thirty-ninth
street, Galveston.
=California= Mrs. George S. Gay, Redlands.
The Responsibility of the Audubon Society
Now that the Audubon Society is recognized as a factor in the higher
civilization of the day, it may be well to ask how far it realizes its
responsibility as a public educator.
"For the Protection of Birds," is a most reasonable and tangible
declaration of motive, but what next?
The male and female public is straightway asked to give up certain
habits that it has regarded as inherent rights,--in the cause of
humanity and agricultural economy.
So far so good; but should not these would-be teachers of good will to
animals, themselves be educated in consistent humanity, in order to
keep their doctrines above the ridicule level?
Upon the discrimination of its humanity depends the future of the
Audubon Society. A discrimination that shall render its workings
logical, and make it able to see that it must at least give as much
as it takes. A breadth of knowledge to realize that if the Society
restricts the hat trimmings of women, the egg-collecting habits of
boys, and the "just to see if I can hit it" proclivities of both boys
and men, it is bound to give them something beside "the consciousness
of rectitude" in return. The very least it can do is to help them to
become as intimately acquainted with "the bird in the bush" as they
were with the egg in the pocket and the feather on the hat.
It is here that the educational responsibility of the Audubon Society
lies. Instead of issuing tracts simply to decry feather-wearing, and
to say that something should be done, I would have each Society send
out one or more illustrated bird lectures to the remoter corners of its
range, where people do not have the privilege of hearing professional
ornithologists. Also to the groups of remote country schools whose
scholars have no "key to the fields" that lie so close at hand. I would
have the Societies send small circulating libraries of bird books in
the same way. To introduce people to the bird in the bush is the way to
create a public sentiment to keep it there, and to make it possible to
obtain legislative authority for the enactment and keeping of good bird
laws, which are the backbone of protection.
Again, there should be no sort of conflict between ultra bird
protectionists and legitimate scientific ornithology. That many of the
best known ornithologists occupying public positions in the United
States favor the restriction of egg-collecting, etc., is amply proved
by a leaflet issued in May, by Witmer Stone,[H] called "Hints to Young
Bird Students," and signed by such men as J. A. Allen, Robert Ridgway,
C. Hart Merriam, A. K. Fisher, Wm. Brewster, F. M. Chapman, John H.
Sage, C. W. Richmond, T. S. Palmer, and Wm. Dutcher.
[Footnote H: See page 125 of this number of Bird-Lore.]
The Audubon Societies are responsible for meeting these liberal-minded
and progressive scientists half way. There must be anatomists and
embryologists to study the human body, why not then, also, of the
feathered brotherhood, _only_ it is not necessary for mankind in
general to keep skeletons of either birds or people in their closets
for this purpose, and the random collecting of either should be
regarded as equally reprehensible.
I would see humanity and science allied in this matter. If the Audubon
Societies confess that this is impossible, they are taking the
responsibility of harnessing humanity with ignorance,--a horse that
will drag any companion into the ditch.
Let "For the Protection of Birds" be the banner motto under which the
Audubon Society shall go out, as it is bound, to teach (not to preach)
the 'bird in the bush,' but the teaching need be none the less humane,
and will be far more effectual if, instead of 'dicky-bird' platitudes
of uncertain sex and species, it deals out good, sound, popular
ornithology.
M. O. W.
The So-called Sparrow War in Boston
In the month of March, 1898, a committee organized by the American
Society of Bird Restorers presented to the Mayor of Boston in person
the following petition, signed by a host of representative Bostonians:
"_To Hon. Josiah Quincy, Mayor of Boston._
"The undersigned petitioners hereby respectfully represent that the
presence in Boston of hosts of the noxious imported Finch, known as
the English Sparrow, has come to be a public nuisance, general expense
and serious esthetic injury, imperatively calling for prompt municipal
abatement.
"Your petitioners would, therefore, most earnestly request that, as the
Chief Executive Officer of the city, you direct the immediate reduction
and suppression of this pest in such places (instancing the Common and,
conditionally, the cemeteries of Boston) as may now be under, or may
with this purpose in view be brought under, municipal control."
Under the law of 1890, the Mayor proceeded at once to take such
measures as seemed advisable for clearing the Common, Public Garden,
and city squares, of the Sparrow pest.
The work was done under the general oversight of the Committee on the
English Sparrow, of which Mr. Fletcher Osgood, manager and organizer
of the Bird Restorers, was and is the chairman. Five men, with Foreman
Kennedy, proceeded to clear English Sparrow nests from the Common, by
removing them from orifices in the trees, from openings in the Sanitary
Building, and from electric hoods. The nest-boxes, put up years ago by
misguided persons to accommodate the English Sparrow were all removed,
and the Sanitary Building on the Public Garden was cleared.
In the progress of this work, thousands of small orifices in the trees
of the Common (all known to exist) were cleared out and effectively
closed with wooden stoppers, and much dead wood, inviting the breeding
of the Sparrow, was removed. As a whole, great good in the way of
arresting decay and generally improving the trees of the Common was
done by Foreman Kennedy and his force, even if we leave out of account
the checking of the breeding of the Sparrow. The work began on March
15, and ended April 5. During that period about 5,000 nests and 1,000
eggs were destroyed. No young birds were found. The protest against the
work, based mainly on sentimental grounds, which Mr. Angell, of the
S. P. C. A., put forth, resulted in two picturesque hearings at the
City Hall. An account of these hearings, with some of their informal
adjuncts, would certainly entertain and instruct the readers of
Bird-Lore were it possible to embody it here.
Let it suffice to say, that the weight of common sense, of real
humanity, and of economics, as well as of science in overwhelming
measure, was, in the judgment of the best informed, wholly with
those who would reduce the Sparrow. The Mayor, however, decided to
suspend the work, assigning as a reason the difficulty and expense of
continuing it. The committee sent to the Mayor a letter expressing its
regret that the work should thus be brought to an untimely close, and
fully outlining plans for its continuance. At the present writing,
no definite prospect is in sight of the resumption of the work. The
committee proposed, after the closure of the nesting orifices, to pull
down by means of hooked poles such nests as were built by the Sparrows
in the branches of the trees on the Common and Garden, timing visits
so as to destroy nests and eggs only, thus preventing the hatching
of young. With the onset of cold weather it was proposed to trap and
destroy the Sparrow by devices which were already proved at once
efficient and merciful. These two methods, aided, perhaps, by others,
carefully planned to avoid cruelty, were the ones much relied on by the
committee to do the needed work of clearance.
After the stoppage of the work the Mayor wrote to Chairman Osgood,
asking his opinion as to the advisability of putting up bird-houses
on the Common, so built, without perches, as to keep out the Sparrow
and admit the White-bellied Swallow, Bluebird and House Wren. Mr.
Osgood replied in effect that perchless bird-houses, judging from
recent evidence, would probably invite and shelter the breeding of
the Sparrow, and, with the Common still uncleared, would hardly
aid in restoring any native bird. He was willing, under certain
strict conditions, that the experiment should be tried purely as an
experiment, provided that every box should be instantly removed upon
proof that these perchless devices sheltered the Sparrow. He, however,
expressed little hope that any good would come of such a measure beyond
the absolute demonstration, once for all, and publicly, that perchless
boxes were not Sparrow-proof. The "Sparrow committee" could not advise
the putting up of bird-boxes under existing circumstances, and if any
are erected the responsibility for the trial will not rest in any way
with this committee. At this writing, the Sparrows shut out from the
tree orifices are building to some extent in the branches of the trees
upon the Common. To note how extensively this breeding is carried on
this season, and to attain general information as to the presence of
any native birds upon the Common and Garden, a patrol of the Boston
Branch of the American Society of Bird Restorers has been assigned to
observation work through the spring and summer.
Results will be officially reported to the National Biological Survey
(U. S. Department of Agriculture) at Washington, D. C.
Fletcher Osgood,
Organizer and Manager of the American Society
of Bird Restorers.
Reports of Societies
MASSACHUSETTS SOCIETY
In February and March, Mr. Ralph Hoffmann gave a course of eight
lectures on birds, under the auspices of the Society. These were well
attended, and not only increased the interest in bird study, but
informed the public more fully of the work of the Society, and also
added materially to the treasury.
March 22nd, the Society held a 'Hat Show' at the Vendome, which was
a success. Many of the best milliners exhibited, and it served the
purpose of interesting both milliners and public in the work of bird
protection. In spite of bad weather, the room was crowded all day, and
many hats were sold. The newspapers reported it with illustrations; the
milliners were pleased; and the Audubon Society was talked about with
renewed interest.
The Society has purchased the publisher's stock of the Audubon Calendar
colored plates, without the Calendar numbers, and are offering them for
sale at 25 cents for the set of twelve.
The large sale of the chart is very satisfactory, about 1,200 having
been sold since Christmas. Appreciative letters are daily received, and
the school teachers especially commend it.
New circulars have been purchased for distribution, from the University
of Nebraska and Cornell University; also "A Letter to the Clergy,"
republished by the Wisconsin Society.
Harriet E. Richards, _Sec'y._
CONNECTICUT SOCIETY
The second annual meeting of the society took place on June 1, in the
United Church Chapel, New Haven Conn., and was largely attended. It
being part of the policy of the Society to hold its public meetings
each year in different parts of the state.
The president made a short address, outlining the work for the coming
season, which will include: (1) the consideration of a practical method
for destroying the English Sparrow, as a bird distinctly injurious
to song birds and others having agricultural value; (2) an effort to
obtain legislation to stop the spring shooting of shore and water
birds; (3) the addition to the societies' equipment of several small
libraries of bird books, to be circulated free throughout the state
where there are no public libraries, after the manner of the lecture
outfits; (4) the addition of an illustrated lecture suitable for small
children.
The report of the corresponding secretary-treasurer showed a membership
in the various classes of 814; also, receipts of over $500 during the
year, no debts, and a balance in the treasury.
The chairman of the committee on free lectures reported the great
success of the undertaking. The two lectures, "Birds about Home," by
Mrs. Wright, and "Some Facts about Birds that Concern the Farmer,"
by Willard G. Van Name, having been out over fifty times since early
spring. These lectures, accompanied by sets of colored slides and
oil-lanterns, are loaned free to any responsible person within state
limits, and the Granges have lately taken them up with results most
gratifying to the Society.
A few changes were made in the management as the election of officers.
Mrs. H. S. Glover, the first corresponding secretary and treasurer,
having resigned, received a hearty vote of thanks for her work, and
Mrs. Wm. Brown Glover was elected as general secretary in her stead,
Mrs. Howard H. Knapp being elected treasurer.
The event of the meeting was the lecture by Mr. F. M. Chapman, upon
Photography as an Aid to Bird Study, all the beautifully colored slides
used as illustrations having been photographed from life.
The detailed annual report of the Society's work will be mailed upon
application.
Helen W. Glover, _Sec'y._
TENNESSEE SOCIETY
It is with great satisfaction that we report the organization in the
court house at Ripley on May 26, of the Audubon Society of the State of
Tennessee. Without the assistance of the southern states, the work of
the northern section of the country must necessarily be hampered by the
inability to protect the birds in their winter haunts and during the
migrations.
It is also gratifying to note the common sense basis upon which the
society is founded, the president, having stated in his initial
address, that "the society had for its leading object the creation of
a public opinion that would secure legislation in the interest of bird
protection, that would spare our birds from threatened extinction."
_... JUST READY. PRICE, $1 NET ..._
Nature Study For Grammar Grades
_A Manual for the Guidance of Pupils below the High School in the Study
of Nature_
BY
WILBUR S. JACKMAN, A.B.
Dep't of Natural Science, Chicago Normal School
Author of "Nature Study for the Common Schools," "Nature Study and
Related Subjects," "Nature Study Record," "Field Work in Nature Study,"
etc.
REVISED EDITION
In preparing this Manual, it has been the author's aim to propose,
within the comprehension of grammar school pupils, a few of the
problems which arise in a thoughtful study of nature, and to offer
suggestions designed to lead to their solution.
That pupils need some rational and definite directions in nature
study, all are generally agreed. But to prepare the outlines and
suggestive directions necessary, and to place these within the reach
of each pupil, is more than any ordinary teacher has time to do, even
granting that she is fully prepared for such work. The utter futility
of depending upon oral suggestions during the class hour, when the
pupils are supposed to be doing individual work, is easily apparent
on a moment's reflection. With a manual of directions in hand, each
pupil may be made strictly responsible for a certain amount of work,
either in the field or in the laboratory. This removes all occasion for
that interruption in his work, which is, otherwise, due to the pupil's
attempt to _think_ and at the same time _hear_ what the teacher says.
* * * * *
"Practical, complete, and, all in all, is the best manual we know
to fit the student to do really effective science work in the high
school.... Altogether both teacher and pupils who use this book are
to be congratulated, for we are sure that through its use the whole
field of nature study will assume new definiteness, practicality and
interest."
--_Southern Educational Journal._
* * * * *
"It is decidedly practical, and will be welcomed by many teachers who
wish to respond in an intelligent way to the demand for nature study."
--_Inland Educator._
PUBLISHED BY
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, New York.
* * * * *
VOL. 1 20c. a Copy
No. 5 OCTOBER, 1899 $1 a Year
=Bird-Lore=
[Illustration]
Edited by
FRANK M. CHAPMAN
The Macmillan Company
ENGLEWOOD, N. J.
NEW YORK LONDON
_R. Weber_
COPYRIGHT, 1899, BY FRANK M. CHAPMAN
=Bird-Lore=
October, 1899
CONTENTS
PAGE
Frontispiece--Founders of the American Ornithologists' Union 142
The American Ornithologists' Union. Illustrated. _J. A. Allen_ 143
American Bitterns. Photographed from nature by _E. J. Tabor_ and
_F. M. Chapman_ 149
The Angler's Reveille. Illustrated by _E. W. Smith._
_Henry van Dyke_ 150
The Prairie Horned Lark. Illustrated. _Robert W. Hegner_ 152
Screech Owl. Photographed from life. _A. L. Princehorn_ 154
A Pleasant Acquaintance with a Hummingbird. Illustrated.
_C. F. Hodge_ 155
A Peculiarity of a Caged Skylark. _H. M. Collins_ 157
FOR TEACHERS AND STUDENTS
On the Ethics of Caging Birds--Letters to the Editor.
{_Anna Harris Smith_ 158
{_C. F. Hodge_ 160
FOR YOUNG OBSERVERS
Oliver Twist--Catbird. _Isabella McC. Lemmon_ 163
NOTES FROM FIELD AND STUDY 166
Birds and Caterpillars, _Caroline G. Soule_; An Odd Nesting Site,
_L. H. Schwab_.
BOOK NEWS AND REVIEWS 167
Mrs. Miller's 'The First Book of Birds;' Knoble's 'Field Key to the
Land Birds;' Hodge's 'Suggestions for the Study of Our Common
Birds;' Book News.
EDITORIALS 169
AUDUBON DEPARTMENT 170
Editorial: Illustration, Quills to Avoid; Audubon's Seal,
illustrated; Report of the Society of the District of Columbia.
×*× _Bird-Lore is published on the first of the month, at Englewood,
New Jersey, where all notices of change of address, manuscripts intended
for publication, books, etc., for review, and exchanges should be sent._
PUBLISHERS' ANNOUNCEMENT
Bird-Lore for December will contain, among other interesting articles,
'The Story of a Pet Sea Parrot,' by E. W. Nelson; 'A Search for the
Reedy Island Crow Roost,' by Witmer Stone; 'A Large Family,' by Frank
M. Chapman, all illustrated. An account of How the Central Park
Chickadees were Tamed by Anne A. Crolius, one of Garrett Newkirk's
admirable bird poems for children, etc., and a detailed Statement
of the Plans of the Magazine for 1900, including an announcement of
special interest to all bird students.
[Illustration: FOUNDERS OF THE AMERICAN ORNITHOLOGISTS' UNION, 1883.
T. McIlwraith. J. B. Holder. D. G. Elliot. Chas. Aldrich.
J. M. Wheaton.
E. A. Mearns. H. W. Henshaw. S. F. Baird.
Geo. N. Lawrence. A. K. Fisher.
Nathan C. Brown. Robert Ridgway, _Vice Pres._
J. A. Allen, _Pres._ William Brewster. Elliott Coues, _Vice Pres._
C. F. Batchelder.
R. W. Shufeldt. C. B. Cory. C. Hart Merriam, _Sec'y._
M. Chamberlain. D. W. Prentiss.
H. A. Purdie. C. E. Bendire. E. P. Bicknell. H. B. Bailey.]
=Bird-Lore=
A BI-MONTHLY MAGAZINE
DEVOTED TO THE STUDY AND PROTECTION OF BIRDS
Official Organ of the Audubon Societies
=======================================
Vol. 1 October, 1899 No. 5
=======================================
The American Ornithologists' Union
BY J. A. ALLEN
(First President of the Union)
[Illustration]
During the sixteen years that have passed since the founding of the
American Ornithologists' Union, in August, 1883, the study of North
American birds has advanced with constantly accelerated strides. That
this progress has been due largely to the founding of the Union is
beyond denial, as will become evident from the following brief history
of its work and the causes that led to its formation.
In all lines of human endeavor, the union of kindred interests and
individual effort toward a common end is the key to success. Before the
founding of the American Ornithologists' Union, its nucleus existed
in a local organization of bird students in Cambridge, known as the
Nuttall Ornithological Club. At first its meetings were informal, and
its membership was limited to a few individuals living in the immediate
vicinity of Cambridge. Later it became regularly organized as a club,
with both resident and corresponding members, the latter embracing most
of the leading ornithologists of this country. The papers presented at
its meetings were often of permanent value, and were later published
in scientific journals. In 1876 these had become sufficiently numerous
and important to warrant the club in establishing its own medium of
publication, the first number bearing date April, 1876, with the title
'Bulletin of the Nuttall Ornithological Club.' As years passed it
served not only as the official organ of the club, but as a medium of
communication between American ornithologists at large.
This led to the consideration of the desirability of organizing a
national society of ornithologists as a means of bringing the workers
in this field into more intimate association and more thoroughly
consolidating their interests. The advantages of such consolidation
seemed so evident that a call was issued August 1, 1883, dated
Cambridge and Washington, for "a convention of American Ornithologists,
to be held in New York city, beginning September 26, 1883." The call
was signed by the editor of the 'Nuttall Bulletin' (J. A. Allen),
associate editor of the 'Nuttall Bulletin' (Elliott Coues), and the
president of the Nuttall Club (William Brewster). The response to the
call, sent to forty-eight of the more prominent ornithologists of the
United States and Canada, was most cordial; twenty-five expressed
their intention to attend the convention, and twenty-one were actually
present, including several who came a thousand miles or more to attend
the convention. Not only were by-laws adopted and officers duly
elected, but, as will be noticed later, important lines of work were
laid out and assigned to committees, the principle of coöperation being
applied in a broad sense.
The Nuttall Ornithological Club is still an active and widely known
organization, although upon the founding of the Union, it generously
voted to discontinue its 'Bulletin' and to place its subscription
list and good will at the service of the Union, which was already
considering the desirability of establishing an official medium of
publication. As a result, the 'Nuttall Bulletin' became 'The Auk,'
which, in recognition of the generous action of the Nuttall Club, was
officially designated as the _second series_ of the 'Nuttall Bulletin.'
Between isolated workers in any field, jealousies and misunderstandings
arise which personal contact tends to obliterate. Such was the case
with our ornithologists for some years prior to the founding of the
Union. There were two rival check-lists of North American birds, each
perhaps equally authoritative though differing in important details,
which led to confusion, and a tendency to array our ornithologists into
two somewhat hostile camps. This being recognized as a threatening
evil of considerable gravity, one of the first acts of the Union was
to appoint a committee on the Classification and Nomenclature of
North American Birds, so constituted as to include the most competent
authorities on the subject and at the same time safeguard all
conflicting interests. The work of this committee long since became a
matter of history. It was conducted with the utmost conscientiousness
and care; personal interests and personal bias were generously
waived, differences of opinion were settled by appeal to facts and
the evidence, with a result that agreement was established in respect
to all points of nomenclature and other technicalities, and a new
impetus given to systematic investigation. Thus, through the work of
this committee alone one of the primary objects in view in founding
the Union was most happily accomplished. Not only a new check-list of
North American birds was substituted for all previous check-lists,
but a new 'Code of Nomenclature' was devised and adopted as the basis
for determining the names to be used in the check-list. After more
than two years of work by the committee the check-list, with its code
of nomenclature, was given to the world in 1886, and became at once
the accepted standard of authority with all American writers on North
American birds; the 'Code' included important innovations in respect
to certain principles of nomenclature, which have since become very
generally accepted the world over. It is, therefore, to be regretted
that a small faction has recently arisen in the ranks of the Union,
that, objecting to certain rules of the 'Code,' is seeking to foment a
break in the good feeling and harmony that have marked the last ten or
twelve years of the history of American ornithology.
A second purpose of the Union was, as already intimated, to bring into
coöperation and into personal acquaintanceship as many as possible of
the workers in ornithology. In effecting this, the appointment at the
first congress of the Union of a Committee on the Migration of North
American Birds proved a most efficient means. This committee, with
Dr. C. Hart Merriam at its head, began at once to issue circulars of
instruction and schedules for the return of data to all bird observers
known to the committee, whether members of the Union or not. Thousands
of circulars were thus issued annually, reaching hundreds of earnest
bird students who had before been working alone and without contact
with the leaders in the science, who were thus not only stimulated
and encouraged to fresh endeavor, but were placed in communication
with a central bureau ever ready to aid their efforts. In a short time
the work of this committee outgrew the financial resources of the
Union, and led to the founding of a distinct division of the United
States Department of Agriculture, designated the Division of Economic
Ornithology and Mammalogy, of which the chairman of this committee
was invited to become the official head, and which has since become
the United States Biological Survey. The data on the migration and
geographical distribution of North American birds gathered by this
committee was turned over to this new Division of the Department of
Agriculture for collation and publication, and the work of collecting
further data was continued on an increased scale by the Chief of the
Division of Economic Ornithology and Mammalogy. This has resulted in
the accumulation of an immense amount of valuable material, but little
of which has as yet been published. In 1888 a preliminary report
on 'Bird Migration in the Mississippi Valley,' prepared by Prof.
W. W. Cooke and Mr. Otto Widmann, under the direction of the chief
of the division, was published, forming one of the most important
contributions to the subject of bird migration that has yet appeared. A
second report on 'The Land Birds of the Pacific District,' by Mr. Lyman
Belding, was published in 1890, and, though issued by the California
Academy of Sciences, was the outcome of the work of this committee.
Eventually all of the vast accumulation of data inaugurated by the
Union, and later carried on under the auspices of the United States
Department of Agriculture, relating not only to the migratory movements
of birds but to their distribution, will doubtless be published, with
proper map and other graphic illustrations.
To another important committee appointed at the first congress of the
Union was delegated the investigation of 'The Status of the European
House Sparrow in America.' This committee issued circulars of inquiry,
and made an elaborate preliminary report to the Union, which report
was later, as in the case of the data accumulated by the Migration
Committee, turned over to the Division of Economic Ornithology and
Mammalogy of the United States Department of Agriculture. Under Dr.
Merriam, the investigation was prosecuted with renewed activity,
and a final and authoritative report was issued by the Department
of Agriculture in 1889. It is needless to say that this impartially
conducted report was strongly condemnatory of this burdensome pest.
At the second congress of the Union it appointed a Committee on
Protection of North American Birds, which has been continued to the
present time, and has been the guiding influence in this great economic
and humanitarian work. It has done much to arouse and enlighten public
opinion respecting the enormity of the destruction of birds for
millinery purposes, and to guide legislation for the better protection
of our birds. It early published two important 'bulletins' on the
destruction of birds, and was the origin of the original Audubon
Society, whose president, Dr. George Bird Grinnell, was long one of
the most active members of this committee; through this society, with
chapters throughout the country, the cause of bird protection was
for several years immensely aided. Of late it has become practically
the advisory committee of the existing Audubon Societies which have
recently multiplied so gratifyingly throughout the country, and it
publishes in 'The Auk' an annual report summarizing the work of bird
protection for the year.
In extending a helping hand to casual and isolated observers, the Union
has had a marked influence upon the recent progress of ornithology in
America, as shown by the increase in the number of observers who have
become contributors to 'The Auk,' and the constantly increasing number
who have allied themselves to the Union by membership therein. The
constitution of the Union provides for four classes of members; namely,
(1) Active Members, limited to fifty, and to include only those who
have distinguished themselves as original investigators in ornithology,
and who reside in the United States or Canada; (2) Honorary Members,
limited to twenty-five, and consisting of the most eminent of foreign
ornithologists; (3) Corresponding Members, limited to one hundred, and
consisting mainly also of eminent foreign ornithologists; (4) Associate
Members, unrestricted as to number, but limited to residence in the
United States or Canada. This class includes not only a large number
of experienced field workers, but many college professors, educators,
and persons eminent in other scientific fields, but who are not expert
ornithologists. It is open to all reputable persons whose interest
in ornithology is sufficient to prompt them to seek such a congenial
alliance.
At the first congress forty-seven ornithologists were elected to active
membership--presumably all of the satisfactory candidates available. Of
these forty-seven original members, twenty-four were either present or
took a prominent part in the organization of the Union, and are thus
termed 'Founders.' (The accompanying photograph is a picture of these
founders, made up from separate photographs, it being impracticable
for the members to assemble to be photographed as a group.) This has
remained about the average number, but, as years have passed, the
choice for the few coveted places has become harder and harder each
year to fill, through the rapid increase of not only available but
desirable candidates; so that attainments that would in the earlier
days of the Union have proved ample credentials for admission have now
less weight, in the effort to select the best from a large otherwise
desirable candidacy. The honor of the position has thus become enhanced
through competition of merit. The two foreign classes have remained
practically unchanged as regards numbers. But the class of Associate
Members has increased from about one hundred in 1886 to nearly six
hundred in 1898.
The revenue of the Union is derived entirely from the annual dues
from members ($5 for active members and $3 for associate members) and
subscriptions to 'The Auk.' As the ordinary running expenses of the
Union are but a trifle, all of the proceeds from these sources of
revenue are devoted to the publications of the Union. These include,
besides 'The Auk,' now in its sixteenth volume, the original Code and
Check-List of North American Birds (1886), an Abridged Check-List
(1889), a separate reprint of the Code alone (1892), the second edition
of the Check-List (1895), and nine Supplements to the Check-List
(1889-1899), varying in size from about 8 to 36 pages.
'The Auk,' issued quarterly, consists on the average of about 420
pages per year, with at least four fine colored plates, and a greater
or less number of text figures, including of late numerous half-tone
illustrations of birds in life. As practically all of the funds of the
Union are devoted to its publications, and mainly to 'The Auk,' its
prosperity as regards its size, the frequency and character of its
illustrations, and its influence in promoting the study of ornithology,
is limited only by the proceeds from memberships and subscriptions.
As it aims to meet the interests and the necessities of both the
scientific and the non-scientific reader and contributor, the general
articles, comprising more than half of each number, are about equally
divided between popular and technical papers, while its department
of General Notes (embracing some 15 pages in each number), is about
equally acceptable to both classes, as with more or less technical
matter for the benefit of the expert are blended notes on the habits
and distribution of the lesser known species of our fauna, often
of a highly popular character. The department of Recent Literature
gives more or less extended notices of the current literature of
ornithology, including general works, popular and technical, and of
all the principal writings relating to American birds, whether faunal,
economic, popular, or technical.
The meetings of the Union occur in November of each year, and
heretofore have been held alternately in New York, Washington, and
Cambridge or Boston. The present year the meeting, which will be the
seventeenth congress of the Union, will be held in Philadelphia, Nov.
13-17, 1899. As usual, the public sessions, beginning on the 14th, will
be open to the general public, to which all who are interested in birds
are cordially invited.
[Illustration: AMERICAN BITTERNS
Two of a brood of four birds about one week old, at which age they
showed no fear of man
Photographed from nature by E. H. Tabor, Meridian, N. Y., May 31, 1898]
[Illustration: AMERICAN BITTERNS
The four members of the brood, of which two are shown above, about two
weeks old, when they showed marked fear of man
Photographed from nature by F. M. Chapman, Meridian, N. Y., June 8,
1898]
The Angler's Reveille
BY HENRY VAN DYKE
What time the rose of dawn is laid across the lips of night,
And all the drowsy little stars have fallen asleep in light;
'Tis then a wandering wind awakes, and runs from tree to tree,
And borrows words from all the birds to sound the reveille.
[Illustration]
This is the carol the Robin throws
Over the edge of the valley;
Listen how boldly it flows,
Sally on sally:
_Tirra-lirra, down the river,
Laughing water all a-quiver.
Day is near, clear, clear.
Fish are breaking,
Time for waking.
Tup, tup, tup!
Do you hear? All clear.
Wake up!_
The phantom flood of dreams has ebbed and vanished with the dark,
And like a dove the heart forsakes the prison of the ark;
Now forth she fares through friendly woods and diamond-fields of dew,
While every voice cries out "Rejoice!" as if the world were new.
[Illustration]
This is the ballad the Bluebird sings,
Unto his mate replying,
Shaking the tune from his wings
While he is flying:
_Surely, surely, surely,
Life is dear
Even here.
Blue above,
You to love,
Purely, purely, purely._
There's wild azalea on the hill, and roses down the dell,
And just a spray of lilac still abloom beside the well;
The columbine adorns the rocks, the laurel buds grow pink,
Along the stream white arums gleam, and violets bend to drink.
[Illustration]
This is the song of the Yellow-throat,
Fluttering gaily beside you;
Hear how each voluble note
Offers to guide you:
_Which way, sir?
I say, sir,
Let me teach you,
I beseech you!
Are you wishing
Jolly fishing?
This way, sir!
Let me teach you._
Oh come, forget your foes and fears, and leave your cares behind,
And wander forth to try your luck, with cheerful, quiet mind;
For be your fortune great or small, you'll take what God may give,
And all the day your heart will say, "'Tis luck enough to live."
[Illustration]
This is the song the Brown Thrush flings
Out of his thicket of roses;
Hark how it warbles and rings,
Mark how it closes:
_Luck, luck,
What luck?
Good enough for me!
I'm alive, you see.
Sun shining, no repining;
Never borrow idle sorrow;
Drop it! Cover it up!
Hold your cup!
Joy will fill it,
Don't spill it!
Steady, be ready,
Love your luck!_
The Prairie Horned Lark
BY ROBERT W. HEGNER
With photographs from nature by the author
[Illustration]
At intervals throughout the winter, but more often after the first of
February, flocks of hardy little brown birds may be seen about Decorah,
Ia., wandering from place to place in search of food. They are the
Prairie Horned Larks, harbingers of approaching spring. Some weeks
later, when the snow has melted, they seek their favorite haunts in the
pasture lands, select a slight elevation from the surrounding surface,
and proceed to build their nests. They first dig a hole three inches
wide and three inches deep in the softened ground, and then line it on
the bottom and sides to the depth of an inch with dry grasses, making a
warm nest, level with the surface. I accidentally discovered the first
one this season on April 9. It was nicely lined with vegetable down in
addition to the usual lining of dry grasses, and was finished ready
for the eggs. I returned in a week, but, as the mother bird was not
at home, had to content myself with a photograph of the three finely
spotted eggs which it then contained. Some children who observed my
movements may be held responsible for the destruction of the nest, as
two days later I could find nothing but the hole from which it had
been torn. After a short search another Lark flushed from a nest of
three eggs almost identical with the first and about 300 yards from
it. Unless incubation is far advanced they seldom flush from directly
under foot, nor do they run along the ground first, after the manner
of a great many of the ground builders, but keep a good look out, and
fly straight from the nest when anyone comes within fifty feet of them.
It is needless to say that it takes sharp eyes to discover their exact
position.
[Illustration: NEST AND EGGS OF HORNED LARK]
[Illustration: HORNED LARK AT NEST]
At my arrival on the bright, sunny morning of April 24, the Lark was
at home, and I had another opportunity of trying to photograph her.
I focused the camera three feet from the nest and retired to the end
of my 60-foot rubber tube. The gophers seemed to be less afraid of me
than the Lark, and several of them played together some ten feet away.
One little striped rascal began gnawing at the rubber tube, and I was
forced to frighten him away. This tube greatly puzzled the Lark, for
in running around the camera she always came to a halt upon reaching
it, and it was only after repeated trials and much excitement that she
screwed up courage enough to hop over. Twenty minutes seemed to be
sufficient time to reassure her, and with head lowered she hastened to
the nest, looked in, and settled down upon the eggs. An exposure of
one twenty-fifth of a second with stop 16 shows her as she was looking
into the nest. While I reset my shutter and put in a new plate the Lark
left the nest, but this time it took her only two minutes to return. A
photograph of a young bird was taken on May 7. The pair of birds that
were feeding this young one had already built a second nest, thinner
and more loosely put together than the first, and were incubating four
eggs.
The enemies of the Prairie Horned Lark seem to be very numerous. The
nest and four eggs mentioned above were plowed under to facilitate corn
planting, while innumerable nests are destroyed earlier in the season,
when the farmers 'break sod.' The first nests in March and April are
often subject to great changes of temperature. Although they may be
built in warm, sunny weather, a sudden cold wave often covers them with
snow and imbeds them in ice.
While waiting for the Lark to become accustomed to the camera, I had
an excellent opportunity of observing its song flight. Lying there
on my back, I enjoyed a splendid exhibition of one of this bird's
peculiar traits. From a point a hundred yards from where I lay a happy
songster suddenly arose, flying upward at an angle of 45 degrees, not
continuously, but in short stretches. When at a great elevation he
began to sing, taking short, quick wing strokes, and singing while he
sailed. In this way a circle 300 yards in diameter was crossed and
recrossed until fully five minutes had passed, when, suddenly closing
his wings, he shot downward like a bullet, slowly catching himself on
nearing the ground and curving outward to his starting point. Several
similar exhibitions were carried on in exactly the same manner, the
time not varying by half a minute. Though the song lacks many of
the fine qualities of other birds, it clearly expresses the joy and
happiness of the singer. With thrills of pleasure we hear it echo over
the hills, and bless the little creature, hoping that in the 'struggle
for existence' he may thrive and wax exceeding strong.
[Illustration: SCREECH OWL
Photographed from life by A. L. Princehorn]
A Pleasant Acquaintance with a Hummingbird
BY C. F. HODGE
Clark University, Worcester, Mass.
[Illustration]
IN the Nature Study course of the Summer School, a little time was
devoted to the honey bee, life of the hive, care and management, and
especially the work of bees in cross-pollination of flowers and fruits.
The closing "laboratory exercise" in the subject consisted in a honey
spread, the honey being removed from the glass hive in the window of
the laboratory, in the presence of the class, and distributed with hot
biscuits and butter, cream and fresh milk. The spread was pronounced
the most enjoyable "laboratory work" ever done by members of the
class, but to crown the event in the most exquisite way possible, a
Hummingbird flew into an open window, and darting, unafraid, in and
out among the noisy groups of fifty or more busy people, it rifled the
various flowers with which the laboratory was decorated. In closing the
windows for the night it was accidentally imprisoned, and on visiting
the room next morning (Sunday), I found it still humming about the
flowers. Thinking that it might be a female, with nestlings awaiting
its return, I gently placed an insect net over it with the intention of
passing it out of the window. It proved, however, on closer inspection,
to be a young male, so I thought it could do no harm to keep it a day
or two for acquaintance sake. No sooner was my finger, with a drop
of honey on it, brought within reach, than it thrust its bill and
long tongue out through the net and licked up the honey with evident
delight. Releasing it from the net, I dropped honey into a number
of the flowers, sprinkling water over them at the same time, and it
immediately began feasting and drinking. As it flew about it taught me
its bright little chirp, evidently a note of delight and satisfaction.
When I visited the laboratory again at noon, I took in my hand a few
heads of red clover and a nasturtium with its horn filled with honey.
On giving the chirp a few times, it flew straight to the flowers in
my hand, probed each clover tube, drank its fill from the nasturtium,
and, perching contentedly on my finger, wiped its bill, preened its
feathers, spread out its tail, scratched its head, and for the space
of a minute or two looked me over and made himself the most delightful
of tiny friends. The next time I entered the room, about two hours
later, he flew to the door to meet me, and this time I took him home,
the better to care for him during the afternoon and evening. In the
course of the afternoon about a dozen friends called. Each one was
provided with a nasturtium into which a drop of honey had been placed,
and nearly the whole time the little bird was flying from one to the
other, perching on fingers or sipping from the flowers held in the hand
or buttonhole, to the delight of everybody, none of the company having
ever seen a live Hummingbird so close by.
[Illustration: NEST AND EGGS OF HUMMINGBIRD SEEN FROM ABOVE
Situated in an apple tree 8 feet from the ground
Photographed from nature by E. G. Tabor, Meridian, N. Y., June 16, 1897]
In the evening he went to roost high up on a chandelier, and in trying
to catch him with the net to put him in a safe cage for the night,
he fell like a dead bird to the carpet. I held him warm in my hand,
thinking that he was about to breathe his last, but anxious to save the
precious little life if possible, I very gently opened the bill and
inserted a pellet of crushed spiders' eggs as large as a good-sized
sweet pea, following it with a drop of water. He had been feigning,
probably, as they are known to do; at any rate, in a minute he was as
bright and lively as ever. His room for the night was a large insect
cage of wire screen filled with convenient twigs and a large bowl of
flowers. At five in the morning I fed him honey and young spiders, and
again at six. At eight I had a lecture, the subject of which happened
to be the taming of wild birds and attracting them about our homes.
Removing all flowers from his cage to let his appetite sharpen for the
two intervening hours, I set the cage on a table by my side on the
lecture platform. I had taken pains to have two fresh nasturtiums in
my buttonhole, one well loaded with honey, the other filled with the
juices of crushed spiders and spiders' eggs. On reaching the topic
of approaching birds in the right way, appealing to them along the
lines of their tastes and appetites, appealing to the "right end" of
a bird, I had only to open the door, give the familiar chirp, and
the little charmer was probing the flowers. Then, as if anxious to
show off, he again perched on my hand and went through his _post
prandial_ toilet, thus giving the class an idea of bird-taming which
no amount of books or anything I might have said could have possibly
equaled. Many expressed themselves as never having seen so successful
a "demonstration." Some said that I must be in league with higher
powers, and it all must have been "providential." This may be true, for
anything I know to the contrary. But it may have been simply improving
the opportunities of a happy accident; and 'accidents,' we know, "never
happen among the Hottentots." If flowers and honey can do it, at any
rate, such accidents shall be more frequent about my home in the future.
A Peculiarity of a Caged Skylark
BY H. M. COLLINS
[Illustration]
Do birds reverse the usual order of things, and from a serious and
stolid youth develop mature playfulness? I have been led to ask myself
this question by observing the extraordinary playfulness exhibited
by a pet Skylark in extreme old age. Upon hearing the owner of the
bird declare, "Dickie has reached his dotage, and, is now in a state
of second childhood," it occurred to me that birds have no season of
youthful frivolity such as Mother Nature accords to her other children.
We are accustomed to associate the idea of youth with playfulness: we
picture to ourselves the lamb frisking in the meadows, the frolicsome
kitten playing upon the hearth, and we groan inwardly when we meditate
upon the destructive propensities of our pet puppies, but we think of
our young feathered friends as lying inert in their nests, gaping wide
open their yellow-edged beaks incessantly for food, and apparently
interested in nothing else.
A caged Skylark is a deplorable object generally, but the Lark of
which I am about to write was a bird 'with a history,' and one, whose
cage was not a prison but a home. While his native meadow (in Ireland)
was being mowed, one of his wings was struck by the mowing-machine
and the last joint terribly mutilated. One of the workmen picked up
the poor little sufferer and gave him to a little boy whose father
was something of a naturalist and a great lover of birds. Examination
of the shattered wing revealed the fact that amputation of the last
joint would be necessary if the bird's life was to be preserved.
The operation was performed, and the little patient was placed in
a very large cage carpeted with fresh, green sods. He was well
supplied with food and water; the injured wing healed rapidly; he
became surprisingly tame, and soon appeared to enjoy life thoroughly.
Occasionally, he was permitted to enjoy his freedom in a large room,
but after running about awhile, always seemed glad to return to his
cage, the door of which was left open, so that he might go home when he
pleased.
He was a beautiful singer, and used to stand in the long grasses and
fresh clover of his sod, quiver the poor pinions that could never again
soar skyward, and burst into the glorious carol with which he had been
wont to salute the sunrise, when, high up among the fleecy clouds, he
had appeared an almost invisible speck of personified melody to the
enchanted listeners below.
As the years sped by, this much-indulged bird craved petting and
attention to an abnormal degree, could be coaxed at any hour into
singing, and formed the strange habit of trilling a low, sweet carol
at ten o'clock every night, which his mistress called his "good-night
song." When he had been caged for twelve or thirteen years he became
as playful as a kitten, and was particularly fond of going through
what his mistress called the "jungle tiger act," which consisted
of crouching down out of sight in the grasses of his sod, and then
springing suddenly forward to bite in a gentle way a finger poked
between the wires of his cage. He never wearied of this game so long
as he could induce a child or grown person to engage in it with him,
and before he died, a year or so later, he developed a degree of
playfulness that almost amounted to imbecility.
=For Teachers and Students=
'On the Ethics of Caging Birds.'
[As stated in our last issue, Mrs. Miller's paper on 'The Ethics
of Caging Birds,' in Bird-Lore for June, brought us numerous
letters, from which we have selected two, representing both sides
of the question, for publication. As a further contribution to this
discussion we publish in this number of Bird-Lore several papers
describing experiences with caged birds.--Ed.]
To the Editor of Bird-Lore,
_Dear Sir_:--I have always been such an admirer of Mrs. Miller's
writings that I confess to a feeling of great disappointment in her
article concerning caged birds, which appeared in your June number of
Bird-Lore. Will you allow me to comment on it briefly?
Mrs. Miller starts out with the position that while she disapproves
with "all her heart" of caging wild birds, yet since "birds are caged
we must deal with circumstances as we find them."
Undoubtedly Mrs. Miller is right in sounding a note of warning for
those who keep birds as pets, by impressing upon them the care that
should be given these utterly helpless little creatures. She says,
"Not one bird in a thousand is properly cared for," and she might add
to that the fact that thousands die every year of hunger, thirst, lack
of care,--forlorn prisoners, utterly unable to help themselves. These
facts being true, the inconsistency of her position is that she gives
the slightest encouragement to the bird traffic which results in so
much cruel suffering. She says that the discomfort they suffer in the
bird stores is so great that she feels it to be "a work of charity to
purchase them," yet she does not seem to see that every purchaser is
in a measure accountable for this suffering. If no one would buy the
birds, the traffic would soon cease.
But Mrs. Miller appears to be utterly hopeless as to the cure of this
evil, for she says: "If a bird-lover should worry and fret himself to
death he could not put an end to their captivity." It is exceedingly
fortunate that there have been, and still are, and probably always will
be, a few men and women in the world who believe with Emerson that
"Nothing is impossible to the man who can will," and who, in spite of
the perplexing outlook, go forward, and bring about the world's great
reforms.
The first step in repressing any wrong is for some individual to take
a firm stand, even in the face of the greatest discouragement. Another
will follow, and then another, and by and by, when we have hardly begun
to believe anything has been done, a wave sweeps over the country, and
the wrong is righted. This, however, can never be brought about unless
by individual action and the abiding faith that every one counts.
Mrs. Miller advances as her "strong argument" the great value of
caged birds as pets in the education of the child, and upsets her own
argument by saying: "Nothing is more important than the training of
our youth in humanity, and respect for the rights of others." "Respect
for the rights of others" means justice to all the dumb or helpless
creation. Even a child can reason out for himself that a bird was
created for freedom in the upper air, not for confinement in a cage,
and that, even if it is bred in a cage, it is no more just or right to
put it to such purposes than it would be to keep a dog chained all day,
or a horse tied in a stable all his life, or a man confined within the
narrow limits of prison walls.
Children have ample opportunity to be taught kindness, and, what is
even better than kindness, justice to the animal creation by having
the care of cats or dogs, yet how few mothers or teachers take pains
to teach the right care of these common animals, which are to be found
everywhere, and are dependent on man for their happiness. A child will
not discriminate between the bird bred in a cage and the bird taken
from the mother's nest for the purpose of being brought up in a cage,
and while birds are given as pets to children, not only the traffic
in canaries is encouraged, but the snaring, or the capturing by other
means, of our own song birds will continue. It seems to me there is but
one lesson to teach children in relation to birds,--that they were made
to be free, and to have space to use the wings that surely cannot have
proper exercise even in the confined space of a house.
Let those who already have birds take good care of them, by all means;
give them the right food and plenty of fresh water, and as much freedom
as possible in the limits of the house; but let those who are true
bird-lovers discourage the traffic in birds in every way possible, no
matter how hopeless it may seem just now to endeavor to put a stop to
it, for the influence of every individual counts.
Anna Harris Smith.
* * * * *
To the Editor of Bird-Lore.
_Dear Sir_:--In the main Mrs. Miller's statement of the case is the one
that I have come to adopt. In fact, my prejudices against the practice
of caging birds were entirely banished and the whole subject revealed
in a new light by reading Mrs. Miller's 'Bird Ways.' Such wonderful
possibilities of bird happiness, child culture and education, and bird
study were opened up by this little book that, from being opposed to
caged birds, I was converted to believe that the cage might be made one
of the most important factors in the great new field of bird study,
and, I hope, actual bird culture, which seems to be dawning before us.
The subject has a number of ethical bearings which Mrs. Miller does not
touch upon, two of which I may point out.
[Illustration: FEEDING A PET CEDAR WAXWING
Which lives out of doors, all over the house, and in his cage
Photographed from nature by C. F. Hodge]
First: We may not only have a "right" to confine a bird, but it may
become a duty which we owe not only to the bird itself, but to the
community as well. The moment before beginning to write this a young
Robin was sitting warmly in my hand gulping down earthworms and
blackberries. He is now sleeping quietly in a cage by my side. I picked
him up this noon on the ground under the nest, unable to fly, and I
love to think of him safe and cosy instead of fluttering in the jaws
of some miscreant cat. Some days ago a boy came and told me that a
neighbor's wife had taken a young Robin away from her cat "and put it
on top of the shed" (to fall down into the cat's mouth again). At my
request he brought the bird, but it was so lacerated that it died that
night. Of two nests of Robins I have known this season, in spite of me,
the cats got seven of the young, and the eighth would have gone the
same way were it not sleeping safely in another of my cages. In all, I
have three young Robins, all picked up from the ground, unable to fly,
all, without the shadow of a doubt, saved from the cats. None have died
in my hands, the one killed by the neighbor's cat not counted, and they
seem to be fairly happy little birds, though it is to be hoped that
they will grow happier as they grow wiser. My point is simply that in
the present exigency of our rapidly decreasing bird life, every child
should learn how to care for fledglings of different species and have
suitable cages where they may be kept until, at least, they are able to
fly. This may often be done by hanging the cage near the nest, where
the parents will feed it. Our children owe this work to the community,
to themselves and to the birds. I am aware some will say that this will
lead to the death of more fledglings than now go to feed the cats. And
under present conditions, I regret to say, there is a good deal of
truth in it. In trying to get children interested in this work, I have
been surprised to find so many who say, "Oh yes, I would like to have
some tame Robins so much; but you can't keep them alive. I have tried
it, and they all died." "What did you feed them?" "Oh, bread crumbs;"
now and then one will say "worms and berries." "Did they eat?" "No, I
never saw them eat anything." "Did you give them any water to drink?"
"No, I didn't think of that." "How often do you feed them? Do you know
that birds are flying appetites? Did you feed them regularly about
every hour?" "No, I put in some stuff generally about once a day."
And so it goes. But shall we be content with this state of things when
any bright child can be given the necessary instruction in an hour by
which he can succeed in keeping alive and taming practically all the
fledglings that fall in his way?
Second: We owe it as a duty to both the birds and ourselves to learn
the facts of bird life. We do not adequately know the life story
of a single one of our most common species. Every fact that can be
discovered as to the good or the harm that birds do _ought_ to be found
out. Every fact so discovered will act as just so much more motive
force to bring about proper relations with our birds. A few birds have
been killed, and the stomach contents analyzed, to obtain facts about
bird foods which have changed our sentiments and even legislation.
Somebody owed this as a duty to both birds and community. But this
method is not well adapted for use in elementary schools, and its
results might be infinitely extended and the subject of bird foods
made a matter of practical public education, by having classes in
nature study throughout our schools make feeding tests with tame birds
of different species. Cages will have to play at least a temporary
role in work of this kind. More than this, a knowledge of bird ways,
habits, methods of feeding and caring for their nests and young, their
songs and calls, "their manners for the heart's delight," are great
æsthetic and educational values. These might all be developed and
enhanced by a proper use of caged birds. Instead of collections of
stuffed birds, the ethics and educational value of which I wish might
be discussed in Bird-Lore, each city might have, possibly maintained
by some ornithological society, a fine collection of pairs of a few of
our most valuable species. These could make the rounds of the schools
each year. This, too, need only be a temporary expedient, useful until
sufficient general interest and knowledge is developed so that we may
have, properly appreciated and protected, an abundance of our native
birds tamed sufficiently to come close about our homes.
The above are but two points among many, and I bring them forward to
bespeak a little intelligent favor for the proper use of the cage. We
owe the birds duties of protection and acquaintance, and the cage may
help us in the performance of both.
C. F. Hodge, _Clark University_.
=For Young Observers=
Oliver Twist, Catbird
BY ISABELLA McC. LEMMON
[Illustration]
On July 9, 1898, we caught a young Catbird. He had left the nest
the day before, and had then eluded all our efforts, but by morning
a pouring rain had removed his objections to captivity, and a very
wet, bedraggled little Catbird was established in the big cage. He
soon stopped trying to get out, and seemed quite contented--except
occasionally when the old birds heard him calling for food and came to
the rescue. But that was carefully guarded against, and as his voice
lost its baby tone they left him in peace.
A name was quickly given, the frequency and great size of his meals
promptly gaining for him the title of 'Oliver Twist.' Worms, currants,
goose-, rasp-, black-, and huckleberries, bits of bread soaked in
milk, all went down, but the fruit seemed somewhat more acceptable. On
July 16, the amount of food was greatest: 43 earthworms and 81 berries
between 7 a. m. and 6.50 p. m.
As the different berries ripened he gave up the early kinds and
accepted the new ones most eagerly, elderberries especially. These last
he ate by the bunch--indeed one need only walk past a patch of the
bushes when the fruit is ripe, to appreciate a Catbird's fondness for
them.
By the 16th Oliver had taken his first bath, and for the first time I
saw him drink. Four days later, when he must have been about four weeks
old, we heard him trying to sing--queer little chirps and gurgles in
the lowest of tones, but evidently intended for a song. He stopped as
soon as he saw me, raising his wings and begging for food, and for some
time we were obliged to enjoy his musical efforts by stealth.
By August 1, he was pretty well feathered; the tail was almost full
length, and even the little feathers over the nostrils had started to
grow. He was also able to feed himself then, but greatly preferred
being fed; often, when I offered him more than he wanted, giving a low
'chuck' very like the old birds' call.
As August progressed worms were refused, and though bread and milk
and all sorts of berries were eaten, the bird evidently missed
something. He was molting a little--if the loss of so few feathers
could be called a molt--but became more and more droopy, refusing or
indifferently eating the various things we tried, till some one gave
him a fly! Then all went well; he ate all the flies we could catch,
sometimes twenty at a meal, and also wasps and bees. When he saw
somebody bringing one of the latter dainties he would jump about in
great excitement; then, snatching the insect, kill it with a few quick
pinches and swallow it, poison and all. He also learned the motion made
in catching a fly, and was on the alert as soon as he saw me snatch for
one.
Towards the end of the month I let him out of doors--though he had
often been out in the house--and after that he had exercise nearly
every day, flying about a little, coming readily to me when I whistled,
and generally returning to the cage quickly enough for a few flies.
He evidently regarded the cage as home, for let any large bird pass
at what he considered too close quarters and in he went like a flash,
there to remain till the danger was past. On one occasion, when he was
hopping among the plants in the house, I saw him carefully watching a
Crow that was fighting his way against a heavy wind. Suddenly the Crow
gave way, making a swoop almost to the window, and in far less time
than it can be told the Catbird was in the cage and up on a perch, so
terrified that it was some minutes before he was himself again.
About the middle of September Oliver Twist caught the migration fever,
and when no one was in sight was very uneasy in his cage, not only
during the day but at night as well. In the evening the bird was always
moved to a dark back hall, where he usually settled down at once; now
he was most restless, chucking and mewing sometimes for nearly an hour,
and not until late in October did he finally become quiet. Cool days,
also, made him more uneasy.
During the fall months Oliver ate every sort of berry I could find,
from dogwood to Boston ivy, with two exceptions: those of the wild
rose and the catbriar. The seeds of the ivy berries he always ejected,
perfectly clean and free from pulp, beginning about half an hour after
swallowing them; he would work the bill a little, as if the seed
were in his mouth, a moment later pushing it out with the tongue. At
first they appeared quite rapidly--two or three or even more in a
minute--then more slowly, and continued for at least three-quarters of
an hour.
As the house flies disappeared, the big blue and green species, that
during the summer were simply scorned, grew quite tempting; but even
these gave out, and it became very difficult to find proper food for
the little fellow. Figs for a time supplied the place of berries, but
he tired of them at last, and bits of meat never passed for flies or
for the worms that even in the greenhouse went down beyond reach of the
trowel.
The cage now stood among the plants in a sunny window of the
dining-room, and the conversation at meal times generally started
Oliver singing; yet it was always a low version of the usual Catbird
song, for he invariably sang with the bill nearly closed. Often in the
dark December mornings he was scarcely awake when breakfast began, but
in a few minutes we would hear his cheerful little song--the first
thing in his day--before he even left his night's perch. Then, as the
sun touched him there came a great arranging of feathers and a good
shake to put each one in place again, and then breakfast.
The bath was almost never omitted from the time the bird was about a
month old, and often he bathed twice a day if the first were given him
early in the morning; and how he enjoyed it! shuffling up the water
with his wings, ducking his head, and spattering in every direction
till he was soaked through, then going to the perch and flicking wings
and tail and ruffling the feathers until dry.
To some extent Oliver showed affection by coming most readily to me,
who generally fed him, and by an odd little greeting he usually gave
when I offered him my finger, gently pinching it or giving a slight
peck, too mild ever to be mistaken for anger. Unfortunately this was
broken up by the teasing of another member of the family, and the pecks
became too severe to be altogether agreeable.
He was growing more wild and more unwilling to return to his cage, and
I intended to let him go when spring came, but long before that time he
got sickly and sluggish, eager for the berries and insects that were
not to be found, and in spite of everything I tried in their stead, he
died late in December.
But though Oliver Twist lived so short a time he taught me many
interesting lessons, one of which, in particular, I shall long
remember: never try to keep a fruit- and insect-eating bird through
the winter, for no amount of willingness and care can supply him with
proper food. Take nature's word for it--she knows quite well what she
is about when she sends them all off to the south.
[Illustration]
=Notes from Field and Study=
Birds and Caterpillars
Last year, at Brandon, Vermont, the tent-caterpillars were so abundant
as to be a serious injury and annoyance. They lay in close rows, making
wide bands on the tree trunks. They spun down from the upper branches
and fell upon the unfortunate passers-by. They crawled through the
grass in such numbers that it seemed to move in a mass as one looked
down upon it. Under these circumstances, birds might be expected to do
strange things,--and they did.
The pair of Downy Woodpeckers which lived near us were frequently seen
on the ground picking up the crawling tent-caterpillars. They seemed
to prefer taking them from the ground to taking them from the trees,
though there were more on the tree-trunks than on the ground even. And
the Woodpeckers seemed to have no difficulty in moving on the ground,
though they moved more slowly than when dodging around a tree.
Two mountain-ash trees on the place were infested by borers, though
only slightly and only near the ground, and at the foot of one of these
trees the Downy Woodpeckers made many a stand, while they probed the
borer-holes with their bills.
The Cuckoos came boldly into the village and fed and fed, flying
about quite openly. The Nuthatches flew to a band of caterpillars on
a tree-trunk, and were so busy and absorbed in devouring the crawlers
that I could put my hand on them before they started to fly, and then
they merely flew to another tree close by, and attacked another mass of
caterpillars.
Blackbirds waddled over the grass by the sides of the streets picking
up the crawlers, and even a Woodcock spent several hours in the garden
and on the lawn, _apparently_ feasting on tent-caterpillars, but I
could not get near enough to be sure.
The Vireos--White-eyed, Red-eyed, and Warbling--the Cat-birds,
Cedar-birds, and Rose-breasted Grosbeaks did good service to the trees
and human beings, but the most evident destruction was done by the
Chipping Sparrows when the moths emerged late in the summer. The moths
were very abundant after four o'clock in the afternoon, flying about
the trees to lay their eggs, and then the Chippies became fly-catchers
for the time, and flew straight, turned, twisted, dodged, and tumbled
'head over heels and heels over head' in the air, just as the course
of the hunted moth made necessary. A quick snap of the beak, and four
brownish wings would float down like snowflakes, and their numbers on
the walks, roads and grass showed how many thousands of moths were
slain. In spite of the unwonted exercise the Chippies waxed fat, but
not as aldermanic as the Robins, which, earlier, gorged themselves on
the caterpillars until, as one observer said, "their little red fronts
actually trailed on the ground."--Caroline G. Soule, _Brookline, Mass._
An Odd Nesting Site
I have never seen an account of a House Wren taking up his abode in
another bird's nest. It seemed, therefore, at first incredible when,
early this summer, we saw a Wren frequenting a deserted Baltimore
Oriole's nest and apparently start housekeeping in it. This nest was
in one of the outermost branches of a large sugar maple about twenty
feet from the ground and the same distance from the farm-house, and was
completely filled with twigs by its tenants. The little Wren's choice
was the more remarkable, in that a number of bird houses had been
placed about the grounds for their special accommodation. I believe
none of these were occupied, and this pair deliberately preferred the
Oriole's nest.--L. H. Schwab, _Sharon, Conn._
=Book News and Reviews=
The First Book of Birds. By Olive Thorne Miller. With 8 colored and
12 plain plates and 20 figures in the text. Boston and New York,
Houghton, Mifflin & Co. 1899. 12mo, pp. viii + 149.
Text-books based on successful experiences in teaching generally prove
to be of value, and the present volume is no exception to the rule. It
contains what its author has found to be the most adequate definition
of the bird in her talks on this little-known creature to boys and
girls. It is well-named a 'First Book of Birds,' Mrs. Miller's aim
being to arouse an intelligent interest in bird-life before confronting
the inquirer with 'keys' and discouraging identification puzzles.
She, therefore, begins with the nest, and outlines the development of
the bird, following this section by chapters on the bird's language,
food, migration, intelligence, etc., and concluding with sections on
'How He is Made,' and 'His Relations with Us.' The matter is well
chosen, and so admirably arranged that no attentive reader can fail to
receive a clear and logical conception of the chief events in a bird's
life.--F. M. C.
Field Key to the Land Birds. By Edward Knobel. Boston, Bradlee
Whidden. 1899. 16mo, pp. 55, numerous cuts in the text and 10
colored plates.
This is an attempt to make plain the way of the field student, to
whom every aid is welcome. One hundred and fifty-five land birds are
divided into four groups, according to their size, and are arranged
on nine colored plates, in the preparation of which the publishers
have evidently struggled with the evils of cheap lithography, or some
inexpensive color process. Experience in this direction makes us a
lenient critic, and our standard has been reduced from the level
of perfection to that of recognizability; that is, if a plate is
sufficiently good to unmistakably represent a certain species, even
crudely, we view it solely from a practical standpoint, and admit that
it doubtless serves its purpose. Applying this test to the plates under
consideration, we are forced to state that, although fairly familiar
with the species figured, we are in many cases unable to name the
figures.
The text is condensed and to the point, and the pen and ink
illustrations liberally scattered through it will be found useful by
beginners, to whom the book may be commended.--F. M. C.
Our Common Birds. Suggestions for the Study of Their Life and
Work. By C. F. Hodge, Ph.D., Clark University, Worcester, Mass.
Food-chart and Drawings by Miss Helen A. Ball. 8vo, pp. 34, 3
half-tones, 8 line cuts in text. 10 cts. per copy, $6 per 100
copies.
This is a contribution to the pedagogics of ornithology which cannot
fail to interest every one desirous of seeing bird studies introduced
in our schools. It opens with a chapter on the 'Biology of Our Common
Birds,' which shows the importance of becoming acquainted with them,
giving, in fact, the reasons which have actuated Professor Hodge in his
work in the schools of Worcester.
The nature of this work and the success which has attended it are
set forth in the succeeding pages, whose contents are indicated by
the sub-titles 'The Bird Census,' 'The Food Chart' (A very useful
compilation by Miss Helen A. Ball, showing graphically the food of
our commoner birds), 'Bird Study in the Schoolroom,' 'Taming Our Wild
Birds and Attracting Them to Our Houses,' and a 'Life Chart of Our
Common Birds.' Lack of space prohibits a description of the methods of
bird-study given under these headings. Some of the results of their
practical application, however, are to be found in the concluding
chapter on the 'Ten-to-One Clubs' formed in the Worcester schools,
which were joined by "not less than 5,000 children," who signed the
club constitution, which opens by stating that "the object of the club
shall be to use every means possible to increase the number of our
native wild birds by providing them, when necessary, with food, water,
shelter and nesting places."
The pamphlet gives other and equally striking proofs of the enthusiasm
with which the children welcomed the opportunity of becoming familiar
with birds, and indeed is the most convincing proof of the educational
value of bird study which has come to our attention.--F. M. C.
Book News
With its August issue 'Our Animal Friends,' the organ of the American
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, concludes its
twenty-sixth volume. This magazine is edited with a breadth of
view which must result in winning many supporters for the cause it
represents. In its columns we find no senseless tirades against the
inhumanity of partly civilized man, but sane, logical discussions
of the rights of animals and the manner in which they may best be
secured; of the habits of animals, including many interesting papers on
birds,--of animals and their value to man, all of which are calculated
to arouse sympathy or interest in them and respect for the journal
which so ably champions their welfare.
'Wilson Bulletin,' No. 26, issued May 30, 1899, has an extremely
interesting paper by its editor, Lynds Jones, recording the number
of species observed by him on May 8, in Lorain county, Ohio. Work
was begun about Oberlin at 3.30 a. m., and continued at 11 a. m. at
Lorain on the shore of Lake Erie, resulting, finally, in a record
of 112 species identified with the aid of an "Eight Power Bausch &
Lomb" field-glass during one day. This number speaks volumes for the
observer's activity and the richness of his field; we doubt if it has
ever been exceeded in the same period of time in North America.
Mr. C. Barlow publishes in the May-June issue of the Bulletin of the
Cooper Ornithological Club, of which he is editor-in-chief, an eloquent
appeal to ornithologists to take only such birds as they may require
for their own use, and not to collect birds at all during the nesting
season. Particularly does he condemn collecting for profit, saying with
equal force and truth, "Every naturalist owes it to science to protect
the natural beauties with which the Creator has blessed the earth, and
how can the collector, with never a twinge of conscience, quiet the
sweet voices of the woodland in a fashion little less than barbarous,
for pecuniary gain."
We congratulate Mr. Barlow on the stand he has taken, and we
congratulate all bird-lovers on the fact that his declaration of
principles adds another journal to the list of those in which the
egg-thief cannot boast of his exploits.
The Chautauqua Literary and Scientific Circle, appreciating the
significance of the widespread and constantly increasing interest in
birds, has decided to introduce a volume on ornithology into its course
of 'Required Reading,' Miss Merriams' 'Birds Through an Opera-glass,'
one of the first, as it is one of the best text-books for beginners,
having been selected for this purpose. Implying, as it does, the
formation of a class of several thousand bird students, this may be
considered a step in educational ornithology of unusual importance.
'The American' for August 26, commenting on the 'Hints to Young Bird
Students,' published in Bird-Lore for August, says: "This paper
deserves the most serious consideration from all. It is well meant, it
is timely, it is sensible; the friendly advice it tenders should be
accepted and observed."
A Writer on the slaughter of birds for millinery purposes, in 'The New
Illustrated Magazine' for September, whose zeal for the cause of bird
protection exceeds his knowledge of ornithology, makes, among others,
the remarkable statement that "Florida is now the only country in which
Hummingbirds are found, except as rarities." He also gives a unique bit
of information in regard to the Toucan, which is said to use its "big
beak" to trim its "primary tail-feathers"!
=Bird-Lore=
A Bi-monthly Magazine
Devoted to the Study and Protection of Birds
OFFICIAL ORGAN OF THE AUDUBON SOCIETIES
=Edited by FRANK M. CHAPMAN=
=Published by THE MACMILLAN COMPANY=
=====================================================
Vol. 1 October, 1899 No. 5
=====================================================
=SUBSCRIPTION RATES.=
Price in the United States, Canada, and Mexico,
twenty cents a number, one dollar a year, postage
paid.
Subscriptions may be sent to the Publishers, at
Englewood, New Jersey, or 66 Fifth avenue, New
York City.
Price in all countries in the International Postal
Union, twenty-five cents a number, one dollar and
a quarter a year, postage paid. Foreign agents,
Macmillan and Company, Ltd., London.
-----------------------------------------------------
Manuscripts for publication, books, etc., for review,
should be sent to the Editor at Englewood,
New Jersey.
-----------------------------------------------------
Advertisements should be sent to the Publishers
at Englewood, New Jersey, or 66 Fifth
avenue, New York City.
-----------------------------------------------------
COPYRIGHTED, 1899, BY FRANK M. CHAPMAN.
-----------------------------------------------------
Bird-Lore's Motto:
_A Bird in the Bush is Worth Two in the Hand._
-----------------------------------------------------
At first thought there seemed to be little connection between the
'closet' ornithologist, minutely examining his series of specimens and
describing differences which, to the untrained eye, do not exist, and
the bird-lover in the fields and woods with heart atune to nature's
songsters. But one has only to read Dr. Allen's article on the American
Ornithologists' Union in order to appreciate the close relationship
existing between scientific and popular ornithology. The organization
of the Union brought isolated bird students throughout the country in
touch with the leaders in ornithology and, perhaps, for the first time,
made them aware that there were successors to Wilson and Audubon.
This result was due largely to the work of the Union's Committee
on Migration, which, under the direction of its chairman, Dr. C.
Hart Merriam, sent out thousands of circulars calling for observers
to supply it with data on migration. Circumstances have thus far
permitted the publication of only a small portion of the vast amount of
information secured by this committee, but even if not another word is
set in type, it can be said to have created a new era in the history
of American ornithology. It asked for assistance, but it gave far more
than it received. Its chairman and his superintendents of districts
became, as it were, instructors in ornithology, with pupils in nearly
every state in the Union and throughout Canada. The value of the advice
they gave to students who had been plodding in the dark, prompted only
by an innate love of birds, cannot be overestimated, but we believe it
to be a demonstrable fact that the popularity of bird-study in this
country to-day is due more to the aid and encouragement given students
by the members of the American Ornithologists' Union's Committee on
Migration than to any other influence.
* * * * *
In connection with the publication of a plate of 'Quills to Avoid,'
we would add to Mrs. Wright's plea for the Eagle an appeal for the
preservation of the Brown Pelican. The feathers of this bird are now
worn so commonly--hundreds may be seen in New York City daily--that
every one knowing of the ease with which the bird may be killed and
its comparatively restricted range, must feel that at the present rate
of destruction its early extinction, at least in the United States, is
assured.
From Texas reports come to us of the slaughter of Brown Pelicans in
large numbers, and we have also heard rumors that they are being killed
for their feathers in Florida. If the residents of the last-named
state could be made to realize how infinitely more valuable to them a
live Pelican is than a dead one, we do not for a moment doubt that its
destroyers would speedily receive their deserts.
This apparently ungainly, but in reality singularly graceful bird is
the most picturesque element in the life of Florida's coasts, where its
size and familiarity render it conspicuous to the least observing. To
the tourist it is as much an object of interest as the alligators or
cabbage palms. It is distinctly strange and foreign, and its presence
lends a character to the view given by no other bird in Florida. Its
loss would, therefore, be irreparable, and we appeal to every lover of
Florida to aid in its protection.
=The Audubon Societies=
"_You cannot with a scalpel find the poet's soul,
Nor yet the wild bird's song._"
Edited by Mrs. Mabel Osgood Wright (President of the Audubon Society of
the State of Connecticut), Fairfield, Conn., to whom all communications
relating to the work of the Audubon and other Bird Protective Societies
should be addressed. Reports, etc., designed for this department should
be sent at least one month prior to the date of publication.
DIRECTORY OF STATE AUDUBON SOCIETIES
With names and addresses of their Secretaries.
=New Hampshire= Mrs. F. W. Batchelder, Manchester.
=Massachusetts= Miss Harriet E. Richards, care Boston Society
of Natural History, Boston.
=Rhode Island= Mrs. H. T. Grant, Jr., 187 Bowen street,
Providence.
=Connecticut= Mrs. Henry S. Glover, Fairfield.
=New York= Miss Emma H. Lockwood, 243 West Seventy-fifth
street, New York City.
=New Jersey= Miss Anna Haviland, 53 Sandford Ave.,
Plainfield, N. J.
=Pennsylvania= Mrs. Edward Robins, 114 South Twenty-first
street, Philadelphia.
=District of Columbia= Mrs. John Dewhurst Patten, 3033 P street,
Washington.
=Wheeling, W. Va.= Elizabeth I. Cummins, 1314 Chapline street,
(branch of Penn Society) Wheeling.
=Ohio= Miss Clara Russell, 903 Paradrome street,
Cincinnati.
=Indiana= Amos W. Butler, State House, Indianapolis.
=Illinois= Miss Mary Drummond, Wheaton.
=Iowa= Miss Nellie S. Board, Keokuk.
=Wisconsin= Mrs. George W. Peckham, 646 Marshall street,
Milwaukee.
=Minnesota= Mrs. J. P. Elmer, 314 West Third street,
St. Paul.
=Tennessee= Mrs. C. C. Conner, Ripley.
=Texas= Miss Cecile Seixas, 2008 Thirty-ninth
street, Galveston.
=California= Mrs. George S. Gay, Redlands.
Consistency.
Audubonites may be divided into two classes as regards their attitude
toward the wearing of feathers,--the moderates and the total abstainers.
The moderates hold that they violate none of the interests of bird
protection in its fullest sense by wearing the plumes of game or food
birds, or those of the Ostrich, which is as legitimately raised for its
feathers as a sheep for its wool. In short, they see the necessity of
keeping feather-wearing within conservative bounds, and elect to take
the individual responsibility of so doing.
The total abstainers say: "Let us break ourselves altogether of the
feather wearing habit. We shall be more conspicuously consistent as
bird protectionists, and we shall not be called upon to settle fine
points and follow difficult boundaries. We need not know anything about
plumage, and never have to decide whether the wings used by milliners
are really those of food birds, or the pinions of song birds disguised
with dye. Or if the fearfully manufactured confections are the heads of
real Owls and Parrots twisted out of all semblance to nature, or merely
compounds of Chicken feathers and celluloid." Both of these attitudes
are equally useful to the cause if they are maintained consistently,
but inevitably the way of the total abstainers is the easier of the
two. The total abstainers need not, to quote Hamlet, "know a hawk from
a handsaw." While, in order to be consistent, the moderates must be
bird students of no mean intelligence if they would keep safely on the
exceedingly narrow pathway that divides the feathers that may be, from
those that _must not_ be worn, not alone by Audubonites, but by any
woman who has either sense or sensibility. A pathway? A slack wire is
the better simile, so treacherous is the footing.
What is it that causes the downfall of many of the moderates, who know
the common birds fairly well, and could not be hoodwinked into buying
Egret's plumes or dyed swallow wings?
[Illustration: QUILLS TO AVOID
1. Inner wing quill of Bald Eagle; length, 10-13 inches; brownish
black, more or less white at the base.
2. Outer wing quill of Bald Eagle; length, 15-24 inches; black, often
whitish or brownish at the base, the broader web of the five outer
quills notched, this notch being absent from the remaining quills.
3. Outer wing quill of Brown Pelican; length, 15-17 inches; black,
the quill, or midrib, white for about two-thirds its length.
4. Inner wing quill of Brown Pelican; length, about 10 inches;
blackish brown, the outer margins, particularly of the narrower web,
frosted with silver-gray.
]
You can guess easily, for you have seen the tempter protruding above
and behind the up-to-date outing hat the entire season, and unless you
are unusually lucky it has poked you reproachfully in the eye, as if
calling your attention to its plight.
"The Quill of course!"
Yes, the Quill is the mischief-maker. At its introduction many years
ago, the Quill was at first the harmless feather of a Crow, or a Goose
quill sedate enough to make a pen for a judge. After awhile it took on
dabs of color and even spangles, but all this time it was a good safe
outing and rainy day ornament.
Then a change came, the Quill grew suddenly longer with a curl to its
tip that made one wonder, if natural, how its original wearer had lived
with it. This Quill, however, did not stay well in curl, and less
than a year ago it was displaced by the reigning favorite, a Quill as
aggressively impertinent as any that decks the cap of the operatic
Mephisto, but not half as becoming to the wearer.
Now comes the inconsistency of the moderates. They wear these Quills
blindly, because they have not studied birds thoroughly enough to
distinguish between plumages except when aided by decided color. The
sentence, "It is only a Quill," covers deadly sins of omission. I
have cornered several women who are what might be called aggressive
Audubonites: "Do you know that the notched Quill in your hat is a
pinion of the American Eagle?" "Oh no, you must be mistaken, it surely
is only a Goose, or perhaps a Turkey feather, and besides,"--drawing
herself up with superior wisdom, "Eagles are very rare birds, that fly
so high it is very difficult to shoot them, and I know at least fifty
people who are wearing these Quills."
Rare? yes, pinion of peerless flight! But what bird can fly so high or
find so eery a resting place as to escape the 'desire of the eye' of
fashion? Pause a moment, well-meaning sisters of 'little knowledge.'
Hold a Quill class and lay your outing hats on the dissecting table!
Study out the things you have been wearing, and you will be wiser, and
I hope sadder also, resolving either to join the total abstainers, or
to devote enough time to bird study to be consistent in your actions.
"But," you may say, "We are consistent even now. The Eagle is neither
a song bird, an insect eater, nor a game bird, and from an economic
standpoint it can only be considered as a bird of prey and an eater of
wastage."
Yes, this is all true, and yet, in the higher view of life, the poetic
value of things must take rank with the practical. And what bird
expresses wild grandeur and poetry of motion in so great a degree as
the Eagle? What has Burroughs recently said of it?--"The days on which
I see him are not quite the same as the other days. I think my thoughts
soar a little higher all the rest of the morning; I have had a visit
from a messenger of Jove. The lift or range of those great wings has
passed into my thought."
Pegasus harnessed to a plow or 'Cæsar dead and turned to clay,'
stopping a hole 'to keep the wind away,' would not be a greater misuse
than thus plucking the pinions of our national Bird of Freedom to act
as rudders to women's hats.
M. O. W.
Audubon's Seal
(From a granddaughter of Audubon)
[Illustration: AMERICA MY COUNTRY]
Audubon's seal was made from a pen-and-ink sketch of the Wild Turkey,
being the portrait of a bird weighing forty pounds. The painting from
which the seal was reduced measured about thirty-six by twenty-eight
inches. A lady friend in Liverpool having seen the painting, was
talking, with others, to Audubon about it, and said to him, "Now you
ought to have this Turkey for your coat-of-arms." Audubon said that he
was too much of an American to use a crest, or coat-of-arms, but that
the picture could be easily reduced to the size of a fob seal, then all
the fashion for gentlemen's watch chains. Some surprise was expressed
by the company present at this statement, particularly by the "Lady
Rathbone," as Audubon was want to call her. No more was said then,
but in due time a tiny pen-and-ink sketch, perfect in every detail,
with the motto, "America my Country," was sent to Mme. Rathbone, with
Audubon's signature and compliments. Not long after, Audubon received,
to his amazement, a beautiful fob seal, cut in topaz, which he wore on
his watch chain as long as he lived. It is now a valued possession held
by his family. The accompanying cut is made from a die of this seal,
and exactly reproduces it in size, etc.--D. T. A. Tyler.
Report of the Audubon Society of the District of Columbia
For the District of Columbia the Secretary has a most encouraging
report.
On Saturday, March 25, a very successful exhibit of spring millinery
was given at the Hotel Corcoran, the ladies' parlors being kindly
loaned for the occasion. About 300 women attended the exhibit in
spite of a pouring rain, lasting the whole afternoon. Quite a number
of bonnets and hats were sold, and every person attending left well
supplied with Audubon literature.
In April, a free lecture by Mr. Henry Olds, entitled "Some Familiar
Birds," was given at the First Baptist church, which was also
kindly loaned for this most interesting talk. The lecture was fully
illustrated by colored lantern slides, and was made doubly entertaining
by Mr. Olds' clever imitations of the notes of the various birds
explained. About 400 persons attended this lecture.
The Rev. Mr. Leasitt explained the aim and objects of the Audubon
Society, Dr. C. Hart Merriam introducing the lecturer in the
unavoidable absence of the President of the Society, Surgeon General
George M. Sternberg. Audubon literature was again distributed, and some
copies of Mrs. L. W. Maynard's valuable book 'Birds of Washington and
Vicinity,' were sold.
The Audubon Society has started an Audubon collection of books in the
new Free Library. This collection is designed primarily to be books of
reference, large and expensive works, more especially for the use of
teachers.
For the work in the public schools, Dr. T. S. Palmer and Miss Elizabeth
V. Brown have been untiring and most successful. In the spring of 1898,
two classes were arranged, one for teachers in the Normal School, in
charge of Dr. Palmer, and one for teachers in the Second and Fourth
grades, in the hands of Mr. H. C. Oberholser. The classes were limited
to 12 members each, and work extended over ten weeks in 1898-9.
Specimens were kindly loaned by the Biological Survey, and the classes
were enabled to handle, compare, and identify skins of 175 species of
the 290 birds recorded for the vicinity of Washington. These specimens
included nearly all the land birds from this vicinity. Hints were given
concerning the classification of birds, the characters of the principal
groups, and the use of keys.
Short talks were also given on especially interesting topics, such as
the 'Relation of Birds to other Vertebrates,' 'Feathers and Feather
Structure,' 'Flight,' 'Migration,' 'Food,' and 'Nesting Habits.'
The Society this spring purchased 1,000 Audubon buttons from the
Society of the State of Wisconsin, Miss Elizabeth V. Brown taking
charge of their sale. A large number were sold to children in and
outside the schools, and while not strictly members of the Society,
they became more interested in the birds through the wearing of this
attractive button.
Miss Florence A. Merriam has given several valuable talks this past
spring, notably one at the Washington Club, before an audience of about
200 women, which created great enthusiasm and brought the Society an
increase in membership. The Secretary has been untiringly busy in
trying to get societies organized in the South and in some western
states.
Jeanie Maury Patten, _Sec'y._
ANNOUNCEMENT
------------
The Child Life Readers
BY
ETTA AUSTIN BLAISDELL
Assistant Superintendent of Schools, Brockton, Mass.
I. CHILD LIFE--
A First Reader Price, 25 cts.
II. CHILD LIFE IN TALE AND FABLE--
A Second Reader Price, 35 cts.
III. CHILD LIFE IN MANY LANDS--
A Third Reader In preparation
IV. CHILD LIFE IN LITERATURE--
A Fourth Reader In preparation
The central idea of these books is to _hold the child's interest_
by giving him reading matter (profusely illustrated) that he _can
understand and enjoy_. The lessons, therefore, relate exclusively to
_child life_.
The First and Second Readers have _easier reading-matter_ and _more
of it_ than do most of the other readers now available for first and
second year. They have been graded with the utmost care.
These books, beginning with the Second Reader, have been planned as
an _introduction to literature_. The subject-matter, therefore, is
confined to material of _recognized literary value_.
The aim of the publishers has been to produce _an artistic set of
Readers_ that shall be mechanically as nearly perfect as possible.
As a unique feature in binding, they would call attention to the
_covers, which are water-proof_, and can be cleansed, when soiled by
constant handling, without injury to the book.
Recent Publications on Nature Study
=Bailey's Lessons With Plants.= $1.10 _net_
Suggestions for Seeing and Interpreting some
of the Common Forms of Vegetation.
=Bailey's First Lessons with Plants.= 40 cts. _net_
"Extremely original and unusually practical."
=Harding's The Liquefaction of Gases. Its Rise
and Development.= $1.50
Complete and scientific, in a popular style.
=Ingersoll's Wild Neighbors.= $1.50
"Instructive as well as delightful."--_Popular
Science Monthly._
=Jackman's Nature Study for Grammar Grades.= $1 _net_
Proposes a few of the problems within the
comprehension of grammar school pupils, which
arise in a thoughtful study of nature, with
suggestions for their solution.
=Lange's Hand-Book of Nature Study.= $1 _net_
"The style of the book is fresh and inspiring."
=Lange's Our Native Birds. How to Protect Them
and Attract Them to Our Homes. _Just ready._=
=Murché's Science Readers.=
Vol. I. 25 cents.
Vol. II. 25 cents.
Vol. III. 40 cents.
Vol. IV. 40 cents _net_.
Vol. V. 50 cents _net_.
Vol. VI. 50 cents _net_.
=Weed's Life Histories of American Insects.= $1.50
"An unusually attractive book."--_Dial._
=Wilson's Nature Study in Elementary Schools.=
First Nature Reader 35 cents
Second Nature Reader 35 cents
Teacher's Manual 90 cents
See, also, the new book by Mrs. Wright, described on another page
PUBLISHED BY
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, New York
* * * * *
VOL. 1 20c. a Copy
No. 6 DECEMBER, 1899 $1 a Year
=Bird-Lore=
[Illustration]
Edited by
FRANK M. CHAPMAN
The Macmillan Company
ENGLEWOOD, N. J.
NEW YORK LONDON
_R. Weber_
COPYRIGHT, 1899, BY FRANK M. CHAPMAN
=Bird-Lore=
December, 1899
CONTENTS
PAGE
Frontispiece--Golden Eagle. Photographed from life by _H. W. Nash_.
A Search for the Reedy Island Crow Roost. _Witmer Stone_ 177
Illustrated by _W. Gordon Smith_.
Winter Bird Notes from Southern New Hampshire. _William Everett Cram_ 180
Illustrated by the author.
How the Central Park Chickadees Were Tamed. _A. A Crolius_ 185
The Surprising Contents of a Birch Stub. _Frank M. Chapman_ 187
Illustrated by the author.
Richardson's Owl. Illustrated by the author. _P. R. Peabody_ 190
FOR TEACHERS AND STUDENTS
An 'Advisory Council'. 192
"Humanizing" the Birds. _Caroline G. Soule_ 193
'On the Ethics of Caging Birds.' _Olive Thorne Miller_ 194
FOR YOUNG OBSERVERS
The Birds' Christmas Tree. Illustrated. 195
The Little Brown Creeper. Verse. Illustrated. 196
NOTES FROM FIELD AND STUDY 197
An Interesting Phoebe's Nest, illustrated, _Ellen E. Webster_;
A Singing Blue Jay, _Frank E. Horack_; A Useful Nest-Holder,
illustrated; To Hunt Southern Birds; Seventeenth Congress of the
American Ornithologists' Union.
BOOK NEWS AND REVIEWS 199
Newton's 'Dictionary;' Mrs Wright's 'Wabeno;' Cory's 'Birds of
Eastern North America;' Book News.
EDITORIAL 201
BIRD-LORE FOR 1900 202
AUDUBON DEPARTMENT
Editorial: Reports from Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin
Societies; The Passing of the Tern, illustrated.
×*× _Bird-Lore is published on the first of the month, at Englewood,
New Jersey, where all notices of change of address, manuscripts intended
for publication, books, etc., for review, and exchanges should be sent._
IMPORTANT NOTICE TO SUBSCRIBERS
All subscriptions beginning with the first (February) number of
Bird-Lore expire with this issue. A blank is enclosed for the purpose
of renewal, which it is requested be made at our Englewood, N. J.,
office, ten cents for exchange charges being added to checks on other
than New York City banks. In this connection we would call attention to
the editorial and announcements on pages 201 and 202 of this number.
PUBLISHERS' ANNOUNCEMENT
Bird-Lore for February, 1900, beginning Volume II, will contain
the details of the students' 'Advisory Council,' and, among other
interesting contributions, an important and fully illustrated paper on
'The Tongues of Birds,' by F. A. Lucas, Curator of Comparative Anatomy
in the U. S. National Museum; 'A Method of Recording Observations,'
by Professor Pinchot, of Trinity College; 'Egret Farming,' by F. M.
Chapman; and there will be some remarkable bird photographs.
[Illustration: GOLDEN EAGLE
Photographed from life by H. W. Nash, Pueblo, Colorado]
=Bird-Lore=
A BI-MONTHLY MAGAZINE
DEVOTED TO THE STUDY AND PROTECTION OF BIRDS
Official Organ of the Audubon Societies
=======================================
Vol. 1 December, 1899 No. 6
=======================================
A Search for the Reedy Island Crow Roost
BY WITMER STONE
Curator of Birds, Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia.
[Illustration: AMERICAN CROW
Photographed from life by W. Gordon Smith]
In the Delaware river, just where it begins to widen out into the bay,
and midway between the shores of Delaware and New Jersey, lie two long,
low islands, known as 'The Pea-patch' and 'Reedy Island.'
Early in the century the former of these was selected by the
government as the site of Fort Delaware, and its importance advanced
proportionately in the popular mind. Later on, the lower island, which
already boasted of a light-house, became further dignified by the
establishment of a quarantine station on its banks.
Although of little importance before the government claimed them, these
islands were by no means uninhabited, but were, in fact, well-known
as a winter resort. The early inhabitants, though much less imposing
than the soldiers and health officers who have superseded them, did not
fail to attract attention--even newspaper notoriety; not from their
individualities, but from their countless numbers. In fact they were
nothing more than ordinary, despised black Crows, but Crows in such
countless numbers that they could not fail to be noticed.
Every evening they came at dusk by thousands and tens of thousands,
winging their way in long lines from all points of the compass, and
settling down on the reed-covered islands in a solid black phalanx.
This winter roosting habit of the Crows is well-known, and many roosts
have been located, but the habit seems still to lack a satisfactory
explanation. Why should these birds fly back and forth every day over
miles and miles of country to roost in some definite spot which, so
far as we can judge, is no better suited for roosting purposes than
hundreds of other places which they pass by? And why should they gather
together every night in such numbers as to attract general attention
and invite slaughter by thoughtless gunners, when, by roosting in small
numbers wherever they happen to be feeding, they would escape notice?
These are questions I shall not attempt to solve.
Estimates placed the number of Crows in these two island roosts at half
a million, and they held possession of the islands undisturbed until
about the time of the establishment of Fort Delaware. They did not
relish this intrusion, and determined to desert the ancestral Pea-patch
roost; being also influenced, no doubt, by a storm which flooded the
island at night and drowned thousands of the unfortunate birds.
The Reedy Island roost continued in use until the establishment of the
Quarantine Station, at a much later day; then it, too, was deserted,
and the famous island roosts were no more.
I have long been interested in the winter gatherings of the Crows, and
made inquiry of the light-keeper at Reedy Island to ascertain whether
any Crows at all remained there at the present time. I was informed
that they came across from Delaware as of old in long flights from the
west, northwest and southwest, but all passed over the island into New
Jersey, where he judged they had established new winter quarters.
The location of this new roost at once became a matter of interest. By
further inquiry I learned that Crows at Salem, N. J., nearly opposite
the Pea-patch, flew southwards at evening, and by plotting this flight
line with those given by the light-house keeper, on a map, I found that
they joined some four or five miles below Salem, and here I felt sure
the roost was to be found.
I had little trouble in impressing an ornithological friend, who
resided at Salem, with the importance of locating this roost, and one
cold afternoon in January found us driving off in the direction taken
by the Salem Crow flight.
When we neared the point at which we thought the roost ought to be, we
noticed a scattered line of Crows coming up from the south, evidently
from feeding grounds on the shores of the bay. They came along in
twos and threes, and alighted in a corn-field on our left, from which
the farmer had neglected to haul in all of the ears. Here was a rare
feast, and about a thousand birds were already assembled, to whose
numbers constant additions were being made. This, we thought, must be
the beginning of the evening assemblage, but, strange to say, no Crows
were coming in from the west; these were all southern Crows, and,
furthermore, they showed no signs of settling for the night, but were
simply intent on the grain.
Driving further on, we inquired of a man where the Crows roosted,
and were assured that they made use of a long strip of woods lying
between us and the river. Investigation, however, showed not a Crow in
the wood, and we were inclined to believe that we had been purposely
misled. Passing through the trees, we had an unobstructed view of the
river. The sun was just setting, a round, red ball of fire in the
west, and in the yellow light we could see the lines of Delaware Crows
crossing towards us, while in the fields before us were hundreds of
Crows lazily flapping about much as the others were in the corn-field
to the east.
Here, again, we were directed back to the same wood and assured that
the birds would repair there when ready. It was just dusk as we hitched
our horse and entered the woods; there was still no sign of Crows,
but as we emerged on the farther side we found that an immense flight
was just beginning to pass overhead from the westward; evidently the
river Crows had concluded that bedtime had come. They did not, however,
alight in the trees, but passed over and dropped noiselessly into the
low fields just before us, seeming to select a black, burnt area on
the far side. To our amazement this "burnt" patch proved to be a solid
mass of Crows sitting close together, and in the gathering gloom it was
difficult to see how far it extended. Four immense flights of the birds
were now pouring into the fields, in one of which we estimated that 500
Crows passed overhead per minute, during the height of the flight.
It was now quite dark, and we began to think that the birds had no
intention of retiring to the woods, so determined to vary the monotony
of the scene and at the same time warm our chilled bodies. We,
therefore, ran rapidly toward the nearest birds and shouted together
just as they first took wing. The effect was marvellous; with a roar
of wings the whole surface of the ground seemed to rise. The birds
hovered about a minute, and then entered the woods; we soon saw that
but a small portion of the assemblage had taken wing. Those farther off
had not seen us in the darkness, and doubtless thought that this was
merely the beginning of the regular nightly retirement into the trees.
The movement, once started, became contagious, and the Crows arose
steadily section by section. The bare branches of the trees which stood
out clearly against the western sky but a minute before seemed to be
clothed in thick foliage as the multitude of birds settled down.
After all had apparently entered the roost, we shouted again and the
roar of wings was simply deafening; another shout brought the same
result in undiminished force, and even then, probably not half the
birds took wing.
They soon settled down again, and we were glad to leave them in peace.
So far as we could learn they are but little molested, and let us hope
that this may continue. Many of the large roosts farther north in
Pennsylvania and New Jersey, seem to be rapidly decreasing in size,
owing to thoughtless persecution, and eventually the poor birds may be
driven to roost in scattered detachments, as would, indeed, seem best
for their preservation; but if this comes to pass, one of the most
impressive phenomena of our bird-life will have disappeared.
Winter Bird Notes from Southern New Hampshire
BY WILLIAM EVERETT CRAM
Illustrated by the author
[Illustration]
January 1, 1898. Northern birds have, as a rule, been decidedly rare
this winter. In November, Goshawks were quite abundant, and a few
Snowy Owls were also to be seen at that time. As I was returning from
a tramp just at dusk one evening, one of the great white fellows came
sailing by only a few yards from the ground. His manner of sailing and
something in the set of his wings reminded me strongly of an Eagle
flying before the wind; there were evident the same power and swiftness
without visible effort. He came from the northeast on the wind of a
rising storm, and had evidently but just arrived, being in much more
perfect plumage than is usual in November, appearing, at the distance
of only a few yards, absolutely white, with his big yellow eyes burning
among his snowy feathers.
Snow Buntings were also common in November, and Horned Larks during
the first part of the month. I noticed a large flock of the latter one
morning feeding in the stubble and, observing that they were moving
towards me, crouched motionless until they came up and surrounded
me, gathering seeds in the earnest, industrious manner of domestic
Pigeons, and exhibiting but little more alarm at my presence. On the
27th a Shrike alighted in the top of the elm near the house, and,
after reconnoitering for a few moments, started down into the orchard,
but apparently missed whatever it struck at and, turning upward,
alighted in a smaller elm by the road, when it at once began tearing
to pieces an old bird's nest, behaving exactly as if in anger at its
disappointment.
For some time I was unable to discover what it had at first been after,
but finally caught sight of a Downy Woodpecker clinging motionless to
the underside of a small branch in an apple tree, with every feather
drawn down close to its body, just as an owl does when trying to escape
notice.
[Illustration: SNOWY OWL]
After a while it began turning its head from side to side, as if to
make sure its enemy had disappeared. When I attempted to make it fly,
it merely crept mouse-like about the branches until perfectly certain
that the Shrike had gone, when it took wing and flew to another tree,
where it presently went to work as if nothing had happened.
Throughout December the only birds to be found were Crows, Blue Jays,
Downy Woodpeckers, Black-capped Chickadees, Nuthatches, Golden-crowned
Kinglets, Brown Creepers, and Partridges, with an occasional Bald
Eagle or Rough-legged Hawk and a very few Flickers. A large flock of
Wild Geese passed over on the 7th, and I saw a few Tree Sparrows and a
Winter Wren about the last of the month. The Sparrows lingered about
until the first week in January, when a large flock of Snow Buntings
made their appearance. A few days later, however, neither Sparrows nor
Buntings were to be found anywhere.
January 6. Going through the woods I heard the small birds making quite
a fuss in the young growth, and on looking for the cause, discovered a
Saw-whet Owl in a little hemlock. When I first caught sight of him he
was sitting on one of the smaller branches ten feet from the ground,
apparently asleep, with his back to the trunk and his head tipped back.
On being closely approached, he seemed to awake suddenly with a start,
at once turning his great round eyes in my direction, and after that,
never removed them from me for an instant, though I walked around his
tree several times. He had a partly eaten white-footed mouse slung
across the branch beside him, probably the remains of his breakfast.
Most of the small birds contented themselves with chirping at him
from the surrounding trees, occasionally approaching to inspect him
more closely and then flying off again, but one Red-breasted Nuthatch
remained from the first on a twig close to the Owl's head, and kept
up a continual harsh rasping cry, as if having some especial cause of
complaint against him. A Flicker and some Blue Jays alighted in the
neighboring trees, but not seeing anything of importance, soon flew
away again.
When I shook the tree the Owl merely fluttered a few yards, and lit on
a maple sapling just out of my reach. The next time he tried to hide by
alighting on the further side of the stem of a pine several inches in
diameter, but finding this of no avail, at last took a longer flight
off through the woods, where I was unable to follow him.
[Illustration: RED-TAILED HAWK]
January 28. Heard what I at first took to be the song of a Ruby-crowned
Kinglet to-day, but it proved to be a Black-capped Chickadee, uttering
what was to me an entirely new note; like the Kinglet's, only fainter
and shorter, with just a little of the ring of the Canary's song in
it. He was sitting all alone under the dark evergreens, singing to
himself in a manner wholly out of keeping with the general disposition
and taste of the Chickadee. When I at last disturbed him, he flew to
another tree and began searching for insects, uttering the familiar
note of his species.
[Illustration: GREAT HORNED OWL]
February 3. There is a little Junco hopping about the path to-day, in
spite of the fact that the mercury has been very near zero most of the
time for the last fortnight, and that the snow is drifted eight or ten
feet deep in places. He appears to spend a considerable portion of his
time in the woodshed, poking about among the chips, etc., and I fancy
sleeps somewhere about the building.
There are also a few Flickers and at least one Meadowlark in this
vicinity, and since the last heavy snowfall they have become unusually
tame and familiar, coming close about the house for food. Goldfinches
and Tree Sparrows are still quite abundant, and there is a flock of
fifty or sixty Pine Grosbeaks, mostly in young plumage, in the woods
about a mile to the west of us, the first I have seen this winter.
February 6. About five o'clock this evening a large Goshawk in rather
dark plumage came flying across the field only a few yards above the
snow. As he neared a tall elm he rose in the air and alighted near the
top of the tree, and after sitting there for a few moments, turning his
head in all directions, he opened his wings and tumbled from his perch,
falling several yards down among the branches before regaining his
balance, when he flew rapidly off toward the west and disappeared among
the pines. Just a week ago I noticed where a Goshawk, judging from the
tracks in the snow, had killed a rabbit, so that it would seem that
they have not been entirely absent at any time this winter.
February 7. Have just seen a Goshawk, apparently in young plumage,
flying west at a height of perhaps sixty or seventy yards from the
ground.
February 13. The Great Horned Owls began hooting nearly an hour before
sunset this evening. It is remarkable how loud their cry sounds at a
distance of half a mile or even a mile. I am convinced that they can
be heard distinctly two miles away, for I have often heard them in the
day time from a direction in which the nearest woods were at least
as far as that. There are always several pairs dwelling in a certain
dark hemlock swamp about a mile and a half away, and sometimes in the
evening, or by moonlight, they come hunting across the meadows and
pastures, hooting at intervals as they come. When they get within one
hundred yards or so their cry is loud enough to arouse everyone in the
house.
February 18. Followed the track of a Hawk, apparently a Goshawk,
twenty or thirty rods through the birch woods west of the cove. From
the appearance of the tracks the bird must have walked much after the
manner of a Crow, though dragging its claws more. Occasionally it
hopped for a few feet. There was no sign of its having killed any game
near there and having eaten so much as to be unable to fly at once, as
is sometimes the case. At times it followed in the tracks of rabbits
for some distance. I have often known them to do this, and am inclined
to think that they occasionally hunt rabbits in this manner where the
under-brush is too dense to allow them to fly through it easily. I have
sometimes followed their tracks through the brush until I came upon
the remains of freshly killed rabbits which they had been eating. On
coming out into an opening, I saw a beautiful male Goshawk in full blue
plumage perched on the top of a dead maple in a swamp. When I tried to
approach, he took wing and flew off toward the north.
[Illustration]
How the Central Park Chickadees Were Tamed
BY A. A. CROLIUS[I]
[Footnote I: In Bird-Lore for April, pp. 55 and 58, there were given
accounts of experiences with the remarkably tame Chickadees that passed
the winter of 1898-9 in Central Park, New York City. The present paper
solves the mystery of their surprising confidence in man.--Ed.]
[Illustration]
IN the early part of the winter of 1898-9 Chickadees were unusually
abundant in Central Park, New York City, and a friend and myself
saw them come down and get some of the nuts we were feeding to
White-throated Sparrows. We were, of course, much interested, and
determined to see if we could tame them. They would take the nuts to a
limb, eat all they wished, and hide the rest in crevices in trees or
bushes, where, I think, they seldom found them again, for the impudent
and ever wide-awake English Sparrow watched and got the pieces almost
as soon as they were deposited. After feeding them in this way for some
time, we tried to get them to eat from our hands, and finally succeeded
by first placing our hands on the ground with a nut about a foot from
our fingers, then a little nearer, then on the ends of our fingers, and
lastly in the palms of our hands. There was a great shout when they
hopped on our hands the first time, our delight being indescribable.
Finding that kneeling or bending over on the ground was rather hard
work, we tried holding out our hands when standing, or while sitting
on the benches, and they very soon came, no matter where we were or in
what attitude. The little creatures never seemed to get tired if we
remained hours at a time, and it was indeed difficult to tear oneself
away. Just as I would make up my mind to be off one would fly over my
head calling _chick-a-dee-dee_ in such a bewitching way as to make it
impossible to leave. I would say to myself, "Just one piece more,"
then throw a lot of nuts on the ground and make a 'bee line' for home,
never looking back for fear the temptation would be too great, and I
should find myself retracing my steps. After a time they would come
to me and follow me anywhere in the park, whenever I called them,
and getting better acquainted I found the birds possessed of so many
different traits of character that I named each one accordingly. One I
called the 'Scatterer,' because he stood on my hand and deliberately
threw piece after piece of nut on the ground, looking down as they fell
with the most mischievous twinkle in his eyes, as much as to say, "see
what I've done," then take a piece and fly away. This he did dozens
of times in succession. I thought at first he would rather pick them
up from the ground, but he came directly back and waited for me to
do it. Another I called 'Little Ruffled Breast,' on account of the
feathers on the breast being rough and much darker than the rest. He
was the most affectionate, had a sweet disposition, and, like human
beings of the same character, was often imposed upon, many times being
driven off by the others when he was just about taking a nut. He was
very tame, and had perfect confidence in anyone who would feed him.
The third I named the 'Boss,' because he took the lead and carried the
day. He was a beauty, spick and span in his dress, not a feather out
of place, and plump and perfect in form. The fourth, dubbed 'Little
Greedy,' was very fascinating, and I must confess to loving him more
than the rest, having had a most novel experience with him, and one
never to be forgotten. He came to me one morning, and, lighting on my
hand, sang _chick-a-dee-dee_ two or three times, helped himself to a
nut, and, perching on my forefinger, put the nut under his foot, as I
have seen them do many a time on the trees, remaining there until he
had eaten it. I was thrilled through and through with the sensation and
the perfect trustfulness of the little creature, and was sorry when he
had finished. But why was he called Greedy? Because he usually took two
pieces instead of one, and, strange to say, knew that he must have both
the same size or one would fall out. It was very funny to see him with
a good sized piece, his bill stretched to its utmost capacity, trying
to fit in another. He turned his bill first on one side then on the
other, thinking he could wedge it in by forcing it against my hand, and
he succeeded in this wonderful feat by his perseverance and indomitable
will.
[Illustration]
The Surprising Contents of a Birch Stub
BY FRANK M. CHAPMAN
[Illustration]
After seeing Dr. Roberts' interesting Chickadee photographs, published
in the first number of Bird-Lore, my ambition was aroused to discover a
nest of this species so situated as to afford an opportunity to secure
equally charming pictures of Chickadee life. Late in May the desire
was gratified by the discovery, at Englewood, N. J., of a Chickadee's
nest in a white birch stub, about four feet from the ground, a height
admirably suited to the needs of bird photography.
I will not here present the results of my study of the parent birds
during their period of incubation, but will pass at once to that part
of my experience which relates to their progeny.
Returning to the nest on June 12th, nothing was to be seen of either
parent, and I feared that they or their offspring had fallen victims
to the countless dangers which beset nesting birds and their young.
Looking about for some clue to their fate, I found on the ground, near
the nest-stub, the worn tail-feathers of the female bird. The molting
season had not yet arrived, nor would she have shed all these feathers
at the same moment. There could, therefore, be only one interpretation
of their presence. Some foe, probably a Sharp-shinned or Cooper's Hawk,
since the predaceous mammals for the most part hunt at night when
the Chickadee would be snugly sleeping in her nest, had made a dash
and grasped her by the tail, which she had sacrificed in escaping. A
moment later the theory was supported by the appearance of a subdued
looking Chickadee, _sans_ tail, and I congratulated her on her
fortunate exchange of life for a member which of late had not been very
decorative and of which, in any event, nature would have soon deprived
her.
The young proved to be nearly ready to fly, and carefully removing the
front of their log-cabin, a sight was disclosed such as mortal probably
never beheld before, and Chickadee but rarely.
Six black and white heads were raised and six yellow-lined mouths
opened in expressive appeal for food. But this was not all; there was
another layer of Chickadees below, how many it was impossible to say
without disentangling a compact wad of birds in which the outlines of
no one bird could be distinguished. So I built a piazza, as it were,
at the Chickadee threshold, in the shape of a perch of proper size,
and beneath, as a life-net, spread a piece of mosquito-bar. Then I
proceeded to individualize the ball of feathers; one, two, three, to
seven were counted without undue surprise, but when an eighth and ninth
were added, I marvelled at the energy which had supplied so many mouths
with food, and at the same time wondered how many caterpillars had been
devoured by this one family of birds.
Not less remarkable than the number of young--and no book I have
consulted records so large a brood--was their condition. Not only did
they all appear lusty, but they seemed to be about equally developed,
the slight difference in strength and size which existed being easily
attributable to a difference in age, some interval, doubtless, having
elapsed between the hatching of the first and last egg.
This fact would have been of interest had the birds inhabited an
open nest, or a nest large enough for them all to have had an equal
opportunity to receive food, but where only two-thirds of their number
could be seen from above at once it seems remarkable, that, one or more
failing to receive his share of food--and a very little neglect would
have resulted fatally--had not been weakened in consequence and crushed
to death by more fortunate members of the brood. Nor was their physical
condition the only surprising thing about the members of this Chickadee
family; each individual was as clean as though he had been reared in a
nest alone, and an examination of the nest showed that it would have
been passed as perfect by the most scrupulous sanitary inspector. It
was composed of firmly padded rabbit's fur, and except for the sheaths
worn off the growing feathers of the young birds, was absolutely
clean. Later I observed that the excreta of the young were enclosed in
membranous sacs, which enabled the parents to readily remove them from
the nest.
The last bird having been placed in the net, I attempted to pose them
in a row on the perch before their door. The task reminded me of almost
forgotten efforts at building card houses which, when nearly completed,
would be brought to ruin by an ill-placed card. How many times each
Chickadee tumbled or fluttered from his perch I cannot say. The soft,
elastic net spread beneath them preserved them from injury, and bird
after bird was returned to his place so little worse for his fall that
he was quite ready to try it again. On several occasions eight birds
were induced to take the positions assigned them, then in assisting the
ninth to his allotted place the balance of the birds on either side
would be disturbed and down into the net they would go.
These difficulties, however, could be overcome, but not so the failure
of the light at the critical time, making it necessary to expose with a
wide open lens at the loss of a depth of focus.
The picture presented, therefore, does not do the subject justice. Nor
can it tell of the pleasure with which each fledgling for the first
time stretched its wings and legs to their full extent and preened its
plumage with before unknown freedom.
At the same time, they uttered a satisfied little _dee-dee-dee_, in
quaint imitation of their elders. When I whistled their well-known
_phe-be_ note they were at once on the alert, and evidently expected to
be fed.
[Illustration: A CHICKADEE FAMILY
Photographed from nature by F. M. Chapman]
The birds were within two or three days of leaving the nest, and the
sitting over, came the problem of returning the flock to a cavity
barely two inches in diameter, the bottom of which was almost filled by
one bird.
I at once confess a failure to restore anything like the condition
in which they were found, and when the front of their dwelling
was replaced Chickadees were overflowing at the door. If their
healthfulness had not belied the thought, I should have supposed it
impossible for them to exist in such close quarters.
A few days later I found their home deserted, and as no other pair of
Chickadees was known to nest in the vicinity, I imagine them to compose
a troop of birds I sometimes meet in the neighborhood.
Richardson's Owl
BY P. B. PEABODY
With photographs from nature by the author
[Illustration: RICHARDSON'S OWL]
[Illustration]
ON the thirteenth of April last, at Hallock, Minn., while afield in
the morning after Migration Report data, I stumbled suddenly upon a
Richardson's Owl, in a willow bush, four feet up, on a brush-land
side-hill, two hundred yards above the river. A strong wind was
blowing, and kept the willow stems a-swaying and the feathers
fluttering, while the dullness of an overcast sky made quick exposures
impossible. Nevertheless, I hurried home, a mile away, and returned
with camera and plates,--'Crown' and 'Stanley.' The bird was still _in
situ_, and leaning, as before, against the upright stem nearest him, as
a brace against the wind. With stop 16, or a little larger, and time
1/5 to 1/2 second, both according to the conditions of wind and sky,
eight exposures were made, beginning at five feet distance, and with
waits for lulls in the wind. The bird seemed fearless, but I dared not
try to put him on the alert, nor cause him to open his eyes. The eighth
exposure was made at about two feet, the camera leisurely dismounted,
and the bird then quietly caught about the back, with the left hand,
while his attention was distracted with the right.
[Illustration: RICHARDSON'S OWL]
The little captive showed no fight nor did he try to escape so long as
I held him by the feet, in an upright position. But when his body was
clasped he would struggle vigorously. With all the handling I gave him
in taking weights and measures, the only wounding he caused my hands
was made in his attempts to secure a better grasp of my holding hand.
While not actually tame, from the first he showed ecstatic delight
in my stroking of the feathers on the back of his head,--chirping
delightedly during the process, with much the manner and voice of a
chicken when tucked under the maternal wing.
While spending his first night of captivity in my study, pending
careful examination, he dropped upon my book-cases several casts, which
are still awaiting analysis. At noon of the second day he was placed
in the garret, where he had a measure of darkness and plenty of wing
room. Here he ate readily the heads of food that was left convenient,
varying this occupation with the tearing to pieces of an old Cooper's
Hawk skin. So far as I could judge, he ate only on alternate days.
During the eight days of his sojourn with me, no increase of tameness
was shown; and he would fly when I came near, seeking the darkest
cranny of the garret, scolding me often with the characteristic
anger-note of all the smaller Hawks and Owls. Soon my captive
found a permanent home in the family of the foster-father of
Minnesota ornithology, where, I was soon informed, he became quickly
domesticated,--eating bits of steak from a chop-stick, beheading
English Sparrows with neat despatch, and drinking from a teaspoon.
=For Teachers and Students=
An 'Advisory Council'
[Illustration]
It gives us unusual pleasure to announce a plan, the fulfilment of
which, already assured, will, we believe, be of great assistance to
bird students and exert an important influence on the increase in our
knowledge of North American birds.
Realizing from a most fortunate experience how greatly the past-master
in ornithology may aid the beginner, we have felt that it would
be an admirable scheme to form an 'Advisory Council,' composed of
leading ornithologists throughout the United States and Canada, who
would consent to assist students by responding to their requests for
information or advice, the student being thus brought into direct
communication with an authority on the birds of his own region.
The response to our appeal has been most gratifying. Without exception
the ornithologists whom we have addressed have cordially endorsed the
proposed plan, and signified their willingness to coöperate with us in
this effort to reach the isolated worker. Nearly every state in the
Union and province in Canada has been heard from, and we expect in
our next number to publish the names and addresses of the more than
fifty prominent ornithologists who will form Bird-Lore's 'Advisory
Council.'--Ed.
"Humanizing" the Birds
CAROLINE G. SOULE
[Illustration]
IN the first number of Bird-Lore the author of 'Bird Studies for
Children' says: "Most bird stories will interest them [children],
especially if the birds are humanized for them by the teller of the
tale." Humanizing, in this connection, means endowing with human
characteristics, and is a process much in vogue just now among writers
of nature-study books and papers for the use of children and teachers.
Let us see if it is worth doing--or even is justifiable.
Birds possess some characteristics or qualities which are also
possessed by human beings, and by other animals. These qualities
are not merely "human" then, but are common to many species of
creatures. Since birds already have these qualities, there is no need
of endowing them with them. To "humanize" the birds by ascribing to
them human qualities which they do not and cannot possess, is only to
misrepresent them, and stories which so humanize them are of no more
value, as nature-study or bird-study, than so many fairy-tales. More
than this--they are positively harmful because they give, as facts,
statements about existing creatures which are not true. This is not
bird-study; it is only telling stories which interest the children,
and which have no value except in keeping them quiet. The children
are not interested in the real birds, for they are not told about
them. They are interested in the stories, invented for this end, about
creatures which the story-teller _calls_ birds but which are only
human characteristics draped on bird forms. Very slight changes would
be needed to make the same stories fit any humanized animal. The real
nature of the bird is left out of these humanized bird stories and the
loss is very great, as always when truth is left out.
To tell of "Mr. and Mrs. Robin" is well enough, for the titles merely
mean the male and female. To represent them as talking is well enough,
for they certainly communicate with each other and their young, and
putting their communications into human speech is merely translating
them. But to represent them as uttering highly moral speeches is all
wrong, for these are beyond the power of the birds. The moment that the
story humanizes them in any such way it becomes of no value, because it
is false to nature.
The humanizing process is lavishly applied to all sorts of creatures,
even to plants.
For instance, in a very popular book occurs the following:--"And so
the witch-hazel, knowing that neither boy nor girl, nor bird nor beast
nor wind, will come to the rescue of its little ones, is obliged to
take matters into its own hands, and this is what it does." This is an
extreme case of humanizing. The writer states that this brainless plant
_knows_ that its seeds will not be scattered by children, animals or
wind. This implies that the plant is conscious of its seeds; that it
realizes the importance of their distribution; that it knows what boys,
girls, birds, animals and wind are; that it knows how the seeds of
other plants are distributed; and that it plans a method of scattering
its own seed! This is certainly more mental power than we are warranted
in ascribing to a plant. But children are much interested in the story,
and think the witch-hazel very clever to plan so ingenious a way of
distributing its seeds. That it is not true does not trouble them,
because they do not know it, and I can learn of very few teachers
using this book, who have thought enough about the subjects treated
to realize that they are so humanized as to be untrue to their own
natures. I quote this as an instance of the lengths to which humanizing
may be carried without discovery by the average reader.
Humanizing the creatures takes them out of their own place in Nature,
by endowing them with powers higher than they can really possess.
It sets aside all the laws of evolution, and is not only untrue to
the nature of the individual, but to the principles which underlie
all Nature. Young children are not ready for these general laws and
principles, but it cannot be good pedagogics to give them ideas in
direct contradiction to all those laws which must be taught them a
little later, and which will at once prove the falseness of this
earlier teaching.
"Interest" is not everything in teaching children. Truth counts for
more in the long run, and, especially in Nature study, may be made
quite as interesting as "humanization."
'On the Ethics of Caging Birds'
To the Editor of 'Bird-Lore:'
I thank you for offering me an opportunity to be heard in my own
defense. But controversy is--if possible--more distasteful to me than
injustice. Therefore, while it is painful to be misrepresented, I will
answer my critics only by saying that they have entirely--I do not say
wilfully--misunderstood me, and that no one who knows me could for an
instant believe me guilty of "favoring" or "encouraging," the caging,
the wearing, or the eating of our little brothers, the birds.
Olive Thorne Miller.
=For Young Observers=
The Birds' Christmas Tree
How many of the younger readers of Bird-Lore know that in Norway,
birds, as well as children, have Christmas trees? Indeed, it is said
that the children do not enjoy their own gifts until they know the
birds have been provided for.
Concerning this beautiful custom of putting out a yule sheaf for the
birds, Dr. Leonhard Stejneger, the eminent Norwegian ornithologist,
writes us that the sheaves are usually of barley or oats, and are
placed on high poles standing either in the yard or nailed to the gable
end of one of the houses, preferably the storehouse or "stabbur," or on
the stable, but always where they can be seen from the dwelling house.
Dr. Stejneger adds that the origin of the custom is shrouded in the
mystery of the mythological ages.
[Illustration: THE BIRDS' CHRISTMAS TREE
From the painting of A. Tideman, published in 'Norwegian Pictures,'
London, 1885.]
Here, then, is a country where, as far as anyone knows, the birds
have always had a Christmas tree, while in America most birds, I
imagine, consider themselves lucky if they chance to find a stray
crumb on Christmas morning. So let us all be good Norwegians this
coming Christmas and see that the birds are well supplied, if not
with sheaves--at least with crumbs, seed, and grain for the Juncos
and Sparrows, suet, ham-bones, and bacon rinds for the Woodpeckers,
Chickadees, and Nuthatches. And then let us improve on the Norwegian
usage by making every winter day Christmas for the birds, so that no
matter how deep the snow, they may always be sure of a meal. Then,
next March, write and tell Bird-Lore of your winter guests, who they
were, and what you have learned of their habits. To the boy or girl of
fourteen years, or under, who sends us the best account of his or her
experience in feeding the birds this winter, we will give a copy of
Mrs. Wright's 'Citizen Bird' or 'Wabeno.'--Ed.
The Little Brown Creeper
BY GARRETT NEWKIRK
[Illustration: BROWN CREEPER
Photographed from a mounted specimen]
"Although I'm a bird, I give you my word
That seldom you'll know me to fly;
For I have a notion about locomotion,
The little Brown Creeper am I,
Dear little Brown Creeper am I.
"Beginning below, I search as I go
The trunk and the limbs of a tree,
For a fly or a slug, a beetle or bug;
They're better than candy for me,
Far better than candy for me.
"When people are nigh I'm apt to be shy,
And say to myself, 'I will hide,'
Continue my creeping, but carefully keeping
Away on the opposite side,
Well around on the opposite side.
"Yet sometimes I peek while I play hide and seek,
If you're nice I shall wish to see _you_:
I'll make a faint sound and come quite around,
And creep like a mouse in full view,
Very much like a mouse to your view."
=Notes from Field and Study=
An Interesting Phoebe's Nest
[Illustration: NEST OF PHOEBE
Photographed from nature]
The accompanying illustration shows an interesting Phoebe's nest. It
is well-known that this bird prefers to build close to some overhead
protection, but I have never seen, and have heard of only one other
similar structure, showing such evidence of forethought by the builder;
for this bird has constructed a pedestal by means of which her nest was
raised to the desired height.
The location chosen was three feet or so back under the piazza roof
of a lonely, unused summer cottage by the shore of Webster lake, in
Franklin, N. H.
The foundations were begun on a door-cap to the left of, although
almost in touch with, an upright cleat. Soon the builder made a turn to
the right, that the pedestal might rest firmly against this cleat. From
this point the work continued perpendicularly full twelve inches, with
the breadth of about three inches and a thickness of one and one-half
inches. Upon this the enlargement was made for the nest proper, which
was destined to safely cradle her brood of four.--Ellen E. Webster,
_Franklin Falls, N. H._
[Two years ago John Burroughs showed us a nest similar to the one
here described, built beneath the eaves, on a slight projection in
the rough hewn rock of the railway station at West Park, N. Y.--Ed.]
A Useful Nest-Holder
After the leaves fall many deserted birds' nests will be exposed to
view. The larger number will still be found serviceable for study, and
in collecting them a note of the site, height from the ground, if in a
tree or bush, etc., should be made to aid in their identification.
[Illustration]
The accompanying cut shows a very useful holder for such specimens. It
was designed by Mr. George B. Sennett, and is made of annealed wire,
about the bottom of which is tied hair wire, as shown. At this stage,
the nest is placed in the holder, the four uprights are cut off to the
required height, and bent in or out, in order to bring them closely to
the sides of the nest; the wrapping with hair wire is then continued
until the nest is firmly bound. In this way such loosely built nests as
those of the Mourning Dove or Cuckoo may be held in shape without in
the least concealing their structure.--Ed.
A Singing Blue Jay
Not long ago, when the snow covered the ground several inches deep,
I heard as sweet a little song as one could expect to hear from a
Warbler in May, come from a clump of small plum trees in the back yard.
Creeping softly in the direction of the sound, I could see nothing
but a stately Blue Jay perched upon one of the upper limbs. I waited
patiently, and soon the song came again, sweet and mellow as before;
this time I could plainly see the Jay's open bill and the muscular
movements of his throat. I could hardly believe my eyes, as I had been
accustomed to hear only harsh sounds from a Jay's throat. I raised to
a standing posture, the Blue Jay flew away. I looked carefully all
about, and no other birds were in sight. This Blue Jay remained in
the neighborhood all winter, and several times I had the pleasure of
hearing his sweet little song.--Frank E. Horack, _Iowa City, Iowa_.
To Hunt Southern Birds
Rockville Centre, L. I., November 9.--O. H. Tuthill and Robert T.
Willmarth, of this village, Benjamin Molitor, of East Rockaway, and
Coles Powell, of Seaford, started yesterday on a bird skinning and
stuffing expedition to the Florida coast. The men went aboard of Mr.
Molitor's little 28-foot sloop, Inner Beach, which is fitted with both
sails and gas engine.
They take the inside route through bays, rivers and canals to Beaufort,
N. C. From there on to their destination they will have to take their
chances outside on the ocean. The men go to shoot all kinds of water
birds, for which there is an unprecedented demand this season by
millinery manufacturers. After being killed, most of the birds will be
skinned and stuffed roughly with cotton, and every week shipments will
be made to New York.
Mr. Tuthill is an old hand in the business. The last time there was a
large demand for birds by the makers of women's headgear, about twelve
years ago, he took an outfit to Florida and during the winter shipped
140,000 bird skins to New York.--_Brooklyn Eagle._
[We met Mr. Tuthill in Key West in February, 1892, and heard him
state that during a preceding winter his party had killed 130,000
birds for millinery purposes, and the information contained in the
above clipping is doubtless, therefore, accurate.--Ed.]
American Ornithologists' Union
The seventeenth annual congress of the American Ornithologists'
Union convened at the Academy of Natural Sciences, in Philadelphia,
on November 13, 1899. At the business meeting held on the night of
that day the following officers were elected for the ensuing year:
President, Robert Ridgway; vice presidents, C. Hart Merriam and C. B.
Cory; secretary, John H. Sage; treasurer, William Dutcher; councilors,
C. F. Batchelder, F. M. Chapman, Ruthven Deane, J. Dwight, Jr., A. K.
Fisher, T. S. Roberts, Witmer Stone. Two corresponding and eighty-two
associate members were elected.
The program for the three days' public sessions, on November 14-16,
included the following papers:
Notes on the Flammulated Screech Owls, Harry C. Oberholser; Three
Years' Migration data on City Hall Tower, Philadelphia, Wm. L. Baily;
A Quantitative Study of Variation in the Smaller American Shrikes,
Reuben M. Strong; The Habits and Structure of Harris' Cormorant, R.
E. Snodgrass and F. A. Lucas; Bering Sea Arctic Snowflake (_Passerina
hyperborea_) on its breeding grounds, C. Hart Merriam; On the Plumages
of Certain Boreal Birds, Frank M. Chapman; On the Perfected Plumage of
_Somateria spectabilis_, Arthur H. Norton; The Summer Molting Plumage
of Eider Ducks, Witmer Stone; An Oregon Fish Hawk Colony, Vernon
Bailey; Exhibition of a series of field sketches made from absolutely
fresh birds, showing the true life colors of the soft parts, mostly in
the breeding season, Louis Agassiz Fuertes; The Sequence of Plumages
and Molts in Certain Families of North American Birds, Jonathan
Dwight, Jr.; The Ranges of _Hylocichla fuscescens_ and _Hylocichla
f. salicicola_, Reginald Heber Howe, Jr.; On the occurrence of the
Egyptian Goose (_Chenalopex ægyptiaca_) in North America, Frank C.
Kirkwood; Notes on the Habits of the Great Mexican Swift (_Hemiprocne
zonaris_), Sam'l N. Rhoads; Further remarks on the Relationships of
the Grackles of the Sub-genus _Quiscalus_, Frank M. Chapman; Audubon's
Letters to Baird--compiled from Copies of the originals kindly
furnished by Miss Lucy H. Baird, Witmer Stone; A Peculiar Sparrow
Hawk, William Palmer; The Requirements of a Faunal List, W. E. Clyde
Todd; Report of the A. O. U. Committee on Protection of N. A. Birds,
Witmer Stone; An account of the Nesting of Franklin's Gull (_Larus
franklinii_) in Southern Minnesota, illustrated by lantern slides,
Thos. S. Roberts; Bird Studies with a Camera, illustrated by lantern
slides, Frank M. Chapman; Home Life of some Birds, illustrated by
lantern slides, Wm. Dutcher; Slides--series of Kingfisher, Gulls, etc.,
Wm. L. Baily; The Effects of Wear upon Feathers, illustrated by lantern
slides, Jonathan Dwight, Jr.; Exhibition of lantern slides of Birds,
Birds' Nests and Nesting Haunts, from Nature, members; Language of the
Birds, Nelson R. Wood; A New Wren from Alaska, Harry C. Oberholser;
The Molt of the Flight feathers in various Orders of Birds, Witmer
Stone; Some Cuban Birds, Jno. W. Daniels, Jr.; On the Orientation of
Birds, Capt. Gabriel Reynaud, French army; On the Habits of the Hoatzin
(_Opisthocomus cristatus_), George K. Cherrie.
=Book News and Reviews=
A Dictionary of Birds. By Alfred Newton, assisted by Hans Gadow,
and others. Cheap issue, unabridged. London, Adam and Charles
Black, 1893-96. [New York, The Macmillan Co.] 8vo, pp. xii + 1,088,
numerous line cuts. Price, $5.
Bird students should be grateful to the publishers of this invaluable
work for issuing it in an edition which places it within the reach of
all.
It is not necessary for us to add our meed of praise to what is
universally conceded to be "the best book ever written about birds." To
those of Bird-Lore's readers who have not had the fortune to examine
this or the preceding edition, we may say that the work is based on
Professor Newton's article 'Birds' in the Encyclopædia Britanica which,
with the coöperation of eminent specialists, has been enlarged and
augmented to make an ornithological dictionary of over 1,000 pages; an
indispensable work of reference to every student of ornithology who
will find in its pages an immense amount of information not elsewhere
obtainable.--F. M. C.
Wabeno, The Magician. The Sequel to Tommy-Anne and the Three Hearts,
by Mabel Osgood Wright. Illustrated by Joseph M. Gleeson. New
York, The Macmillan Company, 1899. Price, $1.50.
This pretty green and gold covered book, with its mystical sign of
three interlaced hearts, will be a treasure to the army of little folks
who have so enjoyed its predecessor 'Tommy-Anne.' Not only will they
meet in its pages the delightful Tommy-Anne herself, but several other
old friends: Obi, the almost too-human Waddles, the unfortunate Horned
Owl, and others. In this volume Anne--having dropped the Tommy from her
name, pushes her "whys" into the several kingdoms of earth and air.
She interviews the "Man in the Moon," learns the story of the red man
from a talkative Indian arrow head, and the secrets of the hive from
a friendly honey-bee. Through her magic spectacles life at the bottom
of the sea becomes visible, and the past history of the earth comes to
light. It may readily be seen that the author has not forgotten her own
childish "wonderments," and is therefore eminently fitted to satisfy
those of children to-day, and although the imagination has full play
in the manner of conveying it--the "how"--the information given is
trustworthy. The book, with all its charm of fantasy may be put into
the hands of children with the assurance that it will let them into the
secrets of many interesting things in Nature, and leave no sting of
false statements to be corrected as the years pass on.
The book, as usual with the publications of the house of Macmillan, is
fully illustrated, beautifully printed and altogether a pleasure to
look at and handle.--Olive Thorne Miller.
The Birds of Eastern North America. Key to the Families and Species.
By Charles B. Cory. Part I, Water Birds, pp. i-ix, 1-130; Part
II, Land Birds, pp. i-ix, 131-387. 4to. Numerous illustrations.
Special edition printed for the Field Columbian Museum, Chicago,
Ill., 1899.
Mr. Cory has spared neither pains nor expense to lighten the labors
of young ornithologists in the matter of identification. Arbitrary
'Keys' arranged on apparently the simplest plans, a careful use of
distinguishing type, and numberless illustrations characterize this
work, which will doubtless rank as its talented author's most valuable
and important contribution to the literature of ornithology.
The present volumes contain only the analytical keys to families and
species, and apparently are to be followed by others giving detailed
descriptions of plumage and biographical matter. A list of the birds of
Eastern North America, with the ranges of the species, is appended to
the second volume.--F. M. C.
Dickey Downy; the Autobiography of a Bird. By Virginia Sharpe
Patterson. Introduction by Hon. John F. Lacey, M.C. Drawings by
Elizabeth M. Hallowell. Philadelphia, A. J. Rowland, 1899. 16mo,
pp. 192, full-page coloro-types, 4.
In this little volume the Bobolink recounts the history of his life
with particular reference to his experiences with man. Due regard has
been paid to the known habits of the bird, and the book seems well
designed to arouse the interest and enlist the sympathy of children in
bird-life. The colored illustration of the Scarlet Tanager facing page
64 is wrongly labeled "Summer Tanager," but beyond this slip we notice
no errors.
Congressman Lacey's introduction shows that its writer has an adequate
conception of both the economic and æsthetic value of birds, of
the evils of wantonly destroying them, and of the need for their
protection.--F. M. C.
Book News
In the October number of 'The Osprey,' the announcement is made that
Dr. Gill, the editor-in-chief, will hereafter be assisted by the
following associate editors: Robert Ridgway, Leonhard Stejneger,
Frederic A. Lucas, Charles W. Richmond, Paul Bartsch, William Palmer,
Harry C. Oberholser, and Witmer Stone. Surely here is "a multitude
of counsellors" whose coöperation is an assurance that 'The Osprey'
will not only return to its former high plane, but will doubtless
reach a level of excellence before unknown. We note with pleasure that
the somewhat too appropriate yellow cover, used during the preceding
editorial administration, has been changed for one of Bird-Lore's hue.
* * * * *
From the announcement of the Massachusetts Audubon Society of the
Audubon Calendar, issued by them for 1900, we quote the following:
"The calendar consists of twelve large plates of exquisite drawings of
birds, one for each month, reproduced in colors with all the spirit and
fidelity of the original water-color paintings. Descriptive text of the
birds on each plate. Frank M. Chapman, Olive Thorne Miller, Florence
A. Merriam, Abbott Thayer, Mabel Osgood Wright, Wm. T. Davis, William
Brewster, Ralph Hoffmann, Bradford Torrey, M. A. Wilcox, Harriet E.
Richards, H. E. Parkhurst, have contributed original paragraphs. Size
9-1/2 by 12-1/2 inches. In paper box. Price 75 cents. Address orders to
Taber-Prang Art Company, Springfield, Mass."
* * * * *
That the editors of St. Nicholas realize the importance of developing
children's interest in nature studies, is evidenced by the
establishment in their magazine for 1900, of a department of 'Nature
and Science.' It will be in charge of Mr. E. F. Bigelow, formerly
editor of 'The Observer,' and now of 'Popular Science.'
* * * * *
Lists of the birds of the Middle Gulf States are so few in number that
bird students will welcome a fully annotated catalogue of the birds of
Louisiana, by Prof. Geo. E. Beyer, of Tulane University, shortly to be
published by the Society of Louisiana Naturalists.
=Bird-Lore=
A Bi-monthly Magazine
Devoted to the Study and Protection of Birds
OFFICIAL ORGAN OF THE AUDUBON SOCIETIES
=Edited by FRANK M. CHAPMAN=
=Published by THE MACMILLAN COMPANY=
=====================================================
Vol. 1 December, 1899 No. 6
=====================================================
=SUBSCRIPTION RATES.=
Price in the United States, Canada, and Mexico,
twenty cents a number, one dollar a year, postage
paid.
Subscriptions may be sent to the Publishers, at
Englewood, New Jersey, or 66 Fifth avenue, New
York City.
Price in all countries in the International Postal
Union, twenty-five cents a number, one dollar and
a quarter a year, postage paid. Foreign agents,
Macmillan and Company, Ltd., London.
-----------------------------------------------------
Manuscripts for publication, books, etc., for review,
should be sent to the Editor at Englewood,
New Jersey.
-----------------------------------------------------
Advertisements should be sent to the Publishers
at Englewood, New Jersey, or 66 Fifth
avenue, New York City.
-----------------------------------------------------
COPYRIGHTED, 1899, BY FRANK M. CHAPMAN.
-----------------------------------------------------
Bird-Lore's Motto:
_A Bird in the Bush is Worth Two in the Hand._
-----------------------------------------------------
We have thus far avoided all mention of the financial side of the
conducting of Bird-Lore, nor do we now propose to adopt the course
which circumstances, alas! have so often forced upon popular natural
history journals, of turning the editorial page into a plea for
subscriptions.
We trust, however, that in this concluding number of our first volume
we may be permitted to make several statements in which we hope our
subscribers will have a mutual interest.
In the first place, replying to the inquiry as to whether Bird-Lore
will not soon be issued at monthly instead of bi-monthly intervals,
let us say that the management of Bird-Lore is with us an avocation to
which we can devote only the margin of time left from fully occupied
days. To publish it each month would involve greatly increased labor,
which, under the circumstances, we cannot assume, and we have attempted
to bridge this difficulty by printing as much matter in each number as
is ordinarily contained in two numbers of any popular ornithological
journal.
In the end, therefore, the subscriber receives quite as much for his
money, and in support of this statement we may be pardoned for calling
attention to the fact that the present volume of Bird-Lore contains
some 200 pages of text with over 70 illustrations, more, we believe,
than is offered by any other bird magazine for the sum of one dollar.
To continue with this unpleasant subject: being perfectly familiar
with the sad fate which has befallen so many of our predecessors--and
of which when this journal was in contemplation our friends rarely
failed to remind us!--we did not establish Bird-Lore as a money making
enterprise, but as a means of popularizing a study, the advancement of
which is foremost in our desires, and as an aid to the cause of the
Audubon Societies.
We believe, therefore, we may venture to say, that our relations with
our subscribers are of a wholly different and more intimate nature than
those which exist between the publishers and purchasers of magazines
which yield an adequate money return for labor expended.
We have common interests to the furtherance of which we, for our part,
are willing to devote no little time and thought, as we trust is
shown by our announcements for 1900. To properly carry out our plans,
however, it will be necessary to increase the size of Bird-Lore, a step
not as yet warranted by our subscription list. We would, therefore, ask
the coöperation of every reader who has at heart the interests of bird
study and bird protection. This coöperation may be shown in one or both
of two ways: First, you may aid in increasing Bird-Lore's circulation
by securing new subscribers, by presenting a year's subscription as a
Christmas gift to some friend who is interested, or whom you want to
interest in birds, or by suggesting this course to others. Second, you
may assist us by promptly renewing your subscription when it expires,
or in the event of your not caring to re-subscribe, we ask, as a means
of regulating our edition, that you kindly send us a postal to that
effect.
Bird-Lore for 1900
Bird-Lore for 1900 will, we think, reach a standard of excellence not
before attained by a journal of popular ornithology. No effort has been
spared to secure authoritative articles of interest to the general
reader, as well as those of practical value to the teacher and student.
There will be papers by John Burroughs, recording the rarer birds he
has observed about his home; by Bradford Torrey, describing his methods
of attracting winter birds; by Robert Ridgway, on song birds in Europe
and America; by Otto Widmann, on a visit to Audubon's birthplace;
and also contributions from William Brewster, E. A. Mearns, C. Hart
Merriam, T. S. Roberts, and other well-known ornithologists.
* * * * *
A valuable contribution to the study of bird migration will be a paper
by Captain Reynaud, in charge of the Homing Pigeon Service of the
French Army, who will write of his experiments in this branch of the
service.
* * * * *
Attention will be paid to the bird-life of countries made prominent
by recent events: L. M. McCormick, who has lately returned from the
Philippines, writing of the birds of Luzon; H. W. Henshaw, of the birds
of Hawaii, where he has long been a resident; Tappan Adney, who passed
a year in the Klondike, of the birds of that region; and F. M. Chapman,
of the birds of Cuba.
* * * * *
A. J. Campbell, the authority on Australian birds, will also contribute
a paper on foreign birds, describing the remarkable habits of the Bower
Birds, with photographs of their bowers from nature.
* * * * *
For teachers there will be a series of suggestive articles on methods
of teaching ornithology, by Olive Thorne Miller; Florence A. Merriam;
Marion C. Hubbard, of Wellesley; Lynds Jones, of Oberlin, and others,
who have made a specialty of instruction in this branch of nature study.
* * * * *
Students will be glad to avail themselves of the assistance offered by
Bird-Lore's Advisory Council, a new idea in self-educational work, the
details of which are announced on another page. Among papers designed
more especially for students will be Ernest Seton-Thompson's 'How to
Know the Hawks and Owls,' illustrated by the author, F. A. Lucas'
'Tongues of Birds,' also illustrated by the author, and Professor
Pinchot's 'A Method of Recording Observations.'
* * * * *
A paper of unusual value to those who study birds with the aid of
a camera will be by John Rowley, of the American Museum of Natural
History, who will describe a recently invented camera which opens new
fields in bird photography.
* * * * *
For 'Young Observers' there will be articles by other young observers,
and poems and jingles all designed to arouse and stimulate the child's
interest in birds.
* * * * *
The illustrations will, if possible, be of even higher quality than
those for which already Bird-Lore has become distinguished.
* * * * *
The Audubon Department, under Mrs. Wright's care, will, as heretofore,
print reports of the great work which is being done in the interests of
bird study and bird protection, and the series of helpful articles by
its Editor will be continued.
* * * * *
This outline of the leading features of Bird-Lore for the coming year
will, we trust, be deemed sufficient warrant for the belief expressed
in our opening sentence. It will be seen that our difficulty is not
lack of material, but lack of space, and this difficulty we hope our
subscribers will help us to overcome by seconding our efforts in their
behalf.
=The Audubon Societies=
"_You cannot with a scalpel find the poet's soul,
Nor yet the wild bird's song._"
Edited by Mrs. Mabel Osgood Wright (President of the Audubon Society of
the State of Connecticut), Fairfield, Conn., to whom all communications
relating to the work of the Audubon and other Bird Protective Societies
should be addressed. Reports, etc., designed for this department should
be sent at least one month prior to the date of publication.
DIRECTORY OF STATE AUDUBON SOCIETIES
With names and addresses of their Secretaries.
=New Hampshire= Mrs. F. W. Batchelder, Manchester.
=Massachusetts= Miss Harriet E. Richards, care Boston Society
of Natural History, Boston.
=Rhode Island= Mrs. H. T. Grant, Jr., 187 Bowen street,
Providence.
=Connecticut= Mrs. Henry S. Glover, Fairfield.
=New York= Miss Emma H. Lockwood, 243 West Seventy-fifth
street, New York City.
=New Jersey= Miss Anna Haviland, 53 Sandford Ave.,
Plainfield, N. J.
=Pennsylvania= Mrs. Edward Robins, 114 South Twenty-first
street, Philadelphia.
=District of Columbia= Mrs. John Dewhurst Patten, 3033 P street,
Washington.
=Wheeling, W. Va.=
(branch of Penn Society) Elizabeth I. Cummins, 1314 Chapline street,
Wheeling.
=Ohio= Miss Clara Russell, 903 Paradrome street,
Cincinnati.
=Indiana= Amos W. Butler, State House, Indianapolis.
=Illinois= Miss Mary Drummond, Wheaton.
=Iowa= Miss Nellie S. Board, Keokuk.
=Wisconsin= Mrs. George W. Peckham, 646 Marshall street,
Milwaukee.
=Minnesota= Mrs. J. P. Elmer, 314 West Third street,
St. Paul.
=Tennessee= Mrs. C. C. Conner, Ripley.
=Texas= Miss Cecile Seixas, 2008 Thirty-ninth
street, Galveston.
=California= Mrs. George S. Gay, Redlands.
The Law and the Bird
During the past ten months Bird-Lore has printed interesting statistics
concerning the organization of the various State Audubon Societies,
as well as significant reports of the progress of their work. So far
so good. There are, of course, slight differences in the platforms of
these societies regarding by-laws, methods, fees versus no fees, etc.
Upon one point, however, they all agree--that while they deplore the
use of the feathers of wild birds in millinery, the great point is the
education of children to have the proper regard for bird life.
It is, however, necessary to go a step behind even this. _A priori_
the bird must be given a legal status before it can be protected with
any general success, even by those most willing so to do. In appealing
to the average child of the public school, it should be remembered of
how many races this average child is compounded,--races with instincts
concerning what are called the lower animals, quite beyond the moral
comprehension of the animal-loving Anglo-Saxon. To make this average
school child respect the rights of the bird, the bird must be given
a legal status to command, and not to beg respect. This child may be
appealed to in other ways and may readily assent to all that you say,
_while your personal influence is with him_, but he goes away and
forgets; he does not feel the weight of a merely moral penalty.
Game birds have this legal status, in a greater or less degree, in all
states, with perhaps the single exception of Mississippi, and sportsmen
are always on the alert for infringement of the game laws.
It would seem to me wise for Audubonites to turn more attention to the
legal status of the class of birds that they specially seek to protect.
Legislation in this respect is, of course, difficult to obtain, because
many sportsmen are afraid of weakening the game laws by stirring up
discussion regarding song birds, etc.; but much more can be made of
the existing laws. That these are by no means adequately enforced,
is evident to anyone who notices the hordes of men and boys prowling,
these autumn days, about woods and meadows, where legitimate game birds
are unknown, and Robins, Flickers, and even the smaller migrants are
the only game. It makes one feel that the song bird protectionists must
often "pass by on the other side," not having the honesty of their
convictions in as militant a degree as the sportsmen, even when they
have the law to back the bird.
It will doubtless be interesting to open these 'pages,' during the
coming year, to a presentation and discussion of this legal status.
We should like to receive the condensed bird laws of every state
possessing such, as well as opinions as to what birds should be
excluded from protection in the best interests of the Commonwealth, to
the end that there may be a federation of Audubon Societies regarding
the best method of obtaining legislation for the protection of
desirable birds not covered by the game laws.
Be the roads many--illustrated lectures to arouse public sentiment,
birdless bonnets, leaflets, thousands of pledge cards signed by
ready sympathizers--the goal must be conservative, well thought out
legislation, free from any taint of emotional insanity. If we are to
keep the bird it must be by the aid of the law, the only voice that
_must_ be listened to, speaking the only language understood by all the
races that go to make up the people of the United States.--M. O. W.
Reports from Societies
RHODE ISLAND SOCIETY
An exhibition of birdless hats--'Audubonnets' as they have been
facetiously styled--was held in the parlors of the Narragansett Hotel,
in Providence, on the 9th of October. The response to the invitations,
which were sent by the society to the leading milliners, was very
gratifying, nearly all of them entering cordially into the scheme.
About one hundred and fifty hats were exhibited, and it is safe to
say that such a beautiful and artistic display of millinery was never
before seen in Providence. Most of the hats were especially designed
for the occasion, and an endless variety of styles and trimmings was
shown. The result proved conclusively that the plumage of wild birds
can be easily discarded without violating the laws of fashion.
The exhibition had been well advertised and, in spite of unpleasant
weather, the parlors were thronged with visitors throughout the day.
Many sales were made, the proceeds going to the exhibitors.
Four ribbon prizes were awarded, but it is the opinion of the committee
in charge that prizes, even of that nature, were a disadvantage.
The 'Providence News' thus comments upon the exhibition: "It was only
the other day that the 'News' was moved to remark from the evidence
of the fashion plates, that bird plumage was to be more than ever the
fashion this season. But there is evidence that the protest against it
is a mighty one, and if the birds in other communities have supporters
of the number and character that they find here in Rhode Island, the
milliners who oppose the sentiment of the Audubons will at no early day
be compelled to reform or to go out of business."
Annie M. Grant, _Sec'y._
PENNSYLVANIA SOCIETY
During the year that has followed the issuing of our second annual
report the Society has spread to nearly every county in the State. The
membership has grown from 3,300 to 5,000, and a steady increase of
interest is shown in the letters received by the secretary.
Bird-Day was most successfully observed in a large number of schools,
and both teachers and pupils seemed well pleased with the results.
We owe thanks to many of our local secretaries for their good work
among children, and for the classes for bird study which they formed
during the summer. This is a movement of the utmost importance, as
with increasing membership it becomes more and more difficult for the
secretary to conduct individual correspondence, and everyone who will
band together local members and act as local secretary, will further
the interests of the Society more than can be done in any other way.
We would like to call the attention of our members to the following:
1. When this Society was organized the quills used in millinery were
all taken from large domestic birds. Lately the Brown Pelican, Eagles,
Owls, and Turkey Vulture have been made to pay tribute to the fashions;
and we wish most earnestly to protest against the use of these quills.
A good illustration of the feathers to be avoided will be found in the
October number of Bird-Lore.
2. We would also call attention to the fact that this magazine is the
official organ of the Audubon Societies, and is essential to anyone
desiring to keep up with what is being done for the protection of birds.
3. As heretofore, we are dependent almost entirely upon voluntary
subscriptions for carrying on the objects of the organization, and
we therefore appeal again for assistance from those interested in
furthering the cause of the protection of birds. Increased funds will,
of course, enable us to reach a larger number of persons, and to issue
a larger amount of literature, for which there is a constant demand.
Donations should be forwarded to the treasurer, Mr. William L. Baily,
421 Chestnut street, Philadelphia.
For the coming year we have in view the usual course of lectures, by
Mr. Stone, and also the furthering of bird study in the schools, to
which end we hope to issue some educational circulars.
Julia Stockton Robins, _Sec'y._
THE WISCONSIN SOCIETY
Our busy season is in the spring of the year. At about Easter time
our State Superintendent of Schools issued his 'Arbor and Bird-Day
Annual,' which contained an invitation to teachers and children to join
the Audubon Society. This invitation brought an almost overwhelming
response, every day for several weeks bringing me ten or fifteen
letters from would-be branches, and our school membership mounted
rapidly to over 10,000. A prize offered to these children for the best
personal observation on a Bird Family was won by a little country girl,
who wrote a very good composition on the Ground Sparrow. We have tried,
with varying degrees of success, in different places, to institute the
work of the 'Bird Restorers' among these children.
We shall soon have a little library of bird books circulating among the
schools, and we are trying to raise money for a set of lantern slides
to accompany a lecture--lecture and slides to be sent from place to
place.
I believe that the Audubon work has already made a deep impression
in Wisconsin. The milliners' windows abound in Gulls and Birds of
Paradise, but they are not finding a ready sale. As to wings, perhaps
it is too much to expect that women will not believe their milliners
when told that "These wings are all right, because they are made."
E. G. Peckham, _Sec'y._
The Passing of the Tern
The surprising results which may follow Fashion's demand for a certain
kind of bird have never been more clearly shown than in the case of the
Terns or Sea Swallows of our Atlantic coasts.
Useless for food, the birds had escaped the demands of the hunter, and
thousands nested in security along our beaches. The exquisite purity of
their plumage and their unsurpassed gracefulness on the wing made them
a particularly grateful element of the coast scenery to every lover of
the beautiful, while to the prosaic fisherman they often gave welcome
evidence of the direction of the land, as with unerring flight they
returned through the densest fogs, bearing food to their young.
Suddenly, as a result of causes too mysterious for the mind of man to
comprehend, Fashion claimed the Terns for her own.
Up and down the coast word went forth, that Sea Swallows, or 'Summer
Gulls,' were worth ten cents each, and the milliner's agent was there
to confirm the report.
It was in June when the baymen were idle and, unrestrained by law, they
hastened to the beaches in keen competition to destroy the birds which
were nesting there.
[Illustration: Photographed from nature by F. M. Chapman
WILSON'S TERN ON NEST]
Never, in this country, at least, has there been such a slaughter of
birds. A Cobb's Island, Virginia, bayman, whose conscience, even at
this late date, urged him to a confession of shame for his part in the
proceedings, told me recently that in a single day of that memorable
season, 1,400 Terns were killed on Cobb's Island alone, and 40,000 are
said to have been there shot during the summer. The destruction at
other favorable places was proportionately great.
Two seasons of this work were sufficient to sweep the Terns from all
their more accessible resorts, the only survivors being residents of a
few uninhabited islands. Even here they would have succumbed had not
bird-lovers raised a sum to pay keepers to protect them.
Then Fashion, as if content with the destruction she had wrought, found
fresh victims, and the Terns, for a time, escaped persecution. Now,
however, the demand for them has been revived, and again the milliners'
agent is abroad placing a price on the comparatively few birds
remaining. Before me is a circular issued by a New York feather dealer,
asking for "large quantities" of "Sea Gulls, Wilson's Turns (_sic_),
Laughing Gulls, Royal Gulls," etc., and this is only one instance among
hundreds. In fact, the feather merchants themselves state that the
demand for Terns and Gulls exceeds the supply.[J]
[Footnote J: See also note from 'Brooklyn Eagle' on page 198.]
What will be the result? Is there no appeal from Fashion's decree?
Woman alone can answer these questions, and the case is so clear she
cannot shirk the responsibility of replying.
Aigrettes are decorative, quills difficult to identify, neither bespeak
death, and ignorance may lead the most humane woman into wearing
either. But with the Tern no such excuse exists, and the woman who
places its always disgustingly mutilated body on her bonnet, does so in
deliberate defiance of the laws of humanity and good taste.
Frank M. Chapman.
=====================================================================
"_The greatest and best book ever written about birds._"--Elliott Coues
A DICTIONARY OF BIRDS
=====================
By Alfred Newton
Professor of Zoölogy and Comparative Anatomy, University of Cambridge
Assisted by HANS F. GADOW, Ph.D., F.R.S.
WITH CONTRIBUTIONS FROM
RICHARD LYDEKKER
Author (with Sir W. H. FLOWER) of "An Introduction
to the Study of Mammals," etc.
CHARLES S. ROY
Professor in the University of Cambridge
ROBERT W. SHUFELDT
Late U. S. Army. Author of "The Myology of the Raven," etc.
COMPLETE IN ONE VOLUME. Med. 8vo, PRICE $10 NET
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"_=It is far and away the best book ever written about birds=_ ... the
best 'all-round' book we have ever seen; the one that best answers the
purposes of all readers; the one which conveys the most information
per thousand _ems_; the one which is freest from misstatements of any
sort; the one which is most cautious and conservative in expression of
opinions where opinions may reasonably differ; the one which is the
most keenly critical, yet most eminently just in rendering adverse
decisions...."
--From an extended review in _The Auk_.
"A very useful and concise volume, in which is to be found a vast
amount of varied information."
--O. S. in _Nature_.
"It is a better introduction to ornithology and to ornithologists than
has ever been written before ... indeed it is one to lie upon the
desk of every worker in this branch of natural history as an almost
inexhaustible storehouse of facts he needs to know."
--_The Nation._
"_=The most valuable and most interesting contribution ever made to the
subject of which it treats.=_"
--_Science._
PUBLISHED BY
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, New York
=====================================================================
_BIRDCRAFT..._
_A Field Book of Two Hundred Song,
Game and Water Birds..._
BY
Mabel Osgood Wright
[Illustration]
"_Attractive, interesting
and helpful, and should be
in the library of every
lover of birds._"--_Science_
[Illustration]
Author of "Tommy-Anne and the Three Hearts,"
"Citizen Bird," "Four-footed Americans and
their Kin."
With Eighty Plates by LOUIS AGASSIZ FUERTES
Third edition. Small 4to, $2.50
_ENTICINGLY WRITTEN_
"It is more than an accurate and comprehensive description of all
the birds one is likely to find in an extended search. It is also an
introduction to them and their haunts, so enticingly written that the
reader at once falls in love with them, and becomes an enthusiast in
their pursuit. * * * The scientific part of the work is equally well
done."
--_Evening Bulletin_, Philadelphia
_THOROUGHLY ATTRACTIVE_
"The book is as thoroughly attractive in its text as it is in its
pictures, for while it gives a wonderfully clear account of the
birds, their peculiar characteristics and how they are to be known,
its style is perfectly charming."
--_The Home Journal_, Boston
_BRIGHT AND CLEAR_
"Of very great interest and value to the lover of birds and the
student of their ways. * * * Her descriptions are bright, clear and
simple. * * * Crisp and well-written."
--_The Daily Eagle_, Brooklyn
"_As valuable as it is beautiful._"
--_The Inter Ocean_, Chicago
PUBLISHED BY
THE MACMILLAN CO., New York
=====================================================================
_HEART OF NATURE SERIES_
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
_CITIZEN BIRD_ [Illustration]
[Illustration]
_SCENES FROM BIRD-LIFE IN PLAIN ENGLISH FOR BEGINNERS..._
BY
Mabel O. Wright and Dr. Elliott Coues
Profusely Illustrated by Louis Agassiz Fuertes
CLOTH, CROWN 8vo. $1.50 NET
"Entertaining as well as valuable."--_Evening Telegraph_, Philadelphia.
"A volume which cannot be too widely circulated."--_Daily Advertiser_,
Boston.
"A delightful and at the same time a most instructive book."--_The
Herald_, New York.
"One of the most charming as well as the most useful of books on birds
ever printed."--_Forest and Stream._
"There is no other book in existence so well fitted for arousing
and directing the interest that all children feel toward the
birds."--_Tribune_, Chicago.
"An extremely praiseworthy attempt to teach children about our domestic
birds, by encouraging them to observe the living creatures rather than
the inanimate 'specimen.' More than a hundred accurate and spirited
illustrations add greatly to the attractiveness of the volume."--_The
Nation._
"_By far the best bird book for boys and girls yet published in
America._"--C. H. M. in _Science_.
=====================================================================
_OTHER BOOKS BY THE AUTHOR OF
"BIRDCRAFT," "CITIZEN BIRD," ETC._
_THE FRIENDSHIP
OF NATURE_
A New England Chronicle
of Birds and Flowers
By MABEL OSGOOD WRIGHT
CLOTH, 18mo, 75 CENTS
"The birds have seldom found a truer friend, and the flowers have never
had a more loving interpreter. This tiny volume ought to find many
friends."--_The Herald_, Boston.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
_Tommy-Anne and
the Three Hearts_
"Probably the most charming
nature-book for children
published."--_The Dial._
By MABEL OSGOOD WRIGHT
Author of "Citizen Bird," "Four-footed Americans," Etc.
CLOTH, 12mo, $1.50
"It has had a remarkable success, and it has well deserved
it."--_Evening Transcript_, Boston.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
_Four-footed
Americans
and their kin_
_HEART OF NATURE SERIES_
By MABEL OSGOOD WRIGHT
Edited by FRANK M. CHAPMAN
Illustrated by ERNEST SETON THOMPSON
CLOTH, $1.50 NET
"Mrs. Mabel Osgood Wright combines in an unusual degree minute
knowledge of natural life and the power of conveying that knowledge
in an interesting fashion.... The illustrative work deserves special
attention, so accurate and spirited is it and so well done in point of
workmanship."--_The Outlook._
"The illustrations call for almost unqualified praise.... It
is, perhaps, not too much to say that these are the best small
illustrations of our mammals ever brought together in a single
volume."--_The Nation._
PUBLISHED BY
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, New York
=====================================================================
=Our Book-Store is in Every Post Office
of the United States=
_IN THE CITIES IT'S AT EVERY DOOR_
We do not describe these books, but we will send you any of them,
_postpaid_, "on approval." After examining them at your leisure you can
either send us the price, if you wish to retain the volumes, or return
them to us, if for any reason they are not satisfactory.
_Photographing Birds and Butterflies in Colors_
Color photography has surely come to stay. We have published three
volumes illustrated in this manner, and the pictures will probably
surprise you unless you have kept up with such matters very closely.
They are photographed direct from the birds and butterflies, and only
three colors are used in printing; yet the results are generally
_absolutely accurate_ renderings of the original hues. Their price is
about one-twentieth of what such books could have been bought for a few
years ago.
"The Butterfly Book," by Dr. W. J. Holland (already in its second
edition), has, besides hundreds of text illustrations, 48 colored
plates, which show over a thousand species of American butterflies,
with all their native beauty and brilliance of coloring. It tells
everything about butterflies, and tells it in a way anybody can
understand. The price is $3 net.
Neltje Blanchan's "Birds that Hunt and are Hunted" (10th thousand)
gives the life-histories of 173 of our game and water birds and birds
of prey. You can actually see the iridescent sheen on the neck of the
wild pigeon that serves as a frontispiece, and the other 47 plates are
equally remarkable. Quite as remarkable also is the price: $2.
"Bird Neighbors," by the same author, has 52 colored plates, and
describes 150 of the song birds and other more common feathered
neighbors. With the aid of these life-like plates there can be not
the least doubt as to the identification of a bird. It is almost a
sufficient commentary on the volume that we have had to print 20,000
copies in the year since it appeared. It costs $2.
=Any or all of these books sent, postpaid, "on approval." After
examining them at your leisure, you can send us either the price or the
books.=
=SECOND EDITION.=
=The Life of Henry Drummond.= By George Adam Smith.
With photogravure portrait Net $3 00
=61st THOUSAND.=
=The Day's Work.= By Rudyard Kipling. Illustrated 1 50
=35th THOUSAND.=
=Cyrano de Bergerac.= By Edmond Rostand. Translated by
Gertrude Hall Net 50
_Also an illustrated Edition de Luxe on large paper_ 1 00
=15th THOUSAND.=
=The People of Our Neighborhood.= By Mary E. Wilkins.
Illustrated. Cloth 50
=7th THOUSAND.=
Bob, Son of Battle. A Novel. By Alfred Ollivant 1 25
=SECOND EDITION.=
=The Nameless Castle.= By Maurus Jokai. With portrait 1 25
=7th THOUSAND.=
=A Gunner Aboard the "Yankee."= Introduction by Rear-Admiral
Sampson. Illustrated 1 50
=SECOND EDITION.=
=Songs of Action.= By A. Conan Doyle 1 25
=SECOND EDITION.=
=What Shall Our Boys Do for a Living?= By Charles F. Wingate. 1 00
=76th THOUSAND.=
=Little Masterpieces.= Edited by Bliss Perry. 9 volumes,
cloth, $2.70; full leather 5 40
=44th THOUSAND=.
=Tales from McClure's.= Illustrated, cloth, 25 cts. each;
5 vols. in a box. Cloth, $1.25; full leather 2 50
=13th THOUSAND.=
=The Spirit of Sweetwater.= By Hamlin Garland. With 4
photogravures. Cloth, 50c.; full leather. 1 00
Doubleday & McClure Co., 141-155 East 25th Street, New York.
=====================================================================
STANDARD POPULAR BIRD BOOKS
A New Bird Book by PROF. DANIEL GIRAUD ELLIOT, Completing His Series of
Popular Ornithologies.
_The Wild Fowl of the United States and British Possessions_
By Prof. Daniel Giraud Elliot. The Swan, Geese, Ducks and Mergansers
of North America. Portrait and 63 illustrations of every species
described. Post 8vo, ornamental cloth, =$2.50=. Limited edition of 100
copies on hand-made paper, 4to, white cloth, =$10 net=.
The third and last volume of Prof. Elliot's valuable popular Works,
and completes the Game Bird Series. Published uniform with "Shore
Birds" and "Game Birds."
_North American Shore Birds_
The Snipe, Sandpiper, Plover, and their Allies. By Prof. D. G.
Elliot. Profusely illustrated by full-page drawings by Edwin
Sheppard. Post 8vo, cloth. Second edition, =$2.50=.
_Game Birds of North America_
The Partridge, Grouse, Ptarmigan, Wild Turkey, etc. By Prof. D. G.
Elliot. Profusely illustrated by 46 full-page drawings by Edwin
Sheppard. Post 8vo. Second edition, =$2.50=.
FRANCIS P. HARPER, 17 East 16th St., New York
* * * * *
[Illustration: Our Animal Friends
A Monthly Journal Published by The American Society for the Prevention
of Cruelty to Animals
· NEW YORK ·]
AN ILLUSTRATED MONTHLY MAGAZINE
THE ORGAN OF
The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
Containing original and instructive articles of interest to all animal
owners, including serial and short stories, and interesting miscellany
by well-known writers.
SUBSCRIPTION, ONE DOLLAR PER YEAR
Published at the Headquarters
of the Society
MADISON AVENUE AND 26TH STREET
NEW YORK
OPINIONS OF THE PRESS
---------------------
The articles and illustrations are excellent and forcible in their
teachings.--_Journal of Education_, Boston.
Our Animal Friends equals in beauty of exterior and valuable contents
the most widely circulated periodicals of the times.--_The North
American_, Philadelphia.
The magazine is admirably edited and illustrated, and contains matter
of great general interest.--_Forest and Stream_, New York.
Should be read by every boy and girl in the land, and there are
many children of larger growth that would derive benefit from its
pages.--_Spirit of the Times._
As entertaining as it is instructive.--_Philadelphia Inquirer._
No publication in this country so admirably combines exact scientific
information with racy and refined literary matter.--_Yorkshire_
(England) _Weekly Post_.
Lovers of our wild and domestic animals, young people especially, will
find in it much that is readable and instructive.--_Review of Reviews._
It is well printed and illustrated, and original in
matter.--_Sunday-School Times_, Philadelphia.
A good magazine for every home where there are children, and its truths
are just as good for those of mature life.--_Chicago Inter Ocean._
* * * * *
HOUGH'S "AMERICAN WOODS"
A publication on the trees of the United States, illustrated by actual
specimens of the woods
"A work where plant life does the writing and which no one can read
without thinking."--G. A. Parker, Esq., Hartford, Conn.
"I know of nothing so well calculated to make young people fall in love
with trees."--Prin. E. H. Russell, Worcester, Mass.
[Illustration]
PREPARATIONS OF WOODS FOR STEREOPTICON
AND MICROSCOPE, AND WOODEN CARDS FOR
FANCY AND BUSINESS PURPOSES
[Illustration]
Send for circulars, and enclose 10 cents for sample specimens from
_American Woods_.
Address ROMEYN B. HOUGH, Lowville, N. Y.
=====================================================================
_FRANK M. CHAPMAN'S BOOKS_
_BIRD-LIFE_
A Guide to the Study of our Common Birds. By Frank M. Chapman,
Assistant Curator of Vertebrate Zoölogy, American Museum of Natural
History; author of "Handbook of Birds of Eastern North America."
TEACHERS' EDITION--Containing an Appendix with new matter designed
for the use of teachers, and including lists of birds for each month
of the year; and with additional annotated lists of birds found at
Washington (D. C.), Philadelphia (Pa.), Portland (Conn.), Cambridge
(Mass.), St. Louis (Mo.), Oberlin (O.) and Milwaukee (Wis.). With 75
full-page uncolored plates and 25 drawings in the text, by Ernest
Seton Thompson. =12mo, cloth, $2.=
LIBRARY EDITION--Same as above, but without the Teachers' Appendix.
=12mo, cloth, $1.75.=
ALSO, EDITION IN COLORS. 8vo, CLOTH, $5.
"His chronicles are full of the enthusiasm of the born naturalist.
He gossips about the affairs of birds in a delightful strain,
making 'Bird-Life' an irresistible invitation to a fuller study of
ornithology. It is not dry details he offers, but pretty stories,
biographical sketches of interesting families--all sorts of bird-lore
that proves the most enchanting reading."--_Chicago Evening Post._
_TEACHERS' MANUAL_
To accompany Portfolios of COLORED PLATES. Contains the same text as
the "Teachers' Edition of Bird-Life," but is without the 75 uncolored
plates. Sold only with the Portfolios of the colored plates, as
follows:
Portfolio No. I.--Permanent Residents and Winter Visitants. 32 plates.
Portfolio No. II.--March and April Migrants. 34 plates.
Portfolio No. III.--May Migrants, Types of Birds' Eggs, and Nine
Half-tone Plates showing Types of Birds' Nests from Photographs from
Nature. 34 plates.
Price of Portfolios, each, $1.25; with the Manual, $2; the three
Portfolios with the Manual, $4.
_HANDBOOK OF BIRDS OF EASTERN NORTH AMERICA_
With Keys to the Species; Descriptions of their Plumages, Nests,
etc.; their Distribution and Migrations. By Frank M. Chapman. With
nearly 200 Illustrations. 12mo. Library Edition, cloth, =$3=; Pocket
Edition, flexible morocco, =$3.50=.
"A book so free from technicalities as to be intelligible to a
fourteen-year-old boy, and so convenient and full of original
information as to be indispensable to the working ornithologist....
As a handbook of the birds of eastern North America it is bound to
supersede all other works."--_Science._
_INSECT LIFE_
By John Henry Comstock, Professor of Entomology in Cornell
University. With Illustrations by Anna Botsford Comstock, member of
the Society of American Wood Engravers. 12mo. Library Edition, cloth,
$2.50; Teachers' and Students' Edition, $1.50.
_FAMILIAR LIFE IN FIELD AND FOREST_
By F. Schuyler Mathews. With many illustrations. 12mo. Cloth, $1.75.
_Other Books by Mr. Mathews_
Each 12mo. Cloth, $1.75
Familiar Features of the Roadside The Flowers, Shrubs, Birds and
Insects. With 130 illustrations by the author.
Familiar Trees and Their Leaves Illustrated with over 200 drawings
from nature by the author, and giving the botanical names and habitat
of each tree, and recording the precise character and coloring of its
leafage.
Familiar Flowers of Field And Garden, Illustrated with 200 drawings by
the author.
These books are for sale by all booksellers; or they will be sent by
mail, on receipt of price, by the publishers,
D. APPLETON & CO., 72 Fifth Avenue, New York
=====================================================================
The American Ornithologists' Union
Check-list of North American Birds
SECOND EDITION (1895), THOROUGHLY REVISED
The preface of this work defines its scope and object, and includes
selections from the A. O. U. Code of Nomenclature, of special
importance in the present connection. The table of contents consists
of a systematic list of the orders, sub-orders and families of North
American birds. The check-list proper gives the scientific and common
name, number in previous list, and geographical distribution of
the 1,068 species and sub-species, constituting the North American
Avifauna. This is followed by a list of birds of doubtful status, and a
list of the fossil birds of North America.
This new edition has been carefully revised; the recent changes
in nomenclature, and species and sub-species described since the
publication of the first edition in 1886, are included, while the
portion relating to geographical distribution has been much amplified.
CLOTH, 8vo, 372 PAGES, PRICE $2
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
_J. A. Allen ..THE AUK.. _F. M. Chapman
Editor_ Assoc. Editor_
A Quarterly Journal of Ornithology
OFFICIAL ORGAN OF THE AMERICAN ORNITHOLOGISTS' UNION.
As the official organ of the Union, 'The Auk' is the leading
ornithological publication of this country. Each number contains about
100 pages of text, a handsomely colored plate, and other illustrations.
The principal articles are by recognized authorities, and are of both
a scientific and popular nature. The department of 'General Notes'
gives brief records of new and interesting facts concerning birds,
contributed by observers from throughout the United States and Canada.
Recent ornithological literature is reviewed at length, and news items
are commented upon by the editors. 'The Auk' is thus indispensable to
those who would be kept informed of the advance made in the study of
birds, either in the museum or in the field.
PRICE OF CURRENT VOLUME, $3. SINGLE NUMBERS, 75 CTS.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Address L. S. FOSTER
33 PINE STREET
Publisher of 'The Auk,'
and agent of The American
Ornithologists' Union for NEW YORK CITY
the Sale of its Publications
=====================================================================
_Delightful Bird Books_
=======================
_Florence A. Merriam_
=Birds of Village and Field.= A Bird Book for Beginners. Fully
illustrated. 12mo, $2.
=A-Birding on a Bronco.= Illustrated. 16mo, $1.25.
=My Summer in a Mormon Village.= 16mo, $1.
=Birds Through an Opera-glass.= Illustrated. 16mo, 75 cents.
_Olive Thorne Miller_
=Bird-Ways.= 16mo, $1.25.
=In Nesting-Time.= 16mo, $1.25.
=Little Brothers of the Air.= 16mo, $1.25.
=A Bird-lover in the West.= 16mo, $1.25.
Among the many agreeable studies of bird life and bird character,
none have been more charming than those from the pen of Olive Thorne
Miller.--_Christian Union_ (New York).
_Bradford Torrey_
=A World of Green Hills.= (Birds and Nature in the Mountain Regions
of Virginia and North Carolina.) 16mo, $1.25.
=Spring Notes from Tennessee.= 16mo, $1.25.
=A Rambler's Lease.= 16mo, $1.25.
=Birds in the Bush.= 16mo, $1.25.
=The Foot-path Way.= 16mo, gilt top, $1.25.
=A Florida Sketch-book.= 16mo, $1.25.
He is not merely a philosopher and a sayer of happy things. He observes
Nature keenly, as well as sympathetically.--_The Auk._
_John Burroughs_
=Birds and Poets.= $1.25.
[All of Mr. Burroughs' books, 10 volumes, abound in glimpses and echoes
of birds.]
_Frank Bolles_
Three books of delightful bird papers ($1.25 each), and a book of
Poems ($1).
Sold by all Booksellers. Sent, postpaid, by
_HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN & CO., Boston
11 East 17th Street, New York_
=====================================================================
NEW BOOKS ON BIRDS
_THE STRUCTURE AND CLASSIFICATION OF BIRDS_
By Prof. Frank E. Beddard, Prosector and Vice-Secretary of the
Zoölogical Society of London. With 251 illustrations. 8vo, 568
pages, $6.00 net.
_BIRDS IN LONDON_
By W. H. Hudson, F.Z.S., etc. With 17 plates and 15 illustrations in
the Text by Bryan Hook, A. D. McCormick, and by photographs from
nature by R. B. Lodge. 8vo, $3.50.
_BRITISH BIRDS_
By W. H. Hudson, C.M.Z.S. With a chapter on Structure and
Classification, by Frank E. Beddard, F.R.S. With 8 colored plates,
and over 100 illustrations from original drawings. Large crown,
8vo, gilt top, $2.50.
×*× Great care has been taken with the illustrations in this book,
all of the individual birds being drawn to scale, as indicated in the
descriptions. The colored plates are reproduced in the highest style
of chromo-lithography from Mr. Thorburn's elaborate drawings. There
is a classified table of contents and a full index of the scientific
and familiar names of the two hundred and odd species described in the
volume.
_FUR, FEATHER AND FIN SERIES_
Edited by A. E. T. Watson. Each volume profusely illustrated.
Each volume, cloth, $1.75; bound in half-leather, gilt top, $2.50.
=THE PARTRIDGE.= Natural History, Shooting, Cookery.
=THE GROUSE.= Natural History, Shooting, Cookery.
=THE PHEASANT.= Natural History, Shooting, Cookery.
=THE HARE.= Natural History, Shooting, Coursing, Hunting, Cookery.
=THE RED DEER.= Natural History, Deer-stalking, Stag-hunting, Cookery.
=THE SALMON.= Fishing, Cookery.
=THE TROUT.= By the Marquess of Granby. Cookery, by Alexander Innes
Shand.
=THE RABBIT.= By James Edmund Harting. With a chapter on Cookery, by
Alexander Innes Shand.
LONGMANS, GREEN & CO., 91-93 Fifth Ave., New York
J. Horace McFarland Co., Printers, Harrisburg, Pa.
=====================================================================
Montauk Cameras
Always Strictly High Grade
NEW DESIGNS FOR 1899
[Illustration: SNAP-SHOT MONTAUK
3-1/4 × 4-1/4, Fixed Focus $5 00
4 × 5, with Focusing Device 7 00
]
[Illustration: STYLE II A
R. R. Lens and Unicum Shutter
4 × 5 $22 50
5 × 7 $30 00
]
[Illustration: STYLE II A CYCLE
4 × 5 $22 50
5 × 7 $30 00
Including Plush-lined, Sole-leather Cycle Case]
[Illustration: STYLE I
The Leading American Hand Camera
4 × 5 $30 00
5 × 7 $40 00
]
Send for Complete Catalogue (free) of all our many styles at from $5 to
$250.
G. GENNERT, New York
13th Street and 5th Avenue
=====================================================================
_OUTDOOR BOOKS_
_BIRD-LIFE_
A Guide to the Study of our Common Birds. By Frank M. Chapman,
Assistant Curator of Mammalogy and Ornithology, American Museum
of Natural History; author of "Handbook of Birds of Eastern North
America." With 75 full-page Plates and numerous Text Drawings by Ernest
Seton Thompson. 12mo. Cloth, $1.75. The same, with Lithographic Plates
in colors. 8vo. Cloth, $5.
_Teachers' Edition_
Containing an Appendix with new matter designed for the use of
teachers, and including lists of birds for each month in the year; and
with additional annotated lists of birds found at Washington, D. C.;
Philadelphia, Pa.; Portland, Conn.; Cambridge, Mass.; St. Louis, Mo.;
Oberlin, Ohio, and Milwaukee, Wis. With 75 full-page Uncolored Plates
and 25 Drawings in the text, by Ernest Seton Thompson. 12mo. Cloth, $2.
_Teachers' Manual_
To accompany Portfolios of Colored Plates. Contains the same text as
the "Teachers' Edition of Bird-Life," but is without the 75 Uncolored
Plates. Sold only with the Portfolios of the Colored Plates as follows:
Portfolio No. I.--Permanent Residents and Winter Visitants. 32 Plates.
Portfolio No. II.--March and April Migrants. 34 Plates.
Portfolio No. III.--May Migrants, Types of Birds' Eggs, and 9
Half-tone Plates showing Types of Birds from Photographs from Nature.
34 Plates.
Price of Portfolios, each, $1.25; with the Manual, $2; the three
Portfolios, with the Manual, $4.
"His chronicles are full of the enthusiasm of the born naturalist.
He gossips about the affairs of birds in a delightful strain,
making 'Bird-Life' an irresistible invitation to a fuller study of
ornithology. It is not dry details he offers, but pretty stories,
biographical sketches of interesting families--all sorts of bird-lore
that proves most enchanting reading."--_Chicago Evening Post._
_Handbook of Birds of Eastern North America_
With Keys to the Species; Descriptions of their Plumages, Nests, etc.;
their Distribution and Migrations. By Frank M. Chapman. With nearly
200 Illustrations. 12mo. Library Edition, cloth. $3; Pocket Edition,
flexible morocco, $3.50.
"A book so free from technicalities as to be intelligible to a
fourteen-year-old boy, and so convenient and full of original
information as to be indispensable to the working ornithologist....
As a handbook of the birds of eastern North America it is bound to
supersede all other works."--_Science._
_The Art of Taxidermy_
By John Rowley, Chief of the Department of Taxidermy in the American
Museum of Natural History. Illustrated. 12mo. Cloth, $2.
"The style of this book is a model for works of its kind. Every
process of the difficult art of the taxidermist is here made plain
with an ease that speaks eloquently of the author's skill in his
field. Illustrations add to the clarity of the text, the whole
affording a very valuable working knowledge of the stuffing and
mounting of little and big game."--_San Francisco Call._
_Insect Life_
By John Henry Comstock, Professor of Entomology in Cornell University.
With illustrations by Anna Botsford Comstock, member of the Society of
American Wood Engravers. 12mo. Library Edition, cloth, $2.50; Teachers'
and Students' Edition, $1.50.
"Any one who will go through the work with fidelity will be rewarded
by a knowledge of insect life which will be of pleasure and benefit
to him at all seasons, and will give an increased charm to the days
or weeks spent each summer outside of the great cities. It is the
best book of its class which has yet appeared."--_New York Mail and
Express._
_News from the Birds_
By Leander S. Keyser. Appletons' Home-Reading Books. 12mo. Cloth, 60
cents net.
"Pleasantly combines instruction and entertainment."--_Philadelphia
Public Ledger._
_The Story of the Birds_
By James Newton Baskett, M.A., Associate Member of the American
Ornithologists' Union. Appletons' Home-Reading Books. 12mo. Cloth,
illustrated, 65 cents.
"An admirable little book, as philosophic as it is entertaining. In a
brief but satisfactory manner it gives a vast amount of most valuable
information."--_Boston Saturday Evening Gazette._
_Books by F. Schuyler Mathews_
_Familiar Life in Field and Forest_
Uniform with "Familiar Flowers," "Familiar Trees," and "Familiar
Features of the Roadside." With many Illustrations. 12mo. Cloth, $1.75.
"This book is a charming companion to take on a summer vacation....
It is written in the simplest of language, and would prove a valuable
aid to any teacher of natural history."--_Washington Times._
_Familiar Features of the Roadside_
With 130 Illustrations, by the Author. 12mo. Cloth, $1.75.
"A faithful guide-book for our roadsides.... Can be unhesitatingly
commended for summer strolls."--_New York Evening Post._
_Familiar Trees and their Leaves_
Illustrated with over 200 Drawings from Nature by the Author, and
giving the botanical names and habitat of each tree, and recording the
precise character and coloring of its leafage. 12mo. Cloth, $1.75.
"It is not often that we find a book which deserves such unreserved
commendation. It is commendable for several reasons: it is a book
that has been needed for a long time, it is written in a popular and
attractive style, it is accurately and profusely illustrated, and
it is by an authority on the subject of which it treats."--_Public
Opinion._
_Familiar Flowers of Field and Garden_
Illustrated with 200 Drawings by the Author. 12mo. Library Edition,
cloth, $1.75; Pocket Edition, flexible morocco, $2.25.
"A book of much value and interest, admirably arranged for the
student and the lover of flowers.... The text is full of compact
information, well selected and interestingly presented.... It seems
to us to be a most attractive handbook of its kind."--_New York Sun._
(Send for a copy--free--of Appletons' Bulletin of Spring Announcements)
For sale by all Booksellers; or they will be sent postpaid, on receipt
of price, by the Publishers.
D. Appleton & Company, 72 Fifth Avenue, New York
=====================================================================
"_The greatest and best book ever written about birds._"--Elliott Coues
A DICTIONARY OF BIRDS
=====================
By Alfred Newton
Professor of Zoölogy and Comparative Anatomy, University of Cambridge
Assisted by HANS F. GADOW, Ph.D., F.R.S.
WITH CONTRIBUTIONS FROM
RICHARD LYDEKKER
Author (with Sir W. H. FLOWER) of "An Introduction
to the Study of Mammals," etc.
CHARLES S. ROY
Professor in the University of Cambridge
ROBERT W. SHUFELDT
Late U. S. Army. Author of "The Myology of the Raven," etc.
COMPLETE IN ONE VOLUME. Med. 8vo, PRICE $10 NET
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"_=It is far and away the best book ever written about birds=_ ... the
best 'all-round' book we have ever seen; the one that best answers the
purposes of all readers; the one which conveys the most information
per thousand _ems_; the one which is freest from misstatements of any
sort; the one which is most cautious and conservative in expression of
opinions where opinions may reasonably differ; the one which is the
most keenly critical, yet most eminently just in rendering adverse
decisions...."--From an extended review in _The Auk_.
"A very useful and concise volume, in which is to be found a vast
amount of varied information."--O. S. in _Nature_.
"It is a better introduction to ornithology and to ornithologists than
has ever been written before ... indeed it is one to lie upon the
desk of every worker in this branch of natural history as an almost
inexhaustible storehouse of facts he needs to know."--_The Nation._
"_=The most valuable and most interesting contribution ever made to the
subject of which it treats.=_"--_Science._
PUBLISHED BY
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, New York
=====================================================================
···Birds···
BY
A. H. Evans, M. A.
Clare College, Cambridge
CLOTH, 8vo., $3.50 NET
Being Volume IX of the Cambridge Natural History
EDITED BY AND
S. F. HARMER, Sc.D., F.R.S. A. E. SHIPLEY, M. A.
Fellow of King's College, Cambridge Fellow of Christ's College, Cambridge
Superintendent of the University Lecturer on
University Museum of Zoölogy the Morphology of Invertebrates
A short description of the majority of the forms in many of the
Families, and of the most typical or important of the innumerable
species included in the large Passerine Order. Prefixed to each
group is a brief summary of the Structure and Habits; a few further
particulars of the same nature being subsequently added where
necessary, with a statement of the main Fossil forms as yet recorded.
A very different volume from the exhaustive "Dictionary of Birds,"
by Professor Alfred Newton, which ranks as "the most valuable and
interesting contribution ever made to the subject" of Ornithology, but
one which may well hold its own place beside that work on the student's
table or precede it on its shelves. It is rarely complete, more so
than any book of its class published, and the descriptions, though
brief, are clear and, whenever necessary, illustrated by drawings made
specially for this work. The Scheme of Classification is of great value
to the Student.
With about 150 Illustrations, Charts, Index, etc., and
an outline showing
the Scheme of Classification adopted
PUBLISHED BY
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, New York
=====================================================================
_BIRDCRAFT..._
_A Field Book of Two Hundred Song,
Game and Water Birds..._
BY
Mabel Osgood Wright
[Illustration]
"_Attractive, interesting
and helpful, and should be
in the library of every
lover of birds._"--_Science_
[Illustration]
Author of "Tommy-Anne and the Three Hearts,"
"Citizen Bird," "Four-footed Americans and
their Kin."
With Eighty Plates by LOUIS AGASSIZ FUERTES
Third edition. Small 4to, $2.50
_ENTICINGLY WRITTEN_
"It is more than an accurate and comprehensive description of all
the birds one is likely to find in an extended search. It is also an
introduction to them and their haunts, so enticingly written that the
reader at once falls in love with them, and becomes an enthusiast in
their pursuit. * * * The scientific part of the work is equally well
done."--_Evening Bulletin_, Philadelphia.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
_CITIZEN BIRD_ [Illustration]
[Illustration] _SCENES FROM BIRD-LIFE IN PLAIN ENGLISH FOR BEGINNERS..._
BY
Mabel O. Wright and Dr. Elliott Coues
Profusely Illustrated by Louis Agassiz Fuertes
Heart of Nature Series. Cloth, Crown 8vo, $1.50 Net
"An extremely praiseworthy attempt to teach children about our domestic
birds, by encouraging them to observe the living creatures rather than
the inanimate 'specimen.' More than a hundred accurate and spirited
illustrations add greatly to the attractiveness of the volume."--_The
Nation_
"_By far the best bird book for boys and girls yet published in
America._"--C. H. M. in _Science_
PUBLISHED BY
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, New York
=====================================================================
[Illustration: Our Animal Friends]
AN ILLUSTRATED
MONTHLY MAGAZINE
THE ORGAN OF
The American Society for the Prevention
of Cruelty to Animals
Containing original and instructive articles of interest to all animal
owners, including serial and short stories, and interesting miscellany
by well-known writers.
SUBSCRIPTION, ONE DOLLAR PER YEAR
Published at the Headquarters
of the Society
MADISON AVENUE AND 26TH STREET
NEW YORK
_OPINIONS OF THE PRESS_
The articles and illustrations are excellent and forcible in their
teachings.--_Journal of Education_, Boston.
Our Animal Friends equals in beauty of exterior and valuable contents
the most widely circulated periodicals of the times.--_The North
American_, Philadelphia.
The magazine is admirably edited and illustrated, and contains matter
of great general interest.--_Forest and Stream_, New York.
Should be read by every boy and girl in the land, and there are
many children of larger growth that would derive benefit from its
pages.--_Spirit of the Times._
As entertaining as it is instructive.--_Philadelphia Inquirer._
No publication in this country so admirably combines exact scientific
information with racy and refined literary matter.--_Yorkshire_
(England) _Weekly Post._
Lovers of our wild and domestic animals, young people especially, will
find in it much that is readable and instructive.--_Review of Reviews._
It is well printed and illustrated, and original in
matter.--_Sunday-School Times_, Philadelphia.
A good magazine for every home where there are children, and its truths
are just as good for those of mature life.--_Chicago Inter Ocean._
* * * * *
_J. A. Allen ..THE AUK.. _F. M. Chapman
Editor_ Assoc. Editor_
A Quarterly Journal of Ornithology
OFFICIAL ORGAN OF THE AMERICAN ORNITHOLOGISTS' UNION.
As the official organ of the Union, 'The Auk' is the leading
ornithological publication of this country. Each number contains about
100 pages of text, a handsomely colored plate, and other illustrations.
The principal articles are by recognized authorities, and are of both
a scientific and popular nature. The department of 'General Notes'
gives brief records of new and interesting facts concerning birds,
contributed by observers from throughout the United States and Canada.
Recent ornithological literature is reviewed at length, and news items
are commented upon by the editors. 'The Auk' is thus indispensable to
those who would be kept informed of the advance made in the study of
birds, either in the museum or in the field.
PRICE OF CURRENT VOLUME, $3. SINGLE NUMBERS, 75 CTS.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Address L. S. FOSTER
33 PINE STREET
Publisher of 'The Auk,'
and agent of The American
Ornithologists' Union for NEW YORK CITY
the Sale of its Publications
J. Horace McFarland Co., Printers, Harrisburg, Pa.
=====================================================================
[Illustration]
_NEW WORK BY MR. R. KEARTON, F.Z.S._
Wild Life at Home:
_How to Study and
Photograph it._
By Richard Kearton, F.Z.S.
With Rembrandt Frontispiece and 100 Illustrations from Photographs
taken direct from Nature, by CHERRY KEARTON. =Buckram, Gilt. Price,
$1.50.=
In this new book Mr. Kearton displays further signs of striking
originality and ingenuity in the study and portrayal of wild birds,
beasts, and insects. He and his brother have gone to great expense,
labor and pains in order to excel even themselves and still further
illustrate what may be accomplished with the camera by skill and
perseverance.
"No book of the season is more sure of a warm welcome than this
delightful volume of Messrs. Richard and Cherry Kearton. We can
safely prophesy for it a widespread popularity, for it is written
on simple and practical lines, and is illustrated by the finest
collection of nature-photographs we have ever seen. Mr. R. Kearton
writes in a very lively way, and his brother's photographs are full
of suggestion and charm."--_Bookman._
With Nature and a Camera:
_Being the Adventures and Observations
of a Field Naturalist and
an Animal Photographer._
By Richard Kearton, F.Z.S.
Illustrated by a Special Frontispiece, and 180 Pictures of Wild Birds,
Animals and Insects at work and play, from Photographs taken direct
from Nature, by CHERRY KEARTON.
Handsomely Bound in Buckram, Gilt. Price, $5.
"'With Nature and a Camera' surpasses the sensations of the most
romantic of novels, and is lavishly embellished with photographic
reproductions of exquisite softness and delicacy."--_The Times._
"No such collection of pictures of British bird-life has ever been
produced, and the text is worthy of the pictures."--_Standard._
"Author and photographer alike are to be congratulated on the result
of their labors so sumptuously produced, and the naturalist who does
not procure the work will miss a genuine pleasure. The book ought to
be in every public library."--_Feathered World._
British Birds' Nests:
_How, Where, and When to
Find and Identify Them._
By Richard Kearton, F.Z.S.
With Introduction by DR. BOWDLER SHARPE
Containing 130 Illustrations of Nests, Eggs, Young, etc., in their
natural situations and surroundings, from Photographs by CHERRY
KEARTON. =Buckram, Gilt. Price, $5.=
"A book with a wealth of beauty and truth of illustration hitherto
altogether unrivalled."--_Sketch._
"The reproductions are admirable. Mr. Kearton writes well, and has
obviously the genuine enthusiasm for Nature, and the two brothers
between them have produced a volume that all bird-lovers will
admire."--_Daily Telegraph._
"The illustrations show things as they are, and not as they
are imagined to be, and this, for a true aid to the study of
ornithology, as of any other department of natural history, is of
course what is wanted. The book is altogether most interesting and
attractive."--_Westminister Gazette._
_Revised and Enlarged Edition_
Birds' Nests, Eggs, and Egg-Collecting.
By RICHARD KEARTON, F.Z.S.
Illus. with 22 Colored Plates of Eggs. =Price, $1.75.=
"This well-written, daintily gotten-up, and beautifully illustrated
volume is altogether exceedingly attractive, and will serve as an
excellent and tasteful gift-book."--_Public Opinion._
_The Illustrated Book of_
Canaries and Cage Birds.
By W. A. BLAKSTON, W. SWAYSLAND and AUGUST F. WIENER, F.Z.S.
With 56 Facsimile Colored Plates, and many other Illustrations. 448
pp., demy 4to, cloth, beveled boards, full gilt sides and edges.
=Price, $15.=
For sale by all booksellers; or they will be sent by mail, on receipt
of price, by the publishers,
CASSELL & COMPANY, Limited.
London ... Paris ... Melbourne 7 & 9 West 18th Street, NEW YORK
=====================================================================
_OUTDOOR BOOKS_
_BIRD-LIFE_
A Guide to the Study of our Common Birds. By Frank M. Chapman,
Assistant Curator of Mammalogy and Ornithology, American Museum
of Natural History; author of "Handbook of Birds of Eastern North
America." With 75 full-page Plates and numerous Text Drawings by Ernest
Seton Thompson. 12mo. Cloth, $1.75. The same, with Lithographic Plates
in colors. 8vo. Cloth, $5.
_Teachers' Edition_
Containing an Appendix with new matter designed for the use of
teachers, and including lists of birds for each month in the year; and
with additional annotated lists of birds found at Washington, D. C.,
Philadelphia, Pa.; Portland, Conn.; Cambridge, Mass.; St. Louis, Mo.;
Oberlin, Ohio, and Milwaukee, Wis. With 75 full-page Uncolored Plates
and 25 Drawings in the text, by Ernest Seton Thompson. 12mo. Cloth, $2.
_Teachers' Manual_
To accompany Portfolios of Colored Plates. Contains the same text as
the "Teachers' Edition of Bird-Life," but is without the 75 Uncolored
Plates. Sold only with the Portfolios of the Colored Plates as follows:
Portfolio No. I.--Permanent Residents and Winter Visitants. 32 Plates.
Portfolio No. II.--March and April Migrants. 34 Plates.
Portfolio No. III.--May Migrants, Types of Birds' Eggs, and 9
Half-tone Plates showing Types of Birds, from Photographs from
Nature. 34 Plates.
Price of Portfolios, each, $1.25; with the Manual, $2; the three
Portfolios, with the Manual, $4.
"His chronicles are full of the enthusiasm of the born naturalist.
He gossips about the affairs of birds in a delightful strain,
making 'Bird-Life' an irresistible invitation to a fuller study of
ornithology. It is not dry details he offers, but pretty stories,
biographical sketches of interesting families--all sorts of bird-lore
that proves most enchanting reading."--_Chicago Evening Post._
_Handbook of Birds of Eastern North America_
With Keys to the Species; Descriptions of their Plumages, Nests, etc.;
their Distribution and Migrations. By Frank M. Chapman. With nearly
200 Illustrations. 12mo. Library Edition, cloth. $3; Pocket Edition,
flexible morocco, $3.50.
"A book so free from technicalities as to be intelligible to a
fourteen-year-old boy, and so convenient and full of original
information as to be indispensable to the working ornithologist....
As a handbook of the birds of eastern North America it is bound to
supersede all other works."--_Science._
_The Art of Taxidermy_
By John Rowley, Chief of the Department of Taxidermy in the American
Museum of Natural History. Illustrated. 12mo. Cloth, $2.
"The style of this book is a model for works of its kind. Every
process of the difficult art of the taxidermist is here made plain
with an ease that speaks eloquently of the author's skill in his
field. Illustrations add to the clarity of the text, the whole
affording a very valuable working knowledge of the stuffing and
mounting of little and big game."--_San Francisco Call._
_Insect Life_
By John Henry Comstock, Professor of Entomology in Cornell University.
With illustrations by Anna Botsford Comstock, member of the Society of
American Wood Engravers. 12mo. Library Edition, cloth, $2.50; Teachers'
and Students' Edition, $1.50.
"Any one who will go through the work with fidelity will be rewarded
by a knowledge of insect life which will be of pleasure and benefit
to him at all seasons, and will give an increased charm to the days
or weeks spent each summer outside of the great cities. It is the
best book of its class which has yet appeared."--_New York Mail and
Express._
_News from the Birds_
By Leander S. Keyser. Appletons' Home-Reading Books. 12mo. Cloth, 60
cents net.
"Pleasantly combines instruction and entertainment."--_Philadelphia
Public Ledger._
_The Story of the Birds_
By James Newton Baskett, M.A., Associate Member of the American
Ornithologists' Union. Appletons' Home-Reading Books. 12mo. Cloth,
illustrated, 65 cents.
"An admirable little book, as philosophic as it is entertaining. In a
brief but satisfactory manner it gives a vast amount of most valuable
information."--_Boston Saturday Evening Gazette._
_Books by F. Schuyler Mathews_
_Familiar Life in Field and Forest_
Uniform with "Familiar Flowers," "Familiar Trees," and "Familiar
Features of the Roadside." With many Illustrations. 12mo. Cloth, $1.75.
"This book is a charming companion to take on a summer vacation....
It is written in the simplest of language, and would prove a valuable
aid to any teacher of natural history."--_Washington Times._
_Familiar Features of the Roadside_
With 130 Illustrations, by the Author. 12mo. Cloth, $1.75.
"A faithful guide-book for our roadsides.... Can be unhesitatingly
commended for summer strolls."--_New York Evening Post._
_Familiar Trees and their Leaves_
Illustrated with over 200 Drawings from Nature by the Author, and
giving the botanical name and habitat of each tree, and recording the
precise character and coloring of its leafage. 12mo. Cloth, $1.75.
"It is not often that we find a book which deserves such unreserved
commendation. It is commendable for several reasons: it is a book
that has been needed for a long time, it is written in a popular and
attractive style, it is accurately and profusely illustrated, and
it is by an authority on the subject of which it treats."--_Public
Opinion._
_Familiar Flowers of Field and Garden_
Illustrated with 200 Drawings by the Author. 12mo. Library Edition,
cloth, $1.75; Pocket Edition, flexible morocco, $2.25.
"A book of much value and interest, admirably arranged for the
student and the lover of flowers.... The text is full of compact
information, well selected and interestingly presented.... It seems
to us to be a most attractive handbook of its kind."--_New York Sun._
(Send for a copy--free--of Appletons' Bulletin of Spring Announcements.)
For sale by all Booksellers; or they will be sent postpaid, on receipt
of price, by the Publishers.
D. Appleton & Company, 72 Fifth Avenue, New York
=====================================================================
"_The greatest and best book ever written about birds._"--Elliott Coues
A DICTIONARY OF BIRDS
=====================
By Alfred Newton
Professor of Zoölogy and Comparative Anatomy, University of Cambridge
Assisted by HANS F. GADOW, Ph.D., F.R.S.
WITH CONTRIBUTIONS FROM
RICHARD LYDEKKER
Author (with Sir W. H. FLOWER) of "An Introduction
to the Study of Mammals," etc.
CHARLES S. ROY
Professor in the University of Cambridge
ROBERT W. SHUFELDT
Late U. S. Army. Author of "The Myology of the Raven," etc.
COMPLETE IN ONE VOLUME. Med. 8vo, PRICE $10 NET
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"_=It is far and away the best book ever written about birds=_ ... the
best 'all-round' book we have ever seen; the one that best answers the
purposes of all readers; the one which conveys the most information
per thousand _ems_; the one which is freest from misstatements of any
sort; the one which is most cautious and conservative in expression of
opinions where opinions may reasonably differ; the one which is the
most keenly critical, yet most eminently just in rendering adverse
decisions...."
--From an extended review in _The Auk_.
"A very useful and concise volume, in which is to be found a vast
amount of varied information."
--O. S. in _Nature_.
"It is a better introduction to ornithology and to ornithologists than
has ever been written before ... indeed it is one to lie upon the
desk of every worker in this branch of natural history as an almost
inexhaustible storehouse of facts he needs to know."
--_The Nation._
"_=The most valuable and most interesting contribution ever made to the
subject of which it treats.=_"
--_Science._
PUBLISHED BY
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, New York
=====================================================================
···Birds···
BY
A. H. Evans, M. A.
Clare College, Cambridge
CLOTH, 8vo., $3.50 NET
Being Volume IX of the Cambridge Natural History
EDITED BY AND
S. F. HARMER, Sc.D., F.R.S. A. E. SHIPLEY, M. A.
Fellow of King's College, Cambridge Fellow of Christ's College, Cambridge
Superintendent of the University Lecturer on
University Museum of Zoölogy the Morphology of Invertebrates
A very different volume from the exhaustive "Dictionary of Birds,"
by Professor Alfred Newton, which ranks as "the most valuable and
interesting contribution ever made to the subject" of Ornithology, but
one which may well hold its own place beside that work on the student's
table or precede it on its shelves. It is rarely complete, more so
than any book of its class published, and the descriptions, though
brief, are clear, and, whenever necessary, illustrated by drawings made
specially for this work. Prefixed to each group described is a brief
summary of the Structure and Habits, a few further particulars of the
same nature being subsequently added where necessary, with a statement
of the main Fossil forms as yet recorded. The Scheme of Classification
is of great value to the Student.
With about 150 Illustrations, Charts, Index, etc., and an outline
showing the Scheme of Classification adopted
PUBLISHED BY
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, New York
=====================================================================
_BIRDCRAFT..._
_A Field Book of Two Hundred Song,
Game and Water Birds..._
BY
Mabel Osgood Wright
[Illustration]
"_Attractive, interesting
and helpful, and should be
in the library of every
lover of birds._"--_Science_
[Illustration]
Author of "Tommy-Anne and the Three Hearts,"
"Citizen Bird," "Four-footed Americans and
their Kin."
With Eighty Plates by LOUIS AGASSIZ FUERTES
Third edition. Small 4to, $2.50
_ENTICINGLY WRITTEN_
"It is more than an accurate and comprehensive description of all
the birds one is likely to find in an extended search. It is also an
introduction to them and their haunts, so enticingly written that the
reader at once falls in love with them, and becomes an enthusiast in
their pursuit. * * * The scientific part of the work is equally well
done."
--_Evening Bulletin_, Philadelphia
_CITIZEN BIRD_ [Illustration]
[Illustration]
_SCENES FROM BIRD-LIFE IN PLAIN ENGLISH FOR BEGINNERS..._
BY
Mabel O. Wright and Dr. Elliott Coues
Profusely Illustrated by Louis Agassiz Fuertes
Heart of Nature Series. Cloth, Crown 8vo, $1.50 Net
"An extremely praiseworthy attempt to teach children about our domestic
birds, by encouraging them to observe the living creatures rather than
the inanimate 'specimen.' More than a hundred accurate and spirited
illustrations add greatly to the attractiveness of the volume."--_The
Nation_
"_By far the best bird book for boys and girls yet published in
America._"
--C. H. M. in _Science_
PUBLISHED BY
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, New York
"_One of the most fascinating studies of wild life ever given to the
world._"--London _Daily News_.
WILD ANIMALS I HAVE KNOWN
By ERNEST SETON THOMPSON.
Being the Personal Histories of Lobo, the Wolf, Silverspot, the Crow,
Raggylug, the Rabbit, Bingo, my Dog, The Springfield Fox, The Pacing
Mustang, Wully, the Yaller Dog, and Redruff, the Partridge.
With nearly 200 Illustrations from Drawings by the Author.
_Seventh Thousand._ Square 12mo. $2.00.
"_There is nothing in modern story telling which equals the tale of
the capture of the pacing mustang.... In depicting animal life and
character, Mr. Thompson has probably no peer in this country, and this
delightful volume shows us that his pen is as mighty as his marvelous
brush._"
--New York _Mail and Express_.
"The originality and freshness of these stories is irresistible.... In
everything he does, Mr. Thompson has a way peculiarly his own. Even if
naked and unadorned, the facts he tells us would be very interesting;
but when we have the facts and the factors fairly dancing before us,
clothed in all the quaint quips and droll persiflage of an accomplished
humorist and born story-teller, they are--as I have said--irresistible."
--Mr. W. T. Hornaday, in _Recreation_.
"Mr. Thompson holds our unflagging interest in his stories. He
knows his animals as individual characters, and sets forth their
lives vividly, making us feel for and with them, through all their
vicissitudes to the appointed death by violence. The book is thoroughly
good, both in purpose and execution; it should find a wide circle of
interested readers, to whose sympathies it appeals so strongly and so
humanly."
--_The Nation._
CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS,
153-157
Fifth Avenue
New York
BULLETIN OF THE
Michigan Ornithological Club
Published Quarterly at 50 cts. per year.
Single copies, 15 cts.
Back numbers can be furnished as follows:
Vol. I, No. 1, January, 1897, 50c.
No. 2, April, 50c.
No. 3-4, July-Dec., 30c.
Vol. II, No. 1, January, '98, 15c.
No. 2, April, 15c.
No. 3-4, July-Dec., 30c.
Four Complete Files for sale.
A sample copy of the January, 1899, issue will be sent on receipt of
four cents in stamps.
MULLIKEN & DURFEE,
Managers,
179 Central Ave.,
Grand Rapids, Mich.
The Bulletin
of the
Cooper Ornithological Club
of California
A 16 to 24 page bi-monthly, _illustrated_, invites the support of those
who are interested in the ornithology of the Great West. One hundred
field workers in California alone write for it, and to those who would
keep apace with the new discoveries being constantly made in this
interesting region, it is a necessity.
Edited by CHESTER BARLOW
associated with
HENRY REED TAYLOR
HOWARD ROBERTSON
_The Auk_ says: "The Bulletin thus early takes a prominent place in
the ornithological literature of North America."
It will contain many charming bird photographs during 1899, together
with an array of articles from versatile Californian ornithologists.
Terms, $1 a year. Sample copy, 20c.
Address order for sample to C. BARLOW, Editor,
Santa Clara, Cal., and subscriptions to
DONALD A. COHEN, Alameda, Cal.
J. Horace McFarland Co., Printers. Harrisburg, Pa.
_Successful Bird Photography_
Requires the use of the very
BEST CAMERA and LENS
The Long Focus, Reversible Back, Solograph
[Illustration]
Is constructed for special work of this kind, and the Lens and Shutter
(the patented Bausch & Lomb "Unicum"), is particularly adapted for
quick and accurate work.
=The Solograph= is the highest grade Camera at present on the market.
=It is used by the Editor of this Magazine=, and many other experts,
including Scientific Investigators in various directions, Army and Navy
Officers, and the most Experienced and Discriminating Amateurs.
Our illustrated manual of instruction, entitled "=Photographic Advice="
(which will be sent, postpaid, to any address on receipt of 10 cents in
postage stamps), contains full particulars, prices and descriptions of
this and other =Fine Photographic Apparatus=.
A sample number of =The Photographic Times=, containing about fifty
handsome illustrations, will be mailed, postpaid, on receipt of 35
cents.
The Scovill & Adams Company
OF NEW YORK
60 and 62 East Eleventh Street
HEADQUARTERS FOR EVERYTHING PHOTOGRAPHIC
[Illustration: right pointing hand symbol] =WANTED TO BUY=--Negatives
of Birds, their Nests and Eggs, from Nature. Address, enclosing prints,
=FRANK M. CHAPMAN, American Museum of Natural History, New York City=.
_OUTDOOR BOOKS_
_BIRD-LIFE_
A Guide to the Study of our Common Birds. By Frank M. Chapman,
Assistant Curator of Mammalogy and Ornithology, American Museum
of Natural History: author of "Handbook of Birds of Eastern North
America." With 75 full-page Plates and numerous Text Drawings by Ernest
Seton Thompson. 12mo. Cloth, $1.75. The same, with Lithographic Plates
in colors. 8vo. Cloth, $5.
_Teachers' Edition_
Containing an Appendix with new matter designed for the use of
teachers, and including lists of birds for each month in the year; and
with additional annotated lists of birds found at Washington, D. C.,
Philadelphia, Pa.; Portland, Conn.; Cambridge, Mass.; St. Louis, Mo.;
Oberlin, Ohio, and Milwaukee, Wis. With 75 full-page Uncolored Plates
and 25 Drawings in the text, by Ernest Seton Thompson. 12mo. Cloth, $2.
_Teachers' Manual_
To accompany Portfolios of Colored Plates. Contains the same text as
the "Teachers' Edition of Bird-Life," but is without the 75 Uncolored
Plates. Sold only with the Portfolios of the Colored Plates as follows:
Portfolio No. I.--Permanent Residents and Winter Visitants. 32 Plates.
Portfolio No. II.--March and April Migrants. 34 Plates.
Portfolio No. III.--May Migrants. Types of Birds' Eggs, and
9 Half-tone Plates showing Types of Birds, from Photographs
from Nature. 34 Plates.
Price of Portfolios, each, $1.25; with the Manual, $2; the three
Portfolios, with the Manual, $4.
"His chronicles are full of the enthusiasm of the born naturalist.
He gossips about the affairs of birds in a delightful strain,
making 'Bird-Life' an irresistible invitation to a fuller study of
ornithology. It is not dry details he offers, but pretty stories,
biographical sketches of interesting families--all sorts of bird-lore
that proves most enchanting reading."--_Chicago Evening Post._
_Handbook of Birds of Eastern North America_
With Keys to the Species; Descriptions of their Plumages, Nests, etc.;
their Distribution and Migrations. By Frank M. Chapman. With nearly
200 Illustrations. 12mo. Library Edition, cloth, $3; Pocket Edition,
flexible morocco, $3.50.
"A book so free from technicalities as to be intelligible to a
fourteen-year-old boy, and so convenient and full of original
information as to be indispensable to the working ornithologist....
As a handbook of the birds of eastern North America it is bound to
supersede all other works."--_Science._
_The Art of Taxidermy_
By John Rowley, Chief of the Department of Taxidermy in the American
Museum of Natural History. Illustrated. 12mo. Cloth, $2.
"The style of this book is a model for works of its kind. Every
process of the difficult art of the taxidermist is here made plain
with an ease that speaks eloquently of the author's skill in his
field. Illustrations add to the clarity of the text, the whole
affording a very valuable working knowledge of the stuffing and
mounting of little and big game."--_San Francisco Call._
_Insect Life_
By John Henry Comstock, Professor of Entomology in Cornell University.
With illustrations by Anna Botsford Comstock, member of the Society of
American Wood Engravers. 12mo. $1.50.
"Any one who will go through the work with fidelity will be rewarded
by a knowledge of insect life which will be of pleasure and benefit
to him at all seasons, and will give an increased charm to the days
or weeks spent each summer outside of the great cities. It is the
best book of its class which has yet appeared."--_New York Mail and
Express._
_News from the Birds_
By Leander S. Keyser. Appletons' Home-Reading Books. 12mo. Cloth, 60
cents net.
"Pleasantly combines instruction and entertainment."--_Philadelphia
Public Ledger._
_The Story of the Birds_
By James Newton Baskett, M.A., Associate Member of the American
Ornithologists' Union. Appletons' Home-Reading Books. 12mo. Cloth,
illustrated, 65 cents.
"An admirable little book, as philosophic as it is entertaining. In a
brief but satisfactory manner it gives a vast amount of most valuable
information."--_Boston Saturday Evening Gazette._
_Books by F. Schuyler Mathews_
_Familiar Life in Field and Forest_
Uniform with "Familiar Flowers," "Familiar Trees," and "Familiar
Features of the Roadside." With many Illustrations. 12mo. Cloth, $1.75.
"This book is a charming companion to take on a summer vacation....
It is written in the simplest of language, and would prove a valuable
aid to any teacher of natural history."--_Washington Times._
_Familiar Features of the Roadside_
With 130 Illustrations by the Author. 12mo. Cloth, $1.75.
"A faithful guide-book for our roadsides.... Can be unhesitatingly
commended for summer strolls."--_New York Evening Post._
_Familiar Trees and their Leaves_
Illustrated with over 200 Drawings from Nature by the Author, and
giving the botanical name and habitat of each tree, and recording the
precise character and coloring of its leafage. 12mo. Cloth, $1.75.
"It is not often that we find a book which deserves such unreserved
commendation. It is commendable for several reasons: it is a book
that has been needed for a long time, it is written in a popular and
attractive style, it is accurately and profusely illustrated, and
it is by an authority on the subject of which it treats."--_Public
Opinion._
_Familiar Flowers of Field and Garden_
Illustrated with 200 Drawings by the Author. 12mo. Library Edition,
cloth, $1.75; Pocket Edition, flexible morocco, $2.25.
"A book of much value and interest, admirably arranged for the
student and the lover of flowers.... The text is full of compact
information, well selected and interestingly presented.... It seems
to us to be a most attractive handbook of its kind."--_New York Sun._
(Send for a copy--free--of Appletons' Bulletin of Spring Announcements.)
For sale by all Booksellers; or they will be sent postpaid, on receipt
of price, by the Publishers.
D. Appleton & Company, 72 Fifth Avenue, New York
"_The greatest and best book ever written about birds._"--ELLIOTT COUES
_A Dictionary of Birds_
BY
Prof. Alfred Newton
Assisted by
Hans F. Gadow, Ph. D.
WITH CONTRIBUTIONS FROM
RICHARD LYDEKKER
Author (with Sir W. H. FLOWER) of "An Introduction
to the Study of Mammals," etc.
PROF. CHARLES S. ROY AND
ROBERT W. SHUFELDT
Late U. S. Army. Author of "The Myology of
the Raven," etc.
COMPLETE IN ONE VOLUME. Med. 8vo, PRICE $10 NET
"_It is far and away the best book ever written about birds_ ... the
best 'all-round' book we have ever seen; the one that best answers the
purposes of all readers; the one which conveys the most information
per thousand _ems_; the one which is freest from misstatements of any
sort; the one which is most cautious and conservative in expression of
opinions where opinions may reasonably differ; the one which is the
most keenly critical, yet most eminently just in rendering adverse
decisions...."--From an extended review in _The Auk_.
"A very useful and concise volume, in which is to be found a vast
amount of varied information."--O. S. in _Nature_.
BIRDS Being VOLUME IX of the
===== Cambridge Natural History
By A. H. EVANS, M. A.
Clare College, Cambridge
EDITED BY AND
S. F. HARMER, Sc.D., F.R.S. A. E. SHIPLEY, M. A.
Fellow of King's College, Cambridge Fellow of Christ's College, Cambridge
Superintendent of the University Lecturer on
University Museum of Zoölogy the Morphology of Invertebrates
FULLY ILLUSTRATED. CLOTH, 8vo. $3.50 NET
A short description of the majority of the forms in many of the
Families, and of the most typical or important of the innumerable
species included in the large Passerine order. Prefixed to each group
is a brief summary of the Structure and Habits. It is rarely complete,
more so than any book of its class published, and the descriptions,
though brief, are clear and, whenever necessary, illustrated by
drawings made specially for this work. The Scheme of Classification is
of great value to the Student.
PUBLISHED BY
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, New York
=====================================================================
_BIRDCRAFT..._
_A Field Book of Two Hundred Song,
Game and Water Birds..._
BY
Mabel Osgood Wright
[Illustration]
"_Attractive, interesting
and helpful, and should be
in the library of every
lover of birds._"--_Science_
[Illustration]
Author of "Tommy-Anne and the Three Hearts,"
"Citizen Bird," "Four-footed Americans and
their Kin."
With Eighty Plates by LOUIS AGASSIZ FUERTES
Third edition. Small 4to, $2.50
_ENTICINGLY WRITTEN_
"It is more than an accurate and comprehensive description of all
the birds one is likely to find in an extended search. It is also an
introduction to them and their haunts, so enticingly written that the
reader at once falls in love with them, and becomes an enthusiast in
their pursuit. * * * The scientific part of the work is equally well
done."
--_Evening Bulletin_, Philadelphia
_CITIZEN BIRD_ [Illustration]
[Illustration]
_SCENES FROM BIRD-LIFE IN PLAIN ENGLISH FOR BEGINNERS..._
BY
Mabel O. Wright and Dr. Elliott Coues
Profusely Illustrated by Louis Agassiz Fuertes
Heart of Nature Series. Cloth, Crown 8vo, $1.50 Net
"An extremely praiseworthy attempt to teach children about our domestic
birds, by encouraging them to observe the living creatures rather than
the inanimate 'specimen.' More than a hundred accurate and spirited
illustrations add greatly to the attractiveness of the volume."--_The
Nation_
"_By far the best bird book for boys and girls yet published in
America._"
--C. H. M. in _Science_
PUBLISHED BY
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, New York
=====================================================================
ANNOUNCEMENT
------------
The Child Life Readers
BY
ETTA AUSTIN BLAISDELL
Assistant Superintendent of Schools, Brockton, Mass.
I. CHILD LIFE--
A First Reader Price, 25 cts.
II. CHILD LIFE IN TALE AND FABLE--
A Second Reader Price, 35 cts.
III. CHILD LIFE IN MANY LANDS--
A Third Reader In preparation
IV. CHILD LIFE IN LITERATURE--
A Fourth Reader In preparation
The central idea of these books is to _hold the child's interest_
by giving him reading-matter (profusely illustrated) that he _can
understand and enjoy_. The lessons, therefore, relate exclusively to
_child life_.
The First and Second Readers have _easier reading-matter_ and _more
of it_ than do most of the other readers now available for first and
second year. They have been graded with the utmost care.
These books, beginning with the Second Reader, have been planned as
an _introduction to literature_. The subject-matter, therefore, is
confined to material of _recognized literary value_.
The aim of the publishers has been to produce _an artistic set of
Readers_ that shall be mechanically as nearly perfect as possible.
As a unique feature in binding, they would call attention to the
_covers, which are water-proof_, and can be cleansed, when soiled by
constant handling, without injury to the book.
------------
Recent Publications on Nature Study
=Bailey's Lessons With Plants.= $1.10 _net_
Suggestions for Seeing and Interpreting some
of the Common Forms of Vegetation.
=Bailey's First Lessons with Plants.= 40 cts. _net_
"Extremely original and unusually practical."
=Ingersoll's Wild Neighbors.= $1.50
"Instructive as well as delightful."--_Popular
Science Monthly._
=Lange's Hand-Book of Nature Study.= $1 _net_
"The style of the book is fresh and inspiring."
=Murché's Science Readers.=
Vol. I. 25 cents.
Vol. II. 25 cents.
Vol. III. 40 cents.
Vol. IV. 40 cents _net_.
Vol. V. 50 cents _net_.
Vol. VI. 50 cents _net_.
=Weed's Life Histories of American Insects.= $1.50
"An unusually attractive book."--_Dial._
=Wilson's Nature Study in Elementary Schools.=
First Nature Reader 35 cents
Second Nature Reader 35 cents
Teacher's Manual 90 cents
=Wright's Citizen Bird= $1.50 _net_
An interesting story, giving to the children
much accurate information about American birds.
"Most delightful book on the subject yet printed
in the United States. I wish every boy and girl
could read it."--J. M. Greenwood, Sup't Kansas
City, Mo.
=Wright's Four-Footed Americans= $1.50 _net_
Four-Footed American Mammals treated in story
form in the manner of _Citizen Bird_.
=Wright's Birdcraft= $2.50 _net_
PUBLISHED BY
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, New York
=====================================================================
The Plant World
Edited by F. H. KNOWLTON, Ph.D.
Is an illustrated monthly botanical journal that is maintained for
those who love the wild flowers, but find the text-books either
difficult to understand or too dry when mastered. It aims to view the
plant as a living thing. Its pages are full of the knowledge gained by
a study of the plants in the fields and woods, written in simple and
attractive language, which is
_Strictly Scientific, but not Technical._
Among forthcoming articles may be mentioned several on making an
herbarium; on teaching the various branches of botany in the public
schools; on the families of flowering plants; on the study and
identification of our common liverworts, and many others. A free sample
copy may be had by addressing the publishers.
SUBSCRIPTION PRICE, $1 PER ANNUM.
Willard N. Clute & Co.
Publishers BINGHAMTON, NEW YORK
THE GULF FAUNA AND FLORA BULLETIN
Will be issued as a bi-monthly from the Louisiana Industrial Institute
Press, and edited by writers on biology. It will be made a bulletin
of original research, and be kept in close touch with all science
societies of the Gulf section, most especially with the Louisiana
State Biological Station, soon to be opened. As the name implies,
the Bulletin will be devoted to the biological interests of the Gulf
section. It aims to take the place of no other publication, but, on the
other hand, hopes to encourage the increased circulation of biological
literature, and the unification of the interests of working biologists
generally.
The editors invite long or short articles; catalogues of animals or
plants; sketches of past work of societies or individuals; reviews of
books or other scientific publications. Articles too short for extended
or general treatment, or papers too long or technical for semi-popular
treatises, are especially invited. In short, the aim is to make a
bulletin rather than a popular science journal.
The following are some of the articles now ready for publication:
=Catalogue of Reptiles of Arkansas=; =History of Louisiana Botany=;
=The Louisiana Gulf Biological Station=; =The Louisiana Society of
Naturalists=; =A Bill before Congress for the Creation of a Government
Biological Station and Fish Hatchery on the Louisiana Coast=; =Review
of the Proceedings of the National Fishery Congress=; =Some Special
Features of Avery's Island=; =The Behavior of Birds around their Nests
or Young=.
The size of the Bulletin will be 8-1/2 × 10 inches. Each number will
contain not less than thirty pages, six numbers constituting a volume.
Subscription, $2.50 per volume. The date of issue may be irregular,
each number being held till sufficient original matter be obtained
to warrant an issue. We invite comments and criticisms, as well as
contributions and subscriptions, from biologists.
Address
THE GULF FAUNA AND FLORA BULLETIN,
Ruston, Louisiana.
[Illustration: hand pointing right] =WANTED TO BUY=--Negatives of
Birds, their Nests and Eggs, from Nature. Address, enclosing prints,
=FRANK M. CHAPMAN, American Museum of Natural History, New York City=.
=====================================================================
_Successful Bird Photography_
Requires the use of the very BEST CAMERA and LENS
The Long Focus, Reversible Back, Solograph
[Illustration]
Is constructed for special work of this kind, and the Lens and Shutter
(the patented Bausch & Lomb "Unicum"), is particularly adapted for
quick and accurate work.
=The Solograph= is the highest grade Camera at present on the market.
=It is used by the Editor of this Magazine=, and many other experts,
including Scientific Investigators in various directions, Army and Navy
Officers, and the most Experienced and Discriminating Amateurs.
Our illustrated manual of instruction, entitled "=Photographic Advice="
(which will be sent, postpaid, to any address on receipt of 10 cents in
postage stamps), contains full particulars, prices and descriptions of
this and other =Fine Photographic Apparatus=.
A sample number of =The Photographic Times=, containing about fifty
handsome illustrations, will be mailed, postpaid, on receipt of 35
cents.
The Scovill & Adams Company
OF NEW YORK
60 and 62 East Eleventh Street
HEADQUARTERS FOR EVERYTHING PHOTOGRAPHIC
D. Appleton & Co.'s New Books
Oom Paul's People
By Howard C. Hillegas. With illustrations. 12mo, cloth, $1.50.
"Oom Paul's People" is the title of an exceedingly timely and
interesting book, presenting clearly for the first time in this country
the Boer's side of the Transvaal Question. The author is Howard C.
Hillegas, a New York newspaper man, who spent nearly two years in South
Africa, enjoying special facilities at the hands of President Kruger
and other Boer officials, as well as from Sir Alfred Milner and other
British representatives at Cape Colony. The book contains an important
interview with Oom Paul, and a special study of Cecil Rhodes. The
author blames stock jobbers and politicians for all the trouble between
the Boers and the English, and believes that war is the probable final
outcome. One chapter is especially devoted to the American interests in
South Africa, showing that, while British capital owns the vast gold
mines, American brains operate them. The book is eminently readable
from first to last.
Averages
A Novel. By Eleanor Stuart, author of "Stonepastures." 12mo, cloth,
$1.50.
Novels of New York have sometimes failed through lack of knowledge of
the theme, but the brilliant author of "Averages" and "Stonepastures"
has had every opportunity to know her New York well. She has been able,
therefore, to avoid the extremes of "high life" and "low life," which
have seemed to many to constitute the only salient phases of New York,
and she paints men and women of every day, and sketches the curious
interdependence and association or impingement of differing circles
in New York. It is a story of social life, but of a life exhibiting
ambitions and efforts, whether wisely or ill directed, which are
quite outside of purely social functions. There is a suggestion of
the adventurer, a figure not unfamiliar to New Yorkers, and there are
glimpses of professional life and the existence of idlers. "Averages"
is not a story of froth or slums, but a brilliant study of actualities,
and its publication will attract increased attention to the rare talent
of the author.
The Races of Europe
_A Sociological Study._ By William C. Ripley, Ph.D., Assistant
Professor of Sociology, Mass. Institute Technology, Lecturer
in Anthropology at Columbia University. Crown 8vo, cloth, 650
pages, with 85 Maps and 235 Portrait Types. With a Supplementary
Bibliography of nearly 2,000 Titles, separately bound in cloth (178
pages), $6.
Idylls of the Sea
By Frank T. Bullen, author of "The Cruise of the Cachalot." Uniform
ed'n. 12mo, cloth, $1.25.
The Story of the British Race
By John Munro, C. E., author of "The Story of Electricity." A new
volume in the "Library of Useful Stories." Illustrated. 16mo, cloth,
40 cts.
The King's Mirror
A Novel. By Anthony Hope, author of "The Chronicles of Count
Antonio," "The God in the Car," "Rupert of Hentzau." 12mo, cloth,
$1.50.
Mr. Hope's new romance pictures the life of a prince and king under
conditions modern, and yet shared by representatives of royalty almost
throughout history. In the subtle development of character nothing that
this brilliant author has written is shrewder than this vivid picture
of a king's inner life. It is a romance which will not only absorb the
attention of readers, but impress them with a new admiration for the
author's power. "The King's Mirror" is accompanied by a series of apt
and effective illustrations by Mr. Frank T. Merrill.
Mammon & Co.
A Novel. By E. F. Benson, author of "Dodo," "The Rubicon," etc. 12mo,
cloth, $1.50.
This new novel by the popular author of "Dodo" is bound to attract much
attention. It deals with personages living in the same society that was
characterized in the former novel. Mr. Benson, it will be remembered,
is a son of the Archbishop of Canterbury, and is thoroughly acquainted
with the society in which he places the scenes of his novels of London
life. In "Mammon and Co." the good genius of the tale is an American
girl.
Alaska and the Klondike
_A Journey to the New Eldorado._ With Hints to the Traveler and
Observations on the Physical History and Geology of the Gold Regions,
the Condition and Methods of Working the Klondike Placers, and the
Laws Governing and Regulating Mining in the Northwest Territory of
Canada. By Angelo Heilprin, Professor of Geology Academy of Natural
Sciences of Philadelphia, Fellow Royal Geographical Society of
London, Past Pres. Geographical Society of Philadelphia, etc. Fully
illustrated from Photographs and with a new Map of the Gold Regions.
12mo, cloth, $1.75.
Imperial Democracy
By David Starr Jordan, Ph.D., Pres't Leland Stanford Junior
University. 12mo, cloth, $1.50.
A History of the American Nation
By Andrew C. McLaughlin, Professor of American History in the
University of Michigan. With many Maps and Illustrations. 12mo,
cloth, $1.40 _net_. "Twentieth Century" Series.
A Story of the Living Machine
By H. W. Conn, author of "Story of Germ Life," "Library of Useful
Stories." 18mo, cloth, 40 cts.
APPLETONS' TOWN AND COUNTRY LIBRARY
Each 12mo, cloth, $1.00; paper, 50 cts.
A Bitter Heritage
By John Bloundelle-Burton, author of "Fortune's my Foe," etc.
Lady Barbarity
A Romance. By J. C. Snaith, author of "Mistress Dorothy Marvin,"
"Fierceheart, the Soldier," etc.
The Heiress of the Season
By Sir William Magnay, Bart., author of "The Pride of Life," etc.
The Strange Story of Hester Wynne
Told by Herself. With a Prologue by G. Colmore, author of "A Daughter
of Music," etc.
For sale by all booksellers, or sent by mail on receipt of price by the
Publishers,
D. Appleton & Company, 72 Fifth Avenue, New York
=====================================================================
[Illustration]
From the New Book
by MRS. WRIGHT
_Just ready_
Wabeno, the Magician
The Sequel to
Tommy-Anne and the Three Hearts
By MABEL OSGOOD WRIGHT
_A NATURE STORY-BOOK_
Fully illustrated by JOSEPH M. GLEESON
CLOTH. 12mo. $1.50
In a box with "Tommy-Anne," the set $3.00
_OTHER NATURE STORIES BY MRS. WRIGHT_
Tommy-Anne and the Three Hearts
Illustrated by ALBERT BLASHFIELD
CLOTH. CROWN 8vo. $1.50
"The child who reads will be charmed while he is instructed, and led on
to make new discoveries for himself."
--_The Nation._
"It has a value of its own that cannot fail to make it permanently
popular."
--_The Evening Post_, Chicago.
Four-Footed Americans and Their Kin
Edited by FRANK M. CHAPMAN
Illustrated by ERNEST SETON THOMPSON
CLOTH. CROWN 8vo. $1.50 _net_
"It deserves commendation for its fascinating style, and for the fund
of information which it contains regarding the familiar, and many
unfamiliar animals of this country. It is an ideal book for children,
and doubtless older folk will find in its pages much of interest."
--_The Dial_, Chicago.
"Books like these are cups of delight to wide-awake and inquisitive
girls and boys. Here is a gossipy history of American quadrupeds,
bright, entertaining and thoroughly instructive. The text, by Mrs.
Wright, has all of the fascination that distinguishes her other
out-door books."
--_The Independent._
Send for a Descriptive Circular of Mrs. Wright's Books
See also Citizen Bird on another page
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, New York
=====================================================================
_BIRDCRAFT..._
_A Field Book of Two Hundred Song,
Game and Water Birds..._
BY
Mabel Osgood Wright
[Illustration]
"_Attractive, interesting
and helpful, and should be
in the library of every
lover of birds._"--_Science_
[Illustration]
Author of "Tommy-Anne and the Three Hearts,"
"Citizen Bird," "Four-footed Americans and
their Kin."
With Eighty Plates by LOUIS AGASSIZ FUERTES
Third edition. Small 4to, $2.50
_ENTICINGLY WRITTEN_
"It is more than an accurate and comprehensive description of all
the birds one is likely to find in an extended search. It is also an
introduction to them and their haunts, so enticingly written that the
reader at once falls in love with them, and becomes an enthusiast in
their pursuit. * * * The scientific part of the work is equally well
done."
--_Evening Bulletin_, Philadelphia
_CITIZEN BIRD_ [Illustration]
[Illustration]
_SCENES FROM BIRD-LIFE IN PLAIN ENGLISH FOR BEGINNERS..._
BY
Mabel O. Wright and Dr. Elliott Coues
Profusely Illustrated by Louis Agassiz Fuertes
Heart of Nature Series. Cloth. Crown 8vo. $1.50 Net
"An extremely praiseworthy attempt to teach children about our domestic
birds, by encouraging them to observe the living creatures rather than
the inanimate 'specimen.' More than a hundred accurate and spirited
illustrations add greatly to the attractiveness of the volume."
--_The Nation_
"_By far the best bird book for boys and girls yet published in
America._"
--C. H. M. in _Science_
PUBLISHED BY
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, New York
=====================================================================
_TWO INTERESTING NEW BOOKS_
Bob: The Story of Our Mocking Bird
By Sidney Lanier. With 16 full-page illustrations in colors from
photographs by A. R. Dugmore. 12mo, $1.50.
A charming vein of humor and philosophy runs through Mr. Lanier's
affectionately intimate story of his pet Mocking Bird Bob, giving the
book a literary quality of an altogether unusual kind and setting it in
a niche of its own. The illustrations have been made with great pains
and skill from nature. They portray a Mocking Bird from his birth to
the period of full growth. Reproduced in colors from carefully made
and painted photographs, they are as artistic as they are in perfect
harmony with the author's delightful narrative, numerous passages of
which they illustrate.
BY THE AUTHOR OF "WILD ANIMALS I HAVE KNOWN."
The Trail of the Sandhill Stag
By Ernest Seton-Thompson. With 8 full-page illustrations (one in
color), and numerous marginal illustrations from drawings by the
author. Square 8vo, $1.50.
As was the case with his "Wild Animals I Have Known" (now in its
twentieth thousand), Mr. Seton-Thompson has given this new book a
unique individuality of form, bringing to its embellishment many novel
and original ideas. And the story, which is the longest, as it is the
most noteworthy, that the author has published, is well deserving of
his pains; for never have the glory and the joy of the chase been
interpreted so vividly, never the thoughts of the hunted animal so
surely read and pictured.
CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS,
153-157
Fifth Avenue
New York
THE GULF FAUNA AND FLORA BULLETIN
Will be issued as a bi-monthly from the Louisiana Industrial
Institute Press, and edited by writers on biology. It will be made
a bulletin of original research, and be kept in close touch with
all science societies of the Gulf section, most especially with the
Louisiana State Biological Station, soon to be opened. As the name
implies, the Bulletin will be devoted to the biological interests of
the Gulf section. It aims to take the place of no other publication,
but, on the other hand, hopes to encourage the increased circulation
of biological literature, and the unification of the interests of
working biologists generally.
The editors invite long or short articles; catalogues of animals or
plants; sketches of past work of societies or individuals; reviews of
books or other scientific publications. Articles too short for extended
or general treatment, or papers too long or technical for semi-popular
treatises, are especially invited. In short, the aim is to make a
bulletin rather than a popular science journal.
The following are some of the articles now ready for publication:
=Catalogue of Reptiles of Arkansas=; =History of Louisiana Botany;
The Louisiana Gulf Biological Station=; =The Louisiana Society of
Naturalists=; =A Bill before Congress for the Creation of a Government
Biological Station and Fish Hatchery on the Louisiana Coast=; =Review of
the Proceedings of the National Fishery Congress=; =Some Special Features
of Avery's Island=; =The Behavior of Birds around their Nests or Young=.
The size of the Bulletin will be 8-1/2 x 10 inches. Each number will
contain not less than thirty pages, six numbers constituting a volume.
Subscription, $2.50 per volume. The date of issue may be irregular,
each number being held till sufficient original matter be obtained
to warrant an issue. We invite comments and criticisms, as well as
contributions and subscriptions, from biologists.
Address
THE GULF FAUNA AND FLORA BULLETIN,
Ruston, Louisiana.
=====================================================================
"_The greatest and best book ever written about birds._"--ELLIOTT COUES
_A Dictionary of Birds_
BY
Prof. Alfred Newton
Assisted by
Hans F. Gadow, Ph.D.
WITH CONTRIBUTIONS FROM
RICHARD LYDEKKER
Author (with Sir W. H. FLOWER) of "An Introduction
to the Study of Mammals," etc.
PROF. CHARLES S. ROY AND
ROBERT W. SHUFELDT
Late U. S. Army. Author of "The Myology of
the Raven," etc.
COMPLETE IN ONE VOLUME. Med. 8vo. PRICE $10 NET
"_It is far and away the best book ever written about birds_ ... the
best 'all-round' book we have ever seen; the one that best answers the
purposes of all readers; the one which conveys the most information
per thousand _ems_; the one which is freest from misstatements of any
sort; the one which is most cautious and conservative in expression of
opinions where opinions may reasonably differ; the one which is the
most keenly critical, yet most eminently just in rendering adverse
decisions...."--From an extended review in _The Auk_.
"A very useful and concise volume, in which is to be found a vast
amount of varied information."--O. S. in _Nature_.
BIRDS
=====
Being VOLUME IX of the
Cambridge Natural History
By A. H. EVANS, M.A.
Clare College, Cambridge
EDITED BY
S. F. HARMER, Sc.D., F.R.S.
Fellow of King's College, Cambridge
Superintendent of the
University Museum of Zoölogy
AND
A. E. SHIPLEY, M. A.
Fellow of Christ's College, Cambridge
University Lecturer on
the Morphology of Invertebrates
FULLY ILLUSTRATED. CLOTH, 8vo. $3.50 NET
A short description of the majority of the forms in many of the
Families, and of the most typical or important of the innumerable
species included in the large Passerine order. Prefixed to each group
is a brief summary of the Structure and Habits. It is rarely complete,
more so than any book of its class published, and the descriptions,
though brief, are clear and, whenever necessary, illustrated by
drawings made specially for this work. The Scheme of Classification is
of great value to the Student.
PUBLISHED BY
The Macmillan Company, New York
=====================================================================
_The Osprey_
The fourth volume of The Osprey will appear under the editorship of
Dr. Theodore Gill
with the coöperation of several of the most prominent ornithologists
of Washington. It will contain original and selected articles with
illustrations, ornithological news, and notices of new works on birds,
and other contributions to ornithology. With it will also be published
supplements destined eventually to form a History of the Birds of North
America. The price will remain, as heretofore, at =$1= a year, or =10=
cents a number. Address
_The Osprey Co._
_321 and 323 4-1/2 St.
WASHINGTON, D. C._
BULLETIN OF THE Michigan Ornithological Club
Published Quarterly at 50 cts. per year.
Single copies, 15 cts.
Back numbers can be furnished as follows:
Vol. I, No. 1, January, 1897, 50c.
No. 2, April, 50c.
No. 3-4, July-Dec., 30c.
Vol. II, No. 1, January, '98, 15c.
No. 2, April, 15c.
No. 3-4, July-Dec., 30c.
Four Complete Files for sale.
A sample copy of the January, 1899, issue will be sent on receipt of
four cents in stamps.
MULLIKEN & DURFEE,
Managers,
179 Central Ave.,
Grand Rapids, Mich.
The Wilson Bulletin
_A Bi-monthly of Ornithology_
Official Organ of the
Wilson Ornithological Chapter of the Agassiz
Association
_The only Bird Journal in the Country exclusively devoted to Field
Research_
EVERY NUMBER IS FRESH, INTERESTING, VALUABLE
Send for sample copy, and judge for yourself. You cannot afford to be
without it.
Subscription, 50 cents a year
Edited by LYNDS JONES
OBERLIN, OHIO
The Bulletin of the Cooper Ornithological Club of California
A 16 to 24 page bi-monthly, _illustrated_, invites the support of those
who are interested in the ornithology of the Great West. One hundred
field workers in California alone write for it, and to those who would
keep apace with the new discoveries being constantly made in this
interesting region, it is a necessity.
Edited by CHESTER BARLOW
associated with
HENRY REED TAYLOR
HOWARD ROBERTSON
_The Auk_ says: "The Bulletin thus early takes a prominent place in
the ornithological literature of North America."
It will contain many charming bird photographs during 1899, together
with an array of articles from versatile Californian ornithologists.
Terms, $1 a year. Sample copy, 20c.
Address order for sample to C. BARLOW, Editor, Santa Clara, Cal., and
subscriptions to DONALD A. COHEN, Alameda, Cal.
=====================================================================
[Illustration: Our Animal-Friends]
AN ILLUSTRATED MONTHLY MAGAZINE
THE ORGAN OF
The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
Containing original and instructive articles of interest to all animal
owners, including serial and short stories, and interesting miscellany
by well-known writers.
SUBSCRIPTION, ONE DOLLAR PER YEAR
Published at the Headquarters of the Society
MADISON AVENUE AND 26TH STREET NEW YORK
_OPINIONS OF THE PRESS_
The articles and illustrations are excellent and forcible in their
teachings.--_Journal of Education_, Boston.
Our Animal Friends equals in beauty of exterior and valuable contents
the most widely circulated periodicals of the times.--_The North
American_, Philadelphia.
The magazine is admirably edited and illustrated, and contains matter
of great general interest.--_Forest and Stream_, New York.
Should be read by every boy and girl in the land, and there are
many children of larger growth that would derive benefit from its
pages.--_Spirit of the Times._
As entertaining as it is instructive.--_Philadelphia Inquirer._
No publication in this country so admirably combines exact scientific
information with racy and refined literary matter.--_Yorkshire_
(England) _Weekly Post_.
Lovers of our wild and domestic animals, young people especially, will
find in it much that is readable and instructive.--_Review of Reviews._
It is well printed and illustrated, and original in
matter.--_Sunday-School Times_, Philadelphia.
A good magazine for every home where there are children, and its truths
are just as good for those of mature life.--_Chicago Inter Ocean._
_J. A. Allen ..THE AUK.. _F. M. Chapman
Editor_ Assoc. Editor_
A Quarterly Journal of Ornithology
OFFICIAL ORGAN OF THE AMERICAN ORNITHOLOGISTS' UNION.
As the official organ of the Union, 'The Auk' is the leading
ornithological publication of this country. Each number contains about
100 pages of text, a handsomely colored plate, and other illustrations.
The principal articles are by recognized authorities, and are of both
a scientific and popular nature. The department of 'General Notes'
gives brief records of new and interesting facts concerning birds,
contributed by observers from throughout the United States and Canada.
Recent ornithological literature is reviewed at length, and news items
are commented upon by the editors. 'The Auk' is thus indispensable to
those who would be kept informed of the advance made in the study of
birds, either in the museum or in the field.
PRICE OF CURRENT VOLUME, $3 SINGLE NUMBERS, 75 CTS.
Address L. S. FOSTER
33 PINE STREET
NEW YORK CITY
Publisher of 'The Auk,' and agent of The American Ornithologists'
Union for the Sale of its Publications
J. Horace McFarland Co., Printers, Harrisburg, PA.
=====================================================================
_Nests and Eggs of Australian Birds_
By Archibald J. Campbell, Melbourne
Mr. A. J. Campbell has pleasure in announcing to his American cousins
in ornithology, and to all lovers of 'Bird-Lore,' that he has
completed his life-long work on Australian birds, particularly with
regard to their domestic history.
It has been computed that the MSS. will cover nearly 1,000 pages, royal
octavo size, and there will be about 130 photographic reproductions of
nests, nesting scenes, etc. (many taken under exceptional and difficult
circumstances); also figures of over 200 eggs, colored according to
nature.
Notwithstanding the expensiveness of the illustrations, it is expected
that the price of the book, to original subscribers, will be about ten
(certainly not exceeding twelve) dollars.
Provided there be enough support, Messrs. Dawson & Brailsford, Printers
and Publishers, Sheffield, England, have offered to undertake the
publication of this work. Mr Campbell has every reason to believe that
the needed number will be secured if applicants thoughtfully send their
names, as early as possible, to his agent,
MR. E. A. PETHERICK, F.L.S.
85 Hopton Road, Streatham LONDON, S. W.
The Plant World
Edited by F. H. KNOWLTON, Ph.D.
Is an illustrated monthly botanical journal that is maintained for
those who love the wild flowers, but find the text-books either
difficult to understand or too dry when mastered. It aims to view the
plant as a living thing. Its pages are full of the knowledge gained by
a study of the plants in the fields and woods, written in simple and
attractive language, which is
_Strictly Scientific, but not Technical._
Among forthcoming articles may be mentioned several on making an
herbarium; on teaching the various branches of botany in the public
schools; on the families of flowering plants; on the study and
identification of our common liverworts, and many others. A free sample
copy may be had by addressing the publishers.
SUBSCRIPTION PRICE, $1 PER ANNUM.
Willard N. Clute & Co.
Publishers BINGHAMTON, NEW YORK
=====================================================================
'Bird-Lore' for Christmas
After reading Our Announcements for 1900, we trust it will be
believed that no present could be more appropriate for a friend who
is interested in birds, or a friend whom you wish to interest in
birds, than =BIRD-LORE= for the coming year. As the first number of
the new volume will not be issued until February 1, 1900, we have had
prepared a Bird-Lore Christmas Card. The face, printed in colors, bears
Bird-Lore's cover design, with, in place of the usual illustration, the
following inscription:
To ____________________________
With a Very
Merry Christmas
I Send You
Bird-Lore for 1900
[Signed] ____________________________
_NO. 1, VOL. II, TO BE ISSUED
FEBRUARY 1, 1900_
On the reverse is placed the much admired, full-page portrait of John
Burroughs, published in the first number of Bird-Lore. A heavy plate
paper will be used in making this card, it will be so packed as to
insure its arrival in condition suitable for framing, and it therefore
forms in itself a desirable Christmas remembrance.
On receipt of the subscription price to Bird-Lore, and the name and
address of the person to whom you wish the magazine sent, this card
will be properly filled out and mailed in time to be received on
Christmas day.
Or the subscription may be sent and we will forward the Christmas Card
in blank, to be filled in and mailed by the donor of the Magazine.
For this occasion we will make a reduction in the subscription price to
Bird-Lore, and offer five subscriptions for the sum of $4.00.
Orders for these Christmas Cards should be sent at an early date, in
order to ensure their delivery in due season.
In this connection we would call attention to the fact that, having
reprinted the first (February) number of Bird-Lore, we can now supply
volume one complete, and, if desired, on receipt of two dollars, will
deliver it with the Christmas Card to any address on Christmas day.
Address:
BIRD-LORE,
ENGLEWOOD, N. J.
=====================================================================
_BOOKS FOR THE COUNTRY_
Nature Studies in Berkshire
By John Coleman Adams. With 16 illustrations in photogravure from
original photographs by Arthur Scott. 8º, gilt top, in a box, $4.50.
Landscape Gardening
Notes and Suggestions on Lawns and Lawn-Planting, Laying out and
Arrangement of Country Places, Large and Small Parks, etc. By Samuel
Parsons, Jr., Ex-Superintendent of Parks, New York City. With nearly
200 illustrations. Large 8º, in a box, $3.50.
Lawns and Gardens
How to Beautify the Home Lot, the Pleasure Ground, and Garden. By N.
Jönsson-Rose, of the Department of Public Parks, New York City. With
172 plans and illustrations. Large 8º, gilt top, in a box, $3.50.
Ornamental Shrubs
For Garden, Lawn, and Park Planting. With an Account of the Origin,
Capabilities and Adaptations of the Numerous Species and Varieties,
Native and Foreign, and Especially of the New and Rare Sorts Suited
to Cultivation in the United States. By Lucius D. Davis. With over
100 illustrations. 8º, in a box, $3.50.
Our Insect Friends and Foes
How to Collect, Preserve and Study Them. By Belle S. Cragin. With
over 250 illustrations. 12º, $1.75.
Among the Moths and Butterflies
By Julia P. Ballard. Illustrated. 8º, $1.50.
Bird Studies
An Account of the Land Birds of Eastern North America. By William
E. D. Scott. With 166 illustrations from original photographs. 4º,
leather back, gilt top, in a box, _net_, $5.00.
Wild Flowers of the Northeastern States
Drawn and carefully described from life, without undue use of
scientific nomenclature. By Ellen Miller and Margaret C. Whiting.
With 308 illustrations the size of life. 8º, _net_, $3.00.
The Leaf Collector's Handbook and Herbarium
An aid in the preservation and in the classification of specimen
leaves of the trees of Northeastern America. By Charles S. Newhall.
Illustrated 8º, $2.00.
The Shrubs of Northeastern America
By Charles S. Newhall. Fully illustrated. 8º, $1.75.
The Vines of Northeastern America
By Charles S. Newhall. Fully illustrated. 8º, $1.75.
The Trees of Northeastern America
By Charles S. Newhall. With illustrations made from tracings of the
leaves of the various trees. 8º, $1.75.
G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS, New York and London
=====================================================================
D. Appleton & Co.'s New Books
A History of American Privateers
By Edgar Stanton Maclay, A. M., author of "A History of the United
States Navy." Uniform with "A History of the United States Navy." One
volume. Illustrated. 8vo. $3.50.
History of the People of the United States
By Prof. John Bach McMaster. Vol. V. 8vo. Cloth, with Maps, $2.50.
_Nearly ready._
Russian Literature
By K. Waliszewski. A new volume in the _Literatures of the World
Series_, edited by Edmund Gosse.
The Seven Seas
A volume of poems by Rudyard Kipling, author of "Many Inventions," etc.
12mo. Cloth, $1.50; half-calf, $3.00; morocco, $5.00.
Recollections of the Civil War.
By Charles A. Dana. With portrait and index. Large 12mo. Gilt top,
uncut, $2.00.
Uncle Remus
His Songs and his Sayings. By Joel Chandler Harris. With new preface
and revisions, and 112 illustrations by A. B. Frost. 12mo. Cloth, $2.00.
Bird-Life
A Study of our Common Birds. By Frank M. Chapman. Illustrated by Ernest
Seton Thompson. With 75 full-page plates in colors. 8vo. Cloth, $5.00.
Teacher's edition, $2.00. Also plain edition, 12mo, cloth, $1.75.
The Story of the Railroad
By Cy. Warman. The latest volume in _The Story of the West Series_,
edited by Ripley Hitchcock. Illustrated. Uniform with "The Story of the
Cowboy," "The Story of the Mine," and "The Story of the Indian." 12mo.
Cloth, $1.50.
"THE TRUE STORY OF THE BOERS"
Oom Paul's People
By Howard C. Hillegas. With illustrations. 12mo. Cloth, $1.50.
Reminiscences of a Very Old Man
1808-1897. By John Sartain. Illustrated. 12mo. Cloth, $2.50.
MR. BULLEN'S NEW BOOK
The Log of a Sea-Waif
Being recollections of the First Four Years of my Sea Life. By Frank
T. Bullen, F. R. G. S., author of "The Cruise of the _Cachalot_" and
"Idylls of the Sea." Illustrated. Uniform edition. 12mo. Cloth, $1.50
BY FELIX GRAS
The White Terror
A Romance. By Felix Gras. Translated from the Provençal by Mrs.
Catharine A. Janvier. Uniform with "The Reds of the Midi" and "The
Terror." 16mo. Cloth, $1.50.
ANTHONY HOPE'S NEW NOVEL
The King's Mirror
A Novel. By Anthony Hope, author of "The Chronicles of Count Antonio,"
"The God in the Car," "Rupert of Hentzau," etc. 12mo. Cloth, $1.50.
Mammon & Co.
A Novel. By E. F. Benson, author of "Dodo," "The Rubicon," etc. 12mo.
Cloth, $1.50.
Averages
A Novel of New York. By Eleanor Stuart, of "Stonepastures." 12mo.
Cloth, $1.50.
340,000 TO NOVEMBER 1
David Harum
A Story of American Life. By Edward Noyes Westcott. 12mo. Cloth, $1.50.
The Races of Europe
A Sociological Study. By William Z. Ripley, Ph.D., Assistant Professor
of Sociology, Mass. Institute of Technology. Crown 8vo, cloth, 650
pages, with 85 Maps and 235 Portrait Types. With a Supplementary
Bibliography of nearly 2,000 Titles, separately bound in cloth (178
pages), $6.
A Double Thread
A Novel. By Ellen Thorneycroft Fowler, author of "Isabel Carnaby."
12mo. Cloth, $1.50.
_FOR YOUNGER READERS_
The Treasure Ship
A Story of Sir William Phipps the Regicide, and the Inter-Charter
Period in Massachusetts. By Hezekiah Butterworth. Illustrated. 12mo.
Cloth, $1.50.
The Hero of Manila
Dewey on the Mississippi and the Pacific. By Rossiter Johnson. _Young
Heroes of Our Navy Series._ Illustrated. 12mo. Cloth, $1.00.
The Story of Magellan
And the Discovery of the Philippines. By Hezekiah Butterworth.
Illustrated. 12mo. Cloth, $1.50.
"_For Children, parents, teachers, and all who are interested in the
psychology of childhood._"
The Book of Knight and Barbara
By David Starr Jordan. Illustrated. 12mo. Cloth, $1.50.
The Half-Back
A Story of School, Football, and Golf. By Ralph Henry Barbour.
Illustrated. 12mo. Cloth, $1.50.
D. Appleton & Company, 72 Fifth Avenue, New York
=====================================================================
Charming Bird Books
A FIRST BOOK OF BIRDS
By Olive Thorne Miller
With 20 full-page illustrations, 8 of which are colored. Square 12mo,
$1.00.
MRS. MILLER'S OTHER BOOKS
=Bird Ways.= 16mo. $1.25.
=In Nesting Time.= 16mo. $1.25.
=Little Brothers of the Air.= 16mo. $1.25.
=A Bird Lover in the West.= 16mo. $1.25.
BRADFORD TORREY'S BOOKS
A World of Green Hills.
Spring Notes from Tennessee.
Birds in the Bush.
The Foot-Path Way.
A Rambler's Lease.
A Florida Sketch-Book.
=Each= 16mo. $1.25.
FLORENCE A. MERRIAM'S BOOKS
=Birds of Village and Field.= A bird book of special value for
beginners. Very fully illustrated. 12mo. $2.00.
=Birds Through an Opera-Glass.= Illustrated. 16mo. 75 cents.
=A-Birding on a Bronco.= Fully illustrated. 16mo. $1.25.
JOHN BURROUGHS' BIRD BOOKS
=Birds and Poets.= $1.25.
=Birds and Bees.= Paper, 15 cents net.
=Sharp Eyes.= Paper, 15 cents net.
The last two in one book, cloth, 40 cents net.
_Sold by all Booksellers. Sent, postpaid, by_
HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN & CO., Boston:
11 East 17th Street, New York.
Comments of the Press on Bird-Lore
"Very attractive and authoritative."--_The Land of Sunshine._
"It promises to present the subject of birds most
intelligently."--_The Outlook._
"Very likely to achieve success with all classes and kinds of bird
lovers."--_N. Y. Mail and Express._
"Extremely interesting, entertaining, and instructive."--_New York
Home Journal._
"It may be commended to all bird lovers."--_San Francisco Chronicle._
"The interesting subject matter and the fine illustrations are sure
to find approval."--_Albany Times-Union._
"We can frankly say that the tone of this magazine is to us very
pleasing."--_The American._
"Bird-Lore ... has on its own merits taken its place at the front in
the list of popular natural history magazines."--_The Auk._
"The Editor and Publishers should be congratulated on the general
excellence of the magazine, which is not only a delight to the mind,
but also to the eye."--_Our Animal Friends._
"Bird-Lore ... is in exquisite taste mechanically, and the
attractiveness of the magazine is well sustained by ably written
articles.... There are fine illustrations of birds and their nests. A
liberal education on bird life is given, and the reader is instructed
as well as charmed."--_Brooklyn Eagle._
"This magazine is of general high quality, not too elementary for
teachers, nor too technical for pupils. A special feature is made
of bird photography, and the reproductions of photographs of living
birds are really remarkable. The ethical value of such a publication
is very great."--_Popular Educator_, Boston.
=====================================================================
_FOR THE YOUNG PEOPLE_
_Especially suitable for use in the
OUR NATIVE BIRDS schoolroom or as supplementary work._
_How to Protect Them and How to Attract Them to Our Homes_
By D. LANGE
Instructor in Nature Study in Schools of St. Paul, Minn. Author of a
Manual of Nature Study. Cloth. Just Ready.
----------------------------------------
_CITIZEN BIRD_ _The Heart of Nature Series_
[Illustration]
_Scenes from Bird-life in Plain English For Beginners..._
By MABEL O. WRIGHT and DR. ELLIOTT COUES
Profusely Illustrated by Louis Agassiz Fuertes. Cloth. Crown 8vo. $1.50
Net.
"An extremely praiseworthy attempt to teach children about our domestic
birds, by encouraging them to observe the living creatures rather than
the inanimate 'specimen.' More than a hundred accurate and spirited
illustrations add greatly to the attractiveness of the volume."--_The
Nation_
"_By far the best bird book for boys and girls yet published in
America._"--C. H. M. in _Science_
----------------------------------------
_BIRDCRAFT..._ _POPULAR AND HELPFUL_ Third Edition
_A Field Book of Two Hundred Song,
Game and Water Birds..._
BY
Mabel Osgood Wright
[Illustration]
"_Attractive, interesting
and helpful, and should be
in the library of every
lover of birds._"--_Science_
[Illustration]
Author of "Tommy-Anne and the Three Hearts,"
"Citizen Bird," etc.
With Eighty Plates by LOUIS AGASSIZ FUERTES
Small 4to, $2.50
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, New York
=====================================================================
A NEW CHEAPER BUT UNABRIDGED EDITION
------------------------------------
"_The greatest and best book ever written about birds._"--ELLIOTT COUES
_NEW EDITION_
_A Dictionary of Birds_ _$5.00 net_
_UNABRIDGED_
by Assisted by
Prof. Alfred Newton Hans F. Gadow, Ph.D.
RICHARD LYDEKKER PROF. CHARLES S. ROY AND
ROBERT W. SHUFELDT
Author (with Sir W. H. FLOWER)
of "An Introduction to Late U. S. Army. Author of "The
the Study of Mammals," etc. Myology of the Raven," etc.
COMPLETE IN ONE VOLUME. Med. 8vo. PRICE, $5 NET
"_It is far and away the best book ever written about birds_ ... the
best 'all-round' book we have ever seen; the one that best answers the
purposes of all readers; the one which conveys the most information
per thousand _ems_; the one which is freest from misstatements of any
sort; the one which is most cautious and conservative in expression of
opinions where opinions may reasonably differ; the one which is the
most keenly critical, yet most eminently just in rendering adverse
decisions...."--From an extended review in _The Auk_.
_SCIENTIFIC, COMPLETE AND CLEAR_
BIRDS...
========
By A. H. Evans, M.A.
Clare College, Cambridge
CAMBRIDGE NATURAL HISTORY. Vol. IX
EDITED BY
S. F. HARMER, Sc.D., F.R.S.
Fellow of King's College, Cambridge
Superintendent of the
University Museum of Zoölogy
_Very
Fully Illustrated
Cloth, 8vo.
$3.50 net_
AND
A. E. SHIPLEY, M.A.
Fellow of Christ's College, Cambridge
University Lecturer on
the Morphology of Invertebrates
Prefixed to each group is a brief summary of their Structure and
Habits. It is rarely complete, more so than any book of its class
published, and the descriptions, though brief, are clear and, whenever
necessary, illustrated by drawings made specially for this work. The
Scheme of Classification is of great value to the Student.
Recent Publications on Nature Study
INGERSOLL'S Wild Neighbors $1.50
"Instructive as well as delightful."--_Popular Science Monthly._
JACKMAN'S Nature Study for Grammar
Grades $1 _net_
Proposes a few of the problems within the comprehension of grammar
school pupils, which arise in a thoughtful study of nature, with
suggestions for their solution.
LANGE'S Hand-Book of Nature Study $1 _net_
"The style of the book is fresh and inspiring."
WILSON'S Nature Study in Elementary Schools.
First Nature Reader 35 cents
Second Nature Reader 35 cents
Teacher's Manual 90 cents
"Extremely original and unusually practical."
PUBLISHED BY
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, New York.
=====================================================================
The Macmillan Company's New Holiday Books
_Among English Hedgerows_
By Clifton Johnson. Introduction by Hamilton W. Mabie. Illustrated from
original photographs. Cloth, $2.25.
Even the title of this delightful book suggests something of its
charm. Mr. Clifton Johnson started on his walking tour in April, *
* * and wandered wherever his sense of the picturesquely human side
of life led him. It is one of the most charming descriptive books
imaginable on English rural country-side and home life.
_Diomed_
The Life, Travels, and
Observations of a Dog.
By Hon. John Sergeant Wise. With over 200 illustrations, by J. Linton
Chapman. Cloth, $2.
"From beginning to end it bubbles with wit and humor genuinely
Southern. * * *
"It would be hard to find a book on field sports with dog and gun, to
place beside this as its equal."--_Chap Book._
_Jess_
Bits of Wayside Gospel.
By Jenkin Lloyd Jones, joint author with Wm. C. Gannett, "The Faith
that Makes Faithful," Editor of _Unity_, etc. Cloth, $1.50.
"A splendidly inspiring and spiritually refreshing book."--_Budget_,
Boston.
"One of the most delightful books of the year, redolent with fields
and woods; * * * thrillingly suggestive of the higher spiritual
verities."--_Tribune_, Chicago.
_More Pot Pourri From a Surrey Garden_
By Mrs. C. W. Earle. _Just ready._ Cloth, $2.
A book for the shelf which holds "A Solitary Summer," or "Elizabeth
and Her German Garden," with Mrs. Earle's first "Pot Pourri," that
"sweet and pleasant mixture" of gardening, cooking, philosophy, art,
poetry and housekeeping, the reflection of the life of a cultivated,
observant woman of many interests. A wholesome, entertaining book of
miscellaneous notes grouped as taken by the months of a year--just
the thing to put on the sewing table for ten minute dips of
inspiration and refreshment in a busy woman's life.
_Nature Pictures by American Poets_
Edited with introduction by Annie Russell Marble. Cloth, 12mo. $1.25.
A valuable, stimulating book to those who would foster a love for
nature study.
Selections not alone from our earlier poets of rank, but also lyrics
and sonnets by such contemporaneous poets as Aldrich, Gilder,
Stedman, Mrs. Deland, Miss Guiney and others. An introduction traces
the gradual interest in nature during Colonial and Revolutionary
decades, and the slow yet grand evolution of nature poetry. The
poems are classified as Landscape Vistas; Music of Winds and Storms;
Sea, Streams and Tides; Birds' Notes; Flower Songs; Calendar of the
Seasons. The volume is supplied with a detailed bibliographical index.
Elizabeth and Her German Garden and A Solitary Summer
$1.75 Cloth, Crown 8vo $1.50
"We find ourselves in the presence of a whimsical, humorous,
cultured, and very womanly woman, with a pleasant, old-fashioned
liking for homeliness, and a simplicity, with a wise husband, three
merry babies ... a few friends, a gardener, and an old German house
to repose in, a garden to be happy in, an agreeable literary gift,
and a slight touch of cynicism. Such is "Elizabeth." It is a charming
book."--_The Academy._
"A continuation of that delightful chronicle of days spent in and
about one of the most delightful gardens known to modern literature.
The author's exquisite humor is ever present, and her descriptions
... have a wonderful freshness and charm."
"Perhaps even more charming than the fascinating original, which is
saying a great deal."--_The Glasgow Herald._
PUBLISHED BY
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, New York
=====================================================================
[Illustration]
From the New Book
by MRS. WRIGHT
_Just ready_
Wabeno, the Magician
The Sequel to
"Tommy-Anne and the Three Hearts"
By MABEL OSGOOD WRIGHT
_A NATURE STORY-BOOK_
Fully illustrated by JOSEPH M. GLEESON
12mo. $1.50; in a box with "Tommy-Anne," the set $3.00
_Other Nature Stories by Mrs. Wright_
Tommy-Anne and the Three Hearts
Illustrated by ALBERT BLASHFIELD
CLOTH. CROWN 8vo. $1.50
"The child who reads will be charmed while he is instructed, and led on
to make new discoveries for himself."--_The Nation._
"It has a value of its own that cannot fail to make it permanently
popular."--_The Evening Post_, Chicago.
Four-Footed Americans and Their Kin
Edited by FRANK M. CHAPMAN
Illustrated by ERNEST SETON THOMPSON
CLOTH. CROWN 8vo. $1.50 _net_
"It deserves commendation for its fascinating style, and for the
fund of information which it contains regarding the familiar, and
many unfamiliar animals of this country. It is an ideal book for
children, and doubtless older folk will find in its pages much of
interest."--_The Dial_, Chicago.
"Books like these are cups of delight to wide-awake and inquisitive
girls and boys. Here is a gossipy history of American quadrupeds,
bright, entertaining and thoroughly instructive. The text, by Mrs.
Wright, has all of the fascination that distinguishes her other
out-door books."--_The Independent._
Send for a Descriptive Circular of Mrs. Wright's Books
See also Citizen Bird on another page
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, New York
=====================================================================
_Birds and All Nature_
The Only Magazine Illustrated in Natural Colors
A Periodical.
For School and Home
15 cents a copy $1.50 per year
Special Limited Subscription Offer to Readers of Bird-Lore
_We will send you Birds and All Nature for one year, and 25 Assorted
Colored Pictures (in natural colors) of Birds, Animals, Insects,
Flowers, Plants, etc., for only $1.50. The regular price of these
pictures alone is 50 cents. You get them free. Send to-day, as we
limit this offer._
Birds and All Nature is a handsomely printed and beautifully
illustrated forty-eight page journal, issued monthly. It is devoted
to Nature Study and Elementary Science. Each number contains eight
full-page color illustrations. They are printed on fine paper, 8 × 10
inches--reproduced from nature by the new process of color photography.
They are suitable for framing. Sample copy of magazine, 10 cents.
The articles are well written, interesting and instructive. Some of
our contributors are: Olive Thorne Miller, James Newton Baskett, W.
E. Watt, Emily C. Thompson, C. C. Marble, Prof. Lynds Jones (Oberlin
University), Prof. Albert Schneider (Northwestern University), Wm.
K. Higley, Secretary, Chicago Academy of Sciences, Rev. C. C. Jones,
Nellie Hart Woodworth, T. C. Chamberlin (Professor of Geology,
University of Chicago.)
"Certainly no periodical, and probably no book on birds ever
found anything like such favor with the public as Birds and All
Nature."--_Evening Post, New York._
We have Bound Volumes of Birds and All Nature, too. They are printed on
fine quality paper, bound in Cloth, Half Morocco and Full Morocco (gilt
top), and stamped in gold on binding. Six volumes have been issued--two
a year--and each contains from 40 to 60 colored plates.
=PRICE PER VOLUME=--Cloth, $1.50. Half Morocco, $1.75. Full Morocco,
$2.00. Two volumes for same year combined under one cover. Cloth,
$2.50. Half Morocco, $3.00. Full Morocco, $3.50.
We recommend either of the leather bindings as being more appropriate
for so valuable a volume, and more durable.
=EXTRAORDINARY OFFER=: The entire set of six volumes, bound in half
morocco, prepaid, only $9.00; regular price, $10.50.
You will never have another opportunity to get these interesting books
at this price. Teachers will greatly appreciate them, and every one who
is selecting a library--interested in art--will enjoy them.
AGENTS WANTED.
A. W. MUMFORD, Publisher, 203 Michigan Ave., CHICAGO
[Illustration: Our Animal Friends
A Monthly Journal Published by The American Society for the Prevention
of Cruelty to Animals
NEW YORK]
AN ILLUSTRATED MONTHLY MAGAZINE
THE ORGAN OF
The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
Containing original and instructive articles of interest to all animal
owners, including serial and short stories, and interesting miscellany
by well-known writers.
SUBSCRIPTION, ONE DOLLAR PER YEAR
Published at the Headquarters of the Society
MADISON AVENUE AND 26TH STREET NEW YORK
_OPINIONS OF THE PRESS_
The articles and illustrations are excellent and forcible in their
teachings.--_Journal of Education_, Boston.
Our Animal Friends equals in beauty of exterior and valuable contents
the most widely circulated periodicals of the times.--_The North
American_, Philadelphia.
The magazine is admirably edited and illustrated, and contains matter
of great general interest.--_Forest and Stream_, New York.
Should be read by every boy and girl in the land, and there are
many children of larger growth that would derive benefit from its
pages.--_Spirit of The Times._
As entertaining as it is instructive.--_Philadelphia Inquirer._
No publication in this country so admirably combines exact scientific
information with racy and refined literary matter.--_Yorkshire_
(England) _Weekly Post_.
Lovers of our wild and domestic animals, young people especially, will
find in it much that is readable and instructive.--_Review of Reviews._
It is well printed and illustrated, and original in
matter.--_Sunday-School Times_, Philadelphia.
A good magazine for every home where there are children, and its truths
are just as good for those of mature life.--_Chicago Inter Ocean._
J. Horace McFarland Co., Mt. Pleasant Printery, Harrisburg, Pa.
=====================================================================
_SCRIBNER'S NEW BOOKS_
_By the Author of "WILD ANIMALS I HAVE KNOWN"_
The Trail of the
Sandhill Stag
By ERNEST SETON-THOMPSON
_With 8 full-page illustrations (one in color), and
numerous marginal illustrations from
drawing by the author
Square 8vo, $1.50_
[Illustration]
"A more delightful bit of impressionist work, subtle word-painting and
that best of all teaching which conveys its lesson unconsciously is
not often found. It is a reproof of the blood thirst in the hunter, a
plea for the harmless and gentle denizen of the forest and mountain,
a sermon which Buddha might have preached and a marvel of artistic
creation all in one."--Chicago _Evening Post_.
"Could you call that an ordinary hunting story? I should call it a
piece of imaginative literature worthy of Stevenson.... There are
hundreds of men who could follow a stag through half a dozen snowy
winters; there are few who could paint him; but if Mr. Thompson is not
the first to interpret the joys of the wild chase in words, he is yet
the best."--New York _Commercial Advertiser_.
WILD ANIMALS I HAVE KNOWN. By ERNEST SETON-THOMPSON.
Illustrated by the author. _23rd thousand._ Square 12mo, $2.00.
Bob: The Story of Our Mocking Bird
12mo, $1.50 By SIDNEY LANIER 12mo, $1.50
_With 16 full-page illustrations made from photographic studies and
colored by A. R. Dugmore_
A charming vein of humor and philosophy runs through Mr. Lanier's
affectionately intimate story of his pet mocking bird Bob, giving the
book a literary quality of an altogether unusual kind and setting it in
a niche of its own. The illustrations have been reproduced in colors
from carefully made and painted photographs, and are as artistic as
they are in perfect harmony with the author's delightful narrative,
passages of which they illustrate.
_Other Nature Books_
HOW TO KNOW THE WILD FLOWERS. By FRANCES T. PARSONS. Profusely
illustrated. _43rd thousand._ Crown 8vo, $1.75 _net_.
HOW TO KNOW THE FERNS. By FRANCES T. PARSONS. Profusely illustrated.
Crown 8vo. $1.50 _net_.
OUR COMMON BIRDS AND HOW TO KNOW THEM. By JOHN B. GRANT. With 64
illustrations from photographs. Oblong 12mo, $1.50 _net_.
CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS,
153-157 Fifth Avenue
NEW YORK
=====================================================================
Transcriber Notes
Major section headers in the original text were treated as "Chapters". Each
repeated section was formatted to replicate the printed version. All oe
ligatures were converted to their component letters.
The Index shows a link for "Snow Buntings" on page 300. As the Volume
ends with page 206, this typo was changed to page 181 which is where
the last reference to Buntings appears.
Each advertisement page is separated by a line of equals symbols.
*** End of this LibraryBlog Digital Book "Bird Lore, Volume I—1899" ***
Copyright 2023 LibraryBlog. All rights reserved.