Chapter M: O. W (2)

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.

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)

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.

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."

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.

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=Bailey's First Lessons With Plants.= $.40 _net_
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=Ingersoll's Wild Neighbors.= $1.50
"Instructive as well as delightful."--_Popular
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=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
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"Most delightful book on the subject yet
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=Wright's Four-Footed Americans.= $1.50
Four-Footed American Mammals treated in
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=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=

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.

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_)

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_)

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.

Photographed from nature by Florence A. Merriam]