f 
WO Ge Cape Region of Baja California. [zon | 
_ party and remained with us for two months. My only regret now 
is that I did not double Manuel’s wages and teach him to skin birds, 
for he seemed to take a greater interest in field work than any of a 
_ people whom I have met. One excessively hot day I found him in — a 
the shade of the house, attempting to prepare a cardinal grosbeal 
that was in moulting plumage, one that had been rejected from the 
morning’s collection for the reason that the species was common 
there and the specimen lacked six tail-feathers. A more difficult . 
subject would be hard to find, yet with a little assistance he carried 
the work to completion. 
On the first of September the field work began along the Rio San 
José and in the cultivated gardens with their trees of guava, orange 
and lime. The birds showed a decided preference for guava trees, 
and many good specimens were obtained by sitting quietly beneath 
the shade of these trees and between shots eating the delicious fruit. 
The people made no objection to my shooting anywhere about their 
homes, and I have never seen a “No Shooting’’ notice posted in 
the peninsula; in fact, the men would leave their plough-team of 
oxen standing in the furrow while they came to see the “‘ Gringo” 
place cotton in the mouth of a dead bird and drop it into a paper 
cornucopia. The nesting time of the birds was over and nearly all 
were in moulting plumage, some of them being in very ragged con- 
dition during the month of September and part of October. 
The first bird that I heard on that morning was the ever-present 
St. Lucas cactus wren (Campylorhynchus affinis), a very character- a 
istic species of Lower California; one of them was always about the 
garden in the rear of our house, as were also turkey buzzards ( Cath- 
artes aura), the latter were very tame, being well fed with the refuse — 
from the dissecting table. 
Passing along a lane between gardens just being planted with corn, 
I found in the branches of the trees bordering the way to the San — 
José river and in the growing hedge-fences, numerous specimens of 
the pileolated warbler (Sylvania pustila pileolata), St. Lucas car- 
dinal ( Cardinalis cardinalis igneus) and Arizona hooded oriole 
(Icterus cucullatus nelsoni). 
The sandy, weeded flats on either side of the river were fre- 
quented by the Mexican ground dove ( Columbigallina passerina 
pallescens) feeding upon small seeds; they are almost invariably 
seen in pairs and the Mexicans say never singly, but they could not 
