In considering the preparation of this list, the first 
point was — “‘ What is a game bird ¢” 
What gunner will admit that his favorite bird is not 
game, although it be tabooed by his neighbor? And here 
again another difficulty arose, for many a man shoots 
Meadow Larks and Reed-birds, and would scorn the 
imputation that he was not a sportsman, or that these 
birds were not game. 
To avoid one horn of the dilemma without getting 
hooked by the other, I have manufactured this definition : 
A game bird is one which is suitable for food and which 
is habitually pursued by man for sport, demanding skill 
and dexterity for its capture. I take it for granted that 
every sportsman is a gentleman, and would not slaughter 
more game than he could find a use for, and that he 
would not descend to the level of the pot-hunter, who will 
kill Robins and other insectivorous birds simply because 
they are fit to eat. 
With this explanation, I apologize beforehand to any- 
one whose corns I have trodden upon, offering as an 
excuse, my desire to afford a convenient reference list 
adapted to the sportsman’s needs without compelling 
him to wander among a mass of useless matter. I have 
also marked with a star (*) those birds which are not 
generally accepted as game, although it has been very 
difficult to draw the line. 
awk. A (Fa 
