ORNITHOLOGY 



97 



riologist, of Sheffield Scientific School of 

 Yale University, has been carrying- on 

 co-operative investigation in connec- 

 tion with poultry diseases during his 

 vacation seasons at the Storrs Agri- 

 cultural Experiment Station. He has 

 discovered the causative organism of 

 at least one deadly epidemic disease, 

 and is now keeping it in culture, pur- 

 posing to attempt a vaccine or serum 

 to render quails in captivity immune. 

 He has also recently isolated another 

 organism, first found in the young 

 quails. Though there has not yet been 

 time to demonstrate that this was 

 surely the main cause of their death, 

 yet this view has received remarkable 

 confirmation from the recent discovery 



urge that it be continued for at least 

 another year. To stop midway in a 

 promising scientific quest productive 

 of useful results, on the ground that 

 the final goal was not reached in a 

 few months, appears to them an amaz- 

 ing proposition. The Station's inves- 

 tigation of the white diarrhoea of 

 chicks has already taken three years, 

 and a proposed cattle disease inves- 

 tigation is likely to extend over five 

 years. Yet the Government consid- 

 ers money thus used well expended. 



The ornithologist is now completing 

 a Report on quail propagation, em- 

 bodying the results of this experiment 

 at Storrs and of another experiment in 

 Connecticut that was carried on pri- 



OUR THIRD BATCH OF FORTY QUAIL CHICKS, ONE WEEK OLD, FEEDING. 

 By courtesy of The Outing Publishing Company. 



by English scientists of a similar or- 

 ganism in diseased grouse. If the 

 organism proves to be the cause, we 

 believe that the disease can be eradi- 

 cated or prevented by simple medicinal 

 treatment. 



The work was conducted on the 

 grounds of the Connecticut Agricul- 

 tural College, with the assistance of the 

 Storrs Agricultural Experiment Sta- 

 tion, and was done under the direct 

 supervision and with the approval 01 

 the Federal Government. 



The College and the Experiment 

 Station officials, together with other 

 important interests, believing that this 

 work is of value and of economic im- 

 portance, and that it promises to solve 

 a problem and be worth a large amount 

 of money to the State and the public, 



vately in co-operation with him. It 

 is the most thorough treatment of the 

 subject that has ever been prepared. 



Until the diseases, the feeding and 

 the handling of quail are thoroughly 

 studied in a scientific manner, the 

 whole problem of their artificial in- 

 crease will remain at a standstill. The 

 depletion of the birds in one State for 

 the benefit of another will never solve 

 the problem. So long as shipments of 

 quail are made without understanding 

 the disease problem, so long large num- 

 bers are practically sure to be swept 

 off by the dreaded epidemic, with 

 grave danger of spreading it among the 

 native quail and grouse. A small frac- 

 tion of the game fund would continue 

 this fundamental work. It may be re- 

 marked that the expense was not as 



