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THE GUIDE TO NATURE 



mountains and liows gently in the 

 south, southwesterly direction to the 

 Pacific Ocean, to the Harbor of San 



Pedro. 



The river flowing gently in this dis- 

 trict of Los Angeles County is bor- 

 dered on both sides with willow and 

 cottonwood trees. They have grown 

 up so dense that one finds it difficult 

 to go among them. Thousands of 

 beautiful birds congregate here every 

 month of the year. They come in 

 flocks to feed on Crustacea, mollusca 

 and marsh insects. They bathe in the 

 cool water and flutter merrily among 

 the green foliage of the trees. 



As we entered this region going 

 among the trees, we listened for the 

 call notes of the marsh birds and the 

 roundelays of the smaller species. The 

 large spiders and various insect life 

 were noted with intense interest. The 

 clear, call-notes of the spurred towhee 

 and the sweet trill of the song sparrow 

 stirred our hearts with nature's biolo- 

 gical enthusiasm so that our endeavor 

 to gain knowledge from this realm was 

 a source of delight and happiness. We 

 watched the birds hunting for insects 

 among the green foliage. They hopped 

 from twig to twig, from blossom to 

 blossom picking morsels here and 

 there, and were apparently enjoving 

 life to the full. If I had one of those 

 pretty birds in my hand, a mere pres- 

 sure of my thumb and middle finger 

 would silence the song and still the life 

 of the bird forever. But what right 

 would I have to take the life of a bird? 

 If any creature may claim exemption 

 from harm and untimely death surely 

 a bird may claim it. They were joined 

 in a moment by others beautiful in 

 plumage and sweet in song. 



The entire day was snent among the 

 trees of this locality. All observations 

 were recorded in notebooks, and when 

 the sun began to sink behind the west- 

 ern horizon, the San Pedro hill and the 

 shadows of night were creeping over 

 the land, we bade farewell to the avi- 

 fauna of this region and journeyed 

 home, having enjoyed a day long to be 

 remembered. 



From the Country Life Chapter, Mid- 

 dletown, Connecticut. 



Last year, because of the crowded 

 condition of our school, we were unable 

 to hold regular meetings and conse- 

 quently they lacked the former enthusi- 

 asm. During the year we held one 

 outdoor and two indoor meetings. The 

 outing took the form of a tramp to 

 Mount Higby on which a very enjoy- 

 able and instructive time was had. The 

 first meeting was held for the purpose 

 of electing officers, and the second was 

 a regular business meeting. The num- 

 ber of members for the year was ten. 



This year we have much better con- 

 ditions to work under and look forward 

 to an enjoyable and instructive year. 

 The first meeting was held on Novem- 

 ber 19, at which the following officers 

 were elected : Kenneth Noble, Presi- 

 dent ; Miss Gladys Lorenz, Vice-Presi- 

 dent and Ralph Frissell, Sec. and Treas. 

 Yours very truly, 

 Ralph A. Frissell, Secretary. 



What are threescore years and ten 

 hurriedlv and coarsely lived to moment? 

 of divine leisure in which vour life is 

 coincident with the life of the universe 

 — Thoreau. 



Illustrating Protective Colorations. 



The latest of Mr. Abbott H. 

 Thayer's models to illustrate his well- 

 known theory of protective coloration 

 is the figure of a tiger. The animal, 

 modeled in the round and colored as in 

 life, stands amidst long grass and 

 against a background of taller stems, 

 which also are colored as in nature. 



The lighting is by two sets of lamps, 

 one from above as if the creature were 

 out of doors, the other from below in 

 the most unnatural manner possible. 



When the lighting is from beneath, 

 the tiger stands out against its back- 

 ground, black and hard and unmistak- 

 able. But when the other illumination 

 is switched on, the beast immediately 

 vanishes. Even after the eye has at 

 last picked un the outline, the figure 

 still appears flat, transparent, and un- 

 real, not at all like a round object. As 

 with virtually all wild creatures, the 

 darker back, lighter sides, and still 

 lighter under parts, when illumined 

 from above, just offset the higher 

 lights of the upper parts and the 

 shadows underneath, and take away 

 the appearance of solidity. 



The model, which is the first that 

 the artist has made for public exhibi- 

 tion, will be the property of Clark Uni 

 versitv. 



