No. 6. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 615 



stomach and «lio\\ iiig w liaL he led upon in cunipaiin^ liiin with otlier 

 birds with reference to his habits until they brought him out quite 

 a useful bird. It was exceedingly interesting in that it showed 

 that the crow is rather a genius and witty fellow and excites 

 a large amount of interest. I gave that bulletin to several boys 

 around me and it had a very good effect. I did not follow it 

 by putting it in the schools, but I think it would be a good thing to 

 place such bulletins there. 



MR, HEKR: While we are on this crow question 1 want to make 

 one remark. The Professor stated that by planting corn extra deep 

 a crow would not disturb it. I have been immuned from their at- 

 tacks if I feed them. If I sow a peck or so of corn over the field 

 a few days after I plant it 1 have not been bothered. 1 think that 

 is the best thing for the crow. If you just feed him he will not 

 bother you. 



DR. CONARl): What is the economic value of the robin? 



PROF. SURFACE: Some persons in the State of New Jersey are 

 looking towards the passage of a law for the extermination of the 

 robin. I would call to the attention of the members of this Board 

 that the law allow^s anyone to kill a bird that is in the act of destroy- 

 ing his crop. That is the law of the State of Pennsylvania. The 

 fruit grower who has had a scarcity of fruit on account of dep- 

 redations made upon liis orchard by birds as they come to his 

 orchards, and he knows that they are destroying his fruit, has the 

 privilege of killing those birds and is not transgressing the law. 

 But the robin and catbird are known to be the most valuable birds 

 that are found in our State. It is a fact that the robin sticks his bill 

 into a strawberry or cherry, as an individual told me the other day, 

 that the main fault with the robin is that he sticks his bill into the 

 strawberry and does not eat it; the reason is that the robin is starv- 

 ing for fruit. It eats both insects and fruits, and when it does not 

 eat ripe fruit it may stick its bill into the red where it expects 

 to get sweets and for that reason it sticks its bill into the straw- 

 berry. It has been very injurious to fruit and so has the catbird. I 

 can stand on the State College campus and count two hundred 

 robins in sight and I did not lose a strawberry last year, but it was 

 because right across the road from that strawberry patch there was 

 a mulberry tree constantly bearing. It commenced early to bear 

 and bears until late. It is the longest bearing tree there is, and 

 by means of that tree the robins were supplied with fruit. Mr. 

 George T. Powell, of Ghent, New York, has said that he had trouble 

 with the robins eating his cherries and he left his Gov. Wood cher- 

 ries to get ripe and sweet and did not pick them and in that way he 

 got rid of damage by the robins. Another man told me that he got 



