Problems Confronting Beginners 247 



is applied while the corn is dry, it is said to 

 retard germination two or three days. After 

 the grain has been coated it is usually rolled in 

 plaster, wood ashes, or similar absorbent before 

 planting. The only objection to this is that it 

 prevents the use of the planting machine. A 

 little experimenting would probably result in the 

 discovery of a method to which there were no 

 objections. 



Cats 



The house cat problem is one of the hardest 

 with which the bird lover has to contend. The 

 genuine affection which many people have for 

 cats, the enormous numbers and wide distri- 

 bution of the animals, and the fact that they 

 have a certain value as destroyers of rats and 

 mice, all tend to increase the difficulty of solv- 

 ing the problem. But the very difficulty should 

 strengthen our determination to solve it, for its 

 solution is of very great consequence. 



Personally the writer has no faith in the idea 

 of training cats. As Mr. Forbush says, there 

 are some cats which may be trained not to kill 

 birds but it is the writer's belief that they are 

 few. Fewer still are the owners who possess the 

 inclination, the time, and the very considerable 

 knowledge necessary to train them. Neither has 



