THE FARALLONES 



277 



Dr. W. (). Ayres, more than five Inindred thousand eg^s 

 were conected in the Farallones in less than two months; 

 but in 189G, according to L. M. Loomis, the numl)er had 

 dropped to ninety-odd thousand and the i)rice to twelve and 

 a half cents per dozen. 



Murres 

 " Thousands lived in tlie wave-washed caverns " 



Under the more systematic method of collecting, em- 

 ployed at the later date, the comparatively small numl)er of 

 eggs then secured doubtless only in ])art indicates the 

 decrease in Farallone bird-life which had occurred in forty 

 years. To prevent further decimation of this bird colony, 

 the United States Government, at the solicitation of the 



