200 



Bird- Lore 



ably be found breeding within fifty miles 

 of New York.) 



On August 6, 1909, I observed a female 

 Black-throated Green Warbler feeding 

 a very young bird (down still clinging to 

 head, and no tail-feathers started) in a 

 grove of Hemlocks about a mile from 

 Wilton station. — Norm.^n deW. Betts, 

 Boulder, Col. 



Tax the Cat 



The excellent suggestion of Dr. Emily 

 G. Hunt, of Pasadena, to tax the cat, 

 should be followed up. The plan would 

 furnish a goodly sum of money to be 

 divided among poHticians of hundreds of 

 towns and villages. Bird-lovers every- 

 where would be pleased, and, last of all, 

 an incalculable amount of good would 

 follow for our agricultural interests, 

 which depend so largely upon the good 

 deeds of birds. If a nuisance cannot be 

 eaten, tax it. These two ways are very 

 effective. Please do not consider that lam 

 not a friend of the cat. We always have 

 some darlings about the house. Last year 

 there were two Angoras, and a large 

 gray Maltese, all famous ratters. The 

 Maltese brought sixteen dead rats to the 

 house in the country in the one month in 

 which a record was kept. 



When the supply of rats and mice ran 

 low, the enterprising cats became hunters 

 in the woods about the house. Having 

 been petted for bringing in the earlier 

 game, they continued to bring in their 

 quarry of all sorts. This consisted chiefly 

 of rabbits, red and gray squirrels, chip- 

 munks, and field-mice, all of which were 

 abundant and destructive. 



I have seen all three cats leave the house 

 at sundown, and return with as many 

 rabbits in a few minutes. They killed 

 comparatively few birds, and were intel- 

 ligent enough to leave little chickens 

 alone. Nevertheless, the birds that they 

 did kill were mostl}' our favorites about 

 the house, and, if the supply of rodents had 

 diminished much, very many birds would 

 no doubt have been killed daily. If it is 

 not wise to put a tax of one dollar per year 



upon all male cats in America, put a tax 

 of three dollars per year at least upon all 

 female cats. That would soon limit 

 production. — Robert T. Morris, 616 

 Madison Avenue, N. Y. 



An Albino Blue Jay 



This Albino Jay, with a large number of 

 other Jays, was fed, the past two winters, 

 by a bird friend of mine. A party of 

 hunters, to kill anything in sight, shot 



:\LBINO BLUE JAY 



him within gun-shot of his feeding- 

 ground. The bird's throat and entire 

 underparts are white; the bill, legs and feet 

 very light horn-color; the crest and neck 

 white; back white, excepting middle, 

 which shows a tinge of blue; primaries 

 white; secondaries blue, barred with black 

 and tipped with white; the three middle 

 tail-feathers white; the others blue, barred 

 with black and tipped an inch or more 

 with white. — Henry W. Osgood, Pitts- 

 field, Mass. 



