The Audubon Societies 329 



study and bird -protection must be dealt witli by tlie sugar-coated-pill 

 method. 



Birds and their natural inter-relationships with other forms of life present 

 an unlimited and fascinating field for investigation. Even their artificial or 

 so-called economic relationship to man is a subject full of interesting, unusual, 

 and important problems. There is, too, a dignity as well as charm about the 

 study of nature, which should always be borne in mind. No one has expressed 

 this more truly than Audubon, writing in his journal one July morning on the 

 bleak coast of Labrador. Impressed by the desolate grandeur of the unac- 

 customed scene, he was able to visualize most sensitively the charm of Nature: 



"All, all is wonderfully wild and grand, ay, terrific. And yet how beautiful it is 

 now, when your eye sees the wild bee, moving from one flower to another in search of 

 food, which doubtless is as sweet to her as the essence of the orange and the magnolia 

 is to her more favoured sister in Louisiana. The little ring-plover rearing its delicate 

 and tender young; the eider duck swimming man-of-war-like amid her floating brood, 

 like the guard-ship of a most valuable convoy; the white-crowned bunting's sonorous 

 note reaching your ears ever and anon; the crowds of sea-birds in search of places wherein 

 to repose or to feed. I say how beautiful all this, in this wonderful rocky desert at this 

 season ..." 



There are lecturers who present the study of birds and nature only from 

 the point of view of truth and beauty, and by reason of this they do not sacrifice 

 the dignity of the theme in a mistaken effort to please. These are the lectures 

 we need and should endeavor to encourage. With such a wealth of material 

 always at hand, if one will merely open his eyes or ears to observe, it is hardly 

 necessary to waste the time or patience of an audience reciting familiar examples 

 and overworked statistics, or rambling through an ill-assorted, fragmentary 

 mass of anecdotes. Huxley was an ideal teacher and an equally ideal popular 

 lecturer. We need to strive for his high standard of presenting truth and only 

 the truth, with some definite purpose or principle as a basis, whether in the 

 school-room or on the lecture platform. The method of presentation can hardly 

 fail to be attractive if one shows sufficient endeavor to have at his command 

 illustrative material from personal observation, and sufficient enthusiasm to 

 be convincing. 



Audubon societies are constantly engaging lecturers to acquaint the public 

 with birds, and as constantly assisting teachers and pupils. There is a ready 

 demand for both of these forms of work. The thing which will help most is 

 to raise the standard both of the lectures and of the work in schools. Seek out 

 those lecturers who really have something to say, with or without lantern- 

 slides. Select wisely those books and aids which are above, rather than below 

 or merely up to the average, and recommend them to teachers and also to 

 public librarians. 



Some books, lectures and aids which come to mind as being particularly 

 helpful are the following: 



