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Birds of America. Editor-in-Chief, T. 

 Gilbert Pearson; Consulting Editor, 

 John Burroughs; Managing Editor, 

 George Gladden; Associate Editor, 

 J. Ellis Burdick; Special Contributors, 

 Edward H. Forbush, Herbert K. Job, 

 William L. Finley, L.Nelson Nichols; 

 Artists, L. A. FuERTES, R. B. Horsfall, 

 R. I. Brasher, Henry Thurston. 

 Nature Lovers' Library, The University 

 Society, Inc., New York City, 191 7. 

 Three vols. 4to. Vol. I, xviii + 272 

 pages; Vol. II, xiv + 271 pages; Vol. 

 Ill, xviii -f 289 pages. 



These handsome, well-made volumes 

 contain descriptions of the plumage, nest 

 and eggs, a statement of the range, and 

 description of the habits of the birds of 

 America north of Mexico. 



The descriptions of plumage and out- 

 line of distribution are based upon 

 Ridgway's standard 'Birds of North and 

 Middle America. ' Species not as yet treated 

 in that work are here described by R. I. 

 Brasher. 



The biographies, as the title-page 

 indicates, are from a variety of sources. 

 Some have been contributed by well- 

 known ornithologists of wide experience 

 and contain much original matter. Others 

 have been compiled from various works. 

 They average three-fourth of a page in 

 length, and, so far as these limits permit, 

 usually present a pleasing and satisfactory 

 sketch of the life history of the species. 

 The absence of migration dates, however, 

 detracts from their practical value for the 

 field student. A similar omission is found 

 in the text devoted to nests and eggs. 



These volumes are profusely illustrated 

 with photographs of birds from nature, 

 from mounted specimens, and from draw- 

 ings, both uncolored and colored. It is to 

 be regretted that, in justice to the bona 

 fide wild-life photographer, the photo- 

 graphs of living birds are not clearly dis- 

 tinguished from those of mounted ones. 

 It is true that photographs of Habitat 

 (iroups and other subjects in the .Vmcrican 

 .VTuseiim, obvioii<;ly depict mounted speri 



mens. It is equally obvious that photo- 

 graphs by Allen, Finley, Bohlman, and 

 Job, for example, portray wild birds. 

 But there are others, attributed to contrib- 

 utors who are included in the book's 

 '.\dvisory Board' under the head of 

 'Naturalists' or 'Wild Life Photographer,' 

 which are quite as obviously made from 

 mounted birds placed amid more or less 

 appropriate surroundings out-of-doors. 

 The inclusion of these 'faked' pictures in a 

 work of this nature is unfair not only to 

 the reader, but to every honest bird pho- 

 tographer. 



The uncolored drawings of birds by 

 Brasher, Horsfall, and Thurston vary 

 much in character. Some are excellent, 

 while others betray an evident unfamili- 

 arity in life with the species figured, and 

 few show that genius for bird portraiture 

 which characterizes the work of Fuertes. 



The colored plates of birds are by the 

 last-named artist and were drawn by 

 him to illustrate Eaton's standard work 

 on the 'Birds of New York,' in which they 

 originally appeared. We fail, however, to 

 find any statement to this effect, and the 

 inclusion of Mr. Fuertes' name on the 

 title-page of the work with that of the 

 artists who have made drawings for this 

 work leaves one to infer that his draw- 

 ings, in spite of the reference on them to 

 the New York State Museum, also were 

 made for it. As a matter of fact, we are 

 informed that these drawings by Fuertes 

 were included in this work without his 

 knowledge, and that he has instituted 

 proceedings against the publishers of it for 

 the unauthorized use of his name. — F. M. C. 



.\udubon the Naturalist: .\ History of 

 His Life and Times. By Francis 

 Hobart Herrick, Ph.D., Sc. D. In 

 two volumes, illustrated. D. .Vppleton & 

 Co., New York; London, 191 7. 8vo. Vol. 

 I,xi +451 pages, Vol. II,xiii -+-494 pages. 



In these two notable volumes Pro- 

 fessor Herrick has shown that a min<l 

 trained tn thr pursuit of ornith<->lni;ic.Tl 



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