Reports of Field Agents 467 



land occupied by it be reseeded with grass or clover, the improvement of the 

 pasture would no doubt be excellent. Indeed, it is a striking fact that nothing 

 has been done to improve these pastures, though grazed by sheep for yea rs . 



REPORT OF WILLIAM L. FINLEY, FIELD AGENT 

 FOR THE PACIFIC COAST STATES 



During the past year, sixty-live lectures, mostly illustrated with moving 

 pictures, have been given by your agent through the Pacific Northwest. A 

 number of these have been given for the benefit of the soldiers in the canton- 

 ments in this part of the country and were enthusiastically received. Lectures 

 were also given under the auspices of the Red Cross and the Junior Red Cross 

 in the schools. Approximately $1,000 was raised for these organizations. 



Among many of the schools, there has been very creditable bird-work 

 during the past year. In Portland, the pupils of the Kenton School reproduced 

 the bird masque, entitled "Bobby in Birdland" which appeared in the Nov^em- 

 ber-December, 1Q17, issue of Bird-Lore. Moving pictures were taken of 

 this play as it was acted in the woods. Moving pictures were also made of some 

 of the manual training classes building bird-houses and the children putting 

 up these houses along the Columbia Highway. These, with other pictures 

 of Audubon work, are to be used for educational purposes in the schools. 

 The Junior work among the school children during the past year for the Oregon 

 Audubon Society has been in charge of Mrs. A. L. Campbell. She has visited 

 many different schools, giving bird-talks and organizing societies. 



Under the direction of Walter P. Taylor, of the Biological Survey of the 

 Department of Agriculture, a systematic survey of the bird and animal life 

 of the state of Washington is being carried on in conjunction with the different 

 educational institutions. During the past summer, Mr. Taylor has been work- 

 ing in the field with Prof. W. T. Shaw of Pullman College. Inasmuch as the 

 wild antelope are rapidly disappearing, and since there are approximately 

 not more than from five to seven hundred of these animals in the state of 

 Oregon, an effort is being made to secure an area of land, partly in southern 

 Oregon and partly in Nevada, where these animals range and set it aside as a 

 permanent reservation. This area is also the home of large flocks of Sage 

 Grouse. The details of this plan are being worked out by Dr. George W. Field, 

 of the Biological Survey. 



For the past two years, Malheur Lake Reservation in southeastern Oregon 

 has been in jeopardy. Certain promoters have been trying to get the right to 

 drain this body of water and dry up the surrounding marshland, advocating 

 that this would make a valuable area for agriculture. On the other hand, this 

 area is very alkaline in character, and experiments on similar areas by the 

 Department of Agriculture show that it is of little or no value from the 

 agricultural standpoint. If it were once drained, the whole place would 



