194 



leoitorial IRotcs. 



HUMMING BIRDS :— In an interesting letter lately 

 received from Prof. Hodge, of Clark Universit}', Mass., I learn 

 that he is having great snccess with tame Hnmniiiig Rirds, and 

 is in hope that one of his students may sncceed in domesticating 

 and rearing the species in confinement. He does not, however, 

 mention which particular species is under observation. 



RUFFED GROUSE :— The same gentleman kindly .sent 

 me the Report of the Commis.sioners of Fisheries and Game 

 for 1904, containing an account of his experiments in that 

 year with these birds under domestication. With the aid of 

 Bantam hens he was successful in hatching and rearing a 

 number of young ones. The Report is illustrated with several 

 beautiful pliotographs of the Grouse in various stages— includ- 

 ing one of an adult, which was captured on September 26th, 

 and yet had become so tame as to be photographed on Novem- 

 ber 2ud, whilst perching on the knee of a young boy. In the 

 letter above alluded to he tells me that this year he has been 

 very nnfortniiate in losing most of his hatches of 3'oung from 

 what 'he thinks was " vSeptic Fever, due possibly to custard 

 feeding combined with cold and rainy weather." 



VERONICA AS GREEN FOOD :— One of my corres- 

 pondents in the Cage Birds section of The Country Side tells 

 me that she finds this shrub very useful as green food for her 

 Canaries, especially in Winter when the ordinary green stuff 

 is difficult to obtain. They never tire of it, and all its 

 varieties are equally used. 



THE SONG SPARROW:— Mr. L. W. Brownell contri- 

 butes an article on this North American bird in a state of 

 nature to Coiintiy Life of July 22nd. After saying that it is 

 a " seed eater," he describes the feeding of the nestlings. 

 " At first, as is the case with most young birds, their food 

 " consists entirely of insects, which must be beaten to a pulp 

 " by the parent's bills ere they are allowed to enter the 

 " awaiting mouth." Mr. Seth-Smith has also recentlv observed 

 ver)' much the same thing. It is an interesting fact, because it 

 has been generally believed that all seed eaters feed at first 

 from the crop. W. Geo. Crkswei.i<. 



