Bird Notes and News 



77 



Bird-and-Tree (Arbor) Day. 



CHALLENGE SHIELD COM- 

 PETITIONS. 



Cbaixenge Shield Competitions are again 

 being organised in the Elementary Schools 

 of Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Cum- 

 berland, Hampshire, and Isle of Wight, 

 Norfolk, Northamptonshire, Somerset, 

 and Warwickshire. There is also an Open 

 Class for aU comers, and a special invita- 

 tion is being given to the Schools of 

 Derbyshire and Lancashire, through the 

 Directors of Education for those counties, 

 with a view to the estabhshment of a 

 full Challenge Shield contest if (or when) 

 a sufficient number of Schools compete. 

 Pleasant testimony continues to reach 

 the Society of useful knowledge gained 

 and even of unexpected discoveries made 

 by yoimg students ; of the interest and 

 pleasure given to the children ; and of 

 the consequent evolution of eager yoimg 

 Bird Protectors. 



One Headmistress writes : — 



" I cannot tell you how much good this 

 kind of Nature Study does the girls. Some 

 old scholars are in Canada and Austraha. 

 Their letters are full of the birds they see 

 there. They stiU watch and describe them 

 for their own pleasure and have gained such 

 a love for Hving things that life is full of 

 interest and pleasure to them." 



It would be difficult to find a better 

 testimonial to Bird-and-Tree work ; but 

 similar tributes to the value of the scheme 

 and the knowledge it imparts are con- 

 stantly received. 



BIRD-AND-TREE FESTIVALS. 



Of the large number of Festivals for 1912- 

 13 it is possible to mention only a very few. 

 The WoBURN Boys' School, winners of the 

 Bedfordshire and of the Inter -County Shields, 



was on January 11th, generously feted by 

 the Duchess of Bedford, who presented the 

 trophies and prize-books, and also gave 

 handsome additional awards ; thus crowning 

 the help she has afforded the team in 

 allowing them access to Woburn Park and 

 woods, and also to a library of natural 

 history works, and in frequently accompany- 

 ing them on their rambles. Her Grace, who 

 was accompanied by the Duke and the 

 Marquess of Tavistock, thanked Mr. Stud- 

 man, headmaster, for his indefatigable in- 

 terest in the work, and said she was very 

 proud of the school for having brought the 

 Inter-County Shield for the first time to 

 Bedfordshire. 



Buckinghamshire's successful team, that 

 of CoLESHiLL School, gave a musical 

 entertainment on November 15th. The 

 awards were presented by Mrs. Dendy, and 

 Mrs. Dixon Davies gave an interesting 

 address. There was a full room, the rector. 

 Rev. C. E. Briggs, presiding. The head- 

 master, Mr. Stubbings, referred to the 

 special prizes given by Mrs. Dixon Davies 

 in 1911 for " Bird Observations in Winter " 

 as equally beneficial to the children and the 

 birds, some hundreds of birds having been 

 fed. The success of the team was due to 

 continuous systematic work ; a sound educa- 

 tion to be of use in after life included the 

 development and training of the child's 

 mental powers of observation, judgment, 

 and reasoning, and he was convinced that 

 more could be educed from the children in 

 one lesson out-of-doors than in two or three 

 in the schoolroom. Two trees were subse- 

 quently planted in the playgroimd. 



In spite of a raging blizzard, few of the 

 invited children of Greystoke School 

 (winners of the Cumberland Shield) failed 

 to reach Greystoke Castle on January 7th, 

 where a delightful afternoon was provided 

 for them by Mr. and Lady Mabel Howard. 

 The house party and the workmen on the 

 estate were also present, the former including 

 Mr. Christopher LoA^'ther, who presented 

 the Shield and prizes, Lady Evelyn McDon- 

 nell, the Ladies Ankaret and Elizabeth 

 Howard, Mrs. Leybome Popham, and Sir 

 Everard Doyle. After recitations and songs 



