THE OOLOGIST 



19 



offered a set of six. There are said 

 to be quite a number of Mute Swan 

 eggs, in collections that are labeled 

 California Vulture, and nobody can tell 

 the difference unless he knows how 

 to do it." 



If any such practices as these come 

 to the notice of any of our readers, it 

 will be a pleasure to the publisher of 

 this magazine to bulletin the guilty 

 parties in our columns, and let the 

 world know who it is that is engaged 

 in swindling, and if possible to fol- 

 low it up with criminal proceedings 

 for use of the mails for fraudulent 

 purposes. A year or two in a federal 

 penitentiary for some of those engaged 

 in this sort of work would go a long 

 ways towards clarifying the oological 

 atmosphere. Keep your eye on the 

 frauds and when you get one of them 

 dead to rights, send us the proof and 

 then sit up an<l take notice as to what 

 happens. 



The New A. O. U. Check List. 



We are advised, we have been advis- 

 ed, we expect to be further advised 

 that in the "near future" the new A. 

 O. U. Check list for 1910 will be issu- 

 ed soon. The delay in this matter, 

 inconveniencing as it does, hundreds 

 of ornithologists throughout the Unit- 

 ed States is to say the least, not to 

 the credit of the A. O. U. organization, 

 of which the Editor is one; though we 

 are thankful to say we are in no way 

 responsible for this delay. 



Any person who has endeavored to 

 keep track of the naming and re-nam- 

 ing and changing the names of, and 

 substituting the names for, and orig- 

 inating names designating North 

 American Birds during the last few 

 years, will appreciate what we have to 

 say upon this subject. 



It has been our intention to take up 

 this matter of delay in regard to the 



A. O. IT. Check List and set the whole 

 matter before our readers this month, 

 citing as our authority, the published 

 proceedings of the A. O. U. in the 

 Auk, but we refrain from so doing 

 at present; though this would make 

 interesting reading; particularly go 

 to those who are able to read between 

 the lines, especially if reading be- 

 tween the lines were confined to such 

 quotations as we could make and may 

 yet make from the Auk in regard to 

 this subject. 



We are heartily tired of waiting. 

 Are you tired also, Mr. Reader? 



Our Need For Greater Care. 



Recently in an exchange I received 

 a specimen of Rose-breasted Gros- 

 beak and one of Black-billed Cuckoo; 

 they were both tagged but the tags 

 were exchanged; i. e., the one for the 

 Grosbeak being on the Cuckoo and 

 that for the Cuckoo on the Grosbeak, 

 so it would seem that they were not 

 tagged until the person was getting 

 my wants together, which he listed 

 as having on hand. 



How do I know that the sex of the 

 Cuckoo was as he has it on the tag? 

 He could have easily made a mistake 

 on that the same as he did on the 

 tags. 



Another instance was one where two 

 sets of one egg each of Cassin's Auk- 

 let were sent to me. When I tried to 

 find which data belonged to which 

 egg I found it impossible to tell as 

 they both had the same set mark. Also 

 both datas read "Xest at end of bur- 

 row from three to five feet long." It 

 looks as if he had collected quite a 

 number and made one wording of <lata 

 do for all. 



Let us use the greatest care in all 

 our work! 



E. P. WALKER. 



The triteness of the foregoing obser- 

 vation is deeply impressed Upon the 



