THE OOLOGIST 



91 



when suddenly, in a swale, ditch-en- 

 gendered and filled with rushes and 

 water, along the railway right of way, 

 I saw, for just a moment, the forms 

 of a (suppositious) pair of King Rails. 



Later research brough some five 

 nests to light. These were rendered 

 greatly conspicuous by the very means 

 that were being used for the conceal- 

 ment of the eggs; namely, the canopy. 

 All nests but one were in at least a 

 few inches of water. All were amid 

 rushes and cat-tails; and were made of 

 cat-tails and grasses. I am inclined 

 to consider most of the nests as de- 

 coys: there being no evidence in the 

 (thoroughly workable) areas wherein 

 the nests were found, of more than 

 two pairs of birds. There were no 

 eggs, as yet, on the second day of June. 

 It has never been possible for me to 

 fellow up this find. Wy excuse must 

 be my absorption in "the strenuous 

 hunt for rarities." That I have been 

 successful in this quest, going three 

 different years, as I have done, clear 

 across three states to search for nests 

 of the Yellow Rail in one small two- 

 acre section of a great North Dakota 

 coulee, must be set down not nearly 

 so much to sheer "good luck" as to 

 that intimate knowledge which comes 

 of imending study and an unbounded 

 capacity for hard work. It is no small 

 honor to have been enabled to discov- 

 er five out of the not-more-than-ten 

 nests of the rarest of North American 

 Rails, (noveboracensis), that science 

 has brought to light during the past 

 ten years. But this, in Kipling lan- 

 guage, is "another story." 



P. B. PEABODY. 



*Note, Page 2: Professor Silloway 

 is in error, here. ]\Iy fully-canopied 

 egg. 



clipping from one of the Los Angeles 

 papers, presumably desiring that we 

 publish it. There is no more fascinat- 

 ing department in all the study of or- 

 nithology than the keeping of wild 

 birds in as near natural surroundings 

 as possible in confinement, and there- 

 by becoming acquainted with many of 

 their peculiarities, which can be learn- 

 ed possibly in no other manner. 



In California. 

 A number of our California subscrib- 

 ers have forwarded us the following 



WHERE PUBLIC MAY 



SEE RAREST BIRDS. 

 Unique Institution, Built by L. M. 

 Grider, to Open on Satur- 

 day Night. 



"Birdland." the unique institution 

 which has been founded by L. M. Gri- 

 der, is ready to be thrown open to the 

 public. 



It is located in a beautiful mission 

 building at Central avenue and Pico 

 street and the inhabitants, as the 

 name implies, are principally birds. 

 They have been gathered from every 

 quarter of the globe. 



"Birdland" was built by Mr. Grider 

 to satisfy his great love for birds and 

 at the same time to give the people of 

 Los Angeles an opportunity to enjoy 

 them. The institution rei^resents an 

 investment of thousands of dollars. 

 The building was designed by Charles 

 E. Shattuck under Mr. Grider's direc- 

 tion. One section is devoted to cages 

 and glass cases, offices, lavatories, a 

 bird hospital, a supply room and a 

 workroom. The other, and larger, sec- 

 tion contains an immense cage for fiy- 

 ing, covering an area of 10,000 square 

 feet and 2.5 feet high. Inside are thous- 

 ands of birds flying about among 

 palms, giant ferns, trees and lakes. 

 The appearance of the interior is 

 tropical. One of the features of the 

 cage is an elaborate fountain, filled 

 with gold and silver fish. Monkeys, 

 Angora kittens, guinea pigs, rabbits 

 and fancy poultry share "Birdland" 

 with the birds. 



To attempt to name the inhabitants 

 of the place would be to give a cata- 

 log of most of the rare and beautiful 

 feathered creatures of the world. 

 Nearly every country is represented 

 and nearly every bird of plumage or 

 of song is included in the collection. 



