THE OSPKEY. 



93 



{fiven mig-ht seem to be a fofmidable one and 

 inordinately lonjf, but there are few ca.'^es where 

 there would be independent references to so 

 many authorities as are mentioned. Many of 

 the .species have been described since Wilson 

 and Audubon, and even Baird, and one and the 

 same authority may serve for the combination 

 of first describer of the species and giver of 

 entire name, and be al.so the author of one of the 

 great works to be quoted. 



SF.OUENCK OF D.\T.4. 



The value of the new work will be greatly en- 

 hanced if the chapters or species are treated in 

 a uniform manner, so that the inquirer may be 

 able to turn at once to the place where he may 

 find desired information, if it can be given. 

 All of the American biographies are more or 

 less iireg'ular in this respect, and the informa- 

 tion g'iven is imparted in a "helter-skelter" 

 manner. 



The sequence mig'ht be somewhat like the fol- 

 lowing: 



Diagnosis and description of the species. 



Variation or subspecies. 



Comparisons. 



Distribution. 



Migration, 



Station; for example, whether occurring chief- 

 \y in woods or meadows, along' shores, about 

 water, etc. 



Sociabilitv. 



Postures. 



Walk. 



Flight. 



Voice. 



Food. 



Mode of feeding. 



Mating. 



Nest. 



Eggs. 



Incubation. 



Young. 



Moulting. 



Age of pairing. 



Parasites or companions. 



I sug'gest this for consideration and criticism. 



I would especially insist on the observance of 

 a regular sequence for the presentation of data 

 respecting habits, for the rea.son that most of 

 the recent compilations on the American Avi- 

 fauna err through the want of .such observance. 

 In most of them, the recorded ob.servations are 

 given in the form of notes on a species by vari- 

 ous contributors, so that the same phenomena 

 may be mentioned in half a dozen disconnected 

 paragraphs in the hi.storj' of one bird. What is 

 wanted, ]nc jiutitr, is a conci.se statement of a 

 phenomenon in one place so definite that we 

 may at once turn to it. What Mr. Smith, or 

 Mr. Jones, or Mr. Brown thinks of the habits of 

 a bird — say Caconyiniis iiiirahilis — is of little mo- 

 ment to most of us. It is the history of the 

 species in a logical and readable form that is 

 desirable. 



But let me not be misunderstood as deprecat- 

 ing inf<n'mation given in the form of abstracts 

 from observing- historians. Such abstracts I 

 would esteem above all when the information 

 depends on the .superior powers or opportunities 

 of observation of some one. Quotation, I think, 

 is preferable for disputed facts or from a classi- 



cal author — if the matter can be skilfully in- 

 termingled with the body of the histor_v, with- 

 out detriment to the harmony in style of the 

 work. 



In addition to these data, there are various 

 species who.se relations to man are such that 

 they .should be considered more at length. In- 

 formation should be .sought and given respect- 

 ing their economic value, palatability, and mode 

 of pursuit or capture, 



GENKR.^I,. 



One of the difficulties we will have to meet is 

 due to the great extent of our country and the 

 consequent diiferences of sea.sons. I suppose 

 we will have to be content for the present with 

 the calendar times of immigration to and em- 

 igration from different regions, of egg-laying', 

 and of moulting. But in the future, doubtless, 

 we may have such phenomena connected with 

 equations of temperature and other conditions, 

 and from those equations may be deduced the 

 consequences for any given area of which the 

 temperature and correlated conditions are 

 known. In other terms, the facts may be gen- 

 eralized: now they can be specified only. 



Such a work as is contemplated must be to a 

 large extent a compilation, and indeed its value 

 will depend on the manner and extent of com- 

 pilation. In other words, the method miist 

 coii/nist with that adopted by Wilson and Audu- 

 bon. They depended almost entirely for their 

 life-histories on their own observations. Now 

 there are very few cases in which any one man 

 can become acquainted through his own ob- 

 servations with all the facts relative to all or 

 even many of the animals he has to deal with. 

 Audubon certainly did not. and not one natura'- 

 ist before or since has devoted the time or en- 

 joyed conditions .so favorable for observation as 

 he did. Necessarily we must supplement our 

 ob.servations by those of others. Biographies 

 ■so prepared, with the requisite weighing of evi- 

 dence, comparison, and criticism, will be much 

 better than the unaided observations of even a 

 Wilson or an Audubon, 



Special attention should be paid to style, A 

 work may be scientific in matter and elegant in 

 expression at the same time; scientific detail by 

 no means excludes literary finish, but may be 

 enhanced in value by such polish. Of our early 

 predecessors, on the whole, Wilson's style is the 

 best; Audubon's is too rhetorical and, I am al- 

 most inclined to add, too bombastic, to suit my 

 ta.ste at least. The best of all are the sketches 

 by Coues. 



HISTOKIC.\I.. 



Collateral with the new work on North Amer- 

 ican l)irds, one on the history of ornithology in 

 America may be published and may .serve as an 

 introduction to the .systematic work. Therein 

 the principal features of the works that have 

 successively had their day should be given, and 

 biographical notices of the authors and por- 

 traits of the principal ones mav accompany the 

 text, 



WHO SH.\I,I, WKITE? 



With .some at least of the large number of or- 

 nitholog-ists now living, we could co-operate, 

 and we should welcome any who might be able 



