182 



ORNITHOLOGIST 



[Vol. 7-No. 23 



of its beauties as they really are. And 

 such a place for pinicoliue birds as well as 

 others. We will know more about them 

 before I get away from here. Late as the 

 season is for eggs I picked uji a good many 

 since I struck the pine timber, which I did 

 about 150 miles east of here, and among 

 them some very excellent things, at least 

 two species new to me. I shall have 

 more to say in the future, after I get prop- 

 erly settled down. I am satisfied that I 

 can spend at least two years here with 

 profit to myself and others as well. I will 

 write up my observations made on the trij) 

 before a great while. 



What has become of J. N. Clark ; and — 

 —Dr. Wm. Wood ? It was hard for the Dr. 

 to give ujj the familiar numbers of the 

 1859 catalogue. 'Twas a general Tipset- 

 ting to many. 



Key to N. A. Birds — D. Elliott Coues 

 is hard at work on his new edition of the 

 " Key to North American Birds," and is in 

 hopes that it will be ready in time for the 

 collector in early Spring. 



" The Vertebr.\tes of the Adirond.ick 

 Eegion, North Eastern New York, by Clin- 

 ton Hart Meriam, M. D., of Locust Grove. 

 N. Y. ;" IOC pp. Eoyal Octavo, paper cover, 

 wide margin. We have been favored with 

 a copy of this work from which we have 

 derived a pleasure that nothing equal to a 

 good book on Natural Science can give. 

 Mr. Meriam uses the English language 

 "for all it is worth," and what he does not 

 know about a region he has studied is 

 hardly worthy of investigation. Like Wil- 

 son and Audubon, he writes for the mil- 

 lion and not specially for the handful of 

 scientists. Self is entirely forgotten and 

 there are scientific terms enough but not 

 one to spare. The naturalist will never tire 

 of reading it. 



But let us not forget the printer, L. S. 

 Foster, 35 Pine St., N. Y., who in this 

 work has tiUTied off one of the best jjaper 

 boimd pamphlets we have ever seen devo- 

 ted to any subject. 



Eggs in a Set. 



While out collecting this season found 

 a Pewee's nest in a culvert, three feet by 

 two, and about eight feet from the en- 

 trance. I passed the culvert a number of 

 times, but the last time I threw a stone 

 in. and what was my surprise to see a 

 Pewee fly out. On entering I foimd the" 

 nest, which contained four fresh Pewee's 

 eggs and two eggs of the Cow Bird. Is 

 not this a queer place for the Cow Bird to 

 lay ? Also found a Black-throated Bunt- 

 ing's nest with three eggs, fresh, and four 

 Cow Bird's eggs. Two of the Cow Bird's 

 eggs were exactly alike in color and mark- 

 ings and shape, and but very little differ- 

 ence in size. There is not the lenst doubt 

 in my mind but what two of the eggs 

 were laid by the same bird. Found some 

 twent\' nests of the Rose-breasted Gros- 

 beak, and in every instance but four, found 

 the full set to be five. Also Wood 

 Pewee's nests, with four and five eggs 

 in a set. I also got twenty-three eggs 

 from one pair of Bewick's Wrens this 

 season — two sets of seven each, one set of 

 five, and one set of four. The birds laid 

 once more, but I was ashamed to rob 

 them, so I let them raise their brood of 

 six. Also found a nest of the Nashville 

 Warbler, with five fresh eggs. The nest 

 was on the ground at the foot of a black- 

 berry stalk and was very large for the 

 size of the bird, being very much larger 

 than the Indigo's. The bottom was 

 leaves, the nest was made of dried rotten 

 grasses, weeds, etc., and was lined with 

 grass and a few horse hah's. The eggs 

 are of a pinkish tinge, with a few purplish 

 and reddish spots scattered over the whole 

 egg. The eggs are the smallest I have 

 ever seen, except those of the Humming 

 Bird, being somewhat smaller than the 

 Gold Finches'. As my eggs are arranged 

 for the fair, I can't take measurements. 

 — I'hilo Smith, Jr., St. JLaiiis, JIo. 



Subscribe now for Vol. VIII. Only $1. 



