188 



ORNITHOLOGIST 



[Vol. U-No. 12 



over, each man emptied the contents of his shot-pouch 

 down its throat and then phigged it with paper. They 

 then drove to a tavern kept by a well-known hunter. 

 They called him out to view Reynard as it lay coiled up 

 in the bottom of the sleigh. The size and weight were 

 discussed till the hotel man was inveigled into betting 

 on the weight. Putting up an X, the fox was taken in 

 and weighed, and of cour.*e exceeded all records. The 

 loser was so much taken with the record that he paid 

 the party ten dollars more for it, and had it stulTe<l, and 

 now with pride points it out as being the heaviest fox 

 ever taken in the county. 



Did you ever place a stuffed owl in a tree and see 

 how it works as a decoy? We placed a fine Harred Owl 

 on our fence-post one day, and a Bluejay tore the back 

 off its head before we could shoot it. 



We have been asked by a number of onr subscribers 

 for a good receipt for tanning skins. Many of the re- 

 ceipts that are given are not found practical upon try- 

 ing them. We recently applied to a chemist and found 

 that he had done considerable tanning. He handed us 

 a preparation and we find that it works nicely. A fox- 

 skin was prepared suitable for use in four days from the 

 time that it was taken from the animal. It often oc- 

 curs that a skin is received that is wanted in a hurry 

 and a tanner is not c<mvenient. It is then that the 

 value of such a means for curing is on hand. We can 

 furnish the tanning at !5!l.n() per bottle, with full direc- 

 tions. One botttle is suflicient f<u- preparing a dozen 

 fox-skins. The party who discovered it for years used 

 it on sheep-skins, which are considered difficult to han- 

 dle successfully. 



Nothing like making the most of a new discovery. 

 Follow them up, and there may be lots of fun in it at least. 

 The fact was iini>ressed on oiir minds a while since as 

 we stood in company with a number of gentlemen ad- 

 miring the antics of a promiscuous collection of caged 

 monkeys. One of the party threw the lighted stub of 

 his cigar into the cage. The first to notice it was a 

 sickly, puny, dndish specimen. He came up, dropped 

 on all fours and smelled of it: it was enough, with a 

 sickly grin he turned sorrowfully away. The next, a 

 fat, sleek, well-built fellow, with dignity (tame up. 

 Viewing it a minute he made a grab, catching it by the 

 fire end. "(ireatCorilla" and "Spirits of rhimpanzee," 

 did ever monkey experience such a sensation ! There 

 was no hesitation; with the skill of a first-class ball 

 acrobat he threw it up a successiim of times till he 

 caught it by the cool end. Holding it in one paw he 

 rulibed the singed member over his flank, keeping tune 

 with the corner of his eye. When relief was jirodnced 

 he again turned his attention to the smoking trophy. 

 Very carefully he applied the lit end to his mouth ; the 

 effect was again electric. No monkey can stand it that 

 way (try it). After a variety show, consisting of sjmt- 

 tering, turning somersaults, etc., he assumed a thought- 

 ful attitude. All at once his countenance seemed to 

 light up. Ah ! he had it ! Like a flash he reached out 

 and picked up the stuli. He grabbed the appendage of 

 an old Ringed-tailed that was perched above him, and 

 applied the fire. Next he tried it on the ear of a moth- 

 erly old dame and extends it liy a side glance to her 

 kid. He next sprang to an upper perch where he passed 

 it along, searing several ppir of feet, and ended by 

 grabbing monkey No. 1 and extinguishing the fire by 

 trying to force it down his throat. A second move and 

 he was in the corner serenely viewing the commotion. 

 Such excitement, chattering and frantic efforts to cool 

 off affected localities was never seen bv anv of our 



party. That monkey made the most of his ojiportunity 

 and had his fun. 



American Oknithological Union.— A meeting 

 was held at the American Museum of Natural History, 

 New York, in November. The following officers were 

 elected: President, .T. A. Allen ; vice-presidents, Elliott 

 Cones and Robert Ridgway; secretary, John H. Sage; 

 treasurer, William Dutcher; members of the council, 

 William Rrewstcr, Charles B. Cory, Daniel (i. Elliott, 

 Henry W. Henshaw, (Jeorge N. Lawrence, C. Hart Mer- 

 riam and Leonhard Stejneger. Although not so 

 reported, we liave every reason to presume that the 

 gentlemen commemorated the honors conferred by in- 

 viting all members present to a collation worthy of the 

 occasion. 



Hark I ye friends, the contract's ended, 

 If we hear from you no more 



Let the parting thoughts be friendly, 

 And t'will stand a well-made score. 



—Brief Notes. 



Correspondence. 



Editov O. d- O: 



I have just received by mail fioin Bridoe- 

 water, Lunenburg Co., Nova Scotia, a very fine 

 Albino Robin. The bird is pure white on the 

 head, back and half the tail, the four feathers 

 on one .side of the tail being black, the breast 

 is a faint red, the wings white. Tiie bird is a 

 male and the man who shot it says it had the 

 note of tlie robin. I once had an Albino Kobin 

 taken when about three weeks old. It was 

 fully featliered, but not able to fly far. The 

 bird was alive when brought to me. and was all 

 of a creamy white. 



I now have in my collection a Belted King- 

 fisher which shows curious coloring. Tlie bird 

 is perfect in color except that tlie 1)1 ue on all 

 parts of its bo<ly has changed to a very light 

 cream color with a pink tinge. The bird is a 

 female; 1 have had it for years, and have 

 never noticed or heard of an Albino Kingfislier 

 in this province. T. E. Ef/an. 



Halifax. N.S., Oct. 28, 188«. 



Editor O. cfc O: 



I wish to correct Mr. Chas. F. Morrison in 

 his notes on Eiiq>kl(mnx diffirllis in October 

 O. & O. In my notes on this bird in O. & O., 

 Vol. IX, No. 1, ("Denver") does not appear. 



Murpliy is two and one half miles below 

 Hancock in Chaffee Co. My only object in 

 making note of this error is that it might be 

 especially misleading to collectors in Colorado. 

 According to the elevation taken by the rail- 

 road surveyors, Hancock is 11,200 feet above 

 sea level, while Denver is only 5197 feet, and 

 the surroundings oi the two places are very 

 different. D. IX Stone. 



Oswego, N.Y., Nov. 1.^, 1889. 



