78 



ORNITHOLOGIST 



[Vol. 18-N0. 5 



ORNITHOLOGISTp.^^OOLOGlST 



A MONTHLY MAGAZINE OF 



NATURAL HISTORY, 



ESPECIALLY DEVOTED TO THE STUDY OF 



BIRDS, 



THEIR NESTS AND EGGS, 



AND TO THE 



INTERESTS OF NATURALISTS. 



Under the Editorial Management of 

 FRANK. B. WEBSTER, . . . Hyde Park, Mass. 

 J. PARKER NORRIS, . . . Philadelphia, Pa. 



rUBLISHED AT THE 

 MUSEUM AND NATURALISTS' SUPPLY DEPOT 



OF THE 



FRANK BLAKE WEBSTER COMPANY, 



lNCORPOR.\TED, 



HYDE PARK, MASS. 



The O. & O. is mailed each issue to every paid subscriber. 

 If you fail to receive it, notify us. 



Brief Notes, Correspondence, and 

 Clippings. 



Editor of "O. d- O." 



I have found out something that I think 

 is worth knowing, perhaps, — the cause of 

 the Snowy Owls being so scarce the past 

 winter. A fisherman just arrived from Ice- 

 land says the winter has been so mild this 

 year that they have not had a hard frost the 

 whole winter. I am satisfied this is the 

 cause. What do you say? JV. J'icka/y. 



Editor of " O. & O." 



I have a simple and excellent receipt for 

 drying eggs, and if it is not already old to 

 your readers, I would ask that you publish 

 it : for it is by far the best I have ever known. 

 The old way of drying them by absorption 

 on blotting paper oftentimes causes a valuable 

 egg to be broken near the hole, caused liy 

 the egg sticking to the paper. Now my 

 way does away with blotting paper, and the 

 art of drying is done perfectly, and instantly. 

 This is my way : After blowing the eggs, and 

 after rinsing them with water, hold them 

 over a hot stove or anything where hot air 

 may touch the egg (hole down) ; and if you 



have never seen it done, I think you will be 

 wonderfully surprised at the rapidity in which 

 the water is forced from the egg, and how 

 soon dried. 



All copyrights reserved. ( ?) 



Edwin C. Davis. 



Gainesville, Texas. 



The question has often been asked, "What 

 do you recommend for a small collecting 

 gun?" In view of giving an answer, we have 

 tried several and find that the X. L. gun is 

 one that we can recommend. We had a 

 44-calibre chambered for a 45 Winchester 

 shell, and it works to perfection. 



But a i2-gauge gun, with one of the col- 

 lecting tubes, of course is the gun — and is 

 an outfit for everything that is required. 



" F. B. Webster: Dear Sir, — The orni- 

 thological collectors of this country will cer- 

 tainly thank you for the collecting tube you 

 have devised. It is the best and cheapest 

 thing of the kind that I know of. I have 

 thoroughly tested its quality in my Colts' 

 i2-guage, with results which are of "the 

 utmost satisfaction. Success to you. 



Oliver Davie. 



Columbus, Ohio, May 13, 1893. 



Reading I. C. Green's article in March 

 "O. & O." on the breeding of the Duck 

 Hawk on Mt. Tom, I would say that in 

 October, 1892, a farmer brought to me a 

 young Duck Hawk that was shot near Mt. 

 Tom range. I mounted it and now have it 

 in my collection. It is a fine specimen. 



J. \V. Jacksoti. 



I received on April 20 an Albino Robin. 

 I also heard of an .\lbino Crow seen at 

 Monson, Mass. C. K. Reed. 



I can report my first set of AVild Turkeys' 

 eggs for 1893, — a set of 12 beauties taken 

 in Stoddard County, Mo., April 27. 



Philo W. SmitJi, Jr. 



Several collections of eggs are on exhi- 

 bition at the World's Fair, Chicago. 



