22 



THE YOUNG OO LOG I ST. 



The first on July 3(3th. containing 2 fresh 

 eggs. August 6tli. I fonml an empty nest 

 in which had been young birds, and 

 within an hour, three trees from the nest 

 found July 36th, another containing 1 egg 

 and a piece of dead bark. I -watched it for 

 two hours that day and the next, but saw 

 no bird, and concluded it had lieen deserted 

 on account of the bark getting into it ; the 

 egg was fresh. I came to the conclusion 

 that all three nests were made b}' the same 

 bird. The empty nsst containing the first 

 brood, the one with two fresh eggs the 

 second, and the one with 1 egg and bark 

 the third clutch. I have them all in shape 

 of a tiepot. under a glass shade :' two of 

 the nests were on dead branches, with no 

 chance to empale a leaves during rain 

 storms. The other three nests were also 

 found in one orchard, and much nearer 

 togerher than thee reported, but in two 

 seasons. The first I found June 32d, 1881 

 with two eggs nearly ready to hatch ; 35 

 days after, in the next tree of the next 

 row, 1 found the second with two young 

 just out of the shell. May S.'ith, 1883, in 

 the next tree of the next row, I found the 

 third nest with two fresh eggs within three 

 feet of the second, but I broke one of the 

 eggs in taking it from the nest ; none of 

 the nests I have found were (wer nine (9) 

 feet from the ground, and all in apple trees. 

 J. L. D., Lockport, N. Y. 



Interesting Happenii.gs. 



E'litor nf the Y. 0. — I saw a vcrv inter- 

 esting performance this morning. A crow 

 flew down under an apjile tree and began 

 walking around on the snow as if he was 

 looking for something. Pretty soon he 

 found what he w-as looking for and began 

 to bore in the snow witli his bill. He 

 worked away till finally he pulled out a 

 decayed apple. He then stuck his bill into 

 it, flew up in a tree and there ate it. How 

 he knew where to look for the apple floored 

 me. 



As 1 was walking along the shore of a 

 small lake I came suddenly upon a 3'oung 

 Spotted Sandpiper. As soon as he saw me 



he ran along the shore and stuck his head 

 in a bunch of grass, thinking, no doubt, 

 that bis whole body was concealed because 

 his head was. I picked him up, when he 

 began to utter shrill cries, which attracted 

 the parent bird. She, on seeing that I had 

 one of her young, feigned a broken wing 

 to attract me away. I took the young one 

 to the water and let it go, when it started 

 out and swam for quite a distance like a 

 duck. It soon tired and came back to the 

 shore. I started on a run towards the little 

 fellow, when he quickly plunged under the 

 water and swam out for quife a distance, 

 using his wings for paddles. He then rose 

 to the surface and landed on a small rock 

 to dry his feathers. W. G. T., 



Plymouth, Ct 



English Sparrow. 



EDITOIl YOUNG OOLOGI8T 



Dear Sir : — I am glad to see this subject 

 brought forward in your colums ; "what 

 is to be done with the little tyrants," is a 

 knotty question. I remember, when about 

 1877 the En'.^rsh Spa'row first made its 

 appearance, that Robins and Orioles were 

 quite numernus about the house, and the 

 nest of either species could be found with- 

 out any difficulty. As the sparrows became 

 more numerous, other birds fell off, and 

 last spring 1 could not find a single Oriole's 

 nest, or a pair in their old haunts. It's 

 high time these interlopers were stopped 

 in their depredations. As for those be- 

 niglited people who imported them, scarcely 

 enough can be said to censure such an 

 unwise act. Everyone asks how they cau 

 be gotten rid of ; can no one answer the 

 ([uestion ? Last summer I invested in an 

 air rifle, inexpensive, and very useful : it 

 is nearly noiseless, and the little pests so 

 tame, that one can get within easy range 

 and slaughter half-a-dozen or so, before 

 they suspect your iiresence. With this little 

 weapon I Killed nearly two hundred in a 

 week, until they bec;ime q\iite wild. I 

 have vowed vengeance on the little rascals, 

 and never spare the eggs or young. 



Yours truly W. M. 



Rochester, N. Y. 



