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for pul)licatioii in Bird Notes; but you pointed out that this 

 might give rise to inisappreheiisiou and possibly unfounded 

 suspicion prejudicial to the interests of the Clul), and that it 

 was desirable that I should state my reasons a little more fully, 

 and I therefore decided to do so; at the same time I shall 

 endeavour to make this explanation as short as I can, as I think 

 no good purpose will be served by a lengthy coriespondeuce in 

 Bird Notes. 



To explain my position, it is necessar\' to mention that 

 more than twenty years ago — having suffered from a severe 

 visitation of what was generally known as "the bird plague" — 

 I began an investigation into its nature and origin, and the 

 most promising methods of treatment of which practically 

 nothing was known. It proved to be a much more extensive 

 research than I anticipated, and I pursued it on and off for a 

 good many years, in the course of which I met with numerous 

 outbreaks of the disease in many different aviaries, and had 

 exceptional opportunities for studying it. I examined many 

 liundreds of birds, made many thousands of microscopical pre- 

 parations, a considerable number of which I still posse.ss. The 

 notes, records, drawings, photographs, etc., which I still have, 

 would fill a large volume, but it would be a costh- thing to pub- 

 lish them ; there is little demand for works of that kind, and I 

 am not prepared to undertake it, but I have, from time to time, 

 published the practical conclusions, of which I was sure, in 

 papers and lectures ; and l^r. Creswell, who has had access to 

 all my material besides what he has collected himself, recently 

 published a good account of the disease in Bird Notes. 



Now I have recently seen in the post mortem reports in 

 Bird Notes statements relating to vSeptic Fever, which I con- 

 sider to be entirely erroneous and misleading, and I would 

 undertake to satisf)- any scientific authority who would go 

 througli the evidence that they are so. But even if Bird 

 Notes were a suitable field for a long technical discussion I 

 have neither the time nor inclination to engage in such dis- 

 putes ever}- time I notice erroneous assertions; time will show 

 that ni}' statements are true and that is enough for me. But 

 it is another thing to identify myself with errors which are in 



