THE MUSEUM 



'57 



■colors of the sardonyx, the Indian 

 conch being much used, as it has di- 

 verse and beautiful strata. The sar- 

 donyx itself consists of a white layer 

 superimposed upon a red one of sard 

 (the sard being a semi-transparent 

 quartz of a dull red color). The imi- 

 tation of the sardonyx is made by 

 placing a red-hot iron on a red sard, 

 which renders it white to the depth 

 required. The common onyx has two 

 opaque layers of different colors, usu- 

 ally in strong contrast to each other, 

 black and white, dark red and white, 

 green and white, and other varieties. 

 The oriental onyx, the most valuable 

 of all, has three layers, the top one 

 being red, blue or brown; the middle 

 layer white, and sometimes of a pear- 

 ly hue, and the base a jet black or 

 deep brown. The onyx and the agate 

 are the same substance, but the layers 

 in the agate are wavy and often eccen- 

 tric, whilst in the other they are paral- 

 lel. 



There are other materials upon 

 which cameos are engraved. A green 

 one is sometimes met with, which is 

 chalcedony, colored by some metallic 

 o.xide. The tourmaline is a dark, olive 

 green stone, sometimes used, and 

 there is a blue and a bright green var- 

 iety also. However, apart from the 

 shell cameos, nearly seven-eights are 

 engraved upon the sards. There are 

 paste cameos, and these are sometimes 

 so skillfully executed as to defy detect- 

 ion, except by the file. A cameo of a 

 Greek warrior on horsback, executed 

 by Pistrucci, was adopted in 1816 as 

 the reverse of the British sovereigns 

 and crowns. It is seen in an improv- 

 ed copy in the later British coinage, 

 and is probably the finest work that 

 has ever appeared upon modern cur- 

 rency. 



The Passenger Pigeon in Connec- 

 ticut. 



The first time I saw a Passenger 

 Pigeon in Connecticut I was taken 

 rather aback for so far as I have been 

 able to find out it was verv rare as a 



migrant. It was on April 6th I first 

 saw one and on the i8th I took a fresh 

 set of tsvo eggs and I tell you I felt 

 good, two days after I took two more 

 fresh sets in about the same locality. 

 After that I took no more until May 

 1 2th, when I took two more sets of 

 two eggs each. I have tried hard to 

 get a shot at the birds but all my ef- 

 forts were fruitless, the birds being 

 very shy and timid. Although I have 

 been able to observe them through an 

 opera glass the minute I would raise 

 my gun they would be off like a shot. 

 My next luck was on June 5th rather 

 late I think for this species to be 

 breeding. On that day I took one set 

 of incubated eggs. The birds seemed 

 to have entirely disappeared by the 

 first of July and I saw no more of 

 them until this y»ar. They are not so 

 plentiful this year as last, I have only 

 taken two sets altogether. One on 

 May 1st and one on May 5th. All 

 the eggs and nests have been in hick- 

 ory trees with the exception of one 

 which was in a maple. The nests 

 have all been exactly alike composed 

 of a few sticks very frailly put togeth- 

 er and as a rule placed on a horizontal 

 branch well towards the end. By the 

 end of June they had all disappeared 

 and I had not seen one up to the time 

 I left. A. G. Howes. 



]]7icn ansivering advertisements al- 

 :ays mention THE JSIUSIU'M. 



Foil SAMv— Largo lot of Mexican Ony.\ 

 either in chniiks or sawed slabs and pieces 

 from J to 2 inolie.s tliii'k. A lot of money can 

 be made polishing same. A reasonal)le offer 

 takes it W. F. WEIUS, Mgr., Alljion, N. Y. 



