274



Reviezvs.



small cages and ill-ventilated rooms, the question of selling and

catching birds in the close time is one that calls for much

attention. The law, however, as it stands, if far from ideal, is at

all events sufficient and, once dealers were licensed, these and

many similar matters would adjust themselves. In the case of

game it was found necessary to license the dealer, and the result

has worked well ; the case of cage birds is very similar, and we

feel sure that if the licensing question was taken up we should

hear no more highly coloured tales of misery and pain on “ The

other side of (some) bars.”


As this is a question which concerns all of us whether our

birds be kept in cages or aviaries, we shall welcome the opinions

of members on the subject.



THE UPPINGHAM SCHOOL NATURAL SCIENCE


SOCIETY.


Our member Mr. Constable has kindly favoured us with

a report of the Uppingham School Natural Science Society.

Although the ornithological portion deals chiefly with observa¬

tions on wild birds, we have much pleasure in referring to it here

as it is essentially well-arranged and a model of what such reports

should be. There is no better plan of helping the protection

of our native birds than by stimulating the observing and re¬

cording of notes on the various species of birds which may be

commonly met with. Such observations are valuable, not only

from the interest and education they give to the observer, but by

their collection and publication they form a history of the birds

of the neighbourhood, which has its importance for the more

serious student.



We have just received the Bulletin of the Soci6t6 Nationale

d’Acclimatation de France. This number contains a continuation

by Dr. Loisel of some early Russian Zoological Gardens, the

earliest of which seems to have consisted of a large collection of

bears, kept by Ivan IV. about the middle of the 16th century,

which were chiefly used for bear baiting or for torturing his serfs.

The greater part of this publication contains much interesting



