DELAWARE VjVLLEY ORNITHOLOGICAL CLUB. 19 



came. I had now come to that point when Bird Lore's motto 

 that "A bird in the bush is worth two in the hand" seemed 

 decidedly untrue. One of those birds would be worth twice as 

 much in my hand as were the two of them chirping in that 

 alder bush ! 



On one of my returns to the house I was asked for about the 

 twentieth time if I had identified the bird. When I stated that 

 I had not, and that after the time I had spent in the endeavor, 

 if I had a gun I would feel entirely justified in collecting one of 

 the birds, to my surprise my host handed me a repeating shot- 

 gun and a couple of shells and told me to go and get one of 

 them. Well, I must admit I did not need much coaxing, and a 

 few minutes later there was a loud report down by the barn and 

 I walked back to the house with the coveted specimen. The 

 Sparrow proved to be an immature bird. The skin was given 

 to Mr. Stone, who pronounced it a young Song Sparrow. 



I am glad I collected the bird. All of my uneasiness over 

 committing the murder has disappeared, for the gun had re- 

 vealed to me a new chapter in the life history of the Song 

 Sparrow. I have seen many young Song Sparrows, but appar- 

 ently I had never before observed them at the age when, like 

 the young man of twenty-one who starts out into the world, 

 they had become of age and entirely broken the home ties. 



