on my finger and pecked at him. I 

 put him in my other hand and Tricksey 

 flew at him more angry than ever. 

 Then I put him on the floor, and Trick- 

 sey was so happy he flew on my head, 

 hopped about my shoulders and kissed 

 me in the mouth. In the middle of 

 the performance in walked dignified 

 Mr. Taffy with a look which plainly 

 said, "What more are you going to 

 bring into this room?" He sat by my 

 side looking at the newcomer and, be- 

 fore I knew what he was going to do, 

 reached out his paw, and gave him a 

 good slap which sent him off my lap 

 onto the floor. 



Early in the fall before I had any 

 fire in my room I would bring Trick- 

 sey down in the morning and keep him 

 until evening, and for two weeks Taffy 

 never went near my room during 

 the day, but stayed down there with 

 Tricksey. The first day I had a fire in 



my room I did not bring Tricksey 

 down as usual. After I gave Taffy his 

 luncheon I missed him, but did not go 

 to my room until five o'clock, and there 

 was faithful Taffy sound asleep close 

 to Tricksey's cage, and now he stays in 

 my room all day. He has plainly 

 shown that if Tricksey stays there he 

 stays too. 



I find that animals want to be treated 

 very much like children. The more in- 

 telligent they are the easier it is to in- 

 fluence them, and the quicker they are 

 to read you. First give them a great 

 deal of love and kindness, always 

 be firm, very patient, and above all 

 never deceive them in the most trivial 

 thing. I hope this little sketch of Taf- 

 fy's and Tricksey's life may be of some 

 help to those who love cats and dogs, 

 but have felt they could not teach them 

 to live in harmony together. 



A SUGGESTION TO OOLOGISTS. 



FRANK L. BURNS, 

 In Oberlin Bulletin. 



BEFORE we enter upon another 

 active campaign of bird-nesting, 

 it is fitting that we should pause 

 a moment to reflect upon the 

 true aim of our toil, risks, and trouble, 

 as well as delight and recreation. How 

 many of us can define the phrase "collect- 

 ing for scientific purposes," which, like 

 liberty, is the excuse for many crimes? 

 If it is true, as has been asserted, 

 that oology as a scientific study has 

 been a disappointment, I am convinced 

 that it is not on account of its limited 

 possibilities, but simply because the 

 average oologist devotes so much time 

 to the collection and bartering of 

 specimens that no time is left for the 

 actual study of the accumulating shells. 

 In other words, he frequently under- 

 takes a journey without aim or object. 

 The oologist has done much toward 

 clearing up the life-history of many of 

 our birds, but as observations of this 

 nature can often be accomplished with- 

 out the breaking up of the home of the 

 parent bird, it alone will not suffice as 

 an excuse for indiscriminate collecting. 

 After preparing the specimen for the 



cabinet his responsibility does not end 

 but only begins. A failure to add 

 something to the general knowledge is 

 robbing the public as well as the birds. 

 He who talks fluently of the enforce- 

 ment of strict laws for the preservation 

 of our wild birds, their nests and eggs, 

 and fails to protect and encourage 

 those about his premises, falls short of 

 his duty; and if his cabinet contains 

 bird skins or &gg shells which might 

 just as well have remained where 

 Nature placed them, he is inconsistent, 

 demanding that others abstain that he 

 may indulge. 



In conclusion I would say that when 

 an oologist constantly keeps in mind 

 and acts under the assumption that the 

 birds are his best friends and not his 

 deadly enemies, he cannot go far 

 wrong, and the means he employs will 

 be justified in the light of subsequent 

 study and research of data and speci- 

 mens. If any of us fall short in this 

 we have only ourselves to blame. Let 

 us then collect with moderation and 

 fewer eggs and more notes be the 

 order of the day. 



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