1^4 The Wilson Bulletin — No. 53. 



"Riddle of Existence" — the point on ever)' side. The astron 

 omer heaves his glass across the heavens. The microscopis:: 

 cross -sections and slices, the chemist distils, and condenses ; 

 the geologist digs and maps, and the biologist classifies and 

 imtcs. They are all working on the one problem in their var- 

 ious branches — "1 low and why is the Creation?" This is 

 science and fundamentally there is but one science, though 

 there are many branches that merge into each other in gradu- 

 ally fading lines. ( )ne of these lines is Biology, treating of 

 life in general, which has a branch of Zoology which is again 

 divided up into many others, birds or Ornithology forming one 

 of them. 



Pure science is speculation, but correct results cannot be ar- 

 rived at without a close study of facts, and a collection of 

 data. Speculation, to be scientific, must be founded upon fact 

 or else chaos reigns and we are farther away from our goal 

 than ever. Here we are collecting records, data, and noting 

 habits and mapping out distributions. Should we go no far- 

 ther than this we have an array of facts interesting in a way 

 because of their peculiarities, but of no mere value than a 

 collection of postage stamps or tin tags. When, however, we 

 compare these with each other, classify them and deduce laws 

 from them, their true value shows itself. 



The mas- of such material requisite for even a superficial 

 understanding of the laws and conditions governing bird life 

 is, however, too enormous to be covered by any one man; 

 neither are all men fitted for all the branches of this work. 

 The great mass of data gathering must fall upon the lower 

 rank and tile, leaving the greater intellects free of the drudg- 

 ery. And so we study Ornithology, that is we note and study 

 birds in the field and closet— their habits, their structure and 

 the conditions favorable or adverse, and every fact we gather 

 and carefully file away where greater men can find them. It 

 is interesting of itself and who knows what use may be made 

 of the nest insignificant fact thus gathered. Ornithology 

 thus followed is a branch of the science; and the hope and aim 

 of our work is that: some day it may fill a little gap in our 

 knowledge, and help us in an infinitesmal way to reconstruct 

 the scenes of the past or formulate the prophec) of the future, 



