The Varied Interests Involved 5 
and young. If a collector of eggs restricts himself to taking the 
eggs he genuinely wants for his own collection or for those of his 
friends who may ask for a particular species, very little harm will 
follow. Unfortunately some birdsnesters seem incapable of restrain- 
ing themselves and take all they find on the idle plea that they 
can “exchange” their superfluous specimens—a plea worthier of 
the postage-stamp collector than of the naturalist. 
Even worse than the exchanging excuse is the habit of employ- 
ing paid assistants to harry nests. Eggs thus taken are valueless, 
for such mercenaries naturally have no discrimination and sweep 
a whole district of every egg without remorse. I know of men 
who have boasted of taking over a thousand eggs of the rarer 
Waders, &c., in a week or so. 
After all, the whole fascination of the art of nest-finding is the 
personal experiences of the seeker. To locate a wild bird, to 
study its habits, follow it to its nesting haunts and discover its 
secrets, are the points which give zest and interest to the occupa- 
tion. If in addition the student can secure photographs of the 
birds or their nests or both, there is a fresh factor of permanency 
to the operation. Lastly if the quest of certain species leads 
a man to climb mountains, explore remote marshes or make 
adventurous sea trips, there is literally no limit to the variety of 
experiences which are comprised in the single word “ birdsnesting.” 
For many years I have made it a rule to invite friends to come 
with me on my expeditions and so far from my having by these 
means added to the destroyers of bird-life, | am convinced I have done 
the opposite. In only one instance has my trust in such people 
been betrayed ; one of my gzasz pupils took to paying people to 
harry nests—an outcome of defective education and presumptuous 
ignorance of the subject. 
On the other hand I have demonstrated to scores of men how 
much pleasure and instruction can be got from studying wild birds 
