First Birdsnesting Experiences 13 
invariably wore high stove-pipe hats when they went into the world 
of fashion, even to pic-nics! 
It may readily be imagined that parental disapproval, combined 
as it was with such entrancing object-lessons of how to get nests, 
became a negligible quantity and from that time forward I have 
never missed a chance, in fine weather or foul, to study birds and 
their ways and I know well that there was no man on earth who 
took a greater pride and delight in my small successes in the 
ornithological world than did my good father. 
There was one other of my father’s old comrades who, although 
he died when I was far too young to profit at first hand from his 
knowledge of birds and natural history, happily left a record of it 
which did more to educate me in the elements of that delightful 
science than aught else. 
This was none less than Charles St. John, whose fascinating 
book ‘“*The Wild Sports of the Highlands” was my first introduc- 
tion to innumerable branches of sport and natural history. St. 
John gave an original copy of his book published in 1845 to 
my father who entrusted it to me. It was “ borrowed” by an 
unscrupulous brother officer who never returned it. If the borrower 
is not dead (as he certainly ought to be) and should he read this, 
{ now call upon him to return me that book. 
It was St. John who inspired me in a hundred ways to note 
the habits of wild beasts, birds, fishes and reptiles, and it was 
due to my father’s close friendship with him, combined with his 
own love and knowledge of birds and beasts that I was brought up 
to take an interest in all appertaining to natural history, an interest 
which has stood me in good stead and afforded me endless joys 
and happiness often amid the most adverse and depressing 
surroundings. 
Another very delightful book, which must have inspired 
many youthful field naturalists besides me, is the Rev. A. E. 
