8 THE-AMERICAN, OO'LOGIS TS’ 
THE PRICES IN THIS CATALOGUE AND CASH VALUES 
It*must be understood that these prices following are relative and not in- 
tended to represent cash values. They are to be used as a basis for the 
exchange of specimens, and of course refer only to specimens first class in 
every respect. The cash value of a bird’s egg is usually a matter of agreement 
between the buyer and seller, where it is a cash transaction; but is usually 
reached, and almost invariably so in the sale of entire col‘ections, on a percentage 
basis of the aggregate value of the specimens sold, as shown by some price 
list. It is our experience that these percentages range from 10% to 331-3% 
according to the varieties of the lot. Sometimes, however, these sales are made 
at so much per egg for the entire collection. We have purchased at different 
times entire collections of some of the best known American Oologists at a 
blanket price of ten cents per egg. At other times we have purchased selected 
lots of eggs from collectors who were breaking up their collections, and where 
we were allowed to pick out only such as we could use; these of course being 
the rarer specimens, at 25% of the old list prices and less. There is no such 
thing as a regular standard cash market price for bird’s eggs. The price at 
which they will sell depends always on the supply and demand. 
No collector should ever collect any eggs of the commoner species for any pur- 
pose except for his own collection. There is no demand for such either in 
exchange or cash. It would be a good rule to adopt, to collect nothing for 
exchange purposes, except on special order, that is priced in this catalogue, at 
less than 50 cents per egg. 
A competent collector with a fair scientific knowledge of birds and their 
habits, can always make a good average salary by collecting specimens of birds, 
their nests and eggs for public institutions, and for private collectors who are 
unable for lack of time and because of business cares to do extensive field work. 
Such a collector who has established a reputation for integrity, can always thus 
finance an outing or a vacation trip into the far away wild places that he might 
not otherwise be unable to visit. We have often wondered why more of the 
younger generation of Naturalists did not take advantage of such opportunities. 
The eggs of the seventy-three species unpriced in this catalogue are so rare 
that the committee determined there was no uniform value as to them. To 
secure one of these is to secure a prize indeed. 
All prices given preceeded by a * are for specimens taken without the terri- 
torial limits covered by the A. O. U. List only, such as European, etc. 
The following from the pen of the writer published in “The Oologist” Vol. 
XXXII, P. P. 78 and 134 will give the readers a fair idea of how to prepare birds’ 
eggs for collections. 
