350 MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



counts so many points, a pigeon so many more and tallies are scored 

 for both sides by the deaths of meadow larks, hawks, blackbirds, 

 thrushes, quail and partridge. When I observe the small boy start- 

 ing out with his sling-shot or air-gun and with loaded weapon peer- 

 ing into every promising bird retreat, ready to send the messenger of 

 death whenever chance offers, I feel a pang of sorrow for the lad 

 who has to go through the period when his higher feelings appear 

 to be buried deep beneath a mass of rubbish in the shape of a sav- 

 age delight in cruelty. But still more do I feel for the birds doomed 

 to torture by the crude devices and cruder aim of the young mur- 

 derer. This is hardly the place for me to state that our game birds, 

 which so many delight in killing, have nervous systems which are 

 practically the equivalent of ours, have organs as susceptible to pain 

 as any of ours, although weak and defenseless — mute sufferers who 

 can only look their agony. But would any of us, jealous of our cher- 

 ries or berries, standing guard with shotgun and maiming and kill- 

 ing by the score, would we feel justified in this slaughter if we could 

 be shown that the birds which we are killing have repaid us an hun- 

 dred fold for the few cherries taken by eating thousands of insects 

 which might otherwise have lived to prey upon our fruit? On the 

 other hand, if we would champion the birds, let us not do so blindly, 

 neither should we be influenced by sentimentalists who may possibly 

 believe that the songs of birds are paeans to the Almighty, a con- 

 scious recognizing of the Infinite. 



If scientific investigation makes it clear that all our birds are 

 katabolic, or destructive, rather than anabolic, or building up, then 

 let us not hesitate to attack the enemies of the horticulturist, but if 

 careful study shows us that some should be preserved for, their help- 

 ful qualities and others killed for their destructiveness, why then "in 

 the name of all the gods at once" I pray you to discriminate for your 

 own good and for the cause of humanity. 



I shall endeavor to place in this paper all the facts possible, 

 gleaned partly from personal observation and very largely from in- 

 vestigations running through a series of years by competent author- 

 ities. Let us carefully weigh the evidence and then give the verdict. 



Before taking up in detail the discussion of the food of the birds, 

 it is well to note a few leading facts about insects. 



We have first the Hymenoptera, including the bees, the ants, the 

 wasps and also many beneficial parasites. 



Next the order Lepidoptera, butterflies and moths ( including the 

 Nochiidae, which is the cut worm family). 



Coleoptera, the beetles, sorne beneficial forms but also the borers, 

 the weevils, curculio, etc. 



