ORNITHOLOGY. 397 



Last spring was a* disastrous one for many of our birds. The long con- 

 tinued cold, wet weather kept the insects from appearing, and hundreds 

 of purple martins died of hunger. Other insectivorous birds were found 

 dead on the ground, and many hummingbirds were overcome by the cold 

 and perished. 



As the trees were late in putting forth their leaves, the robins, who 

 like to get to housekeeping early, were much disturbed, but finally solved 

 the difficulty by building their nests nearer the houses than usual. I had 

 the pleasure of turning carpenter for two pairs of robios who were deter- 

 mined to build on the caps to the pillars of the veranda, where they had 

 not sufficient room. Half of a shingle and a couple of nails for each post 

 was all that was needed to make their happiness complete, and the whole 

 process of nest-building, feeding the young and teaching them to fly, was 

 gone through with only six feet away from my windows. 



I had always wished for a robin's nest on my porch, but that I should 

 have two in one season exceeded my wildest dreams. I found that eter- 

 nal vigilance was required, until the birds began setting, to keep the mis- 

 chievous English sparrows from destroying the nests. It was so much 

 easier to take for their own nests the material the robins had gathered 

 than to hunt it up for themselves. 



By the way, it occurs to me that these sparrows do not belong to us. 

 They were imported especially for the cities, and although it seems in- 

 hospitable, yet, if the cities would kindly keep their sparrows at home, 

 we would be so much obliged. 



One of the greatest enemies of our birds has been the small boy with 

 his sling-shot or air gun. Thinking that many of the boys were igno- 

 rant of the fact that they were violating the law, our mayor caused copies 

 of the law prohibiting the killing of birds to be printed, and, besides post- 

 ing them in conspicuous places, sent one to each teacher in the public 

 schools, requesting her to read and explain it to her pupils. The plan 

 worked beautifully, and if it were imitated in every town in the state, it 

 would be a most excellent thing. I would like to see this horticultural 

 society and the various ornithological societies of the state united in a 

 vigorous effort to protect our "little brothers of the air." It is as true 

 to-day as when in the early days of the century our old friend Thomas 

 Nuttall wrote it that "In whatever way we view the feathered tribes 

 which surround us, we shall And much both to amuse and instruct. We 

 hearken to their songs with renewed delight, as the harbingers and asso- 

 ciates of the season they accompany. Their return after a long absence 

 is hailed with gratitude to the Author of all existence; and the cheerless 

 solitude of inanimate nature is by their presence attuned to life and har- 

 mony. Nor do they alone administer to the amusement and luxury of 

 life; faithful aids as well as messengers of the seasons, they associate 

 round our tenements, and defend the various productions of the earth, on 

 which we so much rely for subsistence, from the destructive depredations 

 of myriads of insects, which, but for the timely riddance by unnumbered 

 birds, would be followed by a general failure and famine. Public econ- 

 omy and utility, then, no less than humanity, plead for the protection of 

 the feathered race, and the .wanton destruction of birds so useful, beauti- 

 ful and amusing, if not treated as such by law, ought to be considered as 

 a crime by every moral-feeling and reflecting mind." 



