VI 



AMERICAN EDITOR'S PREFACE. 



to what is said about birds by others than to the story that birds 

 themselves will tell if rightly questioned. The student of Ameri- 

 can ornithology may be assured that he cannot find out for 

 himself as much about our birds as Mr. Dixon has to tell him 

 of British birds without becoming a good practical ornitholo- 

 gist. Such is the ground on which I recommend the volume 

 to his attention ; and that this is something beyond the mere 

 pleasure he may derive in perusing it is readily to be per- 

 ceived. 



In furtherance of the object that I have in view in prefacing 

 the work of another with these few remarks, I would call the 

 reader's attention to the following lists of birds. In one column 

 is the list of species treated by Mr. Dixon, with their technical 

 names. In the other I present an equal number of American 

 species, the study of whose natural history may profitably be 

 undertaken according to the author's method and in imitation 

 of his example. In a few cases only, the names are identical. 

 In some other instances, they are those of strictly representative 

 birds. But, in any event, the two columns agree closely enough 

 to answer the purpose, though some of the groups of British 

 Birds have nothing to correspond exactly in this country. 



