A.2A. Notes and Ne-MS. T^^^" 



'Handbook of Birds of the Western United States.' "This book is 

 intended to do for the western part of the United States what Mr. Frank 

 M. Chapman's ' Handbook' has done for the East." It has been prepared 

 on similar lines, and will contain "over six hundred illustrations, includ- 

 ing thirty full-page plates from drawings by Louis Agassiz Fuertes." 



Such a work has long been needed, and its preparation could hardly 

 have fallen into better hands. The price is stated to be $3.50 net, postage 

 extra. 



Mr. Ralph G. Mills, of 356 West Decatur St., Decatur, Illinois, is 

 investigating the parasitic habits of the American Cowbird, and desires 

 information concerning their eggs. In a letter to the Editor of 'The 

 Auk' he states that he desires data respecting "the exact size of the one 

 or more Cowbird's eggs in each nest, the size of each of the eggs of the 

 host, the name of the host, and any additional facts of interest." In 

 publishing the results of his investigations Mr. Mills will give due credit 

 for any assistance rendered him. 



The U. S. Department of Agriculture has just issued, as ' Farmer's 

 Bulletin No. 160,' a digest of the ' Game Laws for 1902. A Summary of 

 the Provisions relating to Seasons, Shipment, Sale and Licenses,' pre- 

 pared by Dr. T. S. Palmer and H. W. Olds, assistants on the Biological 

 Survey. "The object of this bulletin is to meet a general demand for 

 information on game laws by presenting briefly the most important 

 regulations concerning the shipment and sale, especially those governing 

 interstate commerce in game. ... It is believed that the matter presented 

 in this report, although greatly condensed, will prove useful not only to 

 sportsmen and wardens but also to dealers, shippers, farmers, and others 

 interested in game." By means of maps and tables the information is 

 presented in an exceedingly convenient form. Map 2 (p. 30) shows that 

 only four States — Kentucky, Mississippi, Montana, and Virginia — per- 

 mit the exportation of game. Map 3 (p. 40) shows that the southern 

 Provinces of Canada and about three fourths of the States and Territories 

 prohibit the sale of certain kinds of game at all times ; some of these per- 

 mit the sale of certain kinds of game during the open season and for a 

 certain number of days immediately thereafter, as shown in the explan- 

 atorv table accompanying the plate. All of the Southern Pro^'inces of 

 Canada, and all of the Northern States except Idaho, and Arkansas, 

 Florida and South Carolina of the Southern States, require nonresidents 

 to obtain hunting licenses, the fee for which varies from $5 to $50 in the 

 different States and Provinces. Tables show at a glance the close seasons 

 for all kinds of game in the United States and Canada. A gratifying 

 and encouraging feature of this exhibit is the increasing strenuousness of 

 laws for the protection of game, and the wide-spread legislative interest 

 in the subject. 



