290 Notes and News. [April 



President Wilson, the London feather market suffered a tremendous 

 decline. Out of 1174 lots that were offered 368 had to be withdrawn 

 because of bad prices and no buyers." 



Among the lots that had to be withdrawn in consequence of the closing 

 of the American market he cites: 1203 Greater Birds of Paradise, 22810 

 Kingfishes, 761 Emu, 3381 Pheasants, 54076 wing and tail quiUs of 

 Condors, Hawks and Eagles, and 2494 ounces of Egret plumes ( = to about 

 14,964 birds). 



With the broadening of ornithological study, the student of birds is 

 brought more than ever to a consideration of various questions bearing 

 upon evolution — the inheritance of characters, relation of color patterns to 

 environment, meaning and origin of secondary sexual characters, etc. Birds 

 were favorite subjects with both Darwin and Wallace for study in connec- 

 tion with the theories of both natural and sexual selection and are admira- 

 bly adapted for the purpose, as well as for the study of other allied problems. 



The ornithologist of today cannot however afford to base his studies ex- 

 clusively upon external conditions and to ignore the wonderful advances 

 that have been made in recent years in the study of cells, especially of germ 

 cells, which have placed the whole problem not only of heredity but of 

 sex in an entirely new light. The enlightening experiments in breeding 

 which have often corroborated the theories that originated in cell study 

 must also demand his attention. 



The study of the bird in relation to its environment is as important as 

 ever but the student must at the same time be familiar with the results 

 achieved in this new line of investigation. 



It is often difficult for one to take up a subject of this kind and follow its 

 development through a voluminous and widely scattered literature, but 

 in this instance we have the whole subject clearly and concisely set forth in 

 a little volume by Dr. Thomas H. Morgan, 'Heredity and Sex,' ^ one of the 

 series of Columbia University Lectures. 'The Evolution of Sex,' 'The 

 Mendelian Principles of Heredity,' 'Secondary Sexual Characters,' 'Par- 

 thenogenesis' and 'Sex-linked Characters,' are some of the topics discussed. 

 Birds are constantly referred to and the work while hardly to be classed as 

 strictly ornithological literature is one well worthy of the ornithologist's 

 attention. 



The first of the proposed annual meetings of the Wilson Ornithological 

 Club was held in Chicago on February 5 and 6, 1914, and plans were 

 formulated for similar yearly gatherings at points in the middle section of 

 the country. For an initial gathering it was well attended and the busi- 

 ness done will mean much for the cause of ornithology throughout the 

 region which the Club especially covers. Such a movement will, we feel 



' Columbia University Press. New Yorls. 1913. 8vo. pp. 1-282. 



