424 Recent Literature. \o^^. 



migration fliglit of a flock of birds from their breeding grounds in the 

 northeast to their winter quarters in the southwest of Europe is thus 

 acutely summarized : " Let us suppose that we are dealing with one of the 

 'many hundreds' which pass Heligoland on their journeys from 'far 

 eastern Asia.' It is dusk — and the time for departure has arrived. 

 Without more flocking together than has accidentally taken place during 

 feeding time, all the residents in a particular area set out from their 

 breeding grounds on a journey of two thousand miles or more. No 

 food has been taken for some hour.s, and the winds being unfavourable 

 near the surface of the earth, all rise to a height of at least 20,000 feet, 

 whence guided bj' some unknown power, and at a speed of 150 to 200 miles 

 an hour, they set out on their rushing and undeviating flight to the west 

 of Europe. Here, however, the direction of the latter must be altered and 

 a turn to the south executed in mid-air, which carries them, after a 

 further flight, to the neighborhood of Heligoland, where again a second 

 turn is accomplished and the remainder of the journey is performed in 

 the old undeviating westerly direction, until dawn finds them at their 

 goal on the shores of England ; neither tired nor hungry after their great 

 exertions." This is a fair statement of Herr Gatke's theories on this 

 subject, and needs no comment to render their absurdity apparent to any 

 thoughtful ornithologist. 



"In estimating the value of his [Herr Gatke's] theories," says Mr. 

 Whitlock Cp. vi), "it must not be forgotten that they are based on obser- 

 vations conducted in a very limited and somewhat exceptionally situated 

 area ; outside this area his personal experience seems to have been very 

 small." (C/. Auk, XIII, 1896, p. 138, 139). Add to this his lack of scien- 

 tific training, his evident but doubtless unconscious tendency to exagger- 

 ation, and an imaginative turn of mind, and we need not seek further for 

 an explanation of the overdrawn statements and ridiculous speculations 

 found in ' Heligoland.' 



Mr. 'Whitlock has done good service to ornithology in publishing his, 

 on the whole, temperate, and well-considered critique of a work that is 

 both a valuable and an unfortunate contribution to ornithology, as the 

 exaggerations and wild speculations it contains are the parts seized upon 

 with greatest avidity by the thoughtless compiler for introduction broad- 

 cast into the popular literature of ornithology. It need hardly be said, 

 in conclusion, that Mr. Whitlock's book will not prove very agreeable 

 reading matter to the many who have idealized and idolized the author of 

 ' Heligoland.' — J. A. A. 



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