Geiieral Notes. 



429 



well-markeil examples, the other two bcini; uiuloubtecily young biicis 

 without any black on the throat and breast, antl two other biixls taken in 

 company with the foregoing about which I am doubtful. 



"On the first mentioned date (26th July) I saw about two dozen of the 

 birds, and could have taken more of them if I had been better prepared, 

 but I had a large gun and mutilated several birds beyond use besides the 

 four taken in a preservable condition. On the 2Stii I got one finely 

 marked adult male, two young females witiiout black on throat or breast, 

 and two others of the genus that may not be Bachman's Warblers. 'I'lic 

 same day I saw two others. To-day (July 30) I took two fine adult males 

 and saw two others. 



"The Bachman's Warbler collected last year was taken on August ;;(). 

 which would seem to give the species something more than a month's 

 time to pass at this place ; perhaps longer, as I had not been in the woods 

 for ten days previous to the 26th (July), the first day they were noticed 

 this year." 



Mr. Atkins then expresses regret at the pruhabilit\- of his Ijcing unable 

 to collect or observe further, at least for the present, his duties in connec- 

 tion with cable service to Cuba and the West Indies demanding his con- 

 stant attention. 



Happily, however, he was able to make further investigations and llie 

 following quotations from his letter of August 9, 1SS8. speak fur them- 

 selves : 



"I could not resist the temptation to follow up the beginning maile with 

 the Bachman's Warblers, so I took an hour with them at break of day on 

 the 6th, Sth, and today (August 9). 



'•On the 6th (August) I got two birds and saw about two dozen others; 

 broke my gun and had to leave them unmolested. On the Sth (August) I 

 got five and saw about a dozen beside, not more than that number though. 

 This morning (August 9) I got two and saw another half dozen. I found 

 yesterday's [August S] and today's [August 9] birds in a wild fig tree, 

 t'eeding upon its fruit, and a walk over the ground where they had been 

 seen on the other occasions failed to disclose any others. Yesterday there 

 were quite a number of other Helmiui/iop/iilce seen with the Bachman's 

 Warblers, today not more than a dozen were seen. I do not know what 

 they were ; didn't collect any of the others because I could not have taken 

 care of the skins. The call-notes made by both the Bachman's Warblers and 

 the other Helminthophilce were similar, being a sharply uttered txvec or 

 chce. I am certain the Bachman's Warblers did not breed on this island. 

 As to their having bred on the outlying and adjacent islands, I, of course, 

 cannot say, but I believe them to have bred further away. Yox if they had 

 bred near Ke^' West I ought to have found them earlier than July 26, it 

 being natural to suppose that, being so near, a few stragglers, at any rate, 

 would have come along earlier than the main body, which seems to be 

 passing now. I believe these early birds bred somewhere on the East 

 Florida Coast — that is, if they are too early to be identified with those 

 birds found as reported in the last 'Auk' (Vol. V, p. 323) at Lake Pont- 



