THE INVITATION. 263 



her the whole field anew, and is eligible to 

 experience all the thrill and delight of origi- 

 nal discoverers. 



But let me say, in the same breath, that 

 the books can by no manner of means be 

 dispensed with. A copy of Wilson or Au- 

 dubon, for reference and to compare notes 

 with, is invaluable. In lieu of these, access 

 to some large museum or collection would 

 be a great help. In the beginning, one 

 finds it very difficult to identify a bird from 

 any verbal description. Reference to a col- 

 ored plate, or to a stuffed specimen, at once 

 settles the matter. This is the chief value 

 of the books : they are charts to sail by ; 

 the route is mapped out, and much time and 

 labor thereby saved. First find your bird ; 

 observe its ways, its song, its calls, its flight, 

 its haunts ; then shoot it (not ogle it with 

 a glass), and compare with Audubon. In 

 this way the feathered kingdom may soon 

 be conquered. 



The ornithologists divide and subdivide 

 the birds into a great many families, or- 

 ders, genera, species, etc., which at first 

 sight are apt to confuse and discourage the 

 reader. But any interested person can ac- 

 quaint himself with most of our song-birds, 



