NESTING-HOUSES 41 



eleven by fifteen inches, and size of entrance 

 hole, three by four, may be useful to those who 

 wish to attract this bird." 



The following very interesting note concern- 

 ing the value of this bird in keeping in check 

 the English sparrow, comes from Pennsylvania : 

 "In West Chester, a town of 11,000 people, 

 there are dozens of little red and gray screech 

 owls hiding in the old dead trees in the daytime 

 and at night sallying forth to make a meal on 

 the English sparrow. They are making their 

 mark, too, for the sparrows are becoming less 

 abundant to a considerable extent, and the peo- 

 ple have come to a realization of the good the 

 owls do, and are giving them protection." 



Rolin. In the fall of 1907 the author gath- 

 ered statistics from the school children of Pas- 

 saic, N. J., relative to their experiences with bird 

 boxes during the spring and summer, special 

 effort having been made during the previous 

 winter to interest the children in birds and the 

 construction of bird houses. Five cases were re- 

 ported in which the robins began to nest in these 

 houses and one in which they successfully reared 

 their young. The author took special pains to 

 investigate these cases as thoroughly as could be 

 done in the fall, and was convinced that in two 



