360 The English Sparrow 



against this bird, whether justified or not, has arisen because of the an- 

 noyance it gives to gardeners and fruit-growers ; its tendency to destroy 

 the nests of small native birds and thus drive them out of our towns ; the 

 loss caused by fires due to the nests placed about buildings catching 

 sparks ; its uncleanly habits spoiling sculptures on the 

 ^ fac - a< 3es of buildings ; its noisy chatter about the house 

 and yard where once the songs of other birds were 

 heard, to say nothing of the petulant calling and fighting in the early 

 morning heard about bed-room windows where late risers are taking 

 their "beauty sleeps." 



Resentment against the bird is reflected in the laws of our country, 

 for in no state in the Union is the English Sparrow protected by statute. 

 Every little while there are discussions in the public press about starting 

 "Sparrow-wars" with a view to exterminating these birds. Now and 

 then we hear of some community's efforts looking to this end. Such 

 attempts, however, have virtually been futile, as the English Sparrow can 

 take care of itself so successfully that only by continuous warfare against 

 it, year after year, can its numbers be kept down. 



Sometimes the experiment is made of offering a bounty on the heads 

 of Sparrows. One objection to this procedure is that inexperienced per- 

 sons, who are not able to distinguish between the English Sparrow and 

 one or another of our native sparrows, immediately become active in such 

 a campaign, and our native birds suffer as a result. An agent of this 

 Association recently visited a western town where a bounty was being 

 paid on dead English Sparrows. This agent ex- 

 amined the dead birds brought in durine three days, 

 of Suppression . , . , . ,. , , . , 



and found that only one out of every eleven birds 



brought in were English Sparrows ; the others were all useful native 

 birds. 



"What shall we do with the English Sparrow?" is a question which 

 this Association is probably asked once a day on an average throughout 

 the year. I confess my inability to answer this question. The Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture at Washington has attempted to answer it by issuing 

 bulletins advising people to poison and trap the birds. Whether this 

 course is wise it may at least be said that all such attempts in a public 

 way instantly produce strong opposition by many hundreds of men and 

 women who, perhaps in lieu of more interesting bird-neighbors, regard 

 with pleasure the presence of the English Sparrows, and often feed them 

 upon their window-sills, or provide boxes for their accommodation. 



Classification and Distribution 



The English Sparrow belongs to the Order Passeres, Family Fringillidce, and 

 Genus Passer. Its scientific name is Passer dotnesticus. Originally a native of 

 Western Europe, its range is now nearly cosmopolitan, wherever civilization offers 

 it a chance to get a living in its accustomed way. 



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