272 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Jan. 



and preserved by him as evidence of the great proportion of corn 

 in their food. These bottles have in some cases slips affixed with 

 year, mouth and day, and number and age of sparrows of which 

 the contents are preserved. 



There is an enormous amount of matter printed on the subject, 

 but a great part is complaints of fields and gardens devastated by 

 flocks of sparrows ; and on the other side much unscientific writ- 

 ing on the subject of cruelty, etc. 



I have personal knowledge of the great mischief these birds are 

 causing here, up even to having seen a whole field so ravaged by 

 them that the sickle is not put in. I know them, both by my own 

 observation and reports of reliable contributors, to be lessening the 

 number of martins and swallows (truly insectivorous birds) ; and, 

 from reports from known entomological or ornithological or agri- 

 cultural or horticultural contributors, continued year by year, I 

 have no doubt (that is to say, there is plain evidence given) that 

 this one species of bird — the Passer domesticus — is a cause of 

 very severe loss in this country. 



Eleanor A. Ormerod, 



Consulting Entomologist of the Royal 



Agricultural Society of England. 

 July 15, 1890. 



The book referred to in the letter of the secretary of 

 the Royal Agricultural Society is an arraignment of the 

 sparrow and his conviction as an enemy to the agriculture of 

 England ; not only for the immense amount of direct damage 

 he inflicts upon the agricultural products of the country, but 

 for driving away the more useful insectivorous birds. It 

 will be observed that the entomologist of the Royal Agricult- 

 ural Society considers the investigations of the American 

 Ornithologists' Union and the agents of the United States 

 department of agriculture as most thorough, and their 

 conclusions against the sparrow as entirely reliable. 



The Massachusetts State Board of Agriculture, from their 

 own observations and from the opinions of ornithologists, 

 conclude that the laws of Massachusetts in regard to the 

 birds of Massachusetts are very nearly what they should be, 

 and would recommend no legislation except in regard to the 

 English sparrow. The Board believes that the law of 1890, 

 chapter 443 of that year, has not been enforced, and would 

 suggest that it might be amended so as to allow the use of 



