8 THE AMERICAN OOLOGISTS' 



THE PmCES IN THIS CATALOGUE AND CASH VALUES 



It must be understood that these prices following are relative and not in- 

 tended to represent cash values. They are to be used as a basis for the 

 exchange of specimens, and of course refer only to specimens first class in 

 every respect. The cash value of a bird's egg is usually a matter of agreement 

 between the buyer and seller, where it is a cash transaction; but is usually 

 reached, and almost invariably so in the sale of entire cor.ections, on a percentage 

 basis of the aggregate value of the specimens sold, as shown by some price 

 list. It is our experience that these percentages range from 10% to 33 1-3% 

 according to the varieties o" the lot. Sometimes, however, these sales are made 

 at so much per egg for the entire collection. We have purchased at different 

 times entire collections of some of the best known American Oologists at a 

 blanket price of ten cents per egg. At other times we have purchased selected 

 lots of eggs from collectors who were breaking up their collections, and where 

 we were allowed to pick out only such as we could use; these of course being 

 the rarer specimens, at 25% of the old list prices and less. There is no such 

 thing as a regular standard cash market price for bird's eggs. The price at 

 which they will sell depends always on the supply and demand. 



No collector should ever collect any eggs of the commoner species for any pur- 

 pose except for his own collection. There is no demand for such either in 

 exchange or cash. It would be a good rule to adopt, to collect nothing for 

 exchange purposes, except on special order, that is priced in this catalogue, at 

 less than 50 cents per egg. 



A competent collector with a fair scientific knowledge of birds and their 

 habits, can always make a good average salary by collecting specimens of birds, 

 their nests and eggs for public institutions, and for private collectors who are 

 unable for lack of time and because of business cares to do extensive field work. 

 Such a collector who has established a reputation for integrity, can always thus 

 finance an outing or a vacation trip into the far away wild places that he might 

 not otherwise be unable to visit. We have often wondered why more of the 

 younger generation of Naturalists did not take advantage of such opportunities. 



The eggs of the seventy-three species unpriced in this catalogue are so rare 

 that the committee determined there was no uniform value as to them. To 

 secure one of these is to secure a prize indeed. 



All prices given preceeded by a * are for specimens taken without the terri- 

 torial limits covered by the A. O. U. List only, such as European, etc. 



The following from the pen of the writer published in "The Oologist" Vol. 

 XXXII, P. P. 78 and 134 will give the readers a fair idea of how to prepare birds' 

 eggs for collections. 



