No. 4.] REPORT OF STATE ORNITHOLOGIST. 99 



each individual that is raised upon his land is worth $5 a 

 year to him as an insect destroyer. During the past summer 

 I watched more or less a bevy of bobwhites feeding about our 

 farm fields and gardens. They spent much time among the 

 potatoes. There have been practically none of these birds on 

 the place before for at least seven years, but this year, thanks 

 to them, it has not been necessary to spray for potato beetles. 



The Purple Martin. 

 Again the people of Massachusetts are urged to put up bird 

 houses for the purple martin. Martins are coming back to the 

 State slowly, partly because of the prevalence of English spar- 

 rows, and partly because cold storms in late June and early 

 July have destroyed some of the young during the last tw^o 

 breeding seasons, but mainly, perhaps, because few people put 

 up suitable houses for their accommodation, and keep the Eng- 

 lish sparrows away. Martin houses should be erected for these 

 birds in every river valley in the State. When the birds be- 

 come established there thej' will spread to other regions. Every 

 spring many martins fly over this Commonwealth on the way 

 to Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. Every summer they 

 return on their way to the south. If many houses were erected 

 for their accommodation, some of the birds stopping on their 

 autumnal migration and observing these houses, or occupying 

 them for q, few nights, would be likely to return to them in the 

 spring and remain to breed. In the correspondence of this 

 office there are many letters from people who ask numerous 

 questions about bird houses and similar subjects. In one re- 

 ceived from J. B. Poland of Springfield, on February 6, 1915, 

 46 questions were asked and answered, including most of the 

 queries commonly received regarding martins. As ]\Ir. Poland 

 intended to attempt to colonize these birds, such of his queries 

 as relate to the species are reproduced here with my answers, 

 in the hope of assisting others. 



1. Q. How large a colony of martins is it possible to establish in one 

 house? A. There is one very large house on record which had a very 

 large number of martins, but I cannot from memory give you the num- 

 ber. I have known 20 pairs to occupy one house. 



