27th January, A. D. 1898. 



ESSAY 



BY 



Miss HELEN A. BALL, Worcester, Mass. 

 Theme: — Birds of the Farm and Garden. 



I AM very glad indeed to hear that there is an interest in the 

 Society in the study of birds. It seems to me that if a money 

 value could be placed upon birds, as Mr. Kirkland has placed 

 one upon the toad, that there would then be no question as to 

 their being protected. I mean, of course, a money value upon 

 the live bird, unfortunately the dead bird has a money value, 

 but the dead bird or feather is very perishable property that 

 rapidly depreciates, as when one has purchased a dead bird she 

 cannot sell it at the end of the season for what she paid for it at 

 the beginning. I think we only need to prove that the live 

 bird is more valuable than the dead one to ensure its protection. 

 In the case of the toad, very definite data was obtained by Mr. 

 Kirkland from stomach examination, and upon that he bases 

 his money value — from the number of cutworms alone that he 

 destroys. He said that it was worth $19.88 to the gardener 

 every season. We have not just the data to place a value upon 

 each bird in just that way, but very definite examinations have 

 been made by the Department of Agriculture, and so we have 

 exact statements to make in regard to the value of the bird and 

 the insects they destroy. 



The Bluebird is placed at the top of the list by systematic 

 ornithologists and is really one of the first birds in importance 

 in its destruction of insects. Nearly three-fourths of its food is 

 animal, — one-sixth of the food is of caterpillars, and one-fourth, 



