INTRODUCTION v 



families of birds are found in all parts of the 

 United States, so that, if not able to name your 

 bird exactly, at least you will be able to tell who 

 his relatives are. 



Boys who are interested in watching the coming 

 of the birds from the south in spring, and their 

 return from the north in the fall, can get blank 

 migration schedules by applying to the Biological 

 Survey, Department of Agriculture, Washing- 

 ton, D. C. ; and teachers and others who want 

 material for bird work can get, free on applica- 

 tion, the publications of the Biological Survey, 

 which show how the food of birds affects the 

 farm and garden. Much additional information 

 can be obtained from the secretaries of the State 

 Audubon Societies, and their official organ, " Bird- 

 Lore." 



Photography is coming to hold an important 

 place in nature work, as its notes cannot be ques- 

 tioned, and the student who goes afield armed 

 with opera-glass and camera will not only add 

 more to our knowledge than he who goes armed 

 with a gun, but will gain for himself a fund of 

 enthusiasm and a lasting store of pleasant mem- 

 ories. For more than all the statistics is the 

 sanity and serenity of spirit that comes when we 

 step aside from the turmoil of the world to hold 

 quiet converse with Nature. 



FLORENCE A. MERRIAM. 

 WASHINGTON, D. C., May 11, 1899. 



