marked "Su|)|)lenients," also bound in 

 with the .March number, is an unpaged 

 "Firstannual Report of the Ani.Oolog- 

 ical Society," occupying a single page. 

 5 ill. 



Vol. Ill, Xos. 1-12, Mar., lS77-Feb., 

 187S, pp. 102, incl. 2 pp. inde.x, (pp. 17- 

 18 (Apr.) and 83-84 (Dec.) "Supple- 

 ments," and 1). 62 erroneously mark- 

 ed "r.2.") 8 ill. 



The Oologist: | A Monthly Journal 

 devoted to the Study of Birds and their 

 Eggs. I— I Edited by S. L. WIT.LARD. 

 |— [ VOLUME IV. I (woodcut of an 

 egg) I UTICA, X. Y.: 1 Published at 

 No. 27 Oneida street. Med. 8 vo. 



Vol. IV, Nos. 1-12, Mar., 1878-Sum- 

 mer, 1879, pp. iv-100+1 col. pi., (tem- 

 porary suspension following the .July 

 issue until January, due to insufficient 

 financial sui)|iort ) covers, (> ill. 



THE OOLOGIST. ' A Monthly Jour- 

 nal ! DEVOTED TO THE STUDY OF 

 BIRDS, THEIR NESTS AND EGGS. 

 I— I Edited bv JOS. :\I. WADE, S. L. 

 WILLARD. I— I VOLUME V. | (cut of 

 egg) I ROCKVILLE, CONX.: |PUB- 

 LISHED BY JOS. M. WADE. Med. 

 8 vo 



Vol. V, Nos. 1-12, July, 1879-Feb., 

 1881, pp. iv-9(i (suspended after Nov., 

 1879, until Aug., 1880, Oct.-Nov. num- 

 bers bouni] under one cover.) 3 ill. 



This is the pioneer amateur oologi- 

 cal iieriodical of America. S. L. Wil- 

 lard, a typical American boy of about 

 sixteen years, after conducting an orni- 

 thological department in '"The Reper- 

 tory," a western amateur i)aper, be- 

 came convinced of the need of a serial 

 devoted to birds and their eggs, and 

 without help, no money and little ex- 

 perience, engaged the services of an 

 unemployed ])rinter. and began the 

 l)ublication of this little i)aper. The 

 first two issues were not only typo- 

 graphical failures, printed with coarse 

 type on thin i)a])er with scant margin 

 and the headings all set uji in type, but 

 the subject matter trite and of too 

 manifold nature, needless to state it 

 received severe criticism, and the dis- 

 couraged editor at a loss to jiav the 

 printer, withdrew the iniblication. 

 However, several inquiries for sample 

 cojties from surprisingly remote local- 

 ities and one or two press notices, 

 awakened a fresh determination to 

 proceed For the third number, he 

 invested in a bit of engravers' box- 

 wood anil carved a heading, at the 



same time he added a small font of 

 type, sufficient to compose a single 

 page, and negotiated with a boy friend 

 to print it on his press, one page at a 

 time. F'ive numbers were issued in 

 this way during spare hours from 

 school, when his friend having dispos- 

 ed of his iiress, it became necessary to 

 do the printing elsewhere. From his 

 plans, a local blacksmith built a i)ress 

 with a eai)acity of just one page, on 

 which the next four numbers were 

 I)rinted. 



It must be remembered that tie edi- 

 tor was under the necessity of com- 

 posing the bulk of the reading matter, 

 particularly in the early volumes be- 

 fore the paiier had many contributors. 

 Beside writing under his own name, 

 he i)ublished his own compositions in 

 the form of essays for the editorial 

 pages, Under the non de iilume of 

 "Ovum" he published a series of pap- 

 ers entitled "Birds" Nests and Eggs," 

 which ran for three years, having for 

 its inspiration a similar series by J. 

 A. Whitley in "Amateur Age." Con- 

 siderable also appeared over the name 

 of "Avis." Over fifty woodcuts during 

 the series, most of them wholly the 

 work of this enthusiast (exce])t a few 

 bearing the signature of S. Pryor, 

 sculptor) very crude work of course 

 but showing great industry. Volume 

 IT, and most of volume III were printed 

 on a large amateur press he had pur- 

 chased, and the balance up to the first 

 four numbers of volume V, on a better 

 and larger press which he also used 

 for job printing. Beginning with the 

 fourth volume, the i)eriodical attained 

 to the dignity of a cover and an en- 

 graved design which is best described 

 in the words of the i)roud engraver: 

 "In the foreground, across the lower 

 corner of the cover, api)ear three eggs 

 strung uiion a straw. A pair of Hawks 

 have chosen a delightful position for 

 their nest in the tree near the shore 

 of the lake; the motherly Duck has 

 nested early and is leading her little 

 family into the reeds: the Egrit and 

 Sandpipers are indesjiensible adiuncts 

 to pleasure upon water; the Ruffed 

 Grouse are both drummin.g; the Bubo 

 virginianus knows verv little about 

 any Snowy Owl; a bird of prev, prob- 

 ably an Eagle, appears just over the 

 horizon, a number of graceful Swal- 

 lows skim through the air, and the 

 Downy Woodpecker has found some- 



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