156 



OEOTTHOLOGIST 



TYol. 12-]Sro. 9 



Corrections. 



In article by Hilton B. Read, in August O. 

 AND O., in reference to the Screech Owl, page 

 lis, the types say on the 17th line from bottom 

 of page, "foregoing." It should read preced- 

 ing. On same column, 15th line from top the 

 word our should be inserted between "all"' and 

 "Owls," as it referred only to birds of this 

 county. 



On page 136, August O. and O., 13th line 

 from the bottom of second column, "West In- 

 dian Level" sliould read West Indian Seal, 



Notes from New Haven, Conn. 



BY E. L. MUNSON. 



November 4, 1883, I took an adult female 

 King Eider near Milford, Conn. It is now in 

 the collection of Mr. L. C. Sanford of this city. 

 September 1, 1885, Mr. Sanford captured a 

 male Blue-gray Gnatcatcher near East Haven, 

 Conn. On August 4th and December 25th, 

 188G, I had the good fortune to take specimens 

 of Northern Phalarope, male, and adult male 

 Mallard, on the "Quinnipiac" marshes, near 

 New Haven. August 30, 1886, Dr. E. T. R. 

 Thompson took a Curlew Sandpiper, male, and 

 on September 16, 1886, there was a Stilt Sand- 

 piper, young, taken; both at "Quiunipiac" 

 marshes. 



Any collector who will kindly send data of 

 size of sets of the Western Hawks or Owls, to 

 F. H. Carpenter, 409 Washington street, Boston, 

 Mass., will greatly aid in ascertaining an im- 

 portant oological truth. Due credit will be 

 given. 



Prof. Spencer Fullerton Baird. 



Prof. Spencer F. Baird died at Woods HoU, 

 Mass., August 19th, 1887. He was born at 

 Reading, Pa., Feb. 3rd, 1823, and graduated 

 from Dickinson College at the age of seven- 

 teen. His early taste for natural history 

 studies led him to make extensive researches 

 in that science. Upon the death of Prof. 

 Henry in 1878, Prof. Baird assumed entire ex- 

 ecutive control of the Smithsonian Institute. 

 The results of the wisdom and energy of his 

 guiding mind are visible in the extensive and 

 available collection of the Institute. In con- 

 junction with his other duties Prof. Baird wrote 

 many scientific treatises, everywhere recognized 

 as authorities of the subject upon which they 



treat. He was in 1871 appointed United States 

 commissioner of fish and fisheries, which in- 

 volved additional labor and in which he achiev- 

 ed great success in bringing this important 

 commercial interest to its due recognition, but 

 his work proved too much for human structure 

 to withstand and without doubt Prof. Baird 

 fell a victim to his arduous duties. 



Publications Received. 



American Naturalist, August. 

 Book Chart, August. 

 Forest and Stream. 

 Hoosier Naturalist, July. 

 Guide-book to Megantic Lakes and Dead Riv- 

 er Region. 

 Ottawa Naturalist, August. 

 Poultry World, August. 

 Scientific American. 

 Western Naturalist, August. 

 West American Scientist, August. 



CORRESPONDENCE. 



'Audubon." 



Editor Ornituologist and OiiLOGiST, 



Dear Sir: — I notice in the O. AND O. just received, 

 that in my brief coniniunication, you have allowerl 

 the printer to cliange the name of Audubon to AudO- 

 bou. I woidd not lilie tlie readers of the O. and O. to 

 think, tliat after all the yeai's I have given to the 

 study of tills great man and his works, that I would 

 spell his name Audobon; but this would be the im- 

 pression, unless a correction is made. When I visit- 

 ed the tomb of this wonderful man, in Trinity Ceme- 

 tery, N. Y., some years ago, I noticed that the sculptor 

 had made tlie same mistake, when cutting tlie heavy 

 letters in relief, over the massive granite entrance to 

 the tomb : — making it necessary to cut out a square 

 piece of granite containing the letter "o" and insert- 

 ing the letter "u" in its place. In my researches in 

 everything concerning Audul)on, I had the tomb 

 pliotographed, and the change of letters shows in 

 tlie print. 



During the years that I published the O. and O., I 

 was surprised to find how little was known of the 

 works of Wilson and Audubon, by our collectors. 

 Some did not even know of their existence, but col- 

 lected eggs as a boy would marbles or postage 

 stamps. The reading of the worlvs of Wilson and 

 Audubon should be tlie college through which every 

 collector of skins or eggs should pass. All the mod- 

 ern works combined cannot substitute the pleasure to 

 be obtained from the reading of these two great men's 

 works. When one fully understands them, and the 

 dilliculties they have overcome, he is ready to say 

 to the modern critic, "hold ! they are above criti- 

 cism, and thou canst not dim the lustre of their fair 

 fame." 



Yours truly, 



Jos. M. Wade. 



