^^8 Meeting of the American Ornithologis.ts' Union. [October 



circulars to the keepers of lighthouses, lightships, and beacons 

 in the United States and British North America. . , 



The returns thus far received are exceedingly voluminous and 

 of great value. They are so extensive that the Committee finds it 

 utterly impossible to elaborate them without considerable pecuniary 

 aid. To show the nature and extent of the labors of the Commit- 

 tee, reports were presented, prepared by the superintendents, on 

 five well-known species. Several of these reports vs^ere read at 

 length. The Committee in submitting their report for acceptance 

 as a report of progress, urged that Congress be memorialized in 

 reference to an appropriation of funds for the continuance of the 

 work and the elaboration of the returns. The Union thereupon 

 instructed the Council to prepare and present a proper memorial 

 to Congress, and also to the Canadian Government, in behalf of 

 the Committee, and to consider what other means could be 

 devised to promote the work. 



The report also made reference to the work of the International 

 Congress of Ornithologists, and presented an abstract of its pro- 

 ceedings in relation to the migration of birds at its first meeting 

 held a few months since in Vienna, at which was made a strong 

 appeal for international cooperation throughout the v^^orld, through 

 the medium of the various governments, which wei^e urged to 

 appropriate sufficient sums of money for the support of stations 

 and the publication of annual reports of the observations made. 



Under a call for the presentation of scientific papers. Dr. 

 Stejneger read a paper on a new subspecies of Ptarmigan 

 from Newfoundland,* which gave rise to a long and very 

 interesting discussion on the subject of Ptarmigans in general, 

 and incidental questions, participated in by Mr. D. G. Elliot, 

 Dr. Coues, Dr. Merriam, Messrs. Brewster, Comeau, and 

 Ridgway. 



Mr. Sage contributed a number of notes on the occvirrence of 

 rare birds in Northern New England, and Dr. Merriam reported 

 the recent capture, by Mr. N. A. Comeau, of a second specimen 

 of the VVheatear {Saxicola osnanthe) at Godbout, on the northern 

 shore of the mouth of the St. Lawrence River. 



The elections of officers for the ensuing year resulted in the 

 unanimous reelection of the present incumbents. 



The next place of meeting being then brought up for consider- 



* See this Number of The Auk, p. 369. 



