AMEEICAN ornithologists' UNION. 107 



States and British North America into thirteen Districts (which 

 are specified in a circular issued by the Committee from which 

 we quote), each of which will be placed under the immediate 

 direction of a competent Superintendent. 



The home of each observer is called a Station, and is recorded 

 by number upon the books of the Committee. The Committee 

 particularly requests that all persons who are willing to aid in 

 the work will immediately communicate with the Superintendents 

 of theii- respective Districts. Those residing in Districts whose 

 Superintendents have not as yet been named may address the 

 Chairman. 



It is the duty of each Superintendent to exert himself to the 

 utmost to increase the number of observers in his District ; to 

 answer the questions they may put to him concerning the details 

 of the work, &c. ; to collect at frequent intervals the product of 

 their labours ; to ascertain from these data the whereabouts of 

 certain species in winter, and the times of leaving their winter 

 homes ; to determine if possible the number and extent of the 

 chief avenues of migration within the limits of his District, and 

 the average rate of speed at which the different species travel ; to 

 locate the breeding areas of the summer residents ; and, finally, 

 to submit the result of the season's work to the Chairman of the 

 Committee. The Chairman shall, in turn, arrange, condense, 

 and systematise the material received from the Superintendents 

 of the several Districts, and shall present to the Union the fruits 

 of the joint labours of all the collaborators, together with any 

 comments, deductions, or generalisations he may have made 

 upon the same. 



The data collected may conveniently be arranged in three 

 general classes : a. Ornithological Phenomena. h. Meteoro- 

 logical Phenomena. c. Contemporary and Correlative Phe- 

 nomena. 



(rt) Ornithological Phenomena. 



Each observer is requested to prepare, at his earliest con- 

 venience, a complete list of the birds known to occur in the 

 vicinity of his Station, and to indicate (by the abbreviations 

 enclosed in parentheses) to which of the following five categories 

 each species pertains : — 



1. Permanent Residents, or those that are found regularly 

 throughout the entire year (R). 



