OF THE HAMILTON ASSOCIATION. 25 



ence to the wisdom which has been exercised in promoting his too 

 successful immigration. So far the sparrow is simply a standing re- 

 proach to all organized effjrts to entice immigrants to our continent. 

 It is hardly known how he came, yet here he is in swarms rather 

 than in flocks or in flights, a quarrelsome, thievish, domineering, 

 dirty, and withal perfectly useless little creature, not even aff'ording 

 food for homeless cats, for none can catch him. Any man of us 

 who can show us the usefulness of this little bird, or who can point 

 out a successful way to rid us of it, will, there can be little doubt, 

 obtain as he will deserve, a great name among our men of science, 

 and do credit to our society. 



Another field open to our friends and members is that of en- 

 tomology. You see on our walls one or two cases of insects, which 

 have been collected by one of our members and presented lo the 

 society. This charming branch of natural history has been well and 

 successfully cultivated, as many of us are aware, by fellow citizens of 

 our own. Several very valuable collections of this nature must exist 

 in the city, and if there were funds at the disposal of the council, 

 these could not be better used than in procuring a few cases of 

 insects, wherewith to adorn our walls and thereby to enlighten 

 our minds as to the multitude of beautiful things which float 

 around us both night and day, without being heeded by us. 

 The extent of the branch of science which is here alluded 

 to, we do not well conceive, perhaps we cannot conceive it, 

 although we may express ourselves regarding it by words and by 

 numbers. To all who have taste and leisure it offers a field of oc- 

 cupation which we may say is boundless, and where, on the author- 

 ity of those who are cultivators of it, health and contentment are to 

 be found. 



Further we have some specimens which I suppose we range 

 under the head of anthropology, and they are not so creditable to 

 human kind. They show the fell and cruel purpose which is in 

 man in all his states, from that of the lowest savagery to that of 

 the highest cultivation. Lions and tigers and other unamia- 

 ble animals are called by us fercz natwce, yet we do not 

 know that lions and tigers deliberately and of malice afore- 

 thought make preparations for each others' destruction. It 

 is supposed that when those creatures meet, as sometimes 



