Apbil 2, 1909] 



SCIENCE 



549 



possible readiness to leave a problem open 

 rather than to venture a solution that shall 

 be at all one-sided. In fact, if there is any 

 criticism to be passed it is that anxiety to be 

 absolutely fair to the viewsi of others some- 

 times prevents the author from stating his 

 own with the positiveness that makes for defi- 

 niteness. If one wants a statement of recent 

 theories and the established facts in feeling 

 or attention the volume is to be recommended 

 as the best available. It gives not merely a 

 clear, full and sympathetic statement of the 

 theories themselves, but a measured and un- 

 dogmatic criticism, and the resulting theory 

 of the author. W. B. Pillsbury 



UNryEESiTT OF Michigan 



Gamps and Cruises of an Ornithologist. By 

 Frank M. Chapman. With 250 photo- 

 graphs from nature by the author. Pp. xvi 

 -f-432. New York, D. Appleton & Co. $3.00. 

 As its title indicates, this book is a series of 

 narratives. But, though popular in style, it 

 is not lacking in seriousness, for it contains 

 many fresh or new observations on the habits 

 of birds which wiU be of permanent value to 

 ornithologists. It is based largely on the 

 author's field work in gathering material for 

 the now rather well-known "habitat groups" 

 of birds exhibited by the American Museum 

 of Natural History. Therefore, it may ap- 

 propriately be called a by-product of museum 

 work, and, as such, though published pri- 

 vately, it admirably illustrates the way in 

 which a modern natural history museum may 

 carry its broadening influence beyond its ex- 

 hibition halls. 



The eight sections into which the book is 

 divided contain related chapters, each devoted 

 to a certain species or a single expedition. 

 Some of these have been published previously 

 in periodicals and others will be recognized 

 in certain quarters as having been the sub- 

 jects of public lectures, but some are entirely 

 new and all are pleasing in style and either 

 replete with real information or most sug- 

 gestive of possibilities in specialized bird 

 etudy. 



Travels about Home, the first section, in- 

 cludes a few little intimacies with blue jays. 



meadowlarks and nighthawks and indicates 

 the opportunities for bird study that lie close 

 at hand, even to the busy New Yorker. The 

 next. Bird Life of Two Atlantic Coast Is- 

 lands (Cobb's Island and Gardiner's Island), 

 deals with some interesting species of water 

 birds likewise found at home but a short dis- 

 tance from our largest cities. Florida Bird 

 Life, following, is notable for its almost ex- 

 haustive study of the brown pelican and its 

 revelations of the secrets of the great rook- 

 eries of herons and egrets, including the now 

 rare experience of meeting the roseate spoon- 

 bill in the breeding season. Bahama Bird 

 Life includes observations on terns, boobies 

 and man o'war birds, but easily takes first 

 rank for its superbly illustrated and fasci- 

 nating story of experiences in the wonder- 

 land of flamingoes. The Story of Three 

 Western Bird Groups briefly relates incidents 

 of visits with the prairie chicken in Nebraska, 

 the golden eagle in Wyoming and various 

 small desert birds in Arizona. This is fol- 

 lowed by Bird Studies in California, which 

 is introduced somewhat modestly, perhaps in 

 deference to the splendid work being done by 

 Pacific coast ornithologists; but, in view of 

 the limited time spent in the field, most cred- 

 itable results are shown, especially in the 

 chapters on the water birds of the San 

 Joaquin Valley and of Lower Klamath Lake. 

 Bird Life in Western Canada, like most of the 

 book, is devoted to water birds, with the ex- 

 ception of a chapter on the white-tailed 

 ptarmigan and other birds of the higher parts 

 of the Selkirk Mountains. The concluding 

 section consists of the single chapter, Impres- 

 sions of English Bird Life. 



The half-tone illustrations, 250 in number, 

 are mostly of that excellent character regu- 

 larly attained by our best bird photographers. 

 The few that are not technical gems of 

 photographic skill are quite justified by 

 their ornithological interest, while some cer- 

 tainly deserve rank among the most interest- 

 ing and successful bird photographs ever 

 taken. Typographical errors and a few other 

 slight evidences of haste -n^ile the book was 

 in press are rather too frequent to be over- 



