11:2 PROCEEDINGS S. I. ASs'n ARTS AND SCIENCES. [VOL. I 



stroys them. Even if we should save some of the natural tracts it is 

 to be feared that the necessity of adopting- the policy of "Hands off" 

 would not be appreciated by those in authority. It is generally con- 

 sidered that all parks must have something- done to them, such as the 

 cleaning up of the leaves or the cutting down of some of the trees, 

 which of course endang-ers the life of the lesser plants and from our 

 point of view makes the place less interesting. 



The ideal way to treat a piece of natural woodland would seem to 

 be to let it entirely alone, to get as many books as possible about what 

 it contains and with these and observation make a study of what is 

 sure to be an interesting; fauna and flora. While this plan of dealing- 

 with Nature would seem to apply more particularly to private wood- 

 land, yet there is a successful natural park in the city of Portland, 

 Oregon. The park board of the Macleay Park have "desired that not 

 a fern, flower, leaf, twig-, or branch of any name or nature be disturbed," 

 and fortunately there are many citizens who approve of this plan. We 

 quote from Mr. William Palmer's account of this park in The Plant 

 World, for January, igo6: "An old resident of Portland had left 

 the i^round, less than two hundred acres, to the city on condition that 

 a path should be maintained through its wilderness, but that the 

 natural beauty should not be chang-ed. The Park Board of the city, 

 headed by the mayor, is evidently faithfully carrying- out the intent of 

 the donor. The watchman, deeply interested in the matter, keeps the 

 path clear and as dry as possible, cuts partly throug-h fallen logs, so as to 

 permit easy stepping-, removes stones, and trims the side of the path 

 where the bank is steep; provides for the drainag-e across the path, 

 especially where the g-round is sogg-y, but invariably leaves everything- 

 untouched except in the narrow winding- way." 



With a park of this character on Staten Island, which would cost 

 less to maintain than any other kind, we mig"ht at least preserve a 

 small portion of our woodland flora, our native plants would not all 

 die out, and we need not then averag^e a loss of a species every year, 

 as at present. 



Mr. Davis also read the following- notes on the 



TIME OF ARRIVAL OF THE BARN SWALLOW ON STATEN ISLAND. 



The following^ dates of arrival of the barn swallow {Hirundo 

 erythrogaster Bodd.) at a barn on the south side of the Island, near 

 Dongan Hills, have been furnished me by Mr. Wm. A. Galloway. I 



