140 



THE OOLOGIST. 



cally arranged as that he can refer in- 

 stantly to any data in the lot, it will 

 matter much to him that he have them 

 as nearly uniform in size as may be. 



Now, in my fat file of datas are long- 

 narrow ones; tall narrow ones; big 

 square ones; and little oblong ones, and 

 all sizes from the 6x8 inch wholly hand 

 written, delightfully neat, and scien- 

 tifically minute and circumstantial datas 

 of the late lamented Harry K. Jamison 

 — to the 3x1$ inch scraps affected by 

 collectors of the "Hole-in-a-tree, high 

 up" sort. (These petty squibs have the 

 nest data, — what there is of it, — on the 

 back, which impertinence, of all the 

 impertinences that make one growl, are 

 most provocative of growling.) 



Some datas are of the flimsiest paper 

 and some on linen paper, neat and dur- 

 able. On some the printer's ink seems 

 to have become frightened at the paper 

 and ran about everywhere save wnere 

 it ought, while others clear of type and 

 clean of ink bear no such impression of 

 cheap stock, slop work and of the at- 

 mosphere and personality of the (print- 

 er's) devil. 



Could I have my choice I would have 

 in uniform use, a clear white "flat" 

 linen or strong cotton data, printed 

 with elearcut type on paper of medium 

 thickness, of an average size of about, 

 or exactly 5$x3£ inches. The inscrip- 

 tion, ''Private (or Oological) Collection of 

 thus and so" should, if it occurs, be set 

 modestly in small type, leaving the 

 bulk of the space on the data at the bot- 

 tom for the description, which is often, 

 alas! far too meager to satisfy either 

 curiosity or scientific desire. Such 

 space can hardly be too large, consist- 

 ently with the size of the data, for, as 

 many can bear witness, the data pre- 

 pared by oologists with whom it is a 

 delight to deal, begin at the top space 

 reserved for the discription — run, finely 

 written, down to the bottom and still 

 farther down along the lower data mar- 

 gin and then, likely as not, run over to 



the back side ending in a sketch of the 

 nest situs and the locality. Such were 

 the datas made out by the genial Dr. 

 Cooke of — Oregon(when will he ever 

 leave bone setting for a bit to collect 

 eggs again V) data, accompanied, of 

 course, by eggs daintily prepared. This 

 soi't of back-door illustration, and this 

 minuteness of description carry with 

 them the charm of the enthusiast, the 

 truly scientific collector, who always 

 gives us more than we had bargained 

 for, besides inoculating us, infecting us 

 with his glorious spirit. So then, we 

 all beg of you, don't buy or use any- 

 thing but the largest medium sized ob- 

 long datas, neatly printed on good 

 strong paper. 



"Where may such be had?" Ask 

 Lattin, or any other "standard" dealer. 

 Tell him what you want, and you'll get 

 it. There never yet was a wide-awake 

 dealer so foolish as to keep in stock 

 that for which he had no call, nor so 

 disobliging as not to provide whatever 

 his patrons might demand. Let us have 

 a standard data blank. 



A timid don't if you please: Don't 

 fold data in mailing, but if, like myself, 

 you have been so foolish as to buy a 

 quantity of square datas which must be 

 folded use them up or burn them quick- 

 ly and then demand the standard, and 

 take no other. 



Of coui'se, being a live collector you 

 carefully record the particulars of every 

 set of eggs you take. Do you then de- 

 sire for that purpose, a set of books 

 that are just what one wants for such 

 a use and that can be as readily and 

 as snugly filed away year by year as 

 the datas about which we have been 

 reading? I have used such a book for 

 three years. It is a peculiarly tall, nar- 

 row bank-book, interleaved with blot- 

 ting paper, which presents the high ad- 

 vantage of enabling one to make en- 

 tries in ink without necessity for the 

 tiresome aud time taking use of a blot- 

 ter. (Of course, while in the field you 



