THE OOLOGIST 



11 



think that they are foimd around here 

 at all. 



Kingbirds and Arkansas Kingbirds 

 are very common, in three or four in- 

 stances I found the former occupying 

 old nests of the Western Robin, four 

 eggs seemed to be the full clutch 

 the same as in Ontai'io, but the Ar- 

 kansas Kingbird only lays three. I 

 counted eight nests that had three eggs 

 in and four with three young, one nest 

 however had five young. While walk- 

 ing along the banks of the river I flush- 

 ed a Spotted Sandpiper from its nest 

 containing eight eggs. I was surprised 

 to see so many eggs in the nest as they 

 Wi^re all so much alike as to leave no 

 doubt about their being laid by the same 

 bird. On blowing them I noticed that 

 four were fresh while four were incuba- 

 bated about a week, this shows that they 

 were two separate clutches but it seems 

 peculiar that the bird should lay a sec- 

 ond clutch in the nest after incubation 

 had begun on the first CJay-coloredSpar- 

 rows are found here but ai'e more abun- 

 dant further north. I collected six 

 clutches in one day, five containing 

 four eggs and one of two, not 

 ■complete. Two of these nests con- 

 tained eggs of the Cowbird. The nests 

 were built of grass, generally, with a 

 lining of a few hairs, all I have examin- 

 ed were placed in bushes, not on the 

 ground; along the margins of the nu- 

 merous sloughs, they were all about one 

 foot from the ground except one which 

 was fully three feet up in a higher bush 

 than the others. The eggs of this species 

 are not unlike those of the Chipping 

 Sparrow but are rounder and more 

 uniform in size and shape, they also 

 differ in point of coloration, being deep 

 blue with brown spots while those of 

 the Chipping Sparrow are pale blue 

 and invariably spotted with black. 



Owing to the pressure of other busi- 

 ness I was unable to pay much attention 

 to the study of birds after the middle 

 of June, but next year I hope to be able 



to furnish full notes on the nesting hab- 

 its of all the birds found in this district. 

 J. E. Houseman, 



Calgary. 



NOTES PROM AUDUBON'S BIOGRAPHY. 

 Fred W. Parkhurst. 



PART VIII. 



After an absence of four years Dr. 

 Townsend returned to Philadelphia, 

 and with a second collection, which 

 contained many rare birds, of which he 

 sent specimens to Audubon. Audubon 

 did not receive them until but a few 

 weeks before the work was to be closed, 

 and a few were not received until sev- 

 eral days after, Audubon decided to 

 publish them even if every suoscriber 

 in Europe refused to take them. He 

 would not hear of the work of his life- 

 time being closed when new species 

 were in his hands, and in spite of threats 

 fi'om first one subscriber and then an- 

 other that they would discontinue their 

 subscription (which, indeed, several did, 

 and refused to take the few numbers 

 that would make their copies complete) 

 Audubon's wish to make it as thorough 

 and complete as possible was accom- 

 plished. All Dr. Townsend's species as 

 well as some received through different 

 channels were published. At London 

 Auiubon had the gratification of receiv- 

 ing a diploma from the Literary and 

 Historical Society of Quebec. 



And now at last the great work is com- 

 pleted. How often had Audubon longed 

 for this happy moment to arrive! Many 

 had been the time, when, resting in the 

 deepest recesses of the western forest, 

 he had been awakened by dreams of the 

 dismal prospects before him and it had 

 seemed as though it was useless to pur- 

 sue his task longer: that it could never 

 be completed. Now sickness would 

 overtake him in the midst of his labors, 

 and hurry him off to the settlements. 



