Reports of State Societies and Bird Clubs 473 



mittee of twelve, each member of which was made responsible for one program 

 during the year. In the main this plan was successful, and will probably be 

 repeated the coming year. The secretary has also attended to a large corre- 

 spondence concerning various phases of bird-conservation, and has dispensed 

 information on this subject to practically every state in the Union, and to 

 many parts of Canada. — Elizabeth F. Bennett, Secretary. 



Michigan City (Ind.) Bird Club. — About the first work that presented 

 itself to our Club at the beginning of the past year, was the task of finding out 

 what real dependable enthusiasm for birds the vicinity could offer us, and of 

 creating interest in quarters apparently barren of such enthusiasm. It was 

 easy to find some splendid boys ready to work, and they were at once organ- 

 ized and afhHated as Junior Audubon workers. Then some senior members 

 made several large and interesting posters of bird-pictures and bird-facts. 

 The president of the Club went before as many of the public school-teachers 

 as she could reach, gave practical bird-talks, and circulated the posters. We 

 were able during the winter to give talks also before a local fruit-growers' 

 association and a large grange. As a direct result the managers of the Agricul- 

 tural Association inserted into their yearly premium-list an ornithological 

 department. Contests in essays and in model bird-houses gave our Juniors a 

 chance to win premiums. During the early spring one of our theatres ran a 

 series of bird-films, the best of which was the National Audubon Association's 

 'The Spirit of Audubon.' 



Throughout the entire year our press secretary has kept a series of bird- 

 articles running in one or more newspapers. The manual-training department 

 of the public schools gave us hearty cooperation in planning bird-houses, and 

 our first exhibit in the early spring was successful enough to encourage us to 

 have a much larger exhibit this fall. Before the close of the public schools we 

 were able to have Mrs. Etta Wilson here for several days of earnest work in 

 all the grades and one or two public lectures. It was most fortunate for us 

 that the Chautauqua season brought to us Ernest Harold Baynes and the 

 'Bird Masque.' He accomphshed much that could not have been done by 

 local workers. The Club members are making a careful study of all birds seen in 

 the vicinity, hoping to compile valuable data. — Alice M. Belden, Secretary. 



Outdoor Club of Fitchburg (Mass.). — The Outdoor Club has not been 

 very active as an organization the past year, but individual members have 

 kept up their interest and enthusiasm, taking weekly walks, establishing winter 

 feeding-boxes, looking after the posting of some favorite bird-haunts, etc. As 

 a Club we have responded to all appeals of the National Association of Audu- 

 bon Societies for influencing legislation. During the winter we formed a study 

 class, taking up the evolution of plants, under the leadership of a member of 

 the Club. — Grace F. Barnes, Secretary. 



