The Purple Martin 3 



appreciated as it should be. If one human life is saved each year through 

 the destruction of fever-bearing mosquitos by the Martins, and other birds, 

 it is a sufficient reason why the lives of these valuable birds should be sacred. 



The Martin is also known to feed on other injurious insects. Dr. 

 Packard (as quoted by Weed and Dearborn, 'Birds in their Relations to 

 Man,' p. 130), found one of the compartments of a Martin box "literally 

 packed with the dried remains of a little yellow and black squash beetle"; 

 and the same authors state that "ten Nebraska specimens, examined by 

 Professor Aughey, had eaten two hundred and sixty-five locusts and one 

 hundred and sixty-one other insects." 



In portions of the northern range of the Martin it is undoubtedly de- 

 creasing in numbers, and the houses which they once animated by their wel- 

 come presence are now deserted or occupied by the omnipresent English 

 Sparrow. 



While their absence may, in some instances, be accounted for by the 

 persecutions of this introduced feathered pest, and also to mortality among 

 the young birds, occasioned by cold weather or prolonged storms during the 

 nesting season, it now seems that their disappearance is in no ?mall measure 

 due to their destruction in the South during their migration. 



In a recent issue of the Charleston, South Carolina, ' Post,' the follow- 

 ing item appeared: "The sport of shooting Bats [Nighthawksj and Martins 

 is practiced every year all over the State, and thousands of these insect- 

 destroyers are annually slain." The editor adds: "The officers in many 

 counties are looking out for violators of the bird law and intend to stop the 

 evil practice." In response to an inquiry, the fact was disclosed that in 

 Charleston the Martins were considered something of a nuisance on account 

 of their roosting in the trees of the parks at night; an effort was made 

 to drive them out by turning the fire-hose on them with little slaughter, but 

 effective dispersion. 



Mr. T. Gilbert Pearson, the Secretary of this Association, who is a 

 resident of North Carolina, contributes the following gruesome story about 

 Martins, and truly adds: "This is one of the wild creatures which in- 

 creased rapidly with the advance of civilization in the United States until 

 recent years, and its present decrease must in a large measure be due to the 

 persecution which it is receiving today in many localities in the southern 

 states. 



"Martins are accustomed to gather in large flocks during the latter part 

 of summer for the purpose of roosting in some favored grove. As they 

 journey southward, apparently, these flocks increase in size, and the writer 

 has on several occasions watched the birds coming to their roosts in the 

 evening in astonishing numbers, estimated at 100,000. They seem to prefer 

 a grove, near a human habitation, for their nightly rendezvous. They 

 create no little comment in the neighborhood because of their numbers, 



