Editorial 



263 



iltrtJ Sore 



A Bi-monthly Maeazine 

 Devoted to the Study and Protection of Birds 



OFFICIAL ORGAN OF THE AUDUBON SOCIETIES 



Edited by FRANK M. CHAPMAN 



Contributing Editor, MABEL OSGOOD WRIGHT 



Published by D. APPLETON & CO. 



Vol. XIII Published October 1. 1911 No. 5 



SUBSCRIPTION RATES 



Price in the United States. Canada and Mexico, twenty cents 

 a number, one dollar a year, postage paid. 



COPYRIGHTED, 1911, BY FRANK M. CHAPMAN 



Bird-Lore's Motto : 

 A Bird in the Bush Is Worth Two in the Hand 



On October 15, 191 1, a year will have 

 passed since the National Association 

 of Audubon Societies was robbed by 

 illness of the guidance and counsel of 

 its President and Founder, William 

 Dutcher. During this period, Mr. Dutcher 

 has lain helpless and speechless at his 

 home at Plainfield, New Jersey. His 

 mental faculties, at first dimmed by 

 the blow which fell so suddenly, were 

 subsequently restored to him, and he now 

 not only recognizes, but welcomes gladly, 

 those of his friends who are privileged 

 to see him. 



As the leader of a great movement, 

 the remarkable success of which is due 

 to his untiring, unselfish, broad-minded 

 efforts more than to those of any other 

 man, Mr. Dutcher won the admiration 

 and respect, not only of his friends and 

 associates, but even of those whom he 

 felt it his duty to prosecute for violations 

 of the law, to the enforcement of which 

 his life is pledged. 



Deserving, however, as he was of the 

 place he filled while in the full enjoy- 

 ment of health and during a life of ex- 

 traordinary activity, he never was more 

 worthy the esteem of the friends or foes 

 of bird protection than at this moment 

 when, with almost more than human 

 fortitude, unbroken by a year of sore 

 trial, he faces the future with the patience 

 and courage of a truly brave man. 



Notice is given beyond (p. 273) of the 

 annual meeting of the National Asso- 

 ciation of Audubon Societies. While 

 the morning session will be devoted to 

 routine matters, it is desired to make 

 the afternoon session of interest and 

 practical value to nature-study teachers. 

 Suggestions toward this end are cordially 

 invited. They should be addressed to 

 Mrs. Alice Hall Walter, Editor of Bird- 

 Lore's School Department, 53 Arling- 

 ton Avenue, Providence, R. I. 



The twenty-ninth annual Congress 

 of the American Ornithologists' Union 

 will be held at the Academy of Sciences, 

 in Philadelphia, November 13, 191 1. 

 During the past year, members of the 

 Union have been pursuing their work in 

 comparatively little-known regions, and 

 there should, therefore, be an exceptionally 

 interesting program at this coming Con- 

 gress. South America, particularly, has 

 been the scene of much activity, mem- 

 bers of the Union having visited Trinidad, 

 Venezuela, Colombia, Panama, and Ecua- 

 dor, and a part of the public sessions of 

 the Congress may consequently partake 

 of the nature of a South American sym- 

 posium. 



Every American bird student is eligible 

 as a candidate for Associate Member- 

 ship in the A. O. U. Details regarding 

 methods of nomination, etc., may be 

 obtained from the treasurer of the Union, 

 Dr. J. Dwight, 134 West 71st Street, 

 New York City. 



A question which not infrequently 

 arises in what may be termed legal 

 ornithology, is to determine on what basis 

 a bird may claim rank as part of the 

 fauna of a given state. Does purely 

 accidental occurrence give it such rank, 

 or should a species be among those which 

 may be expected to occur, no matter how 

 rarely or irregularly, before it, so to 

 speak, may be legally added to the 

 fauna of the state in question? The 

 matter is purely ornithological, and might 

 well be acted upon by the American Orni- 

 thologists' Union at its coming session. 



