THE ORNITHOLOGIST AND BOTANIST. 



BOTANIST. 



A MONTHLY DEVOTED TO BIEDS AND FLOWERS. 



JOSEPH K. BLAIN: 



EDITOR AND PUBLISHER. 



Articles on subjects of interest to I'otanists and Orni- 

 thologists solicited from all. 



TERMS OF SUBSCRIPTION. 



Single Subscription, one year, - - - - 20 cents. 



Single Copies, -- -3 cents. 



Advertising rates made known on apph'cation. 



If manuscript is accepted, the authoi- will be notified 

 at once. Rejected manuscript will be returned when 

 accompanied by stamps. 



Address all communications to 



JOSEPH E. BLAIN, 

 8 Edward Street, - - - Binghamton. N. Y. 



Vol. I. 



MARCH, 1891. 



No. III. 



This is the last time that the heading on this 

 page ■will appear in its present form. Not the 

 least of the changes to be made is that in the 

 subscription price which, after April first, will 

 be thirty-five cents a year. We promise to make 

 each succeeding issue better than the one before 

 it, and ask you to aid us by subscriptions, arti- 

 cles, notes etc. Examine the contents of this 

 number; clearly twelve numbers like it are worth 

 twenty cents. Subscribe now and induce your 

 friends to do the same. 



The word amateur is not synonymous with 

 tyro or beginner. Webster defines an amateur 

 as " One who cultivates any study or art, from 

 taste or attachment, without persuing it profes- 

 sionally." As this magazine is conducted on 

 strictly business principles the mistake of apply- 

 ing these words to us is apparent. We are 

 neither tyros nor amateurs. 



About the best proof a man can have that he 

 is famous, is to find himself mentioned in print 

 by his surname without the usual prefix of "Mr. 

 So and So." There is but one Audubon, one 

 Emerson, one Agassiz. Those of the same name 

 who preceeded or followed them, may be called 

 by other names, but for the master, one is enough. 



During January it was reported here that the 

 robins had come back, several of the birds having 

 been seen. It is not unusual for robins to oc 

 cur here in winter, though they generally winter 

 farther south. These birds are probably old 

 males, that, being hardy enough to endure our 

 winters have lingered in some protected spot. 

 The migratory robins are not due till this month. 



Although the literature of a subject includes 

 all the published knowledge concerning it, lit- 

 erature in its strictest sense does not include 

 mere records of facts. Of course facts are in- 

 dispensable but real literature consists more in 

 the opinions, ideas and fancies of the writer, than 

 in the facts themselves. We wish to give our 

 magazine a literary cast and shall give the pref- 

 erence to those ideas that have not been in piint 

 before. 



In Mr. Geo. M. Leslie's well written article 

 on the marsh-wren, in this number the theory is 

 advanced that the wrens leave many nests un- 

 finished because dissatisfied with them, but after 

 studying the habits of the house wren, another 

 member of this interesting family, we have come 

 to another conclusion. This wren after taking 

 up its residence in a suitable cavity goes ener- 

 getically to work to fill with rude nests all 

 other nesting-places, near. He seems actuated 

 to this, either by the love of nest-building or 

 with the idea of keeping other birds away. 



It seems as if the "Botanist" part of our 

 name is likely to lapse for want of botanical 

 articles. In this country, papers devoted to 

 ornithology and botany outnumber botanical 

 papers, ten to one, although there are apparently 

 more people interested in flowers than in birds. 

 Botany is taught in nearly all schools!, ornith- 

 ology in none, and vet the latter science has the 

 best of it so far as publications are concerned. 

 It is to be hoped that our botanists will interest 

 themselves in this matter and do all in their 

 power to build up their half of the magazine. 



One would think that nobody could shoot 

 such a confiding and fearless bird as the chick- 

 adee. H e is always on friendly terms with man 

 but especially so, at this season, when thoughts 



