OOLOGIST S EXCHANGE. 



Packing foe Transportation. To 



pack eggs for transportation, each one 

 should be enveloped in a roll of raw cot- 

 ton. The eggs over an inch long should 

 be laid in layers in large paste-board 

 boxes, each one having been previously 

 wrapped in a roll of raw cotton. The 

 outside box, or one that contains them 

 ull, must be made of wood, as paste- 

 board boxes without anything to protect 

 them, would certainly be broken or 

 crushed in transportation. We have 

 found this to be invariably our experience 

 and we have had many valuable eggs 

 broken from their having been packed in 

 paste-board boxes, and not enclosed in 

 wooden ones. 



F raw cotton cannot be procured in 

 sufficient quantity at a cheap rate, old 

 rope carefully picked in tow makes a 

 very good substitute. Or the silk from 

 the ear of Indian Corn makes a capital 

 article for the purpose. Large eggs may 

 be packed in dry moss, using great care 

 to envelope them entirely in it. But 

 after all, raw cotton is by far the best 

 substitute to use when it can be pro- 

 cured cheaply. 



Never pack eggs in saw dust or bran; 

 it works in at the holes where the eggs 

 are blown, and makes them so solid that 

 they jolt together in the box and break. 

 We have seen some very valuable eggs 

 entirely ruined by being packed in this 

 manner. 



[To be continued. J 



Nest of the Black Billed Magpie. 



On the 16th of April, 1887, I started 

 out with several other boys, to collect 

 eggs. The first to attract our attention 

 was a Magpies nest. We had walked 

 about three miles, when we came to a 

 large pond on the banks of which, there 

 were bunches of scrub. We took a 

 lunch with us, and stopped to eat in that 

 ocality, while we were thus engaged. II 

 noticed a large bunch of twigs in the top 

 of an oak, about thirty yards distance. 

 The Magpies were flying over our heads 

 and chattered as though they knew of 

 our presence. As I approached the nest 

 a female bird flew out. On climbing up 

 to the nest I discovered that it contained 

 four eggs. The nest was a bulky affair 



and was made of coarse twigs, some of 

 which were a half inch in diameter, it 

 would easily have filled a bushel basket. 

 The twigs in the bottom of the nest weie 

 stuck together with mud and those on 

 top were just laii on. It was of an oval 

 shape and had a bole about six inches in 

 diameter in one side, which enabled the 

 bird to enter. The eggs were the size 

 of a pigeons egg in circumference, but 

 were much longer and of a brownish 

 yellow color, thickly specked with brown 

 so much so that I could scarcely disting- 

 uish the ground color. After packing 

 the eggs carefully we went around the 

 pond, which covered two acres of ground 

 and found three more nest-, which con- 

 tained three, six and seven eggs. I dis- 

 posed of the eggs to a Collector in Cal. 

 who considered them very fine speci- 

 mens. Hoping this will be of interest 

 to some one. I am Respectfully, 



Feed. M. Stephens. 

 Ogden City, Utah. 



Davie's Eg-g- Checklist and Key to the 



Nests and Eggs of N. A. Birds. 

 Introduction by J. Parker Norris and illustrat- 

 ed by 12 full page engravings. 



This, the third and final edition, will contain 

 over 300 pages exclusive of Introduction, etc. It 

 contains full and accurate descriptions of all 

 nests and eggs of N. A. birds, with breeding 

 range, habitat, etc. Price cannot be positively 

 stated but we will furnish it at $1.00 to all order- 

 ing in advance. Copy will be sent as soon as 

 work is issued. Address, 



DICKINSON & DURKEE, 

 S uron, Wisconsin. 



Qi 



jueries. 



F. W. S., Poukeepsie, N. Y.— The bird you call 

 Ground Robin is Townee (237). Canary is prob- 

 ably Am. Goldfinch (181) in your locality. As 

 near as we can learn Sewing Bird must be Bait. 

 Oriole (271) but cannot be positive. 



Exchanges and Wants. 



Notices of Exchanges, Wants, etc., inserieu in 

 this column at the rate of 20 cents -'or 25 words 

 and one-half cent for eacli additional word. 

 None inserted for less than 20 cents. 



The following first-class eggs in sets witli reli- 

 able data to exchange for same. Nos. 4, 63a, 123a, 

 249, 245, 240b, 182, 486b, 51G, 7G3a, 323, 231c. 



WM. It. FLINT, 574 Sycamore St., 

 Oakland, Cal. 



To Exchange.— A confederate $100 bill issued 

 Dec. 2nd, 18G2; unbound Nos. of Youth's Com- 

 panion for '85 and '86; St. Nicholas for '85 and 

 '86; also Bird's Eggs in sets with data, for best 

 otter of Bird's Eggs in sets with data, and pair 

 of climbers. FRED W. CURTIS, 



Wauwatosa, Wis. 



To Exchange.— I have a large number of 

 first class eggs in sets to exchange for others. 

 W. F. i.jiWIS, East Liverpool, Ohio. 



