218 THE CONDOR Voi,. X 



in character of writings and typographically, the journal soon became not only an 

 abiding place of valuable scientific record but a thing of beauty and a joy forever. 

 From this time to the present the general tone of the Condor has been steadily 

 improving and the members of the Cooper Club have just reason to feel proud of 

 their work. 



During the last ten years, the ornithological articles in the Condor have, 

 with the special publications of the Cooper Club, constituted practically all that 

 has been published on the Pacific Coast; in this space of time there has been less 

 than a dozen other articles on ornithology printed here, with the exception of the 

 publications of the Fish and Game Commission. 



One thing that has always hampered the w^ork of active ornithologists on the 

 Pacific Coast has been the lack of access to any large collection of birds to work 

 with. Workers have had only their own private collections, supplemented by ma- 

 terial borrowed from fellow members and Eastern museums. There is on foot, 

 however, a project to establish at a central point a large collection of birds; the 

 plan will undoubtedly be described in due course, and all I need to say on the 

 matter is to point out to Club members the enormous advantage that will accrue to 

 all if this can be done. All the improvement and good work we have done in the 

 Club has been due to co-operation; if w^e co-operate by combining collections the 

 same will hold true. 



Before we turn our backs to the past and face the future we must mention our 

 absent members — just three or four of them: Barlow, Dr. Cooper, Walter Bryant, 

 Slevin, Miss Mollie Bryan — they all had the interests of the Club and the Condor 

 at heart and ever present in their minds. They strove always for the betterment 

 of the work and the advancement of knowledge and their loss was keenly felt by 

 all; their genial spirits are with us always and our memories of them should carry 

 us over many a dark spot. 



And now, what are we going to make of the Condor in the ten years to come ? 

 Where is there room for improvement ? To answer these questions requires some 

 thought, and frankly I confess that even after hard thinking the result is unsatis- 

 factory. To improve typographically will be natural and commensurate with the 

 march of progress in printing; improvement in caliber of writings will depend upon 

 the work of the Club members and rests with them; perhaps an increase in the size 

 of the journal can be looked for, but that is a financial matter that will call for a 

 committee on finance. Of course we would like to see a Condor three times the 

 size of the usual one; and a volume of 600 pages instead of 200 would be just three 

 times as good; perhaps we will have it before the second decade is completed. But 

 whatever form the improvements may take, let us not forget that it is up to each 

 and every member of the Club to do his best to help out; if we all do that the 

 future is assured. 



And now, all thanks to those who have worked to bring us to this successful 

 ending of our first ten years; we all know who you are, and we thank you; all 

 thanks are due to the little workers as well as the big, and we only hope that you 

 will work as hard in the future as in the past. If you need any encouragement, 

 just read over your old files; remember the obstacles met and surmounted in the 

 past; note the successive steps always up and on, in the improvement of the jour- 

 nal and the work of the Club, and then let's all pull together for an even better 

 record in the next ten years. 



Los Angeles, California. 



