24:6 The Wilson Bulletin — Xo. 90 



■each of these countries These technical works tell us which 

 are the common birds, but much time is required to sift out 

 these species. The need of the traveler, who must read as 

 he runs, has been well met in those books descriptive of the 

 birds of Bombay and Calcutta, that have been mentioned above. 



If there is call for an apology because of this writing, but 

 one can be offered : It is believed that no one heretofore has 

 published an account of the bird life he saw beside his path- 

 way while pursuing a journey that took him over many of 

 the most popular routes chosen by the average tourist. If 

 the observations of others tally in any respect with mine the 

 recital of them for the most part will be marked by a nega- 

 tive character: by the failure to have seen very many species 

 of birds about which we have learned in song- and story. For 

 the first six months in foreign lands, until London was 

 reached, a scheduled itinerary made out by Thomas Cook 

 and Son was followed by me. After that the viewing of 

 bi-rds entered into the plans: stops for a few days on their 

 account were made now and then ; and the famous colonies 

 of breeding- sea birds on the Fame Islands, and on the Ork- 

 neys and Shetland Isles, were visited. With the exception of 

 a few wonderful sights such as these islands afforded this 

 narrative will be concerned with the common species of 

 avian life. Certainly no one can reasonably expect to see 

 other than common birds on such a trip, and but a small per- 

 centage of those. 



It is with the study of ou*r common birds at home that 

 most of us are employed. In my own case I count twenty 

 years all too short for a thorough acquaintance with the birds 

 of my own dooryard, where thirty-one species have been 

 pleased to nest. Some impression made by the common 

 birds of other lands, some comparisons between them and 

 those of our country, some notes regarding- their scarcity in 

 some places and their abundance in others is the most that 

 can be attempted. The title, " Birds by the Wayside," has 

 been chosen for these chapters, but this does not mean that 

 a desire to speak of other things will always be curbed, and 

 those who care to hear onlv about birds are hereby given 

 due notice. 



