What constitutes a Museum Collection of Birds ? 147 



The first class contains students, self-instructing - or with 

 teachers, as., for example, classes from schools, writers, artists., 

 etc. The second class consists in part of mere sightseers, 

 and, in part, of those whose greater intelligence or education 

 increases their appreciation of anything which claims their 

 attention. 



Students' Collections. 



Without question we should first meet the wants of those 

 who presumably will make the best use of the material we 

 may display for their instruction. I would, therefore, give 

 attention, in the first place, to the wants of the student. 

 Fortunately, in most instances, his needs can be supplied 

 with comparatively little expenditure. Educational, as well 

 as ever-present financial considerations, therefore, urge our 

 giving him early attention. 



It should, however, be remembered that we are catering to 

 amateur, not professional or advanced, students of birds. 

 The latter will refer to our research, not exhibition, collec- 

 tions. With this distinction in mind, the writer's experience 

 leads him to believe that fully 90 per cent, of those who visit 

 an exhibition-collection of birds with a definite object in view, 

 do so to identify some bird they have seen in the vicinity. A 

 complete representation of the local avifauna will, therefore, 

 not only furnish the information desired by the greater pro- 

 portion of our purposive visitors, but collectively it reveals 

 the character of the local ornis, always a matter of general 

 interest. The arguments on behalf of these local collections 

 are indeed too obvious to require statement, but suggestions 

 may be made as to their manner of arrangement. 



The practice of including a seasonal as well as a systematic 

 collection of birds in such an exhibition seems highly desirable. 

 The systematic collection will, of course, contain all the birds 

 which have been recorded from the area in question with, it is 

 suggested, the " Accidental Visitants," which form no con- 

 stant part of the ornis, in a group by themselves. 



The labels may give the scientific and local name or names 

 of the bird, its manner of occurrence, dates of migration, if a 

 migrant, and numerical abundance. All the plumages should 



