The Food of Birds. 635 



Upon representations made by the Hungarian Central 

 Office for Ornithology, the Minister of Agriculture issued 

 instructions to all agricultural reporters to inquire in their 

 district about the Rook, and to fill up a question-sheet 

 containing 16 questions. 



The Hungarian Central Office for Ornithology also invited 

 all official observers and many volunteers to help in the 

 work. 



On the return of the question-sheets, the material they 

 contained was worked up and schematised by L. de 

 Soos, former member of the Hungarian Central Office for 

 Ornithology, and now assistant-keeper of the Hungarian 

 National Museum. The results were published in Vol. XI. of 

 the Aquila. 



At the same time we gained the co-operation of M. Béla 

 de Hauer, who has a large Rook colony on his estate, and as 

 both agriculture and cattle-breeding are carried on upon 

 this estate it was possible to observe the Rook from both 

 points of view. 



The observations proved that the principles adopted by 

 the Hungarian Central Office for Ornithology were correct 

 and that the Rook is of service both to agriculture and to 

 cattle-bree ding . 



A further step in the observation of the Rook was the 

 sending out of M. Titus Csoergey, assistant of the Hungarian 

 Central Office for Ornithology, to the county of Torontal, 

 where much maize is grown and where the largest Rook 

 colonies are to be found. 



The observations were begun in the autumn 1903 and are 

 still in progress. 



Finally, I must mention that the foundation of the Hun- 

 garian Central Office for Ornithology was due to the 

 munificence of the Hungarian Government and also that 

 its programme of work is approved by the Minister of 

 Agriculture, M. Ignace de Darânyi. 



Except the United States, no other country has as yet a 

 similar Department. 



