THE OOLOGIST 



117 



of ten officers that were assigned to 

 take a course in aviation so that if 

 any time we should desire to know 

 what the Huns were doing that the 

 General could send one of his own 

 officers up to look over the situation. 

 I have now been in the air service for 

 several months and I don't think that 

 a single bird I ever saw could do more 

 stunts than I could in the air except 

 two — the Sparrow Hawk and the Gull 

 — they can stand still in the air and 

 we can't. But I never did see one that 

 could turn flipp loop-fly upside down or 

 spin. But we all have to admit that 

 when the bird goes up he is sure of 

 coming down safely (unless some gun- 

 ner gets him) and that is more than 

 the best aviator can say. But never- 

 theless there is no sport that can 

 come up to the flying game. Some 

 day I hope to fly over the city of Ber- 

 lin and leave my data right on the 

 roof of the Kaiser's house. Also I 

 would like a set of eggs that were col- 

 lected in Berlin, personally, and right 

 on the Kaiser's lawn (if our bombs 

 leave any). 



Geo. E. Maxon, Lieut., 

 344th Machine Gun Battalion, 

 Camp Travis (San Antonio) Tex. 

 If this finds a place in your little 

 magazine I would like to hear from 

 any of the members that are in the 

 service and where they are. 



Illinois Audubon Bulletin, Spring and 

 Summer 1918. 



This issue is especially interesting 

 in many respects and more than usual- 

 ly in illustrations. It contains much 

 relating to forest preserves to be used 

 as bird sanctuarys, an article on "My 

 Winter Guests" by Mrs. Robert Ridge- 

 ly of Olney, 111., a resume of the 1918 

 invasion of Illinois by the Snowy Owl 

 by Ruthford Dean, an article on the 

 rare birds of the Chicago region by 

 Prof. G. W. Eifreig and much other 



interesting matter. 



It is accompanied by a bulletin of 

 the Maywood bird club on the subject 

 of the effect of cats upon the birds, the 

 figures of which are perfectly start- 

 ling. 



It is stated that there are approxi- 

 mately 25,000,000 cats in the United 

 States. That these cats destroy over 

 202,000,000 birds annually that these 

 birds have an actual money value of 

 $1.00 each to the farmer. It is to be 

 hoped that every friend of the birds 

 will inaugurate and keep up continu- 

 ously a warfare of extermination 

 against the useless destroying animal. 

 The cat has no place in our present 

 day world when permitted to run at 

 large. — Editor. 



Books Received. 



The Great Plains Water Fowl 

 Breeding Grounds and Their Protec- 

 tion, by Harry C. Oberholser. Sep- 

 arate from year book, Dept. of Agri- 

 culture, 1917. 



This paper of ten pages further em- 

 phasizes the great need of adequently 

 protecting the summer home of the 

 wild ducks and geese. It is patent to 

 almost any observer that unless this 

 is done there will soon be no more 

 wild ducks and geese than there are 

 wild pigeons and Dr. Oberholser has 

 gone into the matter thoroughly. 



A Study of the Atlantic Oceanities, 

 by Robt. Cushman Murphy, being a 

 separate pp. 117-140 and several illus- 

 trations from a Bulletin of American 

 Museum of Natural History Vol. 

 XXXVIII March 1918. In this paper 

 Mr. Murphy discusses this little 

 known family largely as a result of 

 a number of specimens procured by 

 the Brewster Sanford expedition had 

 by Roland H. Beck. A great many in- 

 teresting facts are disclosed in this 

 analysis. 



