88 USEFUL BIRDS. 
he also sees a value in birds for the opportunity they afford 
for the culture of the intellect. Every page of the book of 
nature is educational.. But, as Dr. Coues says, there is no 
fairer or more fascinating page than that devoted to the life 
history of a bird. The systematic study of birds develops 
both the observational faculties and the analytical qualities 
of the mind. The study of the living bird afield is rejuve- 
nating to both mind and body. The outdoor use of eye, ear, 
and limb, necessitated by field work, tends to fit both the 
body and mind of the student for the practical work of life, 
for it develops both members and faculties. It brings one 
into contact with nature, — out into the sunlight, where balmy 
airs stir the whispering pines, or fresh breezes ripple the blue 
water. There is no purer joy in life than that which may 
cone to all who, rising in the dusk of early morning, wel- 
come the approach of day with all its bird voices. The nature 
lover who listens to the song of the Wood Thrush at dawn 
—an anthem of calm, serene, spiritual joy, sounding through 
the dim woods —hears it with feelings akin to those of the 
devotee whose being is thrilled by the grand and sacred music 
of the sanctuary. And he who, in the still forest at even- 
ing, harkens to the exquisite notes of the Hermit, — that 
voice of nature, expressing in sweet cadences her pathos and 
her ineffable mystery, — experiences amid the falling shades 
of night emotions which must humble, chasten, and purify 
even the most upright and virtuous of men. 
The uplifting influence that birds may thus exert upon the 
lives of men constitutes to many their greatest value and 
charm. A growing appreciation of the esthetic and the edu- 
cational value of birds has sent many cultured folk to the 
woods, fields, and shores. People are turning toward nature 
study, and the observation of ‘birds in the field is one of the 
most popular manifestations of an increased and abiding in- 
terest in nature. To the utilitarian this movement has an 
economic aspect. Students who have become familiar with 
the common birds of their own vicinity long for new ficlds 
and new birds. Leta well-known writer describe in print any 
locality in Massachusetts where rare or interesting birds arc 
to be found, and soon some of his readers will be upon the 
