6 PREFACE. 



of the pleasure which the observations have given me, 

 I shall be amply rewarded. The keenest, most thrill- 

 ing enjoyment of my life has been found in the prose- 

 cution of these studies. A contemplation of Nature, 

 her ways and works, large or small, far or near, in the 

 heavens or on the earth, becomes a source of perennial 

 pleasure, and a true lover of her gracious and un- 

 bounded revelations need not travel far in search of 

 them. To the lover, especially of birds, insects, and 

 plants, the smallest area around a well-chosen home will 

 furnish sufficient material to satisfy all thirst of knowl- 

 edge through the longest life. 



Mary Treat. 



VlNELAND, N. J. 



