xii BIRDS OF LA PLATA 
brother, residing in Buenos Ayres. In acknowledg- 
ing the book he charged his brother with a message 
to me, and his letter, written in Spanish, was sent 
on to me in London. The message, translated, was 
as follows : 
“Why are you staying on in England, and what 
can you do there? I have looked at your romance 
and find it not unreadable, but this you must know 
is not your line—the one thing you are best fitted 
to do. Come back to your own country and come 
to me here in Cordova. These woods and sierras 
and rivers have a more plentiful and interesting 
bird life than that of the pampas and Patagonia. 
Here I could help you and make it possible for you 
to dedicate your whole time to observation of the 
native birds and the fauna generally.” 
I read the letter with a pang, feeling that his 
judgment was right : but the message came too late ; 
I had already made my choice, which was to remain 
for the rest of my life in this country of my ancestors, 
which had become mine, 
Now after so long a time the pang returns, and 
when I think of that land so rich in bird life, those 
fresher woods and newer pastures where I might 
have done so much, and then look back at this— 
the little I did as shown in these volumes—the 
reflection is forced on me that, after all, I probably 
made choice of the wrong road of the two then 
open to me. 
October, 1920. 
