no The Passenger Pigeon 



shooting on the Mississippi bayous for twenty-five years, 

 and used to see and kill some pigeons nearly every 

 spring, from the middle of March to the middle of 

 April. We have shot seventy-two pounds of powder in 

 my camp in thirty days, the party consisting of three 

 men ; and two of us have killed twelve barrels of ducks 

 (Mallards) in four days. On the Detroit River I have 

 shot, in one week, mostly redheads, the following on 

 different days: 102, 119, 142, 155. . . . 



[I have quoted from the latter part of Mr. Phillips' 

 letter to show how plentiful other kinds of birds were 

 in the old days.] 



Under date of Nov. i, 1904, Mr. Phillips writes 

 as follows: 



"In regard to dates, would say that the last nesting 

 of birds set in at about 5 p.m., May 5, 1878, on the 

 southeast side of Crooked Lake. Express charges on 

 barrels to New York from Michigan were $6.50, from 

 Wisconsin $8 ; on live birds $3 per cwt." 



Mr. Phillips also incloses a letter written to him by 

 Mr. Osborn, of Alma, Mich., under date of February 

 23, 1898, which reads: 



Alma, Mich., February 23, 1898. 

 Friend H. T. Phillips : 



Yours with the questions to be answered received, 

 and will say: 



. . . There have been several bodies nesting in 



