Dec. 13. 1883. J 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



38B 



day. say Si} oenta, aid fliia sum must supply Mm -with food 

 and oilier luxuries. 



When the company camps the meu separate iuto little 

 wmadis of five or six members for mess purposes, and &nc 

 membcre of each mess contribute their mtteatobn: 

 Corn, watermelons, or whatever the nearest rnncli car 



[ saw several men trying to make a strong drink out of 

 linltiphi/'x, a little round wild pepperas large as a cranberry, 

 These terries were put into a saita-watnr bottle, and the 

 bottle, filled up with water, was hung al th« belt during the 

 march, so lhat besides getting the heat of the sun it was well 

 joggled. The resulting liquor I did not taste, 



The soldiers, when in camp, hail a striking look. The 

 tires sbiniug on the dark, often savage faces, the flash of the 

 bright muskets, the stian.ee clothes or want of clothes .and 

 the free, cureless postures 'made one think father of a robber 

 band than a disciplined army. 



Under the Doctor's energetic but ill-directed guidance Wfi 

 wandered over a good deal of country that was not directly 

 in our line of travel, and everywhere we went, wc found that 

 the men at the different ranches were in hiding in the woods, 

 and had taken their horses and mules [with them to avoid 

 the press gangs and requisitions of the government, Only 

 in the towns had the crimps been able to find any victims at 

 all. 



lion Carlos Ortiz, the very unsatisfactory governor of the 

 Stale, was involved in difficulties with General Reyes, coin 

 mandanle nf the federal troops in the district. Heye's thought 

 Ortiz had better leave, and began concentrating his forces. 

 Ortiz, counting upon the patriotism of his subjects, or the 

 virtue of his impressment, tried to make head against bis foe 

 by a levy of Stale militia. Rut this "cheap defense of 

 nations" 'refused, and neglected (0 serve the State. The few 

 men Ortiz could gather had none of the spirit of the fighters 

 ot C. radars si.-! iVsqiioira and al I., si. deserted by alt but an 

 unreliable handful of troops, Ortiz, fearing the violence of a 

 rflob, laid his ease tearfully before his rival, and borrowed 

 money enough from him to get out of the country. 



So ended this meek revolution, and commerce and indus- 

 try, checked by the fear of war, resumed their lazy progress 

 The ranchmen straggled back to their lives of indolent pov- 

 erty, and visiting foreigners went home in peace. 



H. G. Dtrtoo. 



who do not sufficiently appreciate 

 writing that 1 am in the habit of 

 time, and of asking too much of tl 

 these But it is always desirable to 

 tin- species described by Ihe early 

 orderly ornithological housekeepin 

 undertake the drudgery of such men 

 charitably upon the street sweeper v 

 pass on d'ry -shod to more inviting 

 nial lists of synonyms, the exhibiti 



JJ*&fi/ $i$torg. 



THE PURPLE FINCH AND HIS COUSINS. 



BY UK. ELLIOTT COOES. 

 1. — Cai'/iudMM Pn rp U rr'i », 



MARK CATKSBY. the first edition of whose memorable 

 work on natural history was published between 1731 

 ano 1 748, is the first person known to have described the 

 beautiful bird which forms the subject of the present 

 sketch. That zealous and successful naturalist gave it the 

 name it has ever since borne, albeit one none too appropriate, 

 for the color is far from being that combination" of red and 

 blue of which we think when we bear of the "purple robes 

 of royalty," being a rosy red obscured in places -with brown, 

 not wdth blue. Catesby's figure is very wrongly colored, 

 though his description 'is unmistakable; and so far was this 

 misapprehension of the. tint carried by Brissou, that the lat- 

 ter faithful writer speaks constantly' of the "dark violet" 

 plumage, and actually names our rosy bird the "Bon 



violet de la Ca 

 the t 



,'reuil 

 . But 

 i these 



the ueed of this ldud of 

 giving too much of my 

 i'eirs. to dry details like, 

 identify and account for 

 writers, asamattcr of 

 g. If I am willing to 

 ial service, let them look 

 :bo thus enables them to 

 places, Those long elis- 

 or! of which has more 

 of pc la. .try or a desire 



m makingof books, 

 ml most useful pur- 

 tor writing by 

 been written on 



tablished his Vringtifa purpurea, the bird which will doubt- 

 less continue to be called "purple" to the. end of the orni- 

 thological chapter. 



There is but one other point in the early history of this 

 bullfinch to which I wish to allude, iu clearing up the only 

 dubious synonym with which the bird has, to my knowledge. 

 suffered. ' For il seems that in 1785 Thomas Pennant "re 

 described this already well-established species basing bis ac- 

 count upon a specimen in the Blnekburuiun .Museum, -:■ n t to 

 lie .from New York, lie called it the "i •rim.-on-hr-ad lmcli," 

 and speaks of it in the following terms, more exact in fact 

 than those he employs to characterize bis "purple finch" 

 itself: 



"F. With a crimson bead and breast; the first faintly 

 marked with dusky spots; space behind each eye dusky; 

 back, coverts of the wings, primaries, and tail black, edged 

 with crimson; belly white, tinged with red," 



None can doubt what bird the accurate author intended 

 by the description, especially as we are told that it inhabits 

 New York, where it arrives in April, and is very frequent 

 among ihe red cedars. It is. iu fact, a better description 

 than that given either by Catcsby or Frisson. I In- last pf 

 which is copied by Pennant: for tiiosc birds which the Eng- 

 lish naturalist described from actual inspection of .specimens 

 arc. as a rule, much more faithfully set. forth than arc those 

 the accounts of which he borrowed from his predecessors. 

 Pennant's notice happens not to have been acted upon by 

 Gnielin; but Latham, in 1700, based upon it a certain Fi-hif/ilki 

 rosea, B., wrongly considering it a. variety of a bird described 

 by Pallas, from Lake Baikal, under the name of .Fiiii'/illrt 

 ri>ma, being apparently misled by Pennant's suggestion that 

 such might, be the case.* 



1 think that still a third name may be found for our pretty 

 bullfinch among these same early archives. For Latham de- 

 scribed a certain Ui.iia liiirhordra iu terms strongly suggestive 

 of the self -same-bird in the humble garb ot the female or 

 yOung, lie says il is from Hudson's Bay, with Short, stout 

 ill] mkc a bullfinch's, dark brown above, the feathers of the 

 back and rump, as well as secondaries and reetriec.- edged 

 with reddish, the wing coverts with two bars of I lie same, the 

 breast and Hanks while with lengthwise dusky streaks, the 

 middle of the belly and the erissum white, the tail forked, 

 the length Uve inches. On the principle of exclusion, at any 

 rate, it is difficult to surmise what else this can be meant for, 

 though it is too uncertain a description to he referred with 

 confidence to the present species. 



As to the l-'riiitjiUu mininMint, or hi.-mpbird. of Barlram. 

 which I left undetermined iu my e.-say on the ornithology of 

 that, interesting writer. 1 find that Wilson, whose relations no 

 Bartratn were such that he would he likely to know, says 

 positively that it is this species, aud that Biuret makes titer 

 same quotation without hesitation. 



It may often be thought by those of my patient readers 



»ru)Uus's nii'd is iiaieedelosely related,. yet Uilirtea, . i 



dncua (P an i newt of "I traj 's Hand List." No, r,828, said to be 

 tigursaou pi. Alt of ' il-uilui Hint- , ,,,■,,,, pl.ues IS an,| ;iil 



■ Mi.iijiutt; & Sclilegel's Monograph at the Loxiaus.' 



THE PUnrLE FLSCIT. 



the same topic, and by narrowing the possibilities of desira- 

 ble addition to the literature of the subject to those persons 

 who have not only something new to say. but also something 

 worth saying. For it is, or should be, a cardinal rule of 

 authorship to let the pen aloue until the entire literature of 

 the subject under consideration has been examined aud 

 digested by the intending author. If the person who has 

 faithfully done this still believes that there is anything left 

 for him to say, or that he can say anything better than it has 

 been said before, let him then proceed, even though, as will 

 probably be the case, he is mistaken in such belief, 



The only late synonym of the purple finch, to my knowl- 

 edge, is the Carpo(l,«"ii r,iiJ,,,nu.->Ks of Baird, described in 

 1858, and which the aulhorsof the "History of North Ameri- 

 can Birds" stdl distinguish as a separate race of this species. 

 It may be that they are quite right in so doing, but I scarcely 

 feel tlie necessity of recognizing by mime distinctions so slight 

 as those upon which •riltfontieut rests are acknowledged to 

 be. In any event their life-history cannot be different 

 enough to merit separate notice; and 1 shall not hesitate to 

 treat of both forms, if such they really be. as one. iu all that 

 remains for our further consideration'. 



The purple finch is distributed at large over all those por- 

 tions of the United Slates where there is woodland, except- 

 ing, perhaps, in the Southern Rockv Mountain region, where 

 il appears to be replaced by C. ram/ii. and throughout the 

 temperate wooded portions of British America, il is a 

 migratory bird, but 1 have no record of its presence south of 

 our country, over the greater portion of which it may be 

 found in winter. It, was early observed by Nuttall and Towns- 

 end to inhabit the Paeilic. slope, and the form separated by 

 Raird has been shown to he a common bird of the country 

 whence its specific name is derived, and where it comes into 

 competition with the race of Buriones, or house (inches, in- 

 habiting the same region. 1 have myself traced the familiar 

 and agreeable bird to the Very border of the United States, 

 iu Dakota, where I found it in July on Turtle Mountain, so 

 inhospitable during much of the year — at least until October 

 —during which month I saw- docks of purple finches in the 

 shrubbery of the Missouri Liver, at Fort Kandall. Other 

 naturalists, as Sir John Richardson and Captain Thomas 

 Blakiston, haver extended the known range of the bird in 

 that direction into the country of the Saskatchewan. 



The actual movements of the brilliant songster within the 

 broad area of its dispersion are less easily determined will: 

 precision. Wc know that it is a thoroughly migratory bird 

 yet the limits of its. winter quarters so far overlap the' boon 

 iiaries of its range during the breeding season that it may 

 appear in some places to be stationary — or at, any tate it is 

 in some regions to be found during 'the whole year. It is 

 hardy enough to endure without iuconvcuience the winter 

 of our middle districts, and is occasionally seen during the 

 same season as far north as New England.' The great body 

 of the birds, however, betake themselves late in" the fall to 

 the Middle and Southern States, extending their leisurely 

 autumnal fiights in many cases to the Gulf States. Thus it 

 is. one of the common winter birds of Pennsylvania, Mary- 

 land i l \ hginia. as well as of localities further south. On 

 the opening of the year following, the entire body of the 

 birds pass northward, and. in the regions just mentioned, 

 thi specii even more abundant than during the settled 

 state of affairs in whiter. Some linger through the summer 

 in Pennsylv* ii - as attested both by Audubon and by later 

 observers, among whom Turnhull maybe mentioned ; and 



there is [uestion of tin h nesting, occasionally at least, in 



such latitudes But ihe majority press on lo .New England 

 aud Canada, while Others Lnal have taken a route lurlher 

 WPSt reach ihe bottlers ot the United States in Wisconsin 

 and Dakota, and even press beyond iu sonic cases. 



Such state, of the case as 1 have sketched is illustrated if we 

 consider some convenient central locality, say. for example, 

 the District of Columbia, where I became very well acquain- 

 ted will) the birds in my boyhood, There it is a common 

 feature of the winter serene— like tne snowbird, the thistle 

 bird and other interesting <_'<ii>ir<»<ni — in flocks iu the noble 

 forests that skirl the city" of doubrtiil polities, and even oc- 

 casionally in bunches in the market place, along with shore 

 larks, pipits, and such small game brought in for sale by the 

 farmer boys. It comes from the North with the white- 

 throated and the Savannah sparrows, early in October, about 

 the lime when the snowbirds begin to' descend from the. 

 mountains west of cs; autl it remains in full lone until the 

 following May- During this month Ihe swelling buds of 

 numberless trees invite to a dainty repast, and numbers dally 

 by the Wayside before making up" their minds to be off: but 

 si'niiaw of the purple finches are prompt lo remember their 



engagements for the comiugsummer, that they take their leave. 

 by the time when the vernation of the woodland is accom- 

 plished. Hence they make with us no part of bird life shel- 

 tered in foliage, hut of scenes in which their trim forms arc 

 displayed against a background of naked, rustling branches, 

 and tlieir melody is borne upon uncertain gusts of wind, 

 before the anxious, thinly-clad forest has ceased to sigh. 

 The voice of the purple finch has always seemed to me one 

 of the links of the ye'ar, binding the new to the latest traces 

 of a vanishing order of events. For the constant birds, that 

 answered with encouragement the rustling of seemingly 

 lifeless branches, burst into song with the quickening of 

 Uloasoms, and then away, to return with the fall of the leaf 

 hose birth they greeted with acclamation. 

 Enter, at such time, any piece of high open woodland in 

 the outskirts of Washington, or one of the cedar groves still 

 preserved near the city, and you will be likely to find a troop 

 of purple. finches whose familiarity will permit you to watch 

 their movements at your leisure. Very probably there is a 

 flock of twenty or thirty, just alighted and scattered to feed 

 on yonder maple trees, 'where they are too busily engaged 

 in their operations on the buds to notice your approach. 

 They have settled after a devious undulatory flight from 

 some depth of the forest, very suddenly and in a compact 

 heap, like so many cedar birds; aud after looking about for 

 a few moments during which they stood motionless and 

 silent, have given some reassuring chirps, and separated with 

 alacrity to their repast. Now when a purple finch does 

 anything he does it with a will and decided purpose, and 

 becomes entirely absorbed; so you may see the whole 

 number, apparently oblivious of each other's presence as well 

 as of your own, intent upon destroying as manv buds as pos- 

 sible 'within a ni ven time. They cling lo the ends of the. 

 branches where the hurls are crowded most, creep or flutter 

 from one to another of the smallest twigs, stretch out in vari- 

 ous attitudes, and even hang downward for a few seconds for 

 some specially coveted morsel, altogether demeaning them 

 selves not unlike crossbills under similar circumstances. 

 They are n.ot quarrelsome birds, and the meal is likely to be 

 decorous enough, but that they are quick-tempered and 

 quite ready to stand up for their rights you probably satisfy 

 yourself before many minutes tire gone; for if two of them 

 happen to fancy the" same bud. there is sure to be a spirited 

 discussion on the instant. Up go two crests, a defensive al- 

 titude is taken, some words pass, and the weaker of the two 

 is quickly forced to fly. In any such gathering as this, you 

 will observe that the plain brown streaky birds by. far out- 

 number the bright-colored leaders of the band; for half the 

 flock consists of females, and there are among them also a 

 large proportion of young males ; for the latter do not acquire 

 their f ull' plumage the first year. Select now the best dressed, 

 one of the lot, and fire: away go his more fortunate com- 

 panions, frightened out of their" wits, while he falls a prize 

 at your feet. If be he killed outright, vou will observe, as 

 you smooth the plumage and flick off the blood stains before 

 consigning the specimen that he has become to your game- 

 bag, that 'the edges of the bill are covered with the soft. 

 greenish substance of the buds upon which he was feeding, 

 leaving no more doubt of the nature of his repast than if you 

 examined the well-filled gizzard. Should he fall with only 

 a broken wing, you find what a spirited fellow the purple 

 tiuch is; for he will raise his crest in defiance, and fight with 

 the determination of despair against such hopeless odds — 

 biting, scratching and crying out all at once— not; a kingbird 

 or a virco would make a braver effort in self-defense. Had 

 you refrained from molesting this proud and handsome finch, 

 doubtless a still more engaging exhibition of his accomplish- 

 ments might have been witnessed. For. his repast con- 

 cluded, lie would most probably have betaken himself to the 

 topmost twig of the tree, where, with his form clearly out- 

 lined against the blue skyfbis throat swelling and bis head 

 thrown up. he would have delighted you with Ihe earnest- 

 ness, the variety and the melody of his song. The most en- 

 joyable purple' finch concerts'you are likely to attend will 

 be those given just before sunset, iu those delightful, quiet, 

 moments when' nature seems to pause before she withdraws 

 the last golden rays from an illumined landscape— when the 

 slanting sunbeams light up a rosier tint on the breasts of the 

 emulous birds, wbo vie with each other in the expression of 

 their tendercst emotions. The sparrows arc settling with 

 contented chirping to their humble bed in the shrubbery at 

 our feet; the cow-bells are tinkling from the homestead yon- 

 der; there is jusl a shiver in the air as a damp breath from 

 the brook below steals along the hillside, and the purple 

 finches are still. 



As I have said, we have Audubon's authority for the state- 

 ment that these birds nestle at least as far south as Pennsyl- 

 vania, aud it should surprise no one to discover that the 

 mountains furnish them with congenial homes still further 

 remote from their accredited breeding range. He saw them 

 in pairs in the great pine forest, where they were attending 

 to their young, then not fully fledged. The statement is in- 

 dorsed liy other observers independently. Dr. Turnbull re- 

 marks that a few remain every summer in East Pen nsylvama. 

 Mr. Gentry's experience, however, is to the contrary. He 

 never saw 'purple finches in that State during the breeding 

 season, though he does not deny that they may nest among 

 the Wissahickon hills. A recent contributor to the Mntddl 

 Bi'lUiin, Mr. R. F. Pearsall. notices one of the most south 

 crly breeding stations of which we have any record, having 

 observed a purple finch in full song and plumage, and appar- 

 ently resident, at Bayside, Long Island, where he Subse- 

 quently verified this indication by discovering a pair. "Feel- 

 ing sure that they musi have nested there, after diligent 

 starch I discovered the nest, located as usual, some fortyi'eet 

 in ground, near the top of a large spruce tree; it con- 

 tained ordy two eggs, well advanced in incubation. This 

 was June 15, and Tarn at & loss to explain their late domes- 

 lie arrangements, except with the surmise that tlieir first nest 

 was destroyed, or that they felt out of their latitude, as in- 

 deed their actions seemed to indicate. They remained in this 

 vicinity but a short: time, and, 1 think, did not attempt an 

 other nest. The construction of the nest, its situation, and 

 the eggs, except iu number, wore almost identical with il set 

 r. i Hi-, e just previously at Grand Menau." 

 It is. however, to New England that wc must 'urn if we 

 wouldbeoaufle fully acquainted with the d mes ic conomyof 

 these charming buds. They breed in that part Ot the .• 

 try in abundance, and one I ' a li tiding local ornithologists. 

 Dr. Brewer, has been very successful in following up the 

 Subject. Neither Wilson nor AndUbOU appear to have 

 known aught of the malter: and we doubtless owe to the 

 Massachusetts ornithologisi just mentioned our first descrip- 

 tion of the nest and eggs, contributed by Dr. Brewer to 

 Audubon's page. It, is there slated thai Mr. Cabot was the 

 first naturafist to discover them. In the account, however, 

 the eggs are stated to be "of a bright emerald green," which 



