﻿LETTER 
  OE 
  TRANSMITTAL 
  

  

  U. 
  S. 
  Department 
  oe 
  Agriculture, 
  

  

  Biological 
  Survey, 
  

   Washington, 
  D. 
  c 
  7 
  ., 
  July 
  31, 
  1905. 
  

   Sir 
  : 
  I 
  have 
  the 
  honor 
  to 
  transmit 
  herewith, 
  for 
  publication 
  as 
  Bul- 
  

   letin 
  21 
  of 
  the 
  Biological 
  Survey, 
  a 
  report 
  on 
  the 
  quails 
  of 
  the 
  United 
  

   States 
  and 
  their 
  economic 
  value, 
  by 
  Sylvester 
  D. 
  Jucld. 
  The 
  quails 
  

   as 
  a 
  group 
  are 
  perhaps 
  better 
  known 
  through 
  the 
  country 
  than 
  

   any 
  other 
  birds. 
  From 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  the 
  first 
  settlements 
  in 
  New 
  Eng- 
  

   land 
  and 
  Virginia 
  till 
  the 
  present 
  day 
  they 
  have 
  been 
  favorite 
  objects 
  

   of 
  pursuit 
  by 
  sportsmen, 
  and 
  are 
  w 
  T 
  idely 
  known 
  as 
  table 
  delicacies. 
  

  

  The 
  chief 
  purpose 
  of 
  the 
  present 
  paper 
  is 
  to 
  consider 
  the 
  quails 
  

   in 
  their 
  economic 
  relations 
  to 
  the 
  farmer 
  — 
  relations 
  not 
  so 
  well 
  under- 
  

   stood 
  as 
  they 
  deserve 
  to 
  be. 
  Investigation 
  shows 
  the 
  birds 
  to 
  be 
  no 
  

   less 
  important 
  in 
  their 
  economic 
  than 
  in 
  their 
  other 
  relations 
  to 
  man. 
  

   They 
  are 
  found 
  to 
  be 
  exceedingly 
  valuable 
  allies 
  of 
  agriculture 
  be- 
  

   cause 
  of 
  the 
  quantity 
  of 
  noxious 
  insects 
  and 
  weed 
  seeds 
  they 
  destroy, 
  

   while 
  the 
  harm 
  they 
  do 
  is 
  insignificant. 
  

  

  I 
  am 
  indebted 
  to 
  my 
  assistant, 
  E. 
  W. 
  Nelson, 
  for 
  preparing 
  the 
  

   introduction 
  and 
  critically 
  reading 
  the 
  text, 
  and 
  to 
  the 
  Bureau 
  of 
  

   Entomology 
  for 
  the 
  identification 
  of 
  many 
  of 
  the 
  insects 
  mentioned. 
  

   Respectfully, 
  

  

  C. 
  Hart 
  Merriam, 
  

   Chief 
  Biological 
  Survey. 
  

   Hon. 
  James 
  Wilson, 
  

  

  Secretary 
  of 
  Agriculture. 
  

  

  3 
  

  

  