98 THE ENGLISH SPARROW IN AMERICA. 



food supply, have a fair share of natural enemies, and are kept within due bounds of 

 multiplication by natural causes; so that the " balance of power," to use a political 

 phrase, adjusts itself. In short, they have their useful part to play, and they play it ; 

 they have their natural checks, and their increase is naturally checked. (American 

 Naturalist, Vol. XII, p. 500, Aug., 1878.) 



In many parts of Europe bounties have been paid on the Sparrow 

 from time to time for centuries, and to-day in many sections of England 

 the farmers are fighting this pest as bitterly as in any section of the Kew 

 World. If any one doubts that the Sparrow attacks other birds in 

 Europe, let him turn to the evidence given before the select commit- 

 tee of the British Parliament in 1873, and read the statements which 

 support the testimony of Col. Champion Russell with regard to the 

 relations of the Sparrow and the martin. His conclusion is, " If peo- 

 ple will neither protect the martins from the Sparrows nor let them 

 build near their doors and windows for protection, we shall lose these 

 beautiful and most useful birds ; indeed, we are losing them fast. Un- 

 like most other birds, they will not make their nests far from our dwell- 

 ings 3 if not allowed to build there, they disappear." 



RELATION OF THE SPAKEOW TO INSECTS. 



GENERAL SUMMARY OF EVIDENCE. 



The vexed question of the insect-eating habits of the Sparrow is one 

 of the most important ones to be decided, and on the decision inaDy 

 persons would rest their arguments for or against the bird. 



It has been shown that the Sparrow is decidedly injurious to grain, 

 seeds of various kinds, and fruit ; that it causes a decrease in the num- 

 ber of native birds in gardens and on farms, as well as in cities and 

 towns ; and that it is a serious nuisance in many ways. But, if it could 

 be shown that it habitually consumes large numbers of injurious in- 

 sects, there might still be some ground for continuing to protect it, or 

 at least for refraining from its wholesale destruction. 



In the effort to obtain sufficient evidence to settle this question no 

 trouble has been spared, and every scrap of testimony submitted has 

 been carefully considered. 



Particular pains have been taken to obtain every possible fact favor- 

 able to the bird, and the utmost care has been taken to exclude no 

 item of this kind, while in doubtful cases the Sparrow has always been 

 given the benefit of the doubt. Yet, unfortunately for this bird, the 

 result shows plainly that it is not a habitual insect-eater, that it does 

 not prefer insect food, and that it seldom produces any perceptible 

 effect on the numbers of any species of injurious insect. 



We are well aware that these conclusions will be questioned by some 

 friends of the bird, either too busy or too prejudiced to examine the 

 evidence for themselves, but we believe that no candid person can ex- 



