186 



THE GAME BREEDER 



and pond holes in the basaltic trap of 

 the vicinity." 



The cinnamon teal was found breeding 

 in Idaho by Mr. Merriam, who took a 

 set of nine eggs, containing large em- 

 bryos, on the 29th of June, on Marsh 

 Creek. The nest was in swamp grass, 

 and lined with down. The eggs of this 

 bird are strictly oval in shape, one end 

 being much smaller than the other — 

 more so than is usual in this family. 

 They are creamy white or pale buff, not 

 shaded perceptibly with the grayish or 

 olive drab so commonly observable in 

 ducks' eggs. 



I do not think that the bird breeds in 

 Arizona ; at least I have not been able to 

 determine satisfactorily that it does so, 



as it always appeared to me to come in 

 the fall, in September or October, with 

 other species of wild iowl, and to leave 

 in the spring with them. But its move- 

 ments are not yet clearly defined, espe- 

 cially since we have to take into consid- 

 eration those of the South American spe- 

 cies. It has not yet been determined 

 whither these are coincident in migration 

 or not ; but the supposition that they are 

 so is the more improbable one.* 



* It now seems certain that the South Ameri- 

 can species do not visit North America. — 

 Editor. 



There appears to be nothing in the 

 habits of this teal different from those 

 of its well known ally, the blue winged 

 teal and probably little to be said on this 

 score. 



THE MIGRATORY BIRD LAW CASE. 



Extracts from the brief of Judge D. C. Beaman, of Colorado, in opposition to 

 the validity of the federal act. 



Judge David C. Beaman, of Colorado, 

 has filed a brief in the Migratory Bird 

 Law case, in the United States Supreme 

 ■Court. 



Some of the points made by Judge 

 Beaman, of Colorado, are of especial 

 interest to game breeders. It is argued 

 forcibly that the act is invalid for un- 

 certainty in that it requires the Agricul- 

 tural Department to make regulations 

 and fails to provide any method or 

 proof of publication of the regulations. 

 The regulations were adopted and 

 printed as circular No. 92 of the 

 Bureau of Biological Survey, and our 

 readers will remember that we pointed 

 •out the fact that they created many fan- 

 ciful crimes. 



Judge Beaman says, "Probably not 



one in a thousand of the people of the 



-country ever saw or ever will see one 



of the circulars or know where to find 

 one (they being now out of print) or 

 would ever think of looking for the pub- 

 lication therein of a criminal law." 



2. Game bird propagation by private 

 enterprise barred. 



Judge Beaman says: "The act fails 

 to prevent the collection or keeping of 

 birds of any kind in public parks, or as 

 house pets, or by people engaged in game 

 bird propagation. There are thousands 

 of people in the East, and some in Colo- 

 rado, engaged in the propagation of 

 game birds, and this is encouraged and 

 protected by the game laws of Colorado 

 and some other States, and thousands 

 of dollars are invested in it. It is a com- 

 ing and important industry. 



Extensive game bird propagators in 

 the East have taken this failure up with 

 the committee without effect. 



■iMimmitimmiiMUi" 1 



