130 



THE YOUNG 



NATUEALIST. 



but if you delay until they have been 

 sat upon for a fortnight, the bird is 

 much more exhausted, and will not lay 

 again so soon, and in all probability a 

 brood will be lost. Now when we know 

 the value of birds, we also know this 

 to be a real loss. 



If it be birds themselves you seek, do 

 not delay when the opportunity is 

 afforded. You will not find birds in 

 winter with their summer plumage, nor 

 will you then find those birds at all, that 

 only come here to nest. The same rule 

 obtains in summer. You will not then 

 find birds in their winter garb, nor will 

 you find those birds at all that go further 

 north to breed. 



Are you a botanist ? You will still 

 find the rule hold good. You must 

 collect your plants when the proper 

 time arrives for them fiowering, or you 

 will find them in fruit. Perhaps you 

 may get a solitary bloom when the 

 flowers are nearly over, but it will not 

 be very valuable as a specimen. If you 

 put off" till finer weather to gather your 

 specimens of plants that bloom in early 

 spring, you will find you have lost a year^ 



A.re we writing unnecessarily ? An 

 old proverb says ''time and tide wait 

 for no man,** which modern innovations 

 have made into "time, tide, and train 

 wait for no man." We know a gentle- 

 man who boasts he never lost a train in 

 his life. He is always there a few 

 minutes too soon. We know another 

 who may sometimes catch one, but if 

 he does it is with a breathless rush as 

 the train moves out of the station. 

 Do we need to ask which of these would 



make the best Naturalist ? Nature never 

 waits for any one. Larvae feed up, 

 imagines emerge and waste. Eggs hatch, 

 and young birds fly. Flowers bloom and 

 fruits ripen, all at their own time, and 

 none of them ever delay for the con- 

 venience of the ofi'-putting collector. 



One other point before we close. We 

 would urge our young friends to be 

 punctual in their correspondence. Par- 

 ticularly would We urge upon them to 

 be prompt in returning boxes that are 

 not their own. You will soon acquire 

 a character for punctuality or the reverse 

 of it, and it will depend on which you 

 are known by whether your friend who 

 is distributing his duplicates sends to 

 you first or last. If first you may be 

 sure you will receive more and better 

 specimens than if yourparcel is composed 

 of those that remain after others are 

 served. But not only from this motive 

 should you be punctual. It is not right 

 that you should inconvenience others 

 by delay ; and you will always find your 

 work and correspondence accumulate to 

 great inconvenience if you put off till 

 to-morrow. We are writing for begin- 

 ners who have their habits to form, and 

 we would urge in all things that they 

 should never put off till to-morrow what 

 can be done to-day. 



TO CORRESPONDENTS* 



AH communications to be sent to J. E. Bobson, 15 

 Northgate, Hartlepool; or to S. L. Mosley Beau- 

 mont Park, Huddersfield. 



Subscriptions for Vol. III. are now due. 

 Weekly numbers or monthly parts, 6s.; 

 with plain plates ; or 8s. with coloured 



