NATURAL SCIENCE NEWS. 



continent, is altogether the lowest; 

 not to speak here of the longer 

 continued abrasion, which but par- 

 tially accounts for their more 

 rounded form. Afterward, when 

 the crust of the earth had grown 

 much stronger, and contracted up- 

 on the molten world within with 

 greater power and persistency, the 

 force beneath accumulated until it 

 burst up the crust with great vio- 

 lence under the line of an exterior 

 fissure or rather series of fissures, 

 extending northeast and south- 

 west; and the second great wall, 

 the Alleghanian system, then a 

 vast promontory dividing the North 

 Atlantic from the North Pacific, 

 was erected. Any one who ever 

 uoticed the series or system of fis- 

 sures provided by contraction in a 

 solidifying surface, irregularly hud- 

 dled, and yet running generally in 

 one direction, may observe just 

 such another system in the moun- 

 tains on the map of our Atlantic 

 states. (It is but fair to remark 

 that we are not attempting a re- 

 port of Prof. Agassiz' lecture, but 

 a sketch of his leading points, with 

 explanations and amplifications 

 designed for the instruction of our 

 readers, for some of which he is 

 not responsible. ) 



At the same time with the Alle- 

 ghanian system — as proved by the 

 cretaceous formation abuting upon 

 the primitive rock alike in both 

 regions — the plateau of Brazil rose 

 above the water, forming in like 

 manner the southeastern wall of 

 South America, and dividing the 

 South Atlantic from the South Pa- 

 cific. North and South America, 

 at the same time, were two great 

 Z-shaped islands with the ocean 

 flowing unobstructed all around 

 and between them, and in their 

 then form incapable of embosom- 

 ing a basin of productive land for 

 the sustenance of organic nature 

 and of man. 



The next step in the task of 

 Providence was to throw up a third 

 barrier which would complete the 

 necessary enclosure. After a con- 

 traction of the now strengthened 

 crust, far more persistent and tre- 

 mendous than it had ever before 

 been capable of, a fissure system 

 was opened on the exterior surface 

 which may be traced on the map 

 through all its intricacies, in the 

 branching „and interlacing of the 

 mountains all the way from Cape 

 Horn to Bhering's Straits; and 

 now the intolerably compressed 

 interior shot upward with the sud- 

 denness of explosion, all along 

 that fissure system, lifting the 

 sharp volcanic peaks of the Andes 



and the Sierras to the sky, and 

 finishing at one stroke the conti- 

 nental frame of this western world. 

 A receptacle was now formed for 

 land, soil, vegetation, animal life 

 and man; a wondrous "coffer dam" 

 erected in the globe of waters, for 

 Nature henceforth to work in un- 

 disturbed, to pulverize the rocks, 

 mix and inpregnate the elements, 

 and clothe the stony skeleton with 

 blooming flesh. 



Carniverous Pine Grosbeaks? 



The following appeared as an 

 editorial in a recent issue of the 

 Saint John (N. B. ) Globe: 



"An observer of winter sights and 

 scenes some time ago called the at- 

 tention of the Globe to the pres- 

 ence in groves and gardens near 

 the city of the strong billed and 

 prettily plumaged bird, familiarly 

 known as the Pine Grosbeak. 

 Scarcely a winter passes without 

 this bird paying a visit to St. John 

 and its vicinity. Although of late 

 years the Pine Grosbeak seems to 

 have grown scarce in numbers, the 

 present year it is widely distribut- 

 ed, as several of our Lower Can- 

 adian and Eastern Maine ex- 

 changes contain references to its 

 presence. The bird is very tame. 

 It feeds principally upon such ber- 

 ries as it may find and largely up- 

 on the red berry known as the 

 rowan, the fruit of the mountain 

 ash. But the Globe's informant 

 made an interesting observation 

 and one to which it may be well to 

 draw the attention of the natural- 

 ist, and that is that the Pine Gros- 

 beak does not disdain for its morn- 

 ing breakfast an English Sparrow. 

 The evidence of this was clear and 

 convincing the Grosbeak — not one 

 or two, but more — being seen with 

 the slaughtered Sparrow in its 

 beak. There seemed to be no 

 mistaking the bird slayer, for it 

 had the brilliant coloring of the 

 Grosbeak which is wanting in the 

 'shrike,' a regular Sparrow killer; 

 but not, as far as we know, a regu- 

 lar visitor here. " 



To the above Mr. A. Gordon 

 Leavitt of Saint John promptly 

 and undoubtedly correctly replied 

 as follows: 



"As I take considerable interest 

 in our native birds, I was greatly 

 surprised at the account given in 

 your issue of Jan. 31, re the Pine 

 Grosbeak breakfasting on the Eng- 

 lish Sparrows. Now, I would not 

 for one instant doubt but that your 

 informant had the very best of in- 



tentions, but to read that one 

 member of the Finch family should 

 be found feasting on another (and 

 that family being well known as 

 seed and berry eaters), left a feel- 

 ing of doubt. 



"I am well aware that there 

 have been and always will be nu- 

 merous erroneous statements made 

 regarding the food and -habits of 

 birds, and chiefly on account of 

 persons placing too much import- 

 ance on what they 'were sure they 

 saw. ' 



"There is but way known to me 

 by which one who would study 

 birds properly can find out exactly 

 what their food consists of, and 

 that is by dissection, for there is 

 hardly any room for doubting that 

 what is found in the crop or giz- 

 zard has been eaten by the bird. 



"Now if your informant is ever 

 again privileged to watch what he 

 or she considers a 'Grosbeak 

 breakfasting on an English Spar- 

 row,' could succeed in bagging 

 one or two of the slayers and 

 would forward the same to me, I 

 would esteem it a favor and would 

 with the aid of knife and glass, en- 

 deavor to make sure as to whether 

 the flesh of the slain had been eat- 

 en or not. 



"A statement such as the one 

 referred to should call forth an- 

 swers from all local naturalists 

 who take an interest in our birds 

 and their habits. For my part, I 

 feel reasonably sure that the 

 slaughterers were Shrikes, for, al- 

 though the males when in full 

 plumage are bluish ash, in the 

 young that color is absent and 

 while the upper parts are quite 

 brownish, the under parts are 

 brownish white. 



"Of course the Pine Grosbeak 

 may be guilty of the charge, but I 

 firmly believe that any member of 

 the Finch family would starve be- 

 fore it would become carnivor- 

 ous." 



It might not be out of place for 

 ye Editor to add in this connection 

 that the Pine Grosbeak is a rare 

 winter visitant with us in Western 

 New York but this winter they 

 seem more abundant than usual 

 and specimens have been taken 

 in a number of localities. 



