I 
vtil 
The Valley Naturalist. 
EstaMisM January, 1878. 
(NATURE DISCERE MORES.) 
Henry Skaer, Publisher- 
Volume I. 
SAINT LOUIS, MO., JULY, 1878. 
Number 7. 
The Skylark. 
BY PERCY BYSSHE SHELLEY. 
Hail to the, blyth spirit ! 
Bird thou never wereth, 
That from heaven, or near it 
Pourest thy full heart 
In profuse strains of unpremeditated art. 
Higher and still higher 
From the earth thou springest, 
Like a cloud of fire; 
The blue deep thou wingest, 
And singing still clost soar, and soaring 
Teach us, spirit or bird, [ever singing. 
What sweet thoughts are thine ; 
I have never heard 
Praise of love or wine 
That painted forth a flood of rapture so de- 
vine. — [Western Oologist. 
Our Engraving . 
With the present issue we present a por- 
trait of Mr. W. W. Calkins, of Chicago, Ills. 
He was born in LaSalle County, (Ills.) May 
29th, 1842. Spent nearly twenty years on a 
farm, while a boy, going to school win- 
ters, attending a seminary for a few 
terms; of this seminary R. Williams, 
one of the ablest educators in that 
state, was principal; he attributes 
whatever success he has had to the 
earnest efforts of Mr. Williams, in de- 
manding thoroughness in study; here 
he picked up some knowledge of 
Greek and Latin, subsequently im- 
proved by future private study, so 
that when eighteen he could read 
Greek and Latin with fluency. The 
war came and he enlisted as a volun- 
teer, served three years ; but as the 
war has nothing to do with his career 
as a naturalist, we will pass over it. 
After the war he went into the lumber 
business and has been in it ever since. 
He was one of the founders of the Ot- 
tawa (Ills.) Academy of Sciences, he 
was its Secretary and President when 
he removed to Chicago in 1870. 
He always had a natural taste for 
the sciences from his boy-hood, at 
thirteen he had a fine cabinet of the 
rocks and fossils of LaSalle countv, though 
he knew but little about them then. 
His publications are as follows: In 1859, in 
the Ottawa Free Trader, seven articles on 
"Geology of LaSalle County." During the 
war he was a regular correspondent of the 
Ottawa Republican. Since the war he has 
probably published one hundred articles of 
a scientific character in various papers and 
magazines. The most "valuable are a series 
in the Cincinnati Quarterly Journal of Sci- 
ence, the American Naturalist, the Valley 
Naturalist and two scientific papers in the 
Proceedings' of the Davenport Academy of 
Science; one of these will enumerate 304 
species of Florida marine shells, with notes 
and descriptions of new species, illustrated. 
His contributions, at different times, include 
Geology, Conchology, Botany, etc. His pri- 
vate cabinet of conchology is the most exten- 
sive in the West, not even excepting Acade- 
mies of science. He is, of course, becoming 
pretty well known as a Conchologist, this^ 
study being his specialty. 
He has made two scientific trips to Florida, 
and will make another this summer, where 
we hope success will attend him in his num- 
erous researches for new scientific facts. 
Allbinos. 
Since the notice appearing in the January 
number of the Valley Naturalist, of the 
capture of an Albino Opossum in the vicinity 
of Ednia, Mo., we have received numerous 
notes from all parts of the country of the 
capture of Albino Opossums. But now we 
receive notices of the capture of Albino 
Squirrels, Robins, and— what next? 
Editorial Chit- Chat. 
Professor Richard Owen, Professor of 
Natural History in the Indiana State Univer- 
sity, Bloomington, Ind., intends to visit our 
city in August or September, if health per- 
mits, and he could hear of a suitable undis- 
turbed locality where he could bring a lot of 
scrap metal and operate with lightning rods 
and his own rods, which he carries with him. 
In another column will be found an interest- 
ing article on terrestrial magnetism, he de- 
voting all his spare time to making observa- 
tions in this particular branch of Science. 
Any person of this city knowing of a suitable 
undisturbed place where he could make ob- 
servations, would confer a favor by notifying 
him of same. 
"The American Association for the ad- 
vancement of science." The annual meeting 
of the above mentioned Society will take 
place at St. Louis, on Wednesday, 
August 19th. The annual meeting of 
the " Entomological Club " will take 
place on the day preceding the meet- 
ing of the association, Prof. J. K. 
Rees, of the Washington University, 
St. Louis, has been elected Secretary 
of the local committe of the reception. 
Oologists do not fail to read the ad- 
vertisement of Prof. Henry A. Ward, 
on another page, he offers for sale rare 
and valuable eggs from all parts of 
the world. It will pay you to deal 
with him. 
It is rumered that the Washington 
University will soon undertake the 
publication of a series of monographs 
after the style of the M Smithsonian 
Miscellaneous Collection." 
WILLIAM AVIRT CALKINS, CHICAGO, ILLINOIS. 
ALBINO SQUIRREL. 
Prof. John H. Frick, Professor of Natural 
History in the Central Wesley an College, at 
Warrenton, Mo., informs us through a letter 
of recent date, that one of his students has 
found an Albino Squirrel near Drake, in Gas- 
conade County, Mo. 
ALBINO ROBIN. 
Ed. Valley Naturalist: 
I saw in your columns an article on the 
White Opossum. I think you would like to 
hear about a White Robin that frequents our 
orchards. Description: Throat, back and 
wings very light drab, bill yellow, breast 
very light drab mingled with salmon color, 
abdomen white, head black, tail the same as 
back but tipped with black and white. Com- 
mon size of the Merula Migraloria. 
Yours respectfully, David B. Penniman. 
Woodburn, Ills., June 25, '78. 
We respectfully call the attention of 
all interested in mineralogy, to the ad- 
vertisement of Prof. A. E. Foote, 
appearing on another page. Also 
those wishing to secure valuable scientific 
and medical books. 
Persons receiving copies of the Natur- 
alist who are not subscribers, will please 
regard it as an invitation to subscribe. From 
all interested in natural science we earnestly 
solicit a subscription. 
Unless otherwise informed, subscriptions 
received after this day will begin with the 
July issue. Back numbers can always be had 
at the regular price. 
For want of space the following articles 
were crowded out: "A Naturalist in Flori 
da " and " Terrestrial Magnetism." 
