2 JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
approached in so many different ways that it is almost impossible to 
formulate any satisfactory plan of treating this important matter." 
On the one hand there are those who would destroy almost every 
species of wild bird we possess, whilst, on the other hand, the 
enthusiastic bird-lover would take equally stringent measures to 
preserve them, exclaiming " We do not protect birds solely because 
they are useful, but chiefly from ethical and aesthetical reasons, as 
birds give beauty and animation to Nature. We also wish to preserve 
their species, and hence the protection of birds signifies the preservation 
of the monuments of Nature." 
As I have elsewhere stated, " the wholesale destruction of birds 
for the purpose of protecting crops and orchards is, economically, 
an unsound policy," but the bird-lover is equally wrong in his or her 
sentimental enthusiasm, and the argument quoted above might quite 
logically be advanced for the rat, the mosquito, and numerous other 
obnoxious animals. 
In any investigation upon such a subject as this, if the results 
are to be of any value, we must place on one side all sentimental 
considerations and be guided alone by the conclusions obtained by 
careful and detailed work extending over a considerable period of 
time. 
Much of the earlier work carried out in this country is very crude ; 
further, many opinions are annually expressed in the Press founded 
upon insufficient knowledge. The economic status of any particular 
species of bird can only be ascertained after prolonged and careful 
investigation by trained and experienced investigators. The setting of 
senior students in our agricultural colleges and universities to under- 
take such investigations is hardly likely to further our knowledge ; 
on the other hand, with the semblance of authority, it is very likely 
to prove misleading. 
Bearing in mind the many difficulties that confront the investi- 
gator, experience has shown that a very accurate knowledge may be 
gained of a bird's feeding habits and the nature of its food by the 
employment of the following methods : — 
Firstly, it is necessary to examine the food contents found in 
the whole of the intestinal tract frequently, during the different 
seasons of the year. The nature of these and their bulk must be 
accurately identified. The nature of the food brought to the nest 
by the parents during the breeding season must also be taken into 
account. " Any investigation on the economic status of most species 
of wild birds is incomplete, and to a large extent misleading, that 
does not deal " with this important matter, " for during the nesting 
period the food of the parent birds consists largely of insects, slugs, 
spiders, and worms, and that of the young almost entirely so, and the 
amount of the food consumed is greater than at any other season 
of the year." 
Secondly, the nature of the faeces, and also of the faecal matter 
extruded from the nest, must receive attention. 
