BY WAY OF APPENDIX. 
229 
ing several eggs. And this leads up to another 
question. Doubtless it is important that boys and 
youths who have a taste for natural history sub- 
jects should form collections of birds' eggs, which 
are a great help to the young amateur. We know 
that young egg-collectors are very numerous with 
us, but, in a large majority of cases, eggs of only 
a very few species can be found by any individual 
who is not free to make expeditions about the 
country ; probably in nine out of every ten collec- 
tions the eggs are nearly all purchased from dealers. 
Now, I believe that it is possible to obtain an 
unlimited supply of eggs at a lower price than 
dealers are accustomed to charge, and this without 
robbing the birds. I hope the reader will not smile, 
and imao:ine that I am writino^ nonsense, when I 
reveal how this seeming impossibility may be 
accomplished. My suggestion is that the eggs be 
made, and I am of the opinion that the artificial 
eggs would be very much better for purposes of 
study, identification, and comparison than the dead 
empty frail and faded shells which have to serve 
us. They would be better, I mean to say, when 
the art of the egg-maker was perfect ; and that 
such an art would soon be brought to perfection, 
scarcely admits of a doubt when we consider that 
nothing will have to be invented ; that it simply 
comes to putting to a new use, or borrowing the 
