238 
ORDERS OF BIRDS- PIGEONS AND DOVES 
The latest and most gratifying information 
on this subject is contained in a letter dated Nov. 
9, 1903, transmitted by Mr. Shields. In Penn- 
sylvania, in a locality that shall be nameless here, 
three flocks of Passenger Pigeons, containing 
in all about 300 birds, have been feeding for three 
weeks on the farm of a sportsman and nature- 
lover who is protecting them. 
THE BAND-TAILED PIGEON.' 
So it seems that our old friend is striving to 
ignore the black record of the past, and come 
back to us, to live and breed. Wherever it elects 
to be seen, or to breed, it should be accorded the 
most thorough protection, both by public sen- 
timent, and by law. 
The Band-Tailed Pigeon , 1 of the Pacific 
states from British Columbia to Guatemala, 
and eastward to the Rocky Mountains, yet ex- 
ists in fair abundance, and it is earnestly hoped 
that it never will be annihilated without reason 
or mercy, as was the sad fate of its eastern rela- 
1 Co-lum'ba fas-ci-a'ta. Average length, 15 inches. 
tive. Wherever found it should be accorded 
legal protection, without delay. 
This fine bird is conspicuously marked by a 
white collar around its neck, and a square-ended 
tail which terminates with a dull-white hand from 
one to two inches wide. The head and under 
parts are purplish-pink, fading downward to a 
lighter color. The back is brownish-gray, fad- 
ing out toward the tail into a dull-blue tone. 
This Pigeon subsists upon acorns, seeds and 
berries, and attracts attention to itself by its 
noisy flight. Its strange vocal utterances are 
graphically described by Mrs. Florence Merriam 
Bailey : 
“If you follow the pigeons to their breeding- 
grounds in some remote canyon you will be 
struck by the owl-like hooting that fills the place, 
and you will locate the sound here and there 
along the sides of the canyon at dead tree-tops, 
in each of which a solitary male is sunning him- 
self, at intervals puffing out his breast and hoot- 
ing. The hooting varies considerably. Some- 
times it is a calm whoo'-hoo-hoo, whoo'-hoo-hoo, 
at others a spirited hoop-ah-whoo ' , and again 
a t-wo-syllabled whoo'-ugh, made up of a short, 
hard hoot and a long coo, as if the breath was 
sharply expelled for the first noj;e and drawn in 
for the second.” (“Handbook,” p. 139.) 
To me the Mourning-Dove 2 has always 
seemed like a sacred bird; and although I could 
have killed thousands, I never took the life of 
one. When a very small boy at my mother’s 
knee, she related to me the story of the winged 
messenger which Noah sent out of the ark, over 
the waste of waters, to look for real estate. She 
told me that Doves were innocent and harm- 
less little birds, and that I must never harm 
one in the least. Had my good mother issued 
an injunction covering the whole animal king- 
dom, I think I would have grown up as harm- 
less to animals as any Hindoo ; for her. solemn 
charge regarding Doves has always seemed as 
binding as one of the ten commandments. 
1 mention this in order to point out to mothers 
the far-reaching extent of their power in behalf 
of our wild creatures, and the vast influence 
which they can easily wield in behalf of birds 
and mammals in sore need of protection. Is it 
not a good thing to teach all boys that it is mor- 
2 Ze-na-i-du'ra ma-crou'ra. Average length, 12 
inches. 
