AND OC 
OLOGJST [Vol. 15-No. 4 
The Eggs I Didn’t Take. 
While reading Mr. C. S. Brimley’s article on 
the nesting of the Ruby-throated Hum- 
mingbird, in the February O. & O. my mind 
wandered back to the circumstances attending 
my first find of the eggs of that species. It 
was on the 30tli day of May, 1885. At that 
time I was .just beginning to study the lessons 
that all lovers of natural history must learn 
sooner or later, and my mind and interests 
were being slowly centered on the study of 
oology and its inseparable companion orni- 
thology. No one of all the memorable events 
in my varied experience at collecting has 
made such a deep impression upon my mind 
as the finding of my first Hummingbird’s 
nest. Aimlessly I wandered the familiar 
wood paths on that bright Memorial day morn- 
ing, and a morning such as only the queen of 
all months can furnish, paying no special at- 
tention to anything and yet taking in, in one 
grasp the whole of nature from the modest 
violet to the showy box; from the inquisitive 
mosquito to the “thousand legs” that I dis- 
turbed by kicking away the stick under which 
he was hidden; from the sphinx-like Humming- 
bird to the majestic Red-tail soaring high over 
head, trying in some way to satisfy that vague 
longing for something, I hardly knew what; 
that longing which causes all boys who have 
reached the age of sixteen to take the road to 
usefulness and manhood or vice versa. 
This was one of those mornings which had 
been so common lately in which nature, robed 
as she was in her vesture of emerald, and 
holding forth all the charms of vernal beauty, 
was swiftly and silently encircling me with 
bands which should hold for years, and giv- 
ing me desires which should have their effect 
! upon my whole life. But I am getting away 
from my subject, and yet the picture of that 
morning comes up so vividly before me that I 
cannot but describe it. Are not the majority 
of us led into the study of nature in something 
the same way? “There is a divinity that 
shapes our ends, rough hew them as we may.” 
Now to that Hummingbird’s nest. As I was 
j passing along a well-worn cart path my atten- 
j tion was attracted by a Hummingbird which 
darted by my head, and flying to an old ash 
tree alighted directly upon a lichen covered 
i knot(?). I stood watching the bird for a mo- 
ment, when it suddenly flashed through my 
mind that, that selfsame knot was no knot at 
all. but a nest. Some of you who remember 
your first find can perhaps imagine my feel- 
Apr. 1890.] 
ings. My next thought was “ how shall I secure 
it?” for the longings and aspirations of a full- 
fledged odlogist were suddenly born within me. 
First I tried to reach it from the ground but 
it was just two feet beyond my grasp. Then I 
climbed the tree and peering into the nest 
beheld the first eggs of Trochilus colubris that 
L had ever seen, — and weren’t they beauties ? 
But still they might as well have been in Africa 
as far as accessibility was concerned. You 
may say why didn’t I employ one of the thous- 
and and one arts understood by the odlogist ? 
Ah ! but you must remember that this was 
my first experience. Still I did not despair, 
but going home I procured a saw, and on re- 
turning, spent the next ten minutes seated 
upon a stone wall in profound meditation. 1 
had found a nest and I had a saw but still the 
problem of bisection without displacement was 
far from being solved. Many were the plans 
but none of them seemed to be practical, un- 
til finally I decided upon the one which 
appeared to be the best. 1 drove the walking 
stick, which I carried, into the ground directly 
beneath the nest, then procuring a narrow 
board I placed one end on the stick and the 
other on the stone wall before mentioned, thus 
forming a very unstable platform. This I 
mounted with considerable difficulty, as you 
may imagine, and began operations upon the 
limb about four inches back of the nest. 
All this time the birds were flying around 
my head and making things decidedly uncom- 
fortable in that direction. Well, 1 had that 
limb sawed about half off and was beginning 
to congratulate myself on what a splendid 
“ nest egg ” for a collection I was going to pro- 
cure when 
“ All at once and nothing first, 
Just as bubbles do when they burst’” 
my platform went out from under me. Of 
course, as instinct prompted, 1 grasped the 
branch as I felt myself falling, but no sooner 
had reason had a chance to assert itself than I 
thought that that very thing would spill the 
eggs, so acting on the impulse I made things 
worse by letting go the branch. Up it shot 
like a catapult, acting as such on the eggs, for 
when the branch had reached its natural 
height the eggs continued their skyward 
course. Imagine my thoughts. It was an 
easy matter now to procure the nest complete 
which I did in a very short time. I now have 
a lmndsome nest in my cabinet labeled Brock- 
ton Heights, May 30, 1885, and I also have in 
my mind a vivid remembrance of the set of 
eggs I didn’ t take on my initiatory collecting 
O'ip. • Ben Hnkey. 
O.& O. XV. Apr. 1890 P St - i " 3 
