80 
OliNJTlIOLOdlST 
[Vol. O-Nc. T). 
ORNITHOLOGIST aM OOLOGIST. 
A MONTHLY MACAZINK DKVOTKI) TO THE STLDY 
OF BIUDS, THEIH NESTS ANH EGGS. 
JOS. M. WADE. - - . . Editor 
S. L. n ILLAED. - . . yl.v.s’j Editor 
With tlic co-operation of al)ic Oniitliological 
Writers ami Collectors. 
Subscription.— $i.oo per annum Foreign 
siibscri])tion Si 25 including postage. Specimen 
copies 10 cents each. 
JOS. M. WADE, 
Norwich, Conn. 
Enterctl at the Norwich P. O. as second-class matter. 
EDITORIAL. ■ 
A Tame, Wild Blue Jay. 
{Cyanura cristata.) 
A commercial traveler who regularly vis¬ 
its most of the woolen mills throughoul; 
New England, makes the following state¬ 
ment : While in the office of W. D. DaATs, 
at the Uxbridge (Mass.) Woolen Mills, the 
conversation turned on birds, when he was 
informed that in the evergreen tree at the 
office door, was the nest of a Blue Jay, 
(Cyanura cristata.) and that the boys in 
the office could at any time lift her from 
the nest, and she would not even struggle 
to gain her liberty. Not belieY-ing the 
statement, a bet of the cigars was made, 
when they step23ed to the door and the 
bird was lifted from the nest and jdaced 
in the left hand of our friend who smoothed 
down its feathers with his right hand sev¬ 
eral times. When he stoi)i5ed, the bird 
looked at him and hew directly to tlie nest. 
AVhen it was again removed from the nest, 
and the gentleman smoothed down its 
feathers as he assured our friends he was 
often in the habit of doing, esjiecially when 
visitors came and they wanted to show oft’ 
their pet. The birds had bred in the mill- 
yard for several years,and ]\Ir. Davis would 
not allow them to be molested. There is 
something remarkable about the nesting 
habits of the Blue Jay not well understood 
by our oniithologists. Out of the breed¬ 
ing season they are decidedly the wildest 
l)ird in New England, it being difficult to 
get within gunshot, but when ready to 
nest, it is not an uncommon thing for them 
to build close to some habitation. Duriu" 
the fore part of 1878 we collected so faith¬ 
fully that a severe attack of tyiihoid jmtu- 
monia was the result. We had poor luck 
Muth Blue Jays that season, only tinding 
one nest and that in plain sight by the 
roadside, but as soon as we were confined 
to bed. a neighbor came in and infoiTiied 
us of a Blue Jay’s nest in a small evergreen 
tree,almost in a jjublic thoroughfare, where 
jieople were jiassing and rejiassing contin¬ 
ually ; being helpless, the bird hatched its 
young in jieace. The following season, 
visiting North Manchester occasionally, we 
saw at one time on the Hudson place, right 
in the Door-yard as it were, three Bine 
Jays’ nests, one of them being near the 
greenhouse door, where one or more men 
were at work. We several times stood 
within a few feet of it and looked directly 
into the nest, when the old bird would re¬ 
main perfectly indifferent to our j.u-esence. 
Once we reached down to find the contents 
of the nest, when she cpxietly left it, but not 
until we touched th« side of the nest. 
Correspondence. 
In our private correspondence we re¬ 
ceive a large nnmlier of extremely valua¬ 
ble go.ssipy letter.s, full of valuable matter 
interesting to our readers and which the 
temptation is strong to publish, Imt being 
jirivate letters the contents are lost to our 
readers. AN e now projtose to commence 
a department with the above heading and 
shall be glad to receive letters from col- ' 
lectors, written esjieci.ally for publication, 
such letters should contain the experience 
and ob.servations of the writers, l.rieHy i 
stated, collections made or ipiestion asked, 4 
and answer.s to the (juestions of others. If .1 
such letters are written on separate slieets j 
of jiaper from wliat is intendeil for the * 
editor personally, much time will he * 
.saxed. Letters from the little known an<l M 
thinly .settled portions of our Territories 2 
will be extremely desiralde and will lie 1 end # 
with interest. a 
