July, 1881.] 
AND OOLOGIST 
39 
General Notes. 
Barx Owl.— The following important 
announcement has unfortunately been mis¬ 
laid during our moving. Oliver Davie, 
of Columbus, Ohio, writes under date of 
May 2d:—I to-day received from one of 
our, not altogether Christian sportsmen, a 
beautiful specimen of the Barn Owl, 
(iStrix Flumniea), which he killed yester¬ 
day (Sunday), within six miles of this 
place. This is the second specimen only, 
that is known to have been taken in Frank¬ 
lin Co., Ohio. 
Gre.\t Horned Owls, and Eggs.— About 
the middle of March two of my friends 
went in quest of some Great Homed Owls, 
and after a great deal of tramping through 
the heavy pine woods, with sixteen inches 
of snow on the ground, they at last found 
and shot one. Proceeding a few rods far¬ 
ther one of the party imitated the Owl’s 
call, which was answered from a very tall 
old pine. As the answering bird could 
not be seen one of the party, with climbing 
irons securely fastened, went up the tree, 
when another owl left it, only to fall to the 
ground at the report of my friend’s gun. 
On reaching the nest, which was discover¬ 
ed in the tree above it, was found to con¬ 
tain three large fine fresh eggs. 
William Blanchard, Tyngsboro, Mass. 
A Talking Robin.— He is now 10 years 
old, and when about two years old he as¬ 
tonished me by calling my name, and he 
can now say Theodore as jilainly as any 
one, he soon learned to call puss, puss, 
puss, Kittie, Kittie, Kittie, quite plainly. 
About five years ago a pair of Pea Fowls 
were brought on the place where I live. 
In a little while he learned to say “Pea¬ 
cock,” by hearing them talked about. 
Theo. P. Willy, Weymouth, Mass. 
An Egg within an Egg.— I noticed in 
your magazine an account of an egg within 
an egg; and the writer wishes to know 
whether any of your readers had met 
with such a case. I have in my collection 
a small chicken’s egg of a light chocolate 
color, and about the size and shape of a 
Barn Swallow’s. It was found within an 
ordinary hen’s egg. I have read of several 
other cases. A couple of years ago I 
found in an old crow’s nest the eggs of a 
dove. This apjiropriation of the nest of 
a crow by a dove seems to me quite un¬ 
usual. Wm. R. Wharton, 
Germantown, Penna. 
In the April number of the Oologist, I 
notice a note about finding an egg within 
an egg. The writer of it wishes to know 
if there is another instance of such an oc¬ 
curence. Some time ago a lady friend 
gave me an egg that she had found wuthin 
a hen’s egg. It was about an inch and a 
half long and had a hard shell like the 
outside one. 
M. K. Barnum, Syracuse, N. Y. 
Notes from Saratoga, N. Y. 
A Cormorant ( G. Carbo) was shot last 
fall at Saratoga Lake*^' 
Ca])tured a young, male, \Yhite-Winged 
Crossbill on Nov. 12, 1880. There was a 
fiock of about tw'elve. 
Redpolls, Nov. 27, 1880. Pine Finches, 
.Ian. 20, 1881. Shore Larks, March 20. 
1881. Two Gt. Northern Shrikes, April 2, 
1881. 
April 2.3, 1881, saw a Yellow-Bellied 
Woodpecker caj)ture a fiy a la Hycatcher- 
April 25th, found a young Gt. Horned Owl 
under the nest. At this time it was cover¬ 
ed with down, but is now almost capable 
of fiying, as his wings and tail are most 
like an old bird. He makes a fine pet; not 
being cross at all. Also, saw Red-Bellied 
Nuthatches building. 
April 30th, collected set of four Red- 
Shouldered llawLs. May 2d. set of three 
Red-Shouldered Hawks. May 9th, set of 
two Red-Tailed Hawks. Ylay 7th, set of 
five Crow Blackbirds. May 14th, went to 
a heronry on the Hudson river. Should 
judge that one thousand Night Herons breed 
here. e shot a number of them and got 
about 80 eggs, all fresh. It is a little early 
for them as only a few had comj)lete sets. 
Nests in hard wood trees, about 40 feet 
