'I'jtic jiatoalists’ Coiripaiiioii. 
‘‘WhorcsoeTcr the Naf4ui‘alist turns liis eyv, life or the germ of life lies spread before liini.”->Hu]iibolcIt. 
iB6 Cents per 
Annum. 
CHARLES P. GUELF, 
EDITOR AND PUBLISHER. 
Single Copy, 
5 Cents. 
VOL. I. 
BROCKPORT, N. Y., JUNE, i886. 
NO. 12. 
Egg Collecting. 
BY W. G. KOBEKTS, SAN LEANBKO, CAL. 
Is egg collecting cruel ? Many per¬ 
sons say it is, but I think I can prove 
lo the eontraiy. The ho*usewife knows 
that a hen is devoid of the Siaeulty of 
•counting, and is generally as content 
Avith one egg as a dozen, and will even 
.•sit on a china egg. The same case ap¬ 
plies to birds, and if one or two eggs 
;are left in the nest, the one alread}^ 
taken will be replaced. Notwithstand¬ 
ing, if sufficient care is not taken, the 
(branches around the nest will be dis¬ 
turbed, and thus the bird will be led 
to desert it. But this evil is easily 
remedied, if the collector will be care¬ 
ful and always replace the branches as 
they were formerly. I assume that 
none of our readers are cruel enoush 
to rob a bird of all of its eggs; in this 
case egg collecting, instead of being 
nn interesting and instructive hobby, 
becomes a cruel and wanton sport. 
Another thing to be remembered is 
that an egg should never be taken 
from a nest without first ascertaining 
its advancement in incubation; this 
may be done by holding the egg before 
the light, and if the yolk is of a dark, 
sluggish color you may safely take it 
for granted that a young, bird Avill 
shortly issue from it,—therefore leave 
it alone. 
There are many articles needed by 
the young oologist. First, something- 
will be required for the reception of 
your eggs. A cabinet may be bought 
for a fairly low' price; but all that is 
required by the beginner is a nicely 
planed box, about two inches in depth 
and divided into partitions by stout 
strips of pasteboard. Each partition, 
which is about one inch square, is 
filled with cotton and an egg placed 
in each. Eggs are also sometimes 
gummed on to slips of cardboard which 
are made to fit in each partition. 
Though an egg may be blown with 
no other apparatus than a pin and the 
mouth, yet of course a blowpipe and 
drill are much handier, and the hole 
made is much neater, and the process 
much shorter; it will also be safe to 
remember that without an egg is blown 
with one smooth hole in the side, it 
has no market value. A brass blow'- 
pipe costs 15 cents, and drills 10 to 50 
cents, according to the size; of the lat¬ 
ter you wall need three different sizes, 
viz., one of the smallest size drills, a 
3-32 inch drill, and a 8-32 inch, for the 
drilling of large eggs, such as crow’s 
and gull’s. To blow eggs, hold the 
hole that you have previously drilled, 
downw'ards, and with your blowpipe 
blow therein. When the contents have 
been emptied, inject water in it, so as 
to cleanse and remove any remnant 
that may remain. Corrosive sublim¬ 
ate is generally used for cleansing, but 
as it is excessively poisonous I would 
