BY THE WAYSIDE 
60 
in the warden system. It has been 
largely instrumental in securing some 
bird reservations. It is doing an import¬ 
ant educational work through the publi¬ 
cation of a series of illustrated leaflets, 
which may be obtained by anyone 
through the local state secretary. Dur¬ 
ing the past year the National Society 
has deen incorporated. It has about six 
hundred members with receipts last year 
of about SI 2,500. The outlook is encour¬ 
aging, but the task it has set itself is 
enormous. More members and more 
funds are greatly needed. 
The official organ, Bird-Lore, edited 
by Frank Chapman, gives in each issue 
an account of the work of the National 
and state societies. 
Illinois Plans Game Preserve. 
Illinois soon may be able to boast of 
the most extensive game preserve in the 
United States. State Game Warden J. 
A. Wheeler has leased a farm of 150 
acres in Sangamon county and expects 
to add to this tract as rapidly as possible 
until several thousand acres are secured. 
He will surround the tract with a woven 
wire fence and turn loose thousands of 
quail, prairie chickens, and wild turkeys. 
This preserve will be the headquarters 
from which all the game birds now being 
secured from the southern states will be 
distributed to the various counties of the 
state. L. L. Hudson, a deputy, has re¬ 
turned from the south, where he pur¬ 
chased 25,000 quail. Several thousand 
pheasants also have been secured and 
will arrive later. The birds to be kept 
in the preserve for breeding purposes 
will have their wings clipped so they 
caneot escape, and proper driveways and 
nettings will be arranged so that the 
birds can be rounded up when wanted. 
It is planned to raise 5,000 to 10,000 
young birds each year, and these will be 
distributed in the various counties where 
the population of the feathered tribe is 
smallest. By the proposed plan of re¬ 
stocking each county it is proposed to 
bring the number of birds up to that of 
twenty-five years ago, before wanton 
slaughter and lack of care resulted in the 
almost complete extinction of various 
breeds. 
A Pet Robin. 
Mrs. John Lord, of Oshkosh, has a very 
unusual pet, a robin, which she tamed 
three years ago. A correspondent of the 
Wayside called upon Pete a short time 
ago, and sends us the following very in¬ 
teresting account of his robinship. 
“He is certainly a pretty, healthy look¬ 
ing bird. The coloring of his breast and 
back is much richer than that of the 
wild robins. 
‘•Mrs. Lord left us in the sitting-room 
while she went into the kitchen and 
opened Pete’s cage. For a minute or 
two he acted like a wild thing, flying by 
us into the parlor and back into the 
kitchen, and then into the parlor again. 
I thought perhaps he was afraid of us, 
but I guess he was just enjoying his free¬ 
dom, for he soon acted as tame as could 
be. He would walk all around us and 
turn his head first to one side and then 
the other as if he knew he was being ad¬ 
mired and deserved to be. He perched 
upon the rocker of my chair for awhile 
and stayed there while I rocked. Mrs. 
Lord has taught him to speak for his 
food, but he positively refused to show 
off before companv. He will also sin°- 
very sweetly and softly when Miss Lord 
plays the piano. He eais almost every¬ 
thing. He is very fond of milk, peanuts. 
