BY THE WAYSIDE. 
41 
SCHOOL BRANCH DEPARTMENT. 
Every Wisconsin School Branch is required to subscribe for at least one copy of BY THE WAYSIDE 
Letters for this department should be written on only 
one side of the page, should give the name, age and act- 
dress of the writer, and should be mailed by the first of 
the month, Illinois Children sending to Mrs. Wm. M. 
Scudder, 165 Buena Ave., Chicago, Ill., and Wisconsin 
children to Mrs. Peckham, 646 Marshall St., Milwaukee, 
\^is. An honor badge will be awarded for each state 
every month, preference being given to letters about the 
bird for the month (which is always on this page), and 
to original observations. Any child who wins the honor 
badge twice will receive a bird book as a prize. 
The wren button, which is the badge of the Audubon 
Society, costs one cent, and may be bought from Mrs. 
Scudder or Mrs. Peckham. 
Any Wisconsin School Branch may, without expense, 
have the use of the Gordon and Merrill Libraries of bird 
books, byapplyingto Miss Bossert, Librarian,719 Frank¬ 
lin St., Milwaukee. 
A set oi colored bird slides with a type-written lecture 
may be rented from Prof. W. S. Marshall, 114 E. Gorham 
St., Madison, Wis. 
Illinois Schools may use, without expense, a library 
or a lecture with lantern slides, by applying to Mrs. 
Ruthven Deane, 504 N. State St., Chicago. 
The Osprey, or Fish Hawk. 
Upper part brown; head, nape and under parts white, 
Length, about 23 inches. 
Nest on the top of trees. Eggs, tw r o to four, variable 
in color, usually creamy white, blotched with brown. 
This species lives in colonies, and also in 
pairs, returning year after year to the same 
nesting ground. Its food consists solely of 
fish which, as a rule, it captures alive. Wing¬ 
ing its way slowly over the water it keeps a 
keen watch for fish which may appear near 
the surface. When one is observed it pauses, 
hovers a moment, and then closing its wings, 
descends with a speed and directness of aim 
| that generally insure success. It strikes the 
water with great force, making a loud splash, 
; and frequently disappears for a moment before 
i rising with its prey grasped in its powerful 
; talons. As a rule, it carries its food to some 
: favorite perch, there to devour it. When pro- 
i tected, fish hawks, like many other birds, to a 
i large degree, lose their fear of man. In the 
Adirondacks a pair had a nest for many years, 
and though sportsmen’s boats passed under 
| their very tree on the way up the lakes, the 
1 birds, protected by the chivalry of the guides, 
were so tame they would perch beside the nest 
unmoved while the gunners looked up at them. 
It is said that these birds sometimes combine 
i to drive away the bald eagles, but never at¬ 
tack them sinaflv. 
o v 
When the nest is visited the male is des¬ 
perately courageous in defence of the young. 
They are very devoted in their attentions to 
their mates and supply them with food while 
on the nest. Wilson relates a touching in¬ 
stance of this devotion, when a female that 
had lost one leg and was unable to fish for 
herself, was abundantly supplied by her mate. 
The osprey sometimes nests in large colonies 
and when a new nest is to be made the whole 
community has been known to take part in the 
work. They are remarkably tolerant toward 
smaller birds and permit the Purple Grackle 
to construct its nests in the interstices of their 
own. 
The nests are composed externally of sticks, 
piled to a height of four or five feet, and are 
lined with softer material. They are so large 
that one would nearly fill a cart, and would be 
a fair load for a horse. 
The foot of the osprey is remarkably adapt¬ 
ed to holding its slippery prey, the toes having 
pads with horny spikes, in addition to the 
sharp, curved nails. 
From Ridgeway, Chapman, and Mrs. Bailey. 
Letters about the Osprey should be mailed 
by November 1st. 
Prizes and Badges. 
The honor badges for September are award¬ 
ed to Wesley Hunter, Franksville, Wis., and 
Mildred Dixon, North Alton, Ill. The prize 
offered for the best study of August birds is 
not given, as no letters have been received in 
competition. On the first of each month, 
hereafter, a subscription to Bird-Lore will be 
awarded for the best study of birds made dur¬ 
ing the preceding month. This competition 
is open to teachers and children. 
Secretary’s Letter. 
My Dear Children: The protection of birds 
is rapidly becoming a custom in most civilized 
countries, but did you ever think that a small 
part of the world is civilized? When it comes 
to a proper regard for the animal creation, cer¬ 
tainly of the bird creation, Holland, Denmark, 
Norway and Sweden probably take the lead. 
After them come the countries in which the 
English language is spoken, and then Germany 
and France. Spain and Italy are very low in 
the scale, and the rest of the world is in a 
melancholy state as yet. In India, thanks to the 
