BY THE WAYSIDE 
83 
NATURE STUDY 
Once more we urge our readers to 
interest themselves in the great migra¬ 
tion which has now set in in earnest. 
It is not that we desire that every¬ 
body shall become an ornithologist, 
tar from it. We do desire that every¬ 
body sha’l appreciate the world ’round 
about us. How many people are 
there today who, having eyes, see 
not, and having ears, hear not! How 
many people are there in this mater¬ 
ialistic age who have no interests out¬ 
side of the city limits! How much 
such people miss, only those of us who 
do appreciate nature in some degree 
at least, can understand. What a 
thrill of vital pleasure does the first 
robin or bluebird send through us! 
How light and happy is our step! 
how quickly is all gloom and doubt 
dispelled at their cheering call! Yet 
how many people are there who 
neither hear nor see these heralds of 
the return of spring and life. 
Turn where we may there is always 
something pleasing which confronts 
us. In the woods the Downy, the 
Flicker, the Nuthatches, the Brown 
Creeper, the Chickadee and the King¬ 
lets greet us. In the fields the robins 
Meadowlarks and Bluebirds call cheer¬ 
fully to each other. The Killdeer 
graces the beaches with his trim pres¬ 
ence and shrill note. In the marshes 
we find the Redwinged Blackbird, the 
Turd of society.” The Junco, Tree 
Sparrow, Fo'X Sparrow and the Song 
Sparrow play hide and seek in the 
bushes. On the lakes and rivers we 
find the ducks and geese, and at twi¬ 
light the weird laugh of the Loon is 
wafted through the damp air. 
An appreciation of the birds does 
not mean that one can mechanically 
identify thirty, forty, fifty, or even a 
hundred birds. It doese not mean that 
we can recite without a hitch table aft¬ 
er table of food items of various spe¬ 
cies of birds. It does mean that one 
shall take pleasure in seeing and hear¬ 
ing the birds, even if one knows but 
five or ten species and even if, as some 
put it, all sparrows look alike. The 
song of a robin in some tree-top is 
sufficient to cheer and encourage for 
the rest of the day a care-worn busi¬ 
ness man, if only he has the power of 
appreciating the beauty of color and 
song of the bird as it sits singing in 
the morning sunlight. We all have 
that power if we will but give it a 
chance to influence us. And the way 
to give it this chance is to go out 
some morning or late afternoon, when- 
ever we have time, and try to identify 
a common bird or two, learn its song 
and note its coloration so that we may 
know it the next time we may meet it. 
Tt is not necessary to have a pair of 
field glasses, though they are a great 
aid, nor is it necessary to keep an 
elaborate system of records; a little 
note-book wherein one can jot down 
interesting incidents or details is de¬ 
sirable. For the real object is to 
cultivate an appreciation of birds. We 
do not mean to disparage attempts to 
become able to identify a large num¬ 
ber of birds. The identification of 
birds is an important way by which 
we can attain the desired end. Fur¬ 
thermore, if undertaken earnestly, it 
is intensely interesting and adds a 
(Continued to page 87) 
