CALENDAR FOR JANUARY. 
2 3 
CALENDAR FOR JANUARY. 
As the indiscriminate destruction of birds is thought to be a 
very praiseworthy employment by many, especially during the 
winter months, when they have less shelter from their merciless 
assailants, it may be worth while to see if this undistinguishing 
warfare be altogether justifiable, or rather if it be not a means of 
depriving the garden of some part of its attraction and usefulness. 
Various cases have been stated where an almost total destruction 
of rooks, and also of other birds, has been attended with such an 
increase of insect life as to make it necessary to offer premiums 
for the reintroduction of the birds so ruthlessly driven away. 
Every one who has watched the rooks either following the plough, 
and harrow, or spread in long ranks over meadows and pastures, 
must be aware that it is not after corn or other substances useful 
to man that they are searching, but chiefly after the grubs of 
various insects which do enormous damage to the roots of the 
crops, and to destroy which, to any beneficial extent, is beyond 
the power of man. The starling, again, clears off an enormous 
quantity of insects in a smaller way, and being a bird living, I be¬ 
lieve, entirely on insect food, ought never to be destroyed. Great 
complaints are made against the sparrow, chaffinch, and many 
other small birds, and although they may sometimes plunder a 
little, especially in harvest time, yet they should meet with better 
treatment for the vast amount of good they do earlier in the 
season. If a young chaffinch be killed just before it leaves the 
nest, and opened, it will be found crammed with caterpillars, 
and if the nest of them be near a garden, the chief of them are 
of those sorts found on plants of the cabbage tribe. The diffe¬ 
rent sorts of tits again are charged with disbudding the fruit 
trees, but ere this be set down to their disadvantage, it would be 
well to ascertain whether the most of the buds which they do 
take be not already attacked by insects, and therefore lawful 
spoil for the nimble little beauties. Blackbirds and thrushes 
also devour great numbers of snails, &c., during the winter, 
and, therefore, independent of their song, deserve more con¬ 
sideration than they usually meet with. In fact, all have a right 
to a fair trial ere they are condemned. 
