122 THE AUSTRALIAN NATURALIST. 
children should observe the birds during their play-hours, and 
on their way to and from school. It is not a subject that can 
be fully dealt within formal lessons. Probably the best 
method will be to have observation talks, and an occasional 
excursion. 
The children should record the birds seen and their ob- 
servations on them in their note-books, and in a wall chart, 
such as that published in the ‘‘Gazette’’ for June, 1911. *The 
chart is especially useful in creating interest among the 
pupils. Some years ago I had one in the Willoughby Public 
School, and the children were all eager to help to make it 
complete. 
The local name and, if possible, the scientific name of 
the birds should be recorded. Some difficulty may be ex- 
perienced in regard to local names. In different districts, 
sometime in the same district, a bird may be known by quite 
a number of names. A notable example of this is the babbler 
or chatterer (Pomatos tomus temporalis), which our Secretary 
(Mr.. Finigan) tells me is known by thirty names in the 
Wellington district. I know twelve names current for the 
same bird about Mudgee. Where no local name is known, 
something might be invented, if possible, indicating some 
peculiarity of the bird. Sometimes a translation of the 
scientific name might be suitable, but not in all cases. I do 
not see why well-known names such as peewit, blue wren, and 
jacky winter should be altered to magpie lark, superb warbler 
and brown fly-catcher. 
With regard to collections of eggs for the school museum, 
I am entirely opposed to. them. Everything that can be dis- 
covered about the relation of eggs to nesting habits can be 
better done by the observation of the eggs in the nest. No 
addition to the knowledge. of birds can be made by having 
fifty or a hundred egg-shells in glass-topped boxes. Cer- 
tainly they are beautiful things, but to lessen birds in a 
neighbourhood for the sake of showing pretty egg-shells is, 
in my opinion, entirely unjustifiable. And if there is a col- 
lection of eggs in the school, it is pretty certain that the 
boys will have private collections algo. Every egg is a po- 
tential bird, and every collection lessens the number of birds 
in the neighbourhood. Our pledge specifies discouragement. 
of the unnecessary collection of eggs. I think collections, 
except for an institution like the Australian Museum, are 
absolutely unnecessary. For the game reason collections of 
bird skins are also undesirable. I once was a skin and egg 
collector, but now I prefer to watch the birds with, a field- 
glass, and to gain their confidence by kind treatment, if 
possible. 
