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Full text of "The story of a bird lover"

Donated to 

LIBRARY 

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA 
DAVIS 



THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 




A ROOM IN MR. SCOTT'S LABORATORY AT PRINCETON. 

Frontispiece 



THE 



STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 



BY 

WILLIAM EARL DODGE SCOTT 




NEW YORK 

THE OUTLOOK COMPANY 
1903 



LIBRARY 

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA 
DAVIS 



COPYRIGHT, 1903, BY 
THE OUTLOOK COMPANY. 

Published March, 1903. 
Reprinted March, 1903. 



J. 8. Cuihing & Co. - Berwick & Smith Co. 
Norwood, Mass., U.S.A. 



THIS STORY IS DEDICATED 

TO THE MEMORY OF 

LEWIN WETHERED BARRINGER 

ONE OF MANY FRIENDS WHO LOVED THE 
WOODS AND WATERS OF FLORIDA 



CONTENTS 

PACK 

I. CHILDHOOD . . . . . . i 

II. YOUTH . . . . . . . . .21 

III. STUDENT DAYS . . . . . . . -35 

IV. FIRST PROFESSIONAL WORK . . . . . 58 
V. PRINCETON 79 

VI. THE PLAINS AND COLORADO . . . . . 107 

VII. FLORIDA: THE GULF COAST . . . ; .140 

VIII. THE SEA AND THE DESERT ... . 179 

IX. SOUTHERN ARIZONA . . . . . . . 209 

X. THE GULF COAST OF FLORIDA . . . .253 

XI. FLORIDA PRAIRIES AND VIRGINIA MOUNTAINS . 284 

XII. XAYMACA: THE ISLAND OF MANY RIVERS . . 291 

XIII. BIRD LIFE IN ENGLAND 335 

XIV. THE NATURALIST'S VISION 340 

BIBLIOGRAPHY 369 



vii 



INTRODUCTORY NOTE 

IT is not merely the fact that the author of this book 
is recognized by ornithologists as one of the foremost 
experts in America as regards the life and habits of 
birds that has led the publishers to urge him to write 
this biography of a bird lover. Neither is it chiefly 
the fact that his favorite study has led him into many 
not well-known parts of the country, where his experi- 
ences, personal and scientific, have been curious and 
interesting. It is rather because Mr. Scott in quite an 
unusual, perhaps even unique, degree has brought the 
life of birds nearer to the life of man has established, 
so to speak, personal relationships with the whole bird 
kingdom. 

A visit to Princeton, where Mr. Scott occupies the 
post of Curator of the Department of Ornithology in 
the University, and a few hours spent with his remark- 
able collection of live birds, would show clearly what is 
meant. Here, in a " laboratory " forming part of his 
own house, are in six rooms about five hundred live 
birds, native and foreign. No small part of the author's 
time and all the time of an assistant are spent in caring 
for these birds and in studying them. The collection 
has not been made for the ordinary purposes of an 
aviary, that is, to teach and please a multitude of 
visitors, but is primarily designed for the purpose 
of conducting investigation that may lead to a better 



x INTRODUCTORY NOTE 

understanding of birds out-of-doors and the problems 
which their life presents. 

In a recent article Mr. Scott said, " I think that in 
every community there are enough people interested in 
out-of-door life to cooperate in a movement to establish 
a kindly relation with wild creatures." This is the key- 
note of his work and his life, and it is because the pub- 
lishers of this book have felt that all the men and 
women who love nature bird nature as well as human 
nature should know of the growth and causes of this 
desire to understand the ways and characters of the 
birds for birds have individual as well as tribal char- 
acteristics that Mr. Scott has been asked to tell how, 
step by step, he acquired his knowledge, through obser- 
vation, out-of-doors exploration, training of the senses, 
and (but in less degree) through books and tuition. 

Mr. Scott is a graduate of Harvard, where he was a 
pupil of Louis Agassiz. In spite of a lameness which 
compels him to walk, even in the house, with caution 
and with the aid of a cane, he has travelled all over the 
United States, pursuing his study of the life and char- 
acter of the bird in its out-of-door, natural surroundings. 
Not one of the least interesting things about his achieve- 
ment is the fact that a physical impediment which would 
be considered by many people to be an almost insu- 
perable obstacle in his path as a naturalist, has really 
turned out to be an advantage and aid. He is the 
author of numerous scientific papers and of a compre- 
hensive and elaborately printed and illustrated work on 
birds entitled "Bird Studies." He lays great stress 
on the principle that sympathy and love of the beautiful 
are bound to come through a friendship established with 
any kind of organic life, whether that organic life be a 



INTRODUCTORY NOTE xi 

plant or an animal. Thus, he says : " The moment you 
establish a friendship with a plant, care for it and min- 
ister to its needs, you feel that it is dependent on you, 
and you have a different attitude toward it altogether; 
you do not want any one to harm it, and it hurts you 
even to break off a twig unnecessarily. How much 
more will this be the case if you establish a relationship 
with a live bird, or any animal ? As soon as you grow 
fond of a particular dog or horse, you can never kick 
any dog or abuse any horse ; and I think that the 
human side of this whole study is perhaps its most 
important part. The study of birds develops every 
kind of aesthetic sensibility ; it is a pleasure and a bene- 
fit to see the beauty of their coloring, the grace and 
ease of their motions, and to hear the sweetness of their 
song ; and when this is awakened in you, the more 
vital elements of love, sympathy, and helpfulness will 
naturally follow." 

THE PUBLISHERS. 



THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 



CHAPTER I 

CHILDHOOD 

ONCE upon a time a little boy saw a cat which 
had just killed a bird in the garden. By the time 
the boy caught the cat and rescued the remnants 
of the bird, there was little left but a wing, and 
this became a child's plaything for a few passing 
hours. The boy lost the wing, but something 
remained, a picture so graphic, that many years 
afterward, when near manhood, he suddenly real- 
ized that the wing he had rescued from the cat 
long ago was that of the winter wren. 

Looking back, this is the first definite impres- 
sion of a bird that I can recall. 

The winter wren is one of the smallest, shyest, 
and most seclusive of the migrants that visit the 
region about New York and New Jersey in the 
spring and fall. Stealthy and mouselike in its 
habit, it is fond of old stone walls, where it crawls 
in and out through the crevices, never making 
long or protracted flights. It is a short, thick- 



2 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

set little bird, with an abbreviated tail ; its colors 
are charming; blacks and browns and chestnuts 
are barred in a very effective manner ; otherwise 
there is nothing particularly remarkable or charac- 
teristic in its appearance or manner. During the 
migrations the notes are insignificant, but while 
mating and nesting the male birds sing constantly, 
rivalling many songsters more famous. 

Brooklyn was little more than a village in 1852, 
the year when I was born, and all the country back 
of the City Hall was open, fields and farms; the 
Heights south of Wall Street ferry sloped down 
in a green bank to New York Bay, and Bedford 
and Coney Island were remote points where we 
went for excursions to the country. It was a 
village with a volunteer fire department, and no 
general water or sewer system. There was a 
public pump in the street nearly opposite where 
we lived, to which all the neighbors went for 
water, a centre of gossip and news. 

I said that the winter wren was the first bird 
that definitely impressed me; but long before that 
I have a distinct recollection of a lively interest in 
animals. One day (I could not have been more 
than four years old, for my father died when I was 
not quite five) I was called into a bedroom up- 
stairs, where I found my father and mother. 
My father had taken the corner of the rug which 
covered the floor and had rolled it up so that one 



CHILDHOOD 



end of the roll was held in each hand; he told 
me to watch while he slowly unrolled it. As I 
looked intently, I saw a mouse, trembling with 
fear, standing perfectly still for an instant on 
the corner of the rug, where it had been im- 
prisoned. 

Once before this it seems to me long before 
we were at Clifton Springs, New York, when, 
taking a drive with my father and mother, a red 
squirrel ran along a stone wall or fence. This at 
once excited me. My father had a gun, and step- 
ping from the carriage, killed the squirrel, which 
I was very anxious to get into my hands to look 
at more closely. He examined it for a moment, 
and for some reason, not caring to have me 
handle the dead creature, but still not wishing 
to disappoint me too much, he took out his 
knife, cut off the bushy tail, and gave it to me. 
I know it was a red squirrel because I know 
exactly how it looked, the colors, the definite 
dark stripe on its side, in fact, the whole scene 
is clear in my mind. Even the knife I often 
picture to myself; and only a few years ago I 
described it to a cousin, much older than I, and 
asked him if he could recall it. It was large, hav- 
ing a long blade and white bone handle which was 
stained yellow with age, and the blade had a curi- 
ous, out-curved point. When I had mentioned it 
to my cousin, he told me that he remembered per- 



4 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

fectly such a knife that my father had carried for 
years. 

My father was a graduate of West Point His 
family were New Jersey people ; my grandfather 
and great-grandfather had long lived in the town 
of New Brunswick. The personality of Joseph 
Warren Scott, my grandfather, is still remembered 
by some of the older people of New Brunswick, 
though he has been dead many years. His reputa- 
tion as a lawyer is not merely local. He was a grad- 
uate of Princeton, and a scholar of parts. His 
Greek Testament I always associate with him. 
At the installation of Dr. McCosh as president of 
Princeton in 1868, my grandfather was present, 
the oldest graduate, representing the class of 1795. 

His father, my great-grandfather, was Moses 
Scott, a surgeon in the Revolutionary army, a 
member of General Washington's staff and his 
intimate friend. My grandfather often told me 
of the first time he saw General Washington. He 
said he was playing in front of his father's house 
shortly after the close of the Revolutionary War, 
and he must have been some ten years old. A 
gentleman rode up on horseback, unaccompanied, 
and there being no one else in the street, he asked 
the boy if he knew whether Dr. Scott was at home. 
My grandfather answered that he was away on 
a professional visit, and the gentleman then said, 
" My boy, go into the house, and if Mrs. Scott is 



CHILDHOOD 5 

at home, say that General Washington will do 
himself the honor of paying his respects to her." 
Dr. Moses Scott, my great-grandfather, was present 
in many of the battles of the Revolutionary War, 
notably the battle of Princeton, where he assisted 
General Mercer when mortally wounded. For 
General Joseph Warren, an intimate friend, he 
named his son Joseph Warren Scott. 

Grandfather Scott's place in New Brunswick 
is about a mile from the station, a little back 
from the Raritan River, the canal and high- 
way running between that stream and the front 
of the place. It is a farm of some eighty acres. 
A picturesque, winding roadway (laid out by my 
father and always known as the " lane ") leads up 
to the house, which stands at quite an elevation, 
having an extensive river and champaign view. 
The farm is known as " Buccleuch." This house 
was built long before the Revolutionary days, and 
is a type of the colonial mansion of the time, a 
spacious building with hipped roof, the gable ends 
broken by dormer and fan windows. It is appar- 
ently a wooden house, painted white with green 
blinds. I said apparently a wooden house, for 
the walls are lined and built, inside of the wooden 
cover, of tiny bricks that were brought from 
Holland late in 1600 or early in 1700. These 
bricks are about half as big as the ordinary build- 
ing brick of to-day. Broad verandas extend along 



6 THE STORY OF A BIRD CLOVER 

both sides, the front and entrance of the house 
being away from the river. 

The ground floor of the house is divided by a 
hall some eighteen feet wide and perhaps forty- 
five feet long. The office that my grandfather 
used for his professional work is just to the right 
as one enters the front door, and there is also a 
side entrance to this office. His law and reference 
books are piled on the shelves to-day much as he 
left them. Very different from similar books of 
the present time, they are small, and thick in pro- 
portion, and their leather covers are black with 
age. A door at the other end of the hall, opposite 
the entrance, leads to a wide piazza overlooking 
the river. 

On the same side of the hall with the office is 
a large parlor, and on the east wall in this parlor 
hangs my great-grandfather's commission as a 
member of the Society of the Cincinnati. It seems 
of sufficient interest to quote here verbatim : 

BE IT KNOWN that Moses Scott, Surgeon General, New Jersey, 
and Director-General of the Medical Department United States, 
is a member of the Cincinnati, instituted by the officers of the 
American Army at the period of Dissolution, as well to com- 
memorate the great events which gave Independence to North 
America, as for the laudable purpose of inculcating the Duty of 
laying down in Peace, Arms assumed for public Defence, and 
of uniting in Acts of brotherly Affection, and Bonds of perpetual 
Friendship, the members constituting the Same. 

IN TESTIMONY WHEREOF, I the President of said Society, here- 



CHILDHOOD 7 

unto set my hand at Mount Vernon, in the State of Virginia, 
this 24th Day of May, in the year of Our Lord One Thousand, 
Seven hundred and eighty-four, and in the Eighth year of the 
Independence of the United States. 

By Order GEORGE WASHINGTON, President. 

KNOX, Secretary. 

The parchment on which this is written is yel- 
low, and the writing faded with time. 

The library faces the parlor on the other side 
of the hall, both rooms having a view of the river. 
Back of the library is the dining room, and lead- 
ing away from it, a wing contains the kitchen and 
offices. To the left of the doorway a broad, oak 
stairway ascends by short ranges of easy-rising 
steps, forming three spacious landings on the way 
upward. During the Revolutionary War this 
house was occupied both by the Colonial and 
British forces. The Hessian soldiery who were 
quartered here at one time did a very considerable 
amount of wanton damage. The rail of the stair- 
way is marked with the hacks of their sabres, 
and the imprint of the muzzles of their muskets 
is still plainly visible on many of the steps. 

As a boy, the halls interested me enormously ; 
they had been papered with such wall paper as I 
have never seen elsewhere. The entrance hall 
portrayed a vista of Paris, apparently ranged 
along the Seine, with ladies and gentlemen prom- 
enading the banks, and all the notable buildings, 



8 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

the Pantheon, Notre Dame, and many more dis- 
tributed in the scene, the river running in front. 
But it was when I reached the second story that 
my childish imagination was exercised. Here the 
panorama was of a different kind ; it represented 
scenes in India the pursuit of deer and various 
kinds of smaller game, the hunting of the tiger 
and the lion by the natives, perched on great 
elephants with magnificent trappings. These 
views are not duplicated in the wall paper; the 
scene is continuous, passing from one end of the 
hall to the other, a panorama rich in color and 
incident. I had thus in my mind a picture of 
India, I knew what kind of trees grew there, I 
knew the clothes people wore and the arms they 
used while hunting. To-day the same paper 
hangs in the halls of the old house. 

The Chippendale sideboards, the spindle-legged 
and fiddle-backed chairs, the claw-footed tables and 
sofas, the four posters and high daddies, the old 
clock on the stairs with its moon, still stand in 
their remembered places. All the rooms have great 
open fireplaces ; and to this day there is no such 
thing as modern heating apparatus, or plumbing, 
in the house. 

Facing the front door is a mound surrounded 
by a circular roadway, and here my grandfather 
had erected a sun-dial, an object of mysterious 
charm. Beyond this circle, a gateway leads to an 



CHILDHOOD 9 

old-fashioned flower and vegetable garden of some 
five acres. This is surrounded by a high picket 
fence hidden in a profuse lilac growth. Every- 
thing grew there asparagus, rhubarb, horse- 
radish, the old-fashioned herbs, and an abundant 
supply of vegetables. The roses, the lilies-of-the- 
valley, the violets, the lilacs, the peonies, and the 
stately lines of box which mark the pathways, 
seemed to me, as I looked upon them recently, 
the same that I saw, when I walked in the garden 
with my grandfather. 

At " Buccleuch," protection has always been 
given to the birds; they were subjects of special 
care to my grandfather, who allowed no one to 
disturb them. The wood-thrush and robin built 
their nests in the honeysuckle over the windows. 
The catbirds and squirrels were equally tame in 
the garden and woods, and the place fairly thronged 
with the smaller song-birds. Equal protection was 
afforded them during the lifetime of my uncle 
Charles Scott; and my cousin Anthony Dey, the 
present owner, shows a like solicitude. 

Grandmother Cornell's house on Brooklyn 
Heights was an old-fashioned three-story brick 
structure with a high peaked roof. It occupied 
the entire twenty-five feet of a city lot, and the 
adjoining lot, until recently, was a part of 
the place. The entrance was on the side of 
the house in those days, and in the yard was 



io THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

a large magnolia, while sheltered by the wall 
was an apricot tree that bore a profusion of fruit 
every year. The garden back was full of all 
kinds of hardy flowers, and was laid out in walks 
bordered with box in the dignified way of the 
olden time. Inside, the house was of the con- 
ventional type associated with the city. 

Many things, however, added to the pleasure 
of the seven grandchildren, about of an age, who 
played together here ; one was a garret, a room 
under the roof, occupying the whole upper 
portion of the house, so large that one of our 
games was what we called playing farming, and 
each of us had a farm situated in different corners 
of this room. Here we had toy stables, with 
tiny wooden horses and wooden men and carts, 
and all the appurtenances of farming ; and in 
stormy weather we played day after day at this 
game. There were long wooden steps that led 
from the garret to a point of the roof, and outside 
was a spacious observation platform, much such 
as one finds on every old house in Nantucket to- 
day. Surrounded by a strong balustrade, this 
platform afforded a safe place for kite-flying in 
the spring ; it was where we watched the Fourth 
of July celebrations at night when the fireworks 
made a fine spectacle, and from here all the 
waters of the bay, away down to Staten Island, 
were plainly to be seen. 



CHILDHOOD H 

Once a wonderful ship entered the harbor ; it 
was the Great Eastern, then a miracle of naval 
architecture. On the day of its arrival we were 
all taken up to this platform to see the coming of 
this ship and the ceremonies attending its wel- 
come by New York. 

The summer before my father died he had re- 
moved to Scotch Plains, New Jersey, where he 
had bought a farm; and that autumn my Uncle 
John, my mother's brother, came there for sport, 
the shooting of game birds, and though I 
was not five years old, the woodcock and quail 
which he brought home from his excursions are 
realities to me still. The long bill of the wood- 
cock, his large, mild, deerlike eye placed high up 
on the side of his head, was one of the things 
that first impressed me ; and I never now see the 
white throat of a quail without recalling the 
quail as they were taken from my uncle's game- 
bag so long ago. 

Shortly after my father's death my mother 
returned to Grandmother Cornell's house to live. 
As my mother's father died long before I was 
born, I have no recollection of him ; but my 
mother's mother Grandmother Cornell, as we 
called her outlived my mother many years, and 
died in 1896 at the advanced age of ninety-three 
years. She was a notable housewife of the old 
school; and I recall as boy and man the daily 



12 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

market-going, with her a serious function, very 
unlike the present-day calls of butchers and gro- 
cers at one's house, or the hurried conversation 
as to one's wants, with these gentry over the tele- 
phone. She looked after every detail of her 
house almost to the end ; so that when she died 
on the 1 2th of January, the friend who settled up 
her affairs found that on the ist of January all 
of her current expenses had been discharged and 
settled, leaving only twelve days of her life to be 
arranged and paid for. 

From my grandmother I learned many things. 
As a child I saw her regular round of yearly 
household work, each season with its own partic- 
ular associations the sweetmeats and preserves 
that were made up in the summer months, the 
apple and mince pies at Thanksgiving, the first 
shad of the spring. All the details of work and 
all the delicacies appropriate to each season were 
impressed on my mind because of the fine house- 
hold economy and good cheer that were due to 
her careful administration. 

In 1861, we made a journey to Europe, then no 
inconsiderable undertaking, and the chief incen- 
tive was the possibility that something might be 
done by the great surgeons of Europe to mitigate 
my lameness, which was then of about four years' 
standing. But before we left America an inci- 
dent occurred which made a deep impression in 



CHILDHOOD 13 

my memory. To a boy of seven the word abo- 
litionist had no meaning; but as I heard it applied 
to my mother, it seemed a term of opprobrium. 
The capture and hanging of John Brown, and the 
discussion of events, were engrossing topics in 
the household. Still I did not comprehend the 
situation, for with my toys, a file of lead soldiers 
and a small jointed doll, I played at hanging John 
Brown. I had seen all the pictures of the ex- 
ecution in Harpers Weekly, and reenacted the 
drama as nearly as I could. 

The gloom when finally the great conflict 
opened, when a flag at half mast revealed a new 
method of expression, is among the strongest of 
my early recollections. 

These incidents have been dwelt on not for 
any intrinsic interest nor as indicative of later 
tastes, but as serving to show that my perceptive 
powers were early called into play, and that my 
visualizing faculty recorded lasting pictures. 

Crossing the ocean, one day one of the sailors 
caught a bird, in the rigging, which had come on 
board ship, tired and exhausted, seeking refuge. 
There was an invalid lady, confined to her cabin, 
which was just opposite ours, she asked to see 
the bird, and it was brought down alive in 
the sailor's hand. I had a good look at it. 
I recall its long, curved bill, its finely barred 
brown feathers, the frightened look of its eye, 



i 4 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

and I know to-day (though I saw it only for a 
few moments and was not quite ten years old) 
that it was the Hudsonian curlew. 

We stayed a year in England, France, Switzer- 
land, and Germany, visiting the great cities, 
but I have no definite recollection of any 
of the birds, nor that I was interested in them. 
However, the sport of fishing fascinated me, 
and though I did not catch anything, I fished 
in a brook and some ponds in England. The 
brook was near Chester, and the ponds were in 
one of the " Commons " on the outside of London. 
For many days, too, one after the other, along 
the banks of the Seine in Paris, I joined a row 
of fishing poles held by men in blue cotton 
blouses, noisy with a lot of gabble I did not 
understand. As I look back now, the number of 
fish were in inverse ratio to the sportsmen. I 
know I did not catch any. I fished also at 
Schaffhausen, in Switzerland. The details con- 
nected with the sport there and in Paris are clear, 
the kind of bait, and how, in the latter place, 
the fishermen enveloped it in mud, presum- 
ably thinking that, as the mud was washed 
away, the lure would appear more natural. 
At Schaffhausen a kind of sow-bug was used, 
and together with the one on the hook, a 
handful were thrown into the water in the 
hope that the fish might pick up (as was ex- 



CHILDHOOD 15 

plained to me) the wrong one out of so many 
right ones ; but I did not see any fish caught 
at Schaffhausen. 

After a year we came back to America, and 
went to live first on Staten Island. I was then 
about eleven years old, and have a definite rec- 
ollection of noticing birds there. Two kinds 
made a deep and lasting picture in my mind, 
though I did not know their names. Great flocks 
of birds came to the juniper trees that bordered 
one side of the place to eat the berries in season, 
and there were many spotted-breasted thrushes 
that passed through at certain times of the 
year. These happenings were in the fall, and 
were impressed on my mind by the men who 
were shooting the thrushes. A German pot- 
hunter showed me a brown thrush, and told me 
that all the birds that had a yellow lining to their 
mouths were good to eat. Then he opened the 
thrush's mouth and I marked the beautiful 
golden color inside. Another gunner came after 
the birds that fed on the juniper berries, and shot 
into the flock, killing a great number. Some of 
the birds had plain wings, but others were deco- 
rated with beautiful sealing-wax appendages to 
some of the feathers of the wing. These charac- 
teristics, together with the soft brown colors and 
the pointed crests, define them now as cedar 
birds. Still the fishing interested me on Staten 



16 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

Island more than the birds did. There was a 
pond not very far from our house where there 
were myriads of goldfish. I used to fish there, 
and caught a good many. They were nearly all 
small, and most of them were thrown back again ; 
but the fascination of angling was strong upon 
me. 

After living at Staten Island a year, my step- 
father bought a farm in Washington Valley, in 
New Jersey, not far from Plainfield. This farm 
he purchased of a man of means, who had tired of 
his toy. The farm was acquired practically as it 
stood, with all the horses, cattle, and cows, and a 
great many things on it that appealed to me, 
some peacocks and a pair of domesticated Canada 
geese. A brook which ran through the place 
had been dammed, making a large pond of some 
twenty acres. Here the ducks came in the fall, 
real wild ducks; and here our tame wild geese 
were sometimes visited by other wild geese pass- 
ing over. On the trees that surrounded the pond 
I watched the hawks, when the leaves were off, 
perched on the bare limbs. Here again came to 
visit my mother my Uncle John, a great sports- 
man, and now I was big enough to go with him, 
when he did not go too far, to shoot birds 
woodcock and quail. One day when we were 
out walking together he killed a fine hawk that 
rose from the grass near by. A bird on the ground 



CHILDHOOD 17 

in the bushes, rustling in the dry leaves, attracted 
my attention. It was a small bird. I looked at 
it very carefully, saw that it had a black head 
and neck, was black above, had black wings with 
some white markings, and rather a long tail with 
some white feathers in it. Its colors underneath 
were white on the belly and chestnut-brown 
on the sides. From these memories I know now 
that it was a cheewink, or towhee. 

Because I was delicate, I was much at home, 
and had private instruction from a governess, and 
was allowed to be out of doors all the time possible. 
The brook was my favorite resort. Here I caught 
many fish, and learned through experience and 
some help the fundamental principles of fishing. 
I watched also many of the other creatures that 
lived along the banks and in the water turtles, 
frogs, and snakes. 

After I was thirteen years old I went away to 
a German school in South Brooklyn, kept by two 
masters named Deghuee and Schmieder. I was 
at this school for nearly three years, and lived in 
the house of Mr. Deghuee. Here I had my first 
systematic teaching, for before this I had been 
so much of an invalid that my education consisted 
largely in reading such books as I liked, and a 
certain amount of disconnected teaching in a num- 
ber of schools and by different tutors and gover- 
nesses. Everything save English composition 



1 8 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

was studied in German ; mathematics, geography, 
French, and Spanish, all from German text-books, 
and both at school and at Mr. Deghuee's house 
German was the language spoken. The exacti- 
tude in method and absoluteness of discipline 
were characteristic. 

When I was perhaps rather more than four years 
old, among my many pets was a water spaniel, 
" Prince," the first dog-friend I recall. He was a 
beautiful dog, orange and white in color, with fine 
silky hair, large expressive eyes, and great general 
intelligence. I know that he did many tricks. The 
cats and kittens of my boyhood were many, but 
from them I cannot select any particular favorite. 
I became much attached to a common water-turtle, 
which my brother and I caught while we were on a 
visit near Perth Amboy. We used it as a draught 
horse in our plays, having bored small holes 
through the back of the rim of the shell to attach 
the harness, a small paper box answering for a 
cart We were at Perth Amboy only a few days, 
and returning from that point to Brooklyn, the 
turtle was carried in a basket. When we arrived 
at Wall Street Ferry, and were on the boat, I 
looked in the basket, the turtle was gone. I knew 
that it was safe only a little while before, in the 
street-car, and was so much concerned at the loss 
that we left the boat and went to look for the 
turtle. We found him just outside the ferry house 



CHILDHOOD 19 

in the roadway, but alas ! a cart-wheel had passed 
over him. My grief was great, and my mother 
said to me, " You could not cry more for any 
of us!" 

While at the farm I reared a crow, which was 
a source of great amusement, not only to me, 
but to our many friends. This bird was allowed 
large liberty, was very tame, and with the tradi- 
tional crow propensity for mischief, played many 
pranks, both edifying and provoking, and some 
of them almost inconceivable. He would pick a 
rose from the garden, bring it to the steps of the 
piazza, and then carefully remove each petal, lay- 
ing them in a pile. After this was finished, one 
by one he would carefully remove each leaf to the 
step below, making a new heap there. There 
were three steps to this piazza, and for hours he 
would move his rose-leaves from one step to 
another, up and down, seeming to find infinite 
satisfaction in the process. The whole was 
accompanied by much gabble, doubtless in crow 
language, which seemed to me to indicate at 
times great pleasure, and at other times rage 
and irritation, when the wind would disturb 
his pile of leaves and he had to restore order 
from chaos. Certainly he was a droll, amusing 
fellow. 

Two pairs of tame mice were not so edifying 
to the family as they were to me, and became so 



20 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

great a nuisance, their numbers having been 
largely increased by several litters of young, that 
the whole lot were summarily dealt with. My 
brother and I also had rabbits, and the breeding 
and rearing of young ones was a serious, enter- 
taining, and pleasant occupation to us; 



CHAPTER II 

YOUTH 

AFTER leaving the academy in Brooklyn, I spent 
almost a year at a boarding school in Providence, 
Rhode Island. This seminary is known as the 
Friends' School ; and at the time I went there, 
Albert Smiley was the head-master. In all the 
schools I had attended so far, including this one 
at Providence, there was nothing in the line of 
nature study: no physiology, no botany, no 
zoology, so that my training in any of these 
lines, or the development of taste for natural 
history, does not seem to have been dependent 
on any inspiration acquired from my school life. 

The fall when I went to Providence, the gor- 
geous coloring of the maple trees and some of the 
autumn wild-flowers attracted me. I had now 
become familiar with a few of the commoner 
birds of the eastern part of America the robin, 
the bluebird, the meadow-lark, the yellowbird, the 
barn-swallow, and the catbird. 

My summer vacations were spent at my 
mother's home, which was now in Plainfield, 
New Jersey. Most of the time I was out of doors. 

21 



22 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

One vacation was passed in New Hampshire on 
the edge of the White Mountains, and that fall I 
stayed for a short season at Northampton, Massa- 
chusetts, with some friends, and worked for a 
little while in an office to see if my taste lay in 
mercantile directions. Thus far, though my bent 
was apparent, it was not very definite or decided. 
After a few weeks here not more than five I 
was suddenly called home, as my mother had 
determined that my brother and I should go to 
an institution which was about to be inaugurated. 
A wise and far-seeing man in New York had 
planned and endowed a seat of learning, and his 
memorable words have become its motto : " I 
would found an institution where any person can 
find instruction in any study." 

This was Ezra Cornell, the founder of the great 
university which bears his name. 

So my brother and I started, almost at once, 
for Ithaca, and, passing an easy examination, were 
admitted as freshmen to the first class of Cornell 
University. 

I hardly realized myself what it all meant ; but 
I soon began to know that here an effort was 
being made to develop the great idea laid down 
by the founder. The buildings at Cornell Uni- 
versity in the beginning were four in number. 
There was a dormitory on Cascadilla Creek, 
known as The Cascadilla, and then crossing on 



YOUTH 23 

a rude bridge, some quarter of a mile or more 
beyond, one came to three more buildings a 
central one and two smaller stone structures, 
one on either side, the whole facing the lake, and 
overlooking a remarkable panorama of beauty. 

Very soon my studies drew me under the in- 
fluence of Professor Burt G. Wilder. He had 
been a pupil of Agassiz, and had graduated with 
great honor at Harvard University. My work 
with him began as a student in a class in physi- 
ology. As the subject developed, I was fascinated, 
and felt in a degree the value of my opportunity. 

Dr. Wilder as a teacher had a great influence 
on everything I have since done in a scientific 
way, though I was with him but a short time. 
A physiologist and anatomist, he had also a very 
considerable knowledge of general natural history, 
and he encouraged every effort I made in that 
direction. Such inspiration was extended to all 
his students. 

I began to learn much about insects, particu- 
larly butterflies and beetles. There were then no 
classes in special branches of zoology, but my 
attention being arrested, I would go to Dr. Wilder 
with my problems, and with his help in this way 
I pursued work outside of my regular college 
studies. 

Up to this time I had shot but few birds in my 
life perhaps one or two. One afternoon that 



24 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

first fall in Ithaca, I borrowed a gun of some one 
and went up Cascadilla Creek. After a little I 
came upon a belted kingfisher sitting on a dead 
limb overhanging the bank of a mill pond. I 
tried my best to get near him, but he was shy 
and wary, and anticipated every effort I made 
to approach him. Finally, however, he flew up 
toward the head of the pond. I hid myself on 
the bank, and presently he came flying by not 
very far away. Fearing I might not get another 
chance, I fired at him as he passed. I could not 
see that I had hit him, for he pursued his course 
quietly to a branch of a tree, some two hundred 
feet away, near where I had first seen him. Here 
he gave his characteristic " rattle " as he alighted. 
I watched him for a moment and saw him reel 
like a drunken man, and then fall from the limb 
and strike the ground just at the edge of the 
water. The watchman of the stream was dead. 

I went to him and took him in my hand; and 
though he was stone-dead, there was not a mark 
or sign of a wound anywhere; not a drop of 
blood soiled his feathers, nor was there any appar- 
ent about his mouth ; there was nothing to show 
in any way the catastrophe that had overtaken 
him. The whole thing was to me a marvel. I 
recall the shock now. What had I done ? Was 
it possible to frighten a wild bird to death ? 

I have seen the same thing happen many times 



YOUTH 25 

since ; that is, a bird in full flight being fired at 
and apparently missed will pursue his way with- 
out a motion to indicate the fatal wound, and then, 
after going a greater or less distance, suddenly fall 
dead to the ground, frequently from mid-air. I 
know now the reason for this. A single shot 
striking a bird in flight, penetrating the thin side 
of his body and entering his lungs, makes a very 
small hole and no external hemorrhage ensues. 
There is little or no shock to the bird ; I fancy 
he hardly feels pain, but presently the internal 
hemorrhage from the great blood-vessels that have 
been severed makes him suddenly unconscious, 
and in a moment he is dead. The time, however, 
between the penetrating of the shot and the in- 
ternal hemorrhage is sufficient to allow the animal 
to travel a very considerable distance, seemingly 
uninjured. 

Kingfishers, with the characteristic note I have 
referred to, are always associated in my mind 
with the gentry who tradition says patrolled the 
streets and byways of towns and villages, giving 
warning of danger with a machine sounding not 
unlike the " rattle " of the kingfisher. 

Well, I had my kingfisher and I wanted to keep 
him, but the question in my mind was how to do 
it. Birds could be stuffed, because I had seen pre- 
served birds at that time, but I knew of no one who 
could show me the process. Though there were 



26 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

doubtless books on the subject, none were avail- 
able. However, I spoke to Dr. Wilder about it, 
and told him I wanted to preserve the kingfisher. 
He said that he had recently read of a natural- 
ist who had made an expedition into some very 
remote part of China, and brought back many 
bird skins. He simply skinned them, as he would 
any animal, opening them from the vent to the 
angle of the bill, laying the skin out flat, sprin- 
kling it with salt or alum, and drying it between 
sheets of paper. All his specimens came home 
in that shape, and were utilized for scientific pur- 
poses afterward. So, with a knife, I proceeded to 
treat my kingfisher in that way, and was so far 
successful that a flat skin of the kingfisher, retain- 
ing most of the feathers, not much rumpled and 
fairly clean, was the result. In a few days it dried, 
and having duly labelled it, I was delighted with 
my specimen. 

Later in the year I made the acquaintance of a 
boy who told me that another fellow in college, by 
name Jobs, from somewhere out West, knew how 
to stuff birds. I found out where Jobs roomed, 
and called on him. He had on his mantelpiece 
a mounted specimen of a spotted sandpiper. It 
appeared to me the most beautiful and natural 
piece of work conceivable, and I determined at 
that moment to become capable in this kind of 
handicraft. Jobs told me all about it, and showed 



YOUTH 27 

me as best he could, but he did not have any 
specimen to demonstrate with, and for some 
reason I never had a lesson from him. 

My ambition was nevertheless formed, and to 
goad it on, just at that time a gentleman presented 
to Cornell University the first systematic collec- 
tion of mounted birds that the museum of that 
institution acquired. 

Green Smith, Esq., a son of the well-known 
Gerrit Smith, was a gentleman of leisure, a good 
sportsman, and had a keen interest in birds. Dur- 
ing his many extended hunting trips he had 
always collected specimens. His collection, for 
the time, was remarkable. Many of his birds had 
been mounted by John G. Bell, a very famous taxi- 
dermist, a contemporary and friend of Audubon. 
Bell had been in the field with that great pioneer 
in American ornithology, and had assisted him in 
his collecting. Green Smith's scientific knowledge 
of birds was not profound; I think his interest 
in them was largely that of a sportsman. They 
also aroused his aesthetic sensibility, always the 
first appeal of nature. 

Shortly after I met him in the early spring, one 
day I killed a little bird that was a dark olive- 
green with more or less definite bars on each 
wing, and with a bright orange crown sur- 
rounded by a golden area, practically concealed 
by the general olive-green feathers of the head. 



28 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

I had no idea what it was, and took it to Mr. 
Smith for information. He, with an old colored 
man who served as an assistant, was arranging 
the birds in the cases which the university had 
provided to receive them. I handed him my 
bird, he examined it, said he was not sure of 
its identity, but that he would look it up, and 
took down a book from the shelf. This book was 
Cuvier's celebrated " Regne Animal," the volume 
devoted to ornithology, and here he found the 
plate of a bird that looked something like the 
little fellow we were discussing. He told me he 
thought it must be Cuvier's kinglet. I am 
elaborating all this here, not so much for the 
interest of the thing in itself, as to let some of 
my younger friends know what was the state of 
knowledge in general about birds at so late a 
date as 1868 and 1869 in this country, even among 
people who were professed students. The status 
of Cuvier's kinglet is too well known to be dwelt 
on here, but I quote the sum of our present knowl- 
edge regarding the bird. 

CUVIER'S KINGLET. 

Regulus cuvicrii Aud. 
Regulus cuvierii Aud. Orn. Biog. i. 1832, p. 288, pi. 55. 

"Known only from Audubon's description and figure 
of the original specimen, killed in June, 1812, on the 
banks of the Schuylkill River, in Pennsylvania." 



YOUTH 29 

American Ornithologists Union " Check-list " of North American 
Birds, p. 333, Hypothetical List. Second and Revised 
Edition, New York, 1895. 

Only one specimen of Cuvier's kinglet has ever 
been taken, so far as naturalists are aware, and 
this was obtained by Audubon on the banks of 
the Schuylkill in June, 1812. 

I may say that Mr. Smith's knowledge of large 
birds, and especially of game-birds, ducks, snipe, 
and birds of prey, was accurate and adequate ; 
but when it came to the smaller insectivorous 
song-birds, it is evident, from what I have just 
recounted, that his knowledge was at that time 
elementary. 

I know now that the little bird was the golden- 
crowned kinglet, one of the most abundant mi- 
grants, and a frequent winter resident in all the 
country in the vicinity of New York and south- 
ward throughout eastern North America, going 
even as far south as Central America in that 
season. 

From this period, the study of insects and 
birds divided my interest. I acquired a very fair 
knowledge of the common butterflies and beetles 
of the region about Ithaca. Having Harris's 
" Insects Injurious to Vegetation " as a text-book, 
I was able to identify the commoner insects that 
came in my way. While much interested in 
birds, it had not even occurred to me that their 



30 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

study would engross so much of my attention 
and time later. 

A very pleasant and profitable year was spent 
at Cornell University. During that term I 
heard university lectures delivered by Louis 
Agassiz, James Russell Lowell, Bayard Taylor, 
Goldwin Smith, and other notable men. I made 
the acquaintance of Mr. Cornell in a slight 
way, and also of the president of the new 
university, Andrew Dickson White. I came to 
know the librarian of the university, Willard 
Fiske, quite intimately, and through him his fast 
friend, Bayard Taylor. 

Dr. Wilson, one of the professors of the uni- 
versity, had a son with similar tastes to mine, 
though I think they lay more in the direction of 
sportmanship. However, he had one thing I did 
not have, a light double-barrelled gun, and I used 
to go with him whenever I had the opportunity, 
and prepared birds whenever he could spare 
specimens which he had killed. After a little, it 
came to be known that I was interested in that 
sort of thing, and the boys helped me all they 
could. I may say that during these years I was 
very lame, often having to resort to crutches. 

During the next summer vacation my mother 
was away from her home, in Maine, and I spent 
nearly two months on a farm that belonged to an 
uncle. 



YOUTH 31 

Long before this the farm in Washington Val- 
ley had been sold, but curiously enough this farm 
where I spent the summer was not only in Wash- 
ington Valley, but adjoined the place I knew best 
in my childhood. Here I began to renew my 
acquaintance with the country I had not been in 
for several years. I tramped up and down the 
old brook, saw the spotted sandpipers and green 
herons, became acquainted with the wood-thrushes 
and catbirds, tried in vain to see the whippoor- 
wills, which I heard singing every night, and 
saw besides many birds I did not know, but 
which nevertheless made a lasting impression 
upon me. 

Uncle Dick did not like boys to shoot anything 
in the way of song-birds, and so these were undis- 
turbed ; but he let me have his gun, and I was 
allowed if I could get near enough to kill 
spotted sandpipers and green herons or crows. 
During these hunting trips I saw many things. 

At this time my interest was concentrated upon 
the accumulation of a collection. I wanted the 
things so that I could look at them at my leisure 
and convenience, and see and study them when- 
ever so disposed, also to satisfy my aesthetic crav- 
ing. But even then I believe I did not care 
for a collection for the sake and glory of owning 
it; it was simply because I wanted the things 
available. 



32 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

After about six weeks spent here I joined my 
mother at Old Orchard Beach on the Maine coast. 
On the edge of the ocean were countless sand- 
pipers, gulls, and other water-birds never seen 
before and unknown to me, and I formed the 
acquaintance of that cosmopolite, the sanderling. 

Walking up the beach one day, I found the 
half-rotted carcass of a fish that had been thrown 
ashore. It was a monster over six feet long, so 
far disintegrated that the skeleton was the chief 
part left. Fishermen told me it was a "horse 
mackerel." Notwithstanding that the bones were 
full of oil and grease, and that it was disagreeable 
and malodorous and not particularly pleasing in 
appearance, it was too great a treasure to leave 
behind. I brought back most of the vertebrae 
and the skull and many of the small bones in a 
bundle, much to the distress of my mother, both 
during our stay at the hotel and on the return 
journey home. 

My taste must have become now so definitely 
apparent that my parents remarked it, for my 
mother stopped with me in Boston on our way 
back from Old Orchard Beach to consult with Dr. 
Wilder there as to my future. Whatever consul- 
tation she had with him resulted in her deter- 
mination that I should have the best opportunity 
obtainable for the kind of study that appealed to 
me. The same fall she leased a house in Cam- 



YOUTH 33 

bridge, and I worked under one of the great mas- 
ters, the most inspiring teacher of nature that the 
world has known. 

The house in Cambridge where we lived this 
year was not distant from the museum, and was 
surrounded by an open field, where numerous 
trees were scattered about, the whole attractive 
to birds. 

For the coming year I studied under the direc- 
tion of Louis Agassiz, with Professor N. S. Shaler, 
Dr. Jeffries Wyman, and Mr. J. A. Allen, who was 
then Curator of Birds and Mammals in the Museum 
of Comparative Zoology. 

Nominally a student in the Lawrence Scientific 
School, a department of Harvard University, I 
was really a special student working almost en- 
tirely in the direction of natural history. 

One of the first things I did on going to Cam- 
bridge was to find out what local laws there were 
that would allow me to pursue the collecting of 
birds. By that time my mind was made up that 
this was the work I wanted to do more than 
anything else. Having ascertained that it was 
necessary to apply to the mayor of the city of 
Cambridge for a permit to shoot birds, I made 
application, and received a document setting forth 
that such a privilege was granted to me. Hence 
I was enabled to collect all kinds of birds at any 
season of the year. None of this work was done 



34 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

during my regular hours in the museum, but all 
the leisure I could get and all my holidays were 
spent with my gun (for I had a gun of my own 
by this time) in collecting such birds as could be 
obtained in the vicinity of Cambridge, working 
over practically much the same ground that had 
been covered by the great naturalist, Nut tall. 

So the term at Harvard wore on, and the first 
college year of 1869 and 1870 came to a close. 



CHAPTER III 

STUDENT DAYS 

MY first college vacation after going to Harvard 
was spent at my mother's house in Plainfield, New 
Jersey, on the outskirts of the town. I was in 
Plainfield early in June, and made a very con- 
siderable collection during the holidays. This 
was composed chiefly of the local birds breeding 
in the region, and now, as I became acquainted 
with them, the list of known kinds grew rapidly. 
Wilson's thrush, the brown thrasher, the house- 
wren, the scarlet tanager, the rose-breasted gros- 
beak, the yellow-breasted chat, the orchard oriole, 
the Baltimore oriole, the blue-winged yellow 
warbler, and the yellow warbler were noticeable, 
most of them common, and new to me. The 
scarlet tanager and the yellow-breasted chat par- 
ticularly struck me, one a gorgeous, fiery spot 
among the fresh new green of the oak leaves, and 
the other a voice, the owner of which remained 
long unknown. This voice came from various 
tangles and dense thickets. It began with a 
croak, and then followed a sort of whoop ; now a 
sharp whistle succeeded by a rapid series of short 

35 



36 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

whistling notes, staccato and diminuendo, with 
longer intervals toward the close. Again the 
noise was like the mewing of cats, and sometimes 
a young puppy seemed concealed in the bushes. 
The whole thing puzzled me. The vocabulary 
of the chat is not limited ; the bird is a polyglot 
and vociferous. 

Once, on a very still day, about noon, when 
nature was silent, no songster carolled and 
hardly a zephyr stirred, I saw a bird rise from 
a dense thicket and begin a curious flight, like 
that of some butterfly or large moth, and as seem- 
ingly inconsequent. With dangling legs and 
slowly fluttering wings, with feathers apparently 
awry, he poised for a moment, and then burst into 
the series of notes that had so long confounded 
me ; the croak, the whoop, and the sharp whistling 
notes that I have tried to describe, and in addition 
many other drolleries, both of song and motion, 
were executed. A most remarkable performance ! 
When he alighted again a momentary view dis- 
closed a bird about seven and a half inches long. 
All the upper parts and the wings were olive-green. 
This color was interrupted on the sides of the face 
by a clear white line extending from the nostril 
to the back of the eye, and the region in front of 
the eye was almost black, while about it was a 
white ring. The whole throat and the body under 
the chest was a clear lemon yellow, deepening 



STUDENT DAYS 37 

almost to cadmium. The under parts were white 
shading into grayish on the sides and flanks. 
Such was this new acquaintance, the yellow- 
breasted chat, a bird that comes from the South 
in April, and reaches as far north commonly as 
Connecticut and southern Minnesota, retiring 
again in the late summer, spending the winter in 
Central and northern South America. 

Aside from all I have said about the chat, I 
am struck by what appears to me an unusual mat- 
ter in regard to his immigration and emigration. 
Most of our small birds of passage that are com- 
mon in eastern North America proceed south- 
ward, following the land. Ultimately they reach 
Florida, and passing down that peninsula, thence 
cross to Cuba, Jamaica, and by this island route 
finally reach their winter home, whether it be 
among these islands or in South America. 

Now, I have spent many winters in Florida, 
and many falls and springs. I have seen all the 
common migrants as they passed: the scarlet 
tanagers, many kinds of warblers, the swallows, 
wrens, rose-breasted grosbeaks, the bobolinks, the 
orchard and Baltimore orioles ; but I have not 
seen, nor have I met any one else who has seen, 
a yellow-breasted chat in Florida. It is common 
throughout parts of Georgia and the Carolinas, 
both as a migrant and as a resident breeding bird. 
I conclude that the yellow-breasted chats pursue a 



38 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

route coincident with the land areas, and that those 
which occupy that portion of lowland North Amer- 
ica which is east of the Appalachian chain during 
the breeding season, pass south when migrating 
to the east of that chain and proceed around its 
southern point ; taking a land journey across the 
Mississippi, they reach Central and South Amer- 
ica (where they winter) by what may be termed 
the Louisiana, Texas, and Mexican route. It 
seems not a little remarkable that this bird pre- 
sumably has never taken the Florida and island 
route followed by so many other small migrants, 
nor am I aware of any West Indian records of 
the species in question. 

I cannot dwell longer on the work of this sum- 
mer, but must hasten on. Suffice to say that I 
collected about two hundred birds, some of which 
I did not know until I returned to Cambridge, 
where, with the assistance of the museum collec- 
tions, their identity was revealed. 

The house that we went to live in, and where 
the rest of my undergraduate years were passed, 
was located in Berkeley Street, and was almost 
directly back of the poet Longfellow's ; his garden 
adjoined our place. John Fiske was a close 
neighbor and nearly opposite was the home of 
William Dean Howells. 

My mother had a considerable circle of friends 
which grew rapidly. Robert Dale Owen, Henry 



STUDENT DAYS 39 

James, the elder, and others were frequent callers. 
Samuel Longfellow, the poet's brother, also came, 
and the social circle was both charming and cul- 
tivated. 

To return to my college work, Mr. J. A. Allen 
had recently made a tour of parts of Kansas, Colo- 
rado, and Wyoming, principally for the purpose 
of obtaining ornithological material. The collec- 
tions that he had so made were in the neighbor- 
hood of fifteen hundred birds, and had just 
arrived at the museum. Part of my regular 
work during this year was the study of these 
collections, and I became conversant, at least, 
with the external appearance of the specimens in 
the bird fauna in question. In 1878 I visited al- 
most the same region where Mr. Allen had worked, 
and met no birds that were not recognized at 
sight, so careful and thorough was the kind of 
training pursued under Mr. Allen's direction. 

I kept up my out-of-door study and field-work. 
One of my favorite rounds for such investigation 
was a place we called " The Farm." It was just 
back of Mount Auburn, and among its features 
was a large apple-orchard, and a considerable pine 
wood, while in the more open land was a large 
field of asparagus which was allowed to go to seed. 
To these asparagus beds many birds came in the 
fall and winter, among them great flocks of cedar- 
birds, to feast on the berries. The passenger- 



40 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

pigeon, once a remarkable member of the bird life 
of eastern North America, still bred in small 
numbers in the pine woods. Jays and flickers 
roamed through the orchard almost the entire 
year. 

One day in the fall, I had just killed a blue jay 
from a tree in the orchard, when I saw a young 
man coming toward me, who hailed me. He, too, 
had a gun. We had some conversation, and I 
perceived directly that we had mutual tastes. I 
told him my name, and he said at once, "You 
are the boy who applied for the permit ; we were 
wondering who it was." Then I learned that he 
was Henry Henshaw, and that he lived in Grant- 
ville. He also told me that a friend of his, 
William Brewster of Cambridge, another young 
man, had a very considerable collection of birds, 
and invited me to go with him to see it. We 
made an appointment to do this at an early day. 

One afternoon we called on Brewster, and our 
meetings after that were frequent. The group 
was soon joined by Ruthven Dean who lived a 
little way from Brewster. After a while we set 
apart a certain night in the week when we met, 
sometimes at this one's house, again at that one's, 
to discuss birds, and this went on all through the 
year, until toward the close of it we began to speak 
of ourselves as the " Bird Club." The next fall 
our numbers were augmented by Henry A. Purdie 



STUDENT DAYS 41 

of West Newton, Ernest Ingersoll, C. J. Maynard, 
and a few others, and then we definitely formed a 
club for the study of birds, which met weekly at 
William Brewster's house. We called it "The 
Nuttall Ornithological Club" after the eminent 
ornithologist. The club still exists in Cambridge, 
and is the parent of the American Ornithologists' 
Union. 

This college year passed much as the one be- 
fore, except that my knowledge of birds had 
become wider. The material obtained in Plain- 
field gave me duplicates so that I could exchange 
with both Henshaw and Brewster, who had small 
collections of bird skins. 

In the next vacation a great delight awaited 
me. A school friend of my mother had married 
William H. Edwards, a naturalist, who was par- 
ticularly interested in insects and more especially 
in butterflies. My mother had kept up a rather 
desultory correspondence with her friend, and in 
an interchange of letters in the spring, an invita- 
tion was extended to me to visit the family and 
spend the coming vacation at their home. They 
had formerly lived at Newburgh, on the Hudson, 
and I had been there once ; but after the Civil War 
Mr. Edwards became engaged in coal-mining in 
West Virginia, and removed to the Kanawha Val- 
ley, locating at the town of Coalburg, where he 
had extensive mines which were being worked. 



42 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

and which needed his constant attention. He had 
a son and two daughters about my own age. 

So I began to equip myself for my first real ex- 
pedition as a naturalist. It was only a small stock 
of powder, some dust-shot, a few pounds of arsenic, 
some cotton, needles and thread, note-books, and 
my tools that went with me, but I shall never 
forget the preparation. Many times since I have 
fitted myself for prolonged stays in the wilderness, 
with stores, provisions, and equipments of various 
kinds, most elaborate and bulky, but I look back 
to the day when I spent my few dollars for the 
things I have described for my trip to West 
Virginia, and feel again the joy and anticipation 
which no subsequent preparation has awakened. 

I went by rail to Baltimore, thence via Harper's 
Ferry to Parkersburg on the Ohio River, and by 
steamboat on this river to a town near the mouth 
of the Kanawha, called Gallipolis, where another 
boat conveyed me up the Kanawha River to Coal- 
burg. This was a roundabout journey, and the 
boat part of it exceedingly slow. On the way I 
saw several birds never met with alive, and two 
of them I observed particularly. The first was 
the red-headed woodpecker, conspicuous from 
his definite markings exhibited in flight, and the 
other the turkey-buzzard, at which I never ceased 
to wonder, as it soared with so much ease, or passed 
the trains as if they were stationary. 



STUDENT DAYS 43 

I was received with the kindest welcome at 
Coalburg, then a remote place where they saw 
few people from the North. 

Coalburg is situated in the valley of the Kana- 
wha River, which is here narrow with high hills 
on either side. The river is about a quarter of a 
mile wide generally, winding in and out among 
hills. These rise abruptly just back from the 
river, there being little bottom-land. At the 
time I visited this region they were heavily tim- 
bered with a growth of poplar, beech, oak, and 
some chestnut, though beech was one of the most 
noticeable of the forest trees. Small streams 
flowed down at frequent intervals from the high 
hills above, which formed a spur of the Alleghany 
Range. They can hardly be called mountains, as 
they attain a height of not more than seven hun- 
dred feet above the level of the river. From my 
paper published in 1872 I quote the following 
sentences : 

" This elevation, however, is great enough to make a very 
decided variation in the temperature and surrounding conditions 
from those of the valley, and hence affords some interesting 
facts relative to the local distribution of the species through the 
same area of country. The birds of the Alleghanian fauna gen- 
erally are found on the mountain sides and tops, and those of 
the Carolinian fauna in the valleys. Of course, in so small an 
area, birds of both the above-mentioned faunae were found in 
either of the localities, but the above seems to be the general 
rule." 



44 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

In subsequent parts of this narrative I shall 
have to tell something of the geographical distribu- 
tion of North American birds, and I call attention 
to these few short sentences as indicative of gen- 
eralizations that will be developed. 

Just above Coalburg an island divided the river. 
This island was heavily wooded, and there was a 
very dense and tangled undergrowth a great 
resort for birds. At places along the river, though 
the banks were generally high as well as abrupt 
and steep, there were small beaches of shingle, and 
here I made the acquaintance of the large-billed 
water-thrush. When I first saw the water-thrushes 
at some little distance, they seemed to be some 
kind of sandpiper with which I was not acquainted. 
There was the same tilting motion, the same rapid 
running followed by a pause and tilt characteristic 
of the whole group of sandpipers, and emphasized 
in our fresh-water species. All the habits of these 
water-thrushes impressed me as sandpiper-like; 
and here it may be well to call attention to a fact 
that has always seemed to me of particular inter- 
est in the group which we call song-birds. The 
matter referred to is the reversion to ancestral 
habits and methods of life among this kind of 
perching birds. 

Though ornithologists disagree as to details, 
some assigning one family and others another 
as the highest in rank, they all agree that the 



STUDENT DAYS 45 

group of song-birds represents the summit of 
development in bird life. For instance, the family 
of thrushes is believed by some to be at the pin- 
nacle, and others assign that place to the family 
of crows, but there is no difference in opinion as 
to the entire group-position. 

Now, throughout the sub-order of song-birds 
there crop out habits which indicate at least a 
likeness to ancestral forms. I have mentioned 
the case of the water-thrush. Here is a bird near 
the summit in the scale of development of bird 
life, an example of a high type of bird structure, 
whose powers of song are among the best of his 
kind, but whose habits are aquatic, and whose very 
motions suggest at once an affinity with a very 
distant family the sandpipers. 

Again, one cannot see a nuthatch climbing a 
tree without referring him to the order of wood- 
peckers (PicicUe), and yet he too is high in the 
list of song-birds. Who has ever seen a shrike 
or butcher-bird kill a small bird or mouse and 
not thought of hawklike habits ; and the water- 
ouzel, common in the streams of Colorado and 
the Sierras, while near to the family of thrushes, 
is as truly aquatic in its habits as are the ducks. 
John Muir, on page 277 of his book " The Moun- 
tains of California " in his charming account, has 
given us so vivid a picture of the life and beauty 
of this little creature that I fear to dwell on it. 



46 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

Suffice to say that no duck or grebe, no penguin 
or petrel, more fully enjoys, or has a more intimate 
acquaintance with the mysteries of water than this 
thrush. Swimming and diving for its food, with 
its nest built under some brawling fall on a moun- 
tain stream, and never away from the water, it 
is as eminently a water-bird as can be conceived, 
yet, perched on some wet stone protruding out of 
the rushing mountain stream, it pours forth a song 
which rivals that of any of its compeers the 
nightingale or the shamah. Without question 
their ancestry is indicated in many of our song- 
birds. 

My first impression of Coalburg was of the 
birds. As we walked to the house from the land- 
ing only a few steps I saw a colony of purple 
martins which occupied a cote in the yard where 
the residence stood. Swallows do not sing much, 
and their twitter is heard only by giving close at- 
tention. The purple martin, largest of all our 
American swallows, would be remarkable if only 
for the beautiful polished color of his royal coat. 
Added to this his great affection for his kind (mani- 
fest in colonies where many pairs associate), the 
loud, joyous warble of mating and breeding time, 
the grace of flight and the beauty of form, com- 
bine to make the martin one of the most desir- 
able birds about a country place. 

Martins are curious birds in disposition, rather 



STUDENT DAYS 47 

erratic in their choice of breeding grounds, fond 
of the vicinity of man, and interesting to a degree. 
Hardly an isolated house in the South, whether 
mansion or hovel, but has its colony of them. 
These birds breed as far north as Connecticut, and 
even Massachusetts, but only very locally, and 
they are almost unknown in many areas. In the 
South, a pole erected in a yard and hung with 
some calabash gourds, having a round hole for en- 
trance, will always attract them, but in the North 
like efforts seem in vain. Formerly they were 
common in New Jersey, but now are rarely seen, 
except locally and as migrants. The English 
sparrow is largely responsible for the exodus 
of the martin. Both birds fancy the same sort 
of nesting sites, but the sparrow being a resident 
in the land, and the martin a migrant, probably 
the resident has taken advantage of the old tradi- 
tion that " possession is nine points of the law." 
Alas for the former tenants of our bird-houses 
with their gay song and lovely color ! 

During my stay in Coalburg, which was a most 
agreeable one, a collection of some five hundred 
birds was secured which represented eighty-six 
species, many of which I had never seen before. 
The blue-gray gnatcatcher, the Carolina chicka- 
dee, the tufted titmouse, Carolina wren, worm- 
eating warbler, the cerulean warbler, the yellow- 
throated warbler, the large-billed water-thrush, 



48 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

the Kentucky warbler, the hooded warbler, the 
summer tanager, the rough-winged swallow, the 
cardinal, the Acadian flycatcher, the pileated 
woodpecker, red-headed woodpecker, the least 
bittern, and the little blue heron were some of 
the birds that I had known only by reputation. 

Another remembrance of the time is the pleas- 
ure of my association with Mr. Edwards and the 
other members of his family. Mr. Edwards was 
a man widely known as a specialist in butterflies, 
and here, this study was pursued with vigor. He 
taught me about all the common butterflies of the 
region; showed me how they grew, what their 
development was, what they fed on. His method 
of procuring specimens for his collection I shall 
always recall. It seemed so original and new to 
me. He avoided as far as possible catching 
butterflies in the ordinary way, and the net was 
employed only for unusual kinds. Procuring a 
male and female of a given species, and cover- 
ing the plant or bush on which the young cater- 
pillars would naturally feed with a barrel netted 
at one end with mosquito netting, he introduced 
the captives alive to such a retreat. They 
would lay the eggs and soon after young cater- 
pillars would be hatched. Feeding on their 
natural food, protected from the wily ichneumon 
flies and other enemies, the caterpillars in due 
time changed into chrysalids. Ultimately from 



STUDENT DAYS 49 

these chrysalids were obtained perfect specimens 
with not a scale displaced and not a mark to 
deface them. Mr. Edwards's son shared with 
me my interest in the birds, and we collected 
together. The summer wore away with many 
pleasant occupations. 

One of the first things I did on arriving in 
Cambridge was to show my collections to Mr. 
Allen ; he seemed much impressed by them, for 
they included many birds that we knew but little 
about at that time. He drew me out on the 
subject of the summer's work, found what kind 
of notes had been made, and asked me to elabo- 
rate them. This I did, and formulated the re- 
sults when I was twenty years old in a paper 
read before the Boston Society of Natural His- 
tory, and published as a part of the proceedings 
of their society in October, 1872. It was entitled 
" Partial List of the Summer Birds of Kanawha 
County, West Virginia." The paper in question 
is what is technically known as a faunal list, and 
in 1872 few lists of this character had gone to 
press in this country, though now their number 
is legion. This was my first original contribution 
to science, and the initial paper published by any 
member of the Nuttall Ornithological Club, for 
at this time the club had not issued a proceed- 
ing of its own, the first bulletin of the Nuttall 
Club appearing several years later. The mem- 



50 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

bers of the club always found some medium for 
their contributions. Forest and Stream and other 
journals were available for such publications. 
The readers of this book are referred to the second 
volume of the Bulletin of the Nuttall Club for a 
more detailed account of the society. 

Now began my last year as an undergraduate 
student at Cambridge. My study was much out- 
side of books. It was not conventional. Many 
of us still concur in the belief that all knowledge 
is to be gained through print. Perhaps this was 
the point of view of my mother. At any rate, so 
far as I can remember, the only real anxiety I 
caused her was as a student. A student outside 
of books was an anomaly, and there are many yet 
who fail to read the simplest stories that are told 
out of doors, and not printed in the orthodox way. 
Throughout the entire year my mother feared I 
would not get a degree, because in order to do 
so I had naturally to pass a difficult examination, 
and also to prepare a thesis. That instead of 
applying myself in the conventional way, every 
moment I could snatch from what was absolutely 
necessary to be done inside was spent in the fields, 
was to her a source of worry. Thus it went on 
until within a few days of graduation. When I 
came home the morning after my final examina- 
tion, knowing the result, and told her that I not 
only would graduate, but with some degree of 



STUDENT DAYS 51 

honor, her relief was great. As a matter of fact, 
on the day when the final Commencement exer- 
cises culminated, with the presentation of degrees 
to the men who graduated at Harvard University 
in 1873, my friends told me that when President 
Eliot read my name, he added the words, " In 
Absentia." I was away in the woods studying 
birds. 

During the last two months of this college year 
a plan had developed for an innovation of an edu- 
cational nature. The idea originated with Professor 
N. S. Shaler. He wished to establish a summer 
school for the study of natural history somewhere 
on the Massachusetts coast, and I think had chosen 
Nantucket or Muskeget Island as a base of oper- 
ations. Professor Louis Agassiz, returning about 
that time from a trip to South America, and hear- 
ing of the project, indorsed it heartily, discussed 
it at length with his many friends, with the ulti- 
mate result that he was offered the privilege of 
occupying an island known as " Penikese," in 
Buzzard's Bay, one of the Elizabeth group. This 
belonged to a gentleman named John Anderson, 
and he not only granted the free use of the 
island, but aided substantially in the erection of 
buildings for the proposed school. In addition 
a very fine schooner yacht was given by another 
friend for dredging and fishing purposes. Let- 
ters sent out to the different colleges, normal 



52 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

and other schools, throughout the United States 
received hearty response, and an unusual body of 
students many of them gray-haired teachers 
men and women, assembled at New Bedford one 
morning late in June, preparatory to embarking 
for the island, distant some fourteen or fifteen 
miles down the bay. 

The story of Penikese is too well known for 
me to dwell on it here. The notable opening of 
the school is not only historic, but has afforded a 
theme for one of our poets. Among the teaching 
staff were Louis Agassiz, Burt G. Wilder, Edward 
S. Morse, B. Waterhouse Hawkins, Alfred Mayer, 
the physicist, and Count Pourtales, who had charge 
of the dredging. 

My first impressions of Penikese were naturally 
of the bird life of the island. As we approached 
it that day, myriads of terns rose from their breed- 
ing grounds. They were birds with which I had 
but little acquaintance. Two kinds were repre- 
sented, the common tern and the roseate tern. 
The latter, though present in great numbers, were 
much less abundant than the former. Besides the 
terns were many of the commoner land-birds of 
Massachusetts, notably meadow-larks, barn-swal- 
lows, a number of sparrows, such as the yellow- 
winged and song sparrows, robins and blackbirds. 

At Penikese I made the acquaintance of Mr. 
H. H. Straight and his wife, who were teachers 



STUDENT DAYS 53 

in a normal school in western Missouri. Mr. 
Straight was most enthusiastic both as a teacher 
and as a student. There, too, was the principal of 
the same school, James Johonnot, and his daugh- 
ter. Among the students were Ernest Ingersoll, 
Professor C. O. Whitman, then an almost unknown 
man, Walter Faxon, Charles S. Minot, J. W. 
Fewkes, Winifred Stearns, David S. Jordan, and 
others who have since become notable in one of 
several fields as naturalists. 

I returned to Cambridge in the fall. No pro- 
fessional opening presenting itself, my studies 
were again taken up while awaiting and looking 
for a position. 

Some time late in November a great gale raged 
on the coast of Massachusetts. The next morning 
when we visited Fresh Pond, as we often did to 
see what migrant ducks or birds might have come 
in there, we found the whole place covered with 
myriads of little water-birds, which we knew were 
some kind of strangers from the North. They 
rested on the surface of the water in incredible 
numbers, and many sat along the shore. I walked 
up to a group and took one of them in my hand, 
for the birds were exhausted, utterly tired out, and 
seemed bewildered. He was a dumpy creature, 
seven or eight inches long, with very short neck, 
a head large in proportion to the body, and black 
and white in color, with almost no tail. Webbed 



54 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

feet were a part of his equipment. We took sev- 
eral home, and found on the way back that these 
birds were represented in great numbers all along 
the Charles River, and that many had been caught 
in the streets early in the morning. The gale 
had driven in and imprisoned these strangers in 
a place where they had scarcely ever been seen 
before. 

We readily learned that the species was the little 
auk, or dovekie, a common arctic bird, breeding 
on the coast of Greenland and further north in 
countless numbers, wintering as far south as the 
coast of Long Island and New Jersey, but keep- 
ing well out to sea. 

The name of the genus to which this bird was 
then attributed was Mergulus. That afternoon 
I took a pair of them with me to the laboratory 
of Dr. Jeffries Wyman where I was about to do 
some work and attend a lecture. I showed the 
birds to Dr. Wyman, who was much interested 
in my account of their advent, and proceeded to 
give him what I supposed was the scientific 
name. 

Now, there is a genus of birds with which are 
associated most of our common sheldrakes, or 
saw-billed ducks, which is known as Mergus, a 
name similar to that mentioned a few lines above. 
Wishing to display my newly acquired knowledge 
before Dr. Wyman, I called the bird Mergus alle 



STUDENT DAYS 55 

instead of Mergulus alle which was its proper 
name at that time. I knew Dr. Wyman as a 
comparative anatomist, but he was never asso- 
ciated in my mind as a systematic naturalist, and 
I did not know that he had a great knowledge of 
birds, but, without referring to a book, and by 
merely glancing at the birds, he said at once, 
"You have made a little error; the genus of these 
birds is Mergulus not Mergus? This may seem 
a trifling incident, but I tell it because it strongly 
impressed me at the time, and is only one of many 
varied recollections that have given me a growing 
respect as the years go by, for the great attain- 
ments, the singleness of purpose, the patience, and 
withal the greatness, of Dr. Jeffries Wyman. I 
think perhaps no man in Cambridge, save Mr. 
Allen, did more to aid me on the road I have 
travelled. 

Of course Dr. Asa Grey, with whom I did 
some botanical study, has always been a great 
inspiration to all his students, but primarily my 
interest did not lie so much in the direction of 
botany, and for this reason my work in that field 
was limited, to be regretted later. 

The committee who conducted my oral exami- 
nation for graduation at Cambridge, which was the 
concluding function after my thesis and written 
examination had been scrutinized, was composed 
of Professor Asa Grey, Dr. Jeffries Wyman, and 



56 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

Professor Agassiz. I was the only student exam- 
ined, and was alone with them with my heart in 
my boots. Presently I discovered that these 
men were not trying to find out what I did not 
know, but rather what I did know and what my 
attitude and feeling were toward my work. This 
I shall never forget. 

Professor Agassiz concluded the examination 
after perhaps half an hour, when I thought it 
had hardly begun and they had asked me but 
few questions. They had made me talk and had 
drawn me out on different subjects, much as 
friends would have done, and then Mr. Agassiz 
turning to me, said : 

" Mr. Scott, I think we have watched your 
course of study and work here at the museum 
and in other places in the university sufficiently 
to be aware of what your attainments are. We 
shall recommend you without further exami- 
nation on our part for a degree as Bachelor of 
Science." 

During my last year at Harvard I studied in 
the museum until some time in the following 
November, continuing my scientific association 
with the Nuttall Club, doing some field-work 
and collecting, and familiarizing myself with 
the more important classic writings of scien- 
tific thinkers Huxley, Darwin, Wallace, and 
Tyndall. 



STUDENT DAYS 57 

I boarded this season at the house of Miss 
Upham on Kirkland Street. Two notable peo- 
ple formed part of the group at the table. One 
was the poet and artist, Christopher P. Cranch, 
who gave me much sympathy and encourage- 
ment, and seemed greatly interested in the study 
I had undertaken, and the other, a law student 
about to graduate from the university, was 
Charles Bonaparte of Baltimore. 

In November I received a letter from Mr. 
Straight from a place called Warrensburg, in 
Missouri. He said he wished to procure the 
services of some one who could start certain col- 
lections of natural history for the normal school 
situated at Warrensburg; that he had written to 
Professor Agassiz regarding the matter, and had 
been referred to me as a conscientious field- 
naturalist to start the proposed collections and 
show him how to carry them on. He said the 
work would be Jfor three months in the spring, 
beginning the last of March and ending in June, 
and offered me one hundred and fifty dollars per 
month for my services during the period, if I 
were willing to entertain the proposition. 

After some consultation with my people at 
home, and after thinking the matter over, I ac- 
cepted Professor Straight's offer, leaving Cam- 
bridge permanently in March, 1874. 



CHAPTER IV 

FIRST PROFESSIONAL WORK 

AFTER a brief stay at home, having made all 
preparation, purchasing and packing the nec- 
essary material for procuring the proposed col- 
lections, I started on my western trip. 

Long before this, my brother, having spent a 
year at Cornell, concluded that he would make 
farming, and especially cattle-breeding and rais- 
ing, his future pursuit. Now he was located in 
a small town in southwestern Kansas, called 
Mound City, gathering a band of cattle, which he 
proposed to drive across the plains to a point in 
the vicinity of Colorado Springs, there to estab- 
lish the nucleus of a cattle ranch. 

Warren sburg, where the normal school of 
which I have spoken was situated, is in Johnson 
County in western Missouri, and it was not a 
long journey beyond to the place where my 
brother was living at this time. Starting a few 
days earlier than had been my original intention, 
I went direct to Kansas City and thence south- 
ward to Mound City in the state of Kansas to 
pass a short time with my brother. I have 

58 



FIRST PROFESSIONAL WORK 59 

forgotten at what point I disembarked from the 
railroad on nearing my journey's end ; it was an 
obscure station, and about ten miles from it was 
the town mentioned. 

This part of Kansas is as characteristic a 
prairie region as any in the United States. The 
plain with its sky horizon, with hardly a tree to 
vary the monotony, and then almost uninterrupted 
by fences, afforded a new sensation ; nothing I 
had seen before in the way of landscape was at 
all like this. The wagon road from the railway 
station to Mound City was simply a track across 
the prairie ; and it being early springtime, it is 
perhaps needless to say that the roads were deep 
in mud and such mud ! It seemed to me 
more like tar black and sticky, it was appar- 
ently of unfathomable depth. The top soil of the 
prairie at this point is probably some five or six 
feet thick, and its abounding fertility made any- 
thing like artificial manuring wholly unnecessary. 
The depth of the soil was plainly shown in the 
wagon-track described. Moreover, this was a 
well-watered country, and the few trees apparent 
were coincident with the water-courses. The 
streams are not very wide, and have generally 
cut a channel deep into the face of the country. 
Such channels are like miniature canons with 
abrupt banks which hide the stream flowing at 
the bottom. The fringe of trees along the banks 



60 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

indicated in the landscape the course of the 
stream. 

On the open plain were flocks of horned larks, 
assemblies of chestnut-collared buntings, while 
meadow-larks were ubiquitous. Flying overhead 
a turkey-buzzard might occasionally be seen, while 
now and then a sentinel hawk (genus, Buteo\ from 
some fence-post or other point of vantage, presided 
over the destinies of the field-mice and smaller 
mammals of the surrounding area. 

It was only when the streams were reached, 
with their bordering trees and bushes, that the 
great abundance and variety of bird life was fairly 
to be appreciated. Here the air was resonant 
with the songs and notes of many birds. The 
voices of the mocking-bird and the cardinal rang 
out everywhere, and were fairly rivalled by the 
cries and calls of two kinds of birds that were 
present in great numbers the red-headed and 
red-bellied woodpecker. Sparrows and other 
small birds haunted the trees and underbrush, 
and the waters of the creeks, even where narrow, 
afforded resting-places and feeding grounds for 
innumerable ducks which were then on their mi- 
gration. Among these shovellers, mallards, and 
widgeon, were perhaps the most common. 

Many covies of quail were along the banks, 
and in the adjacent grass-lands. The proximity 
of these covies indicated a " bob white " popula- 



FIRST PROFESSIONAL WORK 61 

tion such as I have never seen equalled. To be 
sure, as will be told later, the deserts of Arizona 
are more densely inhabited by other kinds of quail, 
several hundred sometimes being seen together. 

At Mound City I spent a very pleasant week 
studying the local conditions. Among the birds 
I recall Harris's sparrow as the greatest novelty. 
A bird of the same genus as our white-throated 
and white-crowned sparrows, and of similar habits, 
it presents a difference in appearance. The sides 
of the head are dull grayish brown, often whitish, 
the remainder, glossy black. The back is streaked 
much as in its allies. The chin, upper throat, and 
breast are black like the top of the head and con- 
nected with that region by black in front of the 
eyes. There is no yellow present. The two 
wing bars are similar to those of the relatives 
mentioned, and Harris's sparrow is a little the 
largest of the three. The same quality of plain- 
tiveness is suggested that one finds in the song 
of the " Peabody bird." 

The prairie-chicken was noticeable, both on the 
plain and in the vicinity of cultivated ground. 
Corn stubbles afforded a cover to its liking. 
Just in front of the little hotel in the village was 
a large field where corn had been grown the year 
before, and all the time during my stay the call 
of the prairie-chicken resounded through the 
stubble, a source of constant wonder and delight. 



62 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

Arriving at Warrensburg, after arranging for 
ways of living and a place to work, an interview 
with Professor Straight gave me an idea of what 
he had in view in the way of collections. These 
were to be chiefly ornithological and mainly for 
study purposes, and in the form technically known 
as birdskins. Each bird was to be prepared so 
that it had the appearance of a dead bird, carefully 
labeled with the locality where it was obtained, 
and the sex and date of capture. Such specimens 
could be handled, examined, measured, and com- 
pared, which is obviously not possible, without 
damage, to a mounted bird. I also prepared a 
few birds in characteristic, lifelike positions and 
instructed Professor Straight in both kinds of 
work. What he particularly wished me to do was 
to try to accumulate, during the coming three 
months in Warrensburg, a representative collec- 
tion of the birds of that region, together with such 
a series of each species as would not only afford 
facilities for comparisons in individual variation 
and other problems, but would also give him a 
sufficient number of duplicates of most kinds to 
enable him to make exchanges with ornithologists 
in other parts of the country, and thus round out 
the collection to more than local proportions. 

Warrensburg was a typical Missouri town of 
the period. The people were nearly all of south- 
ern origin; for following the well-known law of 



FIRST PROFESSIONAL WORK 63 

migration they had come westward from Indiana 
and Kentucky. 

There was little to attract an eastern visitor in 
the appearance of the place : all live-stock ran at 
large ; the pig, genuine razor-back variety, with 
its numerous progeny, possessed the land; the 
jimson-weed ran riot. The streets when wet were 
deep in mud, when dry deep in dust ; the board 
sidewalk, laid loosely, and often graded far above 
the roadway with projecting nails at frequent in- 
tervals, afforded a precarious footpath. Half-clad 
negroes and poor whites idly lounged on the busi- 
ness corners, their only occupation chewing and 
spitting ; the cuspidor adorned the houses of rich 
and poor alike. 

There were a few pleasant and well-kept homes, 
each in the midst of groves of trees and flowering 
vines, but they only served to emphasize the pre- 
vailing squalor and wretchedness of the rest of 
the village. 

The normal school was the oasis in this intel- 
lectual and material desert. To this school, in 
the reconstruction period following the war, came 
a host of bright and interesting pupils from all 
parts of the state, eager for the opportunities 
offered. They were for the most part far more 
appreciative and zealous than those found at the 
seats of learning in the East. 

A stranger was amazed to find this small village 



64 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

divided by difference of religious belief into the 
many sects which here obtained support. In the 
vernacular, the U. P's., United Presbyterians, 
C. P's., Cumberland Presbyterians, Old School 
and New School, each had its followers. The 
Methodists were divided according to their south- 
ern or northern sympathies, and the Christians, 
Baptists, Episcopalians, and Roman Catholics 
were also represented. In addition the colored 
people had their Methodist and Baptist organiza- 
tions. 

It was gruesome in one's drives to have certain 
historic trees pointed out as the scaffold recently 
used for the dramatic exit of a horse-thief at the 
hands of the Vigilance Committee. No less than 
eleven such victims had met their fate since the 
war. A horse-thief was a greater offender than a 
murderer. 

Johnson County at this point presents a very 
different appearance from the region of Kansas 
which I have described. The country is undulat- 
ing, may be spoken of as even hilly in places, and 
is fairly well wooded, the forest not being con- 
fined to the vicinity of the watercourses. To 
the eastward of the town of Warrensburg and at 
no great distance are prairies of considerable area, 
nowhere more than six or eight square miles in 
extent without being broken by the hill-country. 
Withal, this country is extremely well watered, 



FIRST PROFESSIONAL WORK 65 

and its diversity in environment naturally makes 
it the resort of a varied bird fauna. 

I cannot pass over this part of my life without 
recalling and recording my impressions of the 
people as well as of the country and birds. Here 
I renewed my acquaintance, made the previous 
summer, with Mr. Johonnot, who was at the head 
of the normal school, and became acquainted with 
the members of his family. 

This school was remarkable as a radical de- 
parture from schools of a like grade that had 
existed up to that time. Its attitude and purpose 
is best told in an article devoted to the subject. 1 
The fact that a collection of birds such as I have 
described was deemed an essential part of its 
equipment indicates something of its character 
and purpose. 

Students in the school, many of them young 
men twenty years old and more, became interested 
in Mr. Straight's efforts, and aided him much in 
the work; most of them were ardent sportsmen, 
and they procured some of the most valuable 
specimens. The local gunners were ready to 
afford whatever aid they could, and I frequently 
went with one or another of them on extended 
trips. 

1 " The Story of a School," by Professor James Johonnot. The 
Popular Science Monthly, Vol. XXXIV. No. 4, p. 496. February, 
1889. 

F 



66 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

The bird which they call the jack-snipe in this 
part of the United States really the Wilson 
snipe was on its spring migration from its 
winter home to its northern breeding grounds 
during April ; and I must record the incredible 
abundance of these birds. They were to be found 
on the damp prairies in the short grass, and a dog 
was not essential in hunting. Having arrived at 
such a locality (and there were thousands of acres 
of this kind of land close to the town), the sports- 
man walking through the grass disturbed at every 
few yards, not single snipe, as one does in the 
East after much tramping and labor with a dog, 
but " wisps " of six or seven individuals, that would 
go darting off, zigzaging away, so that it was 
exceptional not to get a double shot. Single 
gunners at this time in the vicinity of Warrens- 
burg frequently bagged from seventy-five to one 
hundred and twenty snipe in a day's shooting. It 
was only a matter of powder and shot, a good eye, 
and tramping. 

Most of the birds that one finds represented in 
the Carolinian fauna of eastern North America 
were present at Warrensburg. The mocking- 
bird, however, was not very plentiful, and was at 
this point a migrant. The tufted titmouse and 
the blue-gray gnatcatcher were noticeable, as was 
the Carolina wren, though the latter was not com- 
mon. Along the streams the prothonotary warbler 



FIRST PROFESSIONAL WORK 67 

was very abundant during May, and the birds 
bred in numbers. This is also true of the blue- 
winged warbler in suitable localities. The orange- 
crowned warbler was one of the plentiful migrants, 
while the black-and-white creeping warbler, the 
blue-backed warbler, the yellow rump warbler, 
the black-poll warbler, the mourning warbler, the 
chestnut-sided warbler, the cerulian warbler, the 
worm-eating warbler, were among the rare birds. 
The yellow-breasted chat was to be heard every- 
where. Camped out near some stream at this 
time, spending several days in localities that 
afforded particularly good collecting ground, I 
clearly recall my sensation on hearing the still- 
ness of the moon-lit night interrupted by the con- 
stant singing and noisiness of many chats. 
Among the birds characteristic of the interior re- 
gion of North America that were common in the 
vicinity of Warrensburg were Bell's vireo, the 
chestnut-collared bunting, Lincoln's sparrow, 
Harris's sparrow, the lark-finch, and the black- 
throated bunting. 

Nowhere have I seen cardinals and blue jays 
so much at home in people's front yards as they 
were in this town. The jays were quite as 
domestic then in the streets as the English spar- 
rows probably are now, and were less shy than is 
the robin in the East. The red-bellied and red- 
headed woodpecker were noisy and numerous. 



68 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

Once I saw a single swallow-tailed kite, and buz- 
zard hawks were frequent. The wild turkey 
was reputed to be still a resident along some of 
the creeks ; I fancy, however, that it was nearly 
exterminated at that time, a culmination which 
has undoubtedly ensued. Even then the hunters 
regarded the killing of a turkey as something very 
much out of the ordinary, though it is well known 
to have been one of the most abundant birds in 
the region when it was first settled. Prairie-hens 
were still plenty in this part of Missouri, and there 
were many quail. 

One of the common migrant birds that arrested 
my attention was the so-called sand-hill crane 
which I saw frequently and heard on several oc- 
casions passing over. Once a group of five or six 
of these birds on the edge of a prairie some 
quarter of a mile away performed the extraor- 
dinary manoeuvres known as dances. I had a 
good look at them, and observed all the bowings, 
genuflecxions, and pirouettings that have been so 
admirably described by numerous good observers. 
The whole was a droll spectacle. 

The work undertaken was completed about the 
middle of June. Should the reader care for de- 
tails as to the birds observed in this region, a 
paper published on the subject is cited in the 
appended bibliography. It enumerates one hun- 
dred and forty-eight kinds of birds as the result of 



FIRST PROFESSIONAL WORK 69 

this reconnaissance because it can hardly be 
called more and remarks, 

" A large number of species were doubtless overlooked, and 
quite a number had left the region before the date of beginning 
work. The country is particularly rich both in species and in 
individuals of the several kinds, and is hardly to be excelled 
in these particulars by regions bordering on the seaboard." 

After a short visit with my mother in Plain- 
field, I went to spend the summer with my uncle, 
Charles Scott, who had become the owner of the 
old house in New Brunswick, after my grand- 
father's death, which occurred in 1871. Here I 
went on with my bird study and looked about for 
new professional opportunities. The summer's 
work was broken by two interruptions: a day at 
the school at Penikese Island, then in its second 
year, and a brief visit to some distant relatives in 
the town of Princeton, New Jersey. It was my 
first acquaintance with the latter place, with which 
(though I did not know it at the time) I was to 
become so familiar. I learned during my stay 
that the trustees of Princeton College had recently 
received a munificent gift from the Hon. John C. 
Green for the erection of a school of science. 
Of course a new foundation for scientific study 
aroused my interest. I found that the building 
was erected in part, but that it would not be 
occupied for some time to come. The whole 
country about Princeton struck me as particularly 



70 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

pleasing, and I thoroughly enjoyed all that I 
saw. 

The summer wore on, and at its close I went 
to my grandmother's in Brooklyn. Here I stayed 
some three weeks without definite prospects, and 
the good-natured raillery, jokes, and questions as 
to my professional outlook caused me some 
chagrin, and gave me considerable matter for 
thought. I had not fitted myself with the idea of 
becoming a teacher. What I particularly wanted 
was to be connected with a museum, or oppor- 
tunity to work as a field-naturalist. Such a plan 
for making a living doubtless seemed chimerical 
to practical people. 

One day in New York, happening to walk up 
North William Street, near where the bridge now 
terminates, I passed by the shops of several taxi- 
dermists. Over the door of one of these was 
the name " John Wallace." For a time I stood 
and looked in the window, where the effigies of 
many poor birds and beasts standing in more or 
less awkward positions were of interest to me 
both in a scientific and in a technical way; for 
before this I had become a taxidermist, for ornitho- 
logical purposes, of no little skill, and could do 
with my hands certain work, not only with facility, 
but with great rapidity and ease. Long since I 
had learned one of the things that had first 
puzzled me, how to make a bird stand up. 



FIRST PROFESSIONAL WORK 71 

From that I had elaborated ideas as to mounting 
birds, based partly on what I had seen in mu- 
seums, but largely suggested by my familiarity 
with life out of doors. 

Now I began to realize that this handicraft had 
a commercial value, and thought to myself, " Here 
is a possible way at least of making a living and 
becoming self-supporting." I went in and asked 
if John Wallace was to be seen ; a stout, dark- 
haired man, whom I shall never forget, a forceful- 
looking man, rather short in stature, and with a 
decided cockney English accent, told me that he 
was the proprietor. Briefly I stated to Mr. Wal- 
lace what my accomplishments were as a taxider- 
mist, and asked him if he would give me a job. I 
was not quite twenty-two years old, smooth-faced 
and juvenile in appearance. He looked me over 
with apparent interest, and finally said, " When do 
you want to begin ? " I answered, " Any time," 
and he queried, "Now?" "Yes," I replied. 
" Then take your coat off and sit down ; I'll give 
you something to do to try you." 

Presently I was seated at a bench in company 
with half a dozen other workmen ; a dozen or 
more bluebirds, song-sparrows, and thrushes were 
thrown down on the table in front of me, and Mr. 
Wallace asked me to skin them as fast as I could, 
poison them, and then show him the result of my 
work. So, with dirty knives and scissors of an 



7 a THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

entirely different pattern from those to which I 
was accustomed, a pile of meal on one side and 
some arsenic on the other, I set about my task. 
Twelve or fifteen birds were given to me, none of 
them as large as a robin, and in about forty min- 
utes I told Mr. Wallace I had skinned them. 

" You haven't skinned them all, have you ? " he 
asked. " Yes, all," I answered. " Well, you must 
have turned out pretty bad work, or been careless 
in some way," he went on. " There they are," I 
said; "look at them." 

I have spoken of my facility, but I did not 
realize it then myself. A kind of incredulous 
wonder appeared in Mr. Wallace's face as one 
after another he picked up the skins of the small 
birds that I had neatly arranged on the table, and 
looked to see where the fault, if any, lay. While 
he did not commend me, after looking at them 
carefully for a moment, he said, " That's all right ; 
do you want to work the rest of the afternoon ? " 
It was then about two o'clock. I said, " Yes," 
and all the rest of that afternoon I skinned song- 
sparrows, bluebirds, fox-colored sparrows, white 
throated sparrows, hermit-thrushes, and warblers, 
until the pile of dead bodies in front of me was 
very considerable. When the time came for quit- 
ting, I asked Mr. Wallace if I was to come back, 
and he said, " Yes, if you want to." So far nothing 
had been said about wages. This was on Thurs- 



FIRST PROFESSIONAL WORK 73 

day afternoon. I found what the hours of labor 
were, they began at eight in the morning and 
ended at six o'clock at night, with an interval of 
half an hour or so at noon. I went on working 
for Mr. Wallace until Saturday night, when we 
stopped an hour earlier than usual, and for what 
I had done he paid me ten dollars. He told me 
he was willing to pay me thirty dollars a week for 
the next few weeks at least, and asked me to come 
back and work for him, which I did. I continued 
in his employ from some time in October until 
late in January, living and lodging at my grand- 
mother's house in Brooklyn. 

In connection with my labor at John Wallace's, 
a word with regard to the attitude of the public 
toward the shooting of song-birds in those days 
seems essential. This was in the winter of 1874 
and 1875. During the three months I spent 
in this shop my time was occupied almost 
exclusively in skinning native song-birds for 
millinery purposes. Early every morning the 
local gunners from Long Island, New Jersey, and 
the environs of New York would appear at the 
shop with the previous day's bag of birds. Noth- 
ing larger than a wood-thrush was accepted. 
About three hundred and fifty or four hundred 
birds were received on an average each day. 
These were chiefly the following species: song- 
sparrows, white-throated sparrows, fox-sparrows, 



74 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

swamp-sparrows, various kinds of warblers, titmice, 
nuthatches, wrens, the smaller blackbirds, swallows, 
and thrushes. Bluebirds and cedar-birds were 
considered by far the most desirable, there being 
a great demand for them at that time for ladies' 
hats. Something like seven or eight cents apiece 
were paid for these birds, so the man who killed 
his forty or fifty per day made good wages. 

The order of work was somewhat as follows : 
the men were arranged in two groups there 
were eight of us altogether. One man was occu- 
pied in winding a conventional ball of tow or ex- 
celsior into a body and putting wire through it for 
the neck. He also poisoned the bird skins which 
the first man at the table simply skinned. The third 
man of the group turned the reversed skin, after it 
was poisoned, right side out, and having put a 
small ball of tow into the head and introduced the 
artificial body, passed it on to the fourth man. 
This one finished the task by wiring the wings 
so that they were extended, and the tail so 
that it assumed something of a natural position. 
The birds were then laid on a board to dry, and 
later artificial eyes finished the job. Later they 
were delivered to the dealers on cards which held 
four, there being three cards in a box. 

I was the first man at the table where I sat, and 
did the skinning ; this was all I did for a long 
time. Generally I skinned anywhere from one 



FIRST PROFESSIONAL WORK 75 

hundred and twenty to one hundred and fifty 
birds per day. Sometimes the number exceeded 
this ; it depended largely on the amount of 
material brought in. The dull-colored birds, such 
as some of the sparrows and thrushes, were not 
particularly desirable as adornments for hats, fash- 
ion not seeming to appreciate the beautiful shades 
of brown that nature had given them. As a final 
touch, which was thought greatly to enhance their 
beauty, feathers from bright-colored birds of any 
kind, orioles, scarlet tanagers, and various foreign 
species from South America were introduced and 
fastened among the feathers of the bird to be 
decorated. Song-sparrows and thrushes were 
often graced with scarlet crowns and blue patches 
on the rumps, and it needs only a little imagina- 
tion on the part of the reader to conceive the 
grotesque results. 

Two points seem to be worthy of emphasis 
before leaving this part of the subject. One is 
the value of manual training. Here was a young 
man apparently furnished with all the intellectual 
resources of a good field-naturalist, who was 
seemingly unable to find a market for that which 
had been acquired by a long and expensive training. 
As an incident to the intellectual attainment a 
handicraft was essential, for a naturalist must 
know how to preserve and handle the material he 
collects. Just in the beginning this seemed to be 



76 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

the only part of the equipment that had a money- 
value. It is not a little remarkable that what 
first impressed the trustees of the institution which 
later employed me was what I could do with my 
hands. 

It is certainly a great advantage to the pos- 
sessor to be so well drilled in some handicraft 
that he can achieve practical results. All this, 
aside from the undoubted mental discipline that 
accrues to any one through an apprenticeship de- 
manding manual training. He in time arrives at 
a place where such handicraft (and I believe that 
all handicraft must lead to that point) becomes a 
real pleasure. 

The other point is the change in public senti- 
ment with regard to the use of birds for millinery 
purposes. Legislation has not been so vital a 
factor in this achievement as public sentiment. 
Anything in the way of study or reflection which 
brings home forcibly to the student or thinker the 
economic and aesthetic values of organic life, is 
productive of a solicitude only now beginning to 
be awakened. So far-reaching are our uninten- 
tional acts in changing the fauna or the flora of 
a given region that great care and foresight must 
be exercised. The ensuing results are prodigious. 
The extinction of a given kind of plant or animal 
may be the result. Hence all consideration 
should be given to positive intentional acts, for 



FIRST PROFESSIONAL WORK 77 

the wave of results widens from a centre of 
action as do the waves from a stone cast into 
water. 

My stay with John Wallace continued until 
some time in January. Early in that month, hav- 
ing thought it over, and recalling my visit to 
Princeton the previous summer, I concluded to 
go to that town, call on some of the authorities of 
the college, and find out what opening existed 
there. Asking my boss for a holiday one Satur- 
day, I visited Princeton, called on Professor 
Arnold Guyot, and laid the whole matter before 
him. I explained to him that I understood they 
were about beginning a museum of natural history 
in connection with a school of science. I told 
him where I had studied, and what little I had 
done ; and finally asked him if there was a chance 
for me to get a place in the new institution. To 
enforce my proposal I suggested that I would be 
willing to work on trial for a given period without 
compensation. As a result he promised he would, 
after consideration, advise me. 

About two weeks later I received a letter from 
Professor Guyot, stating that he had consulted 
with the college authorities, and that, from Feb- 
ruary i until Commencement, the trustees would 
employ me to rearrange such collections as they 
possessed, and to add to them if possible. In 
return for my services they offered me, during 



78 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

the time of probation, fifty dollars per month, and 
a room in one of the college buildings free of rent. 
Professor Guyot further said he would be glad to 
see me again at an early date. 

On my second visit to him we agreed that I 
should begin during the month of February at 
home in Plainfield, making collections of local 
birds there, and that some time early in March, I 
should come to Princeton. Such an arrangement 
was effected because there was no place, finished 
in the School of Science where anything could be 
carried on, nor was it possible to move any of the 
collections that already existed into that building. 



CHAPTER V 

PRINCETON 

PRINCETON COLLEGE in 1874 and 1875 presented 
a very different appearance from the university 
of to-day. A glance at the conditions at that time 
may prove of interest. 

The buildings on the campus were Old North 
or Nassau Hall, the chapel directly to the left 
as one faces it, and a little beyond the Chancellor 
Green Library, just opened. Dickinson Hall too 
had been finished but recently, and the final work 
on the original part of the School of Science was 
being completed. Back of Old North, East and 
West Colleges formed the sides, and the two halls 
Whig and Clio the other face of the quadrangle. 
Reunion Hall looked very much as it does to-day, 
only newer. Going west, the next building was 
the new gymnasium, and beyond it the Halstead 
Observatory. These buildings, and one other 
(that now used as the university offices) were all 
that then occupied the campus. The president's 
house was the one now used by the dean, and here 
I had my formal introduction to Dr. McCosh. 

Stately elms and other fine shade trees formed 

79 



8o THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

with the open stretches of green a fitting setting. 
Dignity and age were the impressive characteris- 
tics of the whole. In front of the School of Science, 
between it and Nassau Street, were dwellings of 
the professors, and other houses stood on the site 
now given to the Marquand Chapel. 

The personnel of the Faculty consisted of 
nineteen professors and tutors. Notable among 
these was the president, Dr. McCosh, with whom 
one had but to come in contact to realize his force 
as an executive, and his keen intellectual percep- 
tions. It is not for me to attempt a critical esti- 
mate of a man so notable as Dr. McCosh, but it 
is pleasant to recall his commanding presence. 
He was easily a leader among men, and in an as- 
semblage of hundreds, made up of the picked 
scholars of the land, his was the most distin- 
guished figure. With all his old world scholar- 
ship there was combined the most fervent love of 
his adopted country. 

In the work which I was doing he always mani- 
fested the keenest interest, and much that was 
accomplished is due to the hearty support he 
gave. Dr. John McLean and Professor Stephen 
Alexander were prominent among the older men ; 
while Professors Atwater, Schenck, Duffield, 
Packard, and, last but not least, Professor Ar- 
nold Guyot, were a group of educators typical 
of the time. Among the men who had recently 



PRINCETON 8 1 

assumed position in the college were Professors 
Brackett, McCloskie, and Cornwall, for it was 
not until some time later that Professor Charles 
A. Young became one of the Faculty. The total 
number of students at this time was four hundred 
and eight, twenty-five of the number being in the 
School of Science. 

The museum with which I became connected 
occupied, as it does to-day, the upper story of the 
main part of the School of Science three large 
rooms. The cases for the reception of specimens, 
designed by the architect of the building, were 
nearly completed ; and even then it was apparent 
to me at a glance that they were not well adapted 
for educational or exhibition purposes. The pre- 
ponderance of wood over glass was noticeable, and 
the dark coloring of the shelves and background 
was not calculated to aid the observer in seeing 
the specimens. 

Besides the E. M. Geological Museum, which 
was already a flourishing part of the college, the 
natural history collections at Princeton consisted 
of a considerable number of badly stuffed native 
and foreign birds, a few animals, and some of the 
commoner reptiles of the immediate vicinity. 
These were all mounted collections, and of no value 
from an aesthetic or educational point of view. 

The courage of youth is traditional, and looking 
back I believe that without it I would never have 



82 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

taken my first radical step in reconstructing 
the zoological collection. After looking carefully 
at the material, which was then stored in the upper 
room of what is now the university offices, I de- 
termined to destroy most of the existing collection. 
It doubtless had some historic value ; that was all. 
So, after taking out the artificial eyes of many 
birds and other animals, all of which were in a 
process of dissolution, from moth and age, the re- 
mains were consigned to the furnaces then in the 
basement of the School of Science. 

I had brought with me from Plainfield, as the 
result of the month spent there, between forty and 
fifty mounted specimens of local birds. Dr. Guyot 
told me that the trustees desired that these and 
any other material available should be exhibited at 
Commencement in the new museum. It was hoped 
that a fair showing, indicative of future results, 
would be made. 

Realizing that I would have but little time for 
field-work, or even to go to the fields to obtain 
new specimens, I looked about and sought advice 
as to some local hunter or sportsman to aid me. 
Here fortune certainly smiled. I was recom- 
mended to make the acquaintance of one Charlie 
Hubbard, a negro, who had the reputation not 
only of being an excellent sportsman and good 
shot, but who, it was said, knew much in general 
of wild creatures out of doors. 



PRINCETON 83 

This man is worthy of more than passing 
remark. He served me for nearly three years, 
not only in Princeton, but, as will presently be 
seen, in other fields. He was one of the most 
unerring shots it has been my fortune to meet. 
His knowledge of birds, especially those associated 
with the region about Princeton, was not confined 
to either game-birds or the commoner species 
the songsters to be found in every yard and gar- 
den but he knew at sight and had names for 
almost all the smaller birds of the region. How- 
ever, it was as a woodsman, as a man conversant 
with nature whose knowledge has been acquired 
by intimate association with it at first hand, that 
he most impressed me. The first two or three 
short excursions which I took with him in order 
to find out whether he would be able to render 
real assistance convinced me how valuable his 
services might be made. 

Every passing movement, every note and noise, 
the stirring of a leaf, the song of this bird, the 
cry of that one, the language of the squirrel, the 
stealth of the weasel, were full of meaning to him. 
The signs that so few read, but which are a story 
to the observant, were his books. Needless to 
say, I found that he did not simply know how the 
birds and animals looked and what they did, but 
that he was conversant with their coming and 
going, the place, time of year, and method of their 



84 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

breeding, what they fed on and, in short, their 
general economy. 

My first interview with him was an entertain- 
ing one. After discussing the possibility of his 
working steadily, and arranging with that end in 
view, he turned to me and said, " You know there 
are a good many kinds of birds in the woods which 
very few people have seen, and some which I do 
not think any one has seen but myself." 

" You really think there are new birds in this 
vicinity that no one knows?" I asked. He re- 
plied, "Yes, I am sure of it." "Well," I said, 
"whenever you bring me a bird that I cannot 
show you is already known to men who have 
studied, described, and perhaps figured it in some 
book, for that kind of a bird I will give you one 
hundred dollars in addition to your regular wages." 
This made him open his eyes ; but at the same 
time it did not convince him, for he said, " You 
will surely get some," and I fancy counted on 
spending the prize money he would obtain. As 
his work rolled on through the years with me, 
he appreciated the position, and with it came a 
growing respect for a kind of knowledge hereto- 
fore unsuspected by him. 

Of his antecedents I have been able to find out 
little. He was a man about five feet nine inches 
tall, rather slight in build, but of fine physique, and 
of the general character that is described by the 



PRINCETON 85 

word " wiry." His color was more that of an Indian 
than a negro, and his features were not those 
associated with the African, but were more aqui- 
line, and indicated Indian ancestry. His hair was 
long, and though curly, was not like that of the 
typical black man. In his movements, the Indian 
element again predominated. There was a stealth, 
a noiselessness, a grace and lightness wholly un- 
like the heavy, clumsy gait of the field-negro of 
the South. He was equally at home on land and 
water. No one I have seen could go through 
the woods more silently or pole a boat up-stream 
more noiselessly, taking advantage of every bend 
of the shore for shelter. 

From early in March until the day of Com- 
mencement I was busy in accumulating, mount- 
ing, and preparing specimens for the collection, 
and in rearranging in the new cases such material 
as remained from the former collections. Being 
anxious to make as good a showing as possible, 
frequently this work employed me until late 
at night, and it is needless to say that it began 
early in the day. As a result, at Commence- 
ment there was on exhibition in the new halls, 
no vast collection, but one that showed growth. 
The birds were all mounted on natural twigs or 
branches, for even at this time I had determined 
that the traditional " T " stand was not only un- 
graceful, but did not allow of sufficient variation 



86 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

in position of the specimen to indicate its indi- 
vidual characteristics. 

As a result of my trial work, which seemed to 
meet with the approval of the trustees and friends 
of the college, I was engaged at an advanced 
salary for the next year, and my title was that 
of Acting Curator of the Museum of Biology. 
Among the trustees and friends of the college 
I must especially mention the Hon. John A. 
Stewart and James W. Alexander, Esq., both of 
New York, whose interest in the museum, and 
whose kindness to me personally, proved incen- 
tives to further effort. 

All through the summer and fall of the year 
1875 I continued steadily to prosecute the work 
of accumulating a local collection of the birds 
of Princeton, chiefly mounted specimens, supple- 
mented by some skins. By Christmas time some 
six hundred specimens had been collected and 
preserved in this way. 

The great obligation I owe to the late Samuel 
J. Stockton, Esq., for his interest and aid, should 
be acknowledged. He allowed me the full run 
of his large estate, " Morven," where some of the 
most valuable material in the way of birds for the 
museum were secured. Richard Conover, Esq., 
of South Amboy, also became a friend, and 
it was through his instrumentality that I made 
the first expedition for the purpose of increas- 



PRINCETON 87 

ing the collection of the college museum. He 
told me in the fall of 1875 of a part of Florida 
where he had purchased an old Spanish grant 
of some two thousand acres. Here he had 
undertaken to cultivate what was at that time 
an almost unknown crop in the United States, 
the orange. He aroused my curiosity and 
excited my enthusiasm by his glowing descrip- 
tions of the country where he was carrying out 
his project. His stories of the game and fish, 
of the birds and beasts, of the trees and flowers, of 
the rivers and woods, determined me to make a 
more intimate acquaintance with them. Finally 
he invited me to make his plantation my head- 
quarters, if I could arrange to go to Florida. 

I consulted several of the trustees on the 
subject, notably Mr. Stewart. He and the late 
William E. Dodge, Esq., of New York, made it 
possible for me to undertake the expedition, on 
which I started the day after Christmas. 

Mr. Conover had discoursed to me of the water- 
ways of Florida, and the necessity of having some 
kind of a boat ; hence a light, portable metal row- 
boat was part of the baggage, and the kind of 
stores and supplies essential in making collec- 
tions completed the equipment. As a factotum I 
took with me Charlie Hubbard. 

Florida in 1875 h a d no railroads south of 
Jacksonville. In fact, the only railroad of conse- 



88 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

quence in the state was the one from that point 
to Cedar Keys. Arriving at Jacksonville, we took 
a primitive steamer on the St. Johns to Palatka, 
and here disembarked, and following the instruc- 
tions given by Mr. Conover, reembarked on an 
even more antiquated boat, a stern-wheeler of the 
wheelbarrow type, which carried us up the Ockla- 
waha River to its headwaters at Silver Spring. 
The Ocklawaha presented at this time a picture 
of exuberant bird life along its banks and in the 
trees that overhung the stream ; I had almost said 
in the ceiling of trees, because the river was so 
narrow and winding that there were only short 
intervals where the branches did not meet over- 
head and hang above the steamer's deck. 

Among the water-birds, the water-turkey, or 
darter, two kinds of beautiful white herons, the 
little blue heron, the Louisiana heron, the great 
blue heron, and the rosy spoonbill were all con- 
spicuous. White and wood ibises were constantly 
startled from the banks or limbs by the progress 
of the boat. Among the land-birds, woodpeckers 
of many kinds were everywhere, paroquets in 
flocks of from forty to a hundred were seen con- 
stantly, and as for the smaller bird life, the woods 
fairly teemed with it. Five or six times as we 
ascended the stream large flocks of wild turkeys 
were to be observed close along the banks. In 
short, never had my wildest fancy painted, not 



PRINCETON 89 

only so many kinds of birds at one point, but such 
a vast multitude of representatives of the several 
kinds. 

Nor was the feathered life the sole interest. 
Alligators constantly swam in front of the steamer, 
or basked somnolent in the sun on the bank. 
Many of them were huge creatures, though they 
were of all sizes. 

The Ocklawaha winds through a succession of 
cypress swamps, and these stately trees, festooned 
with many parasitic plants and draped with the 
pendant Spanish moss, formed a fitting setting to 
this theatre of life. Frequently, at higher points 
on the banks of the river, groves of wild orange 
trees might be seen as part of the undergrowth 
of the live-oak forests which occupied the drier 
regions through which the river passed. All this 
gives but a faint idea of the prodigality with which 
nature had adorned this most marvellous region. 
Words are feeble to paint it. 

Our journey was terminated at Silver Spring, a 
wonderful pool of water some two hundred feet 
across and almost circular, the depth and clearness 
of which gave a singular sensation to one riding 
in a boat on its surface. It seemed almost as if 
one were suspended in the air. We disembarked 
at a tiny wharf, and the only building which in- 
terrupted the beauty of the sylvan scene was the 
" warehouse," a kind of shed just back of the wharf. 



9 o THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

My objective point was Panasofkee Lake, a 
sheet of water in Sumter County, fifty or sixty 
miles from Silver Spring, almost south of it. 
After much searching a venerable negro with a 
team of oxen and the rudest of wagons was found 
to carry us and our luggage, conspicuous among 
which was the metal boat, to our destination. We 
were two days and nights and part of another day 
on the road, going through a region which pre- 
sented new wonders as each mile was traversed. 
About noon on the third day we reached the 
plantation, and were welcomed by the overseer. 

The buildings were a dwelling-house, another 
small house built for Mr. Conover's use, and a 
log cabin containing the kitchen and dining 
room. Everything was placed at my disposal, 
and we were soon busy settling our quarters and 
preparing for work. 

Distant a hundred and fifty feet in front of 
the house ran the outlet from the lake, a quarter 
of a mile away. The " run," as it was called, was 
a very considerable stream, a gunshot wide, one 
of the main branches of the Withlacoochee River. 
All about, except where a clearing had been 
made for the proposed orange-grove, was a prime- 
val forest. The plantation itself was chiefly what 
is known in Florida as a "hammock." The 
smaller trees consisted of different species of bay 
and magnolia, - interspersed with groves of wild 



PRINCETON 91 

sour oranges. The fine-leafed water-oaks grew 
everywhere. Shading all these, and towering high 
above them, were the giant live-oaks, often five or 
six feet through near the ground, and with spread- 
ing limbs extending seventy-five feet on either 
side. It will give an idea of the size of these 
trees and the difficulty in felling them when the 
reader learns that the usual method of clearing 
the land was to girdle them near the ground, let 
them die, and then cut down the smaller ones, the 
huge skeletons of the live-oaks standing for years 
afterward. 

In many places in Florida there were at this 
time extensive groves of wild oranges. Univer- 
sally they flourished beneath the shade, and were 
protected by large trees. Frost nor sun nor wind 
injured them in such situations, and they bore 
luxuriant crops. No hint seems to have been 
taken, from such conditions, by the fruit grower. 
The ensuing result tells its own story. 

Panasofkee Lake itself is a sheet of water eight 
miles long and some four miles wide in its broad- 
est expanse. The country about it was then 
practically unsettled. There were but few houses, 
and these occurred at long intervals, so that we 
had reached an almost virgin wilderness. The 
outlet of the lake flowed between that body of 
water and the Withlacoochee River. This " run " 
wended its course for some two miles before it 



92 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

reached the main stream, which was one of the 
characteristic rivers of Florida, very similar in 
appearance to the Ocklawaha before the advent 
of the hunters. 

Along the "run " were groves of cypress, and its 
marshy banks were fringed with saw-grass. Just 
in front of the house this had been cleared away, 
leaving an open space on the bank. The " run " 
afforded a highway morning and evening for 
great troops of water-birds, ducks, herons, and 
ibises, which spent their days feeding at points 
on the river, and returned at night to roost some- 
where on the borders of the lake. In the morn- 
ing and evening this crowded thoroughfare 
formed a most lively and interesting spectacle. 
Game was abundant in the woods about, deer and 
bear frequently coming close to the house, and 
wild turkeys could be heard gabbling at sunrise 
and sunset. The nearest neighbors were located 
some five miles away, which will emphasize the 
remoteness of the plantation. 

Space forbids dwelling in these pages on the 
details of the stay at this point, except to notice 
one or two of the most salient ornithological 
features that the fauna of this lake presented. 

On its shore were large swamps with great 
areas of low-growing willows, and these were the 
roosting places in winter and the breeding places 
in summer of myriads of water-birds, herons, 



PRINCETON 93 

and ibises. Before our departure thousands of 
snowy herons and large white egrets had as- 
sembled, built their nests and laid their eggs in 
this willow swamp. Approached from the lake 
it presented the appearance in the distance of a 
miraculous circus-tent, of so prodigious a size that 
it appeared to cover at least a mile with its front. 
A better simile would be the snowy peak of 
some mountain-range, except that the whole was 
so near the lake-level, the willow trees being not 
more than ten or twelve feet high at any place. 

At another place near the cypress along the 
edge of the lake large flocks of ducks might be 
seen on the sheltered surface at almost any time 
during my stay ; and I can only liken the flocks 
of fresh-water coots to great black rafts. The 
birds were as close together as they could sit on 
the water. 

But there were two birds at Panasofkee Lake 
that produced a greater impression on me than 
anything else ; the first was the limpkin or giant 
courlan, or better still, the crying bird, which was 
extremely numerous and very tame. During the 
mating and breeding season, which was coinci- 
dent with my stay at Panasofkee, these birds were 
very noisy. Their cry is most ear-piercing and 
penetrating. It is to be likened to repeated cries 
of some one in great distress; and when I say 
that frequently companies of from ten to fifty of 



94 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

these birds would assemble on the bank of the 
"run" just after dark for they were somewhat 
nocturnal in their habits and begin a chorus 
of this description, it will give some idea of the 
din which prevented my sleeping the night after 
our arrival. Charlie Hubbard was sent out to 
drive the birds away, as I knew they were close at 
hand. He did so, but had hardly returned to the 
house before the uproar began anew. I sent him 
back again, and after killing a number with a 
stick, the rest were sufficiently frightened to re- 
main at a more reasonable distance. On sub- 
sequent nights I had frequently to wage warfare 
on these noisy creatures. 

The courlan is a kind of rail, the size of an 
ordinary fowl, but with long legs, neck, and bill, so 
that the bird stands something over two feet high 
when erect. The plumage is of a beautiful brown 
bronze, glossed with deep green and speckled with 
irregular triangular-shaped silver-white spots. 

The other bird, which in all my subsequent 
wanderings in Florida I have never once en- 
countered, was the everglade kite or snail- 
hawk. This is a bird not unlike the marsh- 
hawk in general appearance, and decorated on 
the rump with a similar conspicuous white patch. 
The male is a dark lead color, and the female 
brown, somewhat variegated with lighter markings. 
Both the bill and claws of these hawks are partic- 



PRINCETON 95 

ularly slender and curved. I found the everglade 
kite was a very plentiful bird at Panasofkee 
Lake, discovered that it was a migrant and grega- 
rious in its habits, so that frequently a dozen or 
more were seen together. The name "snail- 
hawk " is of local origin, and has to do with the 
habits of the bird. At this point their food con- 
sisted almost entirely of a fresh-water snail of 
large size which was common in the shallower 
regions of the lake, where the water is not more 
than a foot or eighteen inches deep. Over such 
areas these birds hunted very much as the marsh- 
hawk does over the fields. Perceiving a snail, 
they dove, caught it, and retired with it to some 
favorite branch near by, when the slender hooked 
beaks and claws were used to extract the inhabit- 
ant from its shell. This was done with so much 
precision and care that a shell was seldom defaced 
or the operculum broken. One had only to look 
at the great mounds of these snail-shells under the 
favorite lighting places of these hawks to be aware 
of what multitudes inhabited the lake and what 
numbers the hawks destroyed. The everglade 
kite bred commonly at points on the lake, and 
had just completed its nest-making the end of 
March. Though a fine series of the birds had 
been collected, some forty in all, their numbers 
seemed in no way diminished. 

Now, the curious point in relation to the two 



96 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

birds mentioned, the giant courlan and the ever- 
glade kite, which even the tyro knows are widely 
separated forms of bird life, is that both resorted 
to this spot to feed on precisely the same kind 
of food. The large fresh-water snail is almost 
exclusively the food of the giant courlan and 
entirely the food of the everglade kite. The 
reader is referred for details to a paper published 
as a result of my explorations of this region, deal- 
ing with the subject at length. 

During my stay Mr. Conover visited his planta- 
tion, remaining some ten days, and we enjoyed 
many hunting and fishing trips together. 

Panasofkee Lake was left somewhere about 
the 20th of March, with very satisfactory and ex- 
tensive collections, which, besides birds, embraced 
many specimens of alligators and other animals 
and reptiles characteristic of this part of Florida, 
the whole making a freight-load for a six-ox team 
to Silver Spring. 

Princeton was reached again on April 2, and 
shortly after the Florida collections arrived. Be- 
tween this time and Commencement I was able 
to place much of the material on exhibition, 
though even at the present day the large series of 
bird skins brought back from Sumter County are 
seen only by the special student, or by such in- 
quirers as are more particularly interested in birds. 
These are all stored away in cabinets, secure from 



PRINCETON 97 

light and dust as well as from other enemies, and 
look to-day much as they did when they were 
collected, over twenty-five years ago. 

By the second Commencement after coming to 
Princeton, the museum began to assume an air of 
growth and prosperity. There were no longer 
cases absolutely empty, though the array in some 
of them was sparse and meagre. 

In the autumn I made a short trip to the coast 
of New Jersey to secure specimens of gulls, ducks, 
and sea-birds. The successful undertaking was 
largely due to one of the trustees of Princeton 
College, since dead, Henry M. Alexander, Esq., 
of New York, who always gave generously when- 
ever asked to aid in building up the new college 
museum. This trip to the New Jersey coast had a 
large influence on the work for the coming year. 
During this short exploration the necessity of de- 
veloping what might be called the Marine Ornith- 
ology of New Jersey in the collections became 
evident, and plans were matured for a protracted 
stay to that end, at the same point, during the 
coming spring and summer of the year 1877. 

A shooting lodge, kept by a man named Joe 
Ridgway, stood some three miles south of Barne- 
gat Inlet, on the outside beach. Here I made 
my headquarters. " The beach," as it is called 
(a long stretch of islands off the Jersey coast), 
where this lodge was situated, is six miles from 



98 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

the mainland, a large bay intervening. At this 
time the buildings in connection with the light- 
house and the lodge some three miles away, for 
the accommodation of gunners and sportsmen, 
were the only houses for ten or twelve miles. 
The region was then a famous one for wild 
ducks and geese in the fall and spring, and for 
bay-bird shooting in the spring and late sum- 
mer months. Very considerable colonies of 
terns still bred here and on the adjacent islands, 
and a little to the south was a vast colony of 
laughing gulls. 

The museum work was continued until about 
March 20, 1877. I then arranged to be away 
from the college for the rest of the year, except 
for a few days at Commencement. In June of 
this year my marriage took place at Ithaca, and 
Mrs. Scott returned with me to Barnegat. For 
the next five months, that is, from April i to 
September i, I collected the birds of the coast, 
as well as many marine animals which were 
preserved in alcohol for laboratory use. As far 
as the bird-work of this time is concerned, ref- 
erence is made to a paper published on the 
subject cited in the appendix. 

It may be well, however, in this connection, to 
get a panoramic view of the bird life of the sea- 
coast of New Jersey in 1877. This was still the 
breeding ground of great numbers of terns and 



PRINCETON 99 

laughing gulls. In addition, in the vicinity was 
a small colony of black skimmers. I saw them 
constantly during the summer spent at Barnegat, 
but generally only in pairs, and never more than 
five or six individuals together. There were be- 
side vast quantities of game-birds in the way of 
ducks and geese, and the land-birds present are 
fully dealt with in the paper I have mentioned. 

At this time Barnegat was a Mecca for sports- 
men, and still is, so far as fishing is concerned; 
but the persecution of the gulls and terns by egg 
hunters, and the almost incessant gunning for 
ducks, geese, and bay-birds, have had the inevi- 
table result. The terns and gulls have been 
practically exterminated as breeding birds in the 
region, and the numbers of game-birds have been 
so largely decreased that few sportsmen care to 
visit what was once a famous resort. 

In concluding the sketch of this part of my 
career, I must introduce a friend who was con- 
stantly with me from the spring of 1875 for six- 
teen years. In the spring of 1875 a setter bitch 
which I owned had a litter of very fine puppies. 
I gave away all but one. This puppy I broke for 
the peculiar purposes necessitated by my work 
with birds. I took him away from his mother 
when he was five weeks old, and kept him with 
me in my rooms, at the museum, and in all my 
journeys for the next two years. He was a red 



ioo THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

Irish setter of the old-fashioned type, a dog of ex- 
ceptional beauty and great intelligence, whose 
appearance was remarked wherever he went 
Moreover, he was a gentleman. 

My first efforts in training were the usual 
hand-breaking that a dog receives preliminary 
to the outdoor education. He was taught to 
come when called, to lie down, and to retrieve. 
After this was thoroughly understood, and the 
relation of confidence was absolutely established 
between the dog and myself, so that everything 
I asked him to do became a pleasure to him, the 
time approached for my first journey to Florida. 
The dog was then something over eight months 
old ; but, so far as I am aware, had never seen a 
gun, for I had been careful, as his mother had 
been gun-shy, to train him fully in other matters 
before making a field dog of him. To be sure, 
he walked out with me, but these walks were 
limited to the town, and generally consisted in 
the daily rounds I made backward and forward 
to the museum and to my boarding place. 

One day, about a month before starting for 
Florida, I pulled a gun case out from under my 
bed. I put the several pieces of the gun together, 
and without thinking, threw it to my shoulder. 
All this time Grouse, the puppy, had been sitting 
by, very much interested in observing my move- 
ments. As I made the motion with the gun, he 



PRINCETON 101 

cowered and ran under the bed, betraying all the 
signs of great fear. So far as I know, he had 
never before seen a gun, much less heard one, 
and, of course, there was no report and nothing 
of that nature to frighten him now. I think it 
may have been the quick motion I made which 
alarmed him. Besides, this dog was not a cow- 
ard. I have rarely seen one more fearless. He 
thoroughly believed in everything I did ; that is 
what I mean by having established a relation of 
confidence between us. My word was his law, 
but now when I called him, for the first time he 
disobeyed me. I do not know whether his fear 
was a case of inheritance, but I am inclined to 
think that heredity had something to do with it, 
as I had been very careful. 

However, I was thoroughly persuaded of the 
good qualities and the fine character of the 
animal, and while I knew it an almost hopeless 
task to overcome the fears of a gun-shy dog, I 
determined to try it. I now walked with him in 
the fields, and he went with me to Florida on the 
trip I have described. Game-birds were not very 
abundant about Princeton, and I did not have the 
opportunity to hunt him at all that fall, but when 
we arrived at Panasofkee Lake, I determined on 
making a final effort to overcome his fears. For 
a time this seemed futile. One day, however, 
having him in the boat from which I was fre- 



102 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

quently shooting, and wishing to land on a certain 
grass-point which was rather low and swampy, I 
told Charlie to push the boat in. The dog was 
fastened with a long string which had been short- 
ened while we were out on the water to keep him 
from jumping overboard. As the boat came to 
the shore I unfastened the cord and he made a 
run to scramble out, but scarcely had his feet 
touched the shore when he came to a full stop, 
rigid and immovable. Handing the leash to 
Charlie and taking my gun, I walked just ahead 
of where the dog stood motionless, and an Eng- 
lish snipe got up from under my feet. As it flew 
off I killed it when some ten or fifteen yards away. 
Grouse still pointed, and did not seem afraid. 
I loosened the string, and told him in an ordinary 
way to fetch it. From that day on Grouse never 
manifested fear of a gun. He had fully appre- 
ciated the result that followed the proper use of 
the weapon. 

The next spring, that of 1876, on our return to 
Princeton, there was an elaborate ceremony in 
connection with the Centennial, and on the lower 
part of the campus, where Whitherspoon Hall 
now stands, was a battery of some seven or eight 
brass cannon. I went out to see the celebration 
and took Grouse. Instead of fearing the cannon 
he was enthusiastic about them and the noise 
they made, romping up and down in front of 



PRINCETON 



103 



them in the smoke, following each discharge and 
barking with joy and excitement. 

During the time I was in Florida, I encouraged 
Grouse to become an aid to me in bird-collect- 
ing; and while he was more than an ordinary 
good dog on game-birds, he soon became very 
expert in retrieving small birds killed in the 
grass. He also learned to point the nests of 
small birds on the ground or in bushes, or even 
when not too high in the trees. 

Dog stories are proverbial ; but before leaving 
Grouse for the time, I cannot but refer to his 
keenness of smell. I have frequently thrown as 
far as I could, and at random into a grass field, 
a bunch of keys or a coin, and he would always 
find and retrieve them without difficulty. 1 have 
done this when he was not with me, and brought 
him to the place an hour afterward, or even the 
next day, told him what I wanted him to do, and 
in less time than it takes to recount it, he would 
accomplish the end. Grouse was much esteemed 
for his many fine qualities. His progeny were in 
great demand. While his offspring were, as a 
matter of fact, few in number, all the owners of 
younger dogs in Princeton, that might by a possi- 
bility be called red setters, claimed descent for them 
from this great dog. This breed is still extant. 

That Grouse was a general favorite, the follow- 
ing episode reveals. One spring day we noticed 



104 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

that he seemed strangely restless; he wandered 
through the house and was unable to find repose. 
Toward night the nervousness increased, and 
when one of my neighbors of the faculty called in 
the evening I asked him to look at Grouse and 
advise me what to do. The gentleman had known 
Grouse from puppyhood, and was much attached 
to him. The poor dog came at his call, but could 

only feebly wag his tail in recognition. Dr. 

at once detected some brain disturbance, and ad- 
vised us to administer bromide, watch Grouse 
carefully, and if he became worse to confine him 
in a room alone. All night the poor creature 
walked up and down in distress, save for the few 
brief periods when we could soothe him by patting 
and rubbing. The bromide seemed to have little 
effect. By morning he was suffering so keenly 
that we sent at once for a physician. Remedies 
were given, but did not help him, and it was 
finally decided that there was danger in having 
him any longer at large. 

A room was prepared. Water was placed 
where he could get it, and even bars were fixed 
on the windows, the doors securely fastened, and 
here poor Grouse was imprisoned. We were 
overcome with grief, as his case seemed hopeless. 
I sent the family to a hotel, as they could no 
longer endure the sufferings which they were 
powerless to relieve. 



PRINCETON 105 

Confinement seemed to increase his agony, and 
he soon began to dash up and down the room 
and to bite imaginary objects. I started out in 
despair. In those days no veterinary surgeon of 
repute lived in the town, but a man of some expe- 
rience, usually in his cups, was supposed to know 
how to doctor animals, after a fashion. Meeting 
the man, I appealed to him in my desperation, 
and asked him to go with me, at the same time 
securing Charlie Hubbard, who had nursed Grouse 
through his childish ailments, as an assistant. 
Charlie put on a heavy glove, reached through 
the door, grasped the frantic dog by the collar, 
and slipped a muzzle over his head. It seemed a 
most dangerous undertaking, for Grouse by this 
time had all the symptoms generally ascribed to 
a mad dog. The veterinary, however, was fear- 
less, and the moment I spoke to Grouse he became 
more quiet. Heroic measures were resorted to ; he 
was blistered and poulticed, opiates were admin- 
istered, the extreme suffering was relieved, and 
he soon became unconscious. 

But this was not the end. For a week Grouse 
lay at the point of death. The physician visited 
him twice each day, for brain fever and inflam- 
mation of the bowels had developed. The family 
returned. We relieved each other in his care, 
while Charlie was installed as head nurse. Then 
the college boys heard of Grouse's illness, and 



io6 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

volunteered their aid, for Charlie could not be 
trusted to administer the brandy and beef tea 
at regular intervals, and we were all worn out. 
During two weeks, relays of college students 
watched with him at night. One day he became 
conscious, and recognized me by licking my hand 
as I patted him. But his past was a blank ; he 
had to begin life as a puppy once more, and again 
be taught all his former accomplishments. This 
second education was, however, acquired with 
ease. 

To show the extent of his popularity, I was con- 
stantly stopped in the street by many friends who 
asked with much concern, "How is Grouse to- 
day ? I am so sorry to hear of his illness." And 
our own physician, who did not like dogs, and 
for whom I had not ventured to send, took me to 
task for not calling him when Grouse was ill. 

I tell this episode to show not only the love 
that a faithful dog inspires, but to make it plain 
also that a dog in illness should receive the same 
intelligent care that is accorded a human being. 



CHAPTER VI 

THE PLAINS AND COLORADO 

THE opening of the college in September neces- 
sitated our return to Princeton early in the month, 
though I was loath to leave Barnegat, and to 
forego further continuous observation here, for it 
presented much both of a novel and interesting 
character. 

Few people realize the wealth revealed to the 
careful and observant collector in any field of 
nature. At this time comparatively little was 
known about the exact details of the migrations 
of some of the commoner shore birds, and there 
are questions still to be solved. For instance, as 
to the presence of such birds as the dowitcher, 
the knot, and the turnstone on the coast of 
Florida, and in intervening regions from there 
northward to New Jersey during the months of 
June and July. The two former birds, at least, 
breed very far north, and yet are represented by 
an appreciable element of individuals even as far 
south as southern Florida in midsummer. But 
the point to which I wish to call attention is 

the short space of time spent by the dowitcher 

107 



io8 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

and the knot at their summer breeding ground 
in the far North. The last dowitchers observed 
passing northward along the Jersey coast were 
late in May, and the first arrivals returning from 
the North made their advent on July 6, when a 
pair were seen. The next day several small flocks 
appeared passing South. Thus, in a period of 
less than sixty days these birds journeyed pre- 
sumably over thousands of miles, and returned 
by the same route. In addition, it is also prob- 
able that they had laid eggs, spent a very con- 
siderable number of days incubating the same, 
and finally had reared broods of young ones 
which came South, almost simultaneously with 
their elders to the Jersey coast, full-grown birds. 
It is therefore evident that the work and study 
of Barnegat was abandoned only because of the 
greater exigency of other demands, and not from 
lack of material or interest. 

My work at Princeton during this and the suc- 
ceeding seasons dealt largely with the winter bird 
fauna of the immediate vicinity ; and some of the 
observations made in connection with this work, 
especially that of the winter of 1878 and 1879, are 
recorded in a paper cited in the appendix. 

Notable was the advent in the vicinity of 
Princeton during this winter of great numbers 
of a kind of small owl known as the saw- whet, 
which became very plentiful in certain cedar 



THE PLAINS AND COLORADO 109 

groves not distant from the town in the early 
part of December. I visited several of these 
groves, and cite from my notes as follows : 

"Until last fall I had never met with the saw-whet owl 
{Nyctala acadica) at this point, and was surprised at having 
one brought me on December i. This bird was taken from 
a hole in a tree alive. Just after a severe storm, in the early 
part of December, I was told of some small owls being quite 
common in a certain cedar grove. In this and in an adjacent 
grove on December 10, I obtained ten saw- whet owls, and the 
following day seven more. Since that time until writing I have 
found these birds more or less common in cedar groves, and 
have obtained many more specimens. During the day they 
roost in cedars close to the trunk, and can frequently be taken 
alive in the hand. They seem to affect scattered groves, where 
the trees do not grow too thickly. Most of the birds taken are 
females, and judging from their ovaries, the time of breeding 
cannot be more than six weeks or two months distant." 

I speak particularly of this occurrence as I 
have never noticed the birds in subsequent years, 
except casually and singly. There was also a 
very remarkable migration of red-tailed and red- 
shouldered hawks, as well as numbers of rough- 
legged buzzards. On some of the meadows along 
the Millstone River during this winter almost 
every isolated tree was the haunt of one of these 
large hawks, and it was not unusual to see two 
or three of them in the same tree. I remember 
once collecting five individuals within close 
gunshot of one another. I did not pick up any 



no THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

of the dead birds as they fell from the trees until 
I had killed the last one. Being anxious to have 
a good series of this kind of bird of prey in the 
museum study-collections, I offered a small price 
for large hawks, thinking to obtain a few speci- 
mens in addition to those I could collect myself. 
One day, shortly after Thanksgiving, a man drove 
up to my house having in his wagon a large, 
roughly built, slatted crate. He told me he knew 
of my desire to get hawks, having heard it from 
a neighbor, and that he had collected some during 
the past few days and had them ready for delivery. 
Examining more closely I found there were in his 
crate twenty-two red-shouldered and red-tailed 
hawks alive and uninjured, and so recently cap- 
tured that they had not had time to wear or dirty 
their plumage. These birds had all been taken 
in an ordinary steel muskrat trap placed on top 
of a long pole, which for this purpose had been 
driven into the ground of some meadow which 
the hawks frequented. The jaws of the steel 
trap, being bound with cotton wadding or other 
soft material, did not injure or break the hawks' 
legs or lame the birds in any way. This will 
give an idea of the abundance of these large 
hawks at this time. 

I cannot dwell on the details of my field-work 
during these two winters, and can only call atten- 
tion in general to the great numbers of the birds 



THE PLAINS AND COLORADO in 

of prey that fed on field-mice and the smaller 
mammals at this period during the winter season 
in New Jersey. This presents a strong contrast to 
the condition of affairs that now exist Such a 
result, the great decrease in the large mouse- 
hawks, has accrued almost entirely through the 
systematic persecution to which they have been 
subjected. They are formidable looking crea- 
tures, and coming in the classification of the 
farmer under the head of " hen hawks," they have 
been treated without mercy. 

It is true that both the red-shouldered and red- 
tailed hawk make occasional raids on poultry, 
but these are rare events. Their food consists 
almost entirely of field-mice and the smaller mam- 
mals which levy a heavy toll on every stack of 
grain and every granary, much more than would 
compensate for the few fowls that the hawks kill. 
Therefore, the farmer in destroying indiscrimi- 
nately the larger hawks unwittingly aids in the 
increase of enemies that, from an economic point 
of view alone, do him much more damage. 

It is the slim, long-tailed, short, round-winged 
hawks of the genus Accipiter that habitually 
prey on smaller birds, poultry, and game. They 
are not nearly so formidable in size, and are not 
conspicuous when perching. 

During the summer of 1877 a party of profes- 
sors and students from the university had made 



H2 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

an expedition for purposes connected with geo- 
logical and paleontological research to the Bad 
Lands of Wyoming, and had spent some little 
time in Colorado. They were so enthusiastic on 
their return as to the wealth of animal life in the 
country, dwelling particularly on a region high in 
the mountain chain near the headwaters of the 
Arkansas River, that I planned, if possible, to 
spend the summer vacation of the year 1878 
in Colorado. I would have started early in the 
season but that, in addition to my duties as cura- 
tor of the museum, I was called on this year to 
give a course of lectures, supplemented by lab- 
oratory work to the senior class. These lectures 
dealt with the comparative anatomy of vertebrate 
animals, and were given during the second term 
of the senior year. Such a course continued to 
be part of my duties for the next few years. 

Among the students of the first class of this 
kind which worked with me I must mention two 
men, both of whom have become notable natural- 
ists : William B. Scott, now and for many years 
Professor of Geology and Paleontology in Prince- 
ton University, and Henry Fairfield Osborn, 
Professor in Columbia University, Curator in the 
American Museum of Natural History, and 
United States Paleontologist. After their study 
with me in their senior year both of these gentle- 
men took part in the expedition to Colorado, and 



THE PLAINS AND COLORADO 113 

it was largely due to their accounts of the trip that 
I determined to go there in 1878. 

Through the liberality of a number of trustees 
and friends of the college a fund was provided 
which enabled me to undertake the proposed 
expedition. On this journey, as on many subse- 
quent ones, I was accompanied by Mrs. Scott, and 
we shared together the pleasure of visiting an 
unfamiliar country. 

Railroad travel was much slower in those days, 
so we had a very fair look at the plains crossing 
Kansas and eastern Colorado. This region from 
central Kansas west was at the time a great un- 
broken plain, and had not yet been invaded by 
the vast cattle ranches and sheep runs which have 
since made it famous, and which in turn have 
given place to practical agriculture. 

Few travellers realize in crossing the United 
States the steady ascent coincident with the 
journey from the Missouri River to the eastern 
edge of the Rocky Mountains, say at Denver. 
It seems as if one were travelling over a vast flat 
plain, which is only here and there broken by 
undulations of so inappreciable a character as to 
be included in the whole, and yet the rise in this 
five hundred miles is very considerable ; for when 
the city of Denver is reached the traveller is already 
at an altitude of some five thousand feet above 
the level of the sea. Beyond towers the great wall, 



H4 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

the backbone of the continent the Rocky 
Mountains. 

Approached from the plain, at first such eleva- 
tions as the summit of Pike's Peak are dis- 
cernible on the horizon, appearing like miniature 
white tents, and later as marble domes surrounded 
by pinnacles and buttresses of alabaster. Shortly 
the region of the mountains below the snow-line 
appears, and ultimately the panorama of giant 
hills stretches from north to south as far as the 
eye can reach. 

On the whole, like all great spectacles which 
have excited the imagination, the reality is at 
first sight disappointing, and the fact of attain- 
ing an elevation of five thousand feet before a view 
of the mountains is complete accounts for this. 
But with every later hour spent in contempla- 
tion the marvel grows. The early impression is 
evanescent ; and each day, with its new visions of 
color and form revealed in these mighty hills, adds 
to the sense of their majesty. 

However, having viewed from the sea some of 
the mountains in the islands of the tropics, notably 
the Blue Mountain range of Jamaica, whose cen- 
tral peak towers eight thousand feet abruptly 
above the level of the ocean, such a mountain 
chain more fully realized my ideas of grandeur 
than did the mighty chain of the Rockies, whose 
loftiest peaks are nearly twice as high. 



THE PLAINS AND COLORADO 115 

Arriving at Denver we spent a few days mak- 
ing preparations for the drive into the mountains. 
Our destination was about one hundred and fifty 
miles to the southwest, high up in the main 
chain of the Rocky Mountains, then only to be 
reached by stage or private conveyance. 

Fourteen miles from the town of Leadville, 
at an elevation of nine thousand two hundred 
feet above the sea, surrounded by mountains, 
some of which attain an altitude of nearly four- 
teen thousand feet, are two small bodies of 
water, from their proximity to each other known 
as Twin Lakes. The smaller of these is a mile 
long, oval in shape, the larger one perhaps ex- 
ceeding it three times in size. Here an early 
settler, by name Deny, had a hay ranch and 
summer grazing ground. A rude house of 
entertainment for hunters and fishermen was also 
maintained by this hospitable pioneer. There 
was no other habitation for miles; mountain 
peaks towered above it on every hand, framing 
an upland valley containing the Twin Lakes. 

A word as to the house which the Derrys had 
built. It was a wooden structure, of course, but 
displayed in its construction not only the fertility 
of resource that is one of the attributes of the 
pioneer, but much of Yankee ingenuity. It was 
roofed entirely with tin, not in the conventional 
way, each separate plate having once been an in- 



n6 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

tegral part of a tin can, that indispensable adjunct 
of civilization and index of its advance. No 
single object more clearly indicates the invasion 
of a new country than the countless empty and 
abandoned tin cans scattered everywhere. But 
the Derrys did not surrender them as useless 
when empty; all were subjected to fire, and the 
part of each that had once been the cylinder now 
was a flat piece of tin again, firmly soldered to its 
neighbors of like origin, the whole forming an 
admirable water-tight roof. As this was no small 
house, the patience and labor involved in making 
such a covering can readily be imagined. 

Four or five days were spent in Denver in find- 
ing a man who, besides having the necessary 
conveyance, also had such knowledge of the 
country as would enable him to pilot us to our 
journey's end. Finally such service was secured, 
and early one morning we began our slow jour- 
ney in a traditional " prairie schooner " over what 
was then an almost virgin country. 

I can but briefly indicate the many beauties 
which nature spread prodigally before us on every 
side. All along the way I recognized the birds 
that crossed the road in front of us or that alighted 
in the trees in the vicinity. They were the same 
that Mr. Allen had brought back from this region, 
and each one recalled my work in Cambridge. 
As I saw them now alive for the first time none 



THE PLAINS AND COLORADO 117 

of them were strangers ; no introduction was nec- 
essary, except as to song and action. 

My previous journeys, even the one that had 
taken me to eastern Kansas, and also the winter 
spent at Panasofkee Lake, had not brought me 
into relation with a new set of conditions in bird 
life ; I mean by this a different fauna, especially 
of small birds. There were a few new ones in 
eastern Kansas, but the general character of 
bird life at both that point and at Warrensburg, 
Missouri, was similar to that of the East. In 
Florida, taking out half a dozen large and con- 
spicuous kinds, such as the herons, ibises, and 
wild turkeys, and among the small birds, the 
paroquets, there was little in the general aspect of 
the fauna very different from that of Princeton. 
Now I was passing through a country where 
another set of conditions predominated. The 
birds of eastern North America were few ; stran- 
gers presented themselves on every hand. 

Here was a bluebird of the finest azure both on 
his back and breast taking the place of our red- 
breasted bluebird of the East. Now and then the 
song of the mountain mocking-bird greeted the ear. 
In some of the streams we passed I saw for the first 
time the water-ouzel swimming, diving, and living 
its aquatic life. Yellow-headed blackbirds and 
Brewer's blackbirds were the representatives of 
that family; while Bullock's oriole replaced the 



xi 8- THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

familiar Baltimore oriole of the East. Ravens 
were by no means uncommon, and magpies, con- 
spicuous in every landscape where they occur, 
were frequently to be seen. Besides this, the 
highest altitude attained gave us a climate equiva- 
lent to that of Labrador in the summer ; and such 
birds among the aquatic species as Wilson's 
snipe and the golden-eyed duck were both found 
and believed to breed at Twin Lakes. Great 
numbers of red cross-bills and Canada jays also 
indicated a bird fauna approximating that which 
is called the Hudsonian. The broad-tailed hum- 
ming-bird, a larger and more conspicuous form 
than our rubythroat, was the only humming-bird 
observed, and was very abundant. All this to 
show how different and novel was the ensemble 
of bird life. 

Throughout this drive the way was bedecked 
with flowers, and curiously we witnessed, not the 
phenomenon of spring turning into summer, which 
every one has enjoyed, but of summer really turning 
into spring, and spring again into summer, and 
summer again into spring. This paradox becomes 
clear when one realizes that in traversing this 
route from Denver to Twin Lakes, the way leads 
uphill and down, across considerable elevations, 
and culminates in the passage of the main chain 
of the mountains at a point a little over thirteen 
thousand feet above the sea. 



THE PLAINS AND COLORADO 119 

When we left Denver on June 12, it was sum- 
mer. The trees were in full leaf, and many of 
the early flowers of spring were faded and gone, 
their places taken by the later comers that 
decorated the summer landscape of the region. 
Beginning to ascend the mountains as the first 
foot-hills were attained, it was perceptible that 
each hundred feet of elevation had put the clock 
of nature backward. As the route passed over 
some considerable altitude, at first the leaves on 
the trees were only half developed ; higher up they 
were just breaking the buds, and later, as the 
highest point was reached, only the haze that in- 
dicates the renewal of leaf and flower on the trees 
was visible. Along with this backward turning 
of the season one saw all the early spring flowers 
in various stages of growth inversely from the 
flowers to the bud about to blossom. There are 
other phenomena connected with life and growth, 
one of which I can suggest by a concrete example. 
There was a kind of sunflower blooming on all the 
foot-hills, and ordinarily the stock which carried 
the golden disk, some five inches across, was any- 
where from four to five feet high. Gradually 
with the ascent of the backbone of the chain, the 
height of the stalks of the sunflowers was in in- 
verse ratio to the altitude of the hills. That is, 
while the flower was five inches across in the 
lower regions, and on a stalk some four or five 



120 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

feet high, before the snow-line was reached, at an 
altitude of perhaps twelve thousand feet, the stalk 
had dwindled to a sturdy stem, often not more 
than four or five inches tall, which bore a sun- 
flower in size and color quite equal to that seen 
on the tallest and sturdiest stalks below. The 
very short summer here did not admit of time to 
grow a longer stalk. The flower must be pro- 
duced as soon as possible to allow the seed that 
would insure the perpetuation of the species to 
develop and ripen. 

I cannot dwell on the many kinds of flowers, 
but to indicate their abundance as a whole seems 
essential. The ground was fairly carpeted, and 
up to within a few feet of the banks of snow at 
high altitudes their numbers did not diminish. 

In the vicinity of Denver my attention was par- 
ticularly attracted by a colony of burrowing owls. 
These creatures frequented, not only the deserted 
burrows of prairie-dogs, but also the abandoned 
domiciles of other animals, such as the badger and 
the red fox. Just to the east of the city, some four 
miles, was a very considerable prairie-dog town 
which probably covered a hundred acres, and there 
may have been one or more pair of the little 
rodents to each acre of ground. There were also 
many seemingly abandoned burrows. The whole 
colony of owls in this town did not exceed twenty 
pairs, scattered over the area. 



THE PLAINS AND COLORADO 121 

They are droll little birds standing on the 
summit of the earth heaped at the mouth of a 
burrow. As you approach they begin to nod and 
gesticulate with their heads, bowing and seemingly 
much interested in the visit. This series of genu- 
flexions is continued until a close approach is 
made, when the bird flies away with a rather slow, 
silent, flapping sort of flight, or more often disap- 
pears into the burrow beside the mound, like a 
jack-in-the-box. This habit of disappearance not 
only interested the human element in our party, 
but my setter Grouse, who accompanied us to 
Colorado, was equally impressed. He could not 
get used to it. That a bird standing on the 
ground should, in an instant, instead of taking 
flight, vanish into the bowels of the earth, was too 
much ! He protested loudly whenever he wit- 
nessed the phenomenon. 

A drive from Denver to this prairie-dog town 
served to introduce two other birds characteristic 
of the region. The mountain-plover, a species 
with something about it suggestive of the kill- 
deer, but larger and of the build of the lapwing 
of Europe ; and the prairie falcon recalling the 
peregrine, and in size about halfway between that 
bird and his miniature relative, the pigeon hawk. 

"Just in the town itself are very many birds, doubtless 
attracted by the trees planted so liberally along the streets, 
and by the little streams of water that run along in what we 



122 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

would call gutters in the East, but which here serve to keep 
alive and green the trees and grass that the dry soil and cli- 
mate would soon kill were they left to nature's protection. 

" Some of our readers will perhaps be glad to know that there 
is a large city in this country where the familiar sparrows are 
hot known, and where their place is supplied by natural inhabit- 
ants, who, if not so abundant or conspicuous, seem to be able 
to keep the insect pests at bay ; for rarely have we seen more 
flourishing and thrifty trees, apparently free from all kinds of 
cutworms and the like that trouble us so much about our 
homes in the East. A week ago, in Chicago, we found the 
sparrows abundant, and their familiar chip, chip, chap, chap, 
brought New York streets vividly to our minds; and pass- 
ing through Kansas City the day after, in only a twenty 
minutes' stop, we detected, we thought, the same little fellows 
that throng our Eastern cities. But here, in Denver, we have 
not seen or heard an English sparrow, and as every now and 
then a bright oriole or gay flycatcher flashes by, with a strain of 
most beautiful song, or the weak, harsh notes that characterize 
the latter bird, we congratulate the citizens that their town 
birds are much more interesting and varied than ours at home. 
This morning, walking up one of the main streets, the familiar 
song of the robin was heard, and looking about we saw a superb 
male bird, apparently of very dark coloring, sitting on the 
chimney-top of one of the low houses that are a feature of the 
city. The song seemed to us richer and fuller than at home, 
and by far more musical, though we would not for a moment 
disparage that of the Eastern representative of the bird in ques- 
tion. Maybe, after hearing such a number of strange, and to 
us new songs for the past few days, this one, from its very fa- 
miliarity, sounded doubly sweet. The robins do not seem at all 
common, and, as we said before, this is the only one we have 
heard singing about here, though we have seen a number of 
others. There is hardly a bird that one misses more than 
this, and we should be careful in protecting them about our 



THE PLAINS AND COLORADO 123 

homes." The Country, Vol. 2, No. 8, June 15, 1878. From 
contributed article by William E. D. Scott. 

An incident of my collecting at Twin Lakes 
was the discovery of the first known nest of the 
ruby-crowned kinglet. Until now the method 
of breeding of this bird had been more or less 
a matter of conjecture, and the eggs had not 
been seen. From the paper cited in the appen- 
dix, I quote the following notes with regard to 
this little kinglet, and a description of the nest 
made at the time. 

" One of the most common song-birds, and heard every- 
where. On the 2oth of June I saw a female fly to a pine tree 
with material in her bill for building a nest. On looking I 
found a nest nearly finished. On the 25th of June I took this 
nest with five fresh eggs, and the female showed signs of hav- 
ing incubated. I think no more eggs would have been laid. 
The nest is before me as I write, and presents the following 
peculiarities : It is semipensile, being suspended to the leaves 
of the pine, and to one small branch, much like the red-eyed 
vireo's nest. It is very large in proportion to the builder, and 
is made of the bark of sage-brush and of green moss very firmly 
twisted together, and forming a soft outer wall of from half to 
a full inch in thickness. This is lined with feathers and hair. 
The whole nest is very soft, and has the following dimensions : 
Four inches deep outside, three inches deep inside, three inches 
in diameter outside, and two inches at the top inside, but nar- 
rowing to an inch and a half at the bottom. On the outside 
it is as wide at the bottom as at the top, being in this respect 
like a Baltimore oriole's. It was placed at the very outermost 
twigs and leaves of the tree, about twelve feet from the ground. 
The eggs are five in number, of a dirty white color, faintly 



124 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

spotted all over with light brown, which becomes quite definite 
at the larger end. They are large in proportion to the size of 
the bird, and one end is very little sharper than the other. The 
following are the dimensions: .55 x .45, -55 X .44, .54 x .42, 
57X.45, -58X.43-" 

During our stay at Twin Lakes we went a 
number of times to Leadville, some fourteen 
miles away. A successful mining camp in em- 
bryo, situated in what had once been a famous 
gold placer, California Gulch, it presented a novel 
and remarkable spectacle. A camp, in the remote 
fastnesses of the mountains, with a few hundred 
inhabitants, grew, from the time of the melting 
of the snow in spring, to a city of fifteen thousand 
people ere, with the early fall, the first white flakes 
appeared betokening the coming winter. It was 
a city of canvas and wood, largely canvas. A 
mighty stream of adventurers of all kinds was 
flowing in daily. Miners and capitalists, gamblers 
and courtesans, preachers and actors, swelled the 
throng. With the virgin pine forests, at the edge 
of its streets and squares, fourteen steam sawmills 
were unable to supply the demand for lumber for 
building, and tents were conspicuous for the en- 
tire first year of this city's life. 

Beside other woodpeckers, notably the red- 
shafted flicker and the type of yellow-bellied 
woodpecker prevalent in the West, the brown- 
headed woodpecker was common and bred at 



THE PLAINS AND COLORADO 125 

Twin Lakes. The genus to which the yellow- 
bellied and brown-headed woodpeckers belong is 
known as Sphyrapicus. As an illustration of the 
artificiality of conventional systematic classifica- 
tion, it is worthy of record that almost until the 
time of which I am speaking the male and female 
of the brown-headed woodpecker not only had 
been described as separate species, one known 
as the brown-headed woodpecker and the other 
as Williamson's woodpecker, but the female, 
which presented a somewhat different character 
and coloring from the other members of the genus 
Sphyrapicus, had been placed in a genus by her- 
self. This is not the only instance where sexual 
difference of little-known birds has caused sys- 
tematists to describe the two sexes as different 
species. 

During our stay at Twin Lakes in the month 
of July there occurred a total eclipse of the sun. 
This began, as nearly as I can remember, about 
two o'clock in the afternoon, about the height of 
day at that time of year. 

Gradually darkness overspread the face of land 
and water. The birds abandoned the pursuit of 
their habitual occupations, and the preliminary 
song period that heralds the night commenced. 
As the eclipse proceeded, each feathered creature 
retired to some accustomed sleeping place, and 
went through all the motions and excitement that 



126 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

occur with most song-birds just before darkness 
descends. The period of absolute obscurity of 
the eclipse was, of course, short. At this point 
not only the birds, but all nature seemed sleep- 
ing. With the beginning of dawn, from one point 
and another could be heard the cries and first 
calls preliminary to the opening chorus of song 
with which birds greet the day. The beauty of 
light, shade, and color which accompanied the 
procession of events throughout the duration of the 
eclipse were impressive, wonderful, magnificent. 
The picture of a single line of incidents, such as 
I have portrayed through the medium of birds, 
indicates but a little of the greatness of the event 
viewed as a whole. 

For those who are not so fortunate as to wit- 
ness the song phenomenon which I have de- 
scribed as accompanying the obscuration of the 
sun, I suggest that every June day furnishes at 
its beginning and close a parallel. He who 
would enjoy the opening should be out of 
doors at, say, half-past two in the morning, and 
sit for the next twenty minutes in the unbroken 
stillness and dark of the time. It will be difficult 
to say when the day begins, where the blackness 
ends and fades into the first gray which betokens 
the dawn ; but coincident with it a low cry from 
some thicket or tree hard by will announce a per- 
ception more acute. Presently answering calls 



THE PLAINS AND COLORADO 127 

come from every direction, mingling and swell- 
ing, until perhaps the song of a robin bursts in 
its full melody upon the hearer. Gradually all 
the minstrels join, until, as the first streak of 
gold illumines the horizon, it is possible to real- 
ize something of the multitude of throats which 
unite in the chorus. 

Such a symphony attains its greatest volume 
about the time the sun is an hour high, and from 
then until ten o'clock in the morning gradually 
and imperceptibly dies again until one begins 
to notice single and individualized songsters. 
Finally the hush that heralds the interval of 
noon, that is, from eleven o'clock until three 
on a hot summer's day, is complete. 

Leaving Twin Lakes after a stay of some 
six weeks, we proceeded by another route out of 
the mountains, through the Ute Pass to Colorado 
Springs. I can allude only to a few days spent 
at the latter place. A visit to the Garden of the 
Gods, where, for the first time, I saw the white- 
bellied swift breeding in the crannies of the 
monuments, towers, and cliffs of this fitly-named 
park, suggested that, before the advent of houses, 
his kinsman, the chimney-swift, probably took 
advantage of similar sites for building nests and 
rearing young. Perhaps it is necessary to be 
more explicit. 

Obviously three hundred years ago the chim- 



128 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

ney-swift of North America could not have bred 
in chimneys, for probably there were none. The 
fact that the civilization and settlement of a new 
country can so radically affect all the representa- 
tives of a given kind of bird as to change its 
breeding habits, at least so far as its disposition of 
the nest is concerned, is suggestive. 

An agreeable recollection of the brief stay we 
made at Colorado Springs is a pleasant acquaint- 
ance formed with Mr. and Mrs. Jackson, which 
added a new interest, if that were needed, to the 
graphic and picturesque descriptions of the West 
and Western life, which Mrs. Jackson, as " H. H." 
gave to the world. 

Presently we were again crossing the plains; 
and in a little time the pleasures of the summer 
were retrospects, while the tangible results of the 
work accomplished on this expedition were appar- 
ent in the additions (some seven hundred birds in 
all) to the collections of the growing museum. 

During the succeeding university year, that of 
1878 and 1879, my work kept me in Princeton. 
It was the regular, routine kind, consisting of 
my duties as curator of the museum, instruc- 
tion to special students, of whom I had several this 
year, and a course of lectures and laboratory work 
on comparative anatomy of vertebrate animals. 

It is my purpose to discuss briefly at this point 
some of the conditions that existed in the bird 



THE PLAINS AND COLORADO 129 

life of Princeton in the years from 1875 to 1881, 
and to compare them with those of to-day. 

Most of us are aware that the fauna and flora 
of a given region is liable to slow and gradual 
change. Perhaps few of us realize how rapid and 
radical such development may become. Some- 
times this is effected by the adventitious aid of 
man, a good example of which is the introduc- 
tion of the English sparrow into North America. 
More recently the starling has been naturalized, 
and has become plentiful in the immediate vicinity 
of New York City as a wild bird. 

The stories of our earlier observers dwell upon 
the abundance of the wild turkey throughout all 
eastern North America, and of the heath-hen at 
various points in the same region. Except in 
remote and unsettled districts the wild turkey has 
disappeared as a part of bird life, and the heath- 
hen exists only in limited numbers on the island 
of Martha's Vineyard. These are examples of the 
kind of change indicated. 

I have spoken of the wild pigeons that bred in 
the vicinity of Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cam- 
bridge during my college days. One of the nota- 
ble features of bird life in the vicinity of Princeton 
which attracted my attention were the spring and 
fall flights of the passenger-pigeon. Very con- 
siderable colonies also nested in the woods along 
the ridge known as Rocky Hill. In those days 



i 3 o THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

most sportsmen in late September and October 
took advantage of the well-known migrations of 
pigeons. Many were taken with the gun. In ad- 
dition, a number of the older farmers living along 
the ridge used annually, in the early seventies, to 
net pigeons in their fall flight. The method by 
which this was accomplished is too well known 
to be dealt with in detail. 

In the years of 1875 anc ^ ^76, in company 
with Charlie Hubbard, I went regularly every 
autumn to trap the birds in this way. In the 
autumn of 1876 a single fall of the net resulted in 
obtaining upward of forty birds. This detail is 
given to show how common this bird was at so 
recent a date in New Jersey. 

At Ithaca, during my stay at Cornell, I wit- 
nessed large flights of passenger-pigeons, and in 
Virginia, in 1872, enormous flocks feasted on the 
beech mast of the forest, as they passed through 
each season. At present I think it is safe to say 
that no wild pigeons have been observed in the 
vicinity of Princeton for at least twelve or four- 
teen years. They disappeared from Cambridge 
much earlier. 

So far as we know, this disappearance has 
affected a wide area in eastern North America ; 
and the only point in the region where the pas- 
senger-pigeon still exists and breeds in numbers is 
in the state of Michigan. 



THE PLAINS AND COLORADO 131 

Among the small birds that were once plentiful 
and are now practically unknown, is the black- 
throated bunting. This bird was formerly of 
local distribution, and common from the Middle 
States southward. In my early collecting about 
Princeton, the presence of black-throated buntings 
was regular, but even then the number of repre- 
sentatives was not large. 

The wood-duck and the Bartramian sandpiper 
formerly bred commonly in the region. On my 
first trips up and down the Millstone River, 
broods of wood-ducks were to be surely reckoned 
on, and the Bartramian sandpiper was abundant, 
breeding in all suitable large grass fields. Both 
birds still occur in limited numbers as migrants, 
and a few may rarely breed. It is clear, therefore, 
that a change has been in progress during appre- 
ciable time, and is going on even at the present. 

Manifestly the extermination of a bird like the 
great auk, which did not possess the power of 
flight, and which afforded to the seamen and ex- 
plorers of early days fresh food in abundance, was 
an event largely due to the direct acts of human 
beings. That a bird like the Labrador duck 
should, within the last fifty years, have dis- 
appeared from the bird life of America, is not 
only remarkable, but not so easily explained. 
The history of the disappearance and some data 
concerning the former occurrences of this duck 



1 32 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

are well set forth in recent papers dealing with 
the subject. 

The latest known living specimen was killed 
in Halifax Harbor in the autumn of 1852, and it 
is supposed that three others were obtained be- 
tween that time and 1861. It is even rumored 
that as late as 1878 individuals were captured. 
The late George N. Lawrence of New York told 
me that along about 1840 the Labrador duck was 
exposed every winter for sale in Fulton Market, 
New York, among other examples of sea-ducks. 
Mr. Akhurst, a taxidermist of Brooklyn, New 
York, has also related to me that between the 
years 1848 and 1850 he obtained several speci- 
mens at different times which he shipped to natu- 
ralists and collectors in England and Germany; 
that it was not especially rare at the time, and 
that no one then apprehended that the career of 
this species was so near its termination. It must 
be taken into account that the Labrador duck, 
moreover, possessed great powers of flight, being 
a migratory species which appeared regularly in 
the waters about Long Island and on the coast 
of New England, every winter. Besides, it was 
so common that it was often found, as has been 
shown, in the game bags of the gunners who 
hunted for the market in those days. 

Allowing the possibility of individuals occurring 
even as late as 1878, they are certainly the last 



THE PLAINS AND COLORADO 133 

ones known ; and hence the present generation is 
contemporary with the termination of a given kind 
of bird. 

Now, there are many other kinds of sea-ducks 
of similar migratory habits to the one under con- 
sideration, notably the different species of eider- 
duck, and the various birds classed under the 
head of surf-ducks or coots, not to mention the 
old squaws, the golden eye, and their allies. It 
therefore does not seem probable that by any in- 
fluence exerted by men, and certainly not the 
efforts of game- and pot-hunters, was the extermi- 
nation of this species accomplished. Such a 
result must be inevitable to aggregations of indi- 
viduals of a given kind to which we apply the 
term " species." They have their beginning, their 
rise and culmination, and their end, much as is 
the case with nations, to which they may be 
likened. The point which I wish to emphasize 
here is that the process of organic evolution is 
not something of the past ; the present period is 
as much concerned with it as any, and the above 
facts are recited to show that, under our very 
eyes, something that most of us look upon as a 
remote force, which had its chief action in the 
early history of the world, is still potent, and 
carries on its work now. In short, species origi- 
nate and disappear to-day just as they have always 
done. I said "originate," and I shall presently, 



i 3 4 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

in the course of this narrative, give the history of 
what I believe is the birth of a species of wild 
song-bird within the past fifty years. Our first 
knowledge of it, how long the type was soli- 
tary, how rarely it was duplicated, how it became 
more common, and how readily any good field- 
naturalist may go forth almost at our doorsteps 
and observe it to-day, all will be related. 

Now, the facts with regard to the changes 
which I have exemplified by details bearing on 
the bird fauna of the vicinity of Princeton, are 
simply some of the steps in the evolution of the 
several species mentioned. It must be borne in 
mind that evolution does not necessarily mean 
growth ; it does not necessarily mean betterment, 
but may as frequently mean decadence and de- 
generation. Nor must the reader consider for 
a moment that a pessimistic point of view is 
to be founded on the generalizations which I 
have tried to substantiate. Listen to the other 
side. 

It is beyond debate that the wood-thrush, one 
of the most lovable, charming, and dignified song- 
birds, has vastly increased in proportion during 
the last fifty years ; that its habits have been so 
far modified that, while it was once a bird of the 
deep forest, whence its name, it is now common in 
every rural town in the vicinity of New York, and 
its song is more frequent in Central Park, in the 



THE PLAINS AND COLORADO 135 

proper season, than it was in the deep forest in 
the days of Wilson and Audubon. 

The increase during the last fifteen years of 
the robin and meadow-lark in the bird-world of 
the vicinity of Princeton is noticeable. 

Writing this, sitting under the trees on the 
edge of the village, I can hear hosts of bobolinks 
frolicking over the fields close by. In my early 
Princeton collecting I regarded the bobolink as 
an uncommon breeding bird. In the field from 
which the singing comes at least fifty pair breed 
annually. 

Another bird which appears to have increased 
greatly in numbers during the past twenty years 
is the Baltimore oriole. The orchard orioles 
have always been during my experience common 
throughout the migration and breeding season. 
The grace and beauty of their form and color 
enlivened every hedge-row, and their song was 
ever present to charm the ear. It was otherwise 
with the Baltimores ; they were in the category of 
the bobolink. Yet to-day almost every yard has 
its pair which nest and rear a brood ; and over 
the very streets, when the leaves are fallen in the 
autumn, numbers of nests of the last season are 
to be seen. Surely all this justifies an optimistic 
rather than a pessimistic view. 

In concluding this part of the narrative, I wish 
to dwell for a moment on the bird known as 



136 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

Brewster's warbler. The type specimen was 
taken by Mr. William Brewster at Newtonville, 
Massachusetts, May i8th, 1870. It was not until 
some six years later, April, 1876, that the bird 
was described and named by Mr. Brewster. 
During this long interval it was one of many 
birds in his private collection ; and while he 
and other young naturalists who visited him 
recognized that it was like no other bird, yet it 
appeared, on the whole, to be something like a 
female golden-winged warbler. However, it was 
at last given a name. This naturally attracted a 
wider attention than had the solitary specimen in 
the cabinet. On May 12, 1877, Mr. Christopher 
Wood killed the second recorded specimen at 
Clifton, Pennsylvania. Like the first it proved 
to be a male, and was almost identical with 
the type in appearance. The third recorded 
individual was killed long before either of the 
others. It was found in the collection of the 
Philadelphia Academy of Sciences, labelled " J. 
C., 20 October, 1862." It had no other his- 
tory, but it must have been at one time in the 
collection of John Cassin, Esq., for the label is 
in his handwriting. As the years rolled on the 
birds were collected in numbers, until in October, 
1885, twenty-two had been recorded. From that 
time the records have increased, and there are 
now something considerably over a hundred of 



THE PLAINS AND COLORADO 137 

these birds in different collections. In certain 
regions, notably at Englewood, New Jersey, and 
in parts of southern Connecticut, they may be 
seen every year during the breeding season 
with certainty. Every good naturalist who has 
worked recently in the lower Hudson River 
valley has met with some of these birds. So 
it is a tangible part of the fauna of eastern 
North America now, and its presence can be 
readily detected in given localities at definite 
times of the year. 

It does not seem probable that a form so com- 
mon as this, and ranging over as large an area as 
from Pennsylvania to Massachusetts, should have 
remained unknown to our earlier ornithologists: 
such keen field-naturalists as Audubon and 
Wilson, Baird, Cassin and Lawrence, Coues and 
Prentiss. Nuttall made careful and prolonged 
study of birds in the region where Mr. Brewster's 
type was collected. Yet none of these close 
observers and good collectors either recorded or 
collected this bird. The presumption is that the 
birds could not have been so common early in the 
nineteenth century as they are now, if they were 
represented at all at that time. Nor does it seem 
that either the theories of hybridity, or that of 
dichromatism, are sufficient to account for this 
kind of bird. Fertile hybrids are practically 
unknown either in wild or domesticated birds. 



138 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

That many good field-ornithologists declare that 
they have seen Brewster's warbler attending to 
young seems an answer in itself to the hypoth- 
esis of hybridity, did not the number of indi- 
viduals in themselves controvert such a premise. 
Hybrids do occur among wild birds, but are 
casual. 

If then it is conceded that it is improbable 
that over a hundred cases of wild hybridity have 
been recorded between the golden-winged and 
blue-winged warbler, the dichroic hypothesis 
remains. Granted that this bird and the other 
two are all one kind with several dichroic phases, 
this particular example of the dichromatism, which 
is now of measurable occurrence and quantity, 
apparently did not occur at all early in the last 
century, was not secured until 1862, not recognized 
till 1875, and from that time on has grown in a 
geometrical ratio. That may be, but I am more 
inclined to believe that in Brewster's warbler we 
have the beginning of a new form of organic life. 
That such forms, especially when based on exter- 
nal color, should present wide individual variation 
in their early history seems probable. Brewster's 
warbler does show such variation. That a long 
period must elapse before the bird's standard of 
appearances becomes fixed so as to be within the 
conventional limits of variation observable in 
well-defined forms, seems obvious. 



THE PLAINS AND COLORADO 139 

It is on this series of facts and arguments that I 
have assumed the position, and felt warranted in 
making the statement, that in the last fifty years 
a new kind or species of wild song-bird has 
originated. 



CHAPTER VII 

FLORIDA: THE GULF COAST 

THE fall of 1878 and the following winter was 
spent in building up the museum collections in 
general, and in adding the material obtained in 
Colorado to that already on exhibition. 

During the summer of 1879 I passed some 
time at Ithaca, securing birds of that locality for 
the growing collection. During this vacation 
a second trip to Florida was planned, particularly 
to examine the bird fauna of the Gulf coast 
of that region. This expedition was carried on 
largely through the assistance of Andrew E. 
Douglass, Esq., of New York, who was desirous 
of having certain ethnological investigations made 
in the region in question. He wished to locate 
definitely some of the burial mounds of the ancient 
inhabitants of Florida, and to have one or two of 
these explored with a view to obtain, not only the 
implements of the aborigines, but, if possible, 
crania and other parts of the skeleton. 

The month of September was spent largely 
in preparations for the proposed expedition. 

140 



FLORIDA : THE GULF COAST 141 

Through the courtesy of the Quartermaster- 
general, the State of New Jersey furnished several 
wall tents, and an array of army blankets and other 
paraphernalia suitable for camping. About to 
invade a region regarding which little information 
could be gained, the necessity of being indepen- 
dent was apparent. Therefore, in addition to this 
camping apparatus substantial portable staples in 
the way of food were a part of the equipment. 
The personnel of the party consisted of Mrs. 
Scott, myself, and a young man, James Henry 
Devereux, who had formerly been a student in 
the college and who volunteered to go as my 
assistant. In addition there was Mary Mason, 
capable of administering the domestic economy 
of either camp or house. Nor must Grouse be 
forgotten ; he was one of the important members 
of the party. 

We left New York by steamer for Jacksonville 
about the loth of October, and after a somewhat 
stormy passage reached that port. An incident 
of this part of the journey seems worthy of record. 

I said that the voyage was somewhat stormy. 
When off Cape Hatteras the traditional gale of 
wind associated with that part of the coast was 
encountered. On embarking in New York I 
was informed, as was to be expected, that Grouse 
could not be allowed to go above decks on any 
pretence. He was at once taken in charge by a 



i 4 2 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

steward, who locked him up in a room in the 
hold, where he assured me the dog would be safe 
and well looked after. Our staterooms were on 
the hurricane-deck. Mr. Devereux, my assistant, 
occupied a cabin with me, and the other two were 
near by. These cabins were entered by doors 
opening on deck. During the height of the gale 
off Cape Hatteras, when the wind and rain 
together were making an uproar, to which was 
added the creaking and groaning of the ship and 
laboring of the engine, Mr. Devereux and I were 
awakened (it took little to arouse us) by a scratch- 
ing at the door of the stateroom. It was Grouse ; 
and getting up and opening the door, he was dis- 
covered in a drenched condition, but overjoyed to 
have found his friends. The point to be empha- 
sized is the fact that this dog was travelling for 
the first time on board a steamer. He had never 
been on a large vessel before, for his former trip 
to Florida had been by rail. He was not allowed 
to do more than cross the steamer's gangplank 
when he was taken by the steward and confined 
below. In order to reach my stateroom he had 
either to ascend various stairways in the interior 
of the ship and pass through the cabins and so 
escape to the upper deck, or to climb up the 
semi-stairlike ladders that connected the three 
decks on the outside. He probably followed this 
latter course. Moreover, in all the tumult and 



FLORIDA: THE GULF COAST 143 

strangeness he selected my room though other 
of his friends were quartered close by. 

To this day the details of his trip, or how he 
escaped from the place where he was shut up, are 
a mystery. The whole affair, however, becoming 
known, caused much comment among the officers 
and passengers, and finally came to the ears of 
the captain. After breakfast the next morning, 
he said to me : " Mr. Scott, that's a clever dog of 
yours. I don't think such a dog need be under 
restraint, and I wish to extend to him the liberty 
of the ship." From that time until Florida was 
reached Grouse sat at the captain's table and 
enjoyed all the privileges of a first-class passenger, 
and many more. 

The journey from Jacksonville was to Ocala, a 
town some five miles from the headwaters of the 
Ocklawaha River at Silver Spring. Therefore, 
the first part of the route was familiar. 

I had pictured the Ocklawaha as it appeared 
four years earlier, and had excited the imagina- 
tion of the other members of the party by stories 
of the birds, the alligators, and the charm and 
novelty of the trip. Confident of a great pleasure 
in store for us all, I did not dream that any change 
could have taken place in the short time which had 
elapsed. However, the first few miles of the wind- 
ing waterway, after leaving Palatka, was marked by 
wide and radical difference in the conditions, and 



i 4 4 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

the remaining days' and nights' journey on the 
river fully confirmed the impression of the first 
few miles. 

There was little or no bird life of any kind, and 
such as occurred was confined almost entirely to 
small, inconspicuous land-species. Now and then 
a frightened heron would fly croaking away as 
the boat turned some bend in the river, or a water- 
turkey would drop scared from his perch into the 
water, diving to escape further notice. No groups 
of ibises, no flocks of paroquets, no droves of 
wild turkeys, enlivened either the trees or shores. 
Only one or two alligators were seen, and but a 
glimpse of these was obtained as they hastily 
sought the water when the steamer was afar off. 
Such conditions had resulted from the almost 
universal practice of the passengers on these 
steamers of shooting at everything alive. It had 
taken only four seasons to drive away from one of 
the most crowded bird districts it has ever been 
my fortune to see almost its entire avian popula- 
tion, certainly its most conspicuous elements. 

Inquiry among the crew of the boat who 
were accustomed to make the passage frequently 
once or twice a week revealed all this, and 
while they deplored it, they were disposed to 
blame the birds and other animals that were 
frightened away, rather than to censure the travel- 
lers who had produced this lamentable end. The 



FLORIDA: THE GULF COAST 145 

captain too explained to me that it was really a 
serious drawback, in a business way. People had 
formerly taken the trip simply for the shooting, and 
this being destroyed, many no longer patronized 
the route. So our journey began with disillusion 
and disappointment 

Arriving at Silver Spring, and proceeding to the 
adjacent town of Ocala, I at once set about looking 
for means of transit across the state to the Gulf 
Coast. While no definite spot as a headquarters 
for the coming winter's work had been selected, 
I was anxious to begin my investigations in the 
country near the mouth of the Withlacoochee 
River, which finds its source in Sumter County, 
and one of whose main tributaries flows from 
Panasofkee Lake where I had collected in the 
winter of 1875 and 1876. After some two days' 
negotiations I succeeded in making arrangements 
for freight wagons and, in addition, a covered 
spring trap to convey the passengers. We were 
about to go into a country where there were few 
houses, and where the roads were but obscure tracks 
through the forest, so I attempted to provide for all 
sorts of emergencies ; grain and fodder and extra 
shoes for the horses, leather to mend harness, 
ropes, axes, and other tools. 

The procession started from Ocala early one 
morning, and most of the inhabitants of the town 
were out to see its departure. First came a freight 



J 4 6 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

wagon driven by an ebony negro known as Black 
Tom, who professed to have a thorough knowl- 
edge of the route to our destination. This was 
encouraging, as I was not at all sure where it 
might be. This wagon was loaded with trunks 
and army chests, a portable canvas boat, and tents. 
The second vehicle of the cavalcade, also devoted 
to baggage, was driven by another negro, dis- 
tinguished from the pioneer driver as Yellow 
Tom, his color rendering that name fitting. The 
passengers brought up the rear, our driver, a 
negro boy, rejoicing in the name of Amaziah. 

Black Tom, Yellow Tom, and Amaziah, for 
the next three or four days were words much in 
our mouths, and came to be part of the house- 
hold vocabulary. The whole thing impressed 
these darkies as the greatest possible frolic next to 
a circus, and it would be interesting psychologi- 
cally to know more in detail their understanding 
of the affair. Presumably they believed us all 
to be millionnaires who did not know what 
to do with our money, and who were out for a 
good time. Tourists were not common in that 
part of Florida in those days ; from October until 
April, when we left the Gulf Coast, we encountered 
only a single individual besides our own party 
who might possibly be included in that category. 

The journey across the state to the Gulf can 
only be touched on. The way led through long 



FLORIDA: THE GULF COAST 147 

stretches of pine forest, a seeming procession 
of trees. This was varied by "bayheads" and 
"cypresses" which indicated streams of greater 
or less extent, down whose steep banks we 
plunged into fords of all grades of difficulty. 
The road was, after the first few miles, always in 
doubt. Often it appeared to lead nowhere. On 
such occasions Black Tom, Yellow Tom, and 
Amaziah each accused the other of losing the 
way. These lengthy and often heated discussions 
consumed valuable time, and had to be summarily 
suppressed by the powers in authority. Some- 
times at noon or during the night (for we were two 
nights on the way) a horse was lost, which involved 
tedious delay and much chatter on the part of the 
three. Sometimes a break in the harness afforded 
opportunity to make short excursions in the 
vicinity while the damage was repaired. In 
short, every kind of petty accident conceivable 
happened, yet the trip was enjoyable, and the 
humor of the situation generally compensated 
for all annoyance. 

Finally, on the afternoon of the third day, when 
a certain sense of indefiniteness and discourage- 
ment was beginning to manifest itself in various 
ways, we encountered a horseman, one of the first 
persons we had seen since leaving Ocala. He was 
of a magnificent physique, broad-shouldered, with 
a mighty chest ; a sturdy and resolute-looking per- 



148 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

son with a commanding air, differing entirely from 
the cadaverous white of the region, " the piney 
woods cracker." His brown hair was beginning 
to be thin on top, and was somewhat silvered with 
streaks of gray, as was the flowing beard whose 
luxuriance almost concealed the chest beneath. 
The horse he rode was, like the man, well kept, 
well groomed, and mettlesome. He reined in his 
horse, and was greeted by Black Tom as Dr. 

H . Before leaving Ocala I had been assured 

that there was a magnate living on an island 
somewhere near the mouth of the Withlacoochee 
who possessed riches untold in lands and moneys, 
and who, in addition to his own house, had 
several other dwellings on his extensive estate. 
From my former experience in Florida and my 
knowledge of the condition of affairs generally 
existing throughout the region, I of course took 
all this with a grain of salt. 

However, here was the doctor, and so much 
of the story was true. He appeared a genial 
gentleman, and ascertaining our desires and hopes, 
comprehended the situation almost instantly. He 
gave us some brief directions, excusing himself 
for not accompanying us, as his business took him 
in another direction and was imperative. We 
could rest that night, he told us, at the house of a 

friend of his, General C , where we would find 

all possible hospitality by mentioning his name. 



FLORIDA: THE GULF COAST 149 

He gave us explicit, though to all save the darkies 
obscure, directions how to reach the place, some 
seven or eight miles distant. It was only a few 
miles from our ultimate destination, for he told us 
that he had on a little island, not far from his own 
dwelling, a small house which he thought would 
answer, especially when he learned that we were 
amply supplied with tents. The whole inter- 
view did not occupy much longer than it takes in 
telling. The doctor vanished into the pine woods, 
and we resumed our journey. Eight miles did 
not seem far to travel, but with heavy freight wag- 
ons, slow walking, tired horses, and dispirited 
drivers (for by this time the novelty had begun to 
wear off), it was night, and some time after, a slow, 
drizzling rain was falling, when we were made 
aware by shouts from Black Tom, who was lost 
in the darkness ahead, and by the barking of dogs, 
that we had reached our destination. 

A cordial welcome to his lonely cottage was 

extended to us by General C , a retired veteran 

of the Mexican and Seminole wars, whose fortunes 
had led him to this remote wilderness as the home 
of his old age. We sat far into the night before 
the blazing pine-knot fire talking on many themes. 
The general was eager for human intercourse 
and an opportunity to talk of the world's past and 
present affairs. His look and bearing was that 
of a Huguenot of noble birth, and he may well 



ISO THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

have been, as his name indicates, a descendant of 
one of the refugees, who at the Revocation of the 
Edict of Nantes sought asylum in Florida. All 
our current literature, papers and magazines, we 
gladly left with our kind host, to whom they 
were a gift of price. On parting in the early 
morning we mutually promised to keep up neigh- 
borly relations during the coming months. 

General C 's place was at the head of a 

bayou which led out to the waters of the Gulf, 
and we found that by this waterway we could 
reach our destination more quickly than by land. 
So in the morning Black Tom and Yellow Tom 
with the two freight wagons, and Amaziah with 
the empty carriage, now containing only some 
hand baggage, were sent on their way. The rest 
of the party, including Grouse, embarked in the 
portable boat which had just been unpacked. This 
boat was some seventeen feet long, had a beam of 
four feet, and a capacity for carrying nearly a thou- 
sand pounds, so that four persons and a dog were 
not a great load for it. I speak of it as a portable 
boat. It was made of waterproof canvas stretched 
on a very light, tough, wood frame, and was so con- 
structed that when not in use it could be shut up 
like an accordion and put into a box not quite as 
large as an ordinary travelling trunk. It was a 
nondescript, and we named it then and there the 
" Bandersnatch." 



FLORIDA: THE GULF COAST 151 

Now, when the three darkies saw us take from 
the trunk what appeared to be a bundle of can- 
vas, stretch it out, and by the use of a few wooden 
frames and bolts convert it in a few minutes into 
a boat, in which we embarked and rowed away 
down the bayou, their wonder could not find 
expression. The stories they told of that part of 
their adventures when they returned to Ocala I 
think must have become a part of the legendary 
history of the place, as I have frequently had it 
recited to me in different forms by various darkies 
and white men at intervals for years, and as each 
year rolled by the miracle grew in magnitude. 

The place where we reached the Gulf was about 
three miles north of the mouth of the Withlacoo- 
chee River. The coast-line is not definite at this 
point ; perhaps this will be realized as the narra- 
tive proceeds. Many bayous, having the appear- 
ance of streams or rivers, reach back into the 
swamps and pine woods which border the Gulf, 
and their entrance into the country is guarded 
by numerous small islands that form a picturesque 
element in the scene. 

One of these islands, half a mile from the doc- 
tor's place, belonged to one Parson Gigger, who 
had built here a small house. The reason for 
the absence of the parson was carefully explained 
in detail, but I am inclined to the hypothesis that 
the mysterious Gigger was a solar myth. The 



152 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

doctor told me he was in charge of the place, and 
that I could rent it for a reasonable price ; which, 
after a short negotiation, resulted in our moving 
to what we called Gigger's Island, where we resided 
until some time after the first of the next January. 

The little island was covered with a dense 
growth of cabbage palmetto which concealed in 
its shade a tiny house of three rooms, and a cis- 
tern a wooden tank to catch water from the 
roof, for there was no fresh water on the island or 
in the vicinity of dimensions almost as great 
as the house. With the large wall tents and 
other conveniences soon a comfortable dwelling 
and commodious working establishment was com- 
pleted. Then began the labor to which all this 
effort had been preliminary. 

The prosaic name " Gigger's " could not be tol- 
erated by Mrs. Scott, who straightway called our 
romantic retreat " Halcyon Island." This title 
was suggested both by the peaceful calm of our 
solitude, and the constant presence of the belted 
kingfisher, whose point of vantage was the top- 
most bough of the live-oak, or the summit of a 
tall palmetto. From these heights the waters 
surrounding the island were commanded by the 
kingfisher's keen sight ; small fry had little chance 
of escape when he pleased to swoop down on 
them. The gray Spanish moss draped the 
branches of the oaks ; clumps of dwarf palmetto 



FLORIDA: THE GULF COAST 153 

gave decorative effect to the foreground. The 
spicy bay fringed the abrupt banks, close to which 
schools of sportive porpoise came to roll about 
and frolic in the shoal waters. 

Housekeeping was carried on in true camp 
fashion, though we were not without many con- 
veniences often lacking in the wilderness. A good 
cooking stove lessened greatly Mary's labors, but 
thereby deprived us of the picturesque in the 
shape of Dutch oven and camp fire. Fish and 
crabs of the best were always to be had for the 
catching, oysters of the coon variety grew near 
the dock, game was easily obtainable. Our own 
stores had among their contents a large supply of 
olive oil, a generous quantity of chocolate Menier, 
and barrels of pilot bread. Onions and potatoes 
were vegetables always to be had at Cedar Keys. 
On our return after a long day of exploration in 
the Bandersnatch, a savory fish chowder, a broiled 
redfish, or a game pie awaited us, flanked by a 
heaping bowl of potato salad. Another favorite 
dish was scouse, made of crisp pilot bread soaked 
in boiling water, and spread with butter. 

Life in the open, exercise in rowing and sail- 
ing, hunting, swimming, and fishing, insured 
good digestion and an appreciation of simple 
food. Grouse alone rebelled ; he had no fond- 
ness for a vegetarian diet, relieved only by fish 
which he despised and game never to be indulged 



154 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

in by a well-trained hunting dog. At last a day 
came when a baked ham appeared on the dinner 
table. Grouse was given a morsel or two, but 
his carnivorous longings were unappeased. The 
same evening he came into the sitting room look- 
ing crestfallen and dejected, gave a low bark to 
attract my attention, and then ran to the door. 
I understood his meaning; he wanted me to go 
with him. I followed out of the house. He led 
me across the island in the moonlight, and showed 
me the ham lying on a fallen palmetto leaf. He 
had stolen it, but his conscience would not per- 
mit him to eat it, hungry as he was. His attitude 
expressed both humiliation, penitence, and a long- 
ing for forgiveness. He could not keep his secret. 
Until now my studies of the birds of Florida 
had been confined to the interior, and while 
aquatic birds were abundant, they were such as are 
associated with fresh water. Now truly marine 
birds predominated. Almost at once I became 
acquainted with brown pelicans, royal and Fos- 
ter's terns, double-crested cormorants, while ducks 
of many kinds were conspicuous. Among these 
I may mention buff-breasted and hooded mergan- 
sers, widgeons, pintails, blue-winged teals, and 
mallards. In addition the vast palmetto and 
cedar swamps of the mainland hard by afforded 
excellent collecting ground for such land-birds as 
characterize this part of Florida. Two kinds of 



FLORIDA: THE GULF COAST 155 

vultures, the turkey-buzzard and the black buzzard, 
were always to be seen in numbers ; and among 
the birds of prey, the bald eagle was an important 
as well as imposing figure. Many eagles bred in 
the region, and of the two nests in sight of our 
house on the little island, one was close by. 

Most of us associate the breeding of birds 
with the awakening of nature, with the coming of 
the springtime, the green grass, the early flowers, 
and the fresh foliage of the trees. We arrived in 
this part of Florida late in October, and on the 
loth of November I saw the eagles repairing their 
nests, for they use the same ones if undisturbed 
for generations. Late in the month the first eggs 
were laid, and by Christmas there were young in 
the nest. So that any preconceived notions as 
to the breeding time of birds, such as I have indi- 
cated, needs some modification. 

Even in the North, the facts warrant this gen- 
eralization. Has any one associated the month 
of February in Princeton or the vicinity of New 
York with the breeding of birds ? And yet every 
year the great-horned owls build their nests and 
lay their eggs by the 2oth of February on Rocky 
Hill, back of Princeton. The woodcock is not 
far behind on the lowlands. I have tracked these 
birds to their nesting place by the imprints of 
their feet in the snow. 

One of the latest birds to breed about Prince- 



156 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

ton is the goldfinch, or yellowbird. Nests late 
in August are the rule, and I have found fresh 
eggs during the first week in September and 
young ones just ready to leave the nest on the 
20th of that month. So that while doubtless 
the great wave of reproduction in bird life, which 
we call the breeding season, does occur in May 
and June, more than half the year is occupied by 
various species of birds in breeding near New 
York. Really but four months are without nest- 
ing birds. The farther north one goes the shorter 
is the breeding time, and the reason is evident. 
As the equator is approached the reverse is true. 
It is only necessary to stay a short time in Florida 
to become aware that there is no definite season 
associated with the time of reproduction. After 
some twelve different winters and a consecutive 
period of eighteen months spent in the state, I 
feel warranted in saying that it is possible to find 
birds nesting during every month of the year. 

The fish crow was a common bird observed 
in large flocks all about the region at the mouth 
of the Withlacoochee River. The fruit of the cab- 
bage palmetto attracted them in enormous num- 
bers, and great bands of these miniatures of the 
crow of the North, a hundred and even more 
together, made a very gay scene as they de- 
scended on the palms and with much vociferation 
and crow gabble proceeded to enjoy themselves. 



FLORIDA: THE GULF COAST 157 

Here, too, were countless numbers of the so-called 
shore-birds passing the winter season after the 
long journey from their northern breeding grounds. 
Long-billed curlews, marble godwits, willets, both 
kinds of dowitcher, turnstones, oyster-catchers, 
black-bellied plovers, ring-necked plovers, piping 
plovers, least sandpipers, semipalmated sandpipers, 
dunlins, and sanderlings, formed a heterogene- 
ous company. At low tide, with the exposure 
of the oyster bars and sand beaches, they were 
scattered over large areas, but even then their 
number was evident. At high tide, when they 
resorted to such small spaces as the water left un- 
covered, they were crowded so close in masses as 
fairly to touch one another. At midday under 
these conditions such flocks presented a novel 
sight. Approached quietly in a boat all might 
be seen in repose. The greater number were fast 
asleep, many with heads beneath their wings. 
When within twenty yards some of the more 
wakeful uttered a low series of gurgling, warning 
cries. Presently there was much stretching of 
necks and legs and preliminary shakings of wings, 
followed by a vast flight of birds as the boat al- 
most touched the reef on which they had been 
resting. 

I must not forget to mention the abundance 
of small birds; marsh-wrens, seaside and sharp- 
tailed finches were present wherever the sedge- 



158 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

grasses grew, localities that were also frequented 
by large salt-water rails. Our island, small as it 
was, had its pair of mocking-birds. Great num- 
bers of boat-tailed grackles and red- winged black- 
birds as well as the crow blackbirds were present 
in the vicinity of the shore, and might often be 
seen feeding on the beaches and oyster bars ex- 
posed by the receding tide. Cardinals and chee- 
winks, bluebirds, titmice, and nuthatches thronged 
in the pine woods, especially in the vicinity of the 
bay-heads. Golden-crowned and water thrushes 
were uncommon. Piney-wood and yellow-winged 
sparrows were abundant in the undergrowth of 
the pine forests, and once I detected Henslow's 
bunting. 

Here, too, the trees were frequented by many 
woodpeckers. Florida is particularly rich in these 
birds. The red-cockaded, red-bellied, downy, 
hairy, and red-headed, as well as pileated wood- 
peckers and flickers were to be seen in great 
numbers at almost any time, and the ivory-bill 
was by no means rare. 

About the shores herons strode with much 
deliberation and dignity. The larger sorts, were 
solitary in habit; the smaller varieties were not 
only gregarious, but the band was often composed 
of the several different forms found here. When 
feeding, these parties were frequently accompa- 
nied by flocks of ducks, who swam in the shallow 



FLORIDA : THE GULF COAST 159 

waters where the herons waded, and kept just 
behind, but followed close. 

Here the swallows surely did not hibernate. 
Four kinds were present in numbers. Tree and 
barn swallows were perhaps the more frequent, 
but the purple martin and bank swallow were 
constantly seen. Over the golden waterways 
they flew and dipped with no seeming thought of 
retreat to the shelter of the ooze at the bottom of 
ice-covered ponds in the North. 

Late fall in Florida has a prolonged period of 
Indian summer. Day after day may be described 
as " golden." The waters of the Gulf lie unrip- 
pled by a breeze, the sunsets are unmarked by 
clouds. In the late afternoon, as the red orb 
dipped into the Gulf on the western horizon, oc- 
curred a remarkable phenomenon. The stillness 
and the light and color on the water seemed in 
accord with the placid mood of the sea and air. 
Then, seemingly, far out in the west, from the 
place " where the sun went down," came a strange 
medley of sound. The puffing of schools of por- 
poises, the rush of the leviathan in pursuit of his 
finny prey, was mingled with the weird laugh of 
loons, the gabble of hosts of gulls, and sometimes 
the shrill cry of a single tern ; the splash of the 
brown pelican as he struck the water, and count- 
less unknown sounds and noises that seemed to 
come from a given point, together produced the 



160 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

impression of a vast commotion created by myriads 
of living creatures. Added to the whole was an 
air of mystery that was one of its charms. Again 
and again we rowed in a boat toward the setting 
sun far out into the Gulf to discover, if we could, 
the beginning of this chaos of sound, to find the 
outposts of the throng who joined in such a 
chorus. These excursions were futile; the far- 
ther we went, so far the aggregate of noise trav- 
elled beyond us. The mystery was always just 
under the setting sun ! 

The town of Cedar Keys was some thirty miles 
to the north of us on the Gulf, and at this time 
and for years before this port had been the scene 
of great commercial activity, based almost en- 
tirely on the exportation of cedar logs, the wood 
of which was used in the manufacture of lead pen- 
cils. The Fabers and all the great foreign and 
American houses had agents at Cedar Keys, 
and thither were taken for reshipment the cargoes 
of cedar logs collected from the swamps of the 
adjacent Gulf Coast. 

The poor whites of this region presented many 
curious and unaccountable phases of ignorance. 
Shortly after my arrival I offered a stipulated 
price for certain birds such as the ivory-billed 
woodpecker, and at first I obtained some speci- 
mens, but later such people as I could get to do 
this sort of thing for me refused, or excused them- 



FLORIDA : THE GULF COAST 161 

selves from undertaking it; generally the latter. 
One day one of them, more frank than the rest, 
told me that it had become common gossip that 
I was not paying a fair market price for birds, 
especially the ivory-bills ; that I took them North 
and sold the ivory of which the bill was composed 
for fabulous prices, and was simply playing on 
the credulity of the people whom I paid a small 
price for obtaining them. 

Before passing on to other matters I must delay 
for a moment to dwell on the ethnological work 
I had undertaken for Mr. Douglass. Very soon 
after my arrival I made inquiries as to the loca- 
tion of the " Indian Mounds," as they were called, 
and found several were near at hand. One of 
these was about three miles from the mouth of 
the river on the bank, and I determined to make 
a detailed investigation of part of it at least. 
For two days of each week during the stay at 
Gigger's Island, Mr. Devereux and I worked in 
excavating and removing the sand, beginning at 
one end of this mound. We procured an admira- 
ble series of crania, many interesting fragments 
of pottery, and some vessels and dishes almost 
entire, as well as bone and flint implements in 
considerable numbers. These were all ultimately 
shipped to Mr. Douglass and became part of his 
admirable collection which he finally presented to 
the American Museum in Central Park. 



162 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

This ethnological work and zoological collect- 
ing occupied us constantly until the third week 
in January, when I determined, for various reasons, 
to proceed farther southward. There are a num- 
ber of events connected with my work and resi- 
dence here that I have not recorded, such as the 
collecting of porpoises for their skeletons, and the 
search for the absolute mouth of the river, many 
fishing parties, and constant trips to procure sup- 
plies of fresh water, for it did not rain during the 
time we were on this island. Almost every day 
was cloudless, the cycles of sunshine were contin- 
uous. 

Chartering a small schooner at Cedar Keys, 
whose skipper was familiar with the little towns 
and settlements of the Gulf Coast, all the col- 
lections and impedimenta were duly loaded, a 
most heterogeneous cargo. Everything being 
ready, one morning we sailed away southward. 
The collections were stored below, taking most 
of the available space. Cots, tents, rocking-chairs, 
and kitchen utensils littered the deck, which so 
loaded afforded scant room for the passengers. 
When we reached the open Gulf, where the sea 
was running, Mary, our faithful maid and friend, 
was tied fast to the mast, that she might not 
roll over the low bulwarks, for in smoothest 
water she was the prostrate victim of seasickness. 

Captain Kanty dwelt much on the beauties of 



FLORIDA: THE GULF COAST 163 

a place he called Clearwater Harbor. He said 
that doubtless I could find some one there from 
whom I could rent a house. He spoke especially 
of a certain Dr. Powledge, who seemed, from the 
captain's account, to be a person of importance. 
All this occurred during our first day's sailing, and 
as there did not seem to be anything to attract par- 
ticular attention in the region we passed, I deter- 
mined to go at least another day's journey toward 
the South. That night we anchored near some 
little islands, and were underway again early next 
morning. 

The first day's sailing had been in the open 
sea ; now a chain of islands, one after another, 
resembling those on the Jersey coast, separated the 
Gulf from spacious and sheltered bays, through 
which we passed. These bays are entered by 
passes and inlets similar in character to the 
inlets of the Atlantic coast, Barnegat, Egg 
Harbor, and the like, but of course smaller. 
One of these sheets of water is known as 
Clearwater Harbor, and on the afternoon of the 
second day we came in sight of a dock extend- 
ing some three hundred and fifty feet out into the 
bay, which Captain Kanty informed me was the 
wharf of Deacon Powledge 's warehouse; for by 
this time he was calling the proprietor indiffer- 
ently " Deacon " or " Doctor " Powledge, as occa- 
sion seemed to suit. Anchoring a little way out, 



1 64 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

the captain, Mrs. Scott, and I went ashore in a 
small boat. 

I wish it were in my power adequately to de- 
scribe the primitive and remote conditions of this 
whole country. From the hour we left Gigger's 
Island until we reached Clearwater we saw no 
one : no man, no boat, no house, and yet we were 
sailing all the time within a couple of miles of the 
shore, passing what appeared to be an unbroken, 
primeval forest, an uninhabited wilderness. 

On landing, after some inquiry at the house, 
I found that the deacon was in his orange-grove, 
where I proceeded to join him, leaving Mrs. 
Scott to be entertained by Mrs. Powledge. Dr. 
Powledge was a man at that time about seventy 
years old. He was tall and slender, of nervous 
build, but slow and deliberate in motion and 
utterance. He greeted me with, " How d'ye do, 
suh ? Air ye healthy ? " I explained to him as 
we walked back what I wanted ; to all of which 
he listened with apparent interest, but without 
any comment. On entering the house, I pre- 
sented him to Mrs. Scott, and again, " How 
d'ye do, marm ? Air ye healthy ? " was his greet- 
ing. I have forgotten about his inquiries as to 
the state of the world in general ; they were not 
many, for he was a reticent man ; and after some 
ten or fifteen minutes chat I again asked him 
whether he thought it would be possible to arrange 



FLORIDA: THE GULF COAST 165 

to rent me a small house which stood near the 
water, as well as a room in his warehouse for a 
laboratory. He responded to this by asking how 
much rent I had paid at Gigger's. Then he spoke 
of a mythical owner whom he would have to 
see. When my patience was about to give out, he 
began a discourse much as follows. His utter- 
ance was abrupt and direct, but slow and nasal, 
the words pronounced in a drawling fashion and 
the vowels flatted. 

" Scaat, I think ye a good man. I'm a man 
o' peace ; an' I'm the honestest man in the world. 
I'm a doctor of medicine and doctor of divinity, 
and I'm a man o' peace. I think ye a good man. 
Scaat, but I cain't tell. You all might be a drink- 
in', gamblin', carousin', dancin' man, and I tell 
ye, I'm a man o' peace. I'm a man o' peace, but 
if ye trod on m' toes, I'd fight like a dawg." 
All of which seemed to indicate that further 
negotiations as to residence in that immediate 
vicinity were out of the question. I therefore 
announced to him that I would return to my boat, 
thanked him for his consideration, told him I was 
interested in his place, and thought I could have 
achieved results that would have been good for 
both of us, bade him good-by, and proceeded 
out through the warehouse to the long wharf, 
and at the end of it embarked and pushed off 
to the schooner. I had intimated to the doctor 



1 66 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

just before parting, that I had heard of a certain 
Parson Kilgore who resided some miles below, 
and asked whether he knew if I could get 
quarters there. He thought I probably could, 
but I saw that my reference to Parson Kilgore 
somewhat nettled the old gentleman. As we 
pushed off from the dock to go out to the schooner, 
it was almost dark, not more than half an hour 
or so of daylight remaining. We had perhaps 
proceeded some twenty feet, when there was a 
hail from the door of the warehouse, and the 
high, strident, nasal tones of the patriarch sounded 
across the water, shouting, " S-a-ay, Scaat, you-all 
kin hev th' house." So we returned and con- 
cluded the bargain. 

The next morning we brought ashore all our 
various belongings. Again we set up our camp, 
this time in the shade of a banana patch, fronting 
an orange-grove of many acres, in which grew the 
choice varieties that are produced by the soil of 
a shell hammock. Here sang by day and night 
the tireless mocking-bird, and here the great 
Carolina wren poured forth a flood of melody. 

Over the walls of the little house, climbing on 
the stems of the bananas, tangled in every bush 
and hiding every sharp angle, grew an irrepressible 
vine. Its deep green arrow-shaped leaves formed 
an effective shade by day, and in the dusk became 
a background for a blossom so pure in its color 



FLORIDA: THE GULF COAST 167 

and subtle in its fragrance as to seem a marvel. 
Well is it named the moon-flower, adding to the 
glamour of the silvery night. Then it was un- 
known to gardeners. We brought back seeds 
to plant in our northern home, and here its 
queenly beauty reminded us, for successive sea- 
sons, of southern shores. 

Fig bushes screened the grove on the west 
from the winds of the Gulf, and afforded us an 
abundance of their delicious fruit. The sour or 
Seville orange was indigenous, and in such quan- 
tities that a large store of marmalade was made 
in our tiny kitchen, and proved an acceptable 
gift to northern friends. We were less isolated 
than at Halcyon Island. Cracker and conch 
families dwelt about in the "piney woods," and 
occasionally a cracker lady came to call on Mrs. 
Scott. The turkey red that covered the rough 
walls of our sitting room, the few Japanese prints 
and scrolls, were of vast interest; and it was 
pathetic to watch the women as they touched 
admiringly our few ornaments. The dust-pan 
was a curiosity. One dear old lady who came 
frequently to spend an afternoon never tired of 
describing her first and only journey by steamer, 
from Savannah to Florida. On Christmas Day 
a dinner of ceremony was given. " An', Miss 
Scott, they took off one table-cloth, an* thar was 
another table-cloth, an* they took off that table- 



1 68 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

cloth, an' thar was another table-cloth." Then, 
after enumerating all the viands, none of which 
she had forgotten, she went on to say, impressively, 
drawling out the words, " An' then, Miss Scott, 
we had silly-bubs an' silly-bubs." To the poor 
soul whose diet from year's end to year's end was 
hog and hominy, spread on a bare deal table, with 
a "mess of greens" now and again, one can 
imagine the impression made by the table-cloths 
and the syllabubs. 

Old Uncle Tommy H was distinguished 

in that he owned one book besides the Bible. It 
was an old copy of Thomas a Kempis, which he 
read diligently. To be sure he was much dis- 
turbed one day when Mrs. Scott picked up the 
volume, astonished to find him so absorbed. 
" Please don't lose my place, mum," he plaintively 
said. Uncle Tommy's visits were long ones, and 
we were sometimes too busy to devote ourselves 
to his entertainment, to reply to his innumerable 
questions. Mr. Devereux went out to meet and 
head him off early one morning, when we were 
all particularly busy. Being a bit of a wag, he 
said, "Excuse us, now, Uncle Tommy; we are 
having family devotions." At this Uncle Tommy 
hesitated, and then the interrogatory came, 
"Wall, Mr. Deboro, who op-pe-rates ? " 

So tame were the wild turkeys that they fed in 
the woods near by, and once, in my absence, Mrs. 



FLORIDA: THE GULF COAST 169 

Scott saw several roosting in a tree that overhung 
the house. Until they flew she thought a neigh- 
bor's turkeys had strayed, then suddenly remem- 
bering that none were domesticated here, she 
stepped quickly inside for a gun, but the birds 
were out of sight. She has never ceased to 
mourn the lost chance. 

The country here was very different from that 
we had left. Instead of a low-lying shore bounded 
by great sedge-grass swamps, the banks of the 
mainland were abrupt, and rose frequently to some 
thirty or forty feet above the level of the adjacent 
waters. The pine woods reached almost to the 
shore, except where they were interrupted by 
what were known as "shell hammocks," small 
areas covered with palmettos and growths of 
deciduous trees. There were no groups of tiny 
islands such as characterized the Withlacoochee, 
but a vast bay stretched up and down the coast, 
shut out from the Gulf by a succession of long, 
narrow, low-lying sand islands, whose outside 
shores were the real sea beaches of this part of 
Florida. The water in these bays was rarely more 
than ten feet in depth, and generally it was much 
shoaler. In fact, the whole sea floor of this entire 
region is very flat, the four-fathom line in the 
Gulf as marked on the coast charts being gen- 
erally out of sight of land. 

The water of the bay, except during periods of 



iyo THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

severe storm, was clear, and abounded in all kinds 
of fish, as well as in oysters, other kinds of shell- 
fish, and marine Crustacea. This environment 
produced, of course, a somewhat specialized bird 
fauna, different from that we had just left. The 
region was chiefly remarkable for the abundance 
of such birds as herons, represented by a number 
of species and a multitude of individuals. Great 
throngs of cormorants and pelicans were also pres- 
ent, while the shore-birds congregated chiefly just 
at the mouths of the passes. This was also true 
of gulls and terns. 

A bird of particular interest was the reddish 
egret. It was common, but only to be found 
in the vicinity of salt water. This habit alone 
would distinguish it from Ward's, the little 
blue, the Louisiana heron, and the two white 
egrets. All these later birds frequented both salt 
and fresh water with impartiality. The double 
color phase of the reddish egret is also note- 
worthy. While the dark phase prevailed, pure 
white individuals were not rare, and several adult 
pied birds were obtained. Both phases of color 
were represented in the breeding colonies, and 
Mr. Devereux obtained young from the same 
nest, two of which were immaculately white, the 
other fledgling a typical dark bird. This egret in 
white plumage, which does not correlate with age, 
sex, or season, has been described and was for a 



FLORIDA: THE GULF COAST 171 

long time known as Peale's egret. Besides the 
ubiquitous brown pelican, large flocks of white 
pelicans were frequently seen. The roseate 
spoonbill was met with almost daily. Once from 
near at hand I saw a flock alighting on a mud flat 
exposed by the tide ; the birds must have covered, 
as they sat close together, upward of an acre of 
land. The rays of the declining sun shining on 
their beautiful rose-colored feathers reflected a 
picture of wonderful color, while the spoonbills 
in their methods of feeding and action were of 
more than ordinary interest. One has but to see 
the curious spoon-shaped bill of this ibis to 
realize that the bird is wholly unlike any of its 
congeners. 

Now for the first time I observed the frigate 
pelican, the man-o'-war bird, and was able to form 
impressions of my own with regard to this prince 
of flyers. The man-o'-war is in general color 
black, and I can liken him to nothing better in 
form than a barn-swallow ; the same long, pointed 
wings, forked tail, short neck, and slim body char- 
acterize both. Imagine, if you please, a black 
barn-swallow stretching six feet from the tip of 
one wing to the tip of the other, with a forked 
tail in proportion, and you will have a very vivid 
image of the appearance of the man-o'-war bird in 
flight. Here the parallel ends. For while the 
barn-swallows flit, glide, and skim over pond and 



172 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

meadow, and seem among the most accomplished 
and graceful of flyers, this huge bird performs all 
these evolutions, and in addition possesses powers 
of soaring that are rivalled only by the albatross. 
While floating high overhead, with long, forked 
tail and slim, expanded wings silhouetted against 
the sky, sometimes almost motionless and again 
drifting with the varying air currents, the bird has 
often appeared to me like a human being endowed 
with miraculous power. At close range, and when 
in active flight, besides the swallow-like evolutions 
suggested, other remarkable manoeuvres are fre- 
quent. I have often seen the man-o'-war pause 
for an instant in mid-air and scratch the side of 
his face or top of his head with his foot ; the per- 
formance, too, was heightened by the extreme 
deliberation of the accompanying motion. Not 
only do these birds fly well and soar at great 
heights, but they possess the power of prolonged 
and sustained travel. Often they are encountered 
far at sea, and stories of their accompanying ves- 
sels for extended distances are current. 

In habits the birds are parasitic ; that is, their 
food is usually obtained after it has been caught 
by some other kind of bird ; at Clearwater and to 
the south, the brown pelican is the constant and 
almost the sole victim. 

The bald eagles were even more abundant at 
Clearwater than they had been at Gigger's. There 



FLORIDA: THE GULF COAST 173 

were eight nests within half a mile of the wharf, 
and two were close at hand. 

The beaches of these interior bays are pebbly 
at points, sandy at others, and again muddy. Here 
Wilson's plover, a resident bird, found congenial 
feeding and nesting ground. This small plover 
is somewhat larger than the ring-necked plover, 
and of heavier and stouter build, with a longer 
and stronger bill. The sexes are readily distin- 
guished by the difference in color of the band 
across the breast. The willet was also one of 
the commonest of the shore-birds, and bred in 
great quantities at points not far distant, notably 
in Old Tampa Bay. In this vicinity I saw for the 
first time the great salt-water rookeries of herons, 
pelicans, and cormorants that once were common 
along the entire Gulf Coast of Florida, but which 
the persistent persecution of plume hunters and 
so-called sportsmen has almost eliminated. Some 
of these breeding places were of vast extent; 
one at the mouth of Tampa Bay, known as the 
" Maximo Rookery," occupied an island of over five 
hundred acres. This island was thickly covered 
by a growth of black mangrove trees which stood 
so close that their outstretched limbs were in- 
terwoven, and nearly every tree at certain seasons 
of the year afforded a site for from five to a 
dozen nests of herons. 

The birds that bred here were Ward's heron, 



174 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

the little blue heron, the Louisiana heron, the 
reddish egret, the great white egret, and the 
snowy egret. Conceive, if possible, this vast 
assembly of harmless, gentle, conspicuous, and 
beautiful birds during the breeding season. Re- 
call the description I have given of the breeding 
site of similar birds on the shore of Panasofkee 
Lake. Magnify such a description tenfold, and 
the result is much less than the reality. It was a 
colony of birds that the eye could not take in at 
a single sweep. In the landscape the feathered 
population was the predominant feature. All 
this could be seen but little more than twenty 
years ago ; all of it was destroyed during the next 
six or seven years. 

We guard with care and highly prize our great 
libraries and art collections. We go to the extent 
of keeping the rare books, pictures, and objects 
of art away from the touch of the general pub- 
lic. Here, out of doors, was one of the treas- 
ures of nature ; a thing of beauty and priceless 
value ; a never ceasing panorama of action sug- 
gesting emotions of a profound nature all this 
was wantonly destroyed. I trust that the time 
will come when civilization will appreciate as 
fully the treasures of nature as they do the 
treasures of art. There is only one Venus 
de Milo ; there was but a single great bird 
island, at the mouth of Tampa Bay; it had no 



FLORIDA: THE GULF COAST 175 

duplicate. The statue has been carefully guarded ; 
valued as a standard of beauty, it is viewed by 
students and masters from every part of the world. 
The other, with all its complicated educational 
elements of which beauty was not the least, has 
been destroyed, cannot be restored, and is only 
known by tradition. 

At Clearwater much of our exploration was 
accomplished by water, and here to this end the 
" Bandersnatch " was utilized to the wonder of 
the natives. Our aquatic pursuits were a source 
of concern to our landlord, and he constantly 
cautioned me that we were taking our lives in 
our hands. One day when about to embark, to 
allay his anxiety I assured him that I was a fairly 
good swimmer, and, moreover, that in most places, 
even if we had to desert the boat, it would be 
possible to walk ashore. But he shook his head 
and would not be convinced, and finally confided 
to me that he had always preferred to travel by 
land. He had come from Georgia directly after 
the war, to establish himself in Florida, and had 
moved all such property as he possessed by teams 
and wagons. He informed me he had never 
crossed to the outside islands ; that he considered 
it a very dangerous undertaking, and wound up 
by saying to me: 

" Waal, Scaat, you-all and Mr. Debil may be 
web-footed, but I'm a high Ian* chickin." 



1 76 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

Here I was much more fortunate than at Withla- 
coochee in obtaining sympathy and assistance 
from the natives of the region. The conchs par- 
ticularly proved efficient as guides and hunters. 
Two members of one family were in my con- 
stant employ, and were known respectively as the 
" high conch with the red beard," and the " little 
low chunky conch." The name " conch " is given 
to natives of the Bahama Islands or the Florida 
Keys. They are so called because of their alleged 
use of the conch as food. 

Dr. Powledge not only ministered to the 
spiritual and temporal needs of his neighbors in 
his capacity as deacon and physician, but had 
also the only store of the region. Everything 
could be purchased, from gunpowder to furni- 
ture, from medicine to musical instruments, from 
clothes to Bibles. 

In my traffic with the hunters who brought me 
various specimens of birds for my collection, the 
prices paid were insignificant, fifteen cents being 
perhaps the maximum. In the course of a few 
weeks I may have spent a sum in small coin 
aggregating some twenty dollars. This all went 
back into the till of the good deacon, who, in his 
turn, would cash a check for me, or change a bill 
into the dimes and nickels which furnished the 
medium of barter, and the " endless chain " was 
maintained throughout my visit. On my de- 



FLORIDA: THE GULF COAST 177 

parture the doctor again informed me, as he had 
frequently done : 

"Scaat, I'm the honestest man in the world, 
but I reckon you-all air pretty honest, too; and 
you-all air the richest man that ever came here. 
You-all brought more ready money and cirkilated 
it here than any one that ever came." 

When I say that my total expenditure in cash 
at Clearwater was a sum less than two hundred 
dollars, the reader can get an idea of the financial 
conditions of this part of Florida at that time. 
Nearly everything in the way of trade was done 
by barter, and ready money had a great purchasing 
value. We were supplied by the natives with 
oranges, oysters, and other kinds of provisions 
for the household. The finest oranges were 
worth from fifty to seventy-five cents per hun- 
dred, and the best oysters were brought to the 
dock and planted in the water, where we could 
readily get them, for sixty cents a barrel. 

The doctor's ideas of the outside world were 
often peculiar. For instance, I remember one 
day talking to him of the national debt, which 
grew out of a discussion of some problems re- 
sulting from the Civil War. This debt was then 
being paid off at the rate of from twelve to fifteen 
million dollars per month, and I mentioned it as 
an indication of the prosperity of the country. 
His notion was different. He said: 



178 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

" Why, Scaat, you-all don't know nuthin' 'bout 
it. All them ther fellers in Washington dew is 
to run a printin' press, an' they kin jest as well 
print a hundred million as twenty million dollars 
a month. I don't see why they don't pay off the 
whole debt in one printin'; coz they could easy 
enuf." 

We remained in Clearwater until some time 
late in March, and left the place and the friends 
we had made with regret. Mr. Devereux, my 
assistant, stayed in the interests of the museum 
some two months longer. The result of our 
mutual work during that winter is set forth in 
detail in a paper cited in the bibliography. 



CHAPTER VIII 

THE SEA AND THE DESERT 

THE next year I was constantly in Princeton, 
confined closely to the work of extending the 
growth of the museum. This had now assumed 
such proportion that it was essential to have some 
one working continually at the collections, keep- 
ing them in repair and adding to the exhibits 
material that had been accumulated from the 
several expeditions. 

In the spring of 1881, having all the museum 
matters well in hand, I made an expedition to 
Cobb's Island on the coast of Virginia. Just 
north of the capes of the Chesapeake, the eastern 
shore of Virginia is protected by low, outlying 
sand islands not unlike those found at various 
points on the coast of New Jersey. Some of 
these, notably Hog Island, are inhabited, and 
Cobb's Island at this time afforded residence for 
a family of settlers by the name of Cobb, who had 
lived there many years, maintaining a house of 
entertainment for sportsmen. As a sportsmen's 
resort it was noted. The adjacent waters and 
marshes teemed with bird life, the fishing was 

179 



i8o THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

excellent, and the many waterways afforded fine 
opportunity for boating. 

The bay-birds migrating along the coast in the 
spring and fall found at Cobb's Island plentiful 
supplies of food. This and other local conditions 
attracted them in vast numbers. The usual group 
associated with the sea beaches and marshes of the 
Atlantic coast were represented, and there was 
little difference in kind as compared with Barnegat. 
The numbers of the greater and lesser yellow- 
legs, the Hudsonian curlew, the dowitcher, the 
jacksnipe or creeker, the robin snipe, the willet, 
the black-bellied and golden plovers, not to men- 
tion innumerable representatives of least and semi- 
palmated sandpipers, were striking. The marshes 
sheltered quantities of clapper-rail, while the 
beaches on the surf side were patrolled by many 
piping, ring-necked, and Wilson's plovers, as well 
as hosts of sanderlings and dunlins. Wilson's 
plover, unlike the others, bred here in the rough 
shingle, not far above high-water mark, and willets 
were equally plenty, breeding in the marshes. 

It was the great number of different kinds of 
gulls and terns that had attracted me to this 
point. Here vast colonies of them found breed- 
ing ground. It is difficult to say which kind were 
more numerous ; there were myriads of all. The 
laughing gull was the only true gull breeding, but 
when I first arrived at Cobb's Island, Bonaparte 



THE SEA AND THE DESERT 181 

gulls, ring-billed and herring gulls were passing 
to their more northern home. The outer beaches 
were the resort, not only of many terns, but there 
too came oyster-catchers, which bred in the sand 
dunes just back of the beach, and whose nests 
were readily discovered by the regular trail the 
birds made in their frequent journeys to the 
ocean's edge. 

Among the terns breeding were the gull-billed 
tern, Foster's tern, the common tern, the least 
tern, the royal tern, and the black skimmer. Now 
and then one met with representatives of the sand- 
wich tern, and at least a dozen pair of Caspian 
terns nested each season. The breeding colo- 
nies of the several sorts were clearly defined, the 
different kinds not associating together to any 
extent. 

My purpose in coming here was not only to 
make adequate collections of the eggs and adult 
birds, but more especially to procure large series 
of the fledglings in various stages of their early 
life. In this work, thanks to a good assistant, I 
was eminently successful. 

My dog Grouse, who was with me, aided 
largely, finding numbers of nests and young birds 
that would otherwise have been overlooked. 
Posted just outside of some piece of sedge-grass, 
I had only to command him to go in and fetch 
out young birds. He did this kind of work with- 



182 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

out reluctance or demur, but on the whole with a 
deprecatory air, appearing ashamed of being used 
for the purpose. Disappearing in the long grass, 
in a few moments he was back with a young gull, 
a clapper-rail, or some other downy chick. When 
I took the bird from him, it was not only un- 
harmed and unruffled, but the delicate plumage 
was seldom even moistened by contact with the 
dog's mouth. If I did not care for a specimen, I 
would return it to him, tell him to take it back, 
leave it where he found it, and bring me another. 
Off he would go, and presently return with a dif- 
ferent bird. I have seen dogs that would fetch, 
but I have seen but one or two dogs that would 
take things away and return them to the spot 
whence they had been brought. In the house, 
Grouse would not only bring me my slippers, but 
would take away my shoes and put them as care- 
fully in the closet as I could myself. He knew 
just where they belonged, and in what position 
they should stand. I fancy he was as solicitous 
in returning the unharmed fledglings to the place 
where he found them. 

Cobb's Island has been largely decreased in 
area by some of the more violent storms of the 
last ten or fifteen years, and is now comparatively 
small, whereas formerly it was some three miles 
long. On the bay side vast marshes extended 
over hundreds of acres. As a breeding ground 



THE SEA AND THE DESERT 183 

at present it affords little space, but such areas as 
remain seem to be quite sufficient for the birds 
that resort there. Previous to the decrease in 
the size of the island, the persistent efforts of egg 
hunters and gunners for millinery purposes had 
achieved the usual result ; what was once one of 
the notable breeding places of gulls and terns has 
long since been wholly abandoned by the larger 
part of them. 

Six weeks sufficed to start the work that had 
been undertaken here, and intrusting its comple- 
tion to an assistant, the rest of the summer was 
passed at Nantucket. 

As a result of the work at Cobb's Island, there 
are in the collections of the Princeton University 
Museum a series of all the kinds of terns and birds 
that I have mentioned breeding at this point, 
except the sandwich tern, which was only a 
casual bird. Practically every stage of growth is 
represented, from the chick just hatched to the 
adult. The common tern, Foster's tern, the royal 
tern, the black skimmer, the least tern, the 
willet, the clapper-rail, and the gull-billed tern 
are included in the collections in this way. 

While at Nantucket, a week was spent in study- 
ing the petrels that are present off the coast of 
Massachusetts during the month of August. To 
observe these birds and procure specimens of each 
kind it was essential to visit some of the " banks " 



184 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

where cod-fishing was carried on. It may be of 
interest to know something more in detail of the 
conditions that obtain in such localities. From 
the town of Chatham on Cape Cod, in favorable 
weather all through the warmer months of the 
year, a very considerable number of fishermen go 
regularly to the " banks " to catch cod, both for 
use as fresh fish, and when plentiful to manufacture 
into one of the staples associated with the New 
England coast, salt codfish. 

The fishing is carried on in large cat-rigged 
boats or sloops, and usually the fishermen do not 
remain away over night, for it is but a couple of hours 
run to " the banks " under favorable conditions. 
With a fisherman I left Chatham very early one 
morning, and by daylight we were far out at sea. 
A gun and ammunition were part of my equip- 
ment, and as occasional birds were seen in the 
distance, I thought it worth while to begin my 
preparations. I saw an amused look pass over 
the captain's face as he said to me, " Better wait 
till we get where the birds are ; it will be easier 
to get 'em." After two hours' sail we were 
now out of sight of land he announced that we 
had arrived at the fishing banks, and that he 
would make a try. This seemed to be entirely 
foreign to the work I had come out to do, but I 
did not interfere. Without anchoring the boat, 
simply heaving to, he baited a couple of codfish 



THE SEA AND THE DESERT 185 

lines and lowering them soon had two large fish 
struggling in the bottom of the boat. As he had 
now reached a desirable spot he anchored, kept 
on fishing for a few minutes, and when some eight 
or ten codfish were in the boat he said he would 
show me the birds that frequented the fishing 
"banks." He then took the livers of several of 
the codfish and cut them into very minute 
pieces ; grinding these into pulp, this " chum " 
was cast overboard to float on the water. A long, 
oily streak on the surface now indicated the run 
of the tide, and this streak soon reached farther 
than the eye could follow. When we anchored I 
had seen one or two birds at a very considerable 
distance, and now, following down this oily streak 
or lane, they began to arrive in the vicinity of the 
boat, allured by the bits of liver. Shortly, birds 
were about us in countless numbers. They con- 
sisted almost entirely of the stormy petrel, the 
greater shearwater and the sooty shearwater, with 
an occasional parasitic gull. Before collecting 
any specimens, it seemed worth while to examine 
the birds with care, for I feared that with the 
report of the gun they would be frightened away. 
So I waited for a time. The captain now took 
a piece of string, some seven or eight feet long, 
fastened a large piece of codfish liver to it, 
which he tied on securely, and allowed it to float 
out at the stern of the boat. I had thought the 



1 86 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

birds were quite fearless from the first, but was 
not prepared to see them come to such close 
quarters. As soon as they detected the large 
piece of liver tied to the string, they thronged 
about it like flies about a lump of sugar. Gradu- 
ally the cord was shortened, drawing the bait 
toward the boat, until it was not more than three 
or four feet from the gunwale. From the cabin 
the skipper brought an ancient crab-net with a 
long handle, and presently he was catching the 
three kinds of petrels, much as one catches butter- 
flies, emptying his net as he caught each bird 
into the cock-pit of the boat. Here they were 
absolutely helpless, as from such a flat surface it 
was quite impossible for this kind of bird to rise 
on the wing, and they walked about much after 
the fashion of chickens, and with about as much 
commotion as fowls make when intruded upon. 
Shortly all appeared to be affected by the motion 
of the boat and began to disgorge what they had 
eaten, and the cock-pit was now a scene of filth 
which can be better imagined than described. 

Of course it was not necessary to use a gun. 
We caught the birds, and they were in much 
better shape than we could have obtained them 
by the other method. We selected only such as 
seemed of particular value, allowing the rest to 
go overboard, where, on reaching the top of a 
wave, they immediately took flight. 



THE SEA AND THE DESERT 187 

Collecting of this kind seemed much like catch- 
ing butterflies, and the little stormy petrels 
hovering over the pieces of liver bore out the 
illusion by their motions as they poised and 
fluttered about the bait. At a single sweep of 
the net the captain took in nine of these little 
birds, which will give an idea of their abundance. 

The two larger petrels, and the greater and 
sooty shearwaters, are birds that measure about 
forty inches across the wings and are larger than 
a common crow. Their flight is very swift and 
their wings beat fast; but, nevertheless, as one 
would pause in passing to attempt to grab the 
lure, the captain would have him in his crab-net, 
and then the bird would be on deck, fighting and 
biting and trying to get away, but unable to take 
wing from the flat surface. There were present 
besides a number of parasitic gulls, which were 
harassing the several kinds of petrels whenever 
an opportunity occurred. 

There are some ten or more representatives 
of the family of petrels common in the waters of 
the North Atlantic; and several of these breed 
on islands such as Bird Rock of the Magdalen 
group, as well as on St. Kilda, the Shetlands, and 
other islands in that ocean. But it is not until 
the equator is passed and one is well south that 
the variety and abundance of petrels become a 
feature of a sea journey. The most impressive 



1 88 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

among these birds is the great albatross, famed 
in song and story, but other members are almost 
as large in size, the giant fulmar and the wander- 
ing albatross being among them. Then comes a 
group which is fairly represented by such birds as 
the greater and sooty shearwaters. Intermediate 
in size between these birds and the little black 
petrels with the white spots on their rumps, which, 
without regard to specific difference, sailors term 
" Mother Carey's chickens," comes the Cape 
pigeon. A number of other congeners vary 
slightly in size and form. Finally, there are many 
kinds of the small birds referred to as " Mother 
Carey's chickens," and when the antarctic ice is 
reached a little snow-white petrel is in evidence. 

The petrels are the wanderers of the sea. No 
point is too distant from land for their journeys. 
They are equally at home in calm and storm, and 
seem only to resort to unfrequented islands or land 
for the purpose of breeding. At' such seasons 
they assemble at favorite localities, often in great 
colonies, where some nest upon the surface, but 
more prefer to excavate a burrow in the ground, 
or to retire into some cranny to lay their eggs. 

On the whole, petrels may be characterized 
as par excellence the fliers among birds. The 
eagle and the condor may be noticed frequently 
at rest, but these Arabs of the sea seem ever on 
the wing. The ocean waste is their home. 



THE SEA AND THE DESERT 189 

Presenting an antithesis to these birds is another 
group characteristic of the southern seas, the pen- 
guins, birds without the power of flight. Who- 
ever has been so fortunate as to see them, not 
on shore, but in their own element, forms at 
once an entirely new conception of swimming. 
The penguins do not swim ; they fly through 
the water. For this purpose the feet are not 
used, and no paddling, or swimming in duck 
fashion takes place. With their feet straight 
behind them and close together, used only as 
a rudder, the penguins perform every evolution 
(assisted by their transformed wings, which re- 
semble closely the flippers of the seal) that the 
swallow performs over a grass meadow or pond, 

The motion is as rapid, the evolutions are as 
precise; the quick turning of the birds flying 
through the water in pursuit of small fish can 
only be compared to the characteristic motion of 
swallows in pursuit of minute insect prey. 

For those who are unable to make the long 
journey necessary to see penguins in their native 
haunts, most zoological gardens have glass tanks, 
often of great size, in which at stated times tiny 
fish are liberated. One or two penguins are then 
allowed to enter the water. There, as in an 
aquarium, one may see everything that has been 
described. Not the least remarkable fact is that 
penguins, unlike diving birds in general, do not 



i 9 o THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

rise to the surface when they have seized their 
prey; it is eaten where it is caught, below the 
surface of the water, during the continued flight 
of the bird through that element. The shores 
of Patagonia, Tierra del Fuego, the islands of 
the southern oceans, and parts of the coast of 
Australia are the homes of the penguin. 

Late in the succeeding winter I made appli- 
cation to the college authorities for a leave of 
absence to visit Arizona. My reasons for going 
to this point were twofold. One was personal, 
the other was a wish to see a country whose bird 
life presented combinations of desert and moun- 
tain fauna. It was the desert particularly that 
attracted me. I travelled west, passing through 
southern Kansas and southeastern Colorado, 
southward through the mountains of New Mexico, 
entering the desert shortly after leaving Deming. 

The country presented a novel aspect, but 
the picture of a desert that my imagination had 
painted was not at all like this reality. Aridity 
was the salient and prevailing character, but the 
long, unbroken stretches of sand, the waste, which 
I had imagined as having much the aspect of a 
desolate sea, was not here. 

Instead, a vast, flat plain, whose horizon was 
bounded by abrupt mountain chains, extended 
on every side. Distributed over the surface 
were sparse growths of isolated trees, miniature 



THE SEA AND THE DESERT igi 

locusts in their general character. Among these 
trees many varieties of cacti abounded, from the 
round, globular ones known as " nigger heads," to 
the branching, brittle, and thorny chollas, such 
growths culminating with the vast and grotesque 
shapes of the giant cactus, sometimes a monolith, 
again a cross, and again a huge candelabra, with 
every conceivable variation between the three 
types. The almost naked ground was scantily 
decked with scattered bunches of dried grass, 
cured in the pure and heated atmosphere as it 
stood, a mummied effigy. Everything, the hills 
on the horizon, the plain itself, and the ensemble 
of plant life, was dull gray brown in tone, with 
suggestions of sombre yellow here and there to 
lighten it. The atmosphere was singularly clear 
and transparent, the sky cold blue, and cloudless. 

I had not pictured the waste of my imagination 
with inhabitants; birds and beasts were no part 
of the prospect. Again I was at fault. Nowhere 
have I seen so varied and teeming an aggregate 
of small birds, reptiles, and insects as was pre- 
sented at every turn. This was no barren, deso- 
late, or forbidding region. 

A day's travel still disclosed at dusk the desert 
stretching away westward, when I left the railway 
at an obscure station. There was no town ; the 
building that served the purpose of accommodat- 
ing passengers and freight, and one or two rude 



i 9 2 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

shanties clustered about, were the only ones in 
sight The journey from here was made by 
wagon, for my destination was a point some 
seventy miles away, known as Riverside, on the 
Gila River. The first stage of this ride ended 
at a town called Florence, the county seat of 
Final County, situated on the same river, and 
some thirty miles from the railway. 

After his memorable journey across the southern 
part of what is now the United States, Cabe9a de 
Vaca, when he ultimately arrived in the city of 
Mexico, described to the astonished Spaniards, as 
the consummation of all the wonders of his pro- 
longed wanderings, El Dorado, a mighty city, the 
roofs and walls of whose houses, seen by him 
only from a great distance, he believed to be of 
pure gold. Even at the point from which he 
viewed them, not being allowed to go nearer, he 
was impressed, not only with the magnificence 
of the material, but with the proportions of the 
great structures. So vivid was the picture he 
painted and so enticing to the cupidity of the 
adventurous followers of Cortez that, as is well 
known, while Alvar Nunez would not consent to 
lead them to the place where he had seen this 
miracle, yet his only comrade in the long journey, 
save the natives who guided him, Esteban el Negro, 
undertook to pilot a band of these indomitable 
discoverers and rapacious marauders to the point 



THE SEA AND THE DESERT 193 

in question. The story is too well known to be 
further dwelt on here. The adventurers started 
without the " White God." They were never 
heard of afterward, and the fable of El Dorado 
has become a tradition. 

Leaving the station of Casa Grande, after a 
drive of six or seven miles, there loomed out of 
the distance on the flat plain, which here seemed 
more fully to realize my preconceived notions 
of a desert, a mammoth structure. Standing all 
alone as it does, the ruins of this colossal house 
built by unknown hands look out upon an ex- 
panse of almost desert country as far as the eye 
can reach, the ultimate view being one limited by 
the ever present horizon of mountains. As we 
came close it was seen to be an oblong edifice, 
perhaps a hundred feet wide and some four hun- 
dred feet long. The main walls, at places eight 
and even ten feet thick, indicated a building 
which had once been at least three stories in 
height. This could plainly be seen by the empty 
mortices, in which the beams that had once sup- 
ported the several floors formerly rested. The 
roof of this vast pile was gone. Around it, at 
various points, huge mounds of gravel, clay, and 
sand marked where the hand of time had dis- 
integrated and almost levelled other structures of 
equally imposing proportions. What had once 
been a canal was marked only by a depression, 



i 9 4 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

leading far out into the desert toward the river 
some fifteen miles away. One may picture Cabe9a 
de Vaca looking down from some distant hill at 
eventide on the huge habitations, standing in a 
cultivated plain, irrigated by water brought in the 
great ditch from the distant river. As the rays 
of the declining sun struck on the flat roofs and 
walls of the city, painting them all with gold, it 
needed no sublime faith to credit the marvellous 
tales of his guides, El Dorado, the land of gold, 
stretched away at his feet 

The day's journey terminated at Florence, 
the first Mexican, or semi-Mexican town I had 
seen. A straggling collection of one-story adobe 
houses, some of them residences, others stores, and 
again, on the outskirts, apparently cattle or agri- 
cultural ranches, the whole brown and dusty, and 
pervaded with that peculiar, indescribable, subtle, 
sweet aroma of alkali. 

An irrigation system, depending on the river 
which ran hard by, afforded not only means for 
growing many shade trees, but in places at- 
tempts were made to secure a growth of grass. 
Along the river itself rose cottonwoods and other 
trees of considerable dimensions, with an under- 
growth of bushes of various kinds, not unlike 
what one sees in any similar location in the 
East. 

The birds, however, were all different. Every 



THE SEA AND THE DESERT 195 

group of bushy cactus on the way over the desert 
had one or more pairs of cactus- wrens ; generally 
some Palmer's thrashers were also to be seen in 
these localities, and Bendire's thrasher was not 
infrequent. Occasionally meadow-larks of the 
western type were noticed ; but the quail of 
two kinds, the scaled and Gambel's, were the pre- 
eminent bird inhabitants. They were everywhere ; 
in the road, and scrambling away through the 
dried grass, sometimes when approached and sur- 
prised flying to a bush, but generally running in 
small troops on the ground. 

Wherever the giant cactus reared its columns, 
several kinds of woodpeckers abounded; the red- 
shafted flicker, the Texan and Gila woodpeckers 
were most conspicuous. In many places these 
plants bore evidence of being the nesting sites of 
the birds. The circular borings which shone out 
as round, black spots on their outstretched arms, 
marked the entrance to many homes. Again, the 
nest of some large hawk rested in the protecting 
arms of these giants. Swainson's hawk and the 
western form of the red-tailed, were the pro- 
prietors. The adaptability to environment, ex- 
emplified by the nesting habits of birds, is here 
well shown. As every one knows, in the eastern 
part of America the red-tailed hawks generally 
build their nest in the loftiest trees of dense 
forests; they are always situated at very consider- 



196 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

able heights, and are difficult of access. In the 
desert I have frequently looked from the ground 
into the nest of the red-tailed hawk set low in 
some low mesquite, or in the branching arms of a 
giant cactus. 

A number of species of doves were also con- 
spicuous both on the drive and in the streets of 
Florence, noticeable among which was the white- 
winged pigeon. These birds were generally 
gregarious, and frequented clumps of giant cactus 
in the vicinity of water, though also met with far 
out on the desert. Now and then that fleet-footed 
bird, the road-runner, " chaparral-cock," or ground 
cuckoo passed across the road in front of the 
wagon, and quickly disappeared with his rapid, 
gliding gait into the nearest cover. I did not 
see one fly. Generally they would stand for a 
moment to look, with erected crest, at the coming 
vehicle, and then, with outstretched neck and 
long tail all in a line with the back, the whole 
reminding one of a race-horse at his extended 
pace, these birds would bear out the common 
name given them. 

In the mesquite growths, pairs of yellow-headed 
titmice were always present, and bush-tits in com- 
panies might be seen in similar locations. About 
growths of palo verde, that well-named tree with 
microscopic leaves, which was then adorned with 
its golden bloom, many humming-birds congre- 



THE SEA AND THE DESERT 197 

gated, as also wherever the agave or century plant 
was in bloom. 

Late the next afternoon we started for the 
thirty mile drive to Riverside in the valley of the 
Gila. The route was through the foot-hills of 
the mountains which rose on either side of the 
river, and we were constantly passing over hills 
of considerable elevation. To avoid the heat we 
had started late in the day, and most of the ensu- 
ing drive was by moonlight, so that impressions 
as to the fauna and flora by the way were indefi- 
nite. Just at dusk a little whippoorwill alighted 
in the bare dust of the roadway, and now and 
then a coyote trotted leisurely away ahead of 
us, or another would view the passing vehicle 
from some neighboring elevation, with every 
indication of interest. Both jack-rabbits and 
their smaller allies gambolled by the roadside, 
and several times the horses shied violently as 
the shrill cicada-like warning of a rattlesnake 
broke the pervading stillness. 

The journey was necessarily slow, as much of 
the road followed the beds of dried-up streams 
and was extremely sandy. These dry waterways 
were at that time the most feasible lines of travel, 
and were utilized throughout the mountains, 
wherever the pioneer had penetrated their fast- 
nesses. Passage through this sand of course was 
accomplished silently, and hence every sound 



198 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

was audible. The call of the little whippoorwill 
that we had seen was composed of two notes, and 
was much more deliberate than the song associ- 
ated with the whippoorwill of the East. Uttered 
some five or six times in succession, it sounded 
like " poor will, poor will, poor will, poor will, poor 
will." At about eleven o'clock we arrived at our 
destination, Riverside ; as far as I could see in 
the moonlight, this city consisted of a single 
house, and morning confirmed this conclusion. 
Daylight disclosed a narrow and winding val- 
ley, through which flowed the Gila, a rushing 
mountain torrent about one hundred and fifty 
feet wide, and fordable only at a few points. At 
ordinary times the water is clear and limpid, 
though slightly alkaline in quality, but in flood 
the stream is turbid, and the strength of the 
current with the additional depth of water makes 
fording impossible. The valley is so narrow that 
the bottom land in this neighborhood is scarcely 
sufficient for cultivation. On the northern side 
of the stream rise abruptly the foot-hills of the 
Final Mountains, a rugged range whose highest 
peaks attain an approximate altitude of ten 
thousand feet. On the south side of the river 
the bottom land extends back for perhaps a 
quarter of a mile, and then a series of plateaus, 
the ascents to which are steep, shut in this side 
of the valley. These plateaus or mesas are char- 



THE SEA AND THE DESERT 199 

acteristic of the southwest. They are broken by 
arroyos, which are the beds of streams that have 
cut deep into the face of the country, often form- 
ing canons, and rarely containing water save at 
time of flood. The dry beds of the arroyos are 
frequently the driveways from one point to 
another. The vegetation is similar to that in the 
vicinity of Florence; large sycamores and cotton- 
woods are common along the river banks, while a 
scattered growth of mesquite and palo verde, 
interspersed with cat-claw thickets and growths 
of ocotilla and the different kinds of cacti, stretch 
back into the hills on either side. Except directly 
on the edges of the river there is no verdure save 
during the rainy season, to which I shall refer 
later, the whole country presenting the parched, 
dry, brown character that distinguishes the desert 
in general. 

Just back from the stream on the south bank, a 
little way from the ford which crosses it, stood at 
that time a single adobe house with a few out- 
buildings ; this with one cabin composed the 
town of Riverside. The view of the river, the 
mountains, and the plateaus directly across was 
extremely picturesque, and contrasted strongly 
with the squalor and insignificance of the settle- 
ment. What little traffic occurs in the vicinity 
of a ranch of this kind very soon destroys the 
bunches of grass which at other points relieve 



200 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

the arid waste. On either hand, almost as far as 
one could look up and down the valley, the ground 
was as absolutely bare as if newly tilled. Add to 
this its parched character, which allowed the 
slightest travel to grind the surface into dust, 
and the picture is complete. 

At the time this ranch at Riverside served as a 
station for the stage route that ran from the rail- 
way to the city of Globe, a copper camp of con- 
siderable importance, high in the Finals. As I 
proposed to make this my headquarters for some 
two months, I looked about for quarters. Finally 
I secured the solitary cabin, which consisted of a 
single room, some twelve feet square. It was 
built of adobe, and had the ordinary mud floor 
and roof. On the side away from the river I 
soon had erected a shade forming a sort of piazza, 
or outside room. Here in most weathers I was 
able to prepare such ornithological material as 
was collected. 

Small birds were present in great numbers and 
variety. The Gila woodpecker could be heard 
calling everywhere, much like its red-bellied ally 
in Missouri and Kansas. Mocking-birds and two 
thrashers, Palmer's and crissal, sang constantly. 
Along the river, two warblers, one of them breed- 
ing commonly, at once arrested my attention. 
These were Lucy's warbler and Virginia's war- 
bler, both characteristic of this region. The 



THE SEA AND THE DESERT 201 

vermilion flycatcher, the male of which is a strik- 
ing bird, was also numerous, while the Arkansas 
flycatcher which takes the place of our king-bird 
of the East, nested both along the river and back 
in the foot-hills. The common phcebe of the East, 
associated in every mind with rural bridges, barns, 
and houses, was represented by the black phcebe ; 
and another, Say's phcebe, was found here as 
a migrant. The great crested flycatcher also 
found a prototype in the crested flycatcher of 
Arizona, which not only resembled it in habits, 
but was like it in appearance. This was emi- 
nently a region of flycatchers, for I have not 
enumerated all the different kinds. Twelve 
others occurred here either as breeding or migrant 
birds. The exuberance of insect life largely ac- 
counted for the predominance of this family. 
A word further regarding one mentioned, the 
vermilion flycatcher, to distinguish him. This 
is a little bird ; in size about like the wood-pewee 
of the East, with a chocolate brown back, tail, and 
wings. The head is surmounted by a fiery 
scarlet crest, reaching all over the occiput and 
down to the eyes, and the entire under parts are 
of this same vivid color. Now the habits of this 
flycatcher are similar to those of its congeners, 
its prey being taken chiefly on the wing, and 
when executing this feat, the lower surface then 
being fully exposed, the bird presents a striking 



202 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

appearance. In the bright glare of the burning 
sunshine, this little bird, when hovering in the 
air in pursuit of its invisible prey, seems the very 
essence and genius of fire. 

At two points not far distant from the house 
I found pairs of zone-tailed hawks breeding, 
soon after my arrival. The white-necked raven 
was frequently seen, and its hard guttural croak 
often heard, while the raven proper was not 
so common. Humming-birds darted everywhere, 
and at least two kinds were nesting, while several 
others were often noticed. The black-chinned 
humming-bird is almost precisely like our ruby- 
throat of the East, save that the gorget appears 
black, but when seen in the proper light reveals a 
deep royal purple. The other, Costa's hummer, 
rather smaller than ours, besides having a beauti- 
ful violet cap and throat, has this exquisite color 
extended in a point downward on either side of 
the neck. It always made me think of a dandy 
with a fine flowing beard of gorgeous tint, care- 
fully parted in the middle and brushed to points 
on either side. 

The hooded oriole is a golden bird, relieved by 
black, something like an orchard oriole in shape, but 
even more slender ; and it is a little larger. These 
orioles were present everywhere in the trees along 
the river. Yellow-headed titmice were breeding 
on the mesas to the south of the river and in 



THE SEA AND THE DESERT 203 

many of the cat-claw thickets, while cactus-wrens, 
Palmer's and crissal thrashers were more per- 
ceptible to the ear than to the eye in every patch 
of cholla. 

Clumps of cholla also offered refuge to the 
chaparral-cocks, to covies of Gamble's quail, and 
were favorite nesting places for thrashers, cactus- 
wrens, and road-runners. The mourning dove, 
the white-winged dove, and the ground dove were 
the noticeable pigeons. Kingfishers, while not 
abundant, were frequently discovered on the 
river. Gairdner's woodpecker was uncommon, 
and the Texan woodpecker, the Gila woodpecker, 
and red-shafted flicker were numerous. 

At dusk the little whippoorwill mentioned as 
occurring along the road could always be seen 
and heard, and a little earlier in the day many 
Texan night-hawks circled the air. The white- 
winged blackbird, the meadow-lark, and Brewer's 
blackbird were all common. The house-finch, 
the prototype of our purple finch, was one of the 
familiar sparrows, rivalled by the Arkansas gold- 
finch. The black-throated sparrow and the 
desert song sparrow bred in the vicinity, and 
Lincoln's sparrow was met with as a migrant, 
while the lark-finch was a conspicuous member 
of the sparrow population. Cooper's tanager, the 
cliff swallow, and the western warbling vireo 
about completed the summary in a general way. 



204 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

I have enumerated these birds without dwelling 
much upon their habits and characteristics; but 
a future chapter will, I trust, show sufficient 
reason for this. 

The altitude of Riverside above the sea is given 
by the Government Survey as twenty-two hun- 
dred feet. The only other locality where I made 
anything like a detailed investigation of bird life 
at this time, and there only for a few days, was at 
the headwaters of Mineral Creek, not far distant, 
an altitude approximating five thousand feet. 
Here most of the birds seen at Riverside were also 
found. Once I saw a great blue heron fishing 
in one of the pools high up in the mountains, 
and the black-headed grosbeak and the black- 
throated sparrow were both found breeding in 
early June. 

I will now briefly discuss some of the salient 
features which characterize the watercourses 
and mountains of southern Arizona. The con- 
ventional conception of a river would be wide 
of the mark here. The rivers are fed, as all 
properly constructed rivers should be, by the 
tiny streams and brooks that flow into them 
through the more considerable branches into 
which they ramify. If it would not be too Irish 
a way of putting it, I should say that the mouths 
of the streams in this part of Arizona are char- 
acterized by absence of water. For instance, I 



THE SEA AND THE DESERT 205 

have spoken of the Gila as a rushing mountain 
torrent in the vicinity of Riverside, and at 
Florence it was considerable in volume, though 
somewhat smaller. Now, the Gila is one of the 
chief branches of the Colorado River, joining it 
in the vicinity of Yuma ; but there are long 
stretches of the Gila between Florence and Yuma 
which, save in times of extreme freshet, do not 
present any water at the surface. 

Mineral Creek was a very pretty mountain 
creek high up in the Finals. The farther one 
travelled its course from its source to where it 
joined the Gila, the less evident became the water 
at the surface. First it was a brook of consider- 
able extent, then it became a series of detached 
pools. These occurred presently at long inter- 
vals, and finally, for the last five miles, the stream 
was traceable only by the dry bed which carried 
the superfluous water of freshet times. I may 
summarize the situation by saying that the char- 
acteristic of the watercourses of Arizona is the 
sinking below the surface of the visible stream as 
soon as the arid stretches of desert away from the 
mountains are reached. The alluvium at these 
points, besides being dry and parched and of 
great depth, is sufficiently loose and gravelly to 
allow even great streams of water to percolate 
through and flow as streams, when bed-rock is 
attained often far below the surface. 



206 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

Watercourses may be traced in Arizona in 
every direction, but it is seldom that they are 
characterized in the desert region, or far from the 
hills, by any visible water. It is true that, at 
times, the rush of water, where it is seen, perhaps, 
but once in a lifetime along such a dry wash, may 
become so violent as to preclude the passage of 
the stream. Great freight teams, of eighteen or 
twenty mules, travelling down these natural road- 
beds, have been obliterated in less time than is 
required to speak of the catastrophe. But in a 
short period, at the most a few hours, the 
torrent has passed, and whatever water seeks this 
channel of escape flows again beneath the surface, 
which presents in an infinitely short time the dry, 
sandy bed indicative of the stream below. 

The general trend of the broken mountain- 
chains of Southern Arizona is approximately 
northeast and southwest. The side of these 
ranges facing the south is usually precipitous; 
the escarpment rises almost abruptly out of 
the plain, often as naked walls of rock. The 
verdure is necessarily scanty. A giant cactus 
may find lodgment in some crevice of the 
rock, or a stunted mesquite tree cling in some 
fissure. The whole aspect of such a mountain, 
viewed from the south, presents a most for- 
bidding appearance. It is a skeleton, bare and 
naked, with not one soft touch of verdure; the 



THE SEA AND THE DESERT 207 

pinnacles of rock which compose it are clearly 
cut against the sky. Approach one 01 these 
ranges from the north, and the ascent is not 
only gradual, until near the summit, but the 
entire set of conditions prevailing on the other 
side of the mountains are absent. A series of 
table-lands, mesas, and natural terraces rise 
gently one above the other, so that the effect in 
the distance is one of long and gradual ascent. 
These mesas are flat plains, covered with charac- 
teristic desert flora, until about four thousand 
feet altitude is attained. Here the grass becomes 
much more luxuriant, and besides the mesquite, 
live oaks are distributed over both the mesa and 
the sides of the hills, so that the whole effect is 
park-like. There comes, too, with a higher 
altitude, a considerable variation in growth and 
variety of deciduous trees, and finally, at about 
eight thousand feet, pines stretch to the face of 
the precipices on the exposed Southern side. 
Such forests are only rivalled by those of the 
Sierras in California. Here the giant pine and 
spruce present a sombre wood of great beauty, 
well watered by ice-cold mountain streams, the 
very antithesis of the desert conditions but a 
few miles distant. 

The traveller who cares to visit a range answer- 
ing my description, need only stop on his journey 
at the city of Tucson. From the railway he may 



208 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

view the panorama of the Santa Catalinas, stretch- 
ing just to the north, only some twelve or fifteen 
miles away, bald, naked, and monumental against 
the sky. 

From Tucson a journey of six hours on horse- 
back will bring the rider into the valley of the 
Rio San Pedro; another hour will suffice to 
reach that stream. The whole northern slope is 
now revealed, and may be ascended by the rider 
to the grand pine woods on the very summit of 
these stately mountains. The panorama when 
the outer edge of the forest is approached is in- 
spiring. The precipice descends abruptly to the 
plain at the base of the range. The general 
aspect of the scene below is desert-like. Tucson, 
with its clustering shade trees and cultivated 
fields, forms an oasis in the foreground. Then 
the waste stretches far away to the south, bounded 
only by high ranges. Towering above all, on the 
very horizon, yet clearly defined in the wonderful 
prevailing atmosphere, almost two hundred miles 
away, are some of the mighty peaks of the Sierra 
Madre of Mexico. The variety of light and shade 
serves to enhance the air of mystery and grandeur 
which prevails. 



CHAPTER IX 

SOUTHERN ARIZONA 

DURING the two months' stay in Arizona, in the 
spring, I became convinced that my own interests 
demanded a residence of considerable time in the 
territory. This scientific reconnoissance had also 
shown the richness of the region in bird life, and 
made me most desirous to continue my inves- 
tigation. 

On my return to Princeton in June, I applied 
to the trustees for a year's leave of absence, which 
was granted. In October I again returned to 
Arizona, this time accompanied by Mrs. Scott, 
Mary, the faithful friend who had shared our ear- 
lier wanderings, and Grouse. Mineral Creek gave 
us a taste of true frontier life, making previous 
experiences in Colorado and Florida tame by 
comparison. Our camp was on the very out- 
skirts of civilization. The rough wagon trail to 
Riverside, forty miles distant, passed through an 
entirely unsettled country. 

The Prices, our sole neighbors in the canon, 
were nomads from Pike County, Missouri, whose 
wanderings had brought them to this remote 
p 209 



210 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

valley, where they lingered for a time, to fatten 
their small band of cattle and hogs. 

Of our more distant neighbors, the Apaches, 
fourteen miles away across the range, at the San 
Carlos Reservation, we were often reminded. 
Mountains to them were no barrier, and forays on 
unprotected ranches or camps were by no means 
uncommon in those days. The attack was usually 
made at early dawn, and came with such sudden 
fury that there was little chance for escape. 
The Indians at San Carlos were supposed to be 
under strict surveillance, but now and again a 
band escaped. Sometimes, too, numbers would 
be permitted to go out to gather the mesquite bean 
or the fruit of the saguaro. These rovers, called 
good Indians on the reservation, became demons 
the moment the white man was at their mercy. 

Shortly before our arrival the Prices had been 
warned, by a scout sent on horseback, that the 
Apaches were raiding and headed toward Mineral 
Creek. Instantly they made ready; the mother 
and three children were placed on one horse, the 
grown daughter and two more children took the 
only other horse, the men seized their rifles and 
another child each, and so they started at night 
across the mountains to Globe. Climbing the 
steep, rough trail, over rocks and logs, along the 
edges of precipices, they hurried. Suddenly 
the mother looked behind her: a child was 



SOUTHERN ARIZONA 211 

missing. A halt was made, one of the men went 
back and found the poor, frightened little creature 
a mile away. Then they struggled on, sought 
shelter in Globe, and there remained till the 
troops forced the Indians to return to the reser- 
vation. Until the final capture of Geronimo, the 
number of settlers killed annually could be counted 
by the hundred. Residence in these remote re- 
gions was attended by a constant sense of danger. 

The miners in my employ built for us a rude 
but comfortable cabin, with chimney and open 
fireplace, that indispensable adjunct of camp life. 

Early in December I completed my work here ; 
but as the bird life of the region has been touched 
on in a previous chapter, and is dealt with fully in 
the bibliography, it will not again be dwelt upon. 

The attempted regeneration of the Price family 
afforded Mrs. Scott an interest for her unoccu- 
pied moments, and in this effort she had Mary's 
earnest support. They began with two of the 
younger children, Bob and Nan, eight and six re- 
spectively. Turned out early in the morning, with 
tangled hair, smutty faces, and unwashed bodies, 
their scanty clothes, securely fastened, removed 
only through wear and tear, these little waifs were 
wholly uncared for, and left to shift for themselves. 
But soap and water, comb and brush, vigorously 
applied, accomplished marvels. A new blue frock 
for Nan, a clean suit for Bob, effected a further 



212 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

transformation, and made us acquainted with two 
bright-eyed, attractive children. The daily visit 
was a pleasure. They delighted in helping Mary, 
watching me at my work, listening to stories 
or in telling us about the calves, the pig, the 
coyotes that came to the corral at night, and 
with open eyes of the big bear shot by " Dave 
and Paw." 

A business journey to the East in December 
took us away from Mineral Creek, and the time 
of my absence was spent by Mrs. Scott in Tucson. 
On my return we devoted several weeks to an 
exploration of the outlying country. Twelve 
miles northeast of the town, in the foot-hills of 
the Santa Catalinas, beyond Camp Lowell, is 
Agua Caliente. The Hot Springs are approached 
through a forest of the giant cactus. The word 
forest alone describes the closely massed columns 
of the saguaro, scattered over the vast area, 
almost to the exclusion of other plant life. 

The hard, woody ribs that surround the pith of 
the cactus, like the staves of a barrel, are pierced 
in many places by Gila, red-shafted, and gilded 
woodpeckers, who find in the soft central mass 
a material readily excavated for domiciles. The 
general habit of woodpeckers is to seek new 
nesting places every year. The abandoned cavi- 
ties of former seasons are promptly preempted by 
two kinds of owls, the Mexican screech owl and 



SOUTHERN ARIZONA 213 

a miniature species known as Whitney's owl, 
peculiar to the region. Sparrow-hawks, too, de- 
light in becoming tenants. The saguaros in the 
neighborhood of Agua Caliente afforded excel- 
lent opportunities for studying the habits of 
Whitney's owl, but my chief difficulty was to get 
close enough to the opening of the nest. The 
birds were far from shy; they sat in the open 
doors of their retreats, paying no attention to the 
passer-by. A light sectional padder readily car- 
ried in our " ambulance " solved the difficulty. 

At Camp Lowell generous hospitality always 
awaited us, and it was one of the pleasures of our 
stay in Tucson to visit our friends at the " Post." 
In my frontier life I have received unfailing kind- 
ness and consideration from officers in both 
branches of the Service. No body of men I have 
known have wider scientific interests. 

Early in the spring of 1883 I looked for a point 
at which to continue my ornithological work. 
The northern slope of the Santa Catalinas was 
finally chosen for personal as well as scientific 
reasons. Pepper Sauce Gulch was the site of our 
new home. I built here a simple cottage of 
bungalow type, with wide-spreading roof, hauling 
in the lumber fifty miles from Tucson. The 
material used was California redwood, and this 
served not only for walls, floors, and shingles of 
the roof, but was converted readily into the win- 



214 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

dow seats, book-cases, dressing tables, and bed- 
steads that formed our furniture. 

The rooms were hung with cheap calicoes of 
pretty design. Bear and deer skins, Mexican ser- 
apes, and Navajo blankets made effective rugs. 
When in all its completeness the cottage appeared 
for the first time to the astonished gaze of Jesus 
Maria Castro, our Mexican neighbor, he exclaimed 
in Spanish, " Behold the Little Palace of Mon- 
tezuma ! " This romantic name it bore ever after. 

Pepper Sauce Gulch in the Old Hat District, 
on the north side of the Santa Catalina Moun- 
tains, winds down to the valley of the San Pedro 
River. The upper reaches of the canon run 
between abrupt hills, which tower on either side 
for about a thousand feet. The sides of these hills 
are grassy, and the timber consists almost entirely 
of a kind of live oak. 

Close to the house good water was abundant 
in the bed of the canon, but for our use was piped 
from a spring high in the mountains. The site 
of the " Little Palace " was on the side of a hill 
some hundred feet above the bottom of the 
gulch, the hills being here so steep that it was 
necessary to cut out a shelf for the main part of 
the floor. The beams, which projected far be- 
yond the excavations, were supported by uprights 
rising from the ground below; it was in this 
respect like a Swiss chalet. On the side of 



SOUTHERN ARIZONA 215 

the dwelling toward the canon, a wide piazza, or 
balcony, faced the hills opposite. This balcony 
extended all along the front and one side of the 
house, and the entrance to it was from the steep, 
winding trail which led up from the bottom of the 
canon to one corner at the rear. The nearest 
neighbors were ranchmen, some three miles dis- 
tant, and mail was brought twice a week to a 
place known as American Flag. 

The altitude of the region just about the house 
was five thousand feet above the sea level, and 
therefore about halfway up the side of the range. 
Game was extremely abundant ; deer frequently 
grazed under the trees, near at hand ; and a walk 
in the canon in the morning often revealed the 
tracks where bear had passed during the night. 
Coyotes held their moonlight concerts on the hills 
back of the cabin, and jack-rabbits and their 
smaller allies gambolled in the undergrowth. 
Squirrels scampered over the rocks and among 
the branches of the trees everywhere, and many 
birds frequented the vicinity, because of the 
abundance of water and the growth of trees coin- 
cident. While the cactus was not so conspicuous 
in this landscape, the mescal or agave grew on all 
the hillsides, and at midsummer these graceful 
plants, with their high spike sustaining a large 
cluster of compound flowers of a deep orange hue, 
added to the beauty of the scene. These blossoms 



216 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

were frequented by myriads of humming-birds. 
The yucca, or soap-weed, was also common, and 
afforded a nesting place for a kind of bird known 
as Scott's oriole. This is a bright, lemon- 
colored oriole with a black head, much like his 
cousin the Baltimore of the East, but larger. 
This bird's method of nest-building I have dis- 
cussed in a paper, but will briefly summarize 
it here. 

Most of my readers are aware that the yucca is 
a plant with a cluster of long, broad, dagger-like 
leaves, terminating in a fine, sharp point, whence 
it receives the name of Spanish bayonet. The 
older leaves at the lower whorls are constantly 
falling away, and frequently this plant attains 
considerable height, sometimes ten or twelve 
feet, with a bare, palmlike stem supporting 
the head of broad leaves at the top. The lower 
leaves as they die become pendent, drooping 
close and parallel to the trunk. Among such 
leaves, at their first period of decay, Scott's oriole 
builds its nest. This is done by picking the 
chlorophyl away, leaving the stringlike skele- 
ton, from which the characteristic hammocklike 
structure of the oriole is woven. When complete, 
this nest is similar to that of the orchard oriole of 
the East, but is wholly concealed by the droop- 
ing leaves, being situated between them and the 
trunk of the yucca. Moreover, it is well protected 



SOUTHERN ARIZONA 217 

from inroads of enemies by the sharp points of the 
leaves themselves. 

Now it happened that, in connection with my 
business, machinery was employed, to clean which, 
and to wipe away the oil, cotton waste was used. 
This waste was thrown away with other refuse 
not far from the house. In the spring succeeding 
our settling here, the orioles discovered bunches 
of this waste, and in at least two cases abandoned 
their former and almost invariable method of 
nesting in the yucca, and built conventional oriole 
nests in the oak trees. This is dwelt upon as 
evidence of the changes brought about by immi- 
gration into a new country in the habits of the 
wild animals which live there, without any inten- 
tion on the part of the settlers. 

In this remote canon we were able to have a 
number of dogs and other pets without annoying 
or disturbing our neighbors. Grouse was pre- 
eminent, and as companions of his own kind 
there was Bull, a coarse-bred mastiff, two or three 
mongrel black and tan terriers, and a varied 
assortment of nondescripts, aggregating some 
twelve dogs. 

A red-tailed hawk taken from a nest in the 
vicinity of Tucson was now a year old. " Peep " 
had never known captivity ; that is, he had never 
been in a cage or enclosure. Usually he was 
allowed to roam free, and when confined, was 



2i8 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

tied by a thong fastened around one of his legs. 
He became very tame, and would come to call. 
Very soon he began to associate my excursions 
with something to eat, and before we had been 
in the mountains a month, he always accompanied 
me when I started away from the house with a 
gun. I found out that the easiest way to get rid 
of him was to kill as soon as possible a squirrel 
or lizard. Otherwise he would continue with me, 
and the first bird which I collected, no matter 
how rare, would be pounced upon and carried off 
to the nearest tree. At such times he would not 
answer the customary call, and it was impossible 
to get the specimen from him, whether bird or 
other animal. 

During the summer one of the miners killed a 
deer not far from the house, which had a new-born 
fawn, perhaps some two or three weeks old, con- 
cealed in the grass near by. This little foundling 
I took to the house, where it became a member 
of the family, remaining with us until our return 
to the East, when I gave him to a neighboring 
ranchman. The buck was then over three years 
old, and nearly full grown, with a fine set of horns 
indicative of his age. At first he was a tiny brown 
fawn, spotted all over with white, beautiful and 
gentle, and after a few hours, very tame. Like the 
hawk, the fawn was never confined in an enclosure. 
When old enough to ramble away, he did so at 



SOUTHERN ARIZONA 219 

pleasure, his only protection a leather collar, from 
which hung a bell to warn any hunters against 
mistaking him for a wild animal. He was known 
to the settlers and the Mexicans about the coun- 
try, and was frequently seen ten miles away from 
the house. He became famous in the region, 
receiving the name of " The deer with the bell." 
Often on his rambles he was accompanied by 
several of the dogs, and not infrequently by the 
entire troop. 

The fawn began to be very playful when six or 
eight weeks old, and every morning would go to 
the bed of the canon and get a drink, and then 
gambol about on the small piece of level ground 
there, an exercise in which the dogs soon joined. 
After twenty minutes or half an hour of such 
playing, Venado, for so we called him, would 
run rapidly up the hill on the other side of the 
canon, away from the house. If the dogs did 
not follow, he soon returned and began to play 
with them again, but only for a few minutes, when 
he once more started up the hillside ; now, per- 
haps one or two of the dogs, or maybe all of 
them, joined him. The dogs were essential as 
watchmen, in so remote a spot, and prolonged 
absence on their part added to the danger always 
present from the Apaches and other intruders. 
So it was necessary, when Venado endeavored to 
entice his comrades to take part in his excursions, 



220 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

to prevent their going. Usually some one on horse- 
back headed off the party before it was well 
under way. The cavalcade did not go very fast, 
but the procession, led by the deer, was soon far 
out of sight, trailing away over the hills. I have 
known the dogs and the deer to be gone, on one 
occasion, for five days, and so frequently were 
they absent over night that I ceased to be con- 
cerned, after a little experience. 

These escapades were immensely enjoyed by 
both the deer and the dogs, and the deer came 
home in the best of spirits and physical condition. 
He found plenty of acorns and grass, doubtless, 
and cool mountain water. But it was otherwise 
with the dogs. Twenty-four hours spent without 
food, and worse still, two or three days, produced 
a great change in their appearance. They came 
home foot-sore, and so thin and ravenous that 
only very small portions of food could be given 
them at considerable intervals. 

Not the least interesting part of such episodes 
was the fact that the mastiff, Bull, was a dog kept 
almost entirely to catch wounded deer. Seeing 
one trying to escape when only crippled by a 
ball, Bull, who was very fleet, would at once give 
chase, run it down, seize it by the throat and 
hold it until the arrival of the hunter. Yet this 
same dog spent hours in playing with a little 
fawn, and days with him on excursions to no one 



SOUTHERN ARIZONA 221 

knows where, in the wilds of the mountains ! 
Where did they go? What were the happen- 
ings that proved so fascinating ? Did they visit 
and romp with other deer ? Or was it the pure 
pleasure of the free life and going? Who can 
answer ? 

All the dogs slept at night on the veranda, as 
close to one another as possible for the sake of 
warmth, the deer in the centre, with the cats of 
the household lying on top of the group. This 
was the usual custom, for the nights were 'cold 
in these mountains. On rainy days, or when 
tired, Venado would enter the main room of the 
house, go up to the low sofa and climb upon it, 
and lying down with bovine deliberation, would 
rest himself. Here he made a beautiful picture. 
His great, placid, intelligent eyes and the fine 
color of his hair, together with his grace of form, 
are more readily imagined than depicted. When 
contemplative, he would stay for hours in this way, 
chewing his cud, and doubtless ruminating on 
new excursions to be taken with his friends. 

Among our coterie of animals, a little gray 
rock-squirrel was a character not to be over- 
looked. Often the squirrel would join the deer 
on the sofa, and finding some soft place in the 
stiff hair where it was warm, the tiny creature 
would curl up and take a nap. One of the traits 
of this squirrel was an extreme liking for comfort. 



222 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

Frequently, for he was also unconfined, he would 
go to any one who sat reading or writing, climb 
up, and find his way to the hollow of the hand, 
where he would curl into a ball and sleep. At 
such times he did not wish to be disturbed, and 
once having installed himself, resented any motion 
on the part of the owner of the hand. Half 
awake, he made a chattering noise, and if the 
motion did not cease, would presently give the 
hand a sharp nip. If this was insufficient, a real 
bite ensued, so that whoever held him was at his 
mercy. Over Venado, when he curled in that 
animal's hair, he exercised the same sort of tyr- 
anny, and it was interesting to see him bully the 
deer into being absolutely quiet while he enjoyed 
his slumber. 

Besides sleeping together, these animals were 
all fed at the same time; the custom being to 
make a mush of bran, with bits of meat and 
scrapings from the table added, the whole form- 
ing a sort of thick porridge. Some dozen bowls 
were placed upon the ground, and into each was 
poured a portion. Every animal was on the qui 
vive ; the dogs, the deer, the cats, and the squirrel 
were all soon busy eating. There was no quar- 
relling; sometimes a slight admonition was given, 
and when the first cravings of hunger were allayed, 
a series of visits were paid by all the animals to 
each dish, changing off, much as men do after 



SOUTHERN ARIZONA 223 

dinner when the bottle is being passed, and coffee 
and cigars are at hand. These occurrences were 
not casual but daily happenings, and afforded us 
unfailing entertainment. 

Not the least important member of this happy 
family was a large black donkey, or burro. He 
was my special friend, and I used him chiefly on 
my collecting trips ; for I found him tractable, 
intelligent, and affectionate. He soon learned 
what my journeys were for, and though afraid of 
a gun at first, I readily accustomed him to it. 
After a week's practice I could fire both barrels 
from his back without alarming him in any way, 
and he soon learned to watch the bird that gen- 
erally fell on such occasions. Then he would 
walk up to it, allow me to dismount, secure the 
specimen, and put it away in the basket which 
I carried for the purpose. If I started on foot 
to continue my hunt for a short time in that 
way, he followed, pausing when I paused, and act- 
ing as if he thoroughly understood what I was 
doing, and enjoyed his participation in it. 

One thing he did object to. He disliked a 
wounded bird. Frequently when a quail jumped 
suddenly in front of him I would fire hastily, 
and perhaps wing it. At such times, the moment 
I threw my gun to my shoulder " burrito " was 
rigid ; he seemed to appreciate that I was not to 
be disturbed. If the bird fell dead, he walked 



224 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

directly to it and halted; but when a wounded 
bird struggled on the ground, it was a difficult 
matter to get the burro to approach it, and he 
generally preferred to have me dismount at 
some distance and secure the bird myself; a 
consummation which apparently entirely satisfied 
him. 

At the feeding time this burro was frequently 
one of the party of animals at the banquet, and 
was apparently received with as good fellowship 
as any of the members of the motley company. 
On the days when not in use, about five o'clock 
in the afternoon, " burro" was accustomed to come 
to the house in quest of the ration of barley which 
was his daily portion. One could almost tell the 
time of day by his arrival. Often I was busy, and 
if the desired barley was not forthcoming, he 
would call me with a low whinny. At such 
times, if he saw me, and I paid no attention to 
the first intimation, he came and nudged me on 
the arm. If I continued inattentive, he would 
nibble gently at my coat, and pull it. Further 
delay occasioned him to back off a little way and 
to utter the most terrific bray imaginable ; then I 
knew he must be waited on, for if I protracted 
the event further, he would rush up, seize me by 
the coat, and begin to drag me about. I often 
teased him, pretending not to be aware of his 
presence until the last possible moment. 



SOUTHERN ARIZONA 225 

Prietto, for such was his name, on account of 
his color, did not at all realize the conventional 
idea of a donkey. He was coal black in color, 
which shaded into fawn on parts of his legs and 
belly. His coat was short, and as shiny and 
satiny as that of most horses ; he had none of the 
straggling hair and whiskers associated with the 
face of an ass. To be sure, his ears were long, 
but they were finely shaped, and his head was as 
beautiful in proportion as that of most thorough- 
breds. He was the type of the best kind of jack 
from which the Spaniards bred their famous mules. 
His endurance was great. I have often ridden 
him forty or fifty miles, and sometimes as much as 
seventy miles in a day ; our ordinary trips covered 
anywhere from fifteen to thirty miles. With all 
the gaits of a good horse, a particularly comfort- 
able single foot pace was one of his characteristics. 
It was astonishing how much ground he would 
cover without apparent effort ; in company with 
horses he always kept pace with the party. No 
hillside was too difficult for this sure-footed beast, 
and I never felt the least alarm when riding 
him over precipitous and perilous mountain trails. 
I had not a very good seat as a rider, and on 
several occasions when frightened by a snake or 
some unusual object " burro " threw me as he 
shied violently out of the path. Before I had re- 
gained my feet, he came up and looked me over 
Q 



226 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

as if to say, " Well, I had no idea you would get 
off so quick ; better get on again." 

Such were the domestic animals about the 
" Little Palace of Montezuma " ; and it is only 
necessary to speak of some tame orioles and 
mocking-birds to complete the list. These birds, 
too, though they had cages, were allowed. to go in 
and out about the house pretty much as they 
pleased. Frequently, in the summer time, when 
reading at night by lamplight, many insects, at- 
tracted by the light, littered the table. Then one 
of the mocking-birds would spend a long time 
satisfying his appetite and instinct, catching the 
deluded beetles and moths hovering about. This 
mocking-bird was caught as a fledgling when he 
was perhaps four weeks old, and was reared by 
hand. When six weeks old, two Scott's orioles 
were taken from a nest ; these were little fellows, 
just beginning to show feathers. There was only 
a single cage, and they were put into it, together 
with the young mocking-bird. Grasshoppers were 
the staple food, and had to be broken and fed to 
the fledgling orioles. The mocking-bird in no way 
objected to the newcomers. To my astonishment, 
in a few days, when I gave him a grasshopper, I 
saw him kill it, beat it to pieces, and then go down 
to the two little orioles, and into their gaping 
mouths place the fragments as a parent bird 
would do. From this time on it was not neces- 



SOUTHERN ARIZONA 227 

sary for me to feed these two birds by hand. All 
I had to do was to bring a few live grasshoppers 
at intervals to the cage. The mocking-bird would 
first supply the needs of the two orioles, and after 
he was assured by their quiet that they were no 
longer hungry, he would attend to his own wants. 

We lived practically in the open air during the 
entire year; for at all seasons, with the mercury 
either at 20 or 90 Fahrenheit, the crisp, dry air 
made vigorous exercise a delight. Seldom a day 
passed without a brisk ride across the foot-hills to 
some remote canon, or a gallop on the open mesas. 
Hours in the saddle brought no sense of fatigue. 

Distant trips to the summit of the Catalinas 
entailed somewhat elaborate preparations, a pack 
train of burros, and the equipment and provisions 
for a stay of several days. However, securely 
fastened to the aparejo, on the steepest part of a 
trail, one or more of the burros was sure to slip 
his burden under his belly. Then followed much 
vigorous language from the vaquero, and groans 
and lamentations on the part of the aggravating 
donkey, during the readjustment. On our own 
saddles various latigoes held in place not only 
blankets and extra clothing, but the tin kettle, 
coffee-pot, and frying-pan that were part of the 
accoutrement. 

Slowly the journey was made, "poco,poco,poco? 
in the expressive language of the Mexican. Strung 



228 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

out for half a mile on the trail, the burros and 
their drivers were in advance, the riding party in 
the rear. At the end of a long day over steep 
places, following the dizzy edge of a precipitous 
gulch, or crawling along a " hog-back," the end of 
the journey was reached. Under the giant pines, 
by the side of a tumbling mountain brook, camp 
was made, the animals turned out to graze, and 
a savory supper of flapjacks, venison steak, and 
steaming coffee soon prepared by the skilful hand 
of our jovial cook " Billelyut," as Castro called his 
Irish son-in-law. Then followed a dreamless sleep 
on a bed of fragrant pine branches, under the star- 
lit sky ; and with the dawn of morning we awoke 
refreshed, and eager to begin our day's explora- 
tion. 

I will now endeavor to picture something of 
the bird life out of doors at the various seasons, 
altitudes, and conditions that existed on the sides 
of these mountains. 

Besides the orioles, the warmer months discov- 
ered just at the "Little Palace" a coterie of 
feathered denizens to which I can do little more 
than allude. The mocking-bird was of course 
conspicuous ; the hepatic tanager bred in the 
live oak trees and Boucard's sparrow was the 
commonest finch inhabiting the grassy slopes. 
Throughout the deep ravines were many rock- 
wrens, while the little canon wren sang its un- 



SOUTHERN ARIZONA 229 

rivalled song from some point of vantage on the 
face of every precipice. 

I have spoken of the humming-birds, but per- 
haps have not given an adequate idea of their 
abundance. A kind of thistle that bloomed at 
midsummer on the hillsides in patches was 
thronged by these tiny jewels. There were eight 
kinds present in incredible numbers, and these 
were represented during midsummer in every stage 
of plumage. 

The gray vireo, heretofore known by but few 
specimens, was very abundant, and bred com- 
monly. For a paper in regard to the breeding 
habits of this bird, together with notes in respect 
to its marked tameness, the reader is referred to 
the appended bibliography. The least vireo was 
a common visitor and summer resident, and the 
plumbeous vireo, as well as the western warbling 
vireo, was plentiful, while Cassin's vireo also was 
observed as a migrant. The Phai'nopepla retired 
to lower altitudes in the winter, but many bred 
here; and again reference is made to the bibli- 
ography. The purple martin, cliff, barn, and violet 
green swallows were present in numbers in their 
season ; while the tree-swallow, the rough-winged 
swallow, and the bank-swallow were little more than 
casual. The white-throated swift migrated in large 
companies, and sometimes appeared during winter. 
Vaux's swift was met with on a single occasion. 



230 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

The Texan night-hawk and the western night-hawk 
both occurred in the hills, and the poor-will as 
well as the Arizona whippoorwill may be men- 
tioned. Woodpeckers were singularly numerous. 
Harris's, Gairdner's, the Texan, and the Arizona 
woodpecker frequented the live-oaks ; as did more 
rarely the red-naped sapsucker ; Lewis's wood- 
pecker was a migrant on the mountain sides, and 
in the fall great flocks of these were always 
present ; while the Gila woodpecker and the red- 
shafted flicker were resident, the one locally and 
the other widely distributed. In the higher 
country these species were augmented by the 
California and Williamson's woodpecker; and in 
some regions, where the giant cactus abounded, 
the gilded flicker was by no means uncommon. 

Among the birds of prey may be mentioned 
the turkey vulture, the marsh-hawk, sharp-shinned 
hawk, Cooper's hawk, Harris's hawk, the western 
red-tailed hawk, Swainson's hawk, all of which 
occurred either as migrants or as breeding birds 
in the vicinity of the " Little Palace." From the 
piazza I watched two golden eagles repairing 
their nest early in November, and these birds 
were a constant feature in the panorama of bird 
life. I have seen them catch large jack-rabbits, 
and carry such animals away to their eyrie with 
apparent ease. The Arizona jay was a common 
resident and bred in the live oaks, and Wood- 



SOUTHERN ARIZONA 231 

house's jay was notable in the same way on the 
hillsides, in thickets of " cat-claw." Steller's jay, 
noticeable at all times in the pine forests on the 
summit of the range, visited, as did the pifion jay, 
the vicinity of the house in fall and winter. There 
were many ducks on the San Pedro during the 
migrations, and rails, ibises, and herons were fre- 
quent about the pools of that river. Space does 
not avail for a fuller enumeration. My papers on 
the subject set forth in great detail the result of 
observations made here. The pine forest on the 
summit of the Sierra Santa Catalina was prolific 
in bird life. This was of great interest, revealing 
such rare birds as the olive warbler, Stephen's 
vireo, the painted redstart, and the red-faced 
warbler. Wild turkeys gathered here in great 
bands. In addition, crossbills, evening grosbeaks, 
hermit-thrushes, and several kinds of snowbirds 
bred at this high altitude. 

Nor must it be forgotten that, outside of all 
this bird life, other animals were conspicuous. 
Lizards of brilliant hues and various sizes basked 
in the sun on the hot rocks, inflating brilliant 
pouches under their throats, and seeming the 
concentration of heat and fire. From what I 
have written it is evident that the rattlesnake 
was by no means uncommon ; yet I would not 
convey the idea to any one that there was asso- 
ciated with the presence of these snakes a large 



232 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

element of danger ; and here I think I must dwell 
on the fact that most of us exaggerate in our 
minds peril, not only from rattlesnakes, but from 
snakes in general. I heard rattlesnakes much 
more frequently than I saw them ; perhaps I did 
not see more than fifteen during my whole five 
years' stay in this region ; for by day these ser- 
pents are sluggish, and it is at night that they 
travel most. Their presence, too, is apparent 
only during the warmer portions of the year ; 
and from October until April to hear or to see 
one was unusual. It was generally at night-time 
that the horses were alarmed by " rattlers " crawl- 
ing in the trail, and it was then that I frequently 
heard them. Days and months passed by with- 
out seeing this or any other kind of snake ; and 
yet I suppose there are as many rattlesnakes in 
this part of Arizona as at any place. Nor have 
I been able to learn of an authentic case of snake- 
bite in this territory resulting fatally. It does 
seem that our dogs, running all over the country 
as they did, would have suffered in this respect ; 
but they were never bitten nor did I learn of 
others having suffered. 

Foremost among the lizards was that famous 
animal, the Gila monster. This is a repellent- 
looking creature ; but again from experience I be- 
lieve that danger from it is practically nil. This 
lizard I saw more frequently than the rattlesnake. 



SOUTHERN ARIZONA 233 

The Gila monster is a large, sluggish, thick, 
stumpy lizard of an orange color, decorated with 
black and brown, and often attains a length of 
more than two feet. One met with them in dry 
washes or on some arid point on the mesa, and, 
unlike any of the other lizards, they were ex- 
tremely slow in their motions, reminding me 
always of turtles by their gait and deliberation 
in moving. When approached, they made no 
attempt to escape, but would lie still and inflate 
themselves and hiss, opening the mouth and 
darting out the forked tongue, so rapidly as to 
resemble small flames. 

The legends which the Mexicans narrated, re- 
garding the poisonous qualities of this animal, 
and their evident dread of contact with one, do 
not seem to be borne out by the facts, as will 
presently be shown. However, for the sake of 
those who have not heard such tales, I will recite 
an incident that occurred to a u friend of a friend 
of a friend " of Castro. Castro told it to me him- 
self. He said that this friend of his friend's friend 
made a camp one night in a dry wash shortly 
after dark, spread his blankets on the ground, 
and, being overcome by the journey of the day, 
was soon sound asleep. Now, he did not arrive, 
as was expected, at the point to which he was 
travelling; after a day's waiting, which the 
Mexicans would consider great haste, a party 



234 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

started out in search of him. They found him 
in the dry wash seemingly asleep on his 
blankets, but when they attempted to arouse 
him, they discovered that he was dead. Uncov- 
ering his body, they raised it from the ground 
and began to roll up the blankets preparatory to 
carrying them and the dead man to a suitable 
place for burial. These blankets, for the purpose 
of comfort, were laid on the ground to the extent 
of five thicknesses, and when the last was lifted, 
a Gila monster was discovered lying between it 
and the sand. The mystery was then clear to the 
searchers, and they repaired to the ranch with the 
body. Arriving at the point, and preparing the 
corpse for burial, they discovered on the man's 
back, outlined in red and decorated in many fan- 
tastic colors, the exact imprint and picture of the 
Gila monster on which he had lain. I was not 
able to ascertain that he had been bitten, but 
Castro informed me that that was not an essential 
or important factor in the case ; for, he said : " It 
is only necessary to be in the neighborhood of one 
of these monsters, and if it does as much as breathe 
upon you or your clothing, there is no power of 
medicine or grace of God that can save you from 
certain death." 

This is only one of many stories of similar 
character which I had related to me by various 
people at sundry times during my residence in 



SOUTHERN ARIZONA 235 

Arizona. My personal experience absolutely be- 
lies them all. For instance, I had in Tucson 
a pet Gila monster, which lived in our room at 
large for a period of three months. It had exca- 
vated in one corner of the adobe wall, behind an 
olla, a little hole to which it retired; but daily it 
appeared, crawling about the floor, and I have fre- 
quently held it in my hands, stroking it and ex- 
amining it closely for long periods. It was fed 
occasionally upon an egg, which for this purpose 
was broken into a saucer and presented to the 
animal, which would lap it much as a dog or a cat 
does milk. Then "monster" would retire to sleep 
in the " burrow," and might not appear again for 
twenty-four or forty-eight hours. 

One day when Mary was sweeping the room the 
Gila monster lay in the middle of the floor bask- 
ing in a patch of sunshine in his usual indolent 
and sluggish fashion, and Mary, being in a hurry, 
grabbed him up quickly to place him to one side 
out of the way, whereupon he seized her by the 
thumb, which he grasped and bit until the blood 
ran. In her efforts to rid herself of him, for 
he was holding on tight, she tore away a con- 
siderable portion of skin. Of this happening we 
were not aware at the time, and it was only 
after several hours that, noticing Mary with her 
thumb done up in a bandage, I asked how she had 
cut her finger. She answered in the most non- 



236 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

chalant way that she had been bitten by the Gila 
monster, and seemed to consider it a matter of 
slight importance. I was somewhat worried, 
because I had heard so much of the deadly results 
that ensued on such a bite, and applied such 
remedies as were at hand, but kept my fears to 
myself. She suffered no inconvenience, more than 
one would from any scratch or cut, and in a few 
days her thumb was healed, and all traces of the 
wound disappeared within a week. 

I had these animals about the house for months 
at a time, and while I never thrust my ringers into 
their mouth to be bitten, I handled them, as I have 
said, much as I would a dog or a cat. After a 
while they always became tame. They frequently 
emitted the blowing, hissing noise, and darted out 
the forked tongue when disturbed ; otherwise I 
have not seen them offer to be in any way harmful. 

Among the insects the tarantula was not un- 
common ; but this spider has been so often de- 
scribed by writers that further discussion of it 
seems unnecessary. Truly, it is a hideous brute, 
with its long hairy coat and evil-looking face ! 
Centipedes about three inches long were numer- 
ous ; with these two examples I think I have 
enumerated the insect horrors of the region, and 
I have never met with any one who suffered 
serious discomfort or injury inflicted by either of 
these animals. 



SOUTHERN ARIZONA 237 

Four-footed creatures abounded ; I have spoken 
of the deer and the bear, of which there were 
many representatives, the former often gathering 
in large bands. The common deer of the hill- 
sides was the white-tailed deer, and that of the 
mesas and lower altitudes was the black-tailed or 
burro deer. On the plains, where they had not 
been exterminated by constant hunting, antelopes 
were still plentiful. In every considerable region 
of prickly pear, especially in the vicinity of water, 
bands of peccaries congregated, sometimes as many 
as seventy-five or a hundred individuals being 
together. I have seen these wild pigs on many 
occasions, and have frequently been on foot among 
them ; while I have had dogs severely handled by 
wounded animals, or by one at bay, the peccary 
did not bear out, as it occurs here, the stories 
narrated of it. Now and again I have met a 
solitary sow with a litter of young, and on one 
occasion caught two of the little fellows and 
brought them with me to the house. Even then 
the mother did not resent the robbery any more, 
and not as much, as most domesticated pigs 
would. 

On the San Pedro, near the termination of the 
mouth of the Old Hat canon, was a very consid- 
erable lake made by a fine beaver dam. This was 
the resort of many ducks and wild fowl during 
the migration. It was difficult to see a beaver, 



238 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

though their presence was evident, and the only 
sure way to accomplish this was by a long visit on 
some bright moonlight night. Then, the watcher, 
sitting absolutely quiet on the bank, would see 
numbers of beavers appear and proceed with their 
ordinary avocations, but they were so alert that 
the slightest motion or noise on the part of the 
observer was at once perceived and caused the 
animals to retire, when it was useless to wait for 
their return. 

Skunks of three kinds were numerous ; and I 
have spoken of coyotes. There were many foxes 
and wildcats, and the mountain-lion or panther 
was by no means unusual. I have seen all of 
these animals alive many times, and have killed 
representatives of most of them. One of the 
prettiest wild creatures of the region was a little 
beast known to the natives as the civet cat; it 
was twice as large as a gray squirrel, with beauti- 
ful fur, a foxlike head, large, intelligent eyes, and 
a bushy banded tail of white and brown that made 
a fine contrast to its silky fur. It was nocturnal 
in habit, and was to be obtained only by trapping, 
or by searching in caves or hollow trees where it 
slept during the day. 

The bears spoken of were the cinnamon 
variety, much larger than our black bear of the 
East, and known generally to the natives as 
"grizzlies." One that I killed in the Finals was 



SOUTHERN ARIZONA 239 

estimated, by a quarter that was weighed, to ex- 
ceed eight hundred pounds. At places in the 
mountains the trails that these bears made, in 
passing from the manzanita thickets where they 
slept in the daytime to the live-oak forests where 
they fed on acorns at night, looked like well-worn 
highways, and the number of animals that wore 
such beaten paths must have been great. 

I have encountered all of these animals, and 
here again must speak of the element of danger. 
In all my experience in hunting out of doors, I 
have yet to see the beast that would not go its 
own way if left alone. The very rat or mouse 
when cornered will fight, and so will a grizzly 
bear or a deer, and perhaps any other creature. 
I have never seen one, and I include them all, 
snakes, alligators, wildcats, mountain-lions, pec- 
caries, and grizzly bears, that would not, if un- 
molested, pursue its own way without manifesting 
interest in the presence of the individual who had 
intruded. 

It is worthy of note that in this part of Arizona 
there are two spring seasons during every year. 
These follow the rainy periods, as I shall pres- 
ently show. In January and February there is a 
considerable precipitation; late in February and 
early in March the ground has become sufficiently 
damp for the various seeds, that have been lying 
ready to sprout, to germinate, and presently the 



240 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

arid mesas and desert plains are decked with a 
coat of verdure. Then, on the lower deserts the 
California poppy blooms in great luxuriance, so 
that the country, viewed from some little eleva- 
tion, presents a vast prospect covered with a 
golden crop, a field of cloth of gold, for the 
flowers are not dissociated or in groups, but are 
distributed evenly over the entire area. 

The rainfall is never of long duration, at most 
not more than four or five hours, and it occurs 
generally at night. It comes more in the form 
of a showery day or night, and such a thing as a 
real rainy day I have never seen in this part of 
Arizona. By the last of March the rapid evapo- 
ration has dried the surface again, and the power- 
ful sunshine soon burns and browns the verdure, 
so that by the middle of April or the first of May 
the only evidence of the luxuriant vegetable 
growth that had carpeted the ground is to be 
found in the dried grasses and flowers which 
have gone to seed. The whole surface is now 
quite as brown, bare-looking, and more arid than 
in mid-winter. Late in June, and for part of 
July, there is a shorter rain period, which gen- 
erally occurs annually, but in some seasons is 
very slight. This rainy season may last for three 
or four weeks, and is characterized by the same 
succession of showers, of even shorter duration 
than those that occur in the late winter months. 



SOUTHERN ARIZONA 241 

After this rain the country again presents for a 
brief period a most luxuriant vegetable growth 
of grasses and flowers. Chief among the latter 
is a kind of convolvulus, which, when in bloom, 
covers the plain about the middle of July with a 
blue carpet rivalling the gold of the poppies in 
March. Coincident with this, the yucca raises its 
white stalk of waxen bells, and the whole presents 
a scene the very antithesis of one's idea of a desert 
country. 

A short sketch of a friend who was of great ser- 
vice to me in many ways during my long stay in 
the Santa Catalinas will round out the story of 
that region. He was conversant with every part 
of this wilderness, and as a hunter had few equals. 
While he spoke no English, he taught me the 
Spanish dialect of the country. I came to know 
the local birds and their habits, and learned the 
musical Spanish names that really seem to belong 
to the beautiful creatures, when Castro went with 
me afield. 

The conception that most of us have of the 
swarthy Mexican is conventional, and is in a 
general way correct. They are lithe, dark-skinned 
men, with straight, black hair, and eyes like sloes. 
Gay and debonair in manner, they are nervous 
and excitable, and generous and hospitable to a 
fault, but withal improvident. Jesus Maria Castro 
was in appearance the exception that proves the 



242 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

rule. He was of the blue-eyed, golden-haired 
Castilian type that few of us associate with that 
people. Moreover, his hair was wavy, a quality 
even more noticeable in his flowing beard. A 
man of romantic disposition, of great kindliness, 
and prodigal generosity, he had never saved 
for himself out of all his earnings nor from his 
opportunities any property. When I knew Cas- 
tro he lived with his wife and younger children 
in a rude adobe cabin of a single room. I never 
rode by the door of Castro's cabin but that the 
Senora came out, greeted me profusely, begging 
me to alight and rest myself in the shade of 
her piazza. When I had complied, she always 
informed me that everything she had belonged 
to me, and began immediately to dispense such 
entertainment as was possible. This generally 
consisted of a cup of tea and tortillas, sometimes 
supplemented by some little dainty that she had 
kept for an event of this kind. 

As I sat in the shade of the rude piazza con- 
sisting of four posts overlaid by branches gath- 
ered from the trees, I felt that a great privilege 
was granted me. Never have I been enter- 
tained with better intent ; and though I realized 
that the tea which I was drinking was made of 
grasses and herbs gathered not far away, and 
probably only a little while before I dismounted ; 
that the flour of which the cakes were made 



SOUTHERN ARIZONA 243 

might be the last in the bag ; and while the cup 
was generally saucerless and often cracked, all 
this did not detract from the favor which was 
conferred. Looking inside the house I could 
see the bare mud walls and ceiling, the one bed, 
the meagre cooking apparatus, and the few chick- 
ens which were an inevitable part of a Mexican 
establishment ; for they occupied the interior of 
the house jointly with the proprietors. The 
family were very poor ; but I think I have never 
seen happier people; they were like children in 
their irresponsibility. Yet, when I knew them, 
Castro often informed me that he had seen worse 
times ; and when I first spoke to him of the pos- 
sibility of bettering his condition, he smiled and 
then related to me the following story. This 
occurred on one of our hunting trips together, 
and we participated in many. 

He said that some six or seven years before, 
when employment in the country was difficult to 
obtain, he realized as he went to bed one night 
that all the available provision for his family was 
consumed ; in short, there was absolutely nothing 
for breakfast the following morning. I can well 
imagine that he went to bed, as he told me, some- 
what depressed ; but I do not believe that, even 
under these circumstances, he lay long awake. 
However, he went on to state that, after having 
slept some time, he awoke and went to the door 



244 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

of the cabin, where he perceived by the situation 
of the constellations of stars and other phenom- 
ena of the heavens, with which he was familiar, 
that it was about an hour before daylight ; and it 
occurred to him that probably the best way to 
supply the lacking breakfast was to take his rifle 
and the few remaining cartridges which he pos- 
sessed, and go in quest of a deer or other game. 
Going to the rack on which hung his gun and 
ammunition he took them down, performed such 
a hurried toilet as time allowed him, and imme- 
diately started forth. He narrated to me in great 
detail the route which he traversed. This led him 
over a path with which I had become well ac- 
quainted, as we had often ridden over it together. 
Few people in this country walk, but this time 
Castro was on foot ; for even the horse, which is 
a Mexican's last property to be sacrificed, had been 
parted with. After passing over some two miles 
of the trail he arrived at a point where, from 
the bottom of the arroyo, the grassy hills covered 
with live-oaks rose on either side. Pausing at 
this spot, the gray of dawn was sufficient for him 
to distinguish a fine buck feeding on fallen acorns 
under one of the oaks on the hillside. He was 
not at all nervous, took very deliberate aim, fired, 
and the deer fell. He then climbed the ascent, 
cut the animal's throat, hung the carcass in the 
nearest tree, disembowelled it, so that it might 



SOUTHERN ARIZONA 245 

cool, and now, tired from his successful effort, 
he waited a while to rest, before returning. He 
seated himself on the nearest boulder, took from 
his pouch his paper and tobacco, and leisurely 
rolled the inevitable cigarette with which the 
Mexican passes every moment of quiet and many 
of action. He described the whole process of 
making the cigarette, striking the light, and his 
enjoyment of the first whiffs of the consoling 
weed. 

Every man, and especially every Mexican who 
lives in this part of the world, is a practical geol- 
ogist and mineralogist, and one of the most 
natural actions is to break and chip away bits of 
any rock near at hand, to see what mineral proper- 
ties, if any, it may possess. After rolling his ciga- 
rette, mechanically Castro did what I have seen him 
do many times. Reaching down he grasped the 
nearest fragment of rock, and began to chip away 
a corner of the boulder on which he sat. The 
first bit that was broken from it disclosed a mass 
of silver. 

At that moment, before he had time to ex- 
amine the treasure further, some slight noise 
awoke him, and he knew it was all a dream. But 
he was now really awake. Going to the door 
as he had done in his dream, he perceived by the 
situation of the stars in the heavens that the day 
was not far distant, and he resolved to fulfil every 



246 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

detail of the vision. Taking down his rifle he 
tried to do so with exactly the same movement, 
he clothed himself in precisely the same way, he 
set out on the trail, going, as nearly as he could, 
the same gait. Arriving after some time at the 
arroyo, he paused, looked up on the hillside in 
the first gray of the dawn, and there, under the 
oak tree, he perceived standing a fine buck. With 
great deliberation he aimed, and fired. The ani- 
mal fell. Climbing the ascent he cut the dead 
deer's throat and hung the carcass in the nearest 
tree, disembowelled it, and sat down on an adja- 
cent boulder to rest himself while it cooled. Then 
from his pouch he took his tobacco and paper, 
and proceeded to make his cigarette. Doing all 
this with great care and deliberation, he lighted 
it, and after enjoying a few whiffs, he leaned over, 
picked up a small piece of rock, and chipped off 
the corner of the boulder on which he was sitting. 
It was, not pure silver, but almost entirely virgin 
gold. 

What Castro did in the next hour he could not 
describe coherently ; for a short time he doubtless 
lost his wits. Great rocks of pure gold are not 
frequent in the Sierra. To Senora Castro I am 
indebted for a description of her husband on his 
return to the cabin, shortly after sunrise. She 
said he appeared to her coming down the side of 
the hill clothed only in his shirt and shoes ; upon 



SOUTHERN ARIZONA 247 

his back he carried what seemed to be two bags, 
that were in reality his trousers. He had tied 
up the bottom of each leg and filled it with 
the golden fragments of the boulder which by 
some means he had broken to pieces. He had 
also brought with him a small portion of the deer, 
upon which they made a hearty breakfast. Then 
taking his small son, Sisto, with him, and better 
equipped than on his first expedition, he revisited 
the scene of his labor. By twelve o'clock he had 
again returned with all of the remaining portions 
of the boulder, as well as the carcass of the deer. 

I shall now go on with the narrative of what 
ensued as he recounted it to me ; and the strangest 
part of the story is that, whether or no he had the 
vision, the reality was actual. The cashier of one 
of the banks in Tucson assured me that the insti- 
tution had paid to Castro twenty-seven hundred 
dollars in gold for the results of his half day's 
work. Many of the fragments were kept by the 
discoverer as specimens of " gold in the quartz." 
Even at the period of our friendship Castro still 
held on to a few of these. 

But to go on with his own story. He said he 
now realized what it was to be a rich man, and 
he began to consider what his duties to himself 
and his family might properly be. Among these 
he conceived that the education of his children 
was paramount, and decided to make this his 



248 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

chief end. Further, he thought it behooved him 
to celebrate so great an event by a fiesta of 
modest proportions, and to accomplish both these 
ends he journeyed with his children and family 
to the city of Tucson. 

Here he rented a small house, and summoning 
all his co-madres and com-padres together, the 
fiesta was duly inaugurated, and the children were 
put to school. There does not seem to be any 
institution among people in other parts of the 
world, or any relationship, that compares with or 
is like the bond which the Mexican expresses by 
the terms co-madre and com-padre. Perhaps it is 
enough to say that it embraces all kinsmen, inti- 
mate friends as well as others, not only those to 
whom obligation is felt, but also many who are 
obligated. I leave the imagination of the reader 
to depict the royal manner in which Castro at this 
time must have dispensed his hospitality. Rumors 
of it have reached me through his son-in-law, one 
Billy Elliott, a giant, red-haired Irishman, a happy- 
go-lucky nomad who had travelled far as a rolling 
stone, and had finally settled down to the occupa- 
tion of a miner and prospector in this remote 
region. His description was both florid and 
graphic. 

But alas for good intentions ! Prosperity thus 
acquired is traditional for its evanescence. It is 
said that all the " forty-niners " who retained their 



SOUTHERN ARIZONA 249 

wealth for any lasting period can be enumerated 
on the fingers of one hand. Fortune so easily 
acquired seems endless, and its disbursement is 
not heeded till accomplished. 

Castro was no exception. How long the fiesta 
lasted I do not know. The " education " of the 
children was completed with a rapidity that prob- 
ably satisfied the recipients. In short, in a few 
months Castro and his family returned to the 
little cabin in the Sierra, perhaps wiser, and 
certainly happy. They were always that. But 
the gold found in the boulder had all vanished ; 
and future efforts on the part of Castro and 
others to find the ledge from which it had 
"floated" proved unavailing. 

I have told these stories of this man, with 
whom I was constantly thrown during three 
years, for two purposes. First, that one may 
get an idea of the general air of romance that 
prevails among the people; for, while I am per- 
suaded that the incident is substantially correct, 
the glamour thrown over it by the description, 
and the wealth of the language in which it was 
expressed, adds greatly to the narrative, which 
seems to me, as I have told it in English, to lack 
the vitality and picturesqueness of the Spanish in 
which it was recited by Castro. Second, to im- 
press the fact that the vicissitudes of fortune are 
borne by this people with fortitude and a good 



250 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

philosophy. The Mexican may be always glad to 
postpone coming events to the "manana," but he 
does not waste energy in retrospective regrets. 
What has happened may afford theme for ro- 
mance, but does not furnish basis for idle be- 
moaning of " better days.". 

The experiences in the mountains and deserts 
of Arizona related in the preceding pages in- 
volved a period of some four years. There were 
slight breaks, such as I have mentioned, when I 
visited the East ; but practically all the time from 
the spring of 1882 until the spring of 1886 was 
spent in this region. I have referred to a year's 
leave of absence granted me by the trustees of 
Princeton College. At the end of this time I 
deemed it best to tender my resignation, and to 
devote myself to the business interests of which 
I have spoken. 

From this time on, that is, from the winter of 
1883, it must not be inferred that I abandoned or 
even seriously interrupted my work as a field- 
naturalist. For a time in Arizona I was diverted; 
but not even during this period was the work I 
had found so interesting wholly surrendered. 
The busiest day always found some hour when 
I could examine into the conditions about me. 

I need not allude to the great pleasure that 
came to me during this entire time through the 
constant additions I was making to the sum of 



SOUTHERN ARIZONA 251 

knowledge, much of which has been published, 
adding materially to what was known regarding 
the bird life of the Great Southwest. Finally, 
winding up my affairs to the best advantage pos- 
sible, I left Arizona for the last time in March, 
1886, and proceeded at once for the Gulf Coast 
of Florida. 

From 1883 until 1897 I continued my investi- 
gations independently, amassing collections which 
with my field notes formed a basis for numerous 
published contributions, generally technical in 
character. The collections becoming known in 
this way, were purchased for museums both 
in this country and abroad. Much of this time 
was passed in Florida, a season in the moun- 
tains of Virginia, and some five months were 
devoted to the Island of Jamaica in the West 
Indies. Shorter intervals were occupied by work 
in the vicinity of New York, in Westchester 
County, and in New Jersey in the neighbor- 
hood of South Orange. It is not my purpose 
to dwell on the two latter localities in this narra- 
tive ; but I wish to elaborate at some length parts 
of the work that I did in Florida, to present in 
some detail my impressions of the bird life of a 
tropical island, and to consider briefly the salient 
features of the high altitudes of the mountains 
of the southern part of the Appalachian range. 
In 1897 I returned to Princeton, and soon after- 



252 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

ward resumed my connection with the Univer- 
sity. 

All this has been told in order to trace the 
route that I have followed ; for it has led to a kind 
of study that was not in any way anticipated. 

This has grown to be an absorbing interest, 
almost to the exclusion of other fields of investi- 
gation. Yet I feel sure that the years of prepara- 
tion, what Huxley calls " Die Lehrjahre," were an 
essential part of an equipment which alone would 
qualify me for a more original field of research. 



CHAPTER X 

THE GULF COAST OF FLORIDA 

IN March, 1886, we left Arizona. We trav- 
elled to Florida, and Grouse and Bull alone of 
our animal friends accompanied us. The other 
members of the happy family at the " Little 
Palace " were provided with new homes among 
our different neighbors in the mountains; for 
though we would have gladly taken all of them 
with us, this was impossible. 

Our destination was a little town, Tarpon 
Springs, one of the many new resorts that had 
grown up since our former expedition to the 
Gulf Coast. During the entire interval that 
had elapsed since that event, some seven years 
back, a vast impetus had been given to the 
development of the resources of Florida. The 
cultivation of the orange and other members of 
the Citrus family presented golden visions, of 
more than one kind, to many. This enterprise, 
as well as the salubrity of the climate during the 
winter making the whole region favorable for 
places of winter resort, attracted the attention of 
a horde of land speculators. What is known as 



254 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

4 

a " boom " had set in. Seaside winter resorts, 
orange groves, pineapple culture, and many other 
industries and enterprises, formed a seeming basis 
for a great future. Speedily the wilderness was 
transformed. Small towns and hamlets dotted 
the state ; scarcely a portion of it had escaped. 

The Gulf Coast, formerly an almost unsettled 
region, where only seven years before tourists 
were unknown, was dotted up and down with 
small towns, separated by intervals of only a few 
miles. It began to appear as if this seacoast 
might rival that of New Jersey in the continuity 
of its panorama of towns and houses. 

Tarpon Springs is situated on a bayou leading 
out of the Anclote River, not far from its mouth. 
The land about is high and rolling, and formerly 
the pine forest reached to the water's edge. 
About a mile inland is Lake Butler, a very con- 
siderable body of fresh water. In the town, 
where most of the pines had been cut down, 
water-oaks and live-oaks afforded shade, cabbage 
palmettos were among the common trees, and 
hedges of oleander flourished wherever planted. 
In an enclosure, but a few steps from the bayou, 
we found a little house surrounded by such shade 
trees and shrubs. The house was new, built of 
the fragrant yellow pine (the most available wood 
of the district), and provided ample room for us. 
It was of one story, and on the whole not unlike the 



THE GULF COAST OF FLORIDA 255 

" Little Palace." This became our new home, and 
here I again took up the study of Florida birds. 

By the first of June the exigencies of the climate 
made it desirable for Mrs. Scott, and other mem- 
bers of the family who were also at this point, to 
seek the cooler region in the vicinity of New York. 
I had previously determined to remain in Florida 
continuously, as long as circumstances and my 
health would permit ; and did not leave the re- 
gion for nearly two years. 

The first excursion of a protracted length was 
undertaken immediately after the departure of my 
relatives for the North. I chartered a sloop and 
secured the services of a skipper for a trip south, 
to examine again some of the great rookeries and 
breeding grounds of aquatic birds that I had for- 
merly studied. Should time allow, I proposed 
also to visit other localities still farther south. 
At the time of starting on this trip I knew that 
herons'" plumes, the aigrettes, had commercial 
value, and believed that Florida probably contrib- 
uted its share. But I had no other idea than that 
I should be able readily to carry out the plan I 
had laid down for studying the breeding habits of 
the several herons. There was light needed in a 
number of directions, and problems that I felt 
sure could be solved without difficulty seemed to 
await the coming of some observer. I did not at 
all apprehend that, in the short period since I 



256 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

had formerly been on this coast, vital and radical 
changes could have taken place ; but the first few 
days of my cruising revealed conditions entirely 
different from those that I had anticipated, and my 
sojourn of six weeks served only to emphasize them. 

I have attempted a picture of a great bird 
rookery at several stages in this narrative, and 
to convey some idea of the magnitude of such 
breeding grounds and their propinquity to one 
another all along the Gulf Coast. This expedition 
revealed the obliteration and the extirpation of al- 
most all these vast colonies of birds. The details 
of all this I have already set forth in a paper, 
and the reader is referred to the bibliography for 
the title. It may, however, be well to say here 
that so extraordinary were the facts that I re- 
cited that Sir Alfred Newton, in his " Dictionary 
of Birds," under the title of "Extermination" has 
dwelt at length on the presentation that I made. 
At the time when I wrote the paper in question 
it was not part of my office in making a scientific 
record to do more than set forth very precisely 
the existing conditions. It was not in my prov- 
ince to express my opinion of the practices which 
had brought about the result, nor my sorrow 
and horror at the infinite destruction of life. I 
simply recited the occurrences and set forth the 
facts as I observed them. 

It would be difficult for me to find words 



THE GULF COAST OF FLORIDA 257 

adequate to express, not only my amazement, 
but also the increasing horror that grew on me 
day after day as I sailed southward. I was sick 
at heart before the cruise was well under way. 
The great Maximo rookery at the mouth of 
Tampa Bay was no longer a rookery; it was a 
deserted mangrove island. The beautiful rookery 
at the mouth of John's Pass was the resort of 
only a few frightened birds, and so it continued. 
At a point on the Myiakka River I saw a breed- 
ing place of the little white egret in process of 
destruction, and at another point in Charlotte 
Harbor I arrived the day after a great nesting 
resort had, as the "plume hunters" phrased it, 
been " broken up." At both places the result was 
accomplished in the same way. To put the 
reader fully in possession of the method I shall 
go briefly into the matter. 

The time when the several kinds of herons, 
known as egrets, wear their decorative plumes is 
coincident with the nuptial season. Then nature 
adds to their charm and beauty these superb deco- 
rations. They are worn only for a brief period, 
perhaps six weeks or two months altogether, and 
during all this interval the birds are busied in 
mating, in nest building, in incubating their eggs, 
and in rearing and feeding their young. It is 
a comparatively easy thing to disturb birds and 
to drive them away at the period of nest build- 



258 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

ing. Even when the eggs are laid, the old birds 
will often abandon them if slightly alarmed. 
When the helpless young are in the nest noth- 
ing short of catastrophe will induce their deser- 
tion. The parental instinct and affection is now 
strongest; the perpetuation of kind, the great 
achievement of all life, is about to be accom- 
plished. The consummation of that end, on 
which is based the strongest and most funda- 
mental of animal passions, is about to be fulfilled. 
This is the time and season chosen by the plume 
hunter for his harvest. Now he realizes that the 
cries of the young birds, hungry in their nests, 
will surely bring the parents back at short inter- 
vals, no matter how frequently disturbed and 
frightened away. To accomplish his object more 
surely he avails himself of modern contrivances 
for killing. The almost noiseless Flobert rifle, 
with its tiny charge to speed the fatal ball, the 
gun whose report is hardly louder than the snap- 
ping of a twig, is his weapon. Stationed within 
ten or twelve feet of a nest both parents are 
secured in a few moments, and then the next 
pair are dealt with in the same way. Continuous 
work of this kind from daylight to dark results 
in two things, a vast pile of carcasses of the dead 
parents, stripped of their beautiful plumes, and 
thousands of young birds left to starve to death 
in misery in their nests. 



THE GULF COAST OF FLORIDA 259 

Such was the scene that I saw repeated over 
and over and over and over again on my journey 
southward. Not only were the heron rookeries 
dealt with in this way, but on one large island I 
counted scores upon scores of dead brown pelicans, 
stripped of their plumage, and in the trees over- 
head were countless nests, which at the time of 
my visit contained the decaying bodies of young 
birds. Flocks of buzzards slept, gorged, on the 
naked limbs hard by, attesting to the horrible 
slaughter by the countless dead they left un- 
touched. 

A word more, and I have done. All this was 
undertaken and accomplished for what? For 
decoration to satisfy a sense of beauty ? I believe 
it was rather to follow a fashion. I wish clearly 
to emphasize the fact that I do not blame the 
women who use these decorations, for men are 
the responsible parties. No woman ever wore a 
decoration of any kind, much less the feathers 
of a bird, for her own pleasure or to attract the 
attention of other women. The object for which 
women wear all decorations is to enhance their 
attractiveness and beauty to men, not to them- 
selves or to each other ; and as long as men care 
to have women's hats decorated with feathers, and 
express their approval by admiration bestowed, 
just so long will the custom endure. 

Nor is this barbarous persecution confined to 



260 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

herons and pelicans. Native song-birds seem 
now immune. Recently, however, the wilds and 
fastnesses of New Guinea have been levied on 
for the plumes of those exquisite birds, so long 
mythical even to naturalists, " the birds of para- 
dise." These are of such incredible beauty in 
color, in texture, and in form, that when the first 
skins of birds of paradise came to the notice of 
naturalists, the myths connected with these birds 
(which no scientific man had then seen alive) 
were readily believed ; a fact which is illustrated 
by the name of the first kind of bird of paradise 
which was described by science. It was called 
apoda, the footless bird, the bird without legs. 
So glorious was the color, texture, and harmony 
of the plumage, that the stones of the native 
hunters that the birds never alighted on earth or 
tree, but always flew with feathers extended to 
the sun, was not only credited, but formed a basis 
for the name which they bear to this day. 

The following passage is taken from " The 
Malay Archipelago." Wallace, whose acquaint- 
ance, with these wonderful birds in life is more 
intimate than that of any other naturalist, says : 

" When the earliest European voyagers reached the Moluccas 
in search of cloves and nutmegs, which were then rare and pre- 
cious spices, they were presented with the dried skins of birds 
so strange and beautiful as to excite the admiration even of 
those wealth-seeking rovers. The Malay traders gave them the 



THE GULF COAST OF FLORIDA 261 

name oiManukdewata, or God's birds ; and the Portuguese, find- 
ing they had no feet or wings, and not being able to learn any- 
thing authentic about them, called them Passaros de Sol, or birds 
of the sun ; while the learned Dutchmen, who wrote in Latin, 
called them Avis paradiseus, or paradise bird. John van Lin- 
schoten gives these names in 1598, and tells us that no one has seen 
these birds alive, for they live in the air, always turning toward the 
sun, and never lighting on the earth till they die ; for they have 
neither feet nor wings, as, he adds, may be seen by the birds 
carried to India, and sometimes to Holland; but being very 
costly they were then rarely seen in Europe. More than a hun- 
dred years later Mr. William Funnel, who accompanied Dampier, 
and wrote an account of the voyage, saw specimens at Amboyna, 
and was told that they came to Banda to eat nutmegs, which 
intoxicated them and made them fall down senseless, and they 
were killed by ants. Down to 1 760, when Linnaeus named the 
largest species Paradisea apoda (the footless Paradise bird), no 
perfect specimen had been seen in Europe, and absolutely 
nothing was known about them." 

It does not seem too late, even at this date, to 
repair some of the damage, and much wise legis- 
lation has been enacted to that end. Another 
factor is, however, more essential, public opinion ; 
the cultivation of the sensibilities, the discourage- 
ment of taking life of any kind needlessly, the 
establishment of friendship between man and 
beast. The consummation of civilization in this 
direction, and the knowledge that much greater 
aesthetic satisfaction is to be derived from that 
which is alive rather than from that which is 
dead, is the result to be worked for. 



262 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

Returning from my trip to the South I visited 
at the mouth of Tampa Bay an enormous 
breeding ground of Cabot's terns, and continued 
my way homeward, reaching Tarpon Springs 
early in July. Throughout the summer I 
collected birds of the region, and made careful 
records of all observations regarding the summer 
bird fauna of the locality. Practically this sort of 
work was continued throughout the year, and 
until the following June, that of 1887, when I left 
Florida for a brief period, spending some three 
months in the North. 

Several matters that came under my notice 
during this time seem worthy of record. On the 
7th of February, 1887, from a nest in a rookery 
not far from the town, I took three young of Ward's 
heron, the prototype of the great blue heron of 
the North, and similar to that bird in general ap- 
pearance, though somewhat larger. These young 
birds were about three weeks old, and were pass- 
ing from the downy to the feathered state of 
plumage. My purpose was, to watch their growth, 
especially the development of the feathers. I put 
the fledgling herons under a rude cover in the 
yard inside of a low fence which they could not 
climb over, and fed them fresh fish cut into 
pieces. They also had a supply of water. In 
the space of a week or ten days, they were fully 
able to care for themselves, and it was only 



THE GULF COAST OF FLORIDA 263 

necessary to place the dishes containing food 
before them, when they would gulp it down in 
large mouthfuls, and then, standing on one or 
both legs, go to sleep. They grew very rapidly, 
and became extremely tame, seeming only to have 
antagonism to the dogs about the yard; for by 
this time the herons were no longer confined to 
their small coop, but roamed at large. So matters 
went on until they attained their full growth. 
Then, the purpose for which I had reared them 
having been accomplished, so far as the changes 
in feathers were concerned, I concluded, as they 
were a source of danger to the dogs, to take them 
back to the cypress swamp, the site of the rookery, 
thinking they would be best satisfied to be left in 
their native haunts. 

With this end in view I called in the services 
of one Brown, a colored man, who had been with 
me when the birds were captured. They were 
now placed in a rude coop and transferred to the 
wagon. We then drove to the cypress swamp 
some three miles from the town. It was late in 
the afternoon when we started, and by the time 
we arrived at our destination it was quite dark, 
late in the dusk of the evening; so we quickly 
liberated the captives, and returned. 

Imagine my surprise the next morning, on com- 
ing out of the house, to see the three herons perched 
in a row on the fence, announcing with loud voices 



264 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

and gaping mouths that it was high time for some 
one to go to the fish market. Needless to say, I 
went at once. Nor was this the end. I found I 
could not get rid of them. Like Sinbad the 
sailor, I had taken up a load, and could not lay it 
down ; the Old Man of the Sea would not relin- 
quish the advantage he had gained. After vari- 
ous experiments and expedients, an arrangement 
was contrived that seemed fair to all parties. 
There was a boat-house on the bayou that had 
a grated water door through which the tide rose 
and fell, and inside was a spacious pool for the 
accommodation of various craft. Now, this was 
not in use ; and here, for a time, two or three 
weeks, the birds were confined. They were sup- 
plied daily with food, and were able to catch 
many small fry that swam about in the enclosure, 
eking out a good living. After a time the water- 
gate was left open, when they all waded out, and 
flew to various points in the bayou. From that 
time on for months the herons were daily seen 
walking about, and at any time when I had a fish, 
I could call them and they would come and get it. 
With the arrival of sportsmen from the North, one 
by one these birds were sacrificed to satisfy the 
killing instinct that seemed to be rampant in the 
breast of every man who invaded Tarpon. The 
last one disappeared about fourteen or fifteen 
months after liberation. 



THE GULF COAST OF FLORIDA 265 

Fortunately, these occurrences answered a good 
purpose. The town authorities of course had 
noticed these birds, and I had frequently warned 
people not to kill them ; but this lesson was better 
than all preaching. Now a law was made that, 
within a certain distance of the town, and on the 
adjacent waters, no one should be allowed to fire 
a gun. As a consequence, during many ensuing 
winters many kinds of birds frequented these 
waters; wild ducks swam about in the bayou 
which reached away into the town, and became so 
tame as to approach within a few feet and pick up 
pieces of bread thrown to them, much as swans 
and ducks down on the ponds in Central Park. 
They soon found out that here they would be 
unmolested. 

Nor was this the only place where similar re- 
sults followed protective steps. There is a hotel 
on Tampa Bay located at the end of a long rail- 
way wharf which extends several miles out from 
the shore. Here passengers embarking and arriv- 
ing on the steamer for Key West are entertained. 
The dining-room windows did not simply look 
out upon the water, but were over it, the walls of 
the house rising on piles straight from the bay. 
While taking breakfast one morning in March, the 
windows all open, I was surprised to see countless 
wild ducks, chiefly the lesser scaup, swimming 
about close to the building, much at home. On 



266 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

throwing out a bit of bread, they scrambled for 
it and tussled with one another, much as tame 
ducks do. Then, as soon as other ducks at a 
little distance perceived that feeding was going 
on, they joined the troop, and before long several 
hundred wild ducks were under the windows of 
this hotel, affording an unusual sight 

The waiter, noticing my interest, informed me 
that this result had been brought about because, 
in order to prevent accidents to guests, one of the 
rules of the establishment was that no firearms 
should be discharged in the vicinity, from any 
point on the wharf, or on the adjacent waters. 
Not the least curious part of this incident is that 
the same kinds of ducks, only a little distance 
away in the bay, say a mile, were so extremely 
wild, that it was difficult to approach them. I 
believe that probably some of the individuals 
observed as so wary, were the very birds that, 
when in the vicinity of the building, lost all sense 
of fear. I am inclined to believe that they dis- 
criminated that danger ensued from the approach 
of men in boats, and that in the vicinity of the 
inn nothing was to be feared. 

During the same spring when the Ward's 
herons were obtained, I also procured a brood of 
four young sparrow-hawks, from a deserted wood- 
pecker's hole in a palmetto. The birds were just 
beginning to feather. They were kept under 



THE GULF COAST OF FLORIDA 267 

similar conditions to the herons, but were fed on 
raw meat, and throve well. While confined at first 
in an ordinary mocking-bird's cage, to prevent 
enemies from getting at them, as soon as they 
had grown wings and were able to fly about, they 
were allowed full liberty. For upward of a year 
three of them remained in the vicinity of my 
house, and might be seen perched on one of the 
chimneys during a part of the day. At such 
times, if any one approached them with a piece of 
meat, and whistled, they would immediately fly 
down, and take it from the hand ; and for a long 
period, while they were young, that is, until they 
were five months old, they all stayed about the 
house ; when any one appeared, stranger or 
friend, they were vociferous in their calls to be 
fed. The sharp " peep, peep, peep, peep," of their 
whistling was a sure indication in the house that 
some one was coming. During our absence one 
summer, these hawks disappeared, and I fancy 
that this came about because there was no one to 
feed them, and hence they naturally resorted en- 
tirely to the methods of wild birds. 

Another incident of the year 1887 was the 
discovery, in the vicinity of Tarpon Springs, on 
the i yth of March, of a nest of the ivory-billed 
woodpecker. I feel that the great pioneer of 
American ornithology has so fully painted the 
portrait of this noble woodpecker that I may 



268 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

better borrow from him than attempt a new 
description. 

et I have always imagined, that in the plumage of the beauti- 
ful ivory-billed woodpecker there is something very closely 
allied to the style of the great Vandyke. The broad extent of 
its dark, glossy body and tail, the large and well-defined white 
markings of the wings, neck, and bill, relieved by the rich 
carmine of the pendent crest of the male, and the brilliant 
yellow of its eye, have never failed to remind me of some of 
the boldest and noblest productions of that inimitable artist's 
pencil. So strangely indeed have these thoughts become in- 
grafted in my mind, as I have gradually obtained a more inti- 
mate acquaintance with the ivory-billed woodpecker, that 
whenever I have observed one of these birds flying from one 
tree to another, I have mentally exclaimed, 'There goes a 
Vandyke ! ' 

" I wish, kind reader, it were in my power to present to your 
mind's eye the favorite resort of the ivory-billed woodpecker. 
Would that I could describe the extent of those deep morasses, 
overshadowed by millions of gigantic dark cypresses, spreading 
their sturdy, moss-covered branches as if to admonish intrud- 
ing man to pause and reflect on the many difficulties which he 
must encounter, should he persist in venturing farther into their 
inaccessible recesses, extending for miles before him, where he 
should be interrupted by huge projecting branches, here and 
there the massy trunk of a fallen and decaying tree, and thou- 
sands of creeping and twining plants of innumerable species ! 
Would that I could represent to you the dangerous nature of 
the ground, its oozing, spongy, and miry disposition, although 
covered with a beautiful, but treacherous carpeting, composed 
of the richest mosses, flags, and waterlilies, no sooner receiving 
the pressure of the foot than it yields and endangers the very 
life of the adventurer, whilst here and there, as he approaches 
an opening, that proves merely a lake of black, muddy water, 



THE GULF COAST OF FLORIDA 269 

his ear is assailed by the dismal croaking of innumerable frogs, 
the hissing of serpents, or the bellowing of alligators ! Would 
that I could give you an idea of the sultry pestiferous atmos- 
phere that nearly suffocates the intruder during the meridian 
heat of our dogdays, in those gloomy and horrible swamps ! 
But the attempt to picture these scenes would be vain. Noth- 
ing short of ocular demonstration can express any adequate 
idea of them." 

Audubon found the ivory-bill breeding, and 
became intimately acquainted with its home and 
young. Few ornithologists of to-day have been 
so fortunate. From my notes made at the time, 
I copy as follows : 

"To-day I found a nest of ivory-billed woodpeckers, and 
obtained both parent birds and the single young which was 
the occupant of the nest. The cavity for the nest was exca- 
vated in a large cypress tree in the midst of a dense and 
sombre swamp, the entrance to the nest being forty-one feet 
from the level of the ground. The opening to the cavity was 
oval in shape, about three and a half inches wide and four and 
a half inches high. It seemed apparent that the same cavity 
had been used before for a nesting place. It was cylindrical, 
and rather more than fourteen inches deep. The young bird 
in the nest was a female, and though about one-third grown, 
was as yet only slightly feathered, and had not opened its eyes. 
The feathers of the first plumage were apparent, beginning to 
cover the down, and were exactly the same in coloration as 
those of the adult female bird." Mss. NOTES. 

So far as I am aware, this is the only recent 
record of the finding of the nest of this bird, and 
one of the few records that we have in regard to 



270 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

very young birds. The ivory-bill woodpecker was 
formerly common in the South, but is now rare 
and very shy. However, I once saw, during this 
same winter, eleven at once working on some 
dead cypress trees. Four were together on the 
same tree. 

I now purpose to dwell at some length on a 
protracted expedition made during the spring of 
1890. On this occasion I sailed south along 
the Gulf Coast, going over the ground formerly 
traversed, and, extending the journey beyond 
Punta Rassa, finally rounded Cape Sable, and 
went far to the northeast of it. Thence crossing 
to the Florida reef, I cruised among the Keys, 
ultimately reaching Key West. At this point, 
through the kindness of my friend the late Major 
Charles E. Bendire, U.S.A., and the courtesy of 
the Treasury Department, the Government Reve- 
nue Cutter McLane was placed at my disposal. 
Permission was granted me to visit the group of 
islands known as the Dry Tortugas, and to re- 
main there as long as might be essential to the 
end I had in view. I shall not dwell at length 
on the events of this expedition, which I have set 
forth fully in several papers, the titles of which 
are cited in the bibliography. 

Audubon has made the region in the vicinity 
of the Florida reef historical in ornithology by 
his explorations, and on this expedition much of 



THE GULF COAST OF FLORIDA 271 

this classic ground was traversed. Here was the 
home of the great white heron, a bird that for a 
while was lost, like a number of other of Audu- 
bon's discoveries. That is, for many years no 
other specimens than those which he brought 
back with him were obtained. Here, too, he saw 
and described vast flocks of flamingoes, and, so 
far as I am aware, no naturalist had seen this 
great flock of flamingoes since Audubon's day. 
It is true that local hunters, especially those in 
pursuit of plumes, had reported the great flock 
about to be described; but the reader can imag- 
ine something of my sensations on seeing for the 
first time probably more than a thousand of these 
remarkable birds in one great band. 

Eighteen miles east of Cape Sable three bays 
make into the mainland. The water in these 
bays and for miles outside of them is extremely 
shallow, being rarely more than a foot deep, 
while at ordinary tides the depth does not exceed 
six inches. The bottom is muddy, the mud is 
unfathomable and of the consistency of gruel, 
making wading impossible and poling a boat 
difficult. The shores are wooded with black 
mangrove, " buttonwood," and cabbage palmetto, 
beside some undergrowth of small shrubs. The 
land is so low as to be flooded at spring tides. It 
is therefore necessarily very damp, and is the 
home of vast hordes of mosquitoes, which flourish 



272 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

in all their varieties. Even in February, when 
I visited this spot, though a stiff easterly breeze 
was blowing all the time, going ashore was some- 
thing to be dreaded, and once upon the land the 
conditions were well nigh unbearable. There 
was no fresh water to be obtained for miles, the 
nearest being on the other side of Cape Sable, 
that is, to the west of it. It was a most desolate 
and forbidding country, either on the sea, if this 
shallow water might be termed sea, or on land, if 
these damp mangrove swamps with their muddy 
bottoms could be so designated. But it was pos- 
sible to make a headquarters upon the schooner 
in which I was cruising, some ten miles from the 
mouth of the first of these bays. 

After a long search, being well nigh discour- 
aged, and having at last found the flock, I deter- 
mined to remain for a time to observe the 
flamingoes. Rounding the point of the first or 
more westerly of the three bays, it was found to 
be a mile and a half in width, and it extended two 
miles into the land, with a decided bend or curve 
to the westward. No birds were observed until 
the extreme end of the bay was opened, and 
there, perhaps a mile away, was presented a novel 
and wonderful sight. Stretching out for fully 
three-quarters of a mile and about three hundred 
yards from the mainland shore was a band of rosy, 
firelike color. This band was unbroken, and 



THE GULF COAST OF FLORIDA 273 

seemed to be even, though curving with the con- 
tour of the shore. Now and again a flame or 
series of flames shot up above the level of the line, 
which was caused, as seen through a glass, by one 
or more birds raising their heads on their long, 
slim necks to rest themselves or to look about. 
When first noticed, most of the birds were feeding 
with their heads low down or below the surface, 
searching in the mud for minute shell-fish, which 
appeared to be their favorite food. Now some of 
the birds saw the boat, and the alarm was given. 
Slowly and gracefully the line began to contract 
toward the centre, and the band soon became a 
great red patch of fire on the water, the resem- 
blance to flame being much increased by the con- 
stant movements of the heads and necks of the 
multitude. In a few moments the birds began to 
rise, and all were soon in flight, passing out of the 
bay and over the point of land to the east in long 
lines and in V-shaped parties, recalling similar 
processions of wild geese. 

The color of the flamingoes when alighted 
was striking, but when in the air the birds 
seemed unreal. They were like a cloud of pink, 
flame-colored and brilliant with the hues of sun- 
set, shot with quivering tongues of fire. As far 
as one could see the retreating flock color was 
the conspicuous feature. Everything else was for 
the moment forgotten. 



274 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

After waiting a long time for the return of the 
birds, and exploring neighboring bays without 
discovering more, I returned to the schooner ; but 
the next morning was off bright and early, and on 
reaching the first bay the large flock was again 
found feeding. Instead of approaching by boat 
this time, I landed and toiled in spite of the 
mosquitoes to a point of vantage, perhaps some 
three hundred yards from the birds, where I 
could readily examine them, both with the naked 
eye and by the aid of a glass. 

While feeding, they were stretched out in a 
long line, generally in a single rank, but some- 
times in two platoons. The line varied in length 
at times ; now it extended for a mile, and again 
it contracted to some six hundred feet. When 
stretched to its extreme length, it was broken in 
places, intervals of a hundred feet being the 
longest open spaces. 

During the time the birds were feeding, there 
were three small parties, varying from two to five 
individuals, that were evidently doing picket-duty. 
At each end of the line, about a hundred yards 
from it, was posted one of these parties, and off- 
shore, about the centre, a third outpost was sta- 
tioned a hundred feet away. At intervals of half 
an hour, or perhaps a little longer, individuals 
composing these picket-squads would take wing, 
fly to the flock, and alight, and in less than a 



THE GULF COAST OF FLORIDA 275 

minute some other birds would take the places of 
the retired sentinels. The entire party of sentinels 
was not changed at one time ; one would retire and 
another take the vacant place. There were never 
more than five individuals in a picket party, and 
now and then I noticed a solitary sentinel, and 
the squad at times consisted of three birds. 
These outposts did not feed, and seemed to spend 
their time in watching and giving attention to the 
protection of the main body. 

Besides the bright scarlet birds (which were 
comparatively few) there were many individuals 
less brilliant; I should describe them as a rosy 
salmon, and some of the flock were a dull, grayish 
white in color. These three phases represented 
varying ages of the flamingoes, the dull gray birds 
being immature and the scarlet ones adults. 

In this remote region, beside the flamingoes, 
there were many other interesting birds. Large 
flocks of white pelicans, and a great many Cas- 
pian terns were present. The great white heron, 
which is a solitary bird, and not at all like in 
character to its gregarious smaller allies, the 
two white egrets, relieved the deep green of the 
mangrove that covered the shore, seeming like 
marble statues, and decidedly Japanese in effect. 
Nor were the smaller birds absent. Many kinds 
of warblers, great Carolina wrens, kingfishers, 
sparrow-hawks, flickers, catbirds, and fish-crows 



276 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

abounded. Overhead soared both kinds of buz- 
zards common to the region, and bald eagles 
might frequently be seen perched or flying. 

From the point where the flamingoes were 
observed, I crossed to Bahia Honda on the Florida 
reef, and thence turning again westward, sailed 
about among the various Keys in a leisurely 
manner, examining the birds and their breed- 
ing grounds, and ultimately reached Key West. 
Novelties that presented themselves on the way 
were the Mangrove cuckoo, the Key West vireo, 
and the black-whiskered vireo. On many of the 
low mangrove islands colonies of yellow-crowned 
night-herons were breeding, and throughout the 
journey I not only frequently saw the great white 
heron, a truly regal bird, but found it nesting, and 
obtained both its eggs and young. 

At Key West I remained nearly three weeks, 
during which time daily excursions were made to 
procure representative birds and to obtain addi- 
tional notes in regard to the migration, and com- 
parative abundance of the several kinds. 

I will now give some account of a visit to 
the Dry Tortugas, and the results that accrued 
from it, and then briefly summarize the general 
features, and more striking achievements of the 
several seasons that were passed on the Gulf 
Coast of Florida. 

The group of islands known as the Dry Tor- 



THE GULF COAST OF FLORIDA 277 

tugas have become famous since the time of my 
visit, in connection with the late Spanish war; 
and it is not my purpose to speak of present con- 
ditions, but rather to record such as existed twelve 
years ago. The Dry Tortugas are a group of 
irregular, low, sandy and coral islands, six in 
number, which are some sixty miles west of Key 
West in north latitude 24 35' and west longitude 
82 52' approximately. The only land between 
Key West and Tortugas is a group of Keys known 
as Marquesas. These Keys are within twenty 
miles of Key West, so that the little specks of 
land which we call the Dry Tortugas rise from 
the Gulf of Mexico in an isolated position ; the 
nearest island being forty miles distant. The 
mainland of Florida is a hundred and forty miles 
away, while the Island of Cuba is not quite ninety 
miles to the south. The coast of Yucatan is 
three hundred and fifty miles south-west, and, 
directly westward, the Mexican coast is seven 
hundred miles distant. I speak of all this so that 
to the reader it may be really apparent how 
isolated these islands are. 

The most important island of the group, 
though by no means the largest, is known as 
Garden Key. It is nearly circular, and when it 
was my headquarters its shores were defined by 
the ramparts of Fort Jefferson, an obsolete brick 
fortification, three tiers in height. In the enclos- 



278 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

ure formed by the ramparts, an area of some ten 
acres, are barracks and officers' quarters. In one 
part there was a very considerable grove of button- 
wood trees, perhaps half an acre in extent, and 
scattered about were some forty cocoanut palms, 
as well as single buttonwood trees of fairly good 
size, but not more than fifty feet high. None 
of these trees extend above the high walls of the 
fort, which rise fully sixty feet above the surface 
of the water. 

Three-quarters of a mile to the west of Garden 
Key is a small Key, oval in shape, containing 
about eight acres, which is known as Bird Key. 
Here myriads of terns come annually to breed, 
nesting both on the ground and in the low 
stunted bushes that shade it. I was not so 
fortunate as to see the terns nesting, nor were 
they present during my stay; but my friend, 
Dr. Goodman, who was stationed here in those 
days, and who undertook subsequent investiga- 
tions for me, told me that shortly after I left the 
birds arrived in great numbers. The noddies 
and sooty terns arrive at the Dry Tortugas about 
April 20, but at first remain only a few days and 
then disappear, to return some days later in greatly 
increased numbers, when breeding is almost im- 
mediately commenced. They leave early in the 
fall, and are not seen here, except an occasional 
one, until the following season. Since the Span- 



THE GULF COAST OF FLORIDA 279 

ish War the Government has carefully protected 
the nesting grounds of terns, as well as of the 
boobies, which breed in the vicinity on another 
Key. Formerly the egg hunters preyed on all 
at will, supplying annually eggs by the barrel to 
the Key West market. 

I cannot dwell on the details of the bird life 
that characterized these keys, except in a gen- 
eral way; the eighty different kinds of birds, 
represented by thousands of individuals, which I 
saw during my stay of three weeks, are fully dealt 
with in a paper indicated in the accompanying 
bibliography. I had come to the Dry Tortugas 
with the idea that I would see and become ac- 
quainted with water-birds that were new to me ; 
but fifty-seven kinds met with were land-birds, a 
marked preponderance. Therefore it is mainly 
regarding passeres that my contributions from 
these remote islands are of value. The conclu- 
sions I arrived at from watching the migration 
were that the birds of the Florida peninsula, which 
have become specialized so as to present tangible 
characteristics in appearance, are not migratory in 
a large sense, but are restricted to comparatively 
limited areas which they do not leave. For in- 
stance, the white-eyed vireo is a migrant bird in 
the eastern United States, passing southward to 
the island of Cuba, and even farther south in the 
winter, and the white-eyed vireo was a common 



2 8o THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

migrant at the Dry Tortugas. Now the represen- 
tative of the white-eyed vireo which resides in 
southern Florida, and which has become so spe- 
cialized in appearance as to receive an appellation 
of its own, the Key West vireo, was not observed 
at the Dry Tortugas. Similarly, the Maryland 
yellow-throat, which is a common migrant on the 
eastern coast of North America, was observed 
continually during my stay; while its near ally, 
the Florida yellow-throat, characteristic of the 
Gulf Coast of Florida, and which breeds there, 
was not present, and has never been observed 
away from Florida. The generalization to be 
made from these observations is that these spe- 
cialized forms have developed from closely allied 
kinds, largely as they have acquired non-migra- 
tory habits. 

During the interval which had elapsed since my 
return to Florida in 1886, concluding with my 
work in the year 1890, I had collected much 
material ; four months which were spent in the 
mountains of Virginia and North Carolina had 
added to this. 

An undescribed species of marsh-wren, a new 
sub-species of the white-bellied nuthatch, and the 
determination of the wild turkey of Florida as a 
sub-species, were parts of the contribution. In 
view of the fact that I have not seen in collec- 
tions, nor found in any locality where I have 



THE GULF COAST OF FLORIDA 281 

studied, Georgia, north Florida, or the Carolinas, 
intermediates in color and markings grading into 
the other forms of wild turkey, or white-bellied 
nuthatch, I now regard both these birds, not as 
sub-species, but as well marked, specific forms. 

Also during this time I sent to my friend, Mr. 
J. A. Allen of New York, a seaside sparrow, from 
the salt-water marshes of Florida, knowing it to 
be a new race. In the same way I placed a series 
of a new kind of rail with the late George B. Sen- 
nett, Esq., who was then writing a monograph on 
the salt water rails of North America. I was 
fully aware in sending him the bird that it was 
undescribed, and he did me the honor to name 
it after me. To Mr. Frank M. Chapman of the 
American Museum of Natural History I for- 
warded a series of the prototype of the Maryland 
yellow-throat as it exists in Florida, which I felt 
sure indicated at least sub-specific distinction. 
In this matter Mr. Chapman agreed with me, and 
duly described the new birds ; so that during this 
period I had found in a country where naturalists 
had been working for many years, six undescribed 
forms of bird life. Nor was there effort on my 
part in this direction. These were episodes in 
the routine of work that was being carried on. 

In a manner satisfactory to ornithologists, I 
established the specific identity of two supposed 
different forms known respectively as the short- 



282 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

tailed and little black hawks. These birds had 
been long known ; but it remained to find them 
breeding, and to deduce from observation the 
generalization that the difference in appearance 
which had led naturalists to consider them spe- 
cifically distinct was either a color-phase, corre- 
lating with sex, or, what is more probable, a 
double color-phase, such as exists in the common 
screech-owl, numerous birds of prey, as well as in 
some of the herons. At the Dry Tortugas, where 
my contributions were chiefly concerning land- 
birds, I observed two kinds of swallows, the 
Cuban cliff swallow and the Bahaman swallow, 
which had never before been recorded from 
North America. During all this period contri- 
butions were constantly made to technical ornith- 
ological magazines recording the results of work 
as it was accomplished ; the titles of these papers 
form part of the bibliographic list appended to 
this book. 

I wish it were in my power to express in con- 
cluding this chapter my appreciation of the beauty 
and variety of landscape in Florida, and to dwell 
more fully upon the never-failing source of delight 
afforded by its many waterways and the noble 
Gulf which bounds its western shores. The vast 
hammocks, with their imposing live-oak trees 
festooned with Spanish moss, where great mag- 
nolia trees shade under their overhanging limbs 



THE GULF COAST OF FLORIDA 283 

groves of wild oranges, and where the variety 
of plant life seems most luxuriant; the cypress 
swamps, gloomy and funereal in appearance, 
which are the homes of the ivory-billed wood- 
pecker, the swallow-tailed kite, and the resorts of 
deer and bear; the great prairies of southern 
Florida dotted with islands of palmetto and pine, 
are some of the regions that indicate the variety 
presented to the traveller. But the salient char- 
acteristic of Florida is the endless pine forest that 
practically covers the entire State. By many 
people these woods and forests are regarded as 
extremely monotonous, tiresome, and in no way 
pleasing. For my own part, I have never ceased 
to wonder at their beauty. In no two regions of 
Florida do they present exactly the same char- 
acter. The variety in form is endless; an ever 
changing picture is revealed, heightened by the 
interspersal of a varied undergrowth, palmetto, 
oak, and bay, and by the local light and color. 
These forests appealed to me for many years ; 
and for a long time I felt alone in caring for them, 
until at an exhibition of some of the work of the 
late George Inness I saw these very woods again 
in all their beauty. Of the waterways much has 
been said, and little can be added. They must 
be seen to be appreciated, and lived upon to be 
enjoyed. It is even so with the Mighty Gulf ! 



CHAPTER XI 

FLORIDA PRAIRIES AND VIRGINIA MOUNTAINS 

THE land of pine forest and cypress swamp, 
of lakes and everglades, of seashore and river, 
seems to offer in these prodigal diversity. It 
needs only mountains and great plains to round 
out the variety of physiographic conditions. 
There are no mountains ; but the plain region of 
Florida is not only well marked, but is extensive. 
These plains are situated in south Florida north- 
west of Lake Okeechobee. The Kissimmee River, 
in its lower stretches, runs through their eastern 
border, and the upper waters of the Caloosahatchee 
bound their limits to the south. The " Big 
Prairie," which I visited in April, 1892, reaches 
from the " hammock " that fringes the northern 
bank of the Caloosa River, north to Fort Ogden, 
a distance of forty miles. It is at its widest point 
thirty miles broad and its narrowest breadth is 
upward of twenty miles. This plain is without 
undulation, and is very even as to surface. Dur- 
ing the rainy season slight depressions become 
ponds or lakes of varying extent, and at times 

284 



FLORIDA PRAIRIES AND VIRGINIA MOUNTAINS 285 

of unusual precipitation nearly the entire area is 
submerged, suggesting the probability that this 
was once the floor of a sheet of water similar to 
Lake Okeechobee. 

Coarse wiry grasses, a growth of dwarf huckle- 
berry, and scrubby clumps of saw palmetto are 
the characteristic forms of plant life. Now and 
again at long intervals the monotony of the scene 
is varied. Isolated patches of pine forest of a few 
acres, and small " bayheads " of deciduous trees, 
appear above the level, like miniature islands in a 
lake. The conditions that obtain are not unlike 
parts of the prairies in Texas, and a similar, arid, 
desolate appearance distinguishes both. Mak- 
ing a camp in the hammock near the river, 
for a week in April, daily trips were undertaken, 
to learn something of the bird life that charac- 
terized this prairie. 

Birds there were in abundance and variety. 
Wild turkeys, pileated woodpeckers, sandhill 
cranes, ducks, and herons abounded ; besides 
throngs of many kinds of small birds were every- 
where. While these presented groups of sufficient 
interest, they were not what I sought to study in 
visiting this remote place. 

One of the birds of the plains characteristic of 
the plains was prominent ; the burrowing owl was 
plentiful, and generally distributed. This last con- 
dition precludes one of the salient habits of these 



286 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

owls in the " prairie-dog towns " gregariousness ; 
for there are no prairie-dogs on these prairies, and 
the little owls are forced to make their own bur- 
rows, which are widely scattered. My stay was co- 
incident with the height of the breeding season. 
The burrows, excavated as dwelling places, were 
also used for breeding, and at the mouth of each 
domicile was a little hillock of sand, the proprietor 
or joint owners often standing on this elevated 
porch to view the surroundings. Visitors were 
greeted by them with the same bowings, nods, 
and antics that are marked traits of their Western 
cousins. Too close an approach, though the 
birds were not timid or wary, often caused them, 
instead of flying, suddenly to disappear into the 
burrow. These excavations, several of which 
were explored, were generally about eight feet in 
length and some seven inches in diameter. They 
rarely penetrated more than eighteen inches below 
the surface, when they turned at an easy curve 
and were extended parallel to the top of the 
ground. The site for such a residence was more 
frequently in or near a clump of the dwarf, stunted 
huckleberry growth. At the end the burrow was 
enlarged into a chamber, and here the round white 
eggs, from four to seven in number, were laid 
There was but little attempt at nest making. 
Usually the eggs lay on a thin bed of cow-dung, 
dry trash, and a few feathers. This sort of 



FLORIDA PRAIRIES AND VIRGINIA MOUNTAINS 287 

material littered the floor of the burrow through- 
out. Rattlesnakes were plentiful on this prairie, 
but no communal relations with the owls had 
been established. 

The other notable bird of the region was the 
caracara eagle. It was conspicuous on account 
of its party-colored plumage, and its peculiar 
flight and strident, cackling cry at once arrested 
attention. I found three nests of this eagle con- 
taining young almost ready to fly. Two nests 
were in cabbage palmettos and one in a pine. 
They were all about twenty feet from the ground. 
The caracaras were not shy, and were as great 
nuisances about camp as the Canada jay is in 
the North. Their size allowed the pilfering of 
objects of some weight ; a duck or rabbit being 
readily carried off. 

I have gone into the history of these two birds 
for the reason that here is a comparatively small 
isolated prairie presenting conditions similar to 
regions in Texas. The nearest point in Texas is 
seven hundred miles away. In the intervening 
region there are no burrowing owls and no cara- 
cara eagles ; but both of these birds are character- 
istic of the arid plains of Texas. There are some 
miniature prairies on the larger islands of the 
Bahama group. Here again the burrowing owl 
is characteristic. Throughout the great pampas 
and arid dry stretches of South America, away 



288 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

to Patagonia, conditions prevail similar to those 
of the prairies of North America, and burrowing 
owls and caracaras flourish. A specialized terri- 
tory cropping out at far distant points on the 
same hemisphere is accompanied with certain 
specialized birds found nowhere else, but which 
are common to all such regions. 

The warmer portion of the year in Florida is 
enervating, and it was an advantage, from a 
working point of view, to have a climatic change. 
One excursion to a cooler and more bracing 
climate was to the elevated region in the south- 
western part of Virginia. Here the peaks of the 
Blue Ridge attain a height of more than four 
thousand feet. On almost the summit of one of 
these (to be exact, forty-one hundred feet above 
sea level) is an oval lake a mile long and a third 
of a mile across at its broadest part. A fringe 
of laurel reaches to the edge of the water, often 
overhanging it. This changes insensibly into a 
dense growth of luxuriant rhododendron, which, 
in its turn, fades into a sombre hemlock forest. 
At evening on a June day the color reflected 
from this frame in the placid waters is alone 
worth a long journey to look upon. The laurel 
and rhododendron, always beautiful, are at their 
best when in flower, and the mass of bloom and 
depth of color seem to culminate here ; for in the 
mirror all are duplicated and one sees four instead 



FLORIDA PRAIRIES AND VIRGINIA MOUNTAINS 289 

of two bands of gorgeous tints and hues wreath- 
ing the shores. 

In the woods, a little earlier in the season, aza- 
lias of the flame-colored variety blossom in pro- 
fusion, and throughout the summer a prolific 
succession of many-hued wild flowers delight the 
sojourner. 

The songs of the veery and solitary vireo ring 
through the hemlocks, snowbird's nests are more 
common than chipping-sparrows by the roadsides, 
while red-breasted nuthatches rear their young on 
the edge of every clearing. Yellow-bellied sap- 
suckers are the commonest breeding woodpeckers, 
and olive-sided flycatchers are not rare. The 
Canada fly-catching warbler is almost as frequently 
met with as the snowbird, and together with the 
Blackburnian, the black- throated blue and the 
black-throated green warblers, form a group 
whose members are conspicuous during the 
breeding season. Ravens and pileated wood- 
peckers are to be seen daily, and the voice of 
the turkey has not been silenced. Bird life is 
not only varied, for only the most notable kinds 
have been indicated, it is redundant. 

But you began to talk of Virginia, the land of 
the redbird and mocker! Of the magnolia and 
persimmon ! Yes, but this is an island. Not an 
island in the water, but in the air. For at high 
altitudes the conditions of more northern low- 



290 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

lands prevail, and it is the climate, fauna, and flora 
of Maine or New Hampshire that distinguishes 
the summit of the Blue Ridge at the point under 
discussion. Not every feature is present, and some 
details are added, but considered from a large 
point of view no other conclusion can be drawn. 
This is an Alpine island, possessing sufficiently 
definite characters to warrant its inclusion in the 
Canadian faunal zone. 

And the same is true in regard to elevation at 
any point. It need only attain to sufficient height, 
and the conditions that prevail there (average 
temperature and precipitation are perhaps chief 
among them) produce a fauna and flora similar to 
that found in adjacent land areas to the north 
and at sea level. One has only to look at a high 
peak with its perpetual cap of ice and snow to 
see an arctic island, and on its slopes will be found 
the parallel of a journey to the arctic zone. 

Mountain Lake, in Giles County, Virginia, is 
the " Canadian Island " I have pictured. There 
are similar regions extending down into the 
Carolinas and almost overlooking Florida from 
Georgia. 



CHAPTER XII 

XAYMACA; THE ISLAND OF MANY RIVERS 

"THE privileges of the white man in Hayti are 
not numerous, but exemplary conduct on his part 
always enables him to overcome the social dis- 
advantages attaching to his unfortunate color." 
This epigrammatic sentence, embodying the spirit 
of the Haytian Constitution, we heard from a 
fellow-passenger on the stanch British steam- 
ship Alene of the Atlas Line, commanded by a 
thorough-going Yankee sea-captain, which con- 
veyed our party to Jamaica, West Indies, in the 
autumn of 1890. 

We laughed heartily over the reversal of the 
white man's position in the Black Republic set 
forth by Mr. W , and half believed it a travel- 
ler's tale. Our own amusing, annoying, not to 
say humiliating, experiences later on in an island 
whose black population is six hundred thousand 
and whose resident whites number less than 
fifteen thousand, made the story quite credible. 
We came to understand how a black man may 
feel in a white man's country. But we had no 
misgivings during the voyage, every moment was 

291 



292 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

a delight. The cold November weather gave 
way as we sailed southward. The gray sky, the 
grayer sea with its cross waves and huge rollers, 
were soon left behind ; we entered the region of 
enchantment, deep blue sky above, deep blue 
ocean below; flying fishes, tropic birds, petrels, 
and boobies, adding life to the scene. 

On November 12 we sighted San Salvador, 
the landfall of Columbus. On the i4th the 
mountains of Hayti were plainly visible. As 
darkness came on we saw the Southern Cross for 
the first time, and on the morning of the i5th 
entered the harbor of Kingston. The previous 
night had been one of sleeplessness and discomfort, 
spent in vainly attempting to adjust the wind-sail 
in our port to the shifting courses of the ship, as 
we cruised about just outside the harbor, it being 
too late to enter, because of the dangerous reefs. 

Waking from a brief nap at the gray of dawn, 
the outlines of the mountains loomed up boldly 
through the dim light, Blue Mountain Peak lift- 
ing its superb height seven thousand feet and 
more above us. The first rays of the sun lighted 
peaks and canons, throwing them into boldest 
relief. The mountains in contour and coloring 
called to mind at once those of the familiar Santa 
Catalina's. The beautiful bay stretched away to 
the city six miles distant, the long low line of Port 
Royal fringed with cocoanut palms forming its 



XAYMACA; THE ISLAND OF MANY RIVERS 293 

eastern boundary. On the land green deepened 
to black and purple in the shadows of the moun- 
tains, in the bay opaline hues darkened in the 
depths of the water. 

We reached Kingston wharf at eight o'clock, 
greeted by a noisy, demonstrative crowd, grading 
in color from cafe au lait to ebony, and speaking 
a gibberish all unknown to us, English though it 
was. My letters of introduction to the governor 
and other prominent officials saved me much 
annoyance in getting through the customs. My 
scientific equipment was admitted free of duty. 

No sooner had we left the ship than a line of 
black cabbies assailed us, importunate, vociferous, 
and as bare-faced in their demands as those of our 
native land. Resisting all their efforts at extortion, 
we finally made a fair bargain, and got off in a 
two-seated trap drawn by a poor little rack-a-bones 
of a horse. We found ourselves at once in a tropi- 
cal town. The narrow streets were crowded with 
shops on either side, wares of all kinds displayed 
in heterogeneous confusion, dried fish, heaps of 
strange fruits, gay-colored stuffs, rum, whiskey, 
strings of dried peppers, with an occasional es- 
tablishment devoted exclusively to dry goods or 
hardware. More than occasional were the exclu- 
sive rumshops. Leaving the business streets 
behind we came to the region of houses, small 
cottages built close to the street, villas behind 



294 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

high walls of concrete, all of dazzling whiteness, 
draped with creepers, overhung with masses of* 
vivid poinsettia, tall palm trees lifting their stately 
heads in the background. 

The procession of peasants coming to market 
began to pass us, for it was Saturday, singly and 
in groups of three or four, the women bearing 
heavy burdens on their heads. The diminutive 
donkeys which they drove carried panniers heaped 
with yams, sweet potatoes, charcoal, grass, and 
sugar-cane, and now and again groaned under the 
weight of a lazy master. Short skirts, caught up 
with a curious hitch suggesting a reversed bustle, 
loose jackets, bare legs and feet, turbans of brill- 
iant colors, rags and tatters, characterize the 
drivers as they trot rapidly past with merry smile 
and a quaint courtesy in return for our greetings. 
The occasional men of the party meanwhile trudge- 
stolidly along, passing us unnoticed, their only bur- 
den a machete carried in the hand or on the head. 

And so it continued, this never ending proces- 
sion, till we reached the gates of Constant Spring 
Hotel, six miles distant from the city. Thus far 
we had seen few birds, save the " John Crows," 
turkey-buzzards circling just above the house-tops, 
and tick birds (anis) walking on the grass by the 
roadside. The ani is a slim bird, with a body a 
little larger than that of a cow-bird, and a long tail. 
The color is black, and the glossy feathers are 



XAYMACA; THE ISLAND OF MANY RIVERS 295 

lanceolate in shape with iridescent metallic sheen, 
steel-blue, purple, and green, of varying intensity. 
The bill, however, is the distinguishing feature. 
It is compressed laterally, and resembles the 
blade of an ink eraser, being about the same 
size, proportion, and of similar contour. Anis 
are gregarious, but do not assemble in large 
flocks. Rarely are more than six or eight found 
in company, and a solitary individual is excep- 
tional. Nor do the birds pair in the ordinary 
sense at mating time. Many work together in 
the construction of a large communistic nest, 
where all the females of the company lay their 
eggs. Twenty-one eggs have been taken from a 
single nest, but the number is not generally so 
large. The site is frequently in a bunch of 
mistletoe, always well up in the tree. 

Anis, while not exclusively insectivorous, are 
almost wholly so. Larvae and grubs, in the drop- 
pings of cattle and in the ground, are eagerly 
sought. But it is as an enemy of the grass-tick 
that the bird is noted. These minute parasites, 
whether among the blades of grass or in the 
hair of cattle, are hunted with avidity. Numbers 
of the birds may often be seen carefully search- 
ing through the hair of some patient cow or ox in 
repose, and a band of grazing animals is always 
attended by a party of these industrious hunters. 
They walk about on the bodies of their bovine 



296 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

friends as freely as on the ground, with a delibera- 
tion that indicates perfect freedom from fear. The 
ani is a member of the cuckoo family, and is 
among the more characteristic of the West 
Indian birds. It is not a little curious that in 
certain of its traits the cow-bird closely resembles 
the ani, and the cow-bird's habit of laying eggs in 
other birds' nests is found in another representa- 
tive of the cuckoo group. 

Comfortable quarters awaited us at the English- 
American inn, established this winter with expec- 
tation of extended patronage; for the much-heralded 
West Indian Exposition was to open the first of 
February. We had no desire to linger in this 
tourist-ridden spot, but began within a day or two 
to seek a suburban place where my work could 
be carried on without interruption. Before start- 
ing on our quest I called at King's House, pre- 
sented my letter of introduction to Sir Henry 
Blake, the governor, received from him a cordial 
welcome, and the official sanction to carry on my 
investigation of the bird life of the island. Lady 
Blake took us through the beautiful gardens, 
pointed out the many rare and strange plants, and 
showed us her interesting drawings and paintings 
of the bats of Jamaica, of which she has made a 
careful study. 

Our American consul, Mr. , interested him- 
self in our behalf, and furnished us with a list of 



XAYMACA; THE ISLAND OF MANY RIVERS 297 

the various "pens" in the neighborhood "to be 
let." A " pen " in Jamaica means a country place 
of more or less acreage. " Nightingale Grove " 
had attractions. The grounds were ample, the 
house of the prevailing type, two storied, with 
broad, spreading roof and jalousied verandas, 
answered our needs very well; but the "brown 
lady" was only willing to take us as lodgers. 
" The Retreat " was charmingly located about a 
half-mile from the hotel, embowered in the shade 
of the great silk-cotton trees, with bananas, bread- 
fruit, palms, and fantastic creepers offering ideal 
cover for birds. But here madam was obdurate; 
we could have three bedrooms and "the run of 
the drawing-room " for ^10 sterling a month, but 
she could not consent to give up the entire house 
to us; and this notwithstanding the place was 
advertised for rent. 

We soon learned that it was almost impossible 
to make any bargain with the average Jamaican, 
who is wholly unwilling to be held by his own 
terms. Exhausting the lists of near-by places, 
and finding none available, we drove one after- 
noon to Stony Hill. 

Groves of bananas, beds of ferns, carpets of 
lycopodium, clusters of orchids, are the fore- 
ground of the wooded hills through which winds 
the road. Built in the far-away days of slave 
labor, it is still a model of excellence, firm, and of 



298 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

easy grade. A thousand feet up is the reforma- 
tory, at the top of the first ridge, overlooking the 
Liguanea Plain and the sea. A well-kept barrack- 
like building houses the children, while the cottages 
of the officials are grouped picturesquely on the 
wide-spreading lawn. 

The school is well maintained, and the boys 
are taught trades. We were introduced to the 

Superintendent, Mr. W , the sole survivor 

of the Morant Bay rebellion, of the time of 
Governor Eyre of " infamous memory." Later, 
as our neighbor, we learned from him the true 
story of the insurrection, and modified the 
opinions which, as right-thinking abolitionists, 
we had always held. But that will come in due 
order. Leaving the reformatory we drove home- 
ward, stopping at " Fort George " as directed by 

Mr. W . Well back from the road, from 

which it was completely hidden, and fully three 
hundred feet above, we found the cottage. The 
location of the estate on the verge of a steep acclivity 
commanding the whole lower world of hills, plain, 
and sea, made the name well chosen. A wealth 
of trees, shrubs, and creepers, formed the surround- 
ings. Miss F , the owner, an English lady, 

was willing to let the second story of her house 
with outside kitchen. We engaged the lodgings 
for 6 sterling a month, and the following day 
took possession. 



XAYMACA: THE ISLAND OF MANY RIVERS 299 

Here my field-work went on uninterruptedly 
for six weeks. A stroll through the grounds 
revealed a variety of small birds represented in 
numbers. There were many of our warblers 
present, passing the winter season. The black 
and white creeper, the parula, the Cape May, the 
black-throated blue and myrtle warblers, might 
constantly be seen. Swainson's and the worm- 
eating warbler, as well as the oven-bird and the 
two kinds of water-thrushes found in eastern 
North America, were all present. The redstart 
was abundant, as was the Maryland yellowthroat. 
A tiny white-eyed vireo peculiar to the island, and 
the black and yellow honey-creeper, a small blue 
tanager with a rufous patch on the throat called 
the " blue quit," and the mountain bullfinch or 
cashew-bird, were among the commoner tropical 
insular forms. 

A small grass-green tody, with a vivid scarlet 
throat, reminded one of his near relative the king- 
fisher ; all the characteristic movements were the 
same. Perched on a dead twig, only a motion of 
the head indicated attention. The swoop from 
the point of vantage and return to it with a luck- 
less grasshopper or beetle were kingfisher-like in 
all details. Then the captured prey was beaten to 
death by the conspicuously large bill, and finally 
a backward toss of the head accompanied the 
swallowing of the morsel. 



3 oo THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

Like a house-wren in size, but with a shorter 
tail, the whole contour is that of a kingfisher in 
miniature, and the tiny glossy white eggs are laid 
in a Liliputian burrow excavated in some bank. 
Swallows were here, too. Home was recalled 
by the familiar denizens of bank and barn, but 
the Cuban cliff-swallow and the great blue 
swallow, as well as its golden ally, needed in- 
troduction. 

Each day discovered new treasures, and the 
interest awakened by them more than compen- 
sated for any trivial annoyance caused by the 
difficulties of housekeeping. The domestic prob- 
lems of Fort George were many and varied. Our 
apartment on the second floor was ample, com- 
prising dining-room and drawing-room and three 
bedrooms. A jalousied gallery, twelve feet wide 
and some thirty-five in length, extended across 
the eastern front of the house, forming living and 
work room. The jalousies permitted the free in- 
gress of the trade-wind, the beneficent "doctor" 
that every morning about ten o'clock comes to 
temper the tropical heat. The floors were of 
solid mahogany, hewn out by rude implements in 
slave days, with the polish given by a hundred 
years of constant use. The furniture was an- 
tique and hand-made, solid and cumbersome, as 
though built for giants plainly the workman- 
ship of the patient slave. 



XAYMACA; THE ISLAND OF MANY RIVERS 301 

Our contract provided for a kitchen having an 
American cooking stove, as the landlady ex- 
plained with pride ; but this room we did not 
inspect on our first visit. Lacking experience in 
West Indian ways, Mrs. Scott assumed that the 
kitchen and its furnishings would serve our needs. 
We drove up from the hotel in leisurely fashion 
after luncheon, and having unpacked certain 
possessions, began to think of dinner. Mrs. Scott 
with her two maids, the cook, Margaret Douglas, 
and the butler, Letitia Pink, departed to take 
possession of the kitchen. The perturbed state 
of mind of the housewife responsible for the daily 
provisioning of a family may be imagined, when 
she found, on entering, a small room of closetlike 
dimensions, with dirt floor, rough and unkempt, 
one end slightly higher than the other, and on 
this mound of earth a tiny " American cooking 
stove," minus pipe, doors, covers, and legs, the 
only utensil a little " shetpon," or tin bucket. As 
there was no hope here, an alcohol stove was 
called into immediate requisition, and furnished 
the cup of chocolate which, with boiled eggs, 
bread and butter, composed our first dinner at 
Fort George. 

Our landlady could do nothing; the kitchen 
answered her needs, why not ours? The next 
day we went in to Kingston, made the purchase 
of two coal oil stoves and the necessary pots and 



3 02 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

pans. Light housekeeping then went on in fair 
fashion. Fruits and vegetables passed the gar- 
den gate constantly on the heads of the market 
women. Margaret Douglas was thoroughly 
trustworthy, and knowing how to deal in the 
small coins of the realm, " quatties," " tups," and 
" bits," made wonderful bargains, and kept us well 
supplied with " heggs," " pinehapples," mangoes, 
"horanges," bananas, "honions," cabbages, bread- 
fruit, yams, and yampies. On market day Marga- 
ret went in to Kingston on foot and bought fresh 
meat, poultry, groceries, and came trudging back 
with her burden of eighty pounds poised on her 
head, happy and smiling, pleased with the sense 
of our confidence. 

We had much amusement in our shopping, for 
it was at the chemist's that we purchased our milk, 
butter, cheese, potted meats, and preserves. To 
be sure, the milk was tinned, as was the butter, 
and the latter of the brand known as " Manteca 
de Goshen," highly recommended, but strongly 
suggesting axle-grease. Bread was poor, because 
the high import duties made it impossible to bring 
in good flour. The grade employed for bill-board 
paste in the United States is that in general use. 

Mr. W , our neighbor at the Reformatory, 

gave us a graphic description of the rebellion of 
1865. When the court-house at Morant Bay was 
attacked by the blacks, he was struck down and 



XAYMACA; THE ISLAND OF MANY RIVERS 303 

left for dead, but managed later to crawl away 
and hide in an outhouse till the rioting was past. 
But for the prompt intervention of Governor 
Eyre in proclaiming martial law and punishing the 
chief offenders, a general insurrection would have 
followed. The machete, a cutlass of rude design, 
was the weapon used by the blacks in their attack, 
for it is always at hand, and is their chief indus- 
trial implement. 

Feeling ran high both in England and America 
at the time of the Jamaica outbreak. John Stuart 
Mill notably led in the protest against the policy 
of Governor Eyre, and in this country the aboli- 
tionists were at one in their sympathy for Gordon, 
whom they deemed a martyr. Ruskin, however, 
defended Governor Eyre, and it is now conceded 
by those who have had opportunity to study the 
question that he only did his duty. 

Mr. W finds life very dreary here because of 

the social privations. Relations with the blacks 
are trying ; one must not treat them with too great 
indulgence as they interpret this to mean fear. 
Some years ago Mr. W was employed as at- 
torney for a Quaker firm in Portland, and they, 
wishing to act with great humanity, had toasted 
bread and coffee served to their employees on a 
cotton plantation every morning, and in other 
ways treated them with great consideration. As 
a result the negroes, thinking their owners were 



304 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

trying to propitiate them, called their employers 
" buckra," white fools. The enterprise failed. 

Apart from the officials at the reformatory, 
Bishop Nuttall's family, and one or two others, our 
neighbors were black people. Their small hold- 
ings were on every side. All about, the wattled 
huts perched on the steep hillsides, or huddled close 
together near the roadway. Even in our distant 
wanderings in the high woods we frequently came 
across a clearing, with its tiny patch of bananas 
and plantains, straggling coffee bushes, yams, and 
aki; over all the dense shade of a breadfruit or cot- 
ton tree. Nearly every cabin had its tame parrot, 
one of the green variety peculiar to the island, 
and a mocking-bird was often a member of the 
family. Fowls were not abundant, owing to the 
depredations of the mongoose, and the peasantry 
seldom own cattle or horses. Occasionally some 
one quite well to do possesses a diminutive don- 
key. Salt fish from the United States is the food 
most prized, meat is a rare luxury. Cocoanut 
oil is used for cooking. Cocoanut cream made 
from the fresh nuts still in the milk is delicious, 
but must be eaten just after the nut has been 
gathered. The various starchy vegetables make 
up the rest of the diet of the peasants, and upon 
it they seem to thrive. 

Wages are low, judged by our standard. Butlers, 
cooks, and laundresses receive from ten shillings to 



XAYMACA; THE ISLAND OF MANY RIVERS 305 

twelve shillings per month, in the country districts, 
and find themselves. The peasant women were uni- 
formly courteous ; as they passed us on the road or 
the woodland paths, they courtesied politely, and 
greeted me with " Mawnin', ole Massa," " Mawnin', 
my sweet lub," to my young friend and assistant. 
The men lacked graciousness for the most part ; 
they are taciturn, and often sullen. In Kingston 
we met with numerous instances of their rudeness. 
It is said that they particularly dislike Americans. 
One day Mrs. Scott and Mr. D were re- 
turning from Kingston by train, which was very 
crowded, they being the only white passengers. A 
black man seated behind Mrs. Scott leaned for- 
ward and placed his elbows on the back of her 
seat, much to her discomfort. She asked him 
politely to remove his arms, whereupon a portly 
brown man, immaculately dressed in white duck, 
of much self-importance, remarked that " if the 
American person is uncomfortable, she had better 
leave the car, the gentleman can do as he pleases 

with his elbows," etc. Mr. D cut short this 

tirade in a peremptory manner, the gentleman 
withdrew the offending elbows, but the muttered 
comments and surly looks of the other passengers 
showed us plainly that we were unwelcome in- 
truders. One of the ordinances of Jamaica for- 
bids a white man, under penalty of fine and 
imprisonment, to swear at a black man. The 



3 o6 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

frequent provocation must have led to the pas- 
sage of the tantalizing law. The cabmen are 
insolent, the market women fly into a passion if 
a price is questioned. In the shops, when the 
negroes crowd against one rudely, there is no 
redress ; a complaint to a black policeman is use- 
less. All the minor officials everywhere, in post 
and telegraph stations, are of the same race. You 
must accept the fact that, as in Hayti, " the 
privileges of a white man are not numerous," and 
bear your novel position with due philosophy. 

As I wished to study the faunal conditions in 
other sections, we secured through friends the 
lease of a place called Boston, at Priestman's River, 
in the extreme northeastern point of the island. 
The pen was an estate of eleven hundred acres. 
Our lease gave us in addition to the furnished 
house, linen and silver included, the use of two 
horses and a supply of milk. We did not under- 
take farming operations ; they were still to go on 
under the direction of the head man, who was to 
keep us in wood. For this estate the rental was 
10 sterling a month. 

Having completed our negotiation by letter 
early in December, we began shortly to plan for 
our journey of some sixty miles, knowing that all 
details must be arranged well in advance. On 
the morning of December 22 we started. The 
drive to Annotta Bay was through a region of 



XAYMACA; THE ISLAND OF MANY RIVERS 307 

wonderful beauty, the road firm and well graded, 
sweeping around a succession of curves, giving us 
constantly changing views of rugged mountains, 
and deep gorges through which dashed the Wag 
Water. Huge boulders lie in the bed of the 
stream ; whirlpools, eddies, deep silent pools, the 
endless variations of a mountain torrent, delight 
our sight as our horses trot swiftly past. The 
banks are densely hung with fantastic creepers 
or shaded with the great plumes of the bamboo. 
At Castleton we stopped and walked about the 
Government Botanical Station, noted for its 
unrivalled collection of palms. The garden is on 
a hillside in a narrow valley ; along the winding 
walks the plants are arranged for display of their 
.finest features, combined either in picturesque 
groups, or, as in the case of some stately tree, 
growing quite apart. The tropical luxuriance 
here surpasses anything we have seen. 

As we approached Annotta Bay our road came 
down from the hills into the flat lowlands, long 
stretches of meadow over which many cattle were 
feeding. The Wag Water here spreads out into 
a broad, shallow stream. As we neared the sea 
we could hear the thundering of the surf, and 
soon came in sight of the great waves rolling in 
and breaking on the roadway. For a short dis- 
tance we seemed below sea-level. Following 
along the coast we passed a succession of cocoa- 



3 o8 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

nut groves, pastures, banana plantations, the 
hills back at a considerable distance, showing 
their far-away tops in a mist of rain. We crossed 
several rivers on the new iron bridges just being 
completed by the enterprise of an American rail- 
road company. Buff Bay was reached in the late 

afternoon. We had been directed to Miss D 's 

lodging-house, which proved a shabby, one-storied 
cottage, approached by a flight of steep steps. 
Entering an untidy sitting room, we asked to see 
the bedrooms they were not made up yet. 
Insisting that we must look at the rooms at 
once, we found them filled with people, dogs, 
and dirt, the air pervaded with the odor of castor- 
oil, the favorite hair pomade. At another tavern 
one clean room was discovered. Two tables, a 
sofa, and buffet made up the furniture. We 
decided to camp for the night at this place, as it 
was useless to look farther. Just as we had re- 
signed ourselves to the inevitable, a card was sent 
in, and we were warmly greeted by Mr. Espeut, 
one of the large landowners of the neighborhood, 
whom I had met in Kingston. Mr. Espeut recog- 
nized me in passing, and realized our plight. Mrs. 
Espeut shortly joined him, and they urged us to 
spend the night at Spring Garden, their country 
place. The cordial invitation was finally accepted 

for the elder lady of the party, Mrs. J . After 

their departure we made ourselves comfortable 



XAYMACA; THE ISLAND OF MANY RIVERS 309 

with our rugs, and fared well on a cup of coffee, 
eggs, biscuit, and jam. In the early morning we 
drove on for breakfast at Spring Garden. It is 
a large estate, formerly a sugar plantation, the 
land now leased to the Boston Fruit Company 
for the culture of bananas. We spent a couple 
of hours with our kind host and hostess on the 
terrace, overlooking the sea, and then continued 
our journey. 

Twice in the last four hundred years vast wealth 
has been concentrated in Jamaica, and twice this 
wealth has been dissipated. Both stories are in- 
teresting. When the " gentlemen of fortune " 
of all nationalities consorted in companies to- 
gether and plied their vocation, the Spanish Main 
was the El Dorado they sought, and ultimately 
the city of Port Royal became the rendezvous of 
many of them the haven of rest of the bucca- 
neers. Here they lived in the most magnificent 
luxury, and here their orgies became so notorious 
that Port Royal was a synonym for the most wan- 
ton waste and wickedness of all kinds. 

" On the yth of June, 1692, the great earthquake occurred 
which almost destroyed the opulent city. Whole streets with 
their inhabitants were swallowed up by the opening of the 
earth, which, as it closed again, squeezed the people to death. 
Of the three thousand houses, but about two hundred, with 
Fort Charles, remained. The whole island felt the shock. 
Chains of hills were riven asunder ; new channels formed for 
the rivers ; mountains dissolved with a mighty crash, burying 



3 io THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

alive the people of the adjacent valleys ; whole settlements 
sunk into the bowels of the earth, plantations were removed 
en masse. 

" The sentence of desolation was thus, however, but partially 
fulfilled ; a noxious miasma, generated by the shoals of putre- 
fying bodies that floated about in the harbor of Port Royal, or 
lay in heaps in the suburbs, slew thousands of the survivors." 

Again, with the development of the sugar- 
cane industry, the island blossomed into fabulous 
prosperity. At the time of the abolition of the 
slave-trade, 1807, the proprietors were gleaning a 
harvest and amassing annual wealth that, if put 
in figures, would hardly seem credible. A single 
bi-product of the cane, rum, was alone worth 
many times the entire value of the present annual 
sugar crop. 

With the emancipation of the slaves, and their 
purchase by the English Government, in 1833, 
began the decline of the second period in the 
fortunes of the island. About the same time one 
of the principal enemies of the sugar estates, the 
brown rat, was brought by ships from foreign 
ports. The depredations of this rat finally became 
so marked that on most estates it was conceded 
that a loss of about thirty per cent of the entire 
crop accrued from this source alone. Various 
remedies were sought to overcome the devasta- 
tions so wrought, and sundry panaceas were tried 
to remedy the evil. 



XAYMACA; THE ISLAND OF MANY RIVERS 311 

For two hundred years numerous suggestions 
have been made to mitigate the havoc caused by 
rats upon the cane crops of Jamaica, and rat- 
catching has always figured as an important item 
of expense on all sugar estates. The brown and 
black rats of Europe were, no doubt, introduced 
by ships, for they are common and occur gener- 
ally. However, the rat which Gosse has described 
under the name of Mus saccharivorus is appar- 
ently a different species, and is distinguished by 
its lighter under parts and larger size, specimens 
often measuring from the tip of the nose to the 
tip of the tail as much as twenty inches. Ferrets 
were introduced, but proved inadequate; and it 
is hardly necessary to say that cats and dogs could 
not cope with the enemy. 

At one time Sir Charles Price, an Englishman 
connected with the government of the island, con- 
ceived the idea of bringing from South America 
some species of weasel which he thought might 
prove efficacious, but his efforts were in vain. In 
1762 it is said that Thomas Raffles introduced 
from the island of Cuba the native ants. These 
proved of some benefit, and are regarded by the 
sugar-planter of to-day as valuable allies. In 
1844 Mr. Anthony Davis brought from South 
America a gigantic toad which had proved effi- 
cacious in the islands of Martinique and Barba- 
does in destroying young rats. They had been 



3 i2 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

introduced there from Cayenne, where they abound 
in great numbers ; but neither this toad nor the 
ant in question achieved the results that had been 
expected. As late as the year 1872 the rat pest 
continued as great a menace as ever. 

To give an idea of the estimation in which the 
planters held the destructive powers of the sugar- 
cane rat, it may be stated that on large estates an 
annual expenditure of no less a sum than two 
hundred pounds sterling was set aside for rat- 
catching, poisons, and destruction of the vermin 
in various ways. It is not possible to estimate 
altogether the total annual loss caused by these 
vermin; but the consensus of opinion of the 
sugar growers seemed to be that it varied from 
twenty to thirty per cent of the entire crop. 

As early as 1816 Lunan suggested the capabili- 
ties of the mongoose in these words : 

" There is in India an animal called mungoose, which bears 
a natural antipathy to rats. If this animal was introduced here 
it might extirpate the whole race of these noxious vermin." 

It remained for the gentleman with whom we 
were breakfasting to introduce a relentless enemy 
of the rat. William Bancroft Espeut, Esq., was 
a member of the Governor's Council. I was es- 
pecially glad to meet him, and to learn from 
his own lips how he brought the first of these 
animals to the island. Having made arrange- 



XAYMACA; THE ISLAND OF MANY RIVERS 313 

ments to have them captured in their native home, 
India, and brought to this far-distant island, his 
efforts were successful in landing on his estate, 
in 1872, nine mongoose. He told me that four 
of these were males and five females. These 
he liberated at several different points, and the 
result was awaited with interest. The mongoose, 
an inveterate hunter of all kinds of eggs, is 
efficacious in India in ridding the country to a 
large extent of snakes ; and as it is also equally 
sagacious in finding the young of most kinds of 
animals, its destructive powers can readily be im- 
agined. The story of what the wily mongoose 
accomplished in the island of Jamaica in the 
short space of twenty years is well known to 
many, but I will briefly summarize it. From the 
nine animals introduced by Mr. Espeut there 
soon developed a numerous progeny. The bal- 
ance of nature in any given locality is so well- 
adjusted that extreme preponderance of any given 
form of life seems to be held well in check by 
natural enemies in the struggle for existence; 
with the entrance into a new environment of any 
given organism, the conditions are probably often 
more favorable for its increase than in the region 
from which it has been taken, especially if this be 
a remote one, for obviously there are no natural 
enemies, it not being a concomitant part of the 
machinery of nature at that point. The mon- 



3 i4 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

goose did not offer an exception to this gener- 
alization. 

Shortly before my visit to Jamaica these animals 
had increased to such prodigious numbers and 
their devastations had become so great that a 
Royal Commission was appointed to look into the 
matter. It will be sufficient for the purpose I 
have in view to say that the mongoose practically 
effected the purpose for which it was brought, 
namely, the destruction of the sugar-cane rat. 
But I have stated enough of the habits of this 
animal to make plain that with its increase in 
abundance other food supplies were necessary to 
furnish subsistence for the growing number. The 
eggs of ground-breeding birds, of lizards, snakes, 
as well as the young of all these animals, were 
preyed upon with some of the following results : 
ground-building birds, such as the quail and the 
guinea-fowl, exotic species, which had become 
feral in the island, as well as small insectivorous 
birds, many of the native ground-building doves 
and the like, were shortly either wholly extermi- 
nated or were much reduced. At the time of my 
visit to the island the quail had become extinct, 
the guinea-fowl was practically exterminated, all 
the snakes of the island had been annihilated, and 
as none of these were poisonous, so large an ele- 
ment of animal life taken from the whole began 
to show widely ramifying effects. Many species 



XAYMACA; THE ISLAND OF MANY RIVERS $15 

of lizards had become very rare, and a number of 
them were wholly extirpated. Now all of these 
lizards were insect-feeding animals, and did their 
part to hold in check the throngs of insects which 
swarm in the tropics. The raising of all poultry 
was rendered well-nigh impossible, and even the 
young of animals like the pig and sheep suffered 
severely from the ravages of the mongoose. 

One of the industries of the island of Jamaica 
was the raising of beef cattle, and the so-called 
pens on the islands, large cattle estates, had 
become famous in trade and story. Here were 
bred some of the finest cattle for supplying the 
markets of the neighboring islands, both for 
draught and market purposes. With the serious 
decline in bird and reptile life, resulting from the 
source I have indicated, there came a marked 
increase among certain insects that had always 
been regarded as great pests by the islanders. 
Chief among these was the grass-tick. This is a 
minute tick living in the grass fields; and with 
the destruction of its natural enemies, birds, lizards, 
and snakes, it multiplied and began to assume 
proportions that menaced the entire industry of 
cattle and sheep raising. More recently the de- 
struction of this industry has been practically 
accomplished; for I have learned from those who 
passed last winter in the island that the raising 
of cattle and sheep had been abandoned at most 



3 i6 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

points wholly on account of the grass-tick. Even 
during the several months we spent on an estate, 
there were large grass fields, as attractive to the 
eye and with as luxuriant a growth as one could 
hope to see, which were not only shunned by the 
cattle, but into which they refused to be driven. 
Horses, as well as cattle and sheep, were the 
sufferers; so that it needs no little imagination 
on the part of the reader to conceive the endless 
consequences ensuing on the introduction of the 
mongoose. 

It is only necessary to look at similar experi- 
ments made in various parts of the world to be 
aware of the inevitable evil results that follow. 
The naturalization of the rabbit in Australia and 
of the English sparrow in America are well 
known ; and what they have accomplished in 
both regions has been summarized and set forth 
in detail by many writers. But even at their 
worst, no comparison can be made between them 
and the mongoose. It is probable that because 
this animal was brought into a small insular area 
that it achieved necessarily more deep-reaching 
effects than if it had been taken into the larger 
area of the mainland ; for it is accepted that 
islands furnish protection to certain forms of life 
which have ceased to exist on the adjacent main- 
land, and conversely the opposite is true. 

At the Spanish River our carriage was taken 



XAYiMACA; THE ISLAND OF MANY RIVERS 317 

in charge by eight stalwart black men, who, 
divested of clothing, swam across the stream sup- 
porting and floating the buggy by their united 
efforts. The horses swam under the guidance of 
other men, while we crossed on a narrow plank. 
The Spanish River, in native parlance, was " well 
down," we should say, up, rather ; for swollen with 
recent rains it came in a torrent from the high 
mountains towering over our heads. At the 
Swift and Rio Grande rivers we had to seek 
similar aid, and most courteously was it given 
by the engineers in charge. Port Antonio, the 
metropolis of the north shore, with its fine har- 
bor, we reached for a late luncheon. At that 
time only the usual native lodging-house offered 
accommodations, but now an admirable inn under 
the management of the American Fruit Company 
affords every comfort to the tourist. Delightfully 
situated on the high bluff overlooking the sea, 
the hills rising sharply in the background, topped 
by the glorious Blue Mountain peak, a more 
beautiful site for a winter resort is nowhere to be 
found. 

We made good speed from Port Antonio to 
" Boston," over a road gaining in beauty as it 
wound in and out along the curving shore, close 
to the sea; now on the sands, again climbing a 
steep incline, protected by a solid stone rampart 
from a frowning precipice, or crossing a wide 



3 i8 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

savannah, in which the cattle browsed in grass 
up to their knees. As darkness fell we reached 
our destination. Satan, a huge mastiff, came out 

to meet us, accompanying Mr. H , the factor 

of the property, whom the owner, Mr. J , had 

left to see us properly installed. A host of dusky 
retainers lurked in the background. 

The next morning we looked down on the deep 
blue Caribbean, three hundred feet below. A 
broad, undulating pasture lay in front, fringed on 
the shore by a grove of cocoanut trees. On the 
slope of the hill were groups of pimento, mango, 
and orange trees, with a few scattered palms. 
The house, a bungalow, was built close against 
the hill which rose abruptly behind it. A low 
stone wall formed a garden-enclosure, all over- 
grown with lycopodium, and surmounted by a 
chevaux-de-frise of the ping-wing, a spiked-leaved 
plant resembling the pineapple. Within, the 
crotons, poinsettias, and hibiscus furnished a 
wealth of color. The veranda was embowered in 
the fragrant bougainvillea ; ferns .of bewildering 
variety clung to every rock and cranny. When 
we learned there were five hundred species of the 
latter on the island we gave up seeking names 
for each kind. The rooms were large and well 
furnished. A grand piano and an organ lent 
dignity to the drawing-room, silver and china 
were unexceptionable ; but all the luxury was 



XAYMACA; THE ISLAND OF MANY RIVERS 319 

offset by the dismal black hole called the kitchen, 
with its rough stone floor and forlorn little 
American cooking stove, one, however, in which 
it was at least possible to build a fire. As we had 
by this time become accustomed to Jamaican 
ways of living, it was easier to surmount obstacles, 
and by dint of management our establishment 
was soon in good working order. 

Every morning we were awakened by the 
plaintive call-notes of the various wild pigeons 
and doves that abounded. In the vicinity of the 
house the white-headed pigeon, the Zenaida or 
pea-dove, the white-winged dove, and the tiny 
ground-dove predominated. But we only had to 
go a short distance to encounter others. The 
ring-tailed pigeon, the game-bird par excellence 
of Jamaica, and ranked among the chief table 
delicacies of the island, was common in the deep 
forest. It seemed a bird of the high trees, as was 
the white-crowned pigeon, while the other kinds 
referred to frequent either open grounds or thick- 
ets. The ring-tailed pigeon exceeds in size the 
largest of our domesticated birds, and the white- 
crowned pigeon is in this respect about like a car- 
rier. The white-bellied pigeon was to be found in 
the undergrowth of the forests, as were three quail- 
doves, the ruddy or mountain, the blue dove, or 
"mountain-witch," and the blue-headed quail-dove. 
The first of this trio was abundant, the others less 



3 20 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

common, and all are singularly beautiful with iri- 
descent color. 

On the stretches of grass land, anis followed 
the cows and sheep, and in the trees just about 
the house mocking-birds, honey-creepers, tanagers 
of several kinds, cotton-tree sparrows, and white- 
winged orioles were always flitting about. 

A large swift, locally known as the "ringed 
gowrie," was often present in great numbers late in 
the afternoon. They are fully three times the size 
of our chimney-swift, gray in color, relieved by 
a pure white collar about the neck. Generally 
they flew high in the air, but now and then I saw 
them skimming low over the meadows. Their 
flight is of great velocity, and the rapid evolutions 
characteristic of swifts are emphasized. In con- 
trast is the diminutive palm-swift, much smaller, 
but in color like a chimney-swift, which I never 
saw far from its favorite cocoanut trees. The 
" gowrie " was never seen at rest, but the palm- 
swifts often alighted. Barn-owls flew like silent 
white ghosts low over the meadows in the moon- 
light, or perched in a tree ne^r the house, crying 
like some lost soul. Nor have I named a tithe of 
the birds at " Boston " ; for the ducks and grebes 
of the ponds in the pasture, for the denizens of 
the garden, and the songsters of the woodland a 
separate book is needed. A resume of the birds 
may be found cited in the bibliography. 



XAYMACA; THE ISLAND OF MANY RIVERS 321 

Having established relations with Mr. M , 

the enterprising agent in Port Antonio of the 
American Fruit Company, we were able to get 
needed stores, flour of good quality, butter, and 
bacon from the United States. Poultry, eggs, 
vegetables, fruit, coffee, the latter home cured, 
were supplied by higglers at the door. 

There is a monotony about tropical fare in a 
country district. Ice is wanting, butter and cream 
lack a proper consistency, and though the climate 
suggests cooling beverages, sherbets and other 
frozen compounds, one must adjust one's palate to 
a lukewarm temperature. Meat must be eaten 
before it is properly hung, and hence lacks savor ; 
the same is true of poultry. Of our accustomed 
vegetables, we had potatoes and tomatoes ; for the 
rest we found the chou-chou, which grew like the 
cocoa directly from the trunk of a tree, an admi- 
rable substitute for squash. The aki, suggestive 
of omelet, did not tempt us, one portion was said 
to be poisonous. Fruits there were in endless 
variety, sweet-sop, sour-sop, star-apple, custard 
apple, sapodilla, avocado pear, mammee-sapota, 
mango, in addition to the familiar pineapple, 
orange, lime, shaddock, and cocoanut. The 
Number Eleven Mango is a fruit to be remem- 
bered, ranking, I fancy, with the famous durian 
of Borneo. Of the other unfamiliar fruits I can 
say little in praise ; all save the avocado pear are 



322 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

insipid, sweet, and sticky. This so-called pear is 
in reality a vegetable, and is excellent as a salad. 

Numerous were the vassals and retainers of the 
pen that claimed service with us. We scarcely 
knew them all by name; but as their wages 
amounted to no more than that of one good 
servant at home, and they found themselves, we 
could not complain. In the early morning, when 
my work began, Diana, the housemaid, could 
always be seen shinning up a tree to gather wild 
oranges for cleaning the floors. This she did 
industriously, applying water strongly saturated 
with the acid juice of the sour orange, as a 
protection against insect pests. The mahogany 
floors shone under her vigorous polishing, the 
husk of a cocoanut making an excellent brush for 
the application of the wax. 

I have mentioned that one of our perquisites at 
" Boston " was a supply of fresh milk ; the amount 
was not stipulated in the lease, but as there was 
a goodly herd of cattle, we counted on once more 
having cow's milk and cream in abundance, as a 
welcome change from the tinned variety. The 
morning after our arrival we were awakened at 
dawn by wild shoutings and hallooing, the bark- 
ing of dogs, and the noise of a rush of hoofed 
animals across the pasture lands. Jumping up, 
and looking out through the jalousies, I first 
thought a round-up was underway, the old famil- 



XAYMACA; THE ISLAND OF MANY RIVERS 323 

iar Arizona scene was so vividly recalled. But I 
soon discovered that a cow and calf were being 
cut out of the herd, and driven at a gallop into 
a small enclosure at the foot of the hill. The 
cow, kicking and plunging, was tied by the horns 
to a fence-post, a negro standing on one side of 
the animal with upraised fence-rail, ready to give 
her a severe blow should she kick. Her calf was 
then allowed to go to her, but had no sooner 
begun to suck, than the poor little creature was 
pulled away by the tail, and a third man, at arm's 
length, a tin cup in hand, accomplished the milk- 
ing. All through the process a hideous uproar 
prevailed, in which beasts, boys, and men joiaed. 
It was a laughable and, at the same time, a pitiful 
sight. Each cow yielding under these barbarous 
methods about a half pint, only three pints of 
milk was our daily portion. An elaborate cream 
separator and modern churn were in the dairy, 
and we had been assured that fresh butter could 
be furnished us in abundance. A few days later 
Mrs. Scott saw one of the maids squatting on her 
heels in the courtyard, lazily swinging back and 
forth in her hands a quart beer bottle containing 
a white liquid. " What are you doing, Diana ? " 
" Meka butta cum, mum." And this was the 
source to which we must look for the coveted 
supply of fresh butter. A tablespoonful was the 
sole result of her lazy effort. 



324 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

These operabouffe methods prevailed in all the 
farm and household operations. If wood was 
needed, a boy slowly departed to the forest, and 
returned dragging a branch behind him, and 
then, seated on his heels, hacked away with his 
machete, consuming two or three hours in provid- 
ing fuel enough for the preparation of one meal. 
The washing went away each week on the head 
of the laundress, who carried the clothes to the 
nearest stream, and there pounded and hatchelled 
them on the flat rocks, standing often knee-deep 
in the water. It was not infrequent in crossing a 
river to see a line of these ebony creatures, clad 
in .scant raiment, chattering and laughing over 
their work. How the ironing was accomplished 
remains a mystery. It was certainly of most in- 
different quality. 

Our table, however lacking in variety, was never 
in want of charming decorations. Sullivan, our 
butler, was a genius in producing artistic effects 
with maiden-hair, the fragrant sprays of stephano- 
tis, the orange, hibiscus, and plumbago blossoms, 
or the many other flowers of rare beauty that grew 
just outside the door. 

My work took up the greater part of each day ; 
the mornings being largely devoted to collecting 
expeditions. During the preparation of material, 
when my hands only were busy, Mrs. Scott 
read aloud everything of interest we could find 



XAYMACA; THE ISLAND OF MANY RIVERS 325 

relating to the West Indies and to Jamaican 
history in particular. Kingsley's " At Last " 
marvellously pictures the rare beauty and delight 
of a tropical winter, and though written of Trini- 
dad, is alike descriptive of the other islands. 
" Tom Cringle's Log " gave us glimpses of the 
reckless, daredevil spirit that so long prevailed 
in West India waters. Gardiner's " History of 
Jamaica " sets forth in sober style the romantic 
story of the island, the scene of desperate deeds, 
the rendezvous of the pirate and the buccaneer; 
at one time the richest spot on the face of the 
earth, and the wickedest. Froude's later day 
journeying, with his comments and forecasts, was 
also of absorbing interest. 

The event of the day was the arrival of King, 
a native hunter. While I was able, with the aid 
of my assistant, to get representatives of the birds 
of the neighborhood, the fastnesses of the deep 
woods and high mountains were left largely to 
the negro sportsmen familiar with them. William 
King, a giant black, a very savage in looks and 
breeding, was not only picturesque as a person, but 
was preeminent among the blacks as a hunter. 
He it was who generally appeared about dark, 
scarcely less interesting than the birds in his 
game-bag. He seemed always a wild creature 
fresh from the forest glade, who deigned to lend 
his aid in disclosing the mysteries of wood and 



326 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

hill. His work was carried on in the most 
remote places, where he procured many gorgeous 
and wonderful birds. Besides the several kinds 
of parrots, the commoner pigeons and hawks, 
King brought " the old man bird," a very giant 
of cuckoos, the well-named " mountain-witch," 
most beautiful and rare of quail-doves, and the 
little solitaire, whose voice rivals in quality that 
of the most famous song-birds. King hunted, 
too, for the mysterious "blue mountain-duck," 
" the diabolitin," going to the summit of the 
towering peak in his search. His errand proved 
futile. Alas! for this petrel. Breeding in bur- 
rows it was an easy victim for the rapacious 
mongoose. A bird peculiar to Jamaica, and 
formerly abundant, it is now, so far as known, 
extinct. 

The patois of the servants I found utterly un- 
intelligible. As a housewife Mrs. Scott had to 
familiarize herself with the cockney English, the 
abbreviated sentences, the confusion of pronouns, 
and the Spanish idioms. Sullivan, entering, would 
announce, "Elli com, mum," which meant Alec (the 
house-boy) had come, or " boil water, mum," " mek 
bread, mum." I have boiled the water, I have 
made the bread. If anything is broken it is " all 
mush up." " Not too bad," " not too far " are 
answers to a question as to an injury or a dis- 
tance. 



XAYMACA; THE ISLAND OF MANY RIVERS 327 

" Nice fraish feesh jus gwine pas, sixpence 
a pound, sixpence a pound," a huckster's call, 
meant that nice fresh fish was offered. In this 
way all the various wares were cried. 

" Cum buy-a-me-a feesh-a. Mek-a go way. 

Mek-a go way. Mek-a go way. 
Cum buy-a-me-a feesh-a. Mek-a go way. 
Me no cum for to lean upon de counta. 

" O de weda, O de heata, O de gingue, 

O de gingue, O de gingue, 
O de weda, O de heata, O de gingue. 
Me no cum for to lean upon de counta." 

This is a typical native jingle, drawled out in 
a sing-song monotone of minor cadence. The 
blacks of Jamaica present a contrast to their more 
musical brothers of America. Melody on the 
whole is not characteristic of the Jamaica ne- 
gro. It is rarely heard. Once, however, a troop 
of men who were bringing a huge, half-finished 
canoe down from the high hills attracted my 
attention. Dragging the great weight on primi- 
tive rollers through the rough country, fifty or 
sixty stalwart fellows hauled on a rope, timing 
their efforts to a fine chorus in minor key. 

An amusing incident serves to illustrate the 
customs of the peasantry. West, the head man, 
some thirty-five years old, came to me and asked 
if he could take two or three days as a holiday, 



328 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

for his wedding. I looked surprised, as I knew 
West had a cabin full of children, from the veri- 
est " pick'ny " to a well-grown lad of fifteen, and his 
wife seemed a particularly excellent woman. Was 
West about to abandon his family ? Had a divorce 
been obtained? These speculations came to my 
mind. However, I gave the required permission, 
and then made cautious inquiry learned that 
West, who had acquired some little property, felt 
that he could at last afford a wedding, and that he 
proposed to celebrate with proper ceremony his 
marriage to the woman who had been so long his 
faithful companion, the mother of his children. 
After the church service, the neighbors from far 
and near assembled at West's house. The merry- 
making continued for several days, and the good 
fortune of the happy pair was a source of rejoic- 
ing for the whole country-side. This practice 
very generally obtains. A man has no wedding 
till he can afford it. 

At " Boston " we were in the black belt. Two 
bachelors were our only white neighbors. Our 
quiet was broken in upon most pleasantly by the 
visits of the officers of the historic Kearsarge 
and the Enterprise, while the ships were in 
harbor at Port Antonio. Professor Rothrock also 
stopped over with us on one of his botanical ex- 
peditions ; he was that winter studying especially 
the forests of Jamaica. 



XAYMACA; THE ISLAND OF MANY RIVERS 329 

Early in March we drove to Kingston, around 
the northeast end of the island, under the shadow 
of the John Crow mountains, following the pic- 
turesque undulations of the coast. Passing 
through the level lands of St. Thomas, we saw 
the many ruins of the former sugar estates, the 
decayed walls of mansions, now entirely overgrown 
with creepers, and the tumbled heaps of the 
once busy mills. All the territory is at present 
turned to banana culture, and is leased or owned 
by the Boston Fruit Company. Leaving the 
coast at Hectors River we drove inland, through 
constantly varying scenery, now along the bank 
of a rushing river, again crossing a wide savannah. 
At Bath, hidden away among the hills, a night 
was spent in a fairly comfortable lodging-house. 

" Here are famous mineral springs both hot and cold, said 
to possess remarkable curative powers. The way to them lies 
along a narrow gorge, bordered with fern and moss and 
creepers covering the dark gray rock, and almost hiding from 
view the river rushing along below. Tree ferns spread abroad 
their arching fronds, and the air was fragrant and heavy with 
moisture, for it is a verdant hothouse of nature. From out 
the rocks above, tiny streamlets trickle across into the river 
beneath, some hot, some cold, and high over all nods the 
graceful bamboo, with its whispering leaves. A mile and a 
half of the enchanted road brings us to the Baths, which are 
wedged between the hillside and the river bank. The springs 
that supply them with hot and cold water bubble out of the 
rocks higher up, within a few feet of each other ; the hot one 
at a temperature of 130 Fahrenheit." 



330 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

Port Morant, where again the road touches the 
coast, is a busy shipping point for the Boston 
Fruit Company. Here we did not linger, but at 
Morant Bay, seven miles farther on, we visited the 
Court-house and square, the scene of the bloody 
riots of 1865, and heard once more the story of 
the Insurrection. Blue Mountain Peak is most 
impressive from the plaza, over which it seems 
to rise directly. We met Mr. Herbert Thomas, an 
inspector of the Jamaica Constabulary, who had 
given much time to an exploration of the moun- 
tain solitude, and who spoke with enthusiasm of 
his wanderings. A little pamphlet which he gave 
me called " Untrodden Jamaica " admirably de- 
scribes the difficulties and delights of mountain- 
eering in the island. My time and convenience 
did not permit me to reach the high altitudes. I 
was forced to decline the cordial invitation to stop 
with Mr. Fawcett, the director of the Botanical 
Gardens, and to visit him at Cinchona, his moun- 
tain home, where the flowers and fruits of Eng- 
land find a suitable environment. It is in this 
vicinity that the governor's family and other 
European residents enjoy a cool and delightful 
retreat in the summer months. The drive from 
Morant Bay to Kingston is through an arid coun- 
try with dry river courses and parched vegetation, 
strongly reminding one of the southern slopes of 
the Santa Catalinas. 



XAYMACA; THE ISLAND OF MANY RIVERS 331 

We spent several days in Kingston, and saw 
at the West Indian exhibition the wonderful 
natural products of the various islands, and 
noticed the scarcity of manufactured articles, 
save the most simple and primitive. Our only 
purchases were some artistic baskets made by 
the Caribs of St. Vincent. But one product 
overshadowed all others, and that was the distilled 
and fermented liquors, not only from the islands, 
but from Europe and the United States as well. 
Displayed conspicuously, with every variety of 
arrangement, offered in enticing form, all known 
kinds of whiskey, rum, brandy, cognac, and beer 
seemed represented. I marvelled to find any one 
sober. We made many pleasant acquaintances 
during our brief stay, and enjoyed the quaint 
hospitality of the inn, known as Park Lodge, 
with its clean beds and excellent Creole cuisine. 

On our return to " Boston " immediate prepara- 
tions began for our homeward journey, as we 
knew to our cost the endless delays and vexation 
of native methods. The beauty of the scenery, 
the quiet charm of the life so possessed us, that 
we left our feudal estate, our vassals and retainers, 
with many regrets. Who can paint the glory of 
land and sea that spread away at our feet, from 
the terrace at " Boston." Each day varied the 
outlook an everchanging scene of life and color. 
Now the details appear in the backward vista. 



332 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

To-day a tree close to the house stands out 
clearly. I see it in its wealth of golden blossom. 
Myriads of tiny black and gold birds clamber 
through the mass of bloom, searching every fold 
in each flower with their slender, pointed bills ; 
they are the honey-creepers, the rivals of the hum- 
ming-birds. To this same tree these jewels flock, 
and it is difficult to say if this emerald-green one 
with the exaggerated forked tail, the " doctor bird," 
or that amethystine creature of larger size, the 
" mango," or yet that golden dwarf, scarcely larger 
than a humblebee, is the greater marvel. 

Look out to the sea and perhaps a water-spout 
towers from its surface toward the zenith. One 
afternoon during our stay, seven of these weird 
funnel-like towers of liquid proceeded in stately 
and slow procession down the coast, hidden finally 
by a distant headland. Among such neighbors 
the tropic bird, not at all awed, continued his 
aerial pilgrimage a bird of grace in form and 
motion, whose blushing silvery coat contrasts 
with the jet-black feathers in wing and shoulder, 
and whose long attenuated tail seems a prodigal 
decoration to one already so well endowed. 

As the time for leaving drew near, Mrs. Scott 
was beset by our black neighbors, who begged her 
to take a son or daughter to the United States. 
" Please, good kind missis, or please, dear sweet 
missis, do take my pick'ny." All ages and sizes 



XAYMACA; THE ISLAND OF MANY RIVERS 333 

were offered, from the babe in arms to grown-up 
boys and girls. But when the day of sailing 
came, Diana McKenzie alone of the motley array 
of " pick'nies " accompanied us. In her native 
costume, with bare feet, short skirt, and gay 
plaid handkerchief worn as a turban, she was a 
picturesque figure. Of pure African type, smiling 
and gay, with her quaint bobbing courtesy, Diana 
was an unfailing source of entertainment to the 
passengers of the Juniata. Her sole possessions 
on sailing were wrapped in a handkerchief. After 
two years spent in this country, where she gave 
most excellent service, and became skilled as a cook, 
Diana returned to her own land. A large trunk 
was now needed for her wardrobe, a stylish cloth 
costume adorned her person, a hat with feathers 
had supplanted the turban, her feet were tightly 
encased in shoes, and she further was the proud 
possessor of a watch and a muff. Nor had she 
been a spendthrift, for she had in addition ten 
shining sovereigns. Homesickness alone took 
her away, and but a few months elapsed before 
she wrote begging us to send passage-money that 
she might come back to America. 

Seven days was spent on the trip to Tampa, for 
we stopped at all the ports on the north shore of 
Jamaica to gather our store of bananas. In this 
way we saw Port Maria, St. Ann's Bay, Falmouth, 
Montego Bay, and Lucea. As we made our way 



334 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

eastward, the lofty Blue Mountains faded slowly 
from our sight, and were succeeded by low hills 
and a rolling, pastoral country. It was on this 
coast, at Ora Cabessa, that Columbus in 1492 took 
possession of the island which he called Santiago, 
in the name of Ferdinand and Isabella. The 
native Indian name Xaymaca, modernized into 
Jamaica has, however, survived. At Lucea we 
finally weighed anchor and sailed northward to 
Florida. 

On the 24th of March we sighted land, at eight 
o'clock were off Egmont Key, where the White 
Squadron lay, and a little later steamed into Port 
Tampa. At our old home, Tarpon Springs, we 
spent the month of April. 



CHAPTER XIII 

BIRD LIFE IN ENGLAND 

IN the spring of 1900 I made a visit to the 
British Museum, London, and to the French 
Museum in Paris, to study some of the forms of 
birds found in southern South America. The 
expeditions, under the auspices of Princeton 
University, which had been sent to Patagonia 
to investigate the paleontology of that country, 
were not only eminently successful in that under- 
taking, but in addition, extensive collections of 
extant forms of animal and plant life were pro- 
cured. Among the former were some eight 
hundred birds. The entire achievements of Mr. 
J. B. Hatcher and his aids were so notable as to 
warrant the publication of the results in detail. 
I was intrusted with the volume in this series 
which related to birds. This work took me to 
the great museums in London and Paris, for the 
early French voyagers had explored numerous 
points in Patagonia, Tierra del Fuego, and the 
Falkland Islands, and the illustrious Darwin had 
made a protracted stay in different parts of 

335 



336 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

South America, when attached to the Beagle in 
that ship's memorable " voyage round the world." 
Birds were brought back by all these expeditions, 
and among them were the types of many little- 
known species. It was to study all this material 
that my visit was made. It is not my purpose to 
discuss the results of this work here. The forth- 
coming monograph on the Birds of Patagonia 
will reveal the details to those who may be inter- 
ested. The collections of birds in the British 
Museum of Natural History are more complete 
than in any of the other great institutions. While 
the exhibition collections are extensive, their great 
value lies in their educational influence. Here 
there is no attempt to make the details of classi- 
fication a basis of the exhibits. No long files 
of effigies, closely packed together in crowded 
ranks, bewilder the visitor. Every known kind 
of bird from a given region is not displayed. A 
synopsis of the groups into which birds are di- 
vided is shown by a few characteristic forms from 
each of the divisions. The commoner English 
birds are arranged each in a natural setting, the 
motive being to show some salient feature of the 
economy of bird-life. Adaptability to environment, 
methods of nesting, conventional and exceptional 
protection by color or mimicry and other funda- 
mental problems, are clearly and well set forth in 
this way. The label is not primarily to name the 



BIRD LIFE IN ENGLAND 337 

bird, but to indicate something of the intricate 
life history that shall arrest the attention of the 
most casual visitor. 

For those students who have gone seriously 
into the study of ornithology, an unrivalled col- 
lection of birds' skins exists. Here not only is 
practically every known bird, but the sexes, ages, 
individual variations, geographic variations, and 
the like factors are, wherever possible, exhibited 
in a large and adequate series of each. Such 
series often embrace a hundred individuals of a 
given kind or species. The aggregate of birds 
in the collection of this great museum is some 
five hundred thousand specimens. It is a great 
lexicon of the external appearance of birds, and 
is arranged and conducted on the lines of a 
reference library. 

Nor is the interest in birds in England satisfied 
by a knowledge of names and relationships to 
one another. Wild birds of many kinds abound 
throughout the country districts, and the parks 
and gardens of every city afford congenial resorts 
for such birds as the thrush, the blackbird, the 
starling, and many more. I saw wood-pigeons 
breeding in the trees overhanging Piccadilly, where 
the hum of traffic never ceases, and where night 
is turned to day by countless electric and gas 
lights. Now and then I met magpies in Regent's 
Park, where they are well known to breed. 



338 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

Passing through the country by rail one can- 
not but be struck with the multitude of birds at 
every turn. Starlings and lapwings are in every 
meadow, a colony of rooks on almost every 
farm, and waterhens in every little pond ; the 
commoner small birds, robin-redbreasts, black- 
caps, yellowhammers, and chaffinches crowd the 
hedgerows, and with the thrushes and blackbirds 
produce a chorus of song whose volume is un- 
rivalled. 

Besides, so many people, rich and poor, have bird 
pets. There is scarcely a family without one. 
Canaries, linnets, starlings, blackcaps, thrushes, and 
blackbirds are among the more frequent sorts, but 
in the many private collections and aviaries the 
feathered treasures of all lands are gathered. 
India, Australia, Africa, and America, the East 
and West Indies, all contribute. Parrots of many 
kinds and hues have become so thoroughly ac- 
climatized as to breed readily in confinement, 
and the delicate finches and weavers of Africa 
and Australia live and thrive in out-of-door avi- 
aries the year round. The Avicultural Society is 
only one of a number of organizations which pub- 
lish regular proceedings monthly devoted to live 
birds in confinement. Prizes and medals of 
award are conferred on successful breeders, and a 
keen interest is shown in the manifold original 
contributions to this and similar magazines. A 



BIRD LIFE IN ENGLAND' 339 

recent account of the breeding of the American 
catbird in an aviary will serve to indicate and em- 
phasize the kind of interest manifested. No- 
where are wild or domesticated birds so much a 
part of the people's lives as in England. 



CHAPTER XIV 

THE NATURALIST'S VISION 

IN the foregoing chapters it has been my en- 
deavor to present a vista of the work and growth 
of a naturalist. To those who have followed the 
story, it will be apparent that the fundamental 
work, the skeleton, or frame on which the struc- 
ture was reared, was the accumulation of collec- 
tions of concrete things. In this case, these things 
happen to be birds. It seems important, however, 
to indicate how far-reaching is the instinct or 
passion for collecting. By no means confined to 
the human race, it is an attribute of the miser 
as well as the philanthropist. Surely no miser or 
collector of bric-a-brac is more assiduous than is 
the magpie in the same direction ; and it is only 
necessary to have some comprehensive view of 
animal life in general to gain the knowledge that 
the passion of obtaining or possessing, crops out 
everywhere in the animal kingdom. It is not 
always clear what results may accrue from this 
instinct, what taste will develop, or what line of 
work follow collecting, whether this be postage- 
stamps, birds, or gold. 

340 



THE NATURALIST'S VISION 341 

In this story I have not attempted to more 
than suggest the result in the case in ques- 
tion ; but it is my purpose in this chapter to 
summarize it in some detail. I have related that, 
during a certain period, about 1884, when in Ari- 
zona, the opportunity was embraced to have a 
variety of different kinds of creatures as pets, and 
it does not seem essential even to recapitulate 
this. Following the narrative through the sub- 
sequent time passed in Florida, it is plain that, 
besides wild animals as pets, another factor com- 
manded attention; for here animals were kept 
for a definite object. To study their growth and 
development, if nothing more, was my aim at 
that time. During the summer of 1895, through 
an accident, this interest began to assume more 
definite and concrete proportions. Late in June, 
while collecting one day, I killed a bird that flew 
by me. It passed rapidly, and I was not quite 
sure as to its exact identity. On taking it in my 
hand I found it was a female Baltimore oriole. 
Looking at the bird, I at once discovered that it 
probably had a nest in the vicinity, and that it 
was feeding young ones. By no means sure that 
the male bird would take upon himself the duties 
of both parents, I determined to look after the 
young, if the nest was not too difficult to find. 
This proved to be an easy task, for it was in the 
tree nearest me. There were three young birds 



342 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

in the brood, just beginning to show the larger 
wing and tail feathers, but otherwise covered 
with down. They were not more than five or six 
days old. The nest and its inmates were carried 
to the house, and while I did not feel at all sure 
that it was possible to rear the tiny creatures, I 
determined to try the experiment. The fledg- 
lings were alike in size and appearance, and in 
order to have a record, in case it should prove 
of value, one of them was preserved in alcohol. 
The other two I attempted to rear by hand, and 
was entirely successful. 

It is sufficient for my present purpose to say 
here that these birds were not only reared, but 
lived to be between five and six years old, and 
that they ultimately died, as I believe, of old age. 
Throughout their life they enjoyed as large an 
amount of liberty as was possible under the cir- 
cumstances, and while they were confined at 
times to a cage, there was hardly a day during 
the first three years that they did not enjoy the 
liberty of flying about the rooms of the house. 
Later, when I determined from the interest that 
they awakened in me to utilize a room entirely 
for live birds, these two orioles were never con- 
fined in narrow quarters. In a paper recently 
published, and referred to in the appendix, I have 
set forth a record of the development of these 
two birds, and of their powers of song, so I shall 



THE NATURALIST'S VISION 343 

not attempt to elaborate the story again, but refer 
the reader to the paper there cited. 

With the possession and study of these two 
Baltimore orioles there began a definite plan on 
my part to become more familiar with birds as 
individuals, and to that end to keep some of the 
commoner kinds of North American birds in 
confinement. When the orioles were about two 
years old, and I had become fully aware of the 
large field for investigation which they suggested, 
in the spring I collected a few live birds ; a nest 
of blue jays, a nest of rose-breasted grosbeaks, and 
a nest of yellow-breasted chats, as well as an addi- 
tional nest of Baltimore orioles ; in all some four- 
teen or fifteen nestlings were the result of my 
efforts. At the time of this writing, August, 
1902, a number of these birds are still alive, 
notably the blue jays, some of the grosbeaks 
and orioles. 

From such a beginning gradually there has 
developed what may best be described as a labo- 
ratory for the study of live birds, and between 
four or five hundred individuals are now installed 
and under constant observation. These embrace 
many North American species, and in addition, 
European, Indian, and Australian forms, with 
some representatives from African and South 
American. All these birds are allowed as large 
an amount of liberty as circumstances permit, 



344 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

though for certain kinds of observation and 
experiment the cage, with its limited area, is 
essential. 

I wish briefly now to describe some of the more 
obvious problems which it is possible to inves- 
tigate under such conditions as I have set forth. 
Chief among these I should place the opportunity 
to consider an animal as an individual. The 
fact that we do not consider wild animals as in- 
dividuals is patent in our method of speaking of 
them. Our names for them are the names of 
groups of individuals that appear to us, on the 
whole, alike. We call them robins, wood-thrushes, 
bluebirds, and catbirds. This does not seem re- 
markable, because our point of view of foreigners 
of our own kind, human beings, emphasizes it. 
In looking at a large body of Chinamen, I think 
any one will fail, unless familiar with this race, 
to individualize them. The conventional idea of 
a Chinaman is of a race and not of individuals, 
and this comes about because of our lack of oppor- 
tunity to associate with Chinamen. It is precisely 
the same with robins or bluebirds, catbirds or 
wood-thrushes. 

A gentleman whom I had the pleasure of 
knowing, and who was extremely fond of horses 
and greatly interested in them, was so unfortunate 
as to be unable to live in the country where he 
might devote his time to the study of these ani- 



THE NATURALIST'S VISION 345 

mals. He was a runner or collector for one of 
the large banks in the lower part of New York, 
and his daily routine of work took him as far as 
23d Street, every day over a regular beaten route. 
This occupation he pursued for some seven or 
eight years. He has assured me many times in 
conversation, that during that period he became 
so familiar with the horse population of the lower 
part of New York, that he individualized the 
horses and realized after a short time whenever 
he met a new one, and also missed one he had 
constantly seen, if it failed to appear. I think 
few of us go farther in the investigation of 
horses than to distinguish color; because when 
we have said brown, bay, chestnut, sorrel, gray, 
white, we have pretty nearly run our gamut. 
Small horses we call ponies, and another kind of 
grouping would be draught horses and driving 
horses. Farther than this very few people elabo- 
rate the individuality of horses. But here was a 
man, not of specially keen powers of observation, 
who had a great interest in this particular kind 
of animal, and who individualized them, at least 
as far as their appearance was concerned, so that 
they were to him no longer all kinds of colors or 
sizes, but became to him just as much personages 
as " Brown " and " Smith " are to the friends who 
know them. This is dwelt upon to emphasize 
the matter of individuality. 



346 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

As a second suggestion, I believe that, with 
the knowledge of individuals (for example, if you 
become so conversant with a given number of 
robins say fifteen or twenty as to know 
them by their faces), you are in a position to be 
able to examine the nature and extent of variation 
of a kind that cannot be set down and formulated 
in measure of exact dimension. For many years 
a great deal of attention, care, and time has 
been given to detailed measurements of different 
parts of birds, as the wing, the beak, and the tail ; 
but I am not aware that any one has given great 
consideration or has had the opportunity to give 
great consideration to the variation, for instance, 
in expression, carriage, or song of different indi- 
viduals. Traits of character, still more subtle, 
which may best be described as mental, are, to say 
the least, difficult to become acquainted with in 
birds or other animals in a wild state. 

It is true that naturalists and ornithologists 
understand pretty thoroughly that there is a cor- 
relation in color with the sex or age, or with the 
season of the year during which a kind of bird is 
observed, and I think that most of us are aware 
that there is a very wide variation in the intensity 
and shade of color in at least some kinds of birds 
which does not correlate apparently with any of 
these several factors. It seems obvious that what- 
ever changes occur in appearance which correlate 



THE NATURALIST'S VISION 347 

with sex, or age, or season, can be recorded of the 
commoner species of birds when kept in as nearly 
natural condition as possible the year round. 

It is not so easy to observe changes of another 
kind; but I suppose most people realize that 
birds as a whole, present in the tropics gayer 
colors than in the more northern regions ; and 
probably realize that the birds of the desert and 
the birds of the region of perpetual snow have 
taken on a general shade of coloring closely 
assimilating with their environment. It does not 
seem at all impossible, given artificial condi- 
tions for producing an average temperature of 
greater or less degree, together with a definite 
amount of average humidity in the atmosphere, 
as well as a measurable supply of light, that any 
forms kept under such conditions might, and 
probably would, after a number of generations, 
show changes which we could conclude were 
largely due to such a new environment as had 
been artificially created. In short, it would not 
be impossible in a laboratory to draw conclusions 
and make observations as to what conditions pro- 
duce certain results in color. 

In speaking to an eminent ornithologist in 
England of the possibilities for observing birds 
in confinement, and whether it were worth while 
to go to the expense that would be thereby 
entailed, he suggested to me that, if we could 



348 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

learn through such means the changes in appear- 
ance that were due to what is known as moulting, 
the periodic shedding and replacing of the 
feathers of the coat, this alone would more 
than compensate for the time, the labor, and the 
expense involved. It is an open question how 
much of the difference in appearance, which all 
of us realize occurs in birds at various seasons, 
is due to direct moult, how much is due to the 
wear of the feathers. The vexed question as to 
whether feathers themselves change color, with 
strenuous advocates pro and con, is still a bone 
of contention, and no one knows definitely of an 
experiment to settle the matter. 

Animals of various kinds have been domesticated 
and bred in domestication or captivity for many 
generations of men ; but I am not aware that 
there exists anywhere a record of just how the 
various breeders have brought about the results 
which are patent to any one at the present day. 
It is a question of economic value to know the 
steps necessary to pursue in order to evolve from 
a common ancestry by artificial selection, types of 
animals which, morphologically, at least, are as 
widely separated as the Percheron draught horse 
and the thoroughbred racer, or the carrier and 
fantail pigeon. 

It is generally conceded that the various breeds 
of pigeons have been bred from a common stock, 



THE NATURALIST'S VISION 349 

the rock-pigeon of Europe ; but what definite 
steps were taken, or what methods were pursued 
to obtain such divergent forms as fantails, tum- 
blers, and carriers is not of record. Similarly, 
canary-birds have common progenitors attributed 
to them, so that their departure from the original 
type is very great, the breeds being as defined and 
marked as are the breeds of pigeons. What steps 
the breeders and fanciers took to achieve such 
ends is very obscure. It would seem that there 
is an underlying reason for all this. The success- 
ful breeder was loath to make public the methods 
pursued ; because as long as he had a patent on a 
given kind of horse or bird, desirable in a com- 
mercial way, he was so much better off than the 
other breeders ; and therefore, while many treatises 
have been written, and much has been discussed 
by breeders, more has been concealed, or at least 
allowed to go unrecorded. 

So far the results of variation that breeders 
have obtained are represented by what are known 
as thoroughbreds ; forms of life presenting at 
least external characters as definite as those upon 
which wild species are based. The adventitious 
aid of man appears to be essential, however, to the 
prolongation of any of the so-called thoroughbred 
types of domesticated animals, whether bird or 
beast. The moment that man's efforts are relaxed, 
and commingling of the various thoroughbred 



350 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

forms is allowed, as, for instance, domesticated 
pigeons, the reversion to the common ancestral 
type is rapid and eventually complete. 

Birds so widely separated in appearance as fan- 
tails and carrier pigeons breed readily together, 
and their offspring are fertile ; and, on the other 
hand, birds so closely resembling one another as 
the hermit and the olive-backed thrush of eastern 
North America, which at points have the same 
breeding-range, appear never to interbreed, or, 
if such an event occurs, the offspring the 
hybrids do not perpetuate the new form so 
originated. All the foregoing is set forth in 
some detail in order to maintain the position that, 
while the efforts of man have produced wide di- 
vergences in thoroughbred forms of domesticated 
animals types that any naturalist would consider 
as separate species if they were wild they are 
only to-be regarded as morphological species, and 
have no true physiological basis. The converse 
seems to be the rule among wild animals. 

I am thoroughly of the opinion that a careful 
and prolonged effort, conducted under the proper 
conditions and with proper equipment, would re- 
sult not only in the establishment of what I have 
termed morphological species, but that ultimately 
in a laboratory of the kind I have indicated, true, 
physiological species could be established ; forms 
that would not revert to an ancestral type if left 



THE NATURALIST'S VISION 351 

to their own devices. At any rate, extended ex- 
periment of this kind would go far toward being 
an absolute demonstration of the mutability of 
species as set forth in the hypothesis of evolution 
by Charles Darwin. 

The vista presented is certainly an alluring one, 
and vital problems await an answer. I have not 
touched on the factors of heredity ; but I suggest 
to those who have battled in a war of words with 
Weissman, a battle in which so much ink has 
been spilled, that data can be obtained as to 
whether acquired characteristics are inherited. 
Also that much can be added to our knowledge 
in regard to prepotency, and that how great a 
factor telegony is, may be realized after prolonged 
experiment. 

To be more explicit, I propose to ask a ques- 
tion, and to dwell on a method leading to its solu- 
tion. It deals directly with one or another of 
these problems. 

Do singing birds inherit the instinct of the 
method of song, or must that method be acquired 
by imitating the song of the parent ? That pas- 
serine birds inherit a disposition to sing is 
obvious ; but what of the method ? Is the song 
of the robin as we hear it an inheritance or is it 
a matter of education ? There are various theories 
propounded in answer to this query substantiated 
by hearsay, by probability, and by some partial 



352 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

and inadequate experiments of neither prolonged 
or exhaustive character. Who has tried, or had the 
opportunity to try, to answer by demonstration the 
simple query propounded ? Where is the detailed 
account given of a single definite experiment, or, 
better still, a series that should afford a necessary 
and final solution ? And yet, of the many prob- 
lems indicated, this is one of the simplest, the least 
complicated, and probably the easiest of solution 
and demonstration. How can it be done ? 

Conceive a laboratory containing, among other 
equipments, a series of sound-proof rooms. Take 
a nest of robins, say there are four in the family, 
let them be as young as possible. They are then 
blind and naked. It occurs to your mind as you 
read this how impracticable is the suggestion, 
how delicate the organism, how ephemeral the 
life ! In answer I have only to say that in June, 
1897, 1 tk f ur nests of young robins and reared 
them by hand. From these I secured fourteen 
individuals; and as I am writing, late in June, 
1902, they are all alive, and are vigorous, healthy 
birds. This morning as I left my bird-room a 
pair of them were raising, with great care, a brood 
of young ones. 

Let us return to the consideration of the prob- 
lem. Isolate the brood in one of the sound-proof 
rooms and rear the birds by hand so that they do 
not hear or see any other birds until they are at 



THE NATURALISTS VISION 353 

least two years old. Do not suggest any method 
of song to them by whistling, or by singing, or 
playing on any instrument. We will now con- 
clude that their habits are fixed, and whatever 
sounds they produce are at least not the outcome 
of imitating other birds. Record the results ; and 
not being satisfied with this, bring other competent 
ornithologists to observe them and the end that 
has been attained. 

Here, at least, is the beginning of an answer to 
the question. To carry it a step farther; asso- 
ciate a new brood of very young robins with the 
birds first raised. That is, put this second brood 
where they may hear and see what your first brood 
does, if anything, in the way of song, and the mo- 
tions connected with it. Observe and record the 
results as with the original brood. Better still, 
and it is entirely possible, for, as I have indicated, 
under proper conditions even robins will breed in 
captivity, mate a pair of the hand-reared birds. 
You may observe what part inheritance or instinct 
plays in building nests of the conventional type ; 
and at the same time, when the second brood 
arrives at the period of song, will they sing like 
wild robins, two generations away, or not ? 

Finally, if song is an inheritance, that is, as 
far as its method is concerned (for I have no doubt 
that the disposition to sing is inherited in the 
group of song-birds), let me present another 

2A 



354 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

argument. It is well known that for upward of a 
century bird-fanciers have turned their attention 
among other matters to the breeding of hybrids. 
Bechstein, dealing with this subject as long ago 
as 1795, enumerates the following crosses with 
the canary-bird. He describes them all in much 
detail. 

1. Canary-bird crossed with the European gold- 
finch. 

2. Canary-bird crossed with the siskin. 

3. Canary-bird crossed with the green finch. 

4. Canary-bird crossed with the serin finch. 

5. Canary-bird crossed with the linnet. 

In addition, other authors have spoken of hy- 
brids between canaries and nonpareils, canaries 
and bobolinks, as well as crosses between canaries 
and indigo-birds. Moreover, it does not seem 
improbable that crosses between canaries and 
various other finches might be obtained. But 
it is sufficient for the purpose we have in view 
to have emphasized the factor of hybridity as 
one of common occurrence, by the examples set 
forth above. 

Now, the usual method of obtaining hybrids is 
to utilize as parents female canary-birds mated 
with the male of one of the foregoing kinds of 
birds, and the reasons for this is obvious, but 
perhaps worth elucidation. Through many gen- 
erations of captivity the canary-bird has become 



THE NATURALIST'S VISION 355 

almost as thoroughly domesticated as are the 
various breeds of common fowls. At the present 
day the chief reasons for confinement of these 
little creatures is one of protection. Obviously 
their small size renders them an easy prey to 
other domestic animals, and were they allowed, 
in their innocence, the liberty, for instance, of 
chickens and dogs, I fancy the race, to say the 
least, would suffer. However, when confined in 
cages, canary-birds nest and breed at proper 
seasons whenever an opportunity is afforded. 
Besides, the canary is one of the few small birds 
of the passerine group that has been bred in 
captivity for a long period, so that they are no 
longer suspicious, do not resent intrusion, and 
readily allow their attendant to be familiar with 
them, even during that period of peculiar sensi- 
bility when the perpetuation of the species is the 
paramount passion. It is quite different with the 
various other birds enumerated, as having crossed 
with the canary ; and, moreover, most fanciers 
have very largely confined their efforts with wild 
songsters, to males of the several kinds, because 
song is the principal attribute that has attracted 
fanciers to keeping birds in confinement. Even 
where both sexes sing, the males are easily the 
finer performers. 

To follow my argument, it would seem that the 
crosses derived from the various parents sug- 



356 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

gested, if the method of song were an inherited 
factor, would partake by prepotency of more of 
the quality of the song of one parent than of the 
other. Namely, given a canary and a goldfinch 
crossed some of these resulting offspring should 
inherit the characteristic song of the canary, while 
others ought, on the theory laid down, to sing like 
goldfinches; and this is applicable to the other 
crosses enumerated. At any rate, if a number of 
different broods were taken into consideration, 
it would appear that the matter of prepotency 
should produce at least some birds that would 
inherit the canary song. 

Hybrids, as a matter of fact, appear to have 
the secondary sexual characteristic of song con- 
fined almost exclusively to the males ; and so 
far as personal experience goes, I have yet to 
hear a male hybrid of the goldfinch and canary, 
the siskin and canary, or the linnet and canary, 
sing with any of the attributes of canaries ; nor, 
so far as I am aware, do they possess the absolute 
song-method of the male parents, though their 
song greatly resembles it. I may say in conclu- 
sion that all the hybrids I have observed had 
canaries for female parents. This seems to me to 
indicate that the factors of propinquity and imita- 
tion are fundamental in establishing the method of 
song in at least this kind of young bird. Namely, 
given a young bird with an inherent power of 



THE NATURALIST'S VISION 357 

song, the method of expression of such a song is 
largely derived by hearing during its infancy the 
song of the male parent, it being nearer and more 
readily noticed. 

I cannot but allude to the factor of adaptability, 
and its bearing on the domestication of animals. 
One reason, and perhaps the greatest one for our 
limited number of domesticated animals, is the lack 
of adaptability and plasticity together with that 
of docility among wild forms. Hence only those 
most readily dealt with have been utilized. It is 
probable that among the many kinds still untried 
valuable forms might be domesticated. Here 
is evidently one field of economic value. An- 
other economic field has been developed among 
animals even lower than birds; so that it does 
not seem visionary to suggest the possibility 
of re-stocking some of the depopulated regions 
with native insectivorous birds in a similar manner 
to that in which the United States Fish Commis- 
sion has succeeded in re-stocking, not only our 
inland waters, but also rivers and estuaries. Mi- 
gratory fish, such as the shad and salmon, have 
been dealt with in this way; and their journeys 
away from their breeding grounds are quite as 
mysterious as those of birds, and perhaps less 
understood, if that were possible. 

Instinct, habit, and the development of intelli- 
gence have been studied, but not continuously, 



358 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

and, on the whole, in rather a desultory way. 
Alone, these problems present a field whose vast- 
ness psychologists appreciate. 

What do we know of the leisure of animals ? 
Do they have leisure, and how do they utilize it ? 

Finally, let us consider what may be termed 
opportunity. I have said that in the tentative 
establishment which I have fostered there are 
perhaps some five hundred birds. I had occasion 
the other day to show a friend of particular 
intelligence this collection. We commented on 
the beauty of color, the grace of form and move- 
ment, the alertness, and the aesthetic pleasure de- 
rived therefrom, and from song. We looked at 
the wood-thrushes, meadow-larks, song-sparrows 
and bluebirds, rose-breasted grosbeaks and ori- 
oles, at the weaver-birds and toucans, at the jays 
and plovers. In the breeding room a new brood 
of hybrids, which I then discovered for the first 
time, were of interest. They were crosses be- 
tween the siskin of Europe and a canary. In 
other rooms we saw parroquets from Australia, 
macaws from South America, and the white cock- 
atoo from New Guinea. The mina laughed and 
talked with us, the jackdaws watched us in a 
furtive way. The whole was entertaining a 
busy scene of life ! My friend seemed both 
amused and deeply interested, and so we left 
them. That night, coming home from some en- 



THE NATURALIST'S VISION 359 

tertainment, as we walked along my friend said 
to me : " It seems great work, but I do not exactly 
understand what you want to do with those ma- 
caws. What can you learn from them ? " My 
answer was : 

" I don't know ; but I do know that there is 
opportunity," and I related the following story. 

Many years ago, on the night of October 19, 
1880, I paid a long-delayed visit to Professor 
Charles A. Young. I was very busy as a field- 
naturalist in those days, and so thoroughly occu- 
pied that I had failed to take advantage of an 
opportunity which was within my reach. Shortly 
after I came to Princeton, Professor Young was 
called to the chair of astronomy, and a radical re- 
organization of the astronomical laboratories and 
observatories was undertaken. When the whole 
was completed under his direction, he was natur- 
ally proud of the facilities, and was anxious for 
the staff of the university to realize the excel- 
lence of the equipment. He had invited me 
many times, during an entire year, to visit the 
laboratory at night, but one thing after another 
prevented. However, I think the chief reason 
for my delay was that I did not appreciate that 
there was any special relation between the great 
science of astronomy and the problems of life 
and distribution which I was engaged in study- 
ing. 



360 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

As I have said, I did finally pay the visit. I 
was received with great courtesy and shown all 
the apparatus and equipment, and finally many of 
the glories of the heavens were viewed through 
the new telescope ; Jupiter with its moons, Saturn 
with its belt, and other marvels. When I was 
about leaving, somewhere in the neighborhood of 
nine o'clock, the full moon had just risen above 
the horizon. It attracted my attention, and I 
asked if I might look at it through the telescope. 
The desired view revealed a great silvery disk, 
looking to me perhaps some three or four feet 
across. On the glistening background the land- 
scape, if so it might be called, of the moon became 
very apparent ; but presently, as I watched, every- 
thing else was forgotten, as I saw an object which, 
at the great distance, seemed little larger than a 
fly, proceeding across the whole field of vision, sil- 
houetted against the shining satellite. My sensa- 
tions as I watched the spectacle are hardly to be 
described, for I knew I had seen, at least once, 
what had never been recorded before. I had seen 
a small song-bird flying at night. Other people 
had heard them, and I had heard them, but no 
one had recorded seeing a song-bird fly at night. 
I turned to Professor Young and asked him if he 
often saw birds in that way when he was observ- 
ing the moon, and his answer was, " I have seen 
them for forty years." 



THE NATURALIST'S VISION 361 

Now, it is not necessary for me to state that 
here was an astronomer of eminence, and an 
ornithologist of varied experience, and up to that 
moment I do not believe that either of them (and 
I know one never had) apprehended that there 
was any connection whatever between the two 
sciences. Further inquiry elicited from Professor 
Young the fact that he did not realize that it 
was anything of consequence to see a bird fly 
at night ; and moreover, he was not well enough 
acquainted with birds to be able to determine 
anything definite as to the special kinds observed. 

I did not go away from the astronomical labo- 
ratory that night until I had seen many birds sil- 
houetted on the background of the moon as they 
flew by, and before leaving I knew definitely 
that I had seen a number of birds of whose 
identity I was as sure as if they had passed 
close to me in broad daylight. I saw a barn- 
swallow, a goldfinch, a purple grackle, birds that 
I could refer to the family of sparrows, others to 
the family of wood- warblers, and at least two dif- 
ferent species of woodpecker, one of which, I have 
no doubt, was the yellow-bellied sapsucker. I 
refer such of my readers as care for details, to 
a paper cited in the appendix, published on the 
subject, which sets forth the observations. 

This is what I mean by opportunity; and I 
conceive that the possibility of observing things 



362 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

which are not anticipated, is one of the greatest 
inducements for continued observation in any 
given field. While I am not sure in my mind of 
any specific reason for keeping certain birds, 
notably macaws, in captivity, I feel assured that 
the connection and the probability of events is 
greater ornithologically between macaws and the 
work of the ornithologist than is relationship be- 
tween astronomy and migration. 

Zoological study and investigation while car- 
ried on in many lines, has, up to the present time, 
consisted chiefly of three distinct kinds of work. 
Of these, the very fundamental matter of classifi- 
cation, which may be termed systematic work, is 
paramount. This includes, besides giving the 
names to the different forms of animal life and 
describing them, the grouping together of those 
related in aggregates known as genera, families, 
and orders. The second line of development in 
zoological research has been what may be termed 
morphological. It is true that systematic work 
deals somewhat with morphology, especially the 
obvious and external morphology ; but the term 
morphology is largely associated with the investi- 
gation of the structure and appearance of the 
internal mechanism of animals. The third avenue 
of work is known as physiology, dealing with 
function, that is, what the various parts of the 
animal mechanism do in the economy of life. 



THE NATURALIST'S VISION 363 

The field in which I have endeavored to awaken 
interest by pointing out the way seems a fitting- 
culmination of the others. Obviously, things 
must be named, and something of their relation- 
ship to one another known. Hence dictionaries ; 
and I would liken such work as deals with struc- 
ture and function in detail to grammar. The study 
of an individual, his acts, his deportment, his 
goings and comings, his amusements, his inherit- 
ance, his dispositions, his leisure, may be com- 
pared, taking the point of view that I have of the 
others, to a literature that it would be impossible 
to create without the fundamental basis afforded 
by the studies of the scholars who have made 
the dictionaries and grammars. 

I wish it were in my power to picture with 
vividness, to give an impression of the conditions 
that obtain in my tentative laboratory. Imagine a 
room some twenty feet square, where over a hun- 
dred birds are enjoying liberty. Here are many 
robins, wood-thrushes, and bluebirds, the Balti- 
more and orchard oriole ; bobolinks fly about as 
gayly as over the grass fields in spring. There 
are some eight or nine of these last-named birds, 
most of them males, and for two-thirds of the 
year, from January until late in August, their 
song is incessant. Here are thrushes from Eu- 
rope and the starling that characterizes that re- 
gion ; a number of kinds of starlings from India, 



364 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

and some babbling thrushes from that country. 
Meadow-larks form an entertaining group as they 
stroll about the floor examining with apparent 
curiosity and interest every blade of grass of 
the fresh turf supplied daily. Song-sparrows 
find congenial shelter in thickets, and blue jays, 
as well as green jays from Mexico, add to the 
vivacity of the scene. Cardinals and rose- 
breasted grosbeaks, as well as their relative, the 
blue grosbeak, are all represented. Mocking- 
birds, catbirds, and thrashers fly from one tree to 
another in the room (for it is large enough to 
have some six or eight small trees reaching from 
the floor to the ceiling) and seem to be as full of 
life and song and interest in affairs, as though 
out of doors. Here is a robin with a nest in the 
corner setting on her eggs, or a pair perhaps 
feeding young. In a calabash gourd at another 
point bluebirds find a place they like for breed- 
ing. It is a heterogeneous company, and the 
picture is at first confusing, both as to motion and 
sound. As one becomes accustomed to the scene, 
new details present themselves. A plover finds 
to his liking the vicinity of the shallow water-tank 
which serves as brook or pond for these birds, 
and rails peep out of the grass, or run nimbly 
from one tussock to another, pausing on the way 
to inspect the attractions of the feed dishes. 
Many of these birds have been in captivity for 



THE NATURALIST'S VISION 365 

six or seven years, notably robins, bluebirds, gros- 
beaks, and orioles; while the plover has been a 
member of this society for five years. 

The student who carries on the kind of inves- 
tigation here presented, should possess the attri- 
butes so ably set forth by Professor Gross in his 
book entitled " The Play of Animals." Speaking 
of the attainments that he conceived desirable in 
such a student, he says : 

"He must harbor in his breast not only two 
souls, but more. He must unite with a thorough 
training in physiology, psychology, and biology 
the experience of a traveller, the practical knowl- 
edge of a director of a zoological garden, and the 
outdoor lore of a forester. And even then he 
could not round up his labors satisfactorily unless 
he were familiar with the trend of modern aes- 
thetics. Indeed, I consider this last point so 
important that I venture to affirm that none but 
a student of aesthetics is capable of writing the 
psychology of animals. If, in this statement, I 
seem to put myself forward as a student of aes- 
thetics, I can only say that I hope for indulgence 
in view of the many shortcomings which are ap- 
parent in this effort " (speaking of his book) " on 
the ground that a versatility so comprehensive 
is unattainable by an ordinary mortal." 

I can but echo the sentiments here laid down ; 
the observer and student in this line of work is at 



3 66 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

best but striving. Patience combined with some 
of the requirements spoken of above may accom- 
plish much in time. Here I feel that I must call 
attention to this vital element in the solution of 
many of the problems. The consideration of time 
must be eliminated. The work must be continu- 
ous ; the problem undertaken must be persevered 
in. The short period of an ordinary human life 
will prove inadequate to the completion. Such 
work should be laid down on lines so carefully con- 
sidered, and so well provided for, that the experi- 
ment shall not depend on a single investigator, but 
rather on generations of investigators working to 
the same end. A properly equipped laboratory- 
must therefore include, as one of its chief requisites, 
a staff of several investigators, preferably each of a 
different generation, so that the possibility of the 
interference with the continuity of experimenta- 
tion shall be minimized. The performance must 
go on as advertised ; it must be continuous ; 
there must be under-studies ; for the audience 
that awaits the production of results must not be 
disappointed. All this has been admirably stated 
by Professor C. O. Whitman in an essay dealing 
with the subject, and I find that the words he uses, 
" continuity and control," more adequately express 
what is desirable than any paraphrase. 

I think I have expressed definitely what " con- 
tinuity " means ; " control " is more obvious. It 



THE NATURALIST'S VISION 367 

means that a laboratory for the kind of investiga- 
tions that has been suggested shall have behind 
it a financial backing, regulated on business 
principles, so that an experiment once undertaken 
shall not be abandoned until the question involved 
is answered, pro or con. 

I am not attempting to present a new idea ; I 
am summarizing the conclusions of such men 
as Huxley, Darwin, Romanes, De Varigny, Mor- 
gan, Gadow, Poulton, and others. Perhaps I have 
formulated my suggestions in a more concrete 
way, because of the inspiring efforts of these 
workers to attain a like end. That is all. 

But to what end must all work reach ? Is it 
not the human element and interest that it bears 
upon? In closing I must again quote the pro- 
phetic words of Professor Gross : 

" If the observations of animals is to be rendered 
fruitful for the unsolved problems of anthropology, 
an untried way must be entered upon ; attention 
must be directed less to particular resemblances 
to man, and more to specific animal characteristics. 
Hereby a means may be found for the better 
understanding of the animal part in man than can 
be attained through the discussion of human ex- 
amples alone. Man's animal nature reveals itself 
in instinctive acts, and the latest investigators tell 
us that man has at least as many instincts as the 
brutes have, though most of them have become 



368 THE STORY OF A BIRD LOVER 

unrecognizable through the influence of education 
and tradition. Therefore an accurate knowledge 
of the animal world, where pure instinct is dis- 
played, is indispensable in weighing the importance 
of inherited impulses in men." 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 

BOOKS AND ARTICLES REFERRED TO IN "THE STORY 
OF A BIRD LOVER" 

To the readers who care for the exact scientific names of the 
birds spoken of in this story, the Check List of the American Orni- 
thologist Union will be of service. The following bibliography, 
besides supplying the scientific nomenclature, will fill in many 
details of the bird fauna of the several regions treated. 

PARTIAL LIST OF THE SUMMER BIRDS OF KANAWHA COUNTY. 
WEST VIRGINIA, W. [E.] D. Scott. Proceedings Boston 
Society Natural History, Vol. XV, p. 219, Oct. 2, 1872. 

ON ALBINISM, AND OTHER NOTES FROM NEW JERSEY, W. E. D. 
Scott. The Country, Vol. I, p. 43, Nov. 17, 1877. 

RARE OCCURRENCES IN SOUTHERN NEW JERSEY, W. E. D. Scott. 
The Country, Vol. I, p. 79, Dec. 8, 1877. 

NOTES FROM CENTRAL NEW YORK, W. E. D. Scott. The Coun- 
try, Vol. I, p. 115, Dec. 29, 1877. 

WINTER NOTES ABOUT PRINCETON, W. E. D. Scott. The Coun- 
try, Vol. I, pp. 164, 196, 212, 229, 244, January to April, 1878. 

NOTES FROM ITHACA, NEW YORK, W. E. D. Scott. The Country, 
Vol. I, p. 165, Jan. 19, 1878. 

NOTES ON SOME OF THE RARER BIRDS ABOUT PRINCETON, NEW 
JERSEY, W. E. D. Scott. The Country, Vol. I, p. 354, April 13, 
1878 ; Vol. II, p. 9, April 27, 1878. 

BIRDS ABOUT DENVER, COLORADO, W. E. D. Scott. The Country, 
Vol. II, p. 136, June 22, 1878. 

A MOUNTAIN DRIVE, W. E. D. Scott. The Country, Vol. II, 
pp. 152, 168, 1878. 

SOME BIRDS BREEDING ABOUT THE TWIN LAKES, COLORADO, 
W. E. D. Scott. The Country, July 20, 1878. 

LATE FALL AND WINTER NOTES ON SOME BIRDS OBSERVED IN 
THE VICINITY OF PRINCETON, NEW JERSEY, W. E. D. Scott. 
2B 369 



370 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 



Bulletin of the Nuttall Ornithological Club, Vol. IV, pp. 81-86, 

April, 1879. 
NOTES ON BIRDS OBSERVED AT TWIN LAKES, LAKE COUNTY, 

COLORADO, W. E. D. Scott. Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, Vol. IV, 

pp. 90-96, April, 1879. 
NOTES ON BIRDS OBSERVED DURING THE SPRING MIGRATION IN 

WESTERN MISSOURI, W. E. D. Scott. BulL Nutt. Orn. Club, 

Vol. IV, pp. 139-147, July, 1879. 
NOTES ON BIRDS OBSERVED AT LONG BEACH, NEW JERSEY, 

W. E. D. Scott. BulL Nutt. Orn. Club, Vol. IV, pp. 222-228, 

October, 1879. 
ON BIRDS OBSERVED IN SUMTER, LEVY, AND HILLSBORO COUNTIES, 

FLORIDA, W. E. D. Scott. Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, Vol. VI, 

pp. 14-21, January, 1881. 
SOME OBSERVATIONS ON THE MIGRATION OF BIRDS, W. E. D. 

Scott. Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, Vol. IV, pp. 97-100, April, 

1881. 
ON THE BREEDING HABITS OF SOME ARIZONA BIRDS, W. E. D. 

Scott. The Auk, Vol. II. 

First Paper. Icterus par -isorum, pp. 1-7, January, 1885. 
Second Paper. Icterus cucullatus, pp. 159-165, April, 1885. 
Third Paper. Phainopepla nitens, pp. 242-246, July, 1885. 
Fourth Paper. Vireo mcinior, pp. 321-326, October, 1885. 
Fifth Paper. Aphelocoma sieberii arizona, Peuccea ruficeps bou- 

cardi, Lophophanes ivolweberi. The Auk, Vol. Ill, pp. 81-86, 

1886. 
WINTER MOUNTAIN NOTES FROM SOUTHERN ARIZONA, W. E. D. 

Scott. Auk, Vol. II, pp. 172-174, April, 1885. 
EARLY SPRING NOTES FROM THE MOUNTAINS OF SOUTHERN ARI- 
ZONA, W. E. D. Scott. Auk, Vol. II, pp. 348-356, October, 1885. 
ON THE AVI-FAUNA OF PINAL COUNTY, WITH REMARKS ON SOME 

BIRDS OF PlMA AND GlLA COUNTIES, ARIZONA, W. E. D. 

Scott, with annotations by J. A. Allen. Auk, Vol. Ill, with 
map. I, pp. 249-258; II, pp. 283-289; III, pp. 42i-43 2 > l886 - 

IV. Auk, Vol. IV, pp. 16-24 ; V, pp. 196-205, 1887. VI. Auk, 

V, pp. 29-36; VII, pp. 159-168, 1888. 

THE PRESENT CONDITION OF SOME OF THE BIRD ROOKERIES OF 
THE GULF COAST OF FLORIDA, W. E. D. Scott. Three papers. 
Auk, Vol. IV, pp. 135-141 ; 213-222 ; 273-284, 1887. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 371 

SOME RARE FLORIDA BIRDS, W. E. D. Scott. Auk, Vol. IV, pp. 

i33-'35> 1887. 
A SUMMARY OF OBSERVATIONS ON THE BIRDS OF THE GULF COAST 

OF FLORIDA, W. E. D. Scott. Auk, Vol. V, pp. 373~379> '888. 

Auk, Vol. VI, pp. 13-18; 152-160; 245-252; 319-326, 1889. 

Auk, Vol. VII, pp. 14-22; 114-120, 1890. 
A SECOND SPECIMEN OF CORY'S BITTERN (Botaurus neoxenus), 

W. E. D. Scott. Auk, Vol. VI, pp. 317-318, 1889. 
ON THE SPECIFIC IDENTITY OF BUTEO BRACHYURUS AND BUTEO 

FULIGINOSUS, with additional records of their occurrence in 

Florida, W. E. D. Scott. Auk, Vol. VI, pp. 243-245, 1889. 
SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES FROM THE GULF COAST OF FLORIDA, with 

a description of a new species of marsh wren, W. E. D; Scott. 

Auk, Vol. V, pp. 183-188, 1888. 
DESCRIPTION OF A NEW SUB-SPECIES OF WILD TURKEY, W. E. D. 

Scott. Auk, Vol. VII, pp. 376-377, 1890. 
AN ACCOUNT OF FLAMINGOES (Phcenicopterus rubcr) OBSERVED 

IN THE VICINITY OF CAPE SABLE, FLORIDA, W. E. D. Scott. 

Auk, Vol. VII, pp. 222-226, 1890. 
Two SPECIES OF SWALLOW NEW TO NORTH AMERICA, W. E. D. 

Scott. Auk, Vol. VII, pp. 264, 265, 1890. 
ON BIRDS OBSERVED AT THE DRY TORTUGAS, FLORIDA, DURING 

PARTS OF MARCH AND APRIL, 1890, W. E. D. Scott. Auk, 

Vol. VII, pp. 301-314, with map, 1890. 
A DESCRIPTION OF THE ADULT MALE OF BOTAURUS NEOXENUS 

(Cory), with additional notes on the species, W. E. D. Scott. 

Auk, Vol. IX, pp. 141-142, 1892. 
NOTES ON THE BIRDS OF THE CALOOSAHATCHEE REGION OF 

FLORIDA, W. E. D. Scott. Auk, Vol. IX, pp. 209-218, 1892. 
OBSERVATIONS ON THE BIRDS OF JAMAICA, WEST INDIES, W. E. D. 

Scott. 

I. Notes on the Habits of the Yellow-billed Tropic Bird (Phae- 

ton flavirostris.) Auk, Vol. VIII, pp. 349-356, 1891. 

II. A List of Birds recorded from the Island, with annotations. 
Seven Papers. Auk, Vol. VIII, pp. 353-365, 1891. Auk, Vol. IX, 

pp. 9-15; 120-129; 273-277; 369-375> l8 9 2 - Auk i Vol. X, 
pp. 177-181 ; 339-342, 1893. 

BIRD STUDIES: AN ACCOUNT OF THE LAND BIRDS OF EASTERN 
NORTH AMERICA, William E. D. Scott, p. 363. With many 



372 BIBLIOGRAPHY 

full-page illustrations and text cuts; all from original photo- 
graphs. G. P. Putnam's Sons. New York, 1898. 

DATA ON SONG IN BIRDS. OBSERVATIONS ON THE SONG OF 
BALTIMORE ORIOLES IN CAPTIVITY, William E. D. Scott. 
Science, N. S., Vol. XIV, No. 353, pp. 522-526, October 4, 1901. 

DATA ON SONG IN BIRDS: THE ACQUISITION OF NEW SONGS, 
William E. D. Scott. Science, N. S., Vol. XV, No. 370, pp. 
178-181, January 31, 1902. 

INSTINCT IN SONG BIRDS. METHOD OF BREEDING IN HAND- 
REARED ROBINS (Merula migratoria), William E. D. Scott. 
Science, N. S., Vol. XVI, No. 393, pp. 70-71, July n, 1902. 



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