The Sun.
London, England, 1863-09-05 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, SATURDAY EVENING, SEPTEMBER 5, 1863.

The Destruction of Small Birds.

The eminent ornithologist, Edward Wilson, has

recently addressed the following admirable corn-

munication to our leading contemporary
In a retired corner of the French department of the In-
ternational Exhibition there lay a long row of mysterious
and rather dingy specimens, which, in spite of their unat-
tractive appearance, well deserved a study, even in the midst
of the bright and beautiful objects by which they were sur-

rounded.
They consisted of a very numerous collection of the
stomachs of bird, with their contents spread out on sheets
of paper, with a written description of their contents, the
time of the year in which the bird was taken, and other par-
ticulars. They were the work of M. Florent-Prevost, the
celebrated French naturalist, who for 30 years has been
prosecuting his inquiries of this kind, and endeavouring to
convince his countrymen of the suicidal folly of which they
are guilty in the persistent and indiscriminate slaughter of
these beautiful little creatures.
In taking steps to impress particularly upon our younger
people in Australia the mistake they commit in destroying
these birds which we are taking such trouble to introduce
among them, I have put myself in communication with this
kind-hearted and enlightened philosopher, and by his aid I
have prepared a tolerably complete list of what is eaten
during each month of the year by the more common of our
birds. And, I think, that this list is worth study at home,
when the destruction of small :birds by poison and other
means is attracting Parliamentary notice, and the undenied
facts are brought before the public of whole tracts of forest

land laid waste, and whole countries reduced to famine by
the thoughtless removal of the only effective check upon
the ravages of the insect tribe, we really ought to dwell

upon that point. The little bird is our only safeguard
against a pest, which but for it would soon become over-
whelming. As Michelet very well says—" The bird can
live without the man, but the man cannot live without the
bird." Wero we all to resolve ourselves into one great
sparrow club we should all in a few years perish from
famine.

I trust, then, that this list would be found useful, and I
would suggest to parents and teachers particularly that it
might advantageously be cut out and preserved for future
use, that the minds of young people might be properly im-
pressed with the ideas of the usefulness as well as beauty of
the pretty little things that enliven our hedge rows and hop
across our paths. _ _

Long-eared owl—January, February, and March, mice—
April, cockchafers —May, rats, squirrels, aud cockchafers—
June, meal worm, beetles, and shrew mice—July, :mice,

ground and other beetles--August, shrew and other
mice—
September, October, and November, mice.
Short-eared Owl—January, mice—February, harvest
mice—March, mice—April, crickets and harvest mice—
May,ahrew mice and cockchafers --Stine, beetles—July,field
mice and birds—August, field and shrew mice—September

and October, field mice and beetles—November, common
and field mice—December, mice, spiders, and wood lice.
Barn Owl—January and February, mice—March, April,
May, and June, field mice—July and August, mice—Sep-
tember and October, field and shrew mice—November, mice
and the black rat—December, mice. _ _ _

Rook—January, field mice and larvae or grub of cock-
chafer—February, field mice, grub of cockchafer, and red
worms—March, grubs and chrysolids—April, slugs, worms,
and chrysolids—May, beetles, grubs, prawns, and wire
worms—June, cockchafers, eggs of birds, and wood-boring
beetles—July, young birds, beetles, &c.—August, birds,
field mice, weevils, crickets, and grasshoppers—September,
grubs and worms—October, grasshoppers, ground beetles,
and young animals—November, young rabbits and different
insects and grubs—December, different animals and decay-
ing substances.
Magpie.—January, grubs of cockchafers, young beetles,
and cern and seeds—February, the same, and berries—

March, the same—April, crickets, water rats, and mice—
May, cockchafers, glowworms, and fruits—June, the same,
and weevils—July, beetles and field mice—August, birds'
eggs and weevils—September, beetles, worms, barley, and
grasshoppers—October, grosshoppers, carrion beetles, and
green locusts —November,grasshoppers and kernels of fruits
—D e cember, grubs of cockchafers, young rabbits, and berries.
Jay—January, grubs of cockchafers, acorns, and berries—
February, chrysolids, and different grains and seeds—March,
grubs, insects, wheat, and barley—April, grubs of beetles,
and snails—May, cockchafers and locusts—June, eggs of
birds, cockchafers, and beetles—July, young birds, flies, and
beetles—August, the same, acorns, grubs, and dragon flies
—September, the same and fruits— October and November,
beetles, slugs, snails, and grain—December, the same,
haws, hips, &c.
Starling.—January, worms, grubs of cockchafers, and
the dung of animals—February, grubs, snails, and slugs
—March and April, grubs of cockchafers and snails—May,
the same, and grasshoppers and fruits—June, flies, and
grubs of various flies and fruits—July, grubs, fresh water
shell fish, and fruits—August, flies, glow worms, and various
beetles and fruits—September, green locusts, grubs of car-
rion, beetles, and worms—October, worms and beetles—
November, snails, slugs, and grubs—December, hips, haws,
and buds of trees.
Gulden Oriole—January, various chrysolids. February,
chrysolids and worms. March, grubs, and beetles. April,
ground beetles and weevils. May, betties, moths, butter-
flies, and grubs. June, grubs, grasshoppers, bees, and
cherries. July, cheeries and beetles. August, weevils,
chrysolids, fruits, and worms. September, beetles, grubs,
worms, and fruits. October, grubs, herbs, chrysolids,
berries, and barley. November, ants and worms.
Creste
March, Crested Hoopoe—January,andAprii,
thewo same and
worms, and snails—
February,birds—May,
flies, dragon flies, and grubs of May-fly—June, water and
land snails, flies, &c.—July, August, September, the same
and wood-lice—October and November, snails, flies, and

spiders—December, the same and worms.
Green Woodpecker—January, ants—February, worms
and grubs of ants—M arch, slugs, beetles, and grubs of ants
April, ants and worms—May, red ants and grubs of wasps
—June, bees and ants—July, red ants—August, red ants
and worms—September, ants and worms—Otober, grubs of
ants—November, grubs of ants and bees—and December,
ants.

Reed Thrush—March, grubs and insects—April, aquatic
grubs—May, grubs of house and dragon flies—June,
worms, grubs, flies, and May flies—July, beetles and
dragon flies—August, worms, eggs of insects, and beetles
—and September, aquatic insects.
Great Titmouse—January, beetles and eggs of insects—
February, grubs—March, winter snails, beetles, and grubs
—April, cockchafers, beetles, and bees—June, cockchafers,
flies, and other insects—July, the same—August, insects
and fruits—September, seeds, grasshoppers, and crickets—
October, berries—and November, seeds.
Blackbird—January and February, seeds, spiders, and
chrysolids—March, worms, grubs, and buds of trees—
April, insects, worms, and grubss—May, the same and
cockchafers—June, the same and fruit—July, August, Sep-
tember, all sorts of R orms and fruit—October, grubs of
butterflies and worms—November, and December, seeds
and chrysolids.
Skylark—January, seeds of wild plants—February,seeds
and corn—March, various insects, worms, seeds, and corn
—April, insects, beetles, and corn—May, flies and various
in sects—J une,grasshoPPers,worms and corn—July, crickets
and grasshoppers—August, insects, corn, and seeds of
weeds—September, seeds, worms, and barley—October,
November, seeds, corn, and berries—December, seeds of
wild plants.
Redbreasts—January, insects, worms, and chrysolids—
February, insects, worms, and wood lice—March, chryso-
lids, and worms—April, moths, eggs of insects, and cock-
chafers—May, grubs and beetles—June, flies, moths, spi-
ders, and worms—July, moths, butterflies, and wood lice—
August and September, the same and worms—October,
eggs of insects and aquatic insects—November, worms and
chrysolids--Dec., chrysolids, grub, and eggs of moth.
Nightingale—February, grubs and worms—March, the
same and chrysolids, and ground beetles—April, flies, meal-
worms, beetles, and red worms—May, butterflies, cockcha-
fers, weevils, and grubs—June, spiders, wood-boring
beetles, and worms—July, worms, grubs, eggs of locusts,
grasshoppers, moths and flies—August, locusts, glow-
worms, weevils, and grubs—September, locusts, beetles,
worms, and dragon flies—October, grubs, worms, and
beetles—November, flies and worms.
Linnet—January, February, March, and April, seeds and
berries—May, June, July, August, and September, the
same and insects—October, November, and December,
berries, seeds, buds of trees, and fruit.
Chaffinch—January, seeds, berries, and kernels of fruit—
February, the same and corn—March, the same and in-
sects—April, moths, flies, and insects of various kinds—
May, cockchafers, grubs, and eggs of insects—June, the
same and wild fruit—July, the same and grubs of beetles—
August, moths and butterflies—September, eggs of insects,
worms, and seeds—October, wood-boring beetles and in-
sects—November, seeds—December, seeds and We.
Greenfinch—January, February, and March, seeds,
berries, wild fruit, worms, &c.—April, May, June, July,
and August, the same and insects—September, October,
NOVOID;Jer, and December, seeds, berries, worms, wild
fruit, &c.
The sparrow only lives near the habitations of roan. It
varies its food according to circumstances. In a wood it
lives on insects and seeds ; in a village it feeds on seeds,
grain, and !siva> of butterflies, ;* in a city it lives on al
kinds of debris. But it prefers cockchafers and some other
insects to all other food.
In looking over this list critically our sparrow killers
will probably think that M. Florent Prevost has hare and
there allowed the advocate rather to interfere with the
philosopher, and they
e articles of food which
it is notorious that birdwS3cYonlnsi3usmse°.lllAnd in his zeal to show
the amazing quantity of insects destroyed,also consumed
by his little
proteges, the proportion of fruit, grain, ac.
perhaps scarcely accords with our less accurate observation.
Still these results are obtained by actual inspection, and we
may be sure that everything enumerated has been found.
And wo must remember that these experiments were made
in France and that the food:of birds will always be largely
inMuenced by local peculiarities.
It is worth mentioning that a study of M.Florent Prevost's
specimens showed another important fact ranging beyond
the above list; that many birds, namely, living a good deal
upon grain, feed their young entirely on insects, so that
they are serving us admirably in this way at a season when

insects are most rife, even when the examination of their
own stomachs would lead as to denounce them as little
better than mere plunderers.
. _

And here I would draw attention to the value of another
set of experiments recently reported in the papers, as sug-
gestive of the incredible quantity of insects destroyed by
such agencies. A gentleman took some young robins and
fed them himself, weighing them and their food accurately
day by day, to discover what quantity a young bird required
to keep it in a growing and healthy condition. As he went
on he became more and more astounded at the result,
and he found that taking the commonearthworm, as a
representative of the food, the daily supply required to
keep a young robin in its highest health, laid end to end
would reach the almost incredible length of 14 feet. This
seems amazing, but those will not hesitate to believe it who
have watched the incessant activity during the long hours
of a summer's day of a pair of birds with a nest of young.
But let us put this and that together lama we wish pro-
perly to estimate the services of this invaluable little thief-
catcher, and with a true conception of the part he has to
play among us, let us do what we can to save him from the
wanton shot and cowardly poison.—I am, Sir, your obedient
servant, EDWARD WILSON.
Reform Club.

resolutions on the following subjects :-1. On alterations in
the Act of Confederation and its supplements. 2. On the
Budget of the Band. 3. For the establishment of " gene-
ral features for the legislation of the separate States," in
regard to matters connected with the press, the right of
association, the right of domicile, and of all matters of com-
mon interest which may at some future time be brought
under the direct influence of the Bund.*
Bills relative to an alteration of the constitution of the
Bund, to a supplement to the same, or to the matters
which have hitherto been settled by the legislative bodies
in the separate Scates. can only be passed by a majority of
at least three-fourths of the members of the Federal As-
sembly. [Originally it was four-fifths, but several mem-
bers of the Congress spoke in favour of a majority of three-
fourths.]
The Federal Assembly, like the Directory, has a right
to bring in bills, but if a bill contains propositions for an
alteration of the constitution of the Band, or of a supple-
ment to the same, it must, before it can be brought in, have
the approval of at least three-fourths of the members of the
Assembly.'t
Art. 21. In all matters which concern the separate
States rather than the Bund, the Federal Assembly has only
a right to deliberate and mediate.
Art. 22. In all Federal matters the Chamber of Dele-
gates has a right to make representations and complaints.
Or THE ASSEMBLY OF PRINCES.

Art. 23. As a rule the Assembly of Princes will meet
after the close of the ordinary and extraordinary sittings of
the Chamber of Delegates. The Emperor of Austria and
the King of Prussia will together invite the Princes to
assemble. The Princes may be represented by members of
their respective families. [lt was proposed to let the
mediatised German Princes have two representatives in the
Assembly, but the motion was set aside.]
Art. 24. The Princes to deliberate as independent Sove-
reigns, who are on an equality with each other.
Art. 25. The Assembly of Princes takes into considers-

tion the results of the deliberations of the Chamber of De-
puties, and finally disposes of the propositions made by the
same.l. It orders the promulgation, by the Directory and
by the separate State, of the acts it has sanctioned. It exa-
mines into the representations and complaints of the Cham-
ber of Delegates. It can take into consideration proposi-
tions for tho reception of new members in the Confede-
ration, and for a change in the right of voting of its present
members.

* This paragraph led to several animated and even angry
discussions. _ _

t The passage quoted is said to have been introduced at
the express request of the King of Hanover.
It was privately agreed that no Bill should receive the
sanction of the Assembly of Princes unless with., the full
consent and approval of all its members.