Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1874-04-08
The Culture Of Birds.

The attention of the public is turned
nowadays, very wisely, to the culture o
fsh in our streams. The clear waters o
our brooks and rivers are almost depopu
lated Of their inhabitants Man, who
ought to protect them from determination
as a farmer protects his herds or his for
ests from utter destruction, has become
their ruthless enemy, and pursues them
with hook and spear and net, till II has come
to be almost impossible to fnd any number
Of the hunted creatures left for his use.
But this destructiveness Of man has not
only nearly exterminated the fish from our
waters but also the birds from the air and
the destruction Of the birds is, by far, the
worst calamity Of the two. 1t is true that
the fish, beside furnishing food to man, are
the scavengcrs Of the water. They consume
all the foreign matter which finds its way
into the streams, ponds, lakes and sea,
that would otherwise breed corruption, and
turn the water into a fountain Of impurity
and disease. So far, therefore, their de-
struction is a crime against the health and
welfare Of man and beast
But the birds are TO the air what the fsb
are to the water They not only make it
tremulous with their songs, but also purify
it Of its floating, miasmatic atoms, and con.
sumo the pestiierous insects that the " cd
Of flies" sends swarming all through the
space around US, and settling down upon the
green things and valuable fruits Of our
gardens aud orchards.
For many years past there have been de-
veloped all kinds Of noxious insects and
worms 10 our gardens and fields, destroying
alike our vegetables, our cereals aud our
fruit Science has ransacked its lore 10
vain to find remedies for the fatal pests
that have attacked our fruits of every kind
and the products Of our soil. 10 this case
an ounce Of prevention would have been
worth a pound of cure. The culture Of
birds would have saved us the ravages Of
the curculio and the worm. They are the
omnipresent destroyers of the insects and
grubs that so seriously waste aud consume
all the varieties of our crops. They haunt
the bushes, the trees, the shaded walks oil
the vegetables, the long avenues between
the rows Of the potato, and no insect, OF
grub, or worm escapes their vigilant eyes
They are the police Of the air, aud when
they are in sufficient numbers they per.
fectly protect fruit and vegetables against
the dreaded ravages Of their foes. There
is nothing so useful to the farmer as the
birds who guard the seed he plants aud the
trees of his orchard from those children oil
Beelzebub that find their way to the roots
of his plants and tho blossoms Of his trees,
and destroy every living thing they touch.
In order TO the culture of birds one thing
certainly is necessary, and that is a gun
kept constantly loaded for the use of cats
A good cat will generally keep farm
free Of birds. The birds are twice worth
their board. They ought to be welcomed
to the cherries and plums of the garden
They are entitled to their half, for the
whole product is the result of their care.
But a cat, the great enemy Of birds, is 10
league with the curculio and the caterpil.
lar and the cabbage worm, and is not worth
single cdress he gets. He loves birds bet
ter than he does mice, and in the days when
the birds are building their nests and rear.
ing their young, he forsakes the house and
leaves the rats and mice to their pleasures,
and roams the fields, and prowls the gar
dens, hides in the bushes, and climbs the
trees, and makes himself fat and glossy
with the delicacies Of sparrow, robin and
wren. A gun for cats and a small, guarded
house for birds, in every tree top, and the
time is not far off when potatoes will yield
three hundred bushels TO the acre, when
the currant will return to its abundant
fruit, and the cabbage and cauiaower grow
unmolested. Reinforce the police corps
of the air and our trees will soon be full of
songs and Of fruit. If we can keep our
brooks full of trout and our trees full Of
birds, we shall never lack pure water or
sound fruit; dainty for our tables or a
song for our hearts.