, 1877-08-03
OUR BIRDS.

While this may he true, still, this
being q wooded region, the tourist
and even resident, seldom see the
birds that are pretty, as they are al
most invariably found in the dcnsely
wooded forests. And it is the
belief that the beauty of the birds Of
our Territory has been underratcd
that prompts us to offer our feeble
effort n their behalf, and hoping
it may be the cause Of others bring
ing 10 notice "rare" birds, but new
ertheless "common", as they have
been always in our forests, but un-
observed. And as it is the intcn.
tion Of the writer to make collec-
ton Of the different birds of the Ter
ritoTy, (not to be sent away, but one
thai will re kept ON the Sound) it is
hop8a that many beautiful birds
will be discovered, and we shall take
much pleasure in noting any rare
specimen that comes under our OBJ
servation,
We now have bird in our posses
sion, which we shot while in Olym-
pis, last November, that the reader
mus agree with us in calling hand
some. At first we failed to find any
work on the birds of this far NORTH.
wesg .hat made any reference to it, but
since then we succeeded in Identify
ing 5he stranger" In the reports
OF 5as explorations made from the
Mississippi river to the Pacific ocean,
in 1853, Prof Spencer +. Baird, has
made reference to the bird, and calls
it The Bohemian Chatterer or Wax.
Wing. He says, "The specimen
from Fort Riley is probably the most
southwestern one on record in North
America" After a description of
the bird he adds: 81 have found it
impossible to describe satisfactorily
to ulygolf the peculiar tint of color
pre- rgiling on the anterior half Of this
beautiful bird;" which is truly said,
as Tire following affords but faint
conception Of its exquisite tints:
Highly crested. General color brOwnish
ash, with a faint shade of reddish, especial
ly 2uJeriorly; the forehead, sides of the
head, and under tail cOverts, brownish
orange, the hinder parts plrcr ash. the
REG ION abont the vent white. Primaries
ana all feathers plumbeus black, es-
pecislly tawards the tips; the tail with Il
terminal band Of yellow. A narrow from
tai line passing backward and involving
the eye, and extending above and hehind
It. I0ill and upper part of throat black.
Tipy ~ the secondary covertS, AMI spot
on Che end OF the outer webs OF all the
quiils, white; those on the inner primar-
les CLOSED with yellow SecoudarieS with
res borny tips. like selling WAX, Sides
OF the lower jaw whitish. Length, 7:40;
wing, $50: tail, 3.
Seen in the United States only in severe
winters, except along the great lakes.
ln ff9 Mississippi valley south to Fort
Riley.
While the above description an
spara nearly, yet not exactly all the
fesNv1es Of the bird, the difference
mus. be accounted for by the change
OF 81 mate.
tside from the beauty Of this rare
bird il has a historical record that
cannot fail to be of interest to the
res l4r. Itisquite cosmopolitan and
is foand all over Europe, and is pop
u0sly known by scholars to be "the
lOgaudiaria avis of Pliny; most es-
pec,aAly unfortunate for Rome in the
moinontous consulshipof !Iucius Gas
siue and Caius Marus; a time when
these birds appeared in the city, and
tn Oparition Of the great owl ad-
ded 20 the horrors of the year. 1t
hae also been supposed to have been
the bird of the Hercynian forest,
whcse feathers shone in the night
IL 5re.' In 1880, when Charles V.
waa crowned at Bologa, they ap,
Peerod in large flocks, as if for an
owea of the new powers Of the In
q'is'Cion; and again, in the year
roy Of the same century, in all the
j1a ian districts, except Ferrara,
which was afterwards convulsed Ivy
~ aarthquake aud much damage was
ln.a in that country, Necker OBJ
s~uyas in his memories of The
.'rIs Of Geneva that from the mid
d.r e this century only two fights
ta been seen in that Canton, one
n January 1907, and one again in
'osj, when they were very numerous.
>s..' says that they are only seen in
tIa,any in severe winters"
We am not aware that any supcrsti-
t"', are entertained in regard to
E..-e birds in United States, or that
r..a lIp rpOardnd ne - devil birds -