The Lebanon express. (Lebanon, Linn County, Or.) 1887-1898, 1890-11-07
NO. 35.
Eccs oE The cREAT Aux.



In 1888 an egg of the great aux MAS
sold for 100 guineas, whilst more re-
Gently an egg of the same species
fetched 4225; and although these may
seem enormous sums to gIFe for 3
relic. the transactions are not without
others to keep them in counteDance.
Only few years ago two eggs OF the
same kind fetched 100 and 102 guineas
respectively. while the egg first named
realized little over twenty Years ago
f33 los At that time il was <liscor-
cred. together with four others. packed
away in a dust-coyered box in the
museum Of the Royal College OF Sur
geons, these being sold in 1865 From
this it would seem that in the ornifI,o-
logical market the complete shell of
great auk's egg Is worth nearly EI70.
and broken one only f70 less. II
will be seen that the purchase OF one
of these may be a good investment.
and what mine of wealth great aux
that was a good layer might prove to
his fortunate possessor can only be
conjectured. At the present time tho
number of eggs of this species known
to exist is sixty-six--twenfT-fv of
which are in museums and fortr-one ia
private collections; of the total number
fortF-three are retained in Great
Britain
When bird becomes so rare that
the individual remains can be counted.
the same may be taken to be practically
extinct as a species. The great aux
has pursued policy of extinction for
the past two or three centuries until
now. like the mighty moa and the do
do. il has ceased to exist The great
aux. or garefowl, was one of those
birds which, from long disuse. had lost
at once the power of flight and preser-
yation. 1t was a great sham bling bird.
as large as 4 goose. aud ill-adapfed TO
travel on land. How these things told
against it may be inferred from the
story of one Captaine Richard Whit
bourne. who. writing of the discovery
of Newfoundland in 1879. says that
among the abundant water fowl of
these parts are penguins tgreat auks)
'.as bigge as geese. aud fiye not. for
they have but short wing. and they
multiply SO infinitely. upon q certain
| fat island. that men drive them from
thence upon board. into their boats
by hundreds at n time
This process of extinction went on in
Iceland and elsewhere until about the
| middle OF the present cenfurg hardly
any birds remaired. The IeeIanders
robbed the auks of their eggs for do
nestle use. and upon one occasion the
crew of British privateer remained
upon one of the Skerries all daF killing
many birds and tre;ding down their
eggs and v0ung This went on until
the last birds were taken. and there Is
bat the faintest hope that ik may ret
| Iinger on in the inaccessible north
Although awkward and travelling with
ths greatest difficulty on land. the
great aux was perfectly at home in the
water. and Travelled both upon aud un-
der the surface with the rapidity OF 4
i tish- The time of haunting the land
was during the breeding season. in
early summer At this period the aux
resorted To the rocks in the dark
recesses of which the females deposited
! one large ege-large even for the size
of the bird. These had whitish-green
| ground streaked with brown. and
nearly fise inches in length