The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-05-22
A Reminder of the Monumental Blum der Made by the Brooklyn Institute.
From the New York Sun.

From the New York Sun.
 Several New Workers, who have already moved to their summer homes on Long Island. were gazing out of a car window on their way to the city one morning last week when one of their number called at tention to spar.bw box in front of fine old residence close to the railroad track.
 "There are very few of those boxes left he said.
 T never noticed one before" replied companion.
 "Yon are too young to remember the sparrow craze" said the first speaker. Let me see The first sparrows were brought to Brooklyn In 1850, just fifty three years ago.
 Just before and immediately after the civil war they were all the rage. About every other house had a sparrow box, in which the birds were carefully guarded against harm.
 Things have changed since then. Only a few old-tImers still exhibit the sparrow boxes, and state legislatures are trying to legislate the birds out of existence. suspect that the dwelling we have just passed belongs to an old member of the Brooklyn Institute, to which body we owe thanks for the first of the sparrow fam fly.
 "They thought at the time that they were doing a great thing, and everybody else thought so too. What scramble there was for sparrowsl Orders came from every city in the country. A pair of sparrows cost so much in the early 50s and COS that 1t was cheaper to import birds from Europe than 1t was to buy them from a dealer.
 "IIow the mighty have fallenl Now mo- body except the bounty payer would give a cent for the finest sparrow in the land. Down my way the little ruffians have be- come such a nuisance that l am paying bounty on my own hook.
 "The men who brought the sparrows to America thought the birds would kindly eat nothing but caterpillars, and the seeds of weeds, such as the field mustard, the dandellon, the goose foot and the chick weed No one suspected they would prove to be the enemies they actually are of the song birds.
 "The sparrow fad did not come with greater rush than the anti-sparrow feel ing Along about 'S7 laws were being made all over the country for the sup pression of the sparrow; but he Is still with us and is going to stay. Rhode Is land passed a law in 'H under which 'sparrows may be killed. taken or de- stroyed at any time of the year In
  made 1t a misdemeanor for any person to give food or shelter to a sparrow.
 "I remember very well when, in 1850, the Brooklyn Institute sent for the first sparrows. There were eight pairs. large cage was built for them and people fiocl<ed to see them during the winter months. In the spring they were set at liberty.
 "The next year Nicholas Pike, one of oF pronlflvn TpQtffute was sent to England for larger supply of birds He bought all he wanted in Liverpool and sent them to this country on the steamship Europa.
 Fifty sparrows were liberated at the Narrows and the remainder were placed in the tower of Greenwood cemetery. La- ter they were removed to the residence of John Hooper, a member Of the insti- ute, who cared for them until spring. Early in 1853 the sparrows were set free In Greenwood cemetery, and man was hired to watch over them.
 Thus the Long Island sparrows are the Mayfiower stock of sparrowdom
 Tt was not until 1858 that Boston re- ceived a supply of the birds. They were imported by a man living in small Massachusetts town, but escaped on their arrival in Boston,
 1.-TWO years later twelve sparrows were turned loose in Madison Square. In loon seven pairs were placed in Central Park, and in 1866 200 of the birds were allowed to fly from their cages into Union Square.
 Philadelphia was seized with the spar row fever in 1869 and imported 1000 pairs.
 "The people who are now trying to ex- terminate the sparrows are wasting time. The only thing I ever heard of that hurt them real bad was the blizzard of 1888. They did not mind the wind, the snow or the cold It was the inability to find food that laid them low, and they starved to death in great numbers But it would take one or two blizzards every year ut- terly to suppress the breed.'