Evening capital and Maryland gazette. (Annapolis, Md.) 1910-1922, 1916-04-04
VANISHING BIRDS.
Their Economic and Aesthetic Value
A World Without Birds---Lecture
by Prof. Fentop.

The fifth OF the course Of lectures
being given on Monday nights az ST.
Johns College. was delivered yester-
,Iay BY Prof Horace J. Fenton, OF the
United States Naval Academy. The
subject of the lecture WAS Birds" II
was not rigid ornithological dis
course, but popular lecture upon
birds. their economic and aesthetic
value and Of sympathetic interest IT,
them that ours may not be a world
without birds
The lecture was beautifully illus
trated by stereopucon views. whIct
looked ike pictures by the famous IL
illustrator of bird life. Audubon The
lecturer confiened his talk to bind
which nay be seen about Annapolis
Some OF which are only brief visitors
as they make their semi-annual migra
lions North and South emf remain but
! few DAYS in Maryland
Others spend more time here some
are here al the summer and some the
whole year He began will the Car
diual bird the gros-heak. loved for its
song as He.. as its plumage Pictui -5
Of thrushes. sparows, wrens. night
hawks o&ls and pigeons orioles and
ducks succeeded each other in proper
order The last picture was Of the
egret. now almost extinct. It was OF
q nest of the mother heron. and three
blue eggs and another nest with tie
MAKE heron (egreD gorgeous in his
white plumage and three Young ores
The pathetic story of commercial
greed. fashion and woman's heargoar
and the eyre made the whole aud
fence desire - Join some Audubon So
ciety to protect the white heron and all
other vanishing birds OF plumage and
song A similar story had been told
earlier in the lecture in the interest OF
thes carlet tanauger An interesting
fact was brought out with which we
have all been familiar in a literary
way, The male bird wears the finer
clothes" For instance this black-wing-
ed red bird has for its mate a demure
olive-green and greenish-yellow fe-
male The same is true OF the Card
inal gros-beak anil oriole. Indeed. so
unlike do males and females appear to
casual observers that they Nigh be
taken for different species.
The lecturer also dwclt upon the
songs OF cardinals Carolina wrens,sCng
sparrows and thrushes He dafeudcd
owls and niGht-hawks AMI tod " the
economic value of birds as vermi de-
stroyers and reducing the quantity
of seed from noXious weeds
The lecture did not last over an
hour. Just long enough and as deliv-
cred in a popular though OF unscieu-
tific way. The audience felt itself in
debted TO Professor Fenton for intro
ducing Apnapolitans. genus homo, 20
these other a lnapolitans, genus ornis.
Although We often speak with intimate
knowledge of great men Of Their lanls
and ages, we are commonly ignorant
of the names. 10 say nothing Of the
habits, OF birds III our a. ,rdans.
We discourse upon tn. blessings of
Providence and forget TN !. The birds
are given TO protect us FROM plaques Z
insects and vsrmin,as well as 20 de
light the eve and for fool The pro-
lection of Song birds and birds OF plum
age is of growing interest as il has
long been of Importance and laws are
being enacted to this end Game laws
regarding edible birds, one of long
standing but our utilitarian legislators
overlooked the songsters and beauties
of woods and garden. Coming torecog-
nize their economic as well as their
aesthetic value, lawmakers are giving
them tardy consideration