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 76 THE CONDOR X I VoL. ViII THE CONDOIZ An IIIusrafod MaSazine of Western OrniThology Published Bl-monhly by he Cooper Ocnlholoi- al Club of California JOEPll (illINNELL, Edlfor, Pasadena 11. T. CLIFTOFI, Business Manager, Box 404, Pasadena WILLIAM L. FINLEY, IOB'T E. SHODC!A5, Assoclafe Edlfors Pasadena, California: Published May 20, I906 tIIBiCRIPTIOlI RATIOS Price in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and U.S. Colonies one dollar a year; single copies twentv-five cents. Price in all countries in the International Postal Union one dollar and a quarter a year. Subscriptions should be sent to the Business Manager; manuscripts and exchanges to the Editor. EDITORIALS As a result ol the San Francisco fire, follow- ing the earthquake of April x8, the California Academy of Sciences building with its contents was totally destroyed. This constitutes a tre- mendous loss to ornithology, for here was lo- cated the largest study collection of birds west of the great museums of the Atlantic cities. This collection, numbering in the neighbor- hood of 25,ooo specimens, was unique in its ex- tensive series of superbly prepared skins of sea-birds. The accumulation and study of these had long been the devoted aim of the Director of the Academy, Leverett M. Loomis. Another most deplorable feature of the disaster was the destruction of the valuable library, the ornithological portion of which contained many rare and expensive sets, such as complete files of the ]bis and Journal ruer Ornitholoie. At the present writing (May x) we have been unable to learn whether or not anything at all was saved. There is now practically no library on the Pacific coast suitable for extended re- search reference in ornithology. However, the Academy's endowment remains, together with the insurance on the burned buildings, so that we may confidently look for the institution to gradually regain its scientific importance. As far as we now know (May 2)the Mail- liard collections are safe, having been housed in San Francisco luckily just outside the limits reached by the fire. H.W. Cartiger, however, lost nearly all his bird library; and M. S. Ray lost practically everything. Other Cooper Club members residing in San Francisco are yet to be heard from. Across the Bay, where the shock was less violent, and where fire did not add its destructiveness, little or no damage is reported. The collections of Taylor, Emerson and Cohen proved practically uninjured. While the buildings at Stanford University suffered severely, the natural history collections and libraries are quite safe. Nace's printing shop in Santa Clara was partially wrecked, but its efficiency has been completely restored as at- tested to by the present issue of THE CONDOR. Mr. Ruthyen Deane informs us that to his knowledge there were but two copies of Audu- bows "Birds of America," folio edition, west of the Missouri. These were in the Mechanics Library and Mark Hopkins Art Institute, San Francisco, and both were probably burned along with the horde of other rarities which can never be replaced. Under date of April 2i, Milton S. Ray writes us from San Francisco: "I am unable to ac- count for the presence of various birds about the districts whicfi escaped burning unless they are released cage-birds. This they probably are, as many are canaries. In the midst of the ruins in the Mission section a grove of cypress trees remained unscathed and notwithstanding the intense heat and sickening smoke, the English sparrows were carrying nesting mate- rial into the trees and working as assiduously as ever. ' ' Attention is called to the fact that the Club- at-large is once more provided with a secretary. As elsewhere reported, the March Northern Division meeting duly elected to the Secretary- ship Mr. Hubert O. Jenkins, of Stanford Uni- versity. All communications intended for either the Northern Division or the Club-at- large should hereafter be addressed to him. One (to us) very serious disadvantage of this combining and dividing of States is the con- fusion it makes in locating the published rec- ord-stations of birds. We hereby register our vote in favor of retaining the separate identity of Arizona and New Mexico! Prof. F. E. L. Beal of the Department of Agriculture is in California again, for the pur- pose of continuing his study of the food of our birds. His headquarters will be at Haywards, and most of his work will be carried on in the orchards about the suthern end of San Fran- cisco Bay. Mr. Frank S. Daggett in a recent letter to a Southern Division member remarked that there are now enough C. O. C. members in and close about Chicago to form another Division. This may not have been offered as a serious propo- sition; but nevertheless it strikes us as worthy of further consideration. It will be remem- bered that our Constitution was once amended so as to make it possible to form Chapters of the Club anywhere five or more members could meet together for bird-study. This seems to us qaite apropos in the case of Chicago. We should be glad to see Mr. Daggett carry out his suggestion which could hardly help leading to successful results. The nucleus would consist of Deane, Dagaett, CoMe, Swarth, Woodruff, Gault, Knickerbocker and Price. There should be no dearth of interest with such an initial membership ! Altho it might seem a bit out of place in a purely ornithological magazine to venture