68 TIlE CONDOR Vol. XVIII They would rather impatiently call attention to themselves by .giving utterance to two high pitched clear notes similar in tone and interval to the beginning of the song of the mature bird. To summarize briefly the information gained by this series of observations: March 23, nest partia]ly built; March 25, nest completed; March 31, one egg in the nest; April 1, two eggs in the nest; April 2, three eggs in the nest; April 5, brooding began; April 20, all eggs hatched, incubation thus requiri.ng 15 days, or, at most, 18 days; April 26, yo'ung open months at a slight noise although feed- ing had not been observed, and they show well-developed hair-like pin feathers; May 4, young well leathered out, and are fed on an average of 16 times an hour; May 6, birds flew from the nest, 16 days after hatching. Berkeley, California, January 20, 1916. THE NEW MUSEUM OF COMPARATIVE OOLOGY By WILLIAM LEON DAWSON, Director N THE 27th of January last, a state charter was granted to the Museum of Comparative OSlogy of Santa Barbara. This was the first notice to the public of a movement which had been quietly launched several months befi?re and which, needless to say, had profited by much private counsel, both scientific and lay, before making its corporate bow. At the request of the Editor of THE CONDOR, I am writing at some length of the raison d'etre and purposes of the new institution and, more briefly, of its proposed methods and its personnel, of its building plans and its more immediate program. An institution, like an invention, is the realization of a dream. Now it is of the very nature of dreams to appear fantastic, impractical, "visionary". But Professor Langley's dream of a heavier-than-air flying machine has become ? substantial, if not a "sober", reality; and Mr. Smithsen's vision of an institu- tion "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men" has become the bulwark of science in America. However, the dreamer of the Museum of Com- parative OSlogy claims no kinship with these illustrious men. He is only one of the crowd, dreaming over again a very ancient and most fantastic dream. For what farmer boy, seduced from the furrow by the warm breath of 'spring, has not turned aside to witness the drama of springtime as it was being enacted in a neighboring hedgerow! Those painted oval souvenirs, did they not symbolize for him his very interest in life ? And what red-blooded youth, poring over his "cabinet" of birds' eggs, has not dreamed of a collection which should embrace not only the birds of his township or state or country, but the nests and eggs of the birds of the entire world ? Of all who started down the vista of that golden dream, some few only persisted until their hoardings began to take on a faint color of value, scientific value. Finally one said, "It cannot be done by one alone. It cannot be done in a lifetime, not even by a millionaire. Come on, boys, let's do it togetherl" CoSperation, then, is to be the keynote of the Museum of Comparative OSlogy. But is it an altogether fantastic task, this heaping together of all kinds of birds' eggs? Not a bit of it! Qui bono? To what end, then? To the end that we may interpret life. Some day it will appear as comical as it really is, that
