Who can tell how much this duck, this footprint in the sand, and these
strange thrushes from the far north, enhanced the interest and charm
of the autumn woods?
Ornithology cannot be satisfactorily learned from the books. The
satisfaction is in learning it from nature. One must have an original
experience with the birds. The books are only the guide, the
invitation. Though there remain not another new species to describe,
any young person with health and enthusiasm has open to him or her the
whole field anew, and is eligible to experience all the thrill and
delight of the original discoverers.
But let me say, in the same breath, that the books can by no manner of
means be dispensed with. A copy of Wilson or Audubon, for reference
and to compare notes with, is invaluable. In lieu of these, access to
some large museum or collection would be a great help. In the
beginning, one finds it very difficult to identify a bird from any
verbal description. Reference to a colored plate, or to a stuffed
specimen, at once settles the matter. This is the chief value of
books; they are the charts to sail by; the route is mapped out, and
much time and labor are thereby saved.
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