INTRODUCTION INTO AMERICA. The house-spar row was first brought to the United States from England in 1850 by Nicholas Pike and other directors of the Brooklyn Institute. when eight pairs were liberated in Brooklyn, N. Y.: but a second importation in 1853 was needed to estab lish the race. Sparrows were brought in and colonized elsewhere during the next twenty years, in various parts of the country, including Cali fornia, the city government of Philadelphia him porting and letting loose in that city over 100D pairs in Isitu. The motive in most eases was to free the shade•trees of devastating caterpillars, which shout that time were especially numerous and annoying throughout the Eastern States. few for-sveing persons protested, hut were not listened fo.nly it few years elapsed. how•v,•r, before a mass of evidence was presented that the sparrows were of no practical service as destroyers. and were ail increasing nuisance and menace. The outcome of notch discussion and m riling was an exhaustive inquiry, conducted by the Cnited States Department of Agriculture, of which, Unfavorable to the bird, were published in 1SS9 in Halle/fa ,Vo. of the
Department, a document of 4010 pages. \Vliether, its many believe. a balance will after a time be obtained. and these imported sparrows cease to be relatively More irrinieroln: and t rouldesome than native birds of the same nature, remains to be seen. The fact that the people of tfreat Brit ain make the same as the States against their prolificacy and destru•tive mess discolirages this expeetation.
littirloGRA l' I I v. Barrows, The Enylish Nigirr010 in .Vorth Amerco, Especially in Its krlalion to .1yrieult urn (\Vashington. 1Ss9): gently. The 'louse sparrow at /Ionic and (Philadel phia. 1 Collies, The Prest al Status of I'asscr lhancsticus in ..Inicrica Newton, Dictionary of Resets (London and New• York. BOO.