Tales from the Archives - Looking at 1922

1. In 1922, a poem penned by Illinois Audubon Society President Orpheus Moyer Schantz celebrated which bird species?

When shadows lengthen as the sun goes down,
From out my garden comes a soft sweet call;
It is the XXX from a poplar tall,
XXX clothed in suits of brown,
Like falling leaves they drop down from the sky
To visit us. Their stay is a delight,
And when they settle down to rest at night,
We wonder whence they came and question why.
They're resting here, for they have journeyed long
And still have far to go before they reach
Their winter home. We wish that they might teach
To us their softly whispered evensong.
No birds that come with songs more sweet than they,
And surely none more welcome while they stay.

2. What did Frank Smith, University of Illinois, note in the spring 1922 issue of The Illinois Audubon Bulletin as “the most interesting ornithological happening of the season at Urbana?”

3. An author in the spring 1922 issue noted that “although it is all an old story, it is one that should be repeated.“ What bird did the article claim “thrives in the role of outlaw without any of the picturesqueness and appeal that often goes with that?”

4. In the 1922 article “Birds in Busy Chicago,” Gladys Fowler submitted her annual bird list from “busy Chicago…in our neighbor's small yard, which boasts of one syringa and a bridal-wreath bush, also a few feet of hedge, and even in the dirt of the alley on the other side of our premises.” How many birds did she report seeing within a block radius of her home on a “typical Chicago street only a half block from Ridge Avenue?”

5. In 1922, Lake County residents were reportedly “roused over the danger that menaces” and were “endeavoring to find what can be done to halt the practice.” What practice was creating a stir?

7. What bird was author Wayne Gard writing about in 1922 when he said:

Come closer, let me see your glossy coat.
You needn't fear a farmer boy like me,
For truly I enjoy your company.
Come, let me hear the song that's in your throat.
Pick up the fattest grubs my plow throws out,
And carry to that hungry brood I found
In yonder nest, high off the ground,
With feathers lined within, and twigs without.

8. What species is described in an article that included a synopsis of a chapter in Isaac E. Hess' then forthcoming book entitled Mississippi Valley Birds at Home?

“Even a glimpse of a bird spy stalking him for a nearer approach and he is gone with the sauciest flirt of his abbreviated tail. Just enough of his neat brown coat is seen to prove aggravating to the observer. For a brief period he darts out into the open but before the focus of the field glasses may be properly adjusted he is back in the brush pile or eclipsed by the old stump.”

9. A 1922 article noted that “In recent years the movement to conserve the wooded lands of the country from destruction, has resulted in many public and private efforts which are noteworthy in their success in preventing the further denuding of timbered lands.” On one such site in Illinois, “During the spring of this year (1922) 138,000 plants and cuttings were set out and during the summer preparations for 100,000 more were made.” What popular birding location does this reference?

10. What did the fall 1922 issue of The Illinois Audubon Bulletin tout as one of Illinois Audubon Society’s outstanding events of the year?