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Show COLLECTION OFUKO EGGS . . -. . .. i i ' More Than 2000 Specimens in Cabinets; They , Will Eventually. Go to Utah University. Scaling the perilous mountain crags, creeping along slimy marsh beds, or cutting a way through thickets, in quest of the rarest birds that Utah affords, Is the novel avocation pursued by Harry Aldous. 228 .West . First : North street: Nature has caught him in her meshes, and to him, egg-hunting ' affords the acme of pleasure. ; , - His collection of eggs Is erre o the finest In Utah, and has- been gathered after Scores of adventures. It contains nearly 2000 eggs of a value' that can hardly be estimated, but by some it is placed at many hundreds of dollars. , When ..the collection ia more complete, com-plete, one of Utah's institutions of learning will be ttfe recipient of this choice gift. Mr. -Aldous declares that science shall have the benefits of. his pleasant labors. For the past twenty years Mr. Aldous has made a study of eggs. From the coast cliffs to the Fao Grande this energetic egg-hunter, for pleasure alone, has searched for nests of rare birds. Among the' collection are many of the rarest birds eggs in the United States. ' After the tasks of his little print shov are over, Mr. Aldous goes afield- to watch the birds. He is careful that be does' not wantonly destroy any of the eggs. He becomes angry with any .person .per-son who will ruthlessly destroy the little lit-tle songsters or disturb their homes. Not only is Mr. Aldous interested in the-little winged beings, but his wife, a eister to United States Marshal' Ben B. Hey wood. Is as enthusiastic as he. - In their little home they are surrounded by natural curios, minerals and stuffed birds." Both are followers of the "simple "sim-ple life." ,-..,. ..f :- - .. . The egg collection fills a "cabinet of fourteen drawers and many more are packed away in cigar boxes. AH are marked and classified according to' the Smithsonian Institute code. All colors, descriptions and sizes of eggs are contained con-tained in the collection. From the tiny, pinkish-white egg of the little hummers in small nests no bigger than a half-dollar, half-dollar, to the big spotted eggs of the gulls. ' One of the rarest birds that nests in Utah Is the tiny lead-colored bush tit. It is next to the humming bird in size. The nest is made like that of an oriole and hangs gracefully from., a. high branch. Wool and dead leaves compose com-pose the body of the nest. Mr. Aldous has a set of these eggs hoarded away In his cabinet. An egg which the collector values most highly Is one that was laid by a yellow-billed loon in the sands about Hudson bay. This egg was found by Capt. Ross, ornithologist for the Greeley Gree-ley Arctic expedition. Capt. Ross gave the egg to Will H. Parker and liter Mi. Aldous got possession of It. This egg is valued at 825, but on account of the history connected with this specimen, li is worth considerably more. A set of the eggs of the white-faced glossy ibis is also in the collection. This bird is the victim of freakish notions. The eggs are a dark-greenish blue. The bird is only seen In Utah perhaps once in ten years, and seldom nests here. Another valuable egg is that of the greater yellow legs of the plover family. The eggs are worth 825 each. The only set of eggs of the Wilson plover that is now In Utah is in this collection. This bird very rarely nests here. , Caste distinction Is even shown by the birds. Among them there is no infusion infu-sion of races or race suicide.. The Wasatch Wa-satch range of mountains is the Utah home of America's national bird, the golden eagle. There can be found his nests and his young. His limits are as plainly marked as If he were In a cage at a museum. He never encroaches upon up-on his cousins, the bald eagles, who make their homes in the Oqulrrh range. Other rare and valuable eggs in the collection are those in a set taken from a pigmy owl, the monkey-face of the owl tribe. These eggs are, worth 84 each. One of the last birds to And Its name In the ornithologist's books Is" a Utah bird .known as St.-Elmo's thrush. Only within the past two years was it discovered. The egg differs from all other thrushes in that It Is spotted, while the others are blue. . The Government has prohibited the collection of the eggs of the least tern, but Mr. Aldous has a set that he collected col-lected In .Utah lorug before the Government Govern-ment put its stamp of disapproval on their collection. Other rare birds of Utah are the pinion Jay, the woodhouse Jay and the sage sparrow. The collection contains the eggs of every bird known to Utah with the exception ex-ception of the Great Northern raven. |