In England zoology is at present in the hands of ‘schools’ and ‘authorities’ of the kind to which Huxley objected.
The result is that where, in some of my previous books, I have exposed the shallowness of the prevalent theories, I have been taken to task by certain reviewers who are disciples of those ‘authorities.’ These gentlemen term my criticisms superficial, but they have made no attempt to show in what way my criticisms are superficial. There is a good reason for this. It is that these journalists know well that any attempts to rebut my statements will lead to a controversy in which they cannot but be worsted because the facts are against them.
If what I say is incorrect my reviewers now have an excellent opportunity to demonstrate this.
Lest these have recourse to the unfailing resort of the defeated Darwinian or Wallaceian—the argument of ignorance, lest they say that it is only owing to their insufficient knowledge of Indian birds that they cannot answer me, let me assert that what I say of Indian birds is equally true of British birds.
I assert with confidence that the colouring of nine out of ten birds has some feature which the theories attacked by me cannot account for.
“Hypotheses,” wrote Huxley, “are not ends but means. . . . The most useful of servants to the man of science, they are the worst of masters, and when the establishment of the hypotheses comes the end, and fact is attended to only so far as it suits the ‘Idee,’ science has no longer anything to do with the business.”
The hypotheses which I decline to accept have become the masters of many zoologists who are busily occupied in distorting facts which do not coincide with theory.
It is not very long since an English scientific paper published an article entitled “What have ornithologists done for Darwinism?” So long as zoologists test the work of the naturalist by the amount of evidence he collects for Darwinism or any other “ism,” it is hopeless to expect zoological science to progress.
CONTENTS
PAGE [I. Birds in a Grove] 3 [II. The Magpie-Robin] 9 [III. The Indian Snake-Bird] 14 [IV. Minivets] 19 [V. The Power of Animals to Express Thought] 25 [VI. Pied Woodpeckers] 31 [VII. A Jhil out of Season] 37 [VIII. Birds in White] 42 [IX. The Pied Crested Cuckoo] 48 [X. Vultures] 55 [XI. The Indian Robin] 61 [XII. The Shikra] 69 [XIII. A Finch of Roseate Hue] 74 [XIV. Birds on the Lawn] 80 [XV. The Grey Hornbill] 86 [XVI. The Flamingo] 91 [XVII. Summer Visitors to the Punjab Plains] 98 [XVIII. A Bird of Many Aliases] 106 [XIX. Paddy Birds at Bedtime] 111 [XX. Merlins] 116 [XXI. The Common Wryneck] 121 [XXII. Green Pigeons] 126 [XXIII. Bulbuls’ Nests] 131 [XXIII. Bulbuls’ Nests—II] 139 [XXIV. Nightingales in India] 145 [XXV. The Wire-tailed Swallow] 150 [XXVI. Winter Visitors to the Punjab Plains] 157 [XXVII. A Kingfisher and a Tern] 167 [XXVIII. The Red Turtle Dove] 172 [XXIX. Birds in the Millet Fields] 178 [XXX. Hoopoes at the Nesting Season] 185 [XXXI. The Largest Bird in India] 197 [XXXII. The Swallow-Plover] 204 [XXXIII. The Birds of a Madras Garden] 211 [XXXIV. Sunbirds] 218 [XXXV. The Bank Myna] 225 [XXXVI. The Jackdaw] 231 [XXXVII. Fighting in Nature] 234 [XXXVIII. Birds and Butterflies] 238 [XXXIX. Voices of the Night] 246 [Index] 257