Excerpt from Wild Life in China or Chats on Chinese Birds and Beasts Few words will be needed to establish friendly relations between one Nature lover and another. For nearly sixty years, considerably more than half of them spent in China, I have loved to study the forms and habits of every living creature with which I have come in contact, reptile life included. Unfortunately, this has been possible, not as a vocation, but as an avocation, during holidays, travels, and odds and ends of time in an otherwise busy life. During wanderings across the oceans, through Europe and Siberia twice, through a third of the United States, and along the ordinary Suez Canal Route between Europe and China notes have been made of such bird life as falls to the lot of the traveller to see. These, however, are common to many observers. Those specially dealing with Wild Life in China are now put into popular form for the first time, and it is hoped that, notwithstanding many shortcomings, this may in itself form sufficient excuse for their appearance in permanent form. I am indebted more than I can say to "Les Oiseaux de la Chine", the scholarly work of M. L'Abbe Armand David, et M. E. Oustalet, to the late Mr. Consul Swinhoe's researches, to "The Royal Natural History" (Lydekker), to Mr. H. T. Wade's "With Boat and Gun in the Yangtze Valley", and to various other writers. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

This fascinating travelogue offers a firsthand account of the wildlife and natural landscapes of China in the early 20th century. With vivid descriptions of exotic animals, birdwatching expeditions, and local customs, it is an engaging and informative glimpse into a bygone era. This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.