English Sparrows (Hazard Diary 040)

About the year 1854, the trees in our cities had become so infested with worms that they not only entirely denuded them of their foliage, not (only – that must sooner or later (if not eradicated) destroy them entirely, unless remedy could be found.

Furthermore, these worms rendered walking in the streets during the summer, comparatively impracticable for all pedestrians, and entirely so for Ladies. This, for reason that these creatures, by means of a thread like that with which spiders weave their webs. These worms slowly [?] all persons who walked upon this paved walk. They were not only highly disgusting to all persons, but Ladies - as a rule so feared them they were obliged to dispense with their sidewalks entirely.

When in Philadelphia during one [of?] these season[s], being aware that the English Sparrows were famous devourers of worms, I propose[d] that the City of Philadelphia should import English Sparrows. They seemed entirely hopeless in regard to such a remedy, and I therefore gave the matter up.

In the year 1856, while in London, I consulted a highly distinguished ornithologist whom I knew very well, but he so abhorred the English sparrow as being a quarrelsome bird not only, but a great nuisance, he seemed to be almost angry at me.

I will here remark that when he attended me to his front door, and had taken leave he said – you have forgotten your ducks. [On?] my statement that they were not mine, he took them – and found they were addressed to him, and from an intimate friend of mine who was a fellow member of the Academy of Natural Sciences of the City of Philadelphia, at that time but whose name I cannot now recall.

Under these circumstances, it was that I carried out my project, and very soon thereafter had a few dozen English sparrows caught in Liverpool, E., - and placed in a wicker cage, and gave them to James Walker, who was then a wool buyer for the Peacedale Manufacturing Company, who was then on the point of returning to Peacedale, asking him to see that they were fed on the voyage.

I was very apprehensive that they might all die during the voyage but they arrived at Peacedale all right, and then delivered to my brother Rowland G. Hazard’s son Rowland who then as now, lived at Peacedale.

These sparrows abound here today and many regard them as a Nuisance inasmuch as they think they destroy our native Sparrows – at least whip them, and drive them away from food. This view is not very Patriotic, inasmuch as so many Americans appear to suppose that “an American can whip two Englishmen, at any time.

I sometimes fear that our American Sparrow is scarcely a match for his English companion, but I always feed birds during the Winter season, and see both varieties at the feast, and our nation’s variety a little shy of his Foreign relation.

Very soon after this importation of the English Sparrow, several of our states imported the birds and they now abound throughout our entire country, and have done so, for many years.

Jos. P. Hazard, Peacedale, June 22, 1888

Transcribed by Jessica Wilson, June 29, 2021