Manuscript that describes Mr. and Mrs. Finley's journey to some of the Alaskan islands, including the adoption of two cubs, Cuffy and Tuffy, and capturing whaling on film.
The manuscript argues that the land that has been used for homesteads should be returned to the birds of the area. The land is not suitable for farming long term due to its often alkaline nature. The ill suited land distribution is contributing to the decline of duck and geese populations as well as the other native water fowl.
Reel 1: 1. "Crater Lake National Park"; 2. "The harvest of the Columbia". Reel 2: 1. "Live-trapping and transplanting beaver"; 2. "Wilderness areas where beaver are abundant". Reel 3: 1. "The Reclamation Service turns Lower Klamath over to land promoters"; 2. "Clear Lake Reservation in 1912"; 3. "A waterfowl refuge partly drained and leased to stockmen"; 4. "Malheur Lake Reservation in 1915"; 5. "A dry lake, no birds and a world of dust". Reel 4: 1. "P Ranch, 40 miles of water and marsh land, added to Malheur Refuge"; 2. "Winter refuges for waterfowl"; 3. "A new kind of duck dog"; 4. "Trapping and banding ducks". Reel 5: 1. "Home of the sage grouse"; 2. "Hunting for antelope".
Title list: 1. "Lazy, hazy days on the Texas coast"; 2. "Looks like milk, but it was gas"; 3. "The laughing gull. He pays no income tax"; 4. "The black skimmer with a bill that never balances"; 5. "Ma skimmer has her doubts about Pa"; 6. "Birds of a feather flock together"; 7. "The royal tern prefers crowded quarters instead of a shoreline estate"; 8. "An armored submarine that subs on land, and his vegetarian cousin"; 9. "A Texas armadillo with a tiled roof, a ticklish tummy, and no teeth"; 10. "Watch the Inca dove and her baby"; 11. "Next we found a Caracara or Mexican eagle"; 12. "Climbing to the home of the bald or American eagle"; 13. "The Capt'n insisted that we wing some more birds"; 14. "So we 'shot up' the heron colony"; 15. "Brown pelicans that looked like a fleet of wise-heads".
Reel 1: 1. "Crater Lake National Park"; 2. "The harvest of the Columbia". Reel 2: 1. "Live-trapping and transplanting beaver"; 2. "Wilderness areas where beaver are abundant". Reel 3: 1. "The Reclamation Service turns Lower Klamath over to land promoters"; 2. "Clear Lake Reservation in 1912"; 3. "A waterfowl refuge partly drained and leased to stockmen"; 4. "Malheur Lake Reservation in 1915"; 5. "A dry lake, no birds and a world of dust". Reel 4: 1. "P Ranch, 40 miles of water and marsh land, added to Malheur Refuge"; 2. "Winter refuges for waterfowl"; 3. "A new kind of duck dog". Reel 5: 1. "Home of the sage grouse"; 2. "Hunting for antelope".
Newspaper articles discussing the sale of Cacomistles as pets. Included is an advertisement for William Finley's motion picture lecture, "Wild animal outposts."
Letter from William Finley to Henry O’Malley, Commissioner of Fisheries, responding to O’Malley’s proposal to film wildlife on the Pribilof Islands in Alaska.
A manuscript that advocates the practice of bird banding in order to learn about their migration patterns and behaviors. The author gives several examples of birds who have been banded. Some of the birds mentioned include a vireo, a woodpecker, and a California quail.
This document appears to be an outline for a future manuscript. The outline offers a brief overview about live trapping of beavers. Some topics included are types of live traps and relocating beavers in order to restore ecological balance.
Correspondence discussing the material captured by William Finley on the Pribilof Islands and his plans to travel to the Kenai Peninsula and McKinley National Park.
Correspondence discussing a meeting with John Borden in Chicago and the possibility of selling Nanette, a pet mountain goat, to the New York Zoological Park.
Manuscript that describes a walk in an Italian city. The author sounds wistful, imagining that before the town was created it may have been a location for a bird colony.
Correspondence, field notes, and article drafts concerning the animals and environment observed on the Finleys' trip to the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands. Begins with a three page log of the Alaska trip. Drafts of Irene Finley's articles, "Two big game animals of Unimak Island" and "Cruising along the Aleutian chain", are included.
A brief manuscript in which William L. Finley speaks about the satisfaction of his life. An angler friend of his claimed that Finley's life was just a prolonged vacation. Finley says that he just surrounds himself with the things he loves most, his wife, his children, and nature.
Manuscript that features excerpts from "Red-breasted sapsucker." The author explains that Jennings Lodge has been a preferred winter home for some of these birds as they are acquainted with many of the species of trees in the area. The author ponders how detrimental the birds are to these trees as they suck up one of the most important parts of these trees.