ON THE NATURAL HISTORY OF THE NIGHTINOALE. 219 



covered over with a white handkerchief, which admits the light 

 without allowing the bird to see out, or he would rub off the plu- 

 mage of his forehead by his repeated efforts to escape. A slice of 

 fresh raw beef should be procured, and scraped so that the substance 

 of it be separated, leaving the fibres, and with this should be chopped 

 up a hard boiled egg. Some of this food should be placed in the 

 cage and also some water, in a bird glass ; but as in general he will 

 not at first take to feed of himself, it will be necessary three or four 

 times in the course of the day to take him in the hand, and gently 

 opening the bill (keeping it open for a few seconds by means of the 

 finger and thumb of the hand that holds him) to put into his mouth 

 a piece about the size of a pea, and then to hold the mandibles 

 together till he has swallowed it ; or otherwise he will often cast it 

 from him. In a few days he will feed of himself, at which time he 

 generally begins to sing ; but his cage had better still be covered 

 over with the handkerchief for a few weeks, indeed, till he ceases 

 his song in June, by which time he will probably have become re- 

 conciled to captivity ; this, however, must be left to discretion. 



It is very fond of bathing, — He should always be kept very clean^ 

 fresh water being supplied every morning ;' and as he is extremely 

 fond of bathing, he ought every day to have a pan of water placed 

 in the cage, even from the first, and his ablutions will tend very 

 much to preserve the beauty of his plumage, besides keeping him in 

 health : this may be given when the sun shines warm even in 

 winter, but not when the air is very cold, and it should always be 

 taken away as soon as he has bathed, or otherwise he will jump in 

 so often as to injure himself. I have many times had occasion to 

 observe how fond the Nightingale is of bathing in the wild stafce^i 

 and have seen him rise from a brook so wet as to fly with much 

 difficulty. In confinement, he his not more tender of cold than a 

 canary bird. 



Food in corifinement. — His cage should be furnished always with 

 two food-pans, besides a glass of water ; and in one should be placed 

 a portion of the above mentioned food, which of course should be 

 fresh made every morning, and in the other some bread and milk, 

 which he soon learns to eat, and becomes in time extremely fond of. 

 A Nightingale thrives much better upon this mixed diet, and lives 

 longer, than upon chopped meat and egg alone, and he sings upon 

 it to perfection : it is besides often a matter of convenience for the 

 bird not to be wholly confined to one particular sort of food. The 

 more insect diet he is also given, the better, and it is as well always 

 to hang his cage in summer near a window, that he may regal^ 



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