Love Among the Birds 



to look like a peacock, or at least a turkey, cut 

 short by a vicious dig from his unamiable 

 helpmeet ; possibly she thinks dancing alone, 

 undiversified by the music and refreshment pro- 

 vided by more refined birds, is a monotonous 

 way of expressing devotion. " Beau goldfinch," 

 as one would expect, is a better lover ; not only 

 has he a pretty note, but he displays his varied 

 plumage effectively, while avoiding vulgar osten- 

 tation, giving a kaleidoscopic effect by swaying 

 from side to side, till the gold of his wings fairly 

 flashes. The hen goldfinch is, I think, a kinder 

 mate than the hen sparrow ; at any rate, one I 

 had used to feed a peevish and sickly male com- 

 panion, feeding a male bird at all being an almost 

 unheard-of performance for a hen. The poor 

 fellow's temper was probably due to a disordered 

 liver, contracted before I got him, for both were 

 Siberian goldfinches, and another Siberian cock 

 I kept, a healthy bird, was most chivalrously 

 forbearing to a little English hen, which used to 

 drive him about. The Siberian croldfinch seems 

 generally quieter in nature than the English race 

 of the species — at any rate, it resents confinement 

 less, like most birds imported from abroad. 



The goldfinch, as every one knows, is often 

 paired by fanciers with a hen canary, but does not 

 seem to feel much affection for her, for which one 

 can hardly blame him, as the mesalliance is not of 



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