"5 



NKSTling Grouse. (Mr. Pjcraft). Tliese birds died of 

 septicseniia, popularly known as *' grouse disease." Both 

 the respiratory and alimentary organs contained the 

 characteristic bacilli. 



Canary, hen. (Mrs. McAdani). Egg binding. 



WaxbiIvT^, cock. (Mr. Richard). Pneumonia (catarrhal) was 

 the cause of death. It was possibly due to a sudden chill. 

 The fact of its being kept in a winter garden, " always 

 kept at the same temperature," would make the possibility 

 into a probability. A bird kept in such a place would feel 

 the draught, say from a door open for a couple of minutes 

 or so, much more than one kept in even an ordinary room. 

 A bird kept outside would feel a cold night much less. 



Budgerigar, hen. (Mr. Chaplin). This hen died of pneu- 

 monia of both lungs. All the other organs were healthy. 

 Inbreeding of itself is productive of nothing more than 

 an increasing persistency of the inborn characteristics of 

 the original stock, (more especially when rigid selection is 

 practised), and perhaps intensification of tliese characters. 



Vide article on Budgerigars b}' Dr. Hopkinson in Bird 

 Notes, Vol. II. page ii6. 



W. Geo CresweIvI.. 



Short 1Rote6, an& Xetters to tbc lE&itor. 



EGG FOOD FOR NESTLINGS. 



Sir, — Since writing last month on this subject the little 

 yellow hen, of whom I then spoke, has repeated her last year's 

 feat of bringing up her hatch to the perch on nothing but 

 seeds and greenstuff. 



Two of the other hens have also for the second time repeated 

 their former behaviour. Between them they had nine young 

 ones. Following your advice I gave them various delicacies, 

 but in spite of everything the young were allowed to starve at 

 the beginning of the second week. Finding that Mr. Dart 

 had a young hen of last year's breeding with one chick in her 

 first nest, I transferred two little ones from these unnatural 

 mothers to her care, in the hope that she might be a good 

 feeder. They are now — after ten df<ys of nursing — all tliat can 

 be desired, and look like shortly being able to leave the nest. 

 They are in an aviary containing nearly a hundred birds— and 



