26 The Desolation of Wartime. 



Snow Buntiii!^' died the day after 1 came home, but all the 

 others are in tne outdoor aviary and look very well indeed. 

 Before putting- them into the aviary I kept them for ten days in 

 large cages in a room — a cock Redpoll died, also a pair of 

 Reed Buntings, which I brought back all in splendid condHion 

 and plumage; the result of the post mortem was pneumonia, and 

 I was advised to disinfect the cages. I had my aviary-cottage 

 all cleaned and disinfected with Jeyes' Fluid, and then put ail 

 the new birds into the middle division of the cottage, shut tliem 

 in for three days, and opened the door into the Inrgc flight the 

 first hne day, and 1 have not lost a single bird. 



I got ten pairs of Avadavats from liamlyn on January 

 15: they came altogether in a box by themselves, and were in 

 perfect condition, except three little hens which died. I am 

 keeping them in ;i large cage until I can turn them out into the 

 aviary, and they are like rubies, very beautiful, and sing all 

 day — ^there is no fire in the room, and the window is open all 

 day; two incubators which 1 am working kee]) it warm enough. 



I have one canary sitting on three eggs out of doors: 

 she built in an absolutely bare fuschia l)ush, so 1 \n\[ l)ranches 

 over and round the nest and a piece of zinc as a roof and cov 

 cred it with branches and she seems to be quite comfortable-- 

 whether she will hatch and rear her young ones remains to be 

 seen. I have another canary sitting on four eggs inside tli- 

 Cfjttage, and one has made a lovely little nest in a deep bask t 

 which was hanging on a nail, and has one egg. The Red- 

 headed iMuches have built inside the cottage and have laid one 



I*"rom Feliruary i to February 9 wc had not even a 

 glimpse of the sun. and the east wind from the sea was verv 

 bit'er. My aviary is only warmed by one Oui^lex lam]), hanging- 

 ui» in a net wire cage, in the first division. Vvhere the canaries 

 .-)iid waxbills are; it is lighted at 6 p.m. and i)ut out at 8 a.m. 

 'i"!ie window, which draws across, is left oi)en rl)out six inclics to 

 let the birds in number 1 division fly in at night and out earlv 

 in the morning. I hang a wooden tray (3ft. square and 3ins. 

 deep) by a single wire from the roof, and put all the food on it ; 

 this frustrates the mice — two troughs with nine holes in each 

 for seed (these troughs sa\e an enormous amount of seed), 

 and two little dishes of soft food, an apple cut in half; the seed 



