sweet notes chann the ear, and graceful motions silently 

 thank us for our labour of love. 



For surely, it is a labour of love ? Our pets appeal to 

 us by their ver\' helplessness and dependence on our 

 efforts to supply their every need, and there is no surer 

 way to the human heart than through this simple 

 channel. 



No one who has kept birds doubts that the}' under- 

 stand and appreciate the kindness of their owners, and 

 their actions plainl}' show the close observer that they 

 know the hand which feeds them and cares for them, 

 and recognise in his voice the voice of a friend and 

 protector. 



One of the greatest pleasures connected with this 

 hobb}-, is to watch the gradual change of colour in the 

 feathers of the Weavers, Whydahs, and other birds who 

 have a distinct summer plumage. 



It is a great fascination to me to choose, from among 

 a number of these birds, those I think to be cocks, 

 though it requires a keen eye and long experience to 

 detect the minute signs which differentiate the sexes 

 when out of colour. And then come the weeks of 

 waiting and watching, and one is perhaps beginning to 

 despair, when one day you will catch a glimpse of a 

 bright feather just peeping out from between the brown. 



Then at last your keenest hopes are realised, and you 

 are perfecth' satisfied— for the time being-— for as surely 

 as day follows the night, so surely does this pleasant 

 occupation urge the ornithologist on to conquer fresh 

 worlds. Where this will ultimately lead him it is 

 impossible to say, for there is no limit to an enthusiast's 

 ambition. 



It ma}^ be that one's desire is to breed a certain 

 species, so a pair is obtained and suitabh- provided for. 

 How often, then, one watches the various actions of the 

 birds : the flutterings to and fro in search of something, 

 the apparent carelessness, or other wiles, often displayed 

 as a protective measure against human eyes, and after 



