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daily allowance of mealworms as the bird more readily 

 eats the food. The food I have found most suitable is 

 hard boiled egg, soaked ants' eggs and crushed sweet 

 biscuit in equal parts. When thoroughly "meated off," 

 about three mealworms a day are all that is required 

 except in the depth of winter, when the quantity should 

 be doubled. Stonechats are also very fond of beetles. 

 Being a resident species and of amiable disposition, 

 several Stonechats could be kept in a fairly sheltered 

 out-door aviary throughout the winter — but under those 

 conditions it is necessary to increase the supph- of 

 mealworms to eight or ten a day — giving a few of these 

 as late in the afternoon as possible, and leaving the 

 others for the first feed in the morning. 



Another somewhat difiEicult task is to get the bird 

 .steady enough for the Show Bench, and the best way is 

 to have the cage in a room where persons pass frequently, 

 and to talk to the bird and offer a mealworm occasionally, 

 or a spider. Having once got a Stonechat well caged 

 and steady, I think any exhibitor would find him a very 

 desirable cage pet, and a useful addition to his team of 

 exhibition birds. The hen is dull in plumage, and has 

 nothing in particular to recommend her being kept. 



vS. A. Sandy. 



FOREIGN BIRDS AT THE CRYSTAL 

 PALACE. 



The recent Show at the Crystal Palace, so far as 

 foreign birds were concerned, was remarkable for two 

 things— the exceeding badness of the classification and 

 the magnificent quality of the exhibits. There were 93 

 entries, a great advance on last year, due, no doubt, to 

 the fact that the exhibition was held in a tent, and the 

 temperature kept at a " living " heat. Of these 93, 

 however, nearly 20 were absent, so onh^ just over 70 

 birds competed. It may be stated that, of the 93 entries, 

 55 were owned by members of our Club. Of the 29 

 prizes awarded our members won 18 ; of the eight 



