3o8 



supplied mealworms. It ate scarcely anything for the 

 first few days, but after that took very kindly to the 

 artificial food and appeared to thrive upon it. I supplied 

 a large shallow pan of water, but never saw the bird 

 standing in it. I was rather surprised to find that it 

 frequently roosted on a bongh. 



It was very timid, and not a suitable inmate for a 

 bird-room; but in a large garden-aviary it would have 

 shewn off well, and made a pleasing change from 

 the passerine birds to which most of us confine our 

 attention. 



The Water-rail is decidedly handsome. The long 

 slender bill is red ; the upper surface of the body olive- 

 brown streaked with black ; the under snrface lead blue ; 

 the flanks barred with white; the under tail coverts 

 white, or nearly so. The legs are long, and so are the 

 toes; the neck also is long, and sinuous; there is a 

 quaint little turned-up tail. Altogether a very curious, 

 and withal attractive bird. 



IT. R. Fir.i.MRR. 



MORE BITS FROM A BIRD-ROOM. 



Fanciers must be very sympathetic people, for 

 whenever I have recorded the loss of a hybrid or two 

 which have hatched out — after years of failure to get a 

 fertile egg — I have received many letters full of sympathy. 



All this is very nice, and I am ver}- grateful for the 

 kind thoughts. Yet I am bound to say the sympathy is 

 quite misplaced ; for after doing all I possibly can to 

 rear the young hybrids, after running about here, there, 

 and everj'where to get a feeding hen, I can bear the 

 bereavement with equinamity when it comes — and when 

 one of ni}' friends expressed his sorrow at the loss, I 

 said, " Perhaps it is best so — they might have been 

 nothing but hens ! " 



A Greenfinch cock was my best feeder last season. 

 It was most amusing to watch him as he "filled up," 



