Nesti7ig of the Ruddy Finch. 103 



On the 12th the hen was again in need of medical 

 attention and had to be brought into the house, where I suc- 

 ceeded in taking an eg^ from her, turning her out on the 

 following day. On the 15th, she commenced to sit in the 

 same nest on one Qgg. 



On the 27th, two young were hatched; they were thinly 

 covered with remarkably long, greyish down. The 28th was 

 a wild, stormy day, with a strong S.W. wind and torrents of 

 rain, which proved too much for one of the newly hatched 

 young. The fate of the remaining youngster hung in the 

 balance for several days. It did not grow, and this 1 have 

 always regarded as a certain indication that the result would 

 be failure; but there is always an exception and to my great 

 surprise the infant turned the corner and, on the 10th August, 

 it was sitting up in the nest with that peculiar expression, 

 which the aviculturist has no difficulty in interpreting: it 

 means that the fledgling has made up its mind to leave the 

 old home, and see for itself what the wide world is really 

 like. 



On the 14th it Avas flying strongly and looked the exact 

 counterpart of the female, except that it was rather lighter 

 in shading. 



My last entry is: " 19th September. Sent two pairs 



of Carjj. Mex/' to " (one of our members). If I 



recollect aright, the young bird was a female and, as I 

 happened to have an unrelated male, I hope our member may 

 this season succeed in rearing a few broods, for this is a 

 species which is well worth keeping, its one and only bad 

 quality being its taste for buds. 



Freely Imported Species and Their Treatment. 



By Wesley T. Page, F.Z.S., Etc. 



Zebra Finches, Silverbills, and Bronze Mannikens: 

 At the request of several, I am giving further notes of my 

 early experience in Foreign Bird keeping. I am also describing 

 a portable three compartment, outdoor cage, which I found to 

 be a useful adjunct to a small aviary. From the rough 

 sketches given below, it will be seen that its construction was 



