CAGES AND CAGE-MAKING 



55 



To secure tlie round holes in tlieir places 

 it is only necessary to hanuncr out the 

 lower edge of the loop on any smooth, 

 solid surface (nothing is better than that 

 useful domestic appliance, a flat-iron), 

 when it can be made suIFiciently sharp to 

 bury itself easily in the soft wood and 

 remain securely fixed. For the diamond- 

 shaped holes it is necessary for the wires 

 to be only a little longer than the others, 

 just sufficient to allow of their being bent 

 into sha])e. one at each side, to form the 

 hole. They are then firmly inserted into 

 the cross-bar in the same manner as the 

 other upright wires. 



The water-hole wire or wires should be 

 inserted about the third or fourth from 

 the side, and the seed-hole wires should 

 occupy the third and fifth places next the 

 partition, according to the length of the 

 seed-hopper intended to be used, which, 

 as will be presently explained, can either 

 cover both sets of seed-holes on each side 

 of the partition or be fitted to each com- 

 partment. 



We must delay binding the strengthening 



cross-wire bar until our door is hung — 



and the door is a most import- 



r, ant i:)art of a cage. A great 



Door. ' '^ '^ 



deal of work has to be done 

 through the open door, which must be 

 large enough to admit the hand easily. 

 To harmonise with the cage the door must 

 have a wooden frame ; indeed, no other 

 description of door would work well under 

 a wooden cross-bar. It is, however, very 

 simple in construction. It cannot be higher 

 than the 4J inches allowed for it, and the 

 only question is as to the width. Assuming 

 the compartment to be 20 inches wide, it 

 ■will give us thirty-two wires, according to 

 our plan of spacing out. If we make the 

 door 5 inches wide that will take up the 

 space of eight wires, so that if we leave 

 the middle eight holes in the bottom cross- 

 bar unwired, we shall allow the proper 

 space for the door. One long ^\•ire by which 

 the door is to be hung must be withheld 

 until the door is placed in its proper posi- 

 tion. This long wii'e is to be passed through 

 the holes in the cross-bars and the last hole 



at the end of the top and bottom cross- 

 bars of the door. When the wire is made 

 secure it not only holds the door in its 

 jjroper place, but acts as a hinge on which 

 the door works freely. The door, of course, 

 nuist be wired before it is hung. 



The use of our lengths of pierced cross- 

 bars will now be apparent. We have no- 

 thing to do but to cut off two pieces, each 

 containing ten holes, allowing very nearly 

 the whole half-inch before the first hole 

 and behind the last — that is to say. we 

 must not cut the length off directly through 

 the first hole and through the tenth, but 

 before and behind them — we want ten 

 clear holes, and a small jiiece over at each 

 end. Place these two pieces face to face, 

 and it will be seen the holes correspond 

 exactly — one is the top of the door and 

 the other the bottom. The side-pieces 

 are of the same dimensions with respect 

 to thickness (but, of course, are not cut 

 from pierced lengths), and must be cut 

 of the precise length required. Place one of 

 them exactly under the second hole of the 

 top piece, and fix it in its place with a 

 single brad driven through the hole ; do 

 the same with the other, placing it under 

 the ninth or last hole but one ; turn it 

 up, and put the bottom piece on in the 

 same way, and the door-frame is complete. 

 Wire it, and it only then remains to hang 

 it. The door of a right-hand compartment 

 should be hung from its left side or end, 

 and the door of a left-hand compartment 

 from its right side. The inside of the top 

 and bottom pieces of the door frame at the 

 opposite end should be notched out where 

 the last holes arc bored, so that when 

 shut the door may catch against the up- 

 right wire which finishes the wiring of the 

 cage at that point. The door will thus be 

 held in its proper position, and when 

 closed will fit flush with the front. If this 

 method of door-making be adopted when 

 a set of cages is being made of uniform 

 dimensions and uniform scale of wiring, 

 any number of doors can be jiut to- 

 gether with the certainty of any one 

 door exactly fitting any one cage. If one 

 should happen to be a shade tight, the 



