IIO



Mr. Allen Silver,



This, however, was not the only pleasure in store, because he

informed me that for some weeks he had been allowing the birds

their entire liberty, and that they seldom stayed away long and

always returned to the aviary, or alighted on liis hands when

called down from the fir trees. One youngster stayed out all

night, but this was found “sidling” along a clothes line early

next morning, and came to call at once. To my delight he then

opened his aviary door and spread his arms, offering the birds

seed, and not only did the young speckled Crossbills come out

but the old birds and Siskins as well, and on performing the

same practice the birds alighted on the hands and arms of both

myself and another friend who was with me. After a while some

of them flew off into space, calling Yep ! Yep ! Yip ! Yip! and I

quite thought they had gone for ever. Mr. Reed said this was

nothing unusual, and that if they'- did not return shortly they

would before night, and, before leaving, I noticed an old red male

and several young had come back, and were busily engaged with

fir cones on a tree overhanging the pit in which the aviary stands,

and the tamest bird of the flock was the old male that had been

wild. Writing to me, Mr. Reed says he has continued the

practice every few days since, and that he has still all the birds ;

moreover, that, whilst on his holidays abroad, the aviary door was

left open by mistake and the other birds escaped, as well as the

Crossbills, and that all returned with the exception of a Redpoll,

which, probably, got lost; as these birds in winter can generally

be taught to “ home” to a decoy if not frightened. The house

in which Mr. Reed lives is situated on a hill, from which one

commands a full view of the surrounding countryside, and if

these Crossbills and other birds had the option of roaming the

whole county of Kent, and in spite of it, returned to a small

pigeon-house aviary, when they could have rejoined their com¬

panions and enjoyed the sweets of liberty (as our friends put it

who have never kept birds); it is a fine demonstration of the

fact that small birds are incapable of deep reflection, and that

their mental powers are not sufficiently complex to deal with the

question as to whether they were in prison or not. The owner

of these birds is fortunate in not being troubled b)' cats, guns, or

many children, although close at hand are houses leading to the



