15



Mr. Malabar evidently believed in the words of the

immortal Josh when he says, ‘Whenever i find a real hansum

wuman engaged in a wimmin's rights lrizzness, then i am goin’

to take mi hat under mi arm and jine the procession.’ So

Master Mynah ‘jined.’


The amount of hay these birds conveyed into their

nesting box would surprise you. They worked early and late.

The lining was most peculiar, for it consisted of dry box-leaves.

Malabars, like sailors, take watch and watch about. I never can

make out whether they come off at any stated time, or when the

spirit moves them ; I think the latter. When off duty the

gentleman spends his time sitting on a bough, and tuning up : I

believe he thinks he can sing.


You hear a sound that seems to wear

The semblance of a tune,


As if a broken fife should strive

To drown a cracked bassoon.


Occasionally he visits the nest and pops in his head carefully,

and asks the missus how she is getting on. What the answer is

I do not know ; but something short and uncomplimentary, I

fancy, by the rapid way he withdraws his head.


The lady, when off duty, has a sober eye to business.

First she attends to the cravings of the inner man, and then,

like all ladies, she spends a Jew hours at her toilet. Then

suddenly she bethinks her that it is time to go and see what that

idiot of a husband is up to ; and she goes—and he comes, and

makes no silly delay about it.


On the morning of Wednesday, August 15th, when I went

in to feed, I found sundry blue egg-shells on the floor, so that

I knew that the family had arrived. For the first few days

the Malabars fed the young from the crop, as I particularly

watched to see, for they swallowed everything they picked up ;

but, on Thursday, August 17th, I saw them begin to carry the

live stock in their bills, after thoroughly beating the life out of

it 011 the window sill. What silly r twaddle it is to tell people

that they must always kill the mealworms before giving them to

the birds ! Bless me, old Mother Nature has taught them what

to do themselves, and the} 7 do it; if learned scientists will only

observe them, instead of trying to teach them.


The excreta are carried out by the old birds, after about

the second day; until then, I suppose, they are either too

insignificant to do any harm, or the old birds swallow them.

They always carry them to the very farthest point the} 7 can, and



