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and called the younger birds and the middle-aged hens the

Green Singing-finch. I know that if you purchased a bird with

well-developed marking on the face and another with the face

markings weakly indicated you were almost certain to find that

you had secured a pair.


I cannot say I like the Green Singing-finch. I object to

mischievous and to spiteful birds, and I have known one Green

Singing-finch to kill smaller birds than itself. I suppose I have

had, altogether, some four or five pairs, but I shall not buy auy

more : the species is fairly long-lived, and I still have a hen which

I must have purchased some five or six years ago at least.


The Sulphur Seed-eater {Serinus sulphuratus ) is one of the

largest of the Serins, and has a beak shaped like a Grosbeak :

he is an ugly, powerful-looking bird, almost giving one the idea

of a disreputable hen Greenfinch, only he is not half so hand¬

some.


The late Mr. Abrahams gave me a cock of this somewhat

rarely imported bird in November, 1899, and I paired it with a

Norwich Canary, which treated it with contempt. It sang a few'

notes, but not worthy to be called a song. Subsequently I turned

it out into an aviary with many other birds, and discovered that

this bird, for all his aggressive aspect and powerful beak, was

innocent as a sucking-dove, and that his vaunted song was a

fraud : he died early in the present year.


It is easy for me now to comprehend why a bird, common

in S. Africa, as the Sulphur Seed-eater is, should not be freely

imported : the aviculturist generally expects to get either beauty

or song for his money; if neither is forthcoming, a bird does

not catch on.


Another ugly bird, far more so than the preceding, is the

White-throated Seed-eater (Serinus albigularis ) of which I once

possessed a specimen : it looked as if it could bite the head off

any bird its own size which offended it, but it was a most mild-

tempered creature ; and although reputed to be a fine singer,

never uttered a note to the day of its death.


The Cape Canary (,Serinus canicollis ) or Grey-necked

Serin is another bird for the possession of which I was indebted

to the liberality of my late friend, who sent me a rather aged

specimen in order that I might hear the song. Dr. Russ speaks

of the song as Tark-like ; I found it rather monotonous, of the

nature of that of the Hartz-mountain Roller, but far shorter and

less varied ; indeed I considered it a poor performance. This

species is easily crossed with the common Canary.



