The Australian Crimsonfinch is a very quarrelsome bird.

He would have quite sympathised with the Irishman who was

fined ^5, in some English town, for fighting, and who exclaimed,

on hearing the decision of the Bench, “ Begorra, but wait till I

get ye in Limerick, where fighting is cheap!” I will back him

for his fighting weight for long odds against any bird I know

bar a Scarlet Tanager. I11 that case he will make him haste to

escape, and will seek a place to flee unto until the tyranny be

overpast.


The Sydney Waxbill is a bird for those who love “the

harvest of a quiet eye.” He is none so common either, and when

I add that he is a “shy breeder,” I have said enough to

recommend him to many.


The Green Cardinal is a beautiful bird with its blended

green, and yellows; but, alas, it cannot endure our gloom, and

damp, and fog. Cold it does not mind, but fog induces asthma,

and asthma ends in death.


The Virginian Cardinal, with his scarlet coat, has a sub¬

tropical appearance, and, when you first see him in the aviary,

looks as though he had escaped from some happy land “ Where

the flowers ever blossom, the beams ever shine.” No frost can

hurt him, no weather make him afraid, and like Mark Tapley, he

always tries “ to be jolly,” and enlivens thedulness of winter like

the scarlet coat of the huntsman on the snow.


The Zostejops always reminds me of a “ little girl wearing

granny’s specs.” He is a charming little bird, whose pretty

graceful ways one never tires of. He is an indefatigable hunter

after spiders, and will keep a large enclosure quite free from

blight, to the great benefit of the shrubs and of his own internal

economy.


The White-throated Finch is what cricketers would call a

“good all-round bird”; neat but not gaudy in appearance;

hardy in his nature and frugal in his ways. He seems to care but

little for the “joys of home”—at any rate in England—and

therefore to those who like a shy breeder I would say, “Try the

White-throated Finch and you shall not be disappointed.”


The Nonpareil is a gorgeous fellow. One poetic dealer that

I know, with a view to increased prices, has christened him the

“ Rainbow Finch.” If a thing of beauty is a joy for ever, then the

Nonpareil should be in every aviary; but remember if you want

him to live long and see good days, you must feed him

property. Insect food is indispensable to his well being.


The Indigo Finch is a bird that does not believe that it is a



