on the Construction and Fitthig of Small Aviaries. 139


I used a clear bluisli-green, the effect of which is very pleasing

and which shews the birds up well. Of course such paints can

only be used for inside work away from moisture, and they go

best on a somewhat rough surface, such as unplaned wood or

plaster. The sort I used was very inexpensive and the makers

state that it is quite harmless.


The nest-boxes usually offered in the shops are not of

much use, and far better ones can be contrived from the various

little boxes which the domestic department is generally glad to

get rid of. Some, of Continental and American make, are

particularly suitable, being made of sound material and some¬

times even dove-tailed : cigar boxes, I find, are rather too light

to work upon and need no end of soaking to get rid of their

paper covering. With a centre-bit, a “ keyhole ” saw and a few

extra nails, these little boxes can soon be converted into desirable

detached residences of sufficiently artistic appearance and

undeniable sanitary perfection. Of course there is just the line

to be drawn between the useful and the ornamental, and it is

undesirable to add any external decoration to the original box.

In one, like the first I have illustrated (Fig. 3), my two hen Green

Cardinals built a nest on the co-operative plan (there was,

unfortunately, no male). And in a box, like Fig. 4, a Linnet,



caught certainly not more than a few months before, successfully

reared a brood ; a sufficient proof, I think, that conditions even

approaching the natural are by no means essential to success.


These nest-boxes are best painted or varnished inside and

out, and if the front pieces, as at C for example, are made



