HOW BIRDS ARE HATCHED. 27 



a clogging nature ; and the information given at 

 once is, Feed your bird some green stujff or a piece 

 of apple, thereby loosening it (which should have 

 been done before mafing), and, carefully taking the 

 bird out, rub the passage gently with warm sweet-oil. 

 At times birds are egg-bound from having taken 

 cold : should this be the case, give also the reme- 

 dies for a cold. 



Birds are hatched one each Day, until all the 

 eggs are hatched. If it should happen that one or 

 more eggs remain in the nest, and do not hatch at 

 the proper time, it would be well to take them out of 

 the nest carefully, using for this purpose a tea-spoon 

 so as not to handle them, and hold them before a 

 strong light ; and, if there is the appearance of 

 blood-veins, place them back carefully ; for they may 

 yet be hatched. If, upon the other hand, the egg be 

 clear and transparent, it can be thrown away as 

 worthless. It is a rule in Europe to never throw 

 away an egg until it has been laid at least twenty- 

 one days. 



From the time the young birds are born, the male 

 bird helps feed them, if he is a good father, and so 

 partially relieves the female. If he should at times 

 seem quarrelsome with his mate, or show /oo much 

 attention of a loving kind to her, it would be well to 

 separate them, putting him in his own cage until the 

 young birds are nearly feathered ; then, after they 

 have perched a few nights, they can be removed to 

 other cages, and the male returned, and another 

 brood raised ; and the same operation repeated. 



