86 BEWITCHING MANNERS. 



but always in a dancing, loitering, easy way ; 

 hovering to examine a picture, slowly pausing on 

 wing to look at anything, turning, wheeling, up 

 or down or any way, buoyant and light as the 

 air itself. It was his delight to exercise on 

 wing about the room, diving between the rounds 

 of the ladder, darting under a stretched string 

 or into a cage full dash. His feet found rest 

 on any point, however small, — the cork in a 

 bottle, the tip of a gas-burner, or the corner 

 post of a chair ; nothing was too small or too 

 delicately balanced for his light touch, and he 

 never upset anything. He enjoyed running up 

 and down a ladder six feet long with six or eight 

 rounds, passing over it so rapidly that he could 

 not be seen to touch it at any point, yet not 

 using his wings he must have stepped upon 

 every round. He always used his legs with a 

 freedom rarely seen in a bird, not moving them 

 together as usual in his kind, but handling them 

 with astonishing independence of each other. 



The body of this bird was capable of wonder- 

 ful expression, not only in the free use of each 

 member, but every feather seemed under his 

 voluntary control. The spasmodic movement 

 of the wings in excitement, common to many 

 birds, was accomplished in an original manner 

 by holding the wing slightly away from the 

 body, and spreading or opening it a little at 



