2 The Cai0^y. 



differs from tlie ordinary yellow bird familiar to us all, 

 and the cliances are ten to one that, like the f^iir friends 

 alluded to by Mr. Slaney, they will soon discover their 

 mistake. I think I shall not be far wrong when I say 

 that the only idea which most people have of our little 

 iiivourite is limited to the bare fact that it is a yellow 

 bird having sometimes a patch of black on its head and 

 wings, and singing lustily in its cage. But never was 

 there a greater mistake. No bird represents such a 

 variety in its plumage, or exhibits so great a diversity 

 in its shape. No one, we are bold to affirm, seeing the 

 lizards, the cinnamon, or even a good green bird for 

 the first time, unless a scientific naturalist, would ever 

 dream that they were canaries. 



An amusing illustration of the truth of this remark 

 occurred to ourselves only a short time ago. Having 

 placed a beautiful cinnamon or fawn-coloured bird 

 that we had just purchased and brought home upon the 

 table, a party of ladies soon afterwards called, and 

 became quite enchanted with the singularly delicate 

 hue of its plumage, but never for a moment suspected 

 that it was a canary. Perceiving their ignorance, some 

 of the children, on their inquiring its name and coun- 

 try, maliciously replied that it w^as a foreign bird called 

 Sylph, which in one sense w^ as true enough, for I need 

 scarcely tell any of my young readers that canaries came 

 originally from the Fortunate Isles, while the name we 

 had given to the bird in question was, as our youngsters 

 declared, " Sylph." With this explanation they were 

 perfectly satisfied. When, after keeping up the joke 

 for some time, you may judge of their surprise on being 



