142 The Canary. 



three feet six inches long, one foot wide, and two feet 

 high. This will be quite large enough, divided by a 

 wooden partition in the centre, for two pair of birds, 

 and it will be far better in the end to have a number of 

 these according to the extent of your breeding esta- 

 blishment, than to put two or more pairs together in a 

 larger cage, as they are almost sure to fight, when the 

 hazard of breaking their eggs, or killing the young, we 

 need scarcely say, is very great. Under any circum- 

 stances we hold prevention to be far better than cure, 

 and even if we had a room at our disposal for the 

 purpose, we should prefer a number of separate cages 

 or compartments for each pair of birds, rather than 

 turn them into it promiscuously. We speak from our 

 own experience in this matter, and confidently recom- 

 mend a separate cage such as we have described above, 

 to all who wish to unite the greatest amount of success 

 with the minimum of disaster. 



When the young birds are to be w^eaned, or when a 

 number of old birds, after the breeding season is over, 

 have to be kept together, a third cage of a still different 

 construction is required. This is an oblong wire cage of 

 goodly size, according to the number of birds to be put 

 into it, and sufficiently large for the young birds to fly 

 about in, and exercise the muscles of their wings and 

 body. This is a matter of the very greatest importance, 

 for without exercise, and strong exercise too, young 

 birds can never be healthy or strong. Our own cage 

 is of the following dimensions, and one of the best for 

 the purpose we have seen, viz., four feet long, eighteen 

 inches wide, and twenty-two inches high. Every one 



