THE ROLLER CANARY 13 
Birds that are healthy are bright and full in the eye, 
their plumage lies close and compactly, they are brisk 
in their movements, their notes are clear and distinct, 
and their excreta is firm and of a natural colour. Avoid 
birds who pass excreta that is greenish in colour, and 
slimy in texture. 
BREEDING FROM TUTORS 
One is often asked if it is advisable to use a tutor for 
breeding, and if the same would spoil the song. If a 
tutor can be kept without being mated in his first year, 
then it is always advisable to do so. Widely different 
methods are necessary in the case of a tutor and a stock 
male bird. The former is to be kept in pure song, with 
the ultimate object of being used to transmit this song 
to the young birds. While on the stock bird we depend 
for the correct fertilization of all eggs laid by the hens 
to which he will be mated. 
To keep the tutor in low and faultless song, it is 
necessary that the bird should be kept in a cabinet, with 
restricted light, and a nourishing, but not too stimulating 
diet. With the stock male, the reverse is the case. To 
be successful in obtaining fertile eggs, the male bird 
must be vigorous and strong. He must be given plenty 
of exercise, and at the proper time the diet must be both 
rich and stimulating. This must be kept up all the way 
through the breeding season, otherwise the first nest may 
be good, but the second and third not so satisfactory. 
The fact that stock birds are too closely confined im- 
mediately prior to pairing to their respective hens is 
responsible for many failures. Stock males should be 
given all the exercise possible, and if a large aviary is not 
