THE EAGLE AND THE CANARY 219 



loves to taste of a hundred and to have at least 

 a thousand on the table to choose from. 



Feeding the birds and keeping the cage always 

 sweet and clean would occupy most, if not the 

 whole of my time. But would that be too much 

 to give if it made me tranquil in my ovv^n mind? 

 For it must be noted that I have done all this, 

 mentally and on paper, for my own satisfaction 

 rather than that of the canaries. Birds are not 

 worth much — to us. Are not five sparrows sold 

 for three farthings? I have even shot many 

 birds and have felt no compunction. True, they 

 perished before their time, but they did not 

 languish, and being dead there was an end of 

 them; but the caged canaries continuing with us, 

 cannot be dismissed from the mind with the same 

 convenient ease. After all, I begin to think that 

 my imaginary reforms, if carried out, would not 

 quite content me. The "compunctious visitings" 

 would continue still. I look out of the window 

 and see a sparrow on a neighbouring tree, loudly 

 chirruping. And as I listen, trying to find com- 

 fort by thinking of the perils which do environ 

 him, his careless unconventional sparrow-music 

 resolves itself into articulate speech, interspersed 



