34 CANARY-BIRD. 



should be well washed, to free it from 

 dust or insects of any description, and 

 then carefully dried in the sun. The 

 material may be preserved after the first 

 use, and on again being washed and dried, 

 will answer equally as well for succeeding 

 nests, during the season. 



The boxes, in which the birds are to 

 build, should be composed of basket or 

 wicker-work, with wire-work bottoms. 

 This allows any particles of dust which 

 may collect to fall through; and it prevents 

 the breeding of those small red-mites, who 

 prey upon, and in a very short time gene- 

 rally destroy, the young birds. 



In preparing the breeding-cage the bot- 

 tom should be covered with fine red or 

 silver sand, the former is the most prefera- 

 ble, or gravel, well dried, and laid to a 

 considerable depth along the whole floor. 

 This little precaution will often save the 

 life of a most valuable bird, which the 

 hen, in flying from the nest, might acci- 

 dentally pull after her, and which, if it fell 



