INSTINCTS AND HABITS OF BIRDS. 205 



has a remarkably loud, shrill whistle, and is 

 called, in some counties, the nut-jobber. 



The nest of the goldfinch is exceedingly 

 curious, and it is generally lined with the down 

 from the willow. This bird is very easily 

 tamed, and I have seen it perform some won- 

 derful tricks. Some years ago a German came 

 to this country, and brought some of these birds 

 and exhibited them. One appeared dead, and 

 was held up by the tail or claw without showing 

 any signs of life ; a second stood on its head, 

 with its claws in the air; a third imitated a 

 Dutch milk-maid going to market, with pails 

 on its shoulders; a fourth mimicked a girl 

 looking out at a window; a fifth appeared as 

 a soldier, and mounted guard as a sentinel; and 

 the sixth acted as an artilleryman, with a cap 

 on its head, a firelock on its shoulder, and a 

 match in its claw, and discharged a small 

 cannon. The same bird also acted as if it had 

 been wounded. It was wheeled in a barrow, to 

 convey it, as it were, to the hospital, after which 

 it flew away before the company. The seventh 

 turned a kind of windmill, and also stood in the 

 midst of some fireworks, which were discharged 

 all round it, and this without showing the least 



