THE NIGHTINGALE. 25 



does not at all suit his constitution: so they "meat" 

 him, that is to say, they forcibly open his bill and compel 

 him to take little scraps of raw lean meat (flesh) which 

 have the effect, sometimes, of keeping the poor captive 

 alive against his will, and at last the instinct of self- 

 preservation gets the better of his fear and of his regret, 

 and he eats the messes that are set before him, on 

 which he does not thrive, quickly falling into a decline 

 and dying, unless he is at the same time liberally 

 supplied with insects of some kind. 



There is, however, no real necessity for this cruel 

 "meating" and the subsequent slow starvation on a 

 practically indigestible diet, for if the Nightingale is 

 allowed a full ration of mealworms, gentles, or similar 

 insects he will in the great majority of cases be unable 

 to resist their attractions, but, if left alone, will quickly 

 begin to pick them up, and soon become reconciled to 

 the inevitable, though certainly never to the same extent 

 as a young one that has been brought up by hand from 

 the nest, a by no means impossible or even a very 

 difficult feat, providing always that an abundance of 

 suitable insect-food is at the fancier's command. 



Whether the insects be young mealworms, infantile 

 silk-caterpillars, or baby cockroaches, is immaterial, a 

 nest of Nightingales will flourish on them, and ants' eggs 

 come next, but, naturally, are not so nutritious as the 

 fresh article, but require to be cautiously supplemented 

 with tiny morsels of raw lean meat, beef or mutton, 



